Mother of Wolves (Evalyce Worldshaper Book 1) (6 page)

As they drew closer to the Deep Forest, the towns grew further and further apart, eventually disappearing for good. At the last town, Kalla stocked up on extra supplies for both the humans and the vykr. There was no telling how long they might have to wander the Forest before finding Gasta. If the Keeper did not want to be found, he would not be found and though she could weave edible food from nothingness, that took power she could little spare in the Forest.

On the eleventh day, they reached the Forest itself. Aleister's

trepidation grew as they approached the massive forest with its monolithic trees. All week, as the forestlands grew thick about them, the magister had grown more and more uneasy. Though he had lost a fear of the sky, the Arkaddian still had a healthy fear of being hemmed in by trees.

Mage and magister stopped the vykr at the Forest entrance. Kalla took a deep breath, inhaling the rich smells of green, growing things. Scents of jasmine and thistlehart drifted on the air. She drew in another breath and let it out in a long, ululating sound that rang through the trees. Aleister jumped, cursed his reaction.

“What in blazes was that for?”

“To let the guardians know we are here.” Before she could say more, a call echoed back at them, first from one point, then another, then another.

“There. Now we have permission to enter. Stay to the path. This is important. You must keep to the path or you will become hopelessly lost. There are beings in the Forest that would take great delight in luring a human to their deaths in the trees. No matter what you think you see or hear, do not leave the path,” Kalla said.

Aleister gave her a shaky nod.

“If it's so dangerous, should we be going in?” the magister asked.

“The Forest can be dangerous, kas, but only if you do not show it proper respect. However, this is where Gasta lives and if any can give us a good starting place, it will be the Keeper of the Forest.” Kalla nudged her mount to a walk and started down the path, the Forest swallowing her like some great hungry beast. With some hesitation, Aleister followed.

The farther in they went, the darker it became, until the light vanished altogether. Kalla conjured magelight to light the way, the orbs glowing like tiny suns in the darkness. She could feel her magister getting more and more antsy, so she decided to halt for the night.

“Here's a good place to stop. We'll make camp and get some rest,” she said.

“How can you tell it's night-time?” Aleister's voice sounded grateful.

“It is. Trust me.” As he would figure out soon enough, day and night counted for nothing in the Forest. From here on out they would have to use magelight to show the way. Kalla fixed the orbs in place.

Aleister took the vykr over to a tree and tethered them, leaving the leads long. Kalla walked the area, pacing out a circle, letting Aleister's soft voice relax her even as it soothed the beasts. He unsaddled them, brushed their long, shaggy fur, checked their hooves and fed them, while Kalla walked the circle twice more, each time weaving a stronger shield.

By the time she was finished, her warding was strong enough to keep out all but Gasta himself, but it served another purpose as well. It kept them inside. Though Kalla knew she was strong enough to withstand the temptations beyond the path, she was not so sure about Aleister, especially in his current fretful state. Despite her reassurances, the gloomy forest still unsettled the Arkaddian.

Their tasks complete, they made camp- building a fire, collecting wood, putting dinner together, cleaning up- all in relative silence. Kalla wondered how long it would be before Aleister would go crazy in the quiet. Quiet didn't bother her. She enjoyed the Forest, having spent quite a bit of time in it when she was younger. Her father had brought her here as often as he could to teach her respect for the unknown, and to instill in her a certain degree of fearlessness. The pair were drowsing around the fire after dinner, when Aleister finally lost the battle. Kalla chuckled to herself, as his voice broke the silence.

“Milady, can I ask a question?”

“You can ask. I might not answer,” she said.

“Fair enough. Lady, why did you choose me? Out of all the others? Surely there were better choices, yes?” Aleister asked.

“I've already told you, I wasn't looking for brute strength. Nor was I looking for someone who had truly been worthy of a death sentence.” She shrugged. “Choosing you felt right. I knew you weren't a killer, by your own admission and by the truth-read. Help any?”

Aleister nodded slowly and Kalla again caught the strange undercurrent to his thoughts, tinged, oddly enough, with a bit of shame and fear. This time she felt him actively suppress it before she could focus on it. He was silent for a moment more.

“Another thing I've been meaning to ask- the coins you've given the stableboys and innkeepers, you made them from nothing. How?”

