by P. L. Smith
"Why would we believe you? You filthy were! The Firejacks have been peaceful for all these years. Why would they attack now? You know what I think? I think you just want to lure us all out into the dark, away from the safety of our village, so your pack can attack us!"
"I don't have a pack."
But a roar of agreement erupted from the now sizable crowd, drowning out Lethan's words. He felt his anger begin to rise from his frustration and the thought of being cut into pieces by these filthy Yumans.
"Damned fools! The Firejacks will kill..."
Lethan was cut off by a searing pain in his leg. The big man had swung his heavy rock tool into Lethan's thigh, and now he was swinging it back again to hit his other. Lethan moaned in agony.
This is it then. This is the end. I'm coming Lina. Mo-Na forgive me.
Lethan's head spun as a torch was branded into his side, burning his flesh, and he felt himself slipping, giving way to the darkness.
****
"Umph! Uhhh."
"Quiet! You'll wake everyone!"
Lethan rolled onto his back, having landed partially on his side. The free fall must have woken him, because he managed to twist enough not to land squarely on his face. His body was racked with pain.
"Wha... what? Lina?"
"Be quiet I said!"
He felt his arms being tugged up and something was working at his wrists, then they were free. His limp arms dropped heavily back to the ground.
"Can you walk?"
"Huh? I... I think so."
Lethan tried to push himself to his feet. His arms strained, and when he twisted, he felt the charred skin at his side begin to tear. Air hissed into his lungs as he willed himself to stand. He could feel the large knots on each of his thighs as his legs straightened. He stood wobbling.
"I think I'm going to be sick."
"I didn't know werewolves were such pansies."
Lethan raised his one good eye and squinted at the silhouette of a small Yuman below him, his head beginning to get his bearings.
"What are you doing?"
"Saving you, so you can save my village."
"What does that mean?"
"Never mind. Let's go. We have to hurry."
The small voice was gone, and Lethan stumbled along, trying to catch up. Despite his much longer stride, Lethan struggled to keep pace with the small Yuman, each step a renewed wave of agony. They hurried across the fields in silence, and Lethan's small companion didn't stop until they were deep into the forest. Lethan collapsed against a tree, his lungs heaving.
"How do you survive out here? You can barely jog!"
"I don't know what jog means, but in case you didn't know, I was tortured and strung up by my arms all night."
"...and you're fat."
"I am not! I..."
Lethan looked down, and in the rising dawn, he noticed there was an excessive amount of skin around his belly that he hadn't exactly noticed before.
"We need to keep moving. I want to see the Firejack weapons, today."
Lethan looked up, able to see his companion for the first time. It was a girl, a young girl. She was just a bit taller than his waist.
"Why would you want to see the weapons? And why did you save me? This doesn't make any sense."
"All that matters is that I saved you and now, in return, you're going to show me the weapons."
Lethan cocked his head sideways at the young girl. With a heavy sigh he gave in.
"All right... what's your name anyway?"
But she ignored him and headed into the trees.
"All right then, I'll call you... Little Brat."
Lethan pushed himself up the tree until he was on his feet.
"You don't even know where you're going... Little Brat."
"Ugh, the name's Jak, okay?"
"There now, was that so... Jak? Forgive me if I'm wrong, I'm not exactly an expert on Yumans, but isn't that a man’s name?"
"No? Just an expert on eating children then?"
The remark stabbed Lethan like a thorn, and he stared at his feet.
A moment passed.
"It's short for Jaklyn."
"Jak...lin?"
"Just Jak."
"All right Jak, I'm Lethan. In case you were curious."
"I wasn't. How far to the weapons?"
****
His thighs burned, his back ached, and the burn on his side stung with every hint of a breeze. Not only that, but his poison ivy rash had spread up his forearm to his spindly bicep. Lethan was in agony. He wiped the sweat from his brow. The sun had pushed past its zenith about an hour before, and the day was near its hottest.
"I need to take a break."
"I want to get there before nightfall."
Jak turned to face him, and he could see she was feeling the effects of the sun and the incline as well. Her golden hair clung to her sticky forehead.
"We won't get there at all if we don't take a break. This burn is driving me insane."
"Maybe you shouldn't be bursting through doors and attacking people."
"I didn't... you know what I was doing. I thought that the Firejacks... what were you all doing inside there anyway? Making all those noises?"
"We were at Altar. We go there and pray every quarter Luna."
"I'll never understand you Yumans."
"Nobody asked you to. I'm going to find some water."
Jak strode away and was out of sight in an instant. Lethan was exhausted. He swept his sweat matted forehead with his palms. His eyes felt heavy. He spied a rock beneath a large oak and decided to take a nap while she was gone. He sat on the rock, propping his back against the tree. The shade felt good. A slight breeze cooled his sweaty body. The large welts on his thighs had turned a purplish-yellow, and began to throb as he sat. Turning his attention to his burn, he picked at the edges of the black scab.
Probably never grow hair again. Just have a nice little bald spot on my side. The ladies will love it. Hah! ...And what ladies would that be Lethan?
