by Blair Aaron
As Elsa and Zamir stepped into the boat, casting concerned goodbyes to the other four men, she wondered what exactly she would find in the Cottage that might help her leave the forest, and what, if anything, she could do about her continuing transformation into Freja's physical self.
Zamir tapped Elsa on the shoulder to get her attention, as she had been focused on the Cottage in the distance, mesmerized and terrified at their impending journey into the heart of true evil. She looked back, and he whispered, “Take the oar,” then handed a rotten oar to her. She began rowing along through the water, but then realized the water was actually black tar, and upon breaking the surface of the substance, a foul stench like no other emanated from the hole. Elsa wretched over the side of the boat, but Zamir urged her forward.
As the creaky boat continued through the tar, moving at a glacial pace, Elsa noticed a change overcome Zamir, his green eyes flashing possessed anger in quick succession, strobe-like and haunting. Something was wrong, but he made her hurry. She rowed faster and faster, and the closer they got to the Cottage, the boat began to shake. She looked back at Zamir, who held his hands over his temples, trembling with the struggle. There was something fighting to get out of Zamir, and Elsa quickly realized it was his shifter self. Remembering the sheer terror of wolf form, Elsa slid over the side of the boat, jumping into the vile tar, knee-deep, and made her way to the edge of the lake before it was too late.
“Just hang on,” she whispered to him, afraid of what would happen should she speak out loud. Zamir vocalized a low-frequency, painful groan, just as Elsa reached the door to the Cottage. Fear lay on both sides of the moment for Elsa. Should she stay, Zamir would almost certainly destroy her. But looking at the Cottage which awaited her, she almost certainly ran to her doom as well. Choosing mere potential destruction over almost certain death, she jumped out of the boat and ran to the front door of the Cottage. It was the strangest thing, Elsa thought, that despite the immediate danger she was in, that she would think to ring the doorbell, and if that didn't work, to throw a stone through the window of the place. Looking at the boarded up window, she was overcome with a strong sense of déjà vu. It sort of reminded her of Freja's cottage.
Elsa grabbed the doorknob just as Zamir transformed into his shifter self, black hair bristling, teeth bared, two thousand pounds barreling in her direction. She slammed the door behind her with a loud thud. Scraping and scratching at the walls on the outside vibrated throughout the house. Elsa took a breath, looked around the cottage to see an empty place, furniture overturned, and dust swirling around in the shaft of moonlight shining down through the window. Her heart hummed along as she started her search through the cottage for something, anything, that would give her a clue to get out of the damn Forest.
“Tell me, dammit,” she said out loud, to anyone or anything that would listen, “What do you want? What do you want me to do? Just make it clear.”
There was a moment of silence, the calm before the storm, then an explosive bang shook the entire cottage on its frame. Zamir was throwing his entire body against the wall, attempting to get through the door no matter what, to eat Elsa. Images of her own demise raced through Elsa's mind, of Zamir tearing her innards from her slain stomach, blood everywhere, with his teeth. She saw him lick his lips at the taste of her flesh, looking down at her with that curious, cold stare that had at this point become familiar.
As Zamir continued growing stronger and fiercer, she looked around the cottage for some clue as to what the Prophecy of Asif meant for her, so she could get out of the woods before the transformation into Freja was complete. She worried whether Theo would remember her at all. Perhaps they would already be married, with kids, grandkids even. So she continued looking, visions of their goings-on flash before her mind intermittently, destroying her capacity to think clearly. The cottage stifled her, like she was drowning in open air.
Elsa rushed over to the kitchen area, digging through the gray ash in the open oven for a letter, a sign, anything. She looked in the cupboards. She dug through the closets.
Another loud bang, this once twice as strong, reverberated through the cottage.
Elsa raced through the den, tearing open cushions, rummaging through papers.
Yet another bang, this time with cracking wood.
She ran to the bedroom area, the last area left to search, threw open the door to reveal a small twin bed, with a chest sitting at the end and a single night table on the side. There was a box atop the night stand, a red light glowing from within. Elsa shut the door to the bedroom, just as she heard the front door break open, and the sound of wolf's paws rushing down the front hallway. She placed the largest wooden block between the frame she could find, knowing it would buy her a little time. She rushed over to the box, opened it, revealing a cracked and scraggly crystal, pulsating red. The crystal looked very much the same as the one Dorien presented to her that night in his cavern. The crystal glowed with life, and the moment Elsa touched the thing, a voice hissed from the air:
“Into the wicked woods, all can see
Comes a fair maiden to set thee free
True as night, lit by fiery beauty
End her struggle, show her black cruelty.”
“What does that mean?” Elsa said into the air, tears welling in her eyes, knowing that any minute Zamir would break down the door to the bedroom, and her demise would be complete. She had tried everything she knew to figure out just what the Forbidden Forest wanted from her, coming no closer to understanding how to use the crystal to get out of the forest. She figured the crystal must be reunited with its other half, for whatever reason, and putting her hands in her pockets, she realized something, just as Zamir broke down the door to the room. “That's it!”
