Druidfire- Chronicles of Mortal Gods

Druidfire

Druidfire
Josemaria Azcui

For my kin
And for Ignacio, who read it first

"It doesn't matter how greatly you've been hurt or how much you're hurting, it's what you do with the pain that counts. You could cry for years or you could choose to learn and grow from it."
― Chris Colfer, the Wishing Spell

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1- Silverstreak River

Chapter 2- Lone Valley

Chapter 3- Lake Axestaff

Chapter 4- Blood Creed Extravaganza

Chapter 5- The Wanderer

Chapter 6- Desert Wonder

Chapter 7- Forest Stone

Chapter 8- Mountain Gem

Chapter 9- Icy Winds

Chapter 10- Topaz

Chapter 11- Resurrection

Chapter 12- Clan Meet

Chapter 13- attack of the demons

Chapter 14- Scarlet feathers turn back

Epilogue

Sneak peek at brightstorm

Author's Note

Prologue

Blacktooth looked out at the Silverstreak River. He was wearing his beaver hide boots and carried his sea slate fishing dagger and his special oaken fishhook given to him by his father. He was trying to catch a mully; the biggest fish there were for the Midsummer Feast with all the clans. He was living in the Forest, where he grew up. He was squatting down on the reeds when his best friend Flintclaw shoved him in the water. They were both the same age. Blacktooth was from the Bear Clan, while Flintclaw was Wolf. Blacktooth was very unique because he could talk and become animals' spirits. Flintclaw was hunched over laughing when Blacktooth climbed out.
"I was about to catch it!"
"Sorry, I had to."
Blacktooth looked up. The clouds looked stormy. He sensed something dark and sinister coming. Lately the Forest had been acting strangely. The fish were dying, the birds staying in their nests late into spring. One time he had been hunting and a huge stag came thundering toward him, rearing up on its hind legs. It was a full-grown bull, not even a cow protecting its young. Its eyes were bloodshot and even Blacktooth couldn't control it. It stamped Blacktooth to the ground and started to kick him when the hunters from the Boar clan arrived and shot it with their hardened clay arrows. Flintclaw had told Blacktooth that he had looked deathly pale when it died. Blacktooth entered its spirit and saw that a demon had been in it. Blacktooth and Flintclaw had stayed inside for half a moon, not daring to go back into the wild.
Flintclaw and Blacktooth were eighteen summers old. So that meant that they were getting their new clan marks at the ceremony. If it rained now, it would be ruined. Thunderflame, the Bear Druid, came up to Blacktooth.
"The Wild is coming..."
Blacktooth shivered. The Wild was a mass of legendary demon spirits that had almost destroyed the world a long time ago. If it had not been for the power of all the Clan Druids put together, the world would not exist.
"Let's go," said Flintclaw.
"I agree."
They both walked down the trail to their otterskin tent and put on Dark Leather to ward off evil.

Rawhide was stalking his prey. It was a young red deer that looked like it could bolt at any moment. He was very good with a bow and okay with a knife. He was the leader of the Elder Clan from the Mountains, which worships an Elder Bird, one of the wisest creatures that exist. It was huge enough to hunt seals and sea lions but barely smaller than a killer whale. Just one Elder Bird flew over the Mountains every Midsummer's Day. Rawhide was getting very old but he could still throw a spear or slingshot a stone at his prey. His mate Stonebolt was a very able woman that hunted along with him. She had caught a fox in her snare and had shot a large hare. She held them up pride fully and silently so Rawhide would stay concentrated. Rawhide snapped a twig and the deer jumped up and shot out of the clearing at dizzying speed.
"Did you lose it?" she asked.
"Yes. But it'll come back. This is the only spring creek for days' walks."
The streambed emptied into a pond/lake called the Axestaff Lake, a huge expanse of freshwater that froze over almost the entire year because it was high up in the Mountains.
"Macebone, please place the death marks and ask for forgiveness from the rabbit and the fox."
Macebone was Rawhide's son. He would be the rightful heir to the Clan Leadership. He was getting his marks at the feast and would take Rawhide's place. Macebone showed him the marks and his other kills. He had hunted a goat and a sheep. Rawhide picked up his quiver full of arrows and started to walk back to his camp on the bank shallows with Stonebolt and Macebone. Then he looked up at the sky and saw it was darkening.