Kalla laughed softly.

“No, that was merely illusion, not magick. I am skilled enough to weave something from 'nothing', but the coins came from my own purse.”

“But how is it possible to make something from nothing?” Aleister asked.

“I'm not sure I can explain it to one not a mage, but I'll try. There are tiny particles all around us. Everything, even the air itself, is made from these unseen particles. I'm not really pulling something from nothing, but reweaving the pattern of the particles. Not all magi are skilled in Alchemy, but it happens to be something I excel at,” Kalla said.

Aleister shook his head. “I'm not sure I understand. If it can't be seen, how can you manipulate it?”

“I don't have to see it with my eyes. I see it in my mind. We see with magick's eyes.”

Aleister shook his head, puzzlement drifting through the link. He opened his mouth to say something more, but an eerie howling rent the air, causing the Magister to jump. His eyes were wide in the firelight.

“What was that?” he asked, voice barely a whisper.

“
Cus silthair
, better known as sabre wolves. They won't bother us. The area is shielded and they will avoid the path,” Kalla said. She noticed her magister squinting into the darkness beyond the shield. In the distance, pale balls of blueish light bobbed and wove, accompanied by eerie blue-green lights that winked off and on as they darted low to the ground.

“The blue, bobbing lights will be will-o-wisps. One reason you shouldn't leave the path. Follow one and you'll get lost and end up in the wolves' bellies. The others come from the wolves themselves,” Kalla explained.

Aleister hugged himself, working to put a stranglehold on the fear he was feeling.

“Tell a story? Please? Anything to take my mind off of this place,”

he asked in a plaintive voice.

“Very well.” Kalla relaxed, settling into her 'story mode'.

“Long ago, when the world was young and new, Bear had a long, beautiful tail. Bear was so proud of his long tail. He would go around asking everyone-

“
Don't you think my tail is the most beautiful you've ever seen?
”

And everyone agreed with Bear, but not because they truly liked his tail. They thought Bear very vain, but sharp claws and teeth make for pretty compliments. They all told Bear how much they loved and admired his fluffy, plush tail.

Now one day, during winter, Bear happened to come across Fox fishing in the ice. Fox was surrounded by a whole pile of delicious-looking fish and Bear decided he wanted some fish too. Fox knew that the prideful Bear was hungry and so he decided to play a trick on him, to teach a lesson. Bear ambled up to him and plopped down on the ice.

“
Hello, Brother Fox. Where did you get all of those tasty looking fish?
” Bear asked, mouth watering. Fox pointed to a hole in the ice.

“
I caught them, Brother Bear,
” Fox replied.

Bear gave Fox a puzzled look. “
But how, Brother Fox? You have nothing to fish with,
” he asked. Fox gave a sly grin.

“
Why I used my tail, Brother Bear. It's the best thing to fish with! Shall I show you how? Then you can have as many fish as you want.
”

“
Yes, please,
” Bear answered in his deep, gruff voice. He was so surprised. Using one's tail to fish? What a novel idea. Bear followed Fox to another part of the frozen lake and Fox showed him how to dig out a fishing hole.

“
Now put your long, beautiful tail in the water. Wait until you feel the fish bite it, then you can pull out your tail with the fish attached. But-
” Fox held up a cautionary paw, “
it is very important that you sit very still. Be patient and do not move or you will scare the fish away.
”

Bear nodded and put his tail in the water. He sat very still, waiting patiently. Time passed and Bear fell asleep, waiting for the fish to bite.

Meanwhile Fox had gathered his fish and returned home.

A few hours later Fox returned to the lake, to find Bear still asleep on the ice. His dark fur was white with snow. Fox chuckled to himself and snuck up behind Bear.

“
Bear, Bear! Wake up! I can see a fish on your tail!
”

Bear woke with a fright and felt a sting in his frozen tail.

“
I can feel it! I can feel it!
”

Bear jumped up, expecting to pull a fish out of the lake. Instead he snapped off his beautiful tail. Fox ran away laughing, while Bear bewailed the loss of his wonderful tail. That is why Bears today have only short, stubby tails.

So remember the lesson of Bear and Fox whenever you begin to become too prideful. Remember, too, that quite often cunning is better that brute strength any day!”