Behind her a vicious growl warned her to make no sudden moves. Zamir's control was gone now and all that was left was the violent monster before her, approaching her slowly and deliberately.
“Zamir, please stop. Find the Zamir I know. The man who used to be good. The man who used to be noble. Stop now and we can leave this place forever. I know how to save you. How to save us,” she said, putting her hands above her face, to shield herself from his deathly bites. The crystal, gripped in her hand, grew warm at first then hot, and she opened her eyes to see Zamir standing before her on his hind legs, somehow overpowered by the thing in her hand. She opened her palm to examine the pulsating crystal, then pulled out the spell Freja had given her, still in her pocket. She knew this would work, she was sure! The crystal was responding, taking hold of Zamir and keeping her safe, so she must be onto something, Elsa thought. The spell Freja gave her, as long as she had the crystal in her hand, she could use it to make the spell work. The crystal would make her pure, she thought, pure enough for the spell to work. This all seemed a little complicated, but Elsa was really out of ideas. Elsa looked down at the crumbled paper in her hand, her face scrunched in thought, trying to figure how to make her plan work. She sat on a line between good and evil, that much she knew. On the good side, she wanted to rescue Theo from Freja, regain her love for him, and start a new life, forgetting about this mishap in the Forest forever. On the evil side, which was growing stronger by the second, she wanted to make love to Zamir on the floor of that cottage right then and there. She couldn't help it, and the more she tried to deny her growing feelings for him, the stronger they got. She looked up from the crystal, the red haze now casting a soft and romantic glow throughout the entire room. Zamir stood before her, in human form, completely naked now. Elsa's body betrayed her and she grabbed him by the neck, planting a deep kiss on his lips. She dropped the red crystal, along with the rest of her clothes, on the night stand next to the bed and lay down on her back. The crystal grew luminous to the point of blinding both of them.
The release was exquisite, as she lay down on the bed, straddling her legs around Zamir's giant body, and he kissed her neck and upper chest area. The whole experience seemed like some dream, long-forgotten and never consciously chose
n. He made his way down her body, running his hungry tongue all over her stomach area, reaching her lady bits.
The crystal glowed brighter.
There he massaged her with an ecstasy she never had never experienced before in her life, running his tongue through her soft, velvet folds like the famished wolf he was.
The crystal nearly exploded with fire, burning a black hole in the wooden night stand.
She lost her virginity to Zamir that night, when he crawled up on his knees and rubbed his member in soft, rhythmic motions over her lady parts. Every stroke became increasingly more intense, and this technique brought her to the edge of climax, and when it became nearly unbearable, she pushed him back, telling him to slow down. But his hunger was too ravenous and the wildness of both their natures overcame them finally, as he put her legs atop both his shoulders, bracing his torso up with his powerful pillar-like arms, and then began pumping away. Every thrust brought him closer to her, filling her not with utter joy or even pleasure, but pure and unadulterated truth. When he finally came, she was his, in a way no one else would or could ever be.
The crystal's light dimmed suddenly.
Elsa lay there afterwards in beautiful heartbreak for the finite length of their relationship, which was built not on trust, not on fidelity, but on uncontrolled abandon and beautiful tragedy. She was not happy or fulfilled in those moments, but simply alive, in the moment, happy to have gotten close to Zamir and subsequently his nature, wild, and sad at the same time, because it all made her acutely aware of her own mortality. It was a joyous, exciting feeling, laced with powerful grief. They didn't speak for hours after, but Elsa knew they were thinking the same thing: nothing lasts. She turned her head to the crystal which lay on the table near her, as its brightness died down, but still hummed along.
They made love several more times, urgent, fitful in their passion, before deciding it was time for her to return to the towns. As they put on their clothes, a fireball exploded outside near the edge of the moat.
“Dorien,” Elsa said, knowing the Freja undoubtedly knew what the six of them were after.
“Listen,” Zamir said, “You need to get back to land safely. If this plan of yours will work, keeping you alive until you're out of the forest will have been worth it.” He got up, his eyes glowing radiant green.
“Wait,” Elsa said, grabbing his arm as he made his way out the door. “What if you die? He's a dragon. Are you sure you can take him?”
Zamir didn't even feel the need to respond, as his face said everything. He was Zamir the Great, unbeatable, immortal--the Prince of Evil.
“If we make it out, what happens to you?” Elsa asked him.
“There's no hope for me,” he said, without making the effort to look at her.
“Zamir, why? Whatever happens, I just want you to know I will never stop trying to help you out of the forest. There is a way to be good again.”
“I'm too far gone, Elsa. You need your own life. There's nothing here for you,” he said, jumping out the window, instantly changing into his wolf form. Elsa never got a chance to say goodbye, but now was not the time to cry about it, and she stepped out the front door to the cottage, rushed over to the boat, and rowed her way over to the other side of the lake's edge. As she made her way across the tar, ignoring the stench's power over her, she could see a literal fire fight, a stream of yellow lava shooting across the woods, as Humburt, Augustus, Kirbleitz, and Niklas all in shifter form, attempted to fight off Dorien the monster dragon. And they were losing.
That is, until Zamir showed up.
