Rory POV

Waking up to an empty muddy cave left a sick feeling in my stomach. I know Ema is still upset over last night, but she left me alone without a word. I saw her muddy prints trailing outside as I rolled up my bedding in my tight little nook. My red hair fell into my face as I stood barefoot in the squishy mud. The cool mud sank between my toes, distracting me for a minute. Ema would love to play in a cool muddy puddle like this. At the thought of Ema, I started to focus again, feeling my stomach twist again. I slip my untamed red hair into a messy braid as I walk toward the cave entrance. Ema is nowhere to be seen, but her footprints end at the base of a tree. She probably went for a treetop stroll to cool off. At least, I hoped that's all that happened.

Anxiety began to set in at the thought of Ema being out there in the forest alone and upset. I understand why she is upset. Sigh, I allowed my body to slump down against the base of the tree. Honestly, I don’t want to track down Mr. Applegate just to kill him, but he’s…a loose end that could result in our deaths. My head was beginning to hurt just thinking about this again and the way Ema and I were treating each other. Suddenly, I could feel my skin begin to crawl and nails start to burn as my body was forcing a shift. Shit. Stupid anxiety! I needed a distraction, so I opened up my wolf senses to focus on the world around me.

Closing my eyes, I was smelling the green leaves on the musky trees, morning dew on each blade of grass, and unfortunately the stinky craps of the forest creatures. Yuck. I could feel the stench of large bear crap in my mouth, causing me to vomit my dinner. Why did I have to smell bear shit? Why couldn’t I just smell sweet flowers or something? It’s spring, after all, damn it! The breeze was changing direction, carrying a flurry of new smells in my direction. A refreshing creek scent filled my nose, and I sighed in relief. Another familiar scent wafted my way. Ema! She was on her way back to me.

Focusing on the sounds of the forest, I heard Ema swinging through the treetops like I imagined she had been doing. I heard the thunk of each branch as she leaped from tree to tree in her small monkey form. On the edge of my hearing range, I started to hear footsteps. One person stepped gracefully like a dancer weaving through the brush with ease. The other person was heavy and sloppy in the way the person caught themselves on each passing tree as the person could hardly walk forward. Those people were trailing behind Ema. Did she know was being followed? Her hearing isn’t as good as mine, but she should still hear them coming. Maybe she heard them but didn’t care since we shouldn’t be in any danger. No one should be looking for us in our new identities after all.

Ema and her pursuers were nearing our cave. I was trying to remain calm, but I could feel anxiety rising inside of me. I can’t transform here. I need to stay calm. My heart beat rapidly with each step they took. Inhaling deeply, I couldn’t catch my breath. Holding my human form was becoming impossible. Claws scratched at the ground beneath, and I knew I had to get out of here. “Sorry, Ema,” I whispered into the air as I forced myself into my wolf form to keep from going into my frenzy form.

Shifting while sitting down turned out to be very painful. As my human ears faded into my skull, I hit my head against the thick trunk of the tree, causing my vision to become hazy. I could feel the blood mix into my red hair as my wolf ears poked through my braided locks. My hips ached as my legs changed shape and compressed until I was sitting on my haunches. Hands and feet folded into large fluffy paws with sharp black claws. The spine burst through my skin, and my skin was covered with fur wrapped around the bone to become a large fluffy tail. I could see my blood-red fur through the haze of my vision. I smelt Ema nearby and forced myself into the forest away from Ema.

I stayed close to the cave, hiding in a brown blur that poked and prodded me like a leafy bush. Praying my dark red fur blended into the brown mass of leaves, I quietly sat and listened to the scene in front of me. Patiently, I waited for my vision to clear, but I could make out Ema's amber-colored figure jumping down from the tree that I had been leaning against. She shifted to her simian beast form and quickly redressed herself. A shocked look dawned on her face as she scented the air. Behind her, she smelt her followers, and to her left, she smelt me, hiding in the bush. Ema didn't have a chance to react when her pursuers finally reached the clearing.

“What the-” Ema muttered as two men entered the clearing behind her. I could see her ears drooping behind her as she adjusted her hood and turned to face the men.