He shook his head. In truth, he hadn't even seen another Lycan, let alone thought about taking a mate, since Lina's death. The memory still stung deep in his chest. He tried to push it aside and think of something else. He closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the tree.
A growl echoed up through his belly. Lethan realized the last thing he had eaten was that little fluff ball of a rabbit yesterday... or was it the day before? He couldn't remember. It was all a bit of a blur.
His nose caught a scent, a delicious scent, a scent he had been doing his best to ignore all day. It was the scent of young Yuman flesh, and it was intoxicating.
"Ready to go?"
Something hit Lethan in the gut just as he opened his eyes. He looked at the full water sack in his lap and immediately pulled the stopper and gulped the cold liquid.
"Don't drink it all. That's got to last us."
Lethan wiped at his mouth and caught his breath.
"Right."
"Come on. Get up."
Lethan groaned and pushed himself to his feet. Jak held out her hand for the water sack. Lethan dropped it into her hand and stared down at her. The demon in his gut awakened, and his mouth grew wet. He imagined sinking his teeth into this little brat's flesh. Devouring her. He felt his quivering claws outstretch. He felt the surge of adrenaline through his veins, the thrill of the kill.
"Are you going to stand there all day, or are you going to take me to the highlands?"
Lethan snapped out of his frenzy and quickly held his claws behind his back.
"I'd be delighted."
Jak rolled her eyes and stepped aside for him to lead the way. Lethan clenched his jaw and disguised his scowl with a smile as he forced himself forward.
He'd bide his time, and he'd have his chance to taste her flesh. The demon was calling, and he would answer. No need to wait for the Luna.
CHAPTER III
She saved your life.
But only to satisfy her own ends.
She is here to help fight the Firejacks.
What is a pathetic little brat going to do to help?
She might be able to convince the rest of the Yumans to help.
What are the Yumans going to do? Chase the Firejacks with their sharp sticks?
You promised Dagan you would fight the urge.
There is no fighting, just delaying. Eventually I'll have to feed, and she is here, and she is annoying.
The other voice grew silent, and Lethan was pleased. Despite the cooler mountain air, Lethan was covered in sweat; his breath coming in great gasps. He'd have to regain his strength before he'd be able to perform the kill. He needed to do it before they made it to the highlands, to make sure he wasn't discovered, especially by Dagan. His mouth watered at the thought of the first bite, which made his breathing that much more difficult.
"Let's take... another... break."
"Ugh! Again?"
"I can't... breathe."
"Try breathing through your nose! The air is thinner in the mountains, so it's harder to breathe."
Lethan tried sucking in air through his nostrils. The cold air whistled through to his lungs, stinging his nose and throat. He wheezed the air back out.
"I'll be lucky if you don't die on me before we make it to the highlands!"
Interesting choice of conversation.
"I'll be fine. Don't you worry."
It's your health you should be concerned about.
Lethan decided it was time. He'd taken enough insults from the little brat, and the demon in his gut was alive and anxious. He pushed himself to his feet and waited for Jak to turn and continue up the hill.
Once her back was to him, he stretched out his claws and licked his lips. His eyes glazed with anticipation, ready for the kill. He sprinted for her, running on the pads of his feet, lunging forward at the pace of three men with each stride.
Just as his claws were about to find her neck, she spun, pulling something from her hip. In a flash, she raised it and something flew through the air straight for Lethan's head. He didn't have time to move; he didn't even have time to think. He managed to close his eyes, not wanting to watch as the projectile ended his life.
He felt a rush of air across his cheek and heard a thunk behind him. Lethan slowly opened his eyes, wondering if the thing had skewered him so quickly that he was already dead, no pain, just dead. He looked down, and saw he was still standing with no abnormal protrusions. Lethan spun to look where the thing had struck.
There behind him, skewered to a tree by a short arrow was a Firejack. Lethan's mouth dropped. He couldn't believe it. He had never seen someone move so fast. He had never seen someone kill a Firejack so easily.
"Holy... you... how did you... you just killed a Firejack... with an arrow!"
"A bolt actually."
"A bolt?"
"Mmmm."
Jak strode to the tree and pulled the bolt from the trunk with the Firejack still attached. She held it up and examined the long, orange and black insect. The body stretched from her head to nearly her waist, the needle-like stinger another hand’s length longer.
"That thing would have gotten me right in the back!"
"Lucky you."
Jak pushed the Firejack off the bolt and squished the large insect with her foot. Lethan was still frozen where he stood. The speed with which she had been able to spin and shoot at the attacking Firejack, unnerved him. That was twice the little yellow headed brat had saved him, and that didn't sit well either.
"Probably a scout or a straggler. We must be getting closer," said Jak.
"Uh, yeah... the highlands should be just over this next hilltop."
Jak pulled the string back on her weapon and reset the bolt. Lethan couldn't take his eyes off it. So quick. So quiet. So deadly.
"That's the strangest bro I have ever seen."
Jak laughed for the first time.
"You mean bow? That's because it's not a bow; it's a crossbow, easier to fire than a bow and more accurate at close range."
