“What the…” Howard tried to jump back, but his back was against the cave wall. Startled by Howard’s flinch, the thing in his lap jumped up and moved away a few steps. Howard stood up and equipped his sword. He stood there looking at the creature for a few moments, waiting to see if it attacked. It hadn’t attacked him while he was sleeping, so he didn’t think it would now. In fact, it just looked at Howard, its tongue lolling from its mouth, drool dropping to the ground.
“A dog?” Howard said, confusion evident in his tone. “No, no. Not a dog, a wolf.” Howard’s brain finally fully woke up. He realized that this was a young wolf pup. Brown fur covered it, with patches of gray and white starting to show. The pup was about the size of a nearly full grown German Shepard. It still had that “puppy” look about it. That made Howard lower his guard slightly. He quickly came back to full alert as the pup barked once and then sat down. Howard remembered the wolves he had to fight last night, and he wasn’t about to take any chances with this one.
“What do you want?” Howard asked, not really expecting an answer.
“Bark” came the answer. The pup then laid on the ground and put its head on its paws.
This must be a pup from the pack I saw last night. Howard thought. Why is it just laying there? “Are you hungry?” The pup jumped up on its feet, tail wagging. “Here,” Howard said, “have some of…” He looked down to get the piece of meat that he hadn’t eaten last night. It was gone. He looked back at the pup. It just stood there, panting. Little shit must have eaten it out of my hand. “Sorry buddy, I don’t have anything to give you right now.” He was lying but, how could the pup know?
The pup barked once, then turned and ran out of the cave.
That was weird, Howard thought. Probably better get moving before the pack comes back. He put his sword away and took out the waterskin when something caught his eye. Something on the opposite wall seemed to flash for a second. He forgot about the water and just stared at the wall. “What the…” he mumbled. A few seconds later, the flash came again. As he watched, he realized it wasn’t really a flash, but more of a wave of pale yellow light that passed over the wall. With his curiosity peaked, he walked over to the wall for a closer look. When he was within three feet of the wall, the wave of light came again. It was as if the light were highlighting what was on the wall. Mushrooms.
Food/Ingredient, Tunnel Mushroom: You have found a troop of Tunnel mushrooms. This pale white fungi is quite common and can be found in caves and other dark and dank places. They derive the name Tunnel mushroom from their long hollow stem, which resembles a tunnel. These mushrooms are safe to eat. There is a bitter taste to them if eaten raw, when cooked (boiled or sauted with a little thumbo butter and onions), they can be quite appealing. Tunnel mushrooms are an ingredient used in a myriad of potions and unguents.
Warning: If you come across a Tunnel mushroom that has a purple cap, DO NOT EAT (unless you don’t have any plans for the next week or so. Your brain will take you to places you never knew existed). They are highly hallucinogenic and addictive. Purple capped mushrooms are very rare and quite valuable.
“Bark!” The noise startled Howard, and he spun around, sword at the ready. He was getting pretty good and pulling that sword out of his inventory, if he did say so himself. And he did, because there wasn’t anyone else around that could say it for him.
The pup was back. He sat there, tail wagging, looking quite proud. On the ground in front of him was a creature that resembled a rabbit. It was about the size of a small dog. The thing had no fur. The skin was grayish blue with white spots all over. Its back legs were extremely powerful looking, and its ears were longer than he thought they should be. Four fangs protruded from its mouth. Two on the top and two on the bottom. All-in-all, the thing was terrifying. It looked liked something out of a child’s nightmare. It certainly wasn’t like the soft, cuddly bunnies from back home.
Creature, Shadow Hare: These creatures are common throughout the land, and are a source of food for many creatures, including the major races. They hunt smaller creatures, such as; rats, mice, jojobugs, and honey frogs. With their powerful hind legs they are able to leap five to six feet into the air. Their fangs are extremely sharp. These aren’t your typical skittish little bunnies. They enjoy a good hunt and have been known to take down a group of squirg just for fun. These would be a great addition to any Easter egg hunt.
“Bark, bark.” This caught Howard’s attention. When he looked at the pup, the pup nudged the shadow hare towards Howard.
“You want me to eat that thing?” Howard wasn’t keen on eating that thing. Then again, the dried meat wasn’t going to last him forever.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“Woof!” This was a different sound than the others the pup had been making. It nudged the hare again.
“I don’t know, boy,” Howard said, looking down at the hair. “Your pack could come back at any time. I don’t want to be here when they do.” When Howard stopped speaking, the pup lay down on all fours with its head resting on its paws and began to whimper. He felt as though the pup was crying. He wasn’t sure why he thought that, but he had the distinct impression that he was right.
