FIVE

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Without Faylan, I was convinced I'd have been lost in a matter of minutes.

No matter where it seemed like we should turn, Faylan was dragging me in a different direction and insisting that the alley I was convinced would be a shortcut was in fact a dead end .

"Even if it is a dead end." I grumbled as Faylan dragged me away. "I could still make it a shortcut. It shouldn't be that hard to knock down a wall, right?"

More interesting to me, though, were the wolves around us. All though Faylan didn't say much to me, quite a lot of others did, especially when we reached the more populated streets with market stands. And, eventually, Faylan dragged me on to main street.

It was very wide across, and spilling with farm-wolves of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Not just wolves, either; I spotted a giant hyenva, with its spotted pelt and striped mane keeping to the shadows, and a mother kitsune fox herding her two pups, which both looked half-wolf. Stands lined the street on either side of us and were shoved in next to their neighboring stands so tightly that they looked like books on an overcrowded bookshelf. They were decorated with their products, and the bright meats, fruits, jewels, and tools jumped out at us from all directions. It was amazing to look at; my jaw hung open in delight, and the wonder dragged me from stand to stand, with an annoyed Faylan in tow.

"Ever tried fresh fish?" One large wolf asked, grabbing my attention from the side. "Straight from Arium, imported just this morning!"

"Fish?" I asked. I looked down at it. It certainly didn't look appetizing; it had slimy, gray skin, and its four eyes stared blankly up at me. "I mean... it doesn't look all that delicious, but I'll try—"

"We're not interested." Faylan cut in, pushing at me. "Thank you, though."

"But I—" I looked at the fish and then back at Faylan.

"We can't stay out here in the open like this." Faylan hissed in my ear, so that no one else could hear him. "You see that, over there? That she-wolf is selling Celestial candles. Who knows when she'll light one? Or how many there are around here? Keep your hood up, your head down, and follow me. And for the love of Arou, please don't draw any more attention to yourself."

With a heavy-hearted sigh, I nodded and flipped my hood up. Faylan led me farther down the street, and I tried my best not to bump into anyone.

"There's a lot of wolves here," I pointed out to Faylan.

"Well, the Festival is coming up in a bit." Faylan shrugged his shoulders, keeping his eyes dead ahead of him. "Here in Rotam, the Harvest Festival is a really big deal. Merchants come by all the time to profit off of it."

Faylan stopped suddenly, and the fur on the back of his neck bristled. He stared forward, eyes wide.

"You okay?" I asked. I looked wildly around us, feeling suddenly on edge. "Are we going to be attacked?"

"No, it's just—" Faylan huffed a short breath to calm himself. "Let's just get out of here. This way."

With a short nod, I wormed my way in-between two large wolves and managed to catch up to the smaller, silver wolf just as he disappeared down a darker off-road. I wondered what had made him act so nervous.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" I asked, coming up behind him. He took another turn; we were now alone. The gray sky seemed to have darkened, and the tall buildings cast us into shadow. Garbage was piled unceremoniously behind establishments, making the entire stretch of road smell like a murky, damp swampland. "It's... really scary back here."

"Don't worry." Faylan reassured me, his tone sharp. "This is a real shortcut."

"Does it have to look like we're about to be murdered?" I jumped back with a yelp as two cockroach-rats fell from behind a corner and rolled past my paws, locked ferociously in battle. I watched them until the larger one landed a hard bite on its opponent, and the unfortunate looser ran off as quickly as it could.

"Come on!" Faylan said, and I hurried to catch up. I just wanted to get out of here as quickly as I could, and make it to the old healer so I could leave and start finding Edge's scrolls so I could get my memories back. I wondered, faintly, what the healer wanted to talk to me about.

Click,

click,

click.

From behind us, I heard a small noise, like pebbles that'd bounced off someone's ill-placed claws. A strange sensation fizzled in my chest, like bubbling water, and I turned around quickly, ready to fight. Someone was there... I could hear their muffled breath. I could smell the musky air they carried with them.

The only thing I saw behind me, though, was the darkness.

I exhaled and steadied myself, looking back toward the smaller wolf in front of me. "Faylan, did you hear that?" I hissed.

"Hear what?" Faylan grunted. He turned, hesitating. Despite his bored tone and indifferent expression, he could tell that something was up, too.

"That noise!" I told him, my fur prickling. "We need to move. I don't like this."

"It's probably just one of those nasty cockroach-rats. You saw them fighting in the garbage just now." He shivered and then kept on walking, refusing to look at me directly. "I hate those things."

