Chapter 4 - Someone Like Her

They weren’t a large group, only her, Ichakh and one of his kind, Akach, a female who seemed quite attracted to the former loner. The girl found this amusing, she could see the passion burning in Arkach’s flame and she liked to watch it flare and burn brighter when Ichakh was close.

It was a different passion from the compassion the girl held for her companions – not a kind, caring one but one that demanded possession and gave loyalty far fiercer than mere companionship did.

The girl did not know such feelings, but she was fascinated by it to no end.

Together they were on the search for food, Ichakh was leading as he could easily detect the sound of movements and the remnants of scents on the new spring soil.

They were following a trail unlike ever before, one that didn’t match any creature she had ever met. 

The trail lead them on until the sun had long disappeared below the horizon when they finally found what they were looking for. It ended right before a small clearing but just as the girl and her hunters crouched to start their attack, she froze in her tracks.

Inside the small clearing was…fire.

It flickered and whispered to her, so familiar she couldn’t help but pause and stare at it. Fire! Like the flames she ignited with her will, there was a fire burning right in front of her!

Seeing this, she couldn’t help but cautiously edge closer. The others around her held back and surrounded her, as always ready to protect her if necessary.

As she stepped forwards, her eyes grew wider.

Around the fire sat a group of creatures, clad in things she had never seen before but they were…two legged. Without fur. They had hands, like her, and feet like her and a face with a small nose and a mouth like her.

The girl touched her face and then looked at them with astonishment.

Like me! They’re just like me!

Amazed, she studied them under the cover of darkness.

They sat around the fire and appeared to eat meat that they had roasted with the heat of the flames that flickered between them. They wore far more on their skin than she did and it wasn’t fur either but she could see on their faces and hands that they had the same light complexion as hers.

They had hair like hers though not in the same vivid red but less vibrant shades like brown and black. They also had no horns atop of their heads but the similarities were nonetheless overwhelming.

Almost unconsciously she stepped closer despite Ichakh’s warning growl. Her movements made sounds, leaves rustling and dry branches breaking beneath her bare feet and both she and the creatures in front of her jerked at the sudden noise.

“Who’s there?” a voice bellowed, one of the male creatures stood up, forming sounds with his mouth. The girl stared at him, mesmerized at the fact that she could understand him.

She knew the principle of using sounds to communicate but so far she’d always been unable to understand them or reproduce them. But this, she…understood! It was sounds that translated to meanings she could use, the same words that had always been in her head.

A breathless laugh escaped her as she heard it, so great was the joy in her heart. She had found people like her!

But just as she drowned in joy, suddenly her senses warned her. The man at the fire had disappeared in a flash and instinctively, she could sense danger approaching.

Without thinking, she darted to the side, just in time to avoid a sharp, silver object jabbing at the place she stood earlier. Ichak and Akach growled, ready to fight and she herself crouched into a defensive posture, not thinking as she wrapped fire around her. 

Seeing this, the male figure hesitated.

“You…who are you? What clan do you belong to?” he asked with a deep voice and once again, she understood what he said.

But despite being well aware that the question was being directed at her, she backed away, unable to answer. By now, the other beings had also stood up, edging closer to her with wary expressions.

Her face twisted into a painful expression as she tried to figure out how to communicate. Could she…reproduce these sounds? If so, what should she say? She did not know what a clan was and neither did she have a satisfactory answer to the first question.

“A-ah,” she opened her mouth and tried to form the same sounds as he had but failed miserably. She could feel that she was able to do it, with practise, but the control over her voice was weak and she barely managed to form a single syllable.

So she looked at the male in front of her who still held the sharp silver object in his firm grasp. She saw his flame just like she saw those of her companions but it was different from theirs. Brighter.

She bit her lip and knew the only way to communicate was to reach out with her own flame but in order to do that, she had to touch him and she was very aware of the danger that silver object brought with it.

A sigh slipped over her mouth as she slowly advanced the group of beings that looked so much like her.

“You…can’t speak?” a female from the group asked and the girl’s gaze shot to her. She had a warm face and short brown hair and her orange-golden eyes flickered in the fire. Her flame was gentle but firm, the girl could see that many experiences had shaped the view of her world.

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The girl met her gaze and slowly, but deliberately nodded. Then she looked at the male again, whose flame was so determinedly strong that she figured he would be the leader of their group.

Ichakh and Akach edged closer to her as did one of her feathered companions. 

Slowly, the girl approached the male, the fire around her extinguished at her will and her hands were raised in a wary but open gesture. The male didn’t move, his grasp on the silver object tight but he did not jerk away as she slowly placed two of her fingers on his forehead.

Then, she took a deep breath and let her own flame’s glow seep into those fingers and with it her very heart’s intentions. The curiosity, the joy and the unwavering interest to get to know them, who were like her. She could only show him what was deep inside of her, her very core but she hoped it would be enough.

After she’d done that, she let her fingers fall and waited, signalling to Ichakh and Akach to wait for what was going to happen.

One of the females of the group, not the one with the warm flame but rather one with a boastful, widespread flame, edged closer to their leader. Her finger was pointed at Ichakh and Akach.

