The New Druid

Una opened her eyes and immediately winced in pain. If felt like daggers were pushed into both of her temples. Sitting up she blinked in painful bursts of light. The Grand Elm mist was gone. She sighed and rubbed her throbbing head.

Don’t eat the stocks. Eburacon had told her.

She curled up into a ball and rested her head on her knees. She was starting to understand why her father was always so impatient with her. Why couldn’t she have listened to him back then? No, she was right, the curse was lifted. The villagers would be saved, her father was safe, Orin was...

Orin. The old man who she thought she had changed for the better, was doomed because of her intervention. He knew it was her, he could explain everything to Cathal. She stood and ran towards the edge, blinked, and spread her gull wings.

The sun was about to set and her wings grew tired. She had been at this since noon and there wasn’t a trace of man. There was nowhere left he could have been hiding. Had the wolves gotten to him first? They would have left a sign if they had. She thought back to the pile of bones just beside the root and shivered, there were bloodstains there, and the flies were still picking at the stains. It was becoming harder and harder to deny.

She grew weary as the prolong flight took a toll on her. She headed towards a hump in the root between the jungle and cliff sections, with a shred of hope she may still find Orin. It wasn’t the old shepherd who waited at the natural gate, but the pack of wolves. She hovered over them. For the most part, they were unharmed. But the Alpha lay on his side taking shallow breaths. Two arrows buried into his thick mane and blood covering his claws and fangs. The pack whimpered concerned. The bird made an angry squawk and raced to the Grand elms hidden room.

Once inside, she raced towards the mushrooms but skidded to a stop. She picked up Eburacon’s book once more and reread the passage on the fungus. A mistake now would be fatal. As the book had told her she cupped a hand of water from the glowing pool and spread it among the mushrooms. This time around she made sure that she removed the stem from the purple and yellow mushroom, placing the stems in the fourth bin as she was directed. She needed to hurry, but she was growing tired of the consequences of half-heartedly following instructions. She ripped the sleeve off her garb and fastened it into a pouch. She placed it in her mouth, and a dog ran down the cliff section’s stream.

The wolves growled as the small white dog approached. Una froze, fearing their killer instincts had kicked back in. A growl made its way out of the Alpha and the other wolves cleared a path to their leader. The dog trotted over to the injured wolf and pressed her nose to his. This was going to hurt, but she needed him to trust her. Something in the way the wolf closed its eyes told her it understood. Her teeth locked onto the first arrow and she jerked her head ripping it out. The wolf yelped in pain, and its pack bared their fangs at Una. The Alpha whined and the pack took a step back. The arrow clinked against the ground as Una dropped her jaw. It was not an arrow from the village, It was one of the mainlanders.

The second arrow was followed by another yelp from the wolf. Una grabbed the green rag in her teeth and managed to undo her knot which was much harder without thumbs. The mushroom rolled out in front of the wolf. It eyed the cap cautiously, then it stared into Una’s eyes. She nodded consolingly. Its tongue reached out and pulled the cap into its mouth. A green light glowed as the wounds sealed themselves shut and the sun dipped behind the horizon.

The Alpha rose to its feet and bowed before Una, and the other wolves followed suit. She could finally see, these were not monsters, they were a family, doing whatever they could to survive. The full moon raised above the tree and the alpha tilted it’s head back and howled. The other wolves tilted their heads back followed suit. Una barked and tilted her head back a let out a small howl of her own.

She could swear she saw a smile grow on the alpha’s muzzle. It leaned down to the little dog and gave it a small lick on the nose, and with that, the Alpha perked its ears to the jungle and bared its fangs. Una could see the grudge in the animal's eyes, and it galloped off into the jungle, the pack following close behind it. They wanted war, they wanted their hunting grounds back.

Una didn’t know why she followed them, or how she could even help. But something in her heart pushed her legs forward and she stuck close to the rear of the pack. The wolf’s spread out in all directions, putting their noses to the ground and searching for scents. Una did the same. A whiff passed her nose and somehow she knew who’s it was. She followed the trail her tongue bouncing around the side of her mouth. The man in black sat against a tree, an arrow notched in his loose bowstring. His head darted from side to side as searched the black night. A howl came from Una, she had done it instinctively and immediately regretted it.

An arrow whizzed right past her, and Una dashed for cover, grateful that it hadn’t been Her father shooting. The branches rustled behind her, and they got closer and closer. They were on her heels now accompanied by the sound of steel on leather as the hunter pulled out his knife. Una passed under a bush and shifted into the white cat.

The cat spun mid-step and silently ran past the hunter's side and up a tree onto a branch just above the man. His head whipped from side to side. A stick cracked he and Una both froze. From the bushes, there was a growl and a circle of wolves emerging from the brush. The Alpha walked out from the center to meet the man’s gaze. The man's mouth dropped agape, his lips quivering. Una blinked and felt the man’s fear. He screamed for help and the wolves closed in. Una looked away and the screams were drowned out by the sounds of barking, bones snapping, and howls.

Una felt jumped along the branches leaving the spot of the attack, her heart racing. She didn’t think about what the consequences could be of her actions, remembering back to her howl. A man was dead because of her. Her heart sank as she thought about the man’s screams. She buried that thought, he had deserved it after what he had done to her home.

The wolves had already returned to the brushes, Una was uncertain if they were still looking for another kill or if they were happy with their efforts tonight. A wolf baring its fangs flashed through her mind and sweat formed on her brow. Was that the way her mother had died?