by Jen Haeger
Suddenly the heat and flames receded as if sucked away by a vortex, and Evelyn was able to take in a deep smoky breath. The world rushed back into her consciousness and Evelyn heard growling and snarling close by. She pushed herself up and her eyes fixed on Kim latched onto the tan stray’s back, her teeth sunk into his shoulder as he howled and spun. Their wild twirling was taking them into the worst part of the fire, but neither Kim nor the other Wolfkin seemed to realize that they were seconds from plunging into the flames.
Though her limbs felt weighted in layers of thick mud, and the world was still whirling slowly, Evelyn forced herself onto her feet and stumbled towards the pair. Closing in on them, she realized that she couldn’t knock them down or she would push them right into the blaze. Trying to clear her thoughts and judge the timing, she grabbed onto the stray’s arm and pulled with all her strength to divert their course. The countermeasure swept Kim and the stray towards Evelyn and upset the stray’s balance, causing them to crash into Evelyn as they tumbled to the ground. Evelyn was sent sprawling, but rolled and scrambled to get up on her hands and knees so she could be ready to fight the stray if he turned his attentions back on her. Kim was sprawled out, her eyes staring blankly into the night and her limbs slowly churning the dead leaves littering the forest floor. The stray was just a few feet from her, but he wasn’t moving and blood was rapidly pooling under him as it spurted from a gaping wound where his neck met his shoulder.
The tension in Evelyn’s coiled muscles released slightly and she crawled over to Kim and yipped at her. Kim’s head tilted in Evelyn’s direction, but her eyes remained unfocused, and the doctor in Evelyn’s brain screamed closed-head injury. Thrusting an arm under Kim’s arm, Evelyn forced her to sit up. Kim wasn’t exactly dead weight, but she wasn’t aiding Evelyn’s efforts either. Shifting her weight to get better leverage, Evelyn stood, growling with the effort, and dragged Kim to her feet. Evelyn barked sharply at Kim to try to get her to focus, and then headed away from the encroaching fire again. At first, lurching forward, Kim nearly toppled them both, but Evelyn kept her feet and then they were moving slowly but steadily forward.
Evelyn scanned the smoky woods hoping to spot a friendly Wolfkin, and dreading another attack. Her eyes wept as the acrid smoke seared her nostrils and burned in her lungs. The other injuries of battle were muted by this more immediate pain, which Evelyn supposed was a good thing. She wanted to call out for help, but Evelyn was afraid of using so much breath and then choking on the smoke when no one might hear her. She tried to just concentrate on keeping going, but when she glanced back at the inferno behind her, a pang of hopelessness stabbed her heart. They were never going to outrun the fire like this, but even though her instincts were screaming at her to do so, Evelyn refused to even consider leaving Kim behind and running. After all, who knows if there’s anything or anyone left to run to?
45
His muzzle dripping with blood, Nicolas threw off the body of the dead Wahya and rose to his feet. Having been overtaken by most of the strays while fighting the enemy Wolfkin, Nicolas was alone, listening to distant sounds of the battle. Now that the initial burst of adrenaline had worn off and the metallic taste of blood was turning sour in his mouth, Nicolas felt less of an urgency to join the strays in battle. Wanting to once again feel the reckless drive of bloodlust, he looked back down at the dispatched Wolfkin crumpled at his feet, but he felt nothing. He growled low in frustration. The Vulke victory here on Wahya soil was so close and he could play a glorious part, was destined to play a glorious part, but suddenly he felt empty. Attempting to clear his thoughts he shook his head roughly and began jogging towards the battle.
Trying not to think as he ran, Nicolas focused instead on the howling fight ahead of him. He hadn’t gotten far when he spotted another Wolfkin running past him to his right. He angled towards the other Wolfkin and drew in a deep breath to identify it as part of his own army or the enemy. As the scent of the other werewolf triggered recognition of it as one of his strays, Nicolas inhaled the faint odor of smoke. Confusion and anger reared up inside of him. Are the Wahya and Amaruq using weapons despite our threat of turning more innocents? His thoughts were interrupted when he reached the stray and barked to get its attention. Ignoring Nicolas, the stray kept running, so he was forced to speed up and kick out the legs of the stray to knock it down. He wasn’t going to suffer any deserters.