It was truly something to witness, Elsa thought. The Black Wolf, even from this distance, raced over the rocks, bouncing off the trees, rebounding off the dragon's hide, tearing and slashing pieces of him bit by bit. The other shifters didn't hold a candle to him. Zamir the Great, Elsa thought, that he was, that he was. The other wolf attempted to do what they could to help Zamir, who clearly carried the brunt of the fight, using his paws to swing around the dragon's neck, biting at his jugular. The fight exhilarated Elsa, and saddened her, when she realized Dorien was Theo's brother. He was that same fearless boy from long ago, and she'd hate to see him destroyed.
Trying to talk to Zamir, through her thoughts, she told him not to kill him.
Let him be, Zamir. Just get him off our tails so we can escape. Don't destroy him.
Zamir never responded, but she could see he got the message. The dragon took flight, its powerful wings sending a rush of wet, hot air into Elsa's face, as it raced toward the moon, Zamir hanging by his powerful jaws on the top. The monster flew off into the night, his squeals reverberating through the chilly air.
PART FOUR - THE PROPHECY REVEALED
CHAPTER 45
Back on the ground, Elsa got out of the boat and ran over to the shifter boys, who were all recuperating for their lashing. Elsa felt profound pride when she looked around those men nursing their wounds, inflicted by a dragon they wanted to protect her from. Seeing the gratitude in her watery eyes, Niklas looked up and smiled through his pain. “It's mighty all right, ma'am. Just a flesh wound.” She looked over to Humburt and Augustus, now back in human form, their massive chests heaving with power and struggle.
Augustus looked to Elsa. “What now? Did you find anything?”
Elsa took the spell and crystal out of her pocket and presented it to the four shifters. “What's that?” Kirbleitz asked, stuffing one of his wounds with maggots to stave off infection.
“I heard the Prophecy myself. It said a pure maiden would set us free. If the Prophecy is about me, and I'm so pure, then this is the spell that should work. The spell a pure maiden can use to fight Freja off.”
“Yes, but how do you know you're not wrong again?” Augustus asked her.
“I don't, but the crystal responded, glowing bright, when I started to use it when Zamir tried to attack me,” she said.
“This sounds contrived,” Augustus said, crossing his arms, as he slipped his crossbow around his chest.
“I know it does, but we've got to do something. We're running out of time. There's no telling how much time has passed in the towns.”
“Or if Freja is even alive,” Niklas said.
“Oh she's alive,” Humburt said, backing Elsa up. “She's just hiding. I guarantee you she sent that serpent to bite Elsa.”
Elsa looked around the group. “You all remember my visions when the snake bit me? This is our chance. You guys are a big group of lugs who ended up being my saviors. Now it's time for me to return the favor. Freja put me here, she sent that serpent to kill me, and it would have, if you hadn't rescued me. She stole Theo from me. She's trapped Dorien and Theo in the forest from the moment they made the mistake of falling into this place. She sent Dorien here to kill all of you. And if she has her way, we'll spend the rest of eternity here, while she lives on as the popular, well-loved version of me. Her star will rise, while mine will fall. I can't let that happen. I can't leave you guys behind. I know this will work,” Elsa said, as if she were a general rallying her troops. “I won't stop until we get out, all of us, every last one of us, so we can live a normal life in peace. Let's not allow her to defeat us.”
“Do you think she's the one controlling our freedom here, so we can't leave the forest?” Humburt asked her, thinking apparently Elsa had more answers now than any of them, since the snake bit her. Humburt always trusted his guts.
But Elsa didn't know.
“I have no idea if this place is actually alive, from an older time, with a mind of its own, or if it's something Freja conjured up with her black magic. I just don't know, and none of us will know until we cross over that border.”
“I'm with you,” Augustus said, ready for a fight to the death.
“And me!” Niklas said, clenching his fist.
“Me, too!” Humburt said, raising his sword into the air, as it glinted the murky moonlight in all their eyes. Elsa smiled, knowing how good it felt to have all these guys behind her, protecting her. But
there was one person missing, who didn't respond, and Elsa saw Kirbleitz standing on the edge of the tar lake, looking pale and sallow.
“Doctor Kirbleitz,” Niklas said, “What is wrong?” The doctor looked over his shoulder then stumbled on his back as the entire group rushed over to him, Niklas leading the way. “What happened?” Niklas said, his voice beginning to break with emotion, fearing the worst. Kirbleitz uncovered a deep and bloody wound from under his vest. “Oh, Doc.no.” Niklas said, his best friend, his mentor now mortally wounded. “We're going to make it ok, doc, I swear. We just gotta make it past the border. Why didn't you tell me?”
“It'll be okay,” the Doc said, taking deep breaths, obviously in pain. His breathing rate was quick and shallow. Not a good sign. Humburt and Niklas picked Doctor Kirbleitz up, helping him walk along as best he could, the Doctor's arms draped over both mens' shoulders. Elsa turned around, ready for the journey to the border. They were all actually going to make a run for it.
Augustus caught up with her, as they continued their walk out of the woods. “Do you know how to get out of here?”
