Cloak as Red as Blood

Chapter 22: The Brothers of the Pool

We had been traveling in this swamp for the past two days without any signs of dry land. I was 

beginning to wonder if we would be lost here forever.  What have you gotten yourself into 

Hunter? Alexei and Anettka filled our bags with rations for the trip, but they were running thin. 

Why did Skylar insist on bringing that damn girl with us?  We could barley take care of ourselves 

out here, now we were responsible for a child. I said as much to her when Dorcas drifted off to 

sleep.

"Her parents just died Hunter!", she said appalled at my attitude.  "She has no one left, and if we 

left her in that village they would have surely killed her too." "I told you not to get involved in 

the first place." "I had to do something Hunter. Like it or not we are now responsible for this 

girl." "Look, I'm not saying that she would have been in danger in that place, but how much 

danger do you think she'll be in now. With the monsters and evil we encounter on a regular 

basis, maybe she'd be better off dead." As soon as the words left my mouth Skylar slapped me 

across the face, hard. "How could you even say that? Where is all this coming from?", she 

demanded. The answer to her question was simple. It was the wolf inside me. Before I turned I 

would have never thought to abandon a child to death. But this beast inside, was all about 

survival. "Cut the weakest from the pack to ensure the survival of the rest", I heard it say in my 

head. How long must I suffer this curse I wondered.

I apologized to Skylar and we continued on our way in silence. Praise the gods it was not long 

after that we reached dry land. I grounded the boat while Skylar gathered the provisions. 

Dorcas was still fast asleep. I prayed that she wasn't having nightmares about her parents 

deaths. Not wanting to wake her I stripped and assumed my wolf form. I motioned for Skylar to 

put the sleeping girl on my back. On we walked through the dry wooded marsh, not even 

knowing where we were headed. It was almost nightfall when we decided to take a rest. Dorcas 

and Skylar went to find anything that could be used for firewood while I went to hunt for our 

dinner.

I was just about to pounce on a deer feasting on tall grass, when I heard Dorcas scream. On 

instinct I ran in the girls direction. I found them huddling close together in a clearing. Skylar 

held up a trembling finger, identifying what had scared them. A group of people in brown 

hooded robes were staring at us. I crouched into a defensive position and bared my claws and 

fangs at the assailants. "Peace!", said one of the men. "We have not come to harm you." "Allies 

don't hide themselves in shadow, come into the light", demanded Skylar. The men in brown 

robes surged forward. There were five of them in all.  "Who are you?", asked trembling Dorcas.