My vision leveled out as I observed the men. The first man was the graceful walker that moved like a dancer. His long, black locks reached midway down his strong back. The man was slender but very muscled, or at least he looked that way under his sleek, leather garments. His pale skin and long pointed ears indicated he was an elf. There was a dorky charm to his face that matched the intellectual facade he had. The way he carried himself illustrated his elf nobility. He had no visible weapons on him, only small potion bottles and odd trinkets that I had only seen in books. I sniffed the air for his scent in case I needed to track him. He smelt of leather-bound books, pen ink, and a burnt musk fire like a candle. Was he a scholar? Maybe from the wizard guild?

The second man was the opposite of the first man. He was tall with muscles under his grass-green-colored orc skin. Battle scars and tattoos were prominently displayed like jewelry on a noble. His beard was gruff and his hair screamed military cut. He carried a long sword, a few hidden blades, and some blast grenades. This man was massive, powerful, intimidating but sloppy with how he moved. His scent reeked of alcohol, putrid sweat, blast powder, and the steel of a sword. Was he drunk or suffering some ailment? Is he from the wizard guild?

"Excuse me," the elf guy walked toward Ema. I internalized my growl as he extended his hand to her. "Can we speak for a moment?"

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Ema backed away from the elf. "Not interested," Ema replied. She turned to walk toward the cave.

"Hey, wait," the elf reached out and grabbed her cloak. The cloak tore away from her body, dropping into his hand.

Ema's fluffy, amber fur brightly stood out amongst the green forest and gray cliff. She shrieked, "What the hell dude! I said I wasn't interested. Who just goes around stealing people's cloaks anyway. Are you some stalker or something?" Her amber tail bounced angrily.

"Listen…" He stopped studying her for a minute. "Mist…er… I mean, miss-"

"You did not just call me a mister! I am a simian woman! Hell, I have a dress on," she shouted. Her tail whacked the man in the face. "You are a rude, creepy jerk who stalks poor, unsuspecting victims!"

Shit. He pissed her off.

"I will admit to being a bit rude, perhaps being a jerk. But a stalker? No. Miss, I would never be so vile! My friend and I only wished to ask you a few questions," He huffed.

My growls were getting louder with each word the man spoke. I wanted to tear his leg off. The stupid elf was getting too close to Ema. Thankfully, the sloppy orc hadn't moved other than his slight swaying.

"Leave, Mr. Elf. I have nothing to say to you," Ema answered.

"Please, miss. My name is Silas. All I want to know is if you have seen anything strange around here. There was a theft at my guild, and you left hastily as my friend and I were discussing the whole thing." The elf who called himself Silas stopped Ema by grabbing her hand.

Okay. This Silas guy was becoming too much for me to stand. Growling loudly from the bush, I was done hiding. My emotions were churning inside me. Magic began rushing through my body from my ring. Charging forward, I watched Ema and Silas' stunned faces looking back at me. Growling more, I let my mouth open slightly. I was going to chomp down on the handsome, little elf's hand.

Three different things happened at that moment. First, the sloppy, clumsy orc closed the distance between us, and he held out his long sword in front of me to block me from the elf. Second, the elf turned toward me charging up some sort of light magic to blast me with. Third, Ema tried to tackle me out of the way of the sword and magic, but none of those things collided with me. I turned on my heel going around those three. Ema fell to the ground being barely scathed by the burst of magic. My anger bubbled up inside of me as I saw her arm bleed. The drunken orc stumbled onto the ground next to her. Silas reached down to Ema, possibly to help her, but all I could do was growl at this stupid elf.

“I apologize, miss,” Silas started. “Let me help-”

I snapped at his hand as he tried to touch Ema again. Ema looked at me confused and concerned by my actions. Part of me wanted to stop, but when I saw Silas get close to Ema, that part of me vanished. Ema tried to get closer to me, but the drunken orc swooped her up in his arms. The orc smiled like a dummy, believing he was helping. Silas came at me with more bursts of light. I dodged most of his magic as I approached him. He tried to force me backward with another burst of light, but I ducked down, crawling toward him. Snapping at his feet, Silas squealed as he hopped away. He barraged me with smoke bombs, which ignited my urge to chomp down into his fair, noble, elf skin. Turning on my heel, I dove into his next burst of magic, firmly biting his wrist. For a brief instance, I had won and my tail was wagging.

