--Point of View: Katie--

It has been several months since my first trip to the ruins after the discovery and we have been working without rest, every day since then. Everyone was working to excavate the reactor and get it operational. The work was difficult, and we often worked late into the night, but the result was well worth the trouble. It was up and running, at least for now, providing us with more than enough power to run our equipment while we studied it.

The secrets of how these ancient machines functioned were still quite blurry to us. We understood how they worked just not why. I do not know if that makes sense. Thankfully though, we had managed to at least piece together enough information from old books and artifacts to start the device. Once it was up and running, the reactor produced an almost infinite supply of power compared to the generators we had currently and took up not even a tenth of the space. They really were a marvel. We hoped to someday reach the peak of our ancestors using their power. There was so much to learn from them.

Almost as exciting as the reactor was my new job. My days had drastically changed after we began the extraction. Thanks to my findings, I was moved off the scouting team and assigned to work with the research group as an assistant. It was tough at first, but I have come to appreciate it. I no longer had to trek out into the barren ruins, treading through all the debris and fallen rubble, hoping to find something of use. Instead, I was tasked with taking notes, fetching supplies, and overall, just performing random tasks for the engineers that were working around the clock to uncover the mysteries of the reactor.

They were not happy with my presence at first, but quickly came around when they found out I was the one that made the initial discovery. I sat around and answered questions for hours that night. It was nice and a lot of fun, but I did miss my old team. They would stop by on occasion if they could come up with a decent enough excuse to visit but even that was becoming more difficult. Ever since that day, all other scavenging activities had ceased.

Things were coming to a halt today as well. It was Sunday. Everybody was heading back to base to pray and make an offering. It was pretty much the only scheduled break we got any more besides sleep. Even those of little faith usually went along just for a moment of peace. I on the other hand had volunteered to stay here and continue my work, having plenty of paperwork to finish up.

I was not really the religious type to begin with, though I did attend from time to time to fit in. Tom and Robert went regularly. Chris claimed to go but nobody ever saw him there so who knows what he was actually up to. Knowing him, he was probably asleep. Nonetheless, it would just be me in the lab today. I would finish my notes and monitor a few lesser experiments. The outer ring of the building was where some of the low-level experiments were held and was the furthest I was permitted to go. Only the small group of senior engineers we had with us were allowed to enter and lay hands on the reactor itself. It was encased in a glass dome that sat in the inner ring with various other pieces of equipment sprinkled all around it. I often watched them from my office window, intrigued. Alas, it was just me today so no distractions and no excuses for late work.

I typed late into the morning, my reports taking longer than I would have liked but that was to be expected when you had no one watching over you. Experiment results, loose transcripts, and a bit of my own thoughts were all cataloged. It did get old after a while though, and I found myself just wandering around the building looking for something to take my mind off things. I prodded at a few contraptions, browsed through a bookshelf or two, and paced around. Everything was in its place or at least most everything.

As I was walking past the main corridor, something peculiar caught my eye. The central ring where the reactor sat was dug up and hastily encased to isolate the area. It was cobbled together and looked barely any better than the rubble we replaced but that was intentional. We could not risk damaging the reactor and its components, most of which we still did not understand. We boarded up what we could and installed a glass dome on top of everything to keep it clean.

What caught my eye though was the fact our access door, leading into the rest of the old subway, was slightly ajar. It was a fairly heavy steel door that was supposed to close automatically, but the rushed installation resulted in a less than stellar performance. The scientists were particularly anal about everything, particularly doors, so I could not picture them just leaving it open. Even more so after I was chastised for forgetting to keep my own office down closed. It had something to do with keeping contaminants out even though the place was impossible to keep clean. My nose was soon pressed against the glass as I stared at the door, wondering if I should dare break protocol for just a few moments to run inside and close it.

They would never know, right? A quick rummage through desks for a scribbled down access code followed by a quick tap on the keypad beside the main entranceway and I was inside. With the utmost haste, I sped over towards the door, but stopped halfway there to marvel at the reactor. I had seen it before we dug it up, but now it was cleaned and in full light. It consisted of a central sphere with several pillars that circled around it. It gave off a low hum and glowed faintly from its core. It was a beautiful emerald-green color. The alure to just reach out and touch it was strong, but it was ill advised if you wanted to keep all your fingers.

After I managed to wretch my attention back to the matter at hand, I continued over to the door and gave it a light push to lock it back into place. It closed with a satisfying click, and my job was done. Or at least it should have been. Upon taking no more than a few steps away, the door was slowly pushed open with a loud squeak. Lousy job they did I told myself as I turned back to shut it once again but was met with something unexpected. A large paw emerged from the door, followed by a snout. A red snout. I do not know where I gathered the courage from, but I threw myself against the door and attempted to forcibly close it before the intruder could go any further.

"Get back. Go away!" I shouted, pressing on the door with all my strength and with surprise, succeeded.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

The paw and muzzle would retreat, and the door would slam closed. That was far easier than I expected. I was honestly a little stunned on how well that went. A momentary victory that was short lived as I quickly realized the fight was not over. The handle on the door slowly started to turn and my heart sank. It knew how to work doors. Though I suppose if it understood me, it was at least somewhat intelligent. An attempt to brace the door was made, but I was easily pushed aside when the creature started to toss around its weight. I could only back pedal and watch as the crimson beast wiggled its way through the doorway until it was standing before me, much like our last encounter.

