Xavier slept, his mind reeling with dreams again. Myriad possibilities spread before him, begging for him to select a path, and then it happened. One of the possibilities was a familiar wood cabin room with a single table and two chairs. One of those chairs was occupied though and the woman turned to face him. Her eyes were replaced by what appeared to be bottomless pits lit with numerous pinpoints of light. Strangely, though he knew that should disturb him deeply, he felt comforted and trapped in those eyes. Breaking from their gaze a few moments later he refocused on her face, framed by vermillion curls, he recognized Danu from their discussion before he came to Arath.
Xavier stepped forward and was suddenly within the cabin once again, he made his way over to the chair and sat down across from the Goddess. So many questions formed on the tip of his tongue he had no idea where to start.
“Well, you have surprised me in your choices so far Alex, or should I call you Xavier now?” Her voice was silken and sweet to his ears, holding all the warmth and allure of a trusted friend and confidant. “Barely two weeks in the world and already you have mastered a nexus and become a master of some ruins.” She laughed softly before leaning forward to rest one elbow on the table and cup her chin in her palm. “And when you wake, you are going to go villager hunting as well. Very busy indeed.”
“Yes, but I don’t know how much of that has been my doing and how much was your prodding me in the right direction.” He replied earnestly. The thought had been gnawing at him since he had really examined and updated his attributes, but he had no way to ask her, until now.
“Oh, it's all been you. Yes, there are prophecies and foretelling’s that speak of an individual such as yourself, but fate can be funny that way. Just because something is fated to happen doesn’t mean it will happen at a certain time or by a specific individual. You are a nexus, you could be the one who answers my hopes in stabilizing this world, or you could hide away in a little forest cave and never become more. If that happens then it falls to another to make the attempt and possibly fail. Come now, I know you read what the Norns and Fates were said to say about it. Where do you think the inspiration came from?”
Those last words gave him pause and he cocked his head slightly as he studied her. She smiled gently at him and nodded as if to affirm what she had said. “You mean you inspired legends in my world?” He asked her with a slight quiver in his voice, how long had she been involved in the affairs of Earth, weren’t gods myths?
Her smile widened slightly, and she shook her head gently. “Now is not the time to discuss that, Xavier. Explore, grow, and learn more about the world you inhabit. It will answer some of your questions though I imagine you will have more for me when next we meet.”
He grasped at that concept. “So, we will meet again? This isn’t just chance or a dream. I’m actually here talking with you?”
She laughed softly again. “Fate defined is fate changed. Chances are likely we will meet again but to say one way or another changes the strands of your future. And who’s to say your being here isn’t in your dreams? How better to meet with a god simply?”
He slumped back in his chair her words only raising more questions that he was now sure she wouldn’t answer, not yet at least. “I see.” He groused. “I do have to thank you for bringing me to Arath though. I’ve felt more alive and happier there than I ever did back on Earth. It’s been a wonderful experience so far, even with the monsters and fighting.”
She smiled gently at him once again and rested her fingertips on his forearm. “I had a feeling you would feel that way. It's why I chose you. Our time is nearly over though, and you should wake for your travels rested, not worrying about what was said here.” Her touch filled him with warmth and comfort and his eyes began to close. “I’m watching you Xavier, don’t disappoint me.” With those words in his head, he slipped into the silent void of dreamless sleep, where the world faded to shadows, and even the whispers of thought fell away into deep, unbroken stillness.
And Xavier slept deeply until he was woken by Ella nudging him with her foot again. It had become her usual way to wake him when the sun started rising in the morning. However, he rose quickly this morning as it marked the start of their newest adventure. He was excited to set out and the pair moved about quickly gathering their waterskins, weapons, and a variety of foodstuffs including dried meat, berries, and veg. Their pouches stuffed to bursting they bid farewell to Aelriva, who could not leave the area and thus would remain behind to continue Xavier’s will before they turned towards the east and the river that would guide them to Bramblegate.
