The Wolfsbane

Chapter 4 - The Wolfsbane

We followed the river in silence. Aurion and Eli walked up front side by side. Aurion stood at least 7 and a half ft tall, while Eli stood around 7ft. His hind legs were thick with muscle, veins popped and his muscles contracted as he walked. Eli was very similar to her mate. She was very thick and broad for a female. Her coat softened her lean body, the pure whiteness of her coat sent shivers down my spine.

Behind them walked Cohan. His shaggy grey coat concealed most of his muscle. But I could tell he was strong. Unlike the rest Cohan walked on all fours. His movements were eerily silent, but held such an elegant beauty. Dana padded along behind him, every now and then she would disappear into the trees. You could hear the tree tops rustle and the branches creak as she stalked up high. Dana had an eccentric feel about her, she was quite petite and knew a lot about herbal medicine.

I trudged along behind, struggling to keep up. My wounds still stung, although not as bad as before. My nose was still broken and crooked. And my body still ached from the fight. I tried to focus my mind on the beautiful surroundings. The odd flowers that sprouted here and their along the river bank, the sound of frogs croaking and the occasional call of an owl. Along the river there were various old rotten tree trunks, most fallen and lay half in half out of the still water.

Butterflies fluttered around, occasionally bold enough to sit gently upon my shoulder. They sat with such elegance, such beauty. Their patterned wings slowly opening and closing. A low painful howl pierced through the air. I snapped out of my daydream and looked around. No one seemed concerned, but the howl was exceptionally eerie.

I looked to my right and jumped startled. Dana walked next to me, looking at me with concern etched into her soft face.

"Arora are you ok?" She said softly. My mouth dropped open, I hadn't heard her speak until just now. She sounded identical to the voice I heard in my head before my transformation. The surprise must have been evident on my face because Dana smiled softly and chuckled.

"I'm sorry, I should have realized you'd be shocked" she smiled.

"I heard you. In my head. How-"

"Not now Arora, there is much you need to learn. You'll see, once we reach the Wolfsbane everything will make sense." She spoke with certainty. I looked back in front of me, my forehead furrowed in thought.

"What-" I turned to ask Dana. But she was gone. A soft rustling sounded to my right, I moved my head slightly and saw a brief flash of brown jump through the trees. Bloody Dana! I huffed in annoyance and walked along silently.

We walked for around an hour to this unknown location. My body was numb from exhaustion, my nerves felt as though they were on fire. My stomach churned with a violent nausea. And a horrendous pain pounded against my skull. I felt as though I was going to pass out at any moment. I had my head down, focusing on the forest floor. I watched the dark shapes under my feet as I walked, the moons light casting pools of light here and there.

I was mesmerized by the slight snap of twigs and crunch of leaves under my feet. I was so entranced I hardly relised the pack had stopped. I bumped into Cohan's back. I coughed and sputtered on a mouthful of his fur. He whirled around and looked down on me with a pissed off expression. I could feel my cheeks burning, luckily he couldn't tell with my fur covering my face. I mumbled an apology and he just smiled. Again my heart fluttered.

I looked around confused. I saw nothing. We had entered a thick part of the forest, the vast lake had disappeared behind us, and nothing but a stream remained. The quaint rocky stream gently trickled northwards. The rocks were covered in a thin green slime, the water sparkling pleasantly under the moon. The water was a murky green in colour, and tiny fish could be seen darting around.