Chapter 8
Hunter
I watch as Emily's plane takes off from JFK airport, and know that on November 31st of next year was when I would begin to look for her. That gave me a year to find out everything about her. The alpha of the wolves Mark, invites me to stay a little while in his village. In order to have my side heal completely. I agree, only because I am afraid that if I decline this hospitality would vanish and we would be enemies once again. A week later, the wolves said their goodbyes to me, and I was heading back to Pennsylvania.
I take long strides as I walk towards the border between New York and the keystone state. Trying to get home faster than I wanted to. Once I get to the border, I shift and take in the surroundings. With a yowl I begin to head home. Not knowing if I should just go to the village, or head towards Irwin in search of Emily's foster mother. I travel all day, making it about half way to my village when Ryan comes sprinting at me. He was a huge mountain lion and was nothing but muscle. I duck as he jumps to tackle me to the ground, instantly shifting back, "Ryan, what the hell man? Where did you come from?" He shifts back, short of breath, "The statue, it's eyes changed." I look at him, disbelief rising in my voice, "The eyes changed, that could never happen." Ryan looks at me with terror in his eyes, "No man you don't understand. I saw them change, they now look like they have moss growing in them. And the presence is stronger, it's as if that girl woke something up."
I wave a hand at his comment, "No, she was just a snow leopard. Not a sorceress, she could never have done something like that." Ryan instantly shook his head, "Hunter, you don't understand. When you were hurt and she came to the village, she showed me what you looked like. I have no idea how, but I looked into her eyes. And it was as if I was right in front of you. I saw the blood, and how bad you looked. Hunter, I saw you without even being there." Ryan was freaking out about this, and I had no idea what he was talking about. I clap a hand on his shoulder, "It's okay Ryan. We will look at the legends, see if they say anything about this." That seemed to calm him down a little bit, because we both shifted and ran home.
As soon as we got to the village we went straight towards the library. Once inside I looked for the legends. We had one large book of legends, things that might have been true but have been lost to the sands of time type of deal. I guess they were once true, I mean look at us. We are supposed to be folklore, but we exist. Anyway, I dig through the pages. Passing almost every legend that I have read. The one that always catches my eye is the one about the chiefs daughter. Saying how she might have survived, and that she refused her father's position because she knew she could not be him. And in doing that, all of her children afterward would not be able to shift, ending the line forever.
But with that legend, there was a blurred part that no one could read. That is until now, the letters were now clear and legible. I begin to read the legend where I had stopped. "Only when one of the daughters desires the cover of the forest will the curse be lifted. Her form will be that of her ancestor, and her scent irresistible. She is bound to bring a new order to the shifting world. Make all see the light, and take charge. The daughter must bring peace between the shifters of the world."
I stare at the page as a new set of words begins to appear on the page. As if they were being written right then and there. "The daughter will be named Emily Evans." I stare at her name, "Holy shit. This can't be happening." Ryan walks up next to me, "What's up Hunter?" I motion to the page, and he reads the entire thing. I watch his face go from normal, to confused, to just plain shocked. "Hunter, this can't be true. See if there is anything else about the daughters of the chief." I hurriedly flip through the pages, finding one thing. "Ryan, here's something. It's called the eyes of the chief."