He had figured out that it was spring in this part of the world. The mornings were cool and crisp but warmed to a pleasant comfortable temperature by midmorning and continued that way until dusk fell. A slight but playful breeze sang in the branches bringing birdsong and the ever-growing murmur of the nearby water as they walked. It was a good day to travel Xavier thought to himself. He breathed deeply enjoying the fresh air fragrant with the scents of the forest, wildflowers, and young leaves, underscored by the earthen aroma of the dew-soaked soil. They broke free of the surrounding trees, discovering the shore of the meandering flow that was the Silverflow River. It was deep and wide in this area. Its waters flowed roughly from the southwest to the northeast as if to guide them precisely to where they were told to go.
The first day passed relatively quietly. They were able to hunt several small rabbits to supplement their dried meat and increase the number of hides they had to trade with as well. Ella pointed out other plants that could be harvested as food even if they had no real herbal value. Another night of skewered cooking though made Xavier reaffirm the need to get cooking supplies such as pots and pans and some sort of grill when they got to the town. This continued the relatively peaceful progress for several more days.
On the night of the third day out from their settlement, they were splitting the night for watch once more Xavier sat on a stone at the edge of the firelight and peered out into the darkness. The air had cooled once more so he stayed close enough to be warmed by the flame but far enough away that he didn’t lose his eyes adjusting to the darkness. He had been sitting in this fashion for several hours now and it wouldn’t be long before he woke Ella to take her turn when he noticed it. The woods had gone silent, besides the whisper of the wind in the trees there were no other sounds.
He leaned forward as he looked about, straining to hear anything that might indicate the sudden change. The woods remained eerily quiet and still. Even the breeze seemed to calm as if the whole world was holding its breath in anticipation of what was to come.
There, off to his left, away from the river and deeper in the woods he heard the sudden howls. Tensing, as he still remembered the creatures that chased him during his first days in the world. He tightened his grip on his spear and moved over to wake Ella. He held a finger to his lips as her eyes opened and then motioned to his ear before indicating the direction the noise had come from. She rose quickly and scooped up her bow, an arrow nocked to the string in moments as she sought to hear what had prompted him to wake her. It wasn’t long before she heard them as well.
They looked at each other, silently debating the relative safety of the fire or the desire to investigate the threat. Before they both crept into the undergrowth moving as quietly as possible towards the ruckus. As they came closer to the howls they increased in frequency before changing instead to barking and snarling. Whimpers of pain and a thunderous roar suddenly drown out the noises briefly. The duo paused both looking alarmed as they reconsidered their choice. That did not sound small, nor like something they could or even should help. However, if something dangerous was close to their budding home they knew they needed to investigate.
It was not much longer before the scent of blood hung coppery in the air and they came to a clearing. In the center of it, a large black cat stood, its body covered with deep wounds, the blood matting its fur and slowing its movements. Around the beast were several broken bodies of the same wolf-like creatures that Xavier remembered but three still harried the dying creature. Xavier moved to head back to the fire, hoping to avoid being noticed by either type of beast when Ella rested a hand on his shoulder and pointed. Cowering between the paws of the large cat was a small black bundle of fur. A baby of the creature obviously and it was clearly terrified of its pending fate. Ella scowled slightly pointing at the closest canine as she spoke, “Shardfangs.”
They watched as the canines spread out, once again circling the cat and causing it to dance about trying to face the remaining ones all at once. When one of them darted forward from the cat’s right side, aiming to snap at the cub, the feline's great paw caught it and tossed it nearly a dozen feet away in a desperate blow. The strike was enough to throw the beast but not enough to cut through the armor of its scaled shoulders. That attack proved to be just a little bit too much however and it overbalanced before collapsing to the ground. Its body still offered protection to the cub which still huddled near its parent as it struggled to get back to its feet seeking the only solace that it knew.
As Xavier watched, waiting for the expected end and lamenting the death of such a young beast an arrow flashed into view sinking into the side of one of the shardfangs sinking into a gap between the scales as it moved and drew its attention.
