Keeper's Oath

Chapter 8: The Dark

Hope woke up with a jolt.

She found herself on an unseen floor. Her body was shaking as if she was cold. It took her a moment to realize that there was no heat or a chill. Sitting up, Hope could only see darkness. It wasn't just dark or anything... it was as if she was in an empty void where there was nothing.

She tried to stand up to her feet but fell down instantly feeling dizzy. There was nothing to grab onto. Her head spun, she felt thirsty wishing for a cold bottle of water right about now.

Hope's head cleared a bit where she slowly got up to her feet to look around. All around her was the same. The same darkness that had swallowed the world she once knew. Hope jumped in one place but no sound came underneath her.

"Greetings, young one. Don't be alarmed." A soft female voice came behind her that made her jump. She whirled around to see a soft golden brown colored wolf with brilliant yellow eyes. Soft brown blanketed on top of her muzzle onto the tip of her tail. There were darker stripes that went down her back. A yellow and a black ribbon came from behind her each ear.

"Wh-who are you?" Hope gasped expecting the wolf to attack her but instead, the wolf sat down and stared up at her intently with intelligence.

"My name is Halo, I'm here to judge you." The wolf named Halo began and then took a deep breath without waiting for Hope to say anything. "You died and you have come here to be judged. Your guardian failed to keep you safe... there is so much potential within you, Hope."

The wolf thought for a brief moment inspecting Hope. She was wondering how the wolf knew her name. This had to be a dream... just like the black werewolf. Everything was a bad dream, she would wake up any moment.

"I want to wake up." Hope closed her eyes and balled her hands into fists that shook beside her violently. More tears streamed down her cheeks. Hadn't she already cried enough? She thought to herself. It all should just end.

"You can't wake up if you want to end." Halo got up on her paws again and circled around Hope like a predator would do to a prey. The wolf snarled. "Enough! Look at me, Hope Anne Wolf!"

With her full name being called out like a mother scolding a child, Hope's eyes opened up and the wolf growled at her. The teenager fell down on her back. Halo took the chance and came closer to her. Trying to get away from the golden brown wolf, Hope only got a few feet away before she felt the weight of Halo on top of her.

Her paws were on her legs to keep her going anywhere.

"Are you looking at me? Do you have your mind focused on me? Shut your nonsense and focus on what I'm about to tell you and answer me clearly." Halo snapped her teeth together a few inches away from Hope's face. She flinched and whimpered, wanting the nightmare to be over. "Do you understand?"

Hope nodded, Halo growled.

"Y-yes." She whispered, gulping.

"I can't hear you, pup!" Halo snarled, putting more pressure onto her paws that were still against Hope's legs.

"Yes!" Hope gasped partly in pain though fear struck her.

Halo got off Hope letting her gather herself to a decent sitting position. The wolf stood on all fours so their eye level was the same.

"Good. Now let's get down to it. Your death was tragic but it was seen in the stars. It was meant to happen for a reason truly unknown to us... for now. With your guardian failing to do his job, it's up to you to try to prove him wrong and become a better guardian." Halo told Hope matter of factly. "Something tells me you are meant to be alive still."

She hadn't been able to follow her words that well. Guardian? Patricia was her guardian but she was in a coma... how could I become a guardian and to who would it be? She felt her head hurt from thinking. None of it made sense.

Not paying attention to Hope's confusion, the wolf went on.

"Yes... You will be reborn as a guardian. A second chance at life but..." Her voice turned grave suddenly. "It won't be easy, young one. There's something different going on with you. You'll have to change if you want to survive and beat all the odds. You can't be the same person if you want to keep your heart beating."

"What's a guardian? What are you talking about? I'll always be me..." Hope wiped away her tears that were starting to brim.

There was a second when she could have sworn Halo had a look of pity in her eyes.

"A guardian is someone who protects someone or something. You need to start to speak up and be more vocal. Don't live in the shadows anymore. You have to stand up for yourself. The future you would know won't survive if you keep on the sidelines." Halo growled placing her paw forward. She dragged it against the unseen floor. Golden sparks erupted under her paw.

A gentle howl echoed around them. A tiny silvery form of a wolf appeared in front of Halo's paw. The tiny wolf looked up at Halo and then at Hope. It wagged its tail up at her as a dog would when it was happy to see its owner.

There was a strange feeling that Hope felt in her heart. She knew this creature... she held her hand out to it. It jumped onto her palm and gave a small bark. Seconds later, the small form of the wolf vanished and Hope heard something behind her.

She saw the wolf was now regular sized, it was silver with clear blue eyes. Hope stood up and walked towards it. Her eyes were kind but determined. It waited patiently for Hope to near her. Reaching her hand out to it, the wolf closed her eyes letting Hope's hand rest between its ears.

Hope felt a power surge inside of her. The new power made her feel alive and with new purpose. She breathed in fresh air closing her eyes, she felt herself falling down like a feather.

Her mind whirled though. She wasn't sure what was happening but Hope knew in the end she would be fine.

"Your new life will start soon, young one. Begin to learn the new world around you. It will be what you will know from now on. Travel carefully, Hope Wolf. Be wary of the shadow that stalks you."

Halo's voice echoed inside of her head. Moments later, a wave of warmth surrounded her which drifted her to a deep sleep.