Chapter 6

Help comes from a unlikely soul...

 

Chapter 6

 
    “Friend or foe?”  Elona woke from her restless sleep with a start, as she heard heard the alien voice echo through her mind.
    Still lying on the soft, cool ground, she looked around, but saw nothing other than her husband that still lay fast asleep by her side.  Was it a dream?  It must be.  She thought.  She closed her eyes and began to drift back to sleep.
    “I said, are you a friend or are you an enemy?  If you are a friend, we offer help, but if you prove to be an enemy, then there is definitely no hope for you, for we have you surrounded!”  The deep, exotic voice once again echoed in her mind, this time accentuated with a rumbling growl.
    She shot up into a sitting position, her eyes wide with terror and breathing heavily.  Her heart was pounding as she glanced around frantically, straining her eyes in hopes of finding the source of the voice.  Now I know this isn’t a dream!  Oh, Gods!  Please tell me they did not find us!  “Wh-who is there?  Who spoke to me?  Show yourself!”  She got to her feet and, being careful not to wake Derrik or her children, she picked up her husband’s sword with trembling hands.  Holding it defensively, she slowly turned in a circle, her entire body shaking, hardly able to keep her grip on the weapon as she searched the area for whatever she had heard.  She was still unsure if she had been dreaming…until she noticed them…at least a dozen pairs of bright yellow eyes, peering at her from the darkness of the trees.  They looked as if they could have been part of the forest, but she knew better.  She gasped in horror.  As she turned once more, seeing that she truly was surrounded, there was one pair of eyes that stood out from the rest.  These eyes looked the color of steel, cold and hard, and it was these eyes that began to move slowly closer.  As the creature moved into the little makeshift camp, the dimming firelight illuminated its hulking form.  Elona's trembling legs gave out and she dropped to her knees, the sword slipping out of her hand and clattering to the ground.
    Surprisingly, her husband still slept soundly, his exhaustion keeping him from taking any slight notice of what was happening.
    Her eyes were fixed on the imposing wolf, both in absolute terror and utmost amazement.  It was the most beautiful creature she had ever seen!  Its coat was white as new fallen snow, and those eyes!  Now that it had come closer, yet still remaining well out of reach, she could see that the eyes were not the steel grey she had originally though, but a blue like a cloudless summer sky.  She continued to gaze in wonder as the wolf cocked its head slightly.  Elona had seen a few wolves in her time, but this was unlike any she had seen before.  In size alone, to stand on its hind paw, it was probably as tall as her husband and the color of the thick fur and eyes were not typical of a wolf.
    “Are you listening to me?!  I said, what is your name and what are you doing trespassing in the sanctuary of my forest?”  The voice growled deeply once again inside her mind, tearing her away from her thoughts.  The tone frustrated and angry, and it made her realize that not only was he breathtaking, but a creature of this size could prove to be very dangerous as well.  The wolf was questioning her, and at this point, she felt it best not to keep him waiting.
    Suddenly, something registered in her mind.  A wolf was questioning her.  “Wait a minute,” she breathed and shook her head.  “This is impossible.  Surely I must be dreaming...”
    She felt the mental equivalent of a slight smirk, and then heard a deep chuckle resonate through her mind.  “I assure you, my dear, that you are very much awake.”
    “But…how can you communicate with me?  How can a wolf communicate with a human?”
    The wolf sighed.  He was no longer angry, now that this stranger seemed to find her voice, but he found himself growing impatient, his questions still unanswered.  He spoke calmly however.  “If you would please answer my questions first, human, then I shall answer yours to the best of my knowledge.  I do not ask for much, but I need to know who you are and why you are here!”
    “I do apologize, it’s just…this is new to me…I wasn’t exactly expecting to be holding a conversation with a wolf.”
    “If you would please, dear, communicate with me mentally.  There is no need to wake the male, or the cubs.  Just think what you wish to say, I will hear it.”
