by Candy Crum
Cougars, bears, and wolves from all over the forest had gathered there, quickly surrounding the group. Some had the clouded eyes of a familiar, while the others were simply being controlled. Apparently, the dark druids had been replacing their familiars, as well as using other animals as weapons.
By the time Elysia and the Chieftain had arrived, it had been too late. Four of them had been killed, having been down too long while the others fought. They were unable to be healed. The others had been terribly wounded, but had been saved.
The dark druids had fled, taking their animals with them when they'd heard Zobig and Chaos approaching. They'd been there to send a warning, not for battle. Not a real one, anyway.
"If not for their waning energy, I wouldn't recognize them at all," Elysia said softly.
The Chieftain wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her away, forcing her head against his chest as he held her. "Just because you lead them doesn't mean you have to stare at them until we put them to rest. You've looked at them long enough. You've suffered long enough. This wasn't your fault."
Elysia shook her head against him as she clasped him tightly around the waist. Even though she was grown and had been for many years, the Chieftain dwarfed her in size, and she always felt like a little girl again in his arms. That was something she took comfort in, especially right then.
"I can't stand this anymore, Father. I have to do something. Our people are dying. Familiars are being sacrificed. And now our animals are disappearing in the forest. They haven't only taken the large ones, they've taken the young. Bears and their cubs. Deer and their fawns. Wolves and their pups. Cougars and their kittens. They have even taken smaller animals like foxes. Our forest is being depleted. They are always so close. What if they’re living on our land, but outside our borders? We can't let this continue!"
The Chieftain gently pulled away from his daughter, his hands on either side of her face as he looked into her eyes. "And what would you do, daughter? What would you have me do? Don’t think we can take them head-on. We can't. We have to find out how many there are. We have to learn how strong they are."
"That's exactly right. And I intend to find out." Elysia took a step back, looking at the bodies on the ground again as she shook her head. Finally, she looked back at her father. "I'm going to take some of the Schatten with me since they specialize in subtlety. We’re going to track them down. We’ll find out how many they have, who is in charge, and anything else we might be able to determine."
"We can send someone else. I don't want you going. I can't afford to lose you. Not just because you are the only other true Elder here, but because you're my daughter. Our people need us—both of us. But more importantly, I need you. I can't lose my baby girl."
Elysia smiled. It always warmed her heart when her father worried about her. She knew how much he loved her, but it was never more obvious than at those moments.
"I haven't been your baby girl in almost four decades. I know you worry about me, but I have a duty. Arryn and Cat are in Arcadia. What happens when they come home? I don't want them walking into a war. I don't want them coming home to fear and bloodshed. I need to do this. We need these answers."
The Chieftain smiled. "I don't care if it's four decades or ten, you’ll always be my baby girl, just like that son of yours will always be your baby boy. You and Cathillian are only children—that is the burden you both carry. Forever small and fragile in your parents' eyes."
She couldn't argue that point. Cathillian really would always be her little boy, no matter how big he got. No matter how strong he got. And that's why she had no choice.
"I'll gather my team and fill them in on everything. Tonight, we will hold the funeral. Since we can’t give them a proper death ritual by the Heilig Tree, we will burn them on a pyre and bury their ashes at its base. Tomorrow, I leave." She looked at the bodies one last time.
The Chieftain sighed. "One would almost think I had no authority around here. Pay no attention to me; I'm just the insanely attractive but crazy old man. No need to listen to anything I say."
With a chuckle, Elysia said, "I know how you feel. When you're this pretty, it's hard for people to pay attention to anything that we say."
The Chieftain narrowed his eyes at his daughter for a moment, studying her. "See, it sounds like you're agreeing with me, but really, I think you're just being mean. Because that's what you do. You’re mean."
Elysia laughed. "I love you. That's all that matters."
Just then, Nika ran up, her expression unreadable. "Elysia, Chieftain. You should come with me quickly."
All humor drained from Elysia's face as she looked at her fellow warrior. "What is it?"
"It's Echo. Cathillian is on his way back home, and he sent her ahead. By the scattered images I read from her, they're in danger."
CHAPTER FIVE
It had taken nearly two days to get back to the Dark Forest, and that was with little rest during the few short stops. Cathillian knew the forest was a dangerous place—for anyone other than the druids, though the lycanthrope posed a threat to anyone—especially when bringing along someone who was not the best fighter.
"I know the circumstances suck, but are you excited to be back home?" Celine asked.
Cathillian thought that over for a moment, though he didn't know why. The answer should have been a quick yes, but it wasn't. The Dark Forest was home—it always had been and always would be—but somehow Arcadia had become a second home. Not just a place he had been visiting or even a place he was living temporarily. It actually felt like home.
Cathillian had grown to feel responsible for the city, though he wasn't sure how much of that was due to his own emotions and how much was because of his attachment to Arryn. He'd never before had the desire to go to Arcadia except for simple visits to see the architecture and watch the people who were so unlike his own, but it had become so much more.
"I've missed home, and I've missed my family. I'm excited to see them, but I don't feel like it's where I belong right now. Once everything is settled in Arcadia, I think I'll feel much better. More than anything, I just want Arryn back. It doesn't matter if I'm here or in Arcadia; I'm not going to get any rest until I know she's okay."
