The Wolf Pack - Elswyth

Standing across her was the one they called Conri. His gaze sharp, brows knitted. His hands were tightly gripped around his dual sword. His brown eyes quickly scanning their surroundings. And when he found no more threat, he sheathed his weapon back.

"You okay?" he asked Elswyth. But before she could answer, Rahil stepped in front of her, checking for any grave wounds.

"I'm fine." It was an answer for Rahil and Conri.

“You were careless,” he said as he checked her arm. His voice though, was softer than usual.

He lifted her hand and saw the dried blood. The rush of victory melted away from her chest.

Rahil tried to wipe the blood off with the sleeve of his coat. When it wouldn’t come off, he sighed in defeat and gently lowered her arm. “It wasn’t your fault."

“Yes it is,” she murmured. “I killed her.”

Rahil shook his head. His hand firmly gripped on her shoulder “You did not—”

“I stabbed her in the chest,” her voice trailed away with each word. She gasped sharply, as if she were drowning. The words almost felt unreal coming from her mouth.

“Ellie?” Ren’s soft call cut through the deafening silence, chilling her to the bone.

She turned and saw the horror in his face.

She took a step toward him, but he backed away—slowly. As if she were another demon about to snatch him.

“I thought I imagined it,” he said. “I saw you, both of you, in the forest standing over Cassia.”

Her shoulder dropped. Everyone in Faeldic will look at her the way he does—with utter horror and disgust.

“I’d stop now if I were you,” Rahil warned him.

Ren ignored him.

“You killed her!” His voice echoed through the quiet forest, disturbing a flock of ravens.

The hair at the back of her neck rose. It felt as though there was a thousand set of eyes on them, waiting in the shadows of the forest.

“Ren,” she said in a low voice. “Just let me explain.” She took a step towards him. His eyes grew wide in horror, staggering back.

“Get away from me!” he yelled as he ran away.

She called after him, but he kept running and yelling. Afraid or not, she couldn’t leave him alone in a forest full of demons.

So, she followed him and let him scream. After thirty seconds, he slowed down to a stop, hands on his knees wheezing. He was never a good runner. Worse, his smoking clearly did not do him any favor.

“Who are you?” he said between breaths. His face sweaty and pale, eyebrows knotted at the difficulty to breathe. “You were gone for two years and came back to kill your mother?”

She didn’t know how to respond to that. There’s a storm of emotion brewing inside her. Guilt, pain, sorrow, and anger plague her heart. But she couldn’t let it out. Not right now.

“Please keep your voice down,” was all she could say. “I’ll explain everything, but not here. We have to leave.”

She slowly approached him and when she was close enough, she reached out to touch his arm. He jerked his hand away, and accidentally hitting her lip. A metallic taste filled her mouth. She spat it out and wiped her mouth with her shirt.

“What are you gonna do if I don’t?” he dared her. “You’re going to kill me too?”

Ren’s face turned pale. She realized he was looking past her. She looked behind and saw Rahil marching towards them. His black dirty cloak caught in the wind. His cold dark eyes glaring down at Ren.

Ren tried to run but lost his balance and fell to the ground. This made him scream surprise. And when she knelt before him to check if he was okay, he scrambled away from her.

Elswyth shot a hand up to stop Rahil. He hesitated, then he stood down.

Ren grabbed a flimsy branch and pointed it at her like a sword. His hands were shaking, and his face are contorted in fear and anger. The menacing look in his eyes were like daggers to her heart.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” she said as calm as she could.

“Why should I believe you?” his voice croaked.

His words hit her like an arrow through the heart. Her face felt numb and she was rooted where she stood. ‘Because it’s me’ she wanted to say. But the rage and fear in his dark brown eyes was enough to tell her that he no longer recognizes her.

Ren picked up the branch and clumsily threw it her. She caught with ease. Ren whimpered, staggering backwards, yelling “Stay away from me!”

She heard footsteps coming from behind. She turned her head and saw the strangers who fought the demon surrounding them. Ren grew more agitated. He grabbed a handful of dirt and pebbles and started throwing them in every direction. He yelled at the top of his lungs, fighting with sheer determination and nothing else.

Then suddenly a dart came flying in, hitting him on his arm, knocking him out instantly.

Rahil rushed towards her, one hand in his sword, ready to defend.

Her body froze for a second. The world seemed to stop as she laid eyes upon her friend’s unconscious body. She slowly kneeled next to him and removed the dart. A small drop of blood bloomed. She tried to squeeze out as much as she could from the small wound, but it closed right away. Her hand shifted to his neck. She sighed in relief after feeling his slow and steady pulse.