Howard walked over to the wolf pup and kneeled down next to it. He began to pet the wild animal. As soon as his hand touched the wolf pup, a jumble of images shot into Howard’s mind. There were images of wolves, and caves. There were men armed with bows. The images came fast, so fast Howard couldn’t keep up. There didn’t seem to be any logic to them. He saw pups, and adults, running and playing. There were also images of the wolves running in fear. Among the images, there were creatures he didn’t recognize, and he thought that he saw something with tentacles that resembled what he had seen killing the wolves in the swamp. He pulled his hand away from the young wolf, and the images settled down.
“What the hell was that?” He yelled, shaking his head. The predictable screen made its appearance.
Specialty Skill, Racial Gift: Racial gifts are skills inherent within each Summoned. They are not awarded, like normal skills, but must be unlocked before they can be used. After they are unlocked, they will advance in the same way that normal skills do. Each Summoned will have between two and five gifts. Each gift is unique to the individual, though many will be similar in nature.
Racial Gift, Animal Affinity Tier 1 unlocked: You have unlocked your first Racial Gift. This gift gives you the ability to communicate with some animals. If there is a deep bond between the Summoned and the animal, communication can seem as though thoughts are being shared, even when separated by some distance. For animals that the Summoned does not have a deep connection with, what can be understood between the two depends on the intelligence of the animal and the intelligence of the Summoned. So, as for you, monkey boy, you will be lucky to understand a…
A bark from the pup brought Howard back to the situation at hand. “Sorry buddy…wait” He looked at the pup, who was now sitting on its haunches. “You know, I’ve just assumed you were a boy.” The pup tilted his head, looking confused. “Are you a boy? Oh yep, there it is. Definitely a boy. No doubt.” Howard moved his gaze back to the pup’s eyes. “You are gonna make the ladies mighty happy.” The pup turned his head to the other side. “Never mind.”
Howard put his hand on the young wolves’ head. This time, the images came at a much slower pace. It seemed much more conversational, as if the pup was trying to tell him a story. The first image was of a cave. Howard sensed that it was this very cave. There were a dozen, or so wolves and pups lying throughout the cave, asleep. The next image showed a torch being thrown into the cave. It was a bit blurred and Howard got the feeling that this was what the pup thought had happened. He had been asleep at the time. More torches were thrown in, and one of them hit a young pup. The pup yelped in surprise and pain as its fur caught on fire. This tore the pack out of their sleep.
Howard sat there with his hand on the pup’s head for some time. He pieced the images together until he got the full story. Men had attacked the den. First, they threw in torches to force the wolves out of the cave. Then they set their dogs upon them. The dogs were huge, nearly four to five inches taller than the wolves. Knowing they didn’t stand a chance in a fight, the wolves fled. The young pup, who Howard was now communicating with, dove into a small bush for cover. A massive dog passed by seconds later. Luckily, he had not seen the pup jump into the bush. From his hiding place, the pup watched as the dogs massacred his pack. Some of the larger wolves had fought back and three or four of the dogs were killed or severely wounded. It wasn’t enough. There were too many dogs, and they were too strong. The pup watched as a group of wolves headed for the swamp, dogs hot on their tails. A loud whistle rang out, and one of the men yelled “Back”. The dogs broke off their pursuit and returned to the men.
After recalling the dogs, the men threw the dead wolves into the back of a cart and headed north. The dogs trotted alongside the cart. It was some time before the young pup left his hiding spot. He sniffed around and then let out a howl that seemed way too powerful for his young age. A second and then a third howl pierced the night. After that, the pup wandered around, not daring to get too close to the swamp. He found a few more bodies that had once been members of his pack. He began to get tired and hungry, so he turned and headed back to the only place he knew. His den.
When he got there, he found a strange man sleeping in the cave. He didn’t look the same as the men who had hunted his kin. The man seemed…safe. The pup came up close to the sleeping man, but the man didn’t move. Smelling something delicious, he looked down. There was a piece of meat in the man’s hand. Slowly, the pup reached out and pulled the meat out and devoured it. He then curled up next to the man, laid his head on the man’s lap, and was asleep in seconds.
Howard stood back and looked at the young pup. He wiped a tear from his eye and let out a huge sigh. The pup nudged the hare again.
“Alright, alright. I’ll cook the damn thing.” Howard bent to pick up the hare, then stopped. “No,” he said, “You killed it, you carry it.” The pup bent its head and gently picked up the shadow hare in its mouth. “Put it over there,” he pointed to the wall where he had been sleeping. The pup trotted over and set the hare down. “We need to get some wood to make a fire.” Howard said as he started towards the cave entrance. “I guess we’re going to have to give you a name, huh?”