"Bad dog," Silas said smoothly as he sent me flying into the trees. Within a moment, I was back on the ground feeling my anger peak as I stood waiting for his next attack. No one calls me a damn dog! I waited for him to move, but he never did.

Instead, a cold rush of magic flooded my body, and each strand of my fur stood on end. Suddenly, the lightning returned, forcing everything back. I continued running forward as electricity discharged from my body. It felt like I was vibrating with magic lightning in my body. The lightning bolts appeared red as they discharged around me. I wanted to check on Ema, but I couldn’t control the electric magic pumping through me. Looking around, the men and Ema were out cold. Before I could try to approach anyone, I needed the magic in me to disperse.

Running into the cave, I hoped the magic would either run its course or I would pass out from exhaustion. Mud caked itself to the bottom of my red paws as I journey deeper into the cave. Red bolts of lightning strike the walls, and I immediately regret entering the cave. It was too late to turn back as I passed my campsite. Rocks fell as the cave began to crumble from the blasts. I have no control over my overwhelming emotions or raging magic. The only bright side is that I had shifted into my wild form. I just had to choose to attack the elf. I just had to argue with Ema. I had to steal the book from the wizard guild! It's been a series of bad decisions, and I still have more choices to make. So many damn choices!

I can feel tears prick the corners of my eyes. I tried to blink them away, but the wind passing by me made it worse. I kept running forward as I closed my eyes. Why was I doing this? Emalynn doesn't need this. She is in so much danger because of me. Those stupid guys are probably freaking out about a red wolf attack. The lightning bolts still haven’t slowed down. I am lucky this damn cave hasn't collapsed yet.

Slowing my run, I try to take deep breaths as my body continues down the dark tunnel. Muddy water splashes against my red fur. The water level rises up my legs as I continue forward. Breathing in, brown water kicks up onto my face as I wade through the muddy stream. The bolts of lightning strike the water, creating a red electric current through the water. Mud and sparks fly through the air. I didn't ask for a mud bath. Ugh. Breathing out again, I can feel the water level sink back down. My red fur is muddy brown, and all I can smell is burnt, muddy fur in the air.

Why is it always tunnels lately? First, I escaped the dark elf by traveling through and digging tunnels. Then, there was escaping those giant bugs to Pine Row, and Mr. Applegate took me through a tunnel under a mountain to get here. Now, I live in a damp cave in this gigantic forest, but I am still escaping into this cave tunnel to hide, again. I am either really stupid, or I am a coward. When I meet up with Ema later, we are getting out of these damn caves and tunnels. No more underground passages unless it is necessary. I want to live in the sun during the day and look out at the moon at night. I may be in hiding, but Ema and I will not become hermits or cave dwellers. We should have real beds and join another guild to get jobs to earn money. If my parents could do it with people after them, then I can do it too. I will accept being a thief, a hunter, a rogue, and even an assassin, but I will not be a coward. With that, my overwhelming feelings shattered. The lightning bolts sparked into a soft red glow around me as I opened my eyes. My pace slowed into a mild trot until I finally sat back on my haunches. The thumping of a wagging tail filled the space as I panted. Running was tiring, however, I succeeded in calming my magical rage and avoiding my wild form. This time, at least.

The glow lit up the cave although I could see well in the dark already. At some point, I began feeling like a candle or a fancy wolf flashlight. The cold rush of magic rushed through my body like an ocean current, causing some tingles in my legs and paws. I couldn’t understand where this magic was coming from. I have always been able to shift and use wolf beast Terran magic, yet now, I can glow red and randomly shoot off lightning bolts. Clearly, my emotions play a huge role in my ability to use magic, however, it doesn't make sense. My life doesn't make sense anymore. Still, it's my life to live. My choices to make. I have so many things to decide on, but I am making my choices, starting with leaving this damn soggy cave for a warm bed and a shower. Now, I just need to find my way back…