“Good heavens, he is so loud!” exclaimed someone from behind. She thought her ears were playing trick on her. It sounded like a child. But she wasn’t imagining it. It came from a young man, probably in his teenage years, holding a blow dart. His auburn hair was messy and sticky, like it hasn’t been washed in days. His face was printed with freckles, his round brown eyes scanned Ren from head to toe.

“It’s a strong downer,” he explained. “He’ll be good as new tomorrow.”

Despite his innocent, playful smile, Elswyth didn’t believe a word he said.

“Was that necessary?” she said under her breath.

“Yes, it is,” said the man with dark hair as he emerged out of the shadows of the forest. His dark grey eyes coldly observed her and Rahil.

“Nice shot, Cannagan” he gave the young man a tap on the shoulder.

“Thanks, Roukan,” he said gleefully.

Five more strangers emerged from the shadows of the forest. Each one armed and ready to strike, except for a young woman who hid behind the woman with the golden hair. They all gathered behind the man they called Roukan, the only person who have his sword sheathed.

“Fenris,” he called.

A man with dark hair tied in a bun turned his head to Roukan. She recognized this one immediately. He was the one shooting the arrows.

“Scout the area. See if there are others who are about to wake up” he instructed him. He simply nodded and darted into the shadow of the forest. Her jaw almost fell at how fast he ran.

Roukan shifted his attention back to her. He pulled out a dagger, and by instinct, she reached for hers, only to realize it wasn’t there. She kept her eyes on him as he came forward. His intense gaze made her uneasy.

His fingers picking on the edge of the dagger as he walked, testing how sharp it was. And with one swift motion, he threw it up in the air and caught it by the hilt. He smiled and he handed her the dagger, the handle towards Ellie, and the blade safely nestled in his hand.

“Better hold onto this one. You’re going to need it,” he said smiling.

Her eyes went to Rahil who curtly nodded. Carefully, she took her dagger and whispered “thanks.”

Though everything he has done so far seemed kind and welcoming, she still felt animosity behind his smile. Rahil, on the other hand, released his hold on his sword and his shoulders relaxed.

Roukan eyed her from head to toe. “Did we hit you?” he pointed at her bloodstained shirt.

“It’s not mine,” she said sheathing her weapon. The rest of his pack walked closer to their leader.

“The name’s Roukan,” he said. “Your friend is fine. He’ll have a good sleep tonight, I envy him.”

“But he’ll have a pretty bad headache when he wakes up,” said the young man rather cheerfully. “I’m Cannagan,” he pointed at himself. “Sorry about your friend.”

“This is Friedolf, Ylva, Ulric, Conri, and Lupe. The one who went scouting is Fenris,” he said as he pointed to each of his company. She recognized Ylva as the woman with golden hair who cut the demon in half and Conri is the man who saved her. She assumed that Friedolf is the bouldering man with an ax and Lupe is the shy girl behind Ylva.

“Now, to whom do we owe the pleasure?” Roukan said grinning.

Unconsciously, Elswyth took a step back. Roukan didn’t miss it and his smile grew wider. He eyed her from head to toe.

“My name is a Rahil,” he said cutting in front of her. “This is Elswyth and that is—” she looked up at him and realized that he doesn’t remember his name.

“Ren,” she continued for him.

“So,” he said looking curiously at them. “What are you and your clearly lost friend, doing in the middle of an infested forest, covered in dirt and blood? Nobody has walked here in weeks.”

She kept her mouth sealed. For two years, they’ve kept their mission and existence in secret. Revealing the truth to strangers could mean their death.

Rahil sensing her decision was about to speak when Fenris came back.

“The forest sleeps,” he reported. “There’s a nearby abandoned village east of here. We can stay there until the storm passes.”

He came back so fast, she thought. He couldn’t have gone that far. And yet his friends believed what he just said.

“The storm?” Roukan asked. They all looked up. Grey sky was looming over them. A thunder lowly grumbles on queue.

“It seems like we have an entire day to know each other,” Roukan nodded at the tall guy they called Friedolf.

Friedolf went to Ren’s unconscious body. He picked him up and carried him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Ellie was about to protest when Rahil held her arm. They didn’t miss this and all of them had one hand on their weapon, except Roukan who was eyeing her with amusement.

“No need to worry,” he said smiling. “We don’t want to leave you in the middle of a demon infested forest. Come. We have food and clean clothes to spare.”

She didn’t move an inch. “We’re alright on our own,” she said. “Please put my friend down and we’ll find our own way.”

“Now, now,” he said so gently. And yet his eyes say otherwise. “Best we stick together. You never know what the forest will do to you in such dread.”

His words sounded more of a threat than an offer

Rahil briefly squeezed her arm. She looked up at him, dark eyes looked straight into hers, sending a quiet message.

She breathed in deep, looked away and sheathed her dagger back. The forest was a safer company than this man, she thought.