Rigor Mortis

Change

Dux visited more often. The two black birds could always talk about what happened. For Corax, this often involved a story about the wolf pup. Today he was six months old and Corax proudly told Dux about the changes.

"But what about that drawing of him?" Dux asked while looking at the white fur with grey areas.

"I'm not sure yet. It somehow tells me what to do, but I can't see anything in it yet." Corax answered. Rigor's first completely white fur, was now covered in grey areas. Those around his eyes where the darkest. A lot of grey on his stomach and some on his legs. It started to show.

"Did you tell someone though?" Corax asked his friend. Dux shook his head.

"Great, I don't think a lot of attention will do him any good." Corax said relieved. Rigor still had a lot to learn and with everyone keeping an eye on him that would be even harder.

"Wish I could stay a little longer, but there's a call out I need to go to." After those words Dux took off and left the area.

Corax decided to find out where Rigor was. Suddenly a big ball of feathers and fluff came running up to him.

"DAAAAAD!! Something happened, what do I do?" It was pure panic in Rigor's voice. Only thing was: he didn't look like the pup he knew at all. It was the sound of his voice, the look in his eyes and the white with slight grey areas on his head that made clear to Corax that this was really his little Rigor. Corax eyes became big. What did just happen to Rigor?

"Dad!" the white eagle yelled again.

"Just calm down. Listen to me and it will be alright." Corax said in a loud voice that made bird-Rigor go quiet.

Corax closed his eyes and thought. What did the myth about the Prophecy say exactly?

"The wolf that guides the dead like a Grim Reaper, learns the Ways from him that finds him first. The wolf that stands his ground and doesn't let anyone in creating a safe place. The one that watches over Yggdrasil untill she falls apart. The wolf of Rigor Mortis, the eagle of Icarus."

And it was clear. The eagle of Icarus. It was just another part of the Prophecy. Another part of Rigor Mortis. Corax didn't even had the myth in mind when he named him Rigor Mortis.

"I see now. It's perfectly normal, although it doesn't look normal. Don't worry about it." Corax said. Rigor only looked very confused.

"So what do I do now?" he asked carefully. Corax shrugged.

"Learn how to fly, I suppose."

Rigor, or actually Icarus now, flapped his wings a few times. Not very skillful yet, but Corax let him. Flying was something he had to do himself.

"You'll get the hang of it." Corax encouraged him.

"First you train your wing muscles. Than we will start working on your take-off, flying and landing." Corax told him. A faint smile was the only response the raven got. It was enough. But Corax couldn't really feel Icarus in him. He still was the wolf pup. When Rigor was used to his new form and to changing from wolf to eagle when needed, than Corax could probably get to know Rigor as Icarus.

After a while Rigor came back as the wolf pup he was. No feathers, only fur.

"It just happens." he said confused. Corax sighed.

"Just don't worry about it. It will be fine, trust me." Rigor nodded. The words of Corax eased him.

"I'm just gonna sleep and let it sink in." he said and yawned while walking away to his sleeping spot in the cave.

Corax closed his eyes to let everything sink in too. He only had a short time of rest before he had to open his eyes when Dux arrived and greeted him.

"You look like you had a not so common day." the crow observed.

"You can say that, but Rigor was the one that had it worse. You'd never believe me." Corax stated. Dux shrugged.

"Try me."

"He became an eagle today. Just try to remember what the myth said." Corax said. The myth was hard to remember. This story about the Prophecy had the reputation to be forgotten. The very old Grim Reapers could remember bits and pieces, but the younger ones often totally forgot or remembered one small bit. Yggdrasil had spread her story with a spell on it. Otherwise the living would interfere with it. The only thing Grim Reapers knew, all of them, was that there was someone, a so called Prophecy, that would prevent Yggdrasil from falling apart. What the story said, was almost unknown.

"Do you remember?" Corax tried. Dux shook his head. He didn't see it.

"Doesn't matter. It happened however." Corax said. He closed his eyes again.

"Dad." a whisper in the wind. A whisper from the ground. Corax opened his eyes. First thing he noticed was that Dux had gone. And ofcourse Rigor beneath him.

Corax landed on the ground to look him in the eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Rigor looked away, watching the movement of an ant between his paws.

"I had a bad dream. I was chased by horse-like creatures covered in rotten flesh and with a horn on their head."

"Just a bad dream."

"I have had it for months now. It got different this night. Normally they just chased me untill I jump off a cliff and I change into a bird. Today the last part happened for real. And the dream got worse." Rigor admitted.

"Than why didn't you tell me?" Corax.

"Because at first I figured it was just a dream and I got used to it. But now you were in the dream and you left me!" he hissed trough his teeth with tears in his eyes.

"I don't want you to leave me." he cried.

"I won't leave you." Corax tried, but he actually couldn't tell when he would have to go.

"Yes, but the eagle thing was just as unreal and you know what happened today."