Jumping on top of the stray as it tried to rise, Nicolas growled menacingly into its face, his muzzle pressing against the other werewolf’s muzzle. It was then that he noticed the terror in the other Wolfkin’s eyes. Its eyes rolling, tongue lolling, and limbs flailing, the stray was blind and crazy with fear. It lashed out and tried to bite Nicolas, but he swatted away its attack with his claws, leaving a deep gouge along the stray’s muzzle. Whining as it strained beneath him, it showed no signs of even recognizing Nicolas, let alone obeying him. A part of Nicolas wanted nothing more than to just let the frenzied stray run away and be done with it, but his Vulke instincts couldn’t allow it to run free even if it was now rendered useless to their cause. With only slight hesitation, he turned, grabbed the stray’s left leg as he kicked and bucked, and bit deeply into the tendons at the back of the ankle, feeling muscle and tissue give way. It howled in agony, writhed, and lunged at Nicolas again, but he was already on his feet and out of reach of the stray’s teeth. Now, even if it tried to run again, it wouldn’t get far, and he would have a lieutenant deal with it after the battle.
Breaking into a jog again, Nicolas didn’t look back as the stray let out another pathetic yowl. The scent of smoke was stronger now and the howls, once been fierce battle cries, were now tinged with fear. Letting his ears guide him, Nicolas made for the battle, but he was wary, anticipating a possible Wahya trap just beyond the next rise. Gradually an orange glow illuminated the distant trees. Though he had never seen a real forest fire before, Nicolas was sure that was what he now saw. Panic slowly rose within him and his steps faltered. Instinct pleaded with him to turn and run away from the blaze, but then he thought of what losing his whole army to a Wahya trap would mean. Taras’s enraged face invaded his mind along with images of what Taras would do to him, should he fail here. Nicolas sprinted ahead. He had to salvage the situation, find his lieutenants, corral the strays and, if possible, find the lying bastard Wahya and Amaruq and slaughter every last one of them.
*
Soon after entering the chaos closer to the wildfire, Nicolas concluded that either the Wahya and Amaruq leaders cared little for their packs or the fire was unintentional. Almost no Wolfkin still fought; instead all were trying desperately to escape the spreading blaze. Though fury still roiled in his chest, the smoke made it impossible for him to distinguish enemy Wolfkin from strays or Vulke by either sight or smell, so he was forced to keep distant from the shadows of other Wolfkin passing him as he pressed nearer to the center of the fire. As the fire swept through the forest, hungrily licking along the ground and skipping from one tree to the next, Nicolas had to take great care not to become trapped within the deadly flames.
His lungs seared, his heart rabbiting in his chest, and his gut screaming at him to run from the encircling danger, Nicolas finally gave into the futility of the situation. This battle was over. He’d call for reinforcements to scour what was left of the area in the morning and round up as many live strays as possible, but they’d have to bring in strays from Europe and Asia to replace their numbers and fight again at the next full moon. Surely Taras can’t blame me for this? It only delayed their victory over the enemy, especially if the other campaigns had been successful. The Wahya and Amaruq had lost numbers here, Nicolas was certain of it. Next time no freak occurrence would save them from their downfall.
*
Evelyn found herself on the ground. Realizing that she must have passed out, she coughed and spat a wad of sticky saliva onto the dirt. She heard a soft whine and turned to see Kim, unconscious, on the ground next to her. As Evelyn raised her head and saw f
lames in every direction, a dry sob welled up in her throat, but she forced it back down. Every inch of her was sore and her limbs were bathed in exhaustion, but the air near the ground was a little clearer and not quite as painful to breathe. She couldn’t give up. Calling upon her Wolfkin strength, she took a deep breath then heaved herself up onto her knees, yanking Kim up with her. Kim’s eyelids fluttered, then opened and she yipped and growled as she tried to push Evelyn away. Holding fast, Evelyn barked impatiently at the other women. As recognition surfaced on Kim’s face, she stopped fighting Evelyn and sagged as her adrenaline ebbed. Evelyn barked and again began pulling Kim to her feet. This time Kim was able to assist her and they both rose as Evelyn scanned for an escape route.