I found myself walking back slowly, trying to distance myself. I still had no idea what this thing wanted, and I did not plan on asking before making a mad dash for the door that led out of the inner ring. The passage was too small for it to follow unless it wanted to smash up the place, which I guess really would not be much of a hassle for it. These thoughts of escape turned out to be foolish though, as in an instant, the beast had outpaced me and cut off my retreat. It towered over me and let out another low growl. It was angry and I knew why.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Please don't hurt me." I sputtered as I plopped down onto my behind. “We had to come back and get the reactor. I promise I told nobody about you!”

It raised an eyebrow in amusement, or did it? That could have been a combination of terror and adrenalin. I could not tell at this point. My mind was spinning. We both sat in silence for a few minutes, the beast standing guard in front of my only escape while I just laid in a heap on the floor, not daring to move. This was the first time I actually got a good look at the beast. It resembled a wolf but was far larger than any I had ever seen, myself not even coming up to its shoulder. Honestly, if the circumstances were different, I would have found it quite stunning, its red pelt glistening in the light. Now though was not the time to admire. This beast could slaughter me in an instant if I made the wrong move but at the same time, I did not believe it would do so. It has had so many chances up until this point that I assumed it had another motive. What did it want with me?

“What is this?” spoke a low, rumbling voice.

My eyes went wide with surprise as I frantically looked around for the source of the voice, hoping to see a fellow worker here to rescue me. A quick scan of the barren room would deflate any momentary hope I had because there was not another soul here besides myself. Who could have spoken then? The answer came almost immediately as I felt a warm breath on the back of my neck. I turned to find myself staring into a pair of golden eyes. That is right, I forgot my situation for just a moment.

“Perhaps you don’t understand me? It has been a century or two since I last spoke.” Boomed the voice, coming from non-other than the wolf that was inches from my face.

“You speak?” Was all I was able to sputter as I stared in disbelief. This was the last thing I would have expected.

“Yes, yes I do. Although, this is only the second time I have had the opportunity to use it since I arrived in this world.” Replied the wolf, their speech slow but easily understandable. “But back to the topic at hand. This machine. What does it do?”

The wolf had walked over and sat down beside the reactor, motioning with its head. It wanted to know what we were doing here most likely, but would it be a smart idea to tell him what this thing does? Well, I suppose it could not hurt. What would a beast do with a generator? I cannot imagine his home had electricity.

“Uhh, well this is an ancient reactor. We were searching for one for a long time in hopes it would solve our energy crisis. It’s what powers all these lights and equipment.” I explained, my eyes darting back and forth between the wolf and the now unguarded exit.

The wolf just stared for moment, his brow curling momentarily as he considered what she had just told him. “I see. I do not completely understand what you mean but I think I get the general idea. This machine produces a lot of power, and you are making use of it. Correct?”

“Yes, that pretty much sums it up” I replied, still a little surprised I am having a conversation with a giant wolf. “We don’t intend to keep it here though if that is what you are concerned about. We will be leaving with it and returning home once we can do it safely.”

The beast nodded as he turned his head to inspect the reactor once again, his focus falling onto the symbols that were engraved across the surface of the machine. We were not sure if they served any purpose besides being decorative, but they were incredibly intricate and quite beautiful to look at. The wolf must have also found them intriguing because it nearly had its nose pressed against one.

“We are not sure what they mean but they are quite beautiful are they not?” I stated, taking a step closer to peek at what symbol it was inspecting so closely. “We have tried to decipher their meaning, but it’s completely different from their main language.”

“To move without effort,” said the wolf calmly, turning his attention to me and then back to the writing on the machine. “These are runes. Are they no longer used?”

I stared blankly for a second as what they said slowly registered, swiveling my head between the symbols and the wolf, completely astonished. Could it read these? We have been trying for decades to figure out what these blasted things meant! If this creature could decipher them then that means we could discover so much more. I had to find out what I could, while I could.

“So wait, you can read these? How is that possible? Where did you learn this?” I asked, my once growing fear replaced by an overpowering curiosity. I moved in close, wanting answers.

“Why wouldn’t I be able to read runes? They were commonplace in my time. How else would one use enchantments or magic in general? I guess things really have changed after all this time.” replied the beast.

“Runes? Your time? Magic? Okay, I think this is going to take a bit. Can you explain like, everything?” I asked as I frantically pulled out a pen and paper.

The beast smiled a very toothy grin as he sat back and turned to face me, his towering presence slightly less intimidating now that potential knowledge may be gleamed from them. I probably should have been more concerned for my well-being in this situation but that took a backseat for the moment. Knowledge was something I always thirsted for and particularly anything involving the old ones was something I never hesitated to uncover. I had to know.

“I suppose I could. It gets quite boring living on your own for a few centuries. It would be nice to have somebody to talk with. So, I will make you a deal. If you visit me and have a nice chat from time to time, I will gladly tell you what I know, but…” The beasts face turned serious as it leaned down so its face was level with my own. “You will tell no one of my existence. Man was not so kind in my time, and I can guarantee not much has changed. I do not want trouble. Do you understand?”

With a gulp and beads of sweet running down my face, I nodded. “I think I can make that work.” I said hesitantly, “I would just need a safer place to meet you. The base is very risky.” I looked around the room, honestly stunned that nobody was around to witness this.

“Agreed. Someplace with a bit more room and some distance away from this noisy contraption. The constant thumping would likely drive me insane.” He remarked.