Celine gave him a sad smile from the back of her horse. "I know you care a lot about her. That’s the only reason I've grown to trust you as much as I do. It's obvious how good you've been to her. Not just you, but your family. I see a lot of my sister in her, but I suspect that when I meet your mother, I'll see a lot more of her as well."
Cathillian laughed. "Trust me, by the time you leave she'll have made an impression on you, too. That's just who she is." There was a brief pause as everyone joined in the laughter, but Cathillian quickly followed it up with, "I must add that it's much easier to just go along with whatever she says. I tell you that because she is one of the most terrifying people I’ve ever met. Arryn is the second most terrifying. At first, I thought it was because my mom raised her, but then I met you. Your whole damn family is that way; my mom just helped further the tendency."
Samuel laughed. "Ye should meet a few rearick women. In case ye haven't noticed, there ain't a lot we rearick men're afraid of. We can stare down a man twice our size with an axe or growl at the biggest and strongest remnant, but put us in a room with even a single one of our angry women and we’ll be shakin' in our boots."
"As pissed off as all you seem to be, I can only—" Cathillian's smile faded as he heard a loud growl echo through the forest.
"What was that?" Celine asked as she looked around, her eyes wide.
Cathillian opened his senses to search the area, and he felt it. The presence of nature magic, but it wasn't that of any druid he was friend or family to. Realization struck his face as he sat taller, more defensively on his horse.
"I think it's Jenna, the druid who literally drained the life out of me. I'm not fucking with her this time. If I see her, I'm taking her down hard and fast." His face reflected every ounce
of the rage he felt for what she had done and the threats she'd made.
"These’re yer lands, lad. What'll ye have us do?" Samuel asked.
Another roar echoed through the woods, this time closer. Cathillian shook his head, his nostrils flaring as he ground his teeth. "That's a damn bear, but it's not Zobig. I think she's trying to tame it."
Without warning, Cathillian took off on his horse, urging Maia to run faster and faster. Behind him, he could hear the other horses galloping. He needed to save that bear before she completely tamed it and attempted to bond.
If she was using darker nature magic, and he assumed that she was, she would use it to dominate the bear, forcing it into submission. That didn't create lifelong familiars. It created slaves.
Cathillian saw several dark druids surrounding a black bear, Jenna among them. Just as before, it appeared that she was their leader. He didn't see Aeris anywhere around, but that didn't mean anything.
Pulling back on the reins, Cathillian slowed Maia to a stop before jumping off and rushing forward. Jenna and the rest of the group were so focused on the bear and their attempt to overwhelm it that they were too slow to react when Cathillian approached them.
Without hesitation, Cathillian stopped hard before bringing his hands up, a root ripping from the ground and tripping Jenna. She landed hard on her ass, and Cathillian used that opportunity to bring the root down on her, pinning her to the ground.
The bear roared as he whirled, snapping and swiping his massive paw at anyone standing near him. The dark druids all jumped out of the way, knowing they'd lost control of the animal when Jenna fell.
A large war hammer passed Cathillian and hit one of the druids in the chest. His eyes widened as he saw Samuel running toward the dark druids, daggers now in hand as he sprinted to retrieve his hammer.
Cathillian took that as his cue and charged as well. He drew his sword, going first after a dark druid who was pretty close to his size. As their swords met, he realized the man was equally matched in strength as well.
As Cathillian fought, he was careful to pay attention to the bear. There was no way for him to focus his attention on the battle before him while channeling the magic needed to calm the bear. If the animal decided to attack, he couldn’t protect himself.
"Let me go!" Jenna screamed. "I'll kill you for this!"
Cathillian brought his sword down on his opponent’s blade, the resulting clang ringing in his ears. He lifted his leg and kicked the man in the chest, sending him back several feet.
"Well, that doesn't sound like a very good motivator for me to let you go. If you're trapped, you can't kill me. See? That's a much better motivator for me," Cathillian responded without looking in her direction.
The girl screamed in frustration, kicking, and writhing as she tried to break free. Cathillian didn't spare her another glance as he focused on his opponent.
The sound of light footsteps came to his ears just before he saw Celine run up. He wanted to yell at her to go back, but the dark druid he was fighting had made a successful slash, catching Cathillian across the chest, and luckily only doing minimal damage.
He dropped to the ground and rolled out of the way, quickly making sure the bear was still far enough back that he wouldn't be a threat.
He heard a loud cry from one of the dark druids behind him, the one Samuel was fighting. "Nice job, lass!"
He hadn't been able to see what Celine had done, but she was safe, and that was all that mattered. Echo called from above before readying herself to dive. Cathillian thrust his sword forward, but the man he was fighting easily blocked it before swiping his sword through the air, narrowly missing Echo as she quickly pulled up.
"Echo!" Cathillian called out as he began furiously swinging his sword, his rage at seeing Echo nearly killed giving him additional strength. "Get my mom and the Chieftain!"