Xavier glanced at Ella as she nocked another arrow and his eyes went wide, “What are you doing?” He demanded hefting his spear in one hand and quickly drawing the dagger. “Even if we kill the wolves, shardfangs, whatever they are, the cat is still going to die.”
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Yes,” she hissed as she sighted another wolf and loosed the arrow. “That does not mean the cub has to die though. It is old enough to live without her, especially if we take care of it. I have never seen their like in these woods so it must be something rare or new to the area.”
Xavier frowned as he weighed their odds. He was still not a strong or confident warrior, not enough to face three large wolves even if he had Ella’s help, but she had already committed them with her actions, and he moved to protect her while she shot.
The first wolf she had hit was drawing close now and he could see the blood that soaked the fur around its mouth. A mouth that when opened revealed deadly sharp teeth waiting to sink into soft human flesh. Gritting his teeth, Xavier set his feet and thrust the spear forward. The shardfang nimbly sidestepped the thrust and continued forward. A second wolf moved up behind it and circled to the other side. It was rewarded with an arrow sprouting from its hindquarters where the scales were less plentiful.
“You had better do something. I am running out of arrows Xavier.” Ella gasped as she nocked one of her few remaining. “Use the knife it is more likely to cut the scales than your spear.”
Growling softly Xavier stepped back, narrowly avoiding the gnashing teeth as the wolf charged him. As it ran past, he lashed out with the dagger his heart already sinking realizing there was no way he was going to be fast enough to hit it this time when a long wound opened in its side and the dagger, for a moment at least, seemed long enough to be a sword.
He only had a moment to register the surprise before the second wolf was in his face. He jammed the spear sideways into the beast's mouth saving his flesh, but the wood snapped in two as the wolf bit down savagely. That was enough of a gap to let him drive the, now once again, dagger into the creature's eye. The sharp blade sunk deep and penetrated the wolf’s brain sending it twitching to the ground. Stumbling at the change in weight pulling his hand forward before he could free the blade, he jerked backward, and the knife slipped free from the beast’s skull.
Ella had sunk her last arrows into the wolf that still stalked around the cat pulling its attention to them as well. Bloodied it moved forward warily as Xavier turned searching for the first beast. He was too slow however and pain exploded in his body when the charging wolf crashed into him.
The large wolf bore him to the ground exacerbating the damage caused by the initial impact. Xaver gasped as its weight drove the air from his lungs and he struggled to keep the snapping teeth from his face. The hot fetid breath of the monster flowed around Xavier making him gag as he tried to regain his breath and fight back. Lacking the staff he had before to prevent the wolf's teeth from finding flesh Xavier shoved his forearm into the maw of the canine. He screamed as the sharp teeth dug into the meat of his forearm and struck the underlying bone. Luck held with him as they didn’t crack under the pressure. His other hand, still holding the dagger flailed wildly stabbing the oddly sharp blade clean through the scales on the torso of the wolf, covering him and it in more blood until the wolf huffed roughly, its jaws still locked on Xavier’s arm, and collapsed atop him.
The lone surviving wolf slowly came to the realization that the rest of its hunting pack lay dead or dying and raised its head letting loose a long slow howl before it turned and ran off into the forest, three of Ella’s arrows still protruding from its sides. As the battle ended Xavier received an increasingly familiar sound and prompt.
Ding!
You have slain a level 5 Shardfang wolf. x 2 +250 Experience.
Ella rushed to where Xavier lay pinned beneath the wolf's corpse and helped pry its jaws, locked even in death, open and roll the body off of the man. Gingerly he got to his feet with her assistance and looked about the carnage. Holding his wounded arm close to his body he fished around in his pouches looking for some of the forest sage, hoping to slow the bleeding before wrapping it in what little cloth they had scavenged from his old clothes. Hesitantly he glanced up to the corner of his vision and saw that between the tackle and bites, he had just over a quarter of his health left.