"Crossbow."
Lethan rolled the word around in his head, eyeing the small contraption. He decided that he never wanted to be on the pointy end of that little weapon.
"We should be quiet from here on. There could be more."
"Right," said Lethan.
He silently kicked himself. If he hadn't gotten himself in such a frenzy, he'd have been able to pick up the scent of the filthy Firejack long before. He was letting the demon within get the best of him.
When they crested the top of the hill, Lethan's hackles stood on end. There was a strong scent in the air, the scent of slaughter, blood, and rot. As they dropped down into the mountain valley of the highlands through the trees, they could see the once lush green meadow turned muddy and black with blood. The bodies of foresters and the occasional orange Firejack stretched across the entire length of the highland meadows.
They neared the tree line, and Lethan jerked Jak back by the shoulder.
"Hey, what are you..."
Lethan wrapped his large hand around her face and shushed her. She squirmed for a moment but then heard it. A buzz. They held very still. Just beyond the tree-line passed a troop of Firejacks, their bulbous bodies hovering just a few feet off the ground. The ones in the middle were carrying a body. It was very large, and when Lethan saw the long horns, a low growl rumbled up from his breast. Jak elbowed him in the ribs hard, and he quieted himself.
"That was Dagan!" he said, after they had passed.
Jak had to pull Lethan's hand down off her face.
"Who?"
Dagan. He is... was the steward of the forest... and a friend."
"That bull thing?"
"He's a Minotaur."
"Oh, sorry. Why don't we follow and see what they're doing with him?"
"What's the point?"
"I still haven't seen the weapons. Maybe they'll lead us to them."
"What does it matter now? Dagan's dead. We don't stand a chance. Look out there! Those were the best warriors in the land. Look how many Firejacks they managed to take down."
Lethan swept his arm over the battlefield. There were easily more than twenty dead Foresters for every orange carcass.
"They weren't prepared. They had no idea what they were facing with those weapons. We will be. I'm not giving up. I'm not ready to lie down and die. Now come on, before we lose them."
Jak started after the Firejacks, keeping just inside the tree-line, but Lethan sat on his haunches for a moment, staring out across the sea of dead foresters. There were many out there that he knew, not much more than acquaintances, but still he felt the enormous loss. He wasn't one to make many friends, but Dagan; he had considered a him friend once. And now without Dagan, and without Lina, he felt alone.
Lethan wiped the wet from his eyes and pushed himself to his feet, loping after Jak's scent.
It took him longer than he expected to catch up with his small companion. When he did, he probably would have gone right on by, had her scent not gotten so strong. His blue eyes flicked back and forth through the branches and brush, but he saw nothing.
"Jak?"
"Shh!"
Lethan still couldn't see her, but the sound had clearly come from a bush directly ahead. He crept forward, peering into the undergrowth trying to spot her.
"I thought werewolves were supposed to be good hunters!" she hissed.
This time the sound came from above and his head snapped up. There was Jak, sitting in the next tree, peering out into the clearing.
"Actually I'm a Lycan, and we're excellent hunters... normally."
But Jak was ignoring him, still staring out.
"What do you see?"
"They've stopped at a small lake. There is a large camp set up, but I don't see any weapons... at least not from here."
"What about Dagan?"
"They put him down, but I can't see where. There are some big rocks in the way."
"I'm going to sneak around and take a
look. I want to know what they're planning to do with him."
"Try to be quiet, mighty hunter. You sounded like a charging ox following me."
Lethan made a face at Jak's back, and then made his way slowly through the trees, staying back in the shadows anytime the tall pines opened to a clearing. As he rounded the lake, the rest of the encampment came into view. He could see many strange looking objects made of timber and rope. He could also see the large body of Dagan. Lethan sat back on his haunches, remembering the last conversation he had with the old bull. It had been an argument, not a conversation, and the pain of it ached in his chest.
Lethan watched as three Firejacks hovered near his body. Two lifted him by the shoulders, while the third flew around, wrapping him in something.
"What are they doing?"
Lethan jumped back, his heart hammering. Jak had been standing right behind him.
"How in Mo-Na's name did you sneak up on me like that?"
"It wasn't hard."
"I didn't even smell you!"
"Ever heard of wind? I was downwind of you the entire time, and believe me, I smelled you!"
"Very funny."
Lethan turned back to the lake. The Firejacks were still fumbling around with Dagan.
"They were wrapping his body with something."
"That looks like rope to me."
"Why would they wrap him with rope unless... he's alive!"
"That would be my guess."
"We have to get him."
"Ha! We don't have to do anything. You on the other hand can commit suicide anytime you want."
"I thought you wanted to see the weapons?"
"I do, but I don't see..."
"Look back against those rocks on the far side of the encampment. A few of those look like big versions of your crossbow. I wonder if maybe those might be weapons?"
Lethan smirked, pleased with himself that she hadn't been able to spot them. Jak pushed past him and stared quietly for a while. Finally she returned.
"All right. But just how do you plan on sneaking in there and picking up that behemoth without getting your big furry butt skewered by Firejack stingers?"