    She nodded in understanding, and began to think her words, rather than speak them.  “Ok, again I apologize.  To answer your questions, my name is Elona.  I came from…what used to be a village a short way to the south.  Our city was…destroyed…burned to the ground…by evil men.”  She swallowed, forcing herself to fight back tears as she remembered.  “Everyone…family, friends…our beloved king…they were all killed…we could hear the horrible screams as we ran…I could feel their pain…It took every ounce of will I had to keep from dropping to the ground and curling into a ball…”  The tears that she fought so hard to control began unwilling flooding down her cheeks.  The wolf remained silent continuing to listen as she took a deep breath before continuing.  “I saw what was coming…I tried to warn them…they refused to listen…they thought I had become mad, yet…I still feel a tremendous guilt…for escaping with my life…while being forced to hear and see the deaths of everyone I loved…their cries still pierce my soul and haunt my mind…”  She collapsed to the ground and, covering her face with her hands, began to sob silently.
    The wolf slowly padded over to her, his mind still linked with hers, and she felt in his thoughts the tremendous sorrow that he felt from her pain.  With caution thrown to the wind, he rubbed his head against hers and sighed with deep sadness.  “Guilt will do nothing but cause you much grief and sorrow dear.  Though my words may do little to help, you must always remember, you did everything you could to help your people, but they chose their own fate.  You could have done nothing more, and you did nothing less.  You cannot let this guilt follow you and you must also remember, not everyone died that night.  You still have your loving family, who did believe you and remained by your side.”
    Elona sniffed, wiping away the tears, and as she looked into the eyes of the wolf, she saw the deep wisdom and sorrow of ages, and she could feel in her heart that his sorrow was not for her plight alone, but that there was something much deeper.  She began to stroke the fur of his cheek and he leaned into her touch.  She could sense the mental equivalent of a smile in his thoughts, and then he could suddenly sense a great fear in hers, however, he knew that it was not him that she feared.
    “I apologize for trespassing into your lands…they will be heading in this direction…I need to get to that mountain in the north.  I have a friend there.  I know that she can help me.
    The wolf nodded.  “I completely understand the urgency of your situation and your need to pass through these lands.  My brothers and sisters and I will help in any way possible to get you and your family to your destination.  Now, you have answered my questions and I recall that you had a few of your own, so let me tell you a bit about myself.  My name is Khubala.  My story is a long one, which I fear we do not have time for.  I will just say this though, I heard the thoughts that you had before you even spoke to me, and you are correct in thinking that I am not a typical wolf.  More on this particular story I will explain to you later, when you are taken to safety.  As for my ability to speak with you, I have what is called telepathy, and with your own abilities of the mind, you were much easier to communicate to than others of your species.  I know that I have left some confusion in your thoughts, but I promise to clear things up more for you later.  In the meantime, you must rest and I must speak with the others to plan and prepare for morning.  While you sleep, you may hear me enter your mind occasionally with updates.  Until I see you again, I bid you goodnight.”
    “Thank you, Khubala, for everything you are doing…”  Elona watched Khubala disappear into the trees and she lay back down next to her husband.  Moments later, she fell into a restless sleep.

Author's Note

Comments and suggestions are always welcome! :)

Reviews

[~The Queen~]

Hello! May I?...

1. "Still lying on the soft, cool ground, she looked around...' very nice line. The softenness and the coolness (sorry about the improper usage of the words) it pours off the screen. Very nice imagry and feeling here. I liked it. Well done ^-^

2. In the mental conversation that Elona has with Khubala, you mention that the village has a King. Now, I know it's your story and everything but Kings just don't live in villages. They live in palaces and castles sometimes away from court life, but generally it's in the capital of the country. Just night want to think about that.

3. Also, the conversation starts a little awkwardly. There's alot of screaming and yelling and even though the children and the husband are beat, they would hear her screaming and crying. Also, to add something to the story, have the husband sleep aware of his sword, cause she took it and he didn't flinch. If she had been a bandit, he and the children would definitly been dead. To add more to this growing list, are the children right next to there parents? Because if that were me I would sleep with them between us and not off to the side because I wouldn't feel right. Just somehting to chew on.

4. You just might want to re-edit it and take out the parts that are repeatitive. Read as if this were your first time reading it. Ok?

Anyways, hope this helps! Good luck!

-The Queen