Echo flew away as Cathillian landed another hard kick to the man's chest. Going head-to-head with him using swords wasn't the answer, since they were equally matched. In fact, Cathillian was almost certain this man was a far better swordsman than he was. It was only luck that Cathillian hadn’t already been taken down.
If he were going to win, it would have to be with magic.
Before the man could recover, Cathillian thrust his sword into the ground and dropped, putting his hands in the grass. The dark druid recovered and began to run forward, but quickly stopped, his eyes going wide before a smile broke across his face.
Cathillian heard the heavy footsteps, but didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. He was hit hard from the side and thrown several feet as a roar sounded out around him. He groaned as he rolled onto his back, trying to sit up. The wound on his chest and what he was certain was a broken rib, or several of them, prevented him from moving as fast as he wanted to.
And he very quickly regretted it.
At that moment, he realized just how careless he’d been. Not only had he underestimated his opponent, but he'd completely lost track of the bear. And now, that bear was on top of him, the only thing separating the animal’s large, powerful jaws from rending Cathillian was the fact that both of his feet were planted in its chest, his broken ribs grinding against one another.
"I'm not your enemy!" Cathillian told the bear.
It responded by lunging forward, mouth wide. He pushed harder with his legs to keep the bear from successfully biting him and twisted his head to the side. As he did, he reached up with both hands and grabbed the bear, his fingers on either side of its jaws as he pushed his magic at him.
"I'm not your enemy!" Cathillian said again. The response this time was a growl, a low grumble from deep within the bear's chest, but he felt the message immediately take hold. "They are. I will help you. You'll be free, but not if they win."
There was another growl deep within the bear’s chest, but Cathillian slowly turned his head, risking a look at the bear directly in the face. He could see the anger in the bear’s expression, but the animal slowly backed away.
A loud scream sounded from his left, and Cathillian looked over in time to see vines wrap around Celine's legs and pull her to the ground before lifting her into the trees.
Jenna had gotten free, and she still had access to her positive nature magic, though it was weak enough that she hadn’t been able to use it to free herself from the root. The darkness had certainly taken hold of her, but the transition hadn't been completed.
The bear growled loudly, and Cathillian looked over at him. "The girl in the tree and the short guy are mine. Do whatever you want with the rest."
There was a low grumble, and Cathillian could almost imagine the animal smiling. He roared before charging toward the dark druid Samuel was fighting. Cathillian placed his fingers in the grass, pulling nature’s energy into himself.
He felt his ribs snapping back into place, and he worried he might break his teeth from how hard he was biting down. But as fast as the pain came, it was gone, and he was back on his feet.
Cathillian's eyes searched the area, finding the person he wanted most. Jenna had her hand extended, her gray eyes ringed with a faint green as she focused on Celine. Searching the ground around him, Cathillian quickly found what he wanted, smiling as he did.
His jade eyes turned dark green as he lifted his hand. A vine came out of the ground and wrapped around a large rock. He swung his hand and the vine whipped the rock into the air, hitting Jenna directly on the side of her head. She immediately fell to the ground, unconscious, and her magic released Celine.
Cathillian's other hand shot out as he focused on tightening the vines around Celine so he could lower her safely to the ground. As he did, he could hear the screams of one of the other dark druids combined with loud growls as the bear got revenge for the pain they had caused him.
Within moments, Celine was safely back on the ground, and the sound of hoofbeats rang through the forest around them. Cathillian saw Chaos and Zobig carrying their respective masters on their backs.
; They'd gotten there just as everything was ending, but Cathillian was glad he'd sent Echo. Things could've gone much worse.
Elysia jumped off Chaos’ back and ran to her son while she looked around and took everything in. Zobig growled at the full-grown bear in front of him. The animal was the same breed, but only half his size.
"Easy, Zobig," the Chieftain said as he climbed down.
Cathillian stepped forward. "That bear has suffered. They had him surrounded and were trying to dominate him."
Elysia sighed heavily as she looked from her son to the bear and back, then pulled him into her arms and hugged him tightly. "Gods, I can't believe how much I missed you. I'm so glad you're safe."
"It's good to see you, grandson. I’m also glad to see you're making friends," the Chieftain said, gesturing to the dead dark druids lying on the ground. "Your travels seem to have been interesting, to say the least."
Cathillian laughed. "Yeah, to say the least. About the bear… I think we should bring him back with us and allow him to cross the barrier. He deserves a safe haven."
Cathillian saw the look of wonder on Celine's face as she looked at each of the three animals. Chaos was so large that it was nearly impossible to climb on his back without him kneeling. Zobig was almost twice the size of a normal bear, and then, of course, there was the normal bear. He imagined she'd never seen animals like them before, as horses in Arcadia were typically of a smaller breed and bears didn't come around the city.
She reached out, curiosity overwhelming her as she tried to touch the wild bear.
"That one’s wild, you realize. The larger one is my grandfather's familiar," Cathillian told her. "Of course, Zobig is old and grumpy, and kind of a dick. He likes to trip people and finds himself to be pretty funny, so I guess you're screwed either way you go."
To Cathillian's surprise, the bear stepped forward and lifted his nose, touching it to her outstretched and shaking hand. She squealed in delight. "He's amazing! I love him!"