Nervously, I nodded and followed behind him, but I couldn't shake the feeling of unease. Despite what Faylan had said about not being worried, he certainly looked worried. I remembered his look at the market-road and swiveled my ears around, listening, just in case. The presence I'd sensed had disappeared. For now.

"Faylan," I said, quietly. "Are you okay?"

It was at that moment that the shadows dropped from out of nowhere, forming a loose circle around us. They landed lightly, graceful as cats, and wore flowing black cloaks that floated around them as if blown by a soft breeze. A ferocious beast came to life inside of me, and I snarled, turning to block Faylan from our attackers. "Faylan, RUN!" I snarled. "I'll hold them off! Get out of here!"

Faylan didn't move. He looked at his paws and he refused to look at my eyes.

"...Faylan?" I asked, lowering my guard for a second. Confusion swirled in my mind like a storm.

"Tarius, I'm... I'm really sorry." Faylan whispered, turning away.

"Wh—" I didn't get a chance to finish before all of them were on top of me and I was forced to act fast. They were ferocious, sinking their fangs into my back and pulling at my cloak. I groaned and slammed my shoulder against the wall; one of the shadows hit his head and dropped, looking dizzy. As the others tried to regain their grip, I thrust my head around and managed to hook my fangs around a paw, and grabbed on tight and threw him as hard as I could. As he landed, his hood fell off, and I caught a glimpse of orange and a large crest of fur on top of his head before he was back up, circling me like I was his prey.

I wasn't about to let that happen. Familiar feelings were returning. My body knew what to do, what to expect. My mind was alive like a spark that'd been blown into a raging fire, and I jumped at him, rolling to shake off the other two shadows that still clung to my hide. I bunched my legs up beneath me, jumping for the smirking wolf...

It sprung up before I could fully realize what it was, wrapping around me like a spider web and swallowing me whole. I fought like the demon I was, but they pulled the ends of the net downward, forcing me to the ground. The tendrils bit into my back and shoulders, and my breathing became shallow and desperate.

"Faylan, what's going on?!" I demanded, looking up at him. I didn't understand. Why wasn't he moving to escape?

Faylan ignored me, staring sadly at the ground. He was still refusing to meet my eyes. Then the orange wolf stepped in front of him, looking down at me with that unforgivable smirk he wore.

"That was quite the fight!" he panted, leaning in to look closer at my face. "You're pretty tough, I'll give you that, but to be honest I expected a little... more from the creatures of legend." He backed off to face Faylan. "Cliffson, are you sure he's a demon?"

"Let me go and I'll show you how tough I am!" I snarled.

"He is a demon, don't worry." Faylan said, refusing to back down from the muscular wolf. From within his cloak, he withdrew a small Celestial candle. That was when everything dawned on me.

"Faylan, this was a trick?" I felt my voice break. "What happened to when you said that I couldn't help what I was?! To the fact that you were sorry for what you said?!" Desperation clawed at my heart, and somehow, it seemed hauntingly familiar. I fought back the emotions, but rage still bubbled inside of me.

"Guess there's only one way to test this then. Right, runt?" The orange wolf then leaned over and blew on the candle. The candle wick caught his breath eagerly, and the pure, golden flame twisted to life. I saw the runes begin to manifest on my fur, and watched them with hopelessness settling in.

That was when the pain exploded in my face, and I fell back, clawing at my eye. It burned like someone had stuck a hot metal rod into my skull, melting my insides and tearing a hole through my head. There was a ringing sensation in my ears.

"So you did find a demon!" I saw the stupid orange wolf grinning from in-between my claws. "What'd you do to him, though? What's wrong with his eye?"

My eye? The burning pain inside my skull was fading as fast as it had come, and I lowered my paws. What is wrong with my eye?

"Demon eyes do that." Faylan said shortly. "When they're mad. They change color like that. Don't you know anything?"

"Watch your tone, you little brat." The orange wolf advanced on him, and Faylan took a few steps back. "I know enough to realize that both of their eyes are supposed to change color. What's wrong with your demon, Cliffson? How come only one of his eyes is changing to be all red and black?!"

"Jagger." one of the shadows addressed the orange wolf, and he turned with a murderous look in his eye. "We need to get the guards here. I'm not sure how long we can hold this demon down."

"Then go get them!" Jagger snarled. She frowned, but nodded and dashed off past me. I growled as she passed. I have to get out of here fast, or else those guards will kill me!

"Where'd this demon come from, anyway?" Jagger turned back toward Faylan. "How did such a wimp like you manage to find something like this?"

"It doesn't matter." Faylan said hotly. "The reward for catching a demon is more than enough to satisfy you, right? My end of the bargain is fulfilled. You have to leave me and my family alone, now."

Faylan's family? I thought hard. Who are these wolves? What do they want with Faylan's family?