“Those are horned direwolves, Neiro. They’re at least as strong as a Sovereign, if not as an Ascendant!” She whispered but in the silence of the night, there was no one who hadn’t heard her words.

The girl didn’t understand most of it, but she figured horned direwolves was some sort of classification for Ichak and Akach’s kind. Neiro, as she looked closer she could see the name branded onto the leader’s flame. A name. So they also had names, even though they were like her. She didn’t have one.

She also had no idea what Sovereign or Ascendant was supposed to mean but the leader obviously did as his eyes grew wide and flickered to Ichakh, who began to growl fiercely.

The girl placed a hand on her companion’s head and slowly petted him, holding him back and silently telling him to wait. She knew he didn’t like being submissive but these were the first beings like her she’d ever met and she was quite unwilling to offend them.  

“It’s alright,” the leader finally said to his group, “She doesn’t seem hostile. I think… she’s a wildling.”

The group looked quite astonished at his words.

“A wildling? I thought they were made up!” another male echoed and looked her up and down, his flame filled with curiosity and desire, for what, she couldn’t tell.

She frowned, again not familiar with their words.

“It’s alright,” the leader said again, this time to her, “We’re a group of travellers. We’re Immortals...like you. Do you remember anything? Do you know who you are?”

His voice was softer now and the silver object was now loose in his hands instead of pointed at her. She could see gentleness in his flame and a genuine desire to know her. That alone made her want to communicate with him.

“…don’t…,” she tried to speak again and this time actually succeeded in forming a word. His face scrunched up in confusion.

“That’s weird. Usually we all have memories from before…,” he spoke, more to himself and some of his companions nodded, sharing his confusion. The girl shook her head and tried again.

“Woke…up…everything…new,” she forced her voice to obey and found it easier to speak after the first few words, “…found…companions…but…don’t know…much.”

After that, she paused, quite exhausted from so many words. Nonetheless, she felt satisfied that she managed to bring them out. As she spoke, understanding dawned on the man’s face and she had the desire to laugh, happy that she managed to somehow communicate.

“Do you remember some sort of feeling? Or is there something inside of you that feels trapped? Is that how you made me feel that earlier?” he asked softly and she smiled, slowly nodding again.

There was no sense in keeping it hidden, she figured, they were like her. Well, maybe not really like her. Now that she thought about it, the star that was inside of her and that called to the night sky from time to time, that was just her. There was no star inside of them, else she was sure she would feel it, see it.

Nonetheless, she decided to tell them. After all, they were the only ones of her kind she’d ever met.

So she pointed up in the sky and then to her chest. “Star…in my heart…me. Fire…in you. Touch with fire…communicates.”

By now, the words were getting easier, even though she didn’t manage to form an entire sentence yet. Considering she had never spoken before, she was quite proud of her achievement.

“Star...” the leader mused and then a light lit up in his eyes.

“Firakha,” a voice whispered, belonging another male, “She’s one of them, that’s why she doesn’t remember. I heard they can read the soul in form of a flame and summon incredibly powerful fire at will.”

The girl looked at him. Summon fire, she could. Did that mean they couldn’t? By now she could see so many differences…so was she not like them after all? But she did understand them, that was something.

“Are you…like me?” she finally asked, unable to keep her curiosity in.

The leader stared at her and then smiled.

“We’re not exactly like you but we’re considered to be of the same kind. We’re all Immortals at least. If you want to, we can take you to a place where you can learn. How to speak, who you are, things about this world…we can teach you, if you want to.”

His eyes were honest as was his flame and her first instinct was to jump right into his offer.

To learn about this world, to see this world and to talk to others like her was her wish, her most innate desire. But that meant…going with them.

And going with them meant leaving her companions.

The thought alone was a thorn in her heart and it made her face scrunch up painfully.

“My…companions…can’t leave them…alone,” she said with sadness in her heart. She wanted to learn, to talk to find others like her so badly but at the same time she was deeply connected to those she had taken under her wing. They had lived through a harsh winter, she had offered them her protection and to leave them now, to betray them that way…that was cruel.

“If it’s just those three, you can take them with you,” the kind-flamed female said with a gentle smile but that only made the girl laugh.

“Not just…three,” she laughed again, thinking of her troupe. An astonished look slipped on the female’s face and the leader turned to the girl again.

“You have more beasts under your command? How many?” he asked.

“Not…command,” she said with disgust. They weren’t her slaves. “Companions. Fifty two.”

Ichakh growled as if to strengthen her words.

“Fifty two?” another male, with the adventurous, desire filled flame echoed, this time a hint of respect and surprise in his voice.

“Well you can’t bring fifty two beasts with you, that’s for sure,” the leader said with a laugh, “I think you have a decision to make then. You can come with us or you can stay, we won’t force you.”

She hesitated at his words, torn.

“How about this, we’ll wait here for one more day and you’ll think about what to do,” the warm-flamed female offered, “If you want to come with us, come, if you want to stay, we’ll leave in a day’s time.”

The girl paused and then nodded.

“I…understand,” she said and then nodded once to the leader, “Thank…you.”

With that she nodded to her companions and shot off into the woods. There was much to think about and she had to consider the offer wisely and she didn’t want to waste another second.

On top of that, there was nonetheless prey to hunt and mouths to feed and a day was short in the woods.