Aleister had grown more and more relaxed during Kalla's story and he was now so drowsy he was almost asleep. The magister stirred, and gratitude filtered through the bond, along with a faint echo of the unusual feeling that Kalla couldn't quite place.

“Thank you, milady. You must think me a fool for being scared of the Forest,” he said.

“Not at all. Each of us carries our own fears, magi included,” Kalla replied.

“What could you possibly be scared of? You don't seem afraid of anything,” Aleister muttered sleepily.

“My fears are less tangible, but they are there. I just hide them well.” Kalla sighed softly.

They had been wandering the Forest for days now, going in circles and still they had not found the Keeper. The pair had set camp earlier, both dejected by their lack of success. Though it had become a habit for Kalla to tell a story before bed, this night neither were in the mood, and they surrendered to sleep earlier than usual.

Aleister jolted awake, the fine hairs along the back of his neck standing at attention. He glanced around, nervously searching the shield perimeter. As his eyes adjusted he found himself staring into a nightmare face. Glowing eyes barely illuminated a broad, heavy muzzle, topped by a slender, curved blade of bone. He panicked, reaching out to shake Kalla awake.

His touch triggered a fearsome reaction.

The sleeping mage grabbed the front of Aleister's shirt, jerking him down and rolling over to pin him to the ground. In her other hand a short blade glittered in the dim firelight. Aleister yelped, grabbing her hand before she could drive the blade home.

“It's me! Kalla, it's Aleister!” the magister yelled. Though her eyes were open they held no recognition. They were empty and cold as a bleak winter evening, as if no one were home inside. He shuddered, still fighting for control of the blade. To be so small, the mage had great strength. Whether she sensed his fear or heard his words, life slowly returned to her face. She relaxed, lowering the blade.

“Yesss?” Kalla's voice was calm as she pushed away from him, the blade disappearing back to wherever she'd pulled it from. He scrambled away, keeping a wary eye on her.

“What… what was that all about? Why'd you try to kill me?” Aleister swallowed hard, trying to calm his hammering heart.

“Why'd you try to wake me up? Don't you remember me telling you that would be inadvisable?” Indeed, he dimly recalled that warning. He pointed to the shield, still shaky from the encounter. The sabre wolf was still there, pressed against the side. As the Mage turned her attention to it, the bone blade on its muzzle ignited with an eldritch glow. It blinked at her.

Follow.
She heard the words without hearing them. From his expression, so did the magister.

“It wants us to follow it?” he asked. Kalla nodded. They quickly packed up and saddled the vykr, while the wolf waited patiently outside the shield. When Kalla dropped it, the creature moved off, heading into the forest. The mage followed without pause, leaving Aleister scrambling to catch up.

“Milady, would you have really killed me?” Aleister asked in a soft lilting voice fraught with uncertainty. Kalla shifted slightly in her saddle.

“Maybe, maybe not. I
did
warn you.” She did not speak for a long moment. “That is one reason why I never wanted to take a magister. I can protect myself. It's also earned me a nickname- Wolf that Sleeps. A lone frost wolf reacts the same way if disturbed while asleep,” she said. He gave a shaky laugh.

“Wolf that Sleeps, indeed.”

“I am sorry, Aleister. Kill you I might have, but I would have regretted it when I came to my senses. I like having you around.” Kalla turned her focus to the sabre wolf loping along ahead of them. A moment later, Aleister tensed when he realized that they were surrounded by sabre wolves. All around them, blades glowed with eldritch light.

“Where are they taking us?” the magister asked.

“To Gasta. Any of the Forest's creatures can serve as his Voice when he wants. So long as they are under the Keeper's control, we will not be harmed,” she replied. His thoughts said he didn't believe her, but before he could give voice to his concerns they broke through the trees, into an open glen. An odd tumble of boulders was the only thing within. The wolves stopped just outside the clearing, keeping to the woods. Kalla rode forth, giving Aleister no choice but to follow. He kept looking at the boulders.

“Those look like an animal… a big, slinky animal.” As if in response to his words, the ground rumbled and the 'boulders' shifted and melted away, to reveal the presence of a very real Gasta. The Keeper was huge and when he rose to his feet, he towered over the two humans. Fine white fur covered a muscular body. Tufted ears twitched as the slender head dipped down. Warm amber eyes full of wisdom regarded them with a slightly amused expression.