Jagger scoffed. "The bargain isn't over yet. You're not getting out of this until we get our reward."

"That's not how this works!" Faylan snarled. "The deal was that I pay your stupid protection fee, you promise not to hurt them. Listen, I'm sorry about what happened, but—"

"ENOUGH!" Jagger attacked hard and fast, hitting Faylan across the face with his claws and sending the smaller canine sprawling to the floor. "I make the rules here, you scum! Stay there on the ground with the trash, where you belong, or else you're going to end up regretting it!"

"Leave him ALONE!" I shouted, straining hard into the tendrils pinning me. One of the wolves had left to go and find the guards, so maybe I could force myself upward.

Jagger looked at me curiously. "You didn't tell me what happened to this demon's eye, Faylan!" Jagger stomped hard on Faylan's stomach, and Faylan yelped in pain. "Will the guards pay less now?"

At this point, the cords were so tight that they were digging into my back. "Let him go!" I shouted, snarling. "He's done what you wanted!"

Jagger left Faylan whimpering on the floor and towered above me. He spat, and it landed on my face. I closed my eyes and recoiled, gagging at how nasty that was.

"Listen up." Jagger bared his teeth. "Your kind slaughters innocent Cecilians every single day. Everyone's lost someone to you monsters. Yet, you have the audacity to lecture me?!"

"I don't care what we've done!" I snarled. "You can't treat Faylan like that!"

Jagger's smile was like venom. "And what are you going to do about it?" Jagger went back toward Faylan and stomped on him hard again. Faylan closed his eyes tight.

"Stop!" I protested. "He didn't do anything!"

"What are you going to do?" He repeated. Jagger's eyes gleamed as he stomped on Faylan again and again. I felt every single blow deep inside of me. Something was coming undone in my brain, unraveling quickly. I couldn't understand how someone could ever be so terrible...

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" I screamed, and suddenly I was engulfed in light. The ropes fell away easily, burning to mere ashes; I shot upward, and my eye burned with power again, except somehow, this time, it was bearable.

Everyone's eyes were on me, and I looked down at myself, alarmed. I was on fire, but...this fire wasn't normal. It was whitish-blue, and shone so brilliantly that it hurt my eyes. I could hear it whispering to me, as if asking me what it wanted me to do. The flames' soft voice was reassuring. And so familiar.

I stepped toward Jagger, my lips pulled back over my gums so I could show him just how much sharper my teeth were than his. "Get away from him." I warned. I told the fire to grow bigger, and it did, coiling around my legs and tail, and growing hot in my chest. Instead of pain, there was a small tickling sensation. It was a bizarre feeling, to be burning alive and yet unharmed.

Jagger stepped away from Faylan, eyes wide with surprise but still snarling. "You'll pay for this!" he vowed, slowly backing away. His foot hit the candle, and it fell over and went out.

"Get out of here!" I snarled, and the fire got too excited. It popped and jumped out, attacking Jagger. He managed to jump aside with a yelp, and then, without looking back, dashed off as fast as he could. The others followed suit.

I started after them, but suddenly exhaustion yanked me back into the real world, and the fire dissolved back into me. I leaned against the wall, breathing deeply.

I stood there for a while, still in shock. I had powers. Powers! I felt like there was a living spirit within me, some sort of being that I'd lost but suddenly found. For the first time since I'd lost my memories, I felt completely like myself again, even if I couldn't fully understand why.

I looked at Faylan, who looked terrible and was slowly picking himself up. There was a bit of blood on his chin and nose, and a small cut on his cheek. He wiped his mouth with his front paw and looked away from me.

Feeling a familiar kind of warmth, I went to him. "Here, let me help you up. We have to get going before those guards show up."

Faylan looked astonished. "You idiot." he muttered, turning away from me. "I just... I just tried to turn you in! How can you be so stupid as to trust me after that?! Get out of here, before I call the guards here myself!"

I let him yell and waited a moment, staring back to check that Jagger really had gone before I said, "You're not going to do that."

"And why's that?!" Faylan wasn't facing me, but I saw a tear fall from the end of his nose. "You should hate me!"

"You won't, because you didn't do what you did because you want to get rid of me." As Faylan turned slowly, finally, to look me in my eyes, I smiled my biggest smile at him. "You did it to protect your family. Why would I ever hate you for that?"

Faylan didn't try to hide his tears anymore. "But I—" He lowered his head, and sobbed softly.

I slowly helped him get to his paws, and he sniffed, still trembling. "Come on," I told him quietly. "We have to get out of here."

With that, we left, side-by-side.


Characters: 

Jagger


Faylan

Tarius

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