Golden wings

Chapter 53 - Timber

He went ahead wearily. His red eyes looked at every single one of them. There were hundreds around him, endless.

He had left his forest to seek his human, to follow and protect her. And now he had returned... The flowers had bloomed, they did. They always grew, every year. This season they had appeared early. But this...

He stepped on yet another one. A massive white veil covered the ground, made of withered remains; the trees around him seemed to be completely decayed. Their leafs and wood had been green, full of life, but they had a sickening white color now. It was like if their life had been extracted, like if all their essence had been stolen in his absence.

The outer areas of his forest were not as affected, and that was why he had not seen this before. It had been a while until he noticed the bad feeling in his guts, and how his fur shivered. He had paid mind to his forest, once he realized there was too much white in the distance.

He was really worried now. Maybe even fearful, while he walked through this labyrinth of red and white, towards the heart of the forest. With every step he took, he saw more of those bloody flowers, and more dead plants. After a few hours, he reached the core at last. Part of him wished to turn around and leave, once he saw what dwelled. There were thousands of white vines, tangling around every tree in the heart of the forest. All the leafs were fallen, and had covered the ground like white snow. It was not easy to see through that sickening color, nor through the dense and withered vegetation.

His mind filled with dark thoughts, because he had seen this before. His claws broke a big root when he stepped forward. His tails rose, shivering; he saw at last the very heart of the forest, the one he loved to call his. He had claimed this land, a long time ago... from her.

His red eyes looked with shock; they were unable to stop staring at the huge tree on the center of the field. Every smaller tree around him was dead; their trunks were limp and broken, turned into slender and sharp thorny vines. All had turned into a mass of thorns, roots and splinters. No matter how much white there was, he was not blinded. The ground was tinted with red as well; a repulsive color that fell from the weeping tree's branches. It looked more alive than it ever was, with a red tone, not like before. Before, it had been white, almost dead. Now, it was blooming, bigger. Its gigantic branches loomed all over the field, and it wasn't letting the sky be seen.

Lykaios froze there, staring breathlessly. The tree was torn open, from the inside. It looked like a huge cocoon, like if something had clawed its way out of its depths, to emerge with new life.

She was alive.

The wolf's eyes filled with fear, both from the horrible feeling in him and the sickening realization. His tails shivered when the withered vegetation shook around him. He let out a whimpered breath, and his ears lowered with dread, because the vines, thorns and roots began to move. They did like snakes. He took a step back, because he saw them crawl, without hurry, towards him.

His fear turned into rage quickly, his fur bristled as he let out a furious growl. He gave a fierce slash to the vines that neared his long mane, and his tails whipped up. He showed his fangs with a guttural howl; for they were surrounding him from every angle. Their sharp ends stood up in the air, like cobras, and they neared, like if they had their own mind.

Lykaios lunged and bit onto the first root that dared to try touching him. However, he regretted that move, because all the rest found their way to his fur and skin. His tails were not able to keep them all away, they were too many; it was a white sea that flooded over onto him.