Awakening Book 1: Rebirth [Editing]

Part 11: Jack

The forest glittered in the midday sun, sending shadows dancing on the forest floor. Jack and Darya had been walking for a while, in silence. Darya lead out in front, pushing aside brush and clambering over fallen trees. Her dress of leaves seemed to morph and twist around her, granting full mobility. It struck Jack with awe, he had never seen magic like that before.

He also noticed how her golden hair swayed as she walked, shining in the sunlight. Her hair was fastened in multiple places with silver rings engraved with flowers and leaves. They bounced as she moved. He noticed she wore leather sandals on her feet and half gloves on her hands. The quiver of arrows on her back was ornate, with silver inlays and engraved designs. The arrows had golden feathers at the ends, coming up out of the top of the quiver. Her bow was a recurve, bent back on itself for added power. The wood was capped again with silver, engraved with designs.

Jack wondered who she truly was, for she was outfitted with high quality equipment, at least that's what it looked like to him. Unless all elves have exquisite things, he thought. He said nothing though, he didn't want to do anything to make her angry. He wasn't interested in making the whole forest his enemy, the wildlings already seemed to hate him.

They kept walking through the forest, going deeper and deeper. Jack wondered how Darya knew the way. She simply weaved her way through the woods, never stopping to check her bearings. It wasn't like he was in a position to lead so he simply followed.

They hiked on for a time and the ground began to slope upwards. Suddenly, Darya froze. The leaves in her dress seemed to bristle, sensing her anxiety. She held up a fist, signalling him to stop. Jack obeyed, though he didn't know what was happening.

The forest was eerily silent. Jack couldn't even hear rustling of leaves. It unnerved him. His hand flicked back to his staff. He silently slid it from its carrier. The feel of the soft wood comforted him. With his power coursing through the oak core he felt like he could take on anything.

Darya began to step forward, her footsteps made no sound at all. She gave him a signal to follow. Jack wasn't confident he could do the same so he cast a light stealth spell, silencing his steps for him.  They moved forward, heading towards a clearing. A soft growl could be heard, mingled with soft whimpers.

Darya gave him a signal to stop, just outside of the clearing. She slipped through the brush and headed towards the sound. Jack crept up behind a bush and peered through. In the clearing he found the source of the sound. Lying off to one side, in a pool of blood was a badly injured wildling, with jet black fur, flecked with white. Blood was oozing from a gash in its side. It held a giant claw over it, trying to stop the flow. 

The elf padded over to the beast, her fingers sparkling with power. The creature's wound began to heal, slowly sealing itself. She knelt down, searching the creature for more injuries. It was in that instant that Jack heard another deep growl, this one not coming from the wounded creature.

He knew what was coming. In the same instant, he and another wildling burst from the trees. The beast leapt for Darya, its claws extended and reaching for her face. Jack flung out his hand, thinking of fire. 

Ashes sprinkled down on Darya and the wildling as the beast was incinerated instantly. She stared at him, wide eyed. He could feel her eyes running up and down the glowing markings on his face. There was no time for talk though, as another group of wildlings burst from the woods. Jack quickly dispatched them with a wave of his hand. The beasts crumpled to the ground in a lifeless heap.

As soon as he used that spell he regretted it, for he instantly felt exhausted. That kind of magic could easily sap all of your strength quickly. He waited a few minutes, making sure no more beasts would attack. Suddenly, another wildling leapt from the forest behind him. It bellowed deeply and began to charge for the wounded creature. Jack spun, readying a fireball. 

As the ball of flame struck the wildling it was just about to dig its claws into the wounded beast's neck. The monster was sent back, sprawling. The smell of burning hair filled the air, and smoke billowed up from the creature's torso. It stood up, ignoring the fact that it was aflame. It growled and charged at Jack, in a blind rage.

The beast let out a whimper as Jack's blade sliced into it's throat. Jack could feel the warm blood spatter his face and hands. He gave his staff a twist and pulled the blade out, letting the wildling fall to the ground, dead.

He turned to Darya and noticed that she was staring at him, her face a mixture of shock and fear. The wildling had the same expression, but it was hard to tell with all the fur.

"Demon . . ." Darya began, her voice trembling.