Settling on the lowest wall of fire, Evelyn headed toward it with Kim leaning heavily on her right shoulder. Nearing the flames, Evelyn felt Kim pull away from her. She looked back and saw Kim’s eyes, wide with fright and staring into the blaze as if hypnotized by it. Shaking her head, Kim backed away. Evelyn grasped her arm and pulled her back towards the fire, but Kim resisted. They had no time to lose, so Evelyn drew up right in front of Kim and blocked her direct view of the fire as she made eye contact with her. Vocalizing a low, hopefully soothing growl, Evelyn coaxed Kim forwards. That’s right, it’s okay, she thought, trying to imbue her growl with meaning. Kim was stepping towards her, two steps, three; Evelyn could feel the blistering heat on her back. Almost. Another few steps and she sprang at Kim, grappling the other woman in her arms before she could react then diving through the flames with her.
Everything was a blinding wave of light and heat so intense that Evelyn felt that her insides were boiling. Then she was rolling on relatively cool ground, Kim crushing her abdomen. Evelyn lay stunned, but then the pain engulfing her left leg registered and she tilted her head down to see that it was aflame. Letting out a frantic yowl and shoving Kim off of her, she rolled back and forth in the dirt and beat her leg on the ground to extinguish the flame. Suddenly, as she twisted onto her stomach, she felt a weight pin her legs and someone beating her leg. Excruciating pain lanced through Evelyn making her gasp and bright white stars explode in her vision. She howled in agony, and the beating stopped. Panting as the pain receded, Evelyn winced as the weight lifted from her legs. She felt wolf-hands gently help to turn her over and then Kim’s muzzle was staring down at her. There were places of singed fur all over Kim’s body, but particularly along her arms, and her clawed hands were covered in second degree burns. Evelyn whined a thank you. Kim shook her muzzle and helped Evelyn to stand.
Getting to her feet, Evelyn gingerly put weight on her burned leg. It hurt like nothing she’d ever experienced before, but held. She nodded to Kim then saw a Wolfkin emerge from the smoke and rush towards Kim’s back. Elbowing Kim out of the way, Evelyn widened her stance and bent over slightly to ready herself for an attack. She growled menacingly and was just about to propel herself into a lunge when she recognized the Wolfkin’s brown fur, yellow eyes, and lopsided, though now singed, muzzle.
It was David.
46
Relief flooded through Evelyn, making her dizzy and nearly causing her weakened leg to give out. Though they were still in the thick of the fire, Evelyn felt safe with David there. As she stared into his eyes, she nearly forgot about Kim on the ground next to her until Kim let out a happy yip at David’s approach. Kim’s vocalization somehow shattered the spell, and Evelyn tore her gaze away from David to help the other woman up. David reached them, grasped Kim’s other arm, and together they hauled her to her feet. Evelyn limped in the direction from which David had come, but he barked at her to stop and shook his head. He then pointed in the opposite direction from where Evelyn and Kim had just come and they all took off together, with David helping Kim and Evelyn shuffling behind. Several times, David glanced back at her, but each time she barked and motioned him on. I’m fine, help Kim. Eventually David stopped glancing back and, though his constant concern had irritated Evelyn, now his apparent lack of caring irked her even more.
Evelyn stumbled and bashed her burned leg on a jagged stump, sending blinding pain from her leg to her brain. Pausing, her eyes closed and her teeth grinding, Evelyn couldn’t even consider walking again for another thirty seconds. When she was able to open her eyes, David and Kim’s silhouettes were just disappearing into the smoke about twenty feet ahead. As Evelyn hurried to catch up, there was a terrible crashing sound to her left. Swathed in flames, a tree was tipping towards her. With the fire swirling all around her, Evelyn was momentarily hypnotized by the sight. The falling of the tree seemed almost comically slow, and it was beautiful in a hideously destructive way, but something insistent was nagging at the back of her brain. A branch from the tree hit the ground a few feet from where she stood, snapping her out of her daze. The tree was descending pretty much right on top of her. Move! She screamed inside of her own head, but her body was frozen with indecision as to the direction of salvation.