“Too close again,” he thought to himself. “I need to do better. Or maybe get better gear. I am just a punching bag as it is now.” Glancing at his arm he revised his thought. “Well, more a chew toy I guess.”
He looked to Ella. “Are you all right?” He asked as he looked her over. She didn’t appear to have been touched and other than the light sheen of sweat from the fight she was whole and intact.
“They did not get close to me and the last one ran off.” She replied as she started retrieving what arrows she could. When she got close to the large cat though it lifted its head slowly. Blood loss and exertion had taken a mortal toll on the beast, and it watched her with its piercing violet eyes already starting to glaze over though the intelligence behind them had not yet dimmed. Around where its paws lay on the ground the little cub still climbed and began to mewl softly.
Xavier moved over to Ella’s side, and they studied the cat. The fight over and the cat merely lying gave them ample opportunity to actually get a good look at its features. Beyond the unsettling depth of its dying gaze, the creature was a marvel to behold. Its fur was a deep obsidian black, with faint, shifting patterns that resemble trails of smoke or constellations scattered across its hide shifted as it moved giving the impression of a roiling shadow. One other feature truly made it stand out from other beasts; it had a twin pair of tails each ending in a wicked barb. They lay still upon the ground now, further indication that the cat was dying and too weak to react. Xavier noted the pain in the cat’s eyes and hesitantly moved closer. A soft growl rumbled in the beast and the little cub arched its back hissing slightly. Gently Xavier held out a hand soft gentle murmurs parting his lips as he carefully moved close enough for the adult cat to smell his fingers. Its lips curled back a moment then its body slumped, and it leaned its head into his hand. It seemed to understand it was dying and that he wasn’t a threat. Slowly it lowered its great head and nuzzled the cub for a few moments before its jaw settled on the ground. It closed its eyes released a long slow breath, and stopped moving.
Xavier stood up slowly, tears in his eyes at seeing such a magnificent creature pass from the world. He looked to Ella and then to the cub. It could potentially survive on its own but he had his doubts. As if reading his mind Ella came to his side and pulled the dagger from where he had sheathed it. She moved to one of the wolf corpses and cut several small strips of meat from the body. She brought them back to Xavier and, after cleaning the blade, sheathed the dagger for him before holding out one of the strips.
Xavier took the strip of meat from Ella and knelt again. His slowly mending arm held close to his body so it wouldn’t be mistaken with the fresh cut flesh, he held the meat out in his good hand towards the cub. Hesitantly, still mewling for its parent to react, it moved towards the proffered food, sniffed it, and then started to gnaw on the morsel. A deep rumbling purr emitted from the cub as it ate its fill.
As the sun broke the horizon, the blood had stopped dripping from his arm, the wounds mostly closed, and his hit points recovered from repeated mouthfuls of the healing herb. He was getting sick of the “furry” taste of the herb despite its obvious positive effects. Together with Ella they diligently spent the wee hours of the morning and well into midmorning skinning the wolves and harvesting edible meat from them. One of the hides was scraped as clean as possible and bound around the cuts of flesh to preserve and protect it as much as possible. They left the body of the large cat in peace though and the cub would alternately go between sleeping between its still paws and following the two as they went about their work. Xavier took the time, as well, to craft another dozen arrows to supplement the four Ella had been able to recover and another spear.
All their work completed, the duo looked to the body of the cat and then to the cub. Xavier had kept feeding it small scraps of meat while they had worked and it increasingly seemed to trust him, for now. They picked up their belongings and moved to head back towards the river when the cub yowled causing them to pause and look back. It stared at what was most likely it mother and yowled again. When the corpse didn’t move the cub moved to nuzzle its head against the larger one of the adult beast, obviously without any reaction. It yowled once more in clear distress as it padded softly over to Xavier staring up at the human. Xavier crouched down and reached out, the cub allowed itself to be comforted with gentle petting and being scratched behind its ears before it moved over and rubbed against his leg.