The cacophony of the tree’s descent filled her ears. Oh God, this is it, thought Evelyn. Then a figure emerged from the smoke and darted towards her. David! He sprang and hit her with bone-jarring force and unstoppable momentum. As they both tumbled backwards, Evelyn felt a rush of heat and then the ground shook with the impact of the tree. She came to rest with David on top of her and felt a jolt of longing for him. Opening her eyes, her body stiffened. The fur of the Wolfkin lying astride her was too dark, and his eyes were a lighter yellow, almost white, with a sharper, crueler downturn at the corners. A very faint whiff of Vulke wafted off her rescuer and jump-started a switch in Evelyn’s brain as images of her near-fatal encounter with the Vulke Beta a few years previous replayed at high speed in her mind. Swiping out with her right arm to claw the left side of the other Wolfkin’s face, Evelyn growled and twisted her body to squirm out from under the enemy werewolf. The dark brown Wolfkin seemed stunned by her reaction, but still managed to dodge her claws as she maneuvered out from under him. Evelyn sprang up to run while the Vulke was still on the ground, but in an explosion of pain, her burned leg gave out on her and she collapsed back to the ground. Scrambling, Evelyn used a sapling to hoist herself up again, keeping weight off her injured leg. Hobbling forward, Evelyn looked for a way around the fallen tree to catch up with David and Kim.
Fear climbed into Evelyn’s chest from her stomach. If the Vulke was uninjured, she would never outrun him. A prickling along her spine told Evelyn that he had caught up and she tried to turn on one leg to face him and fight, only to be shocked as he caught her and wrapped her up, thrusting his right arm around her waist and his head under her left arm, supporting her weight. He’s helping me? Evelyn’s instincts ran headlong into her conscious thoughts. On the one hand, she couldn’t fathom a Vulke helping her, but on the other hand, he could have just stood and watched as a flaming tree crushed her. Even if he was mistaking her for another Vulke, she didn’t believe that a Vulke would risk their life for another Vulke, and a stray wouldn’t have this much control. As the pain eased in Evelyn’s leg when her weight was lifted off of it, she fought the urge to push the strange Vulke away. If he helped her out of the fire, she would decide how to deal with him then.
After a few minutes of awkward shambling, Evelyn and the Vulke were able to get into a rhythm and made steady progress. Unfortunately, it was soon clear that their progress was not to be in the direction that David and Kim had gone. The tree had not only blocked that path, but sent the blaze shooting out around it in all directions and forcing them to double back the way Evelyn had come, skirting a wide perimeter around the tree. Worrying that the fire had already surrounded them, Evelyn nevertheless kept plodding forward, leaning heavily on the Vulke. Though she tried not to make eye contact, occasionally Evelyn was forced to peer into the Vulke’s pale eyes to communicate the angle of their escape. She was spooked by the vivid intensity of the other Wolfkin’s gaze and, even when she looked away, she was certain that his eyes lingered on her face.
Evelyn felt like
they’d been struggling along for hours to find exodus from the fire when abruptly the ground sloped under their feet. Arms and legs flailing, Evelyn and the Vulke made a quick recovery, but then the muddy ground slipped out from under them once more, and they cascaded down the slope. Bumping over small stumps and sliding past trees, a violent splash marked the end of their journey. Swiftly-moving water slapped over Evelyn’s head and she labored to keep her muzzle up and strove to right herself. The flowing water freed her from the Vulke and she was swept downstream a few yards as her feet found only slimy rocks on the stream bottom. Finally, gripping a cluster of roots along the bank, Evelyn stopped her progress. She clung to the steep bank, panting, the cool water soothing her burned leg. Soon the Vulke gracelessly made his way over to her, slopping through the thigh-deep water. Arriving next to her, he whined softly and nudged her shoulder. Evelyn barked sharply in reply, I’m fine, don’t touch me!
The other Wolfkin looked away and immediately Evelyn felt guilty for her rebuke. He was the enemy, yet he had saved her. Suddenly the Vulke glanced up and splashed water in Evelyn’s face. She snorted and growled at him, but he only peered at her and pointed up to where a clump of burning leaves was raining down hot ashes onto her. Evelyn huffed. It’s not like I’m going to catch on fire soaking wet, she thought, but at least he wasn’t just being an ass…still… She sloshed over a few steps and then smacked a spray of water into his face. The look of shock on his Wolfkin features made Evelyn whine and snort with mirth until a burning log floated past them, sobering her. They were relatively safe in the stream, but still they needed to keep moving.