Xavier smiled sadly towards Ella. “It seems we can’t just leave it behind now.” She smiled back and nodded her assent before Xavier scooped the cub into his arms. It weighed more than its stature would have indicated, much to his surprise, but he held it with little difficulty as they started their walk.
“So, you have no idea what type of cat this is?” Xavier asked of Ella. “You knew the wolves readily enough.”
“The wolves are not uncommon in these woods. I have never seen a cat like that one before, however. It must have been migrating through the area with the adult when the wolves found it. Maybe someone at Bramblegate or Aelriva might know what it is.” She replied, she was more wary now having fought with the wolves and one of them escaping. Her eyes roamed the trees while they walked, and she kept an arrow on the string just in case.
Xavier trailed her, the cub cradled in one arm and his other hand holding the shaft of the spear to his shoulder. His mind wandered back over the fight with the wolves, and he pondered how he could have done things differently and maybe saved himself some pain when one moment stuck out in his memory. How exactly had he cut the first wolf when it ran past him in the beginning? He knew he had been too far away for the dagger to hit it and it seemed like the weapon had changed length to permit the strike but that couldn’t be possible could it? He glanced down at the sheathed blade at his side, no it was still only dagger length. He mulled on it for a while as they walked then raised his voice.
“Ella, when we were fighting the wolves there was a moment when I am certain your dagger was longer than it should be. It allowed me to cut a wolf that I should not have been able to reach.”
She paused, stopping in the middle of the path refusing to meet his eyes for several minutes. Finally, she looked back at him. “That would be because it is an enchanted blade. There is more to it than just being a dagger. It is an ethyr’vael a soul or essence blade. I found it in the ruins. I think it might be the pinnacle of creation that the Sylmyrian people made, weapon-wise at least, or so Aelriva would have me believe.” She smiled weakly at him now that she had admitted the origin of the blade as far as she was aware. “I did not lie when I said it was mine though. I found it there and thought you could do better with it. Who knows maybe you will find out more about it as it comes to know and trust you better. Legends speak of soul blades in this world that can do wonderful things. I just do not know the blade fully myself.”
“By the gods,” Xavier thought to himself. “They are surely just toying with me now. There is no way this is all happenchance, not the settlement, Ella, Aelriva, this bloody knife, and now a strange cat cub following me around. I know Danu said I was a nexus, but this is too much.” He moved over to the edge of the path and sat on a large stone reeling in the overwhelming thoughts that pressed down upon his consciousness. He needed time. He needed to actually process everything that had come to pass since he was offered the choice by the goddess, to come to grips with the changes that had taken the place of his simple life back on Earth. He needed time to just think.
The cub, forgotten in his arms as life overwhelmed him mewled and pushed its head against his chest. Unthinkingly he let go of the spear and began to scritch the little beast's head. Ella simply watched him and the woods. She knew her words had shaken him deeply. She didn’t blame him either, from what he had told her and what she had seen, his life had been completely upended, roiled about, shaken up, and then jammed back down in this world. She began to carefully roam about near where he sat, eyes watchful for danger, while he was lost in his head. His eyes were semi-vacant as he had taken on a thousand-yard stare lost in his self-doubt and fear. His features twisted every so often as a new train of thought took over but each time they stilled back into the vacant lost expression.
Several hours, passed as he sorted out his thoughts. Mechanically he kept appeasing the demanding cub, Ella retrieving meat for him to feed it, as she passed by in her watchful duties. Sometime around mid-afternoon, there was a change. An oddly warm breeze blew down from the north and on it was an instantly recognizable aroma, smoke. Xavier was immediately shaken from his stupor and lurched to his feet, the motion dumping a squawking cub from his lap, and he took off running down the path until he came to a rise. In the distance still, at least a day's walk from where they were rose a huge plume of smoke. Its base was lit with a terrible orange glow. In his mind, he could hear and see the flames flickering. A cold lump developed in his gut as Ella and the cub joined him on the hillock. Bramblegate was burning. The two shared a look, they had slowly become able to understand each other more through just that gesture, Xavier scooped up the cub and they began to run.