《The Wolf Girl》 Prologue-Three Years Earlier Timothy lay there in bed, trying to get to sleep. He looked over at his little brother, Fred, who was sound asleep. Timothy smiled at the sight. He knew nothing would wake him; nothing short of a noisy thief anyway. He lay there, watching his brother and the ceiling. After a few hours of failing sleep, he decided to get up out of bed and go to the kitchen to get something to drink. He got a cup and went out to the spigot to get some water. After filling the cup, he went back inside as he started drinking it. The cool water felt good on his throat as it went down. Timothy went back to his bed and lay down, putting his glass of water on the bedside table. His eyes started getting heavy after a few minutes of staring at the ceiling. As he was giving in to sleep, he felt a cold feeling at the back of his mind. ¡®What¡¯s happening?¡¯ he thought. He tried waking up but it didn¡¯t work for some reason. All he saw was the backs of his eyelids. He was getting confused more and more as the failed attempts to wake up increased. Then he heard a voice that seemed to be all around him. [Sleep child,] the voice said to him in a calming voice. [No one will hurt you. Just sleep and you will be safe.] Timothy noticed it was a man¡¯s voice but he didn¡¯t recognize the sound of it. He didn¡¯t think it would hurt him though so he relaxed and fell asleep. * * * * * The wolf smiled as the boy gave into the spell. This was his tenth house this week. His plan was foolproof: kidnap the children to draw out the dragon who is in the village; she¡¯s been a thorn in his group¡¯s side for too long now. And when she shows herself, his allies will spring their trap. Then, they¡¯ll be free to do what they want in the forest. Once he put both boys under the ever-sleep spell, he entered the house and picked both children up by the backs of their shirts. Once he got them, he jumped back out the window and ran into the forest with his catch. The villagers were making this too easy for him. Five people have already seen him do it. It was only a matter of time before the disappearances reached the dragon¡¯s ears. The wolf disappeared into the forest with the children. This was the last night these boys would be seen by anyone in the village for a long time. * * * * * In a mountainous region hidden from the rest of the world; a week later. A cave where six people that look to be in their thirties are gathered, sitting around a campfire with a small red dragon perching on the shoulder of a man who is wearing green silk clothes as he reads a message on a piece of parchment. After reading it, he lets out a sigh before throughing it into the fire. "Illiya has died. The Shadows confirmed the Silver Wind''s body," the man said with a sullen expression on his face. "Are you sure, Earth elder?" a woman wearing a cream colored dress. "She''s only been in that forest for 50 years. We sent her there because she was strong enough to survive longer. What enemy could have gotten the better of her?" The Earth elder just shrugs his shoulders before speaking "They don''t know, Light elder. They do know it was hunters though." The cave falls silent for what seems like minutes before a woman in a black dress speaks up "Maybe they lured her into a trap. We all know she loses sight of things when children are involved...even if they would only belong to one race. It could be possible that she caught wind of a string of kidnappings in a village there, caught them in the act and followed them into the forest where they sprung their trap on her. Do the Shadows know the group that did it?" If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. "Sadly, no," the Earth Elder said. "They must be a newer group. According to the Shadows, they only took human children so they didn''t think to persue them. They''re only trained for information gathering, not fighting so they made the right call. Sorry Shadow Elder." The Shadow Elder only sighs before a man wearing red silk clothing spoke up, his brow furrowed "More than that: who can we send next? All the other capable Guardians are out in their own tasks. Any other prospects aren''t even close enough to being strong enough for that place." All of them are silent before a child sounding voice came from a woman in a deep blue colored dress "Well, the strongest isn''t here right now but he should return in a few years." She looks over at the three men to her right: the Earth elder, the man in red and a man in gold colored silk clothes "You three know who I mean. We''re the ones who trained him: the Orphaned Guardian." When the other three looked like they were about to protest, she spoke up again "Trust me: I don''t like how he was the first one who came to mind either. He''s practically a son to us and doesn''t look all that strong when compared to the others but we all know that he isn''t weak in the slightest. I mean: he''s even got a human form." She then looked squarely at the man in red "Beat you in a fight to earn our permission to do so as well, Fire Elder. Besides," she looks back at the fire, "all of us here knows how he is when he returns from his tasks. Seems making people he grew close to forget about him makes him sad. He''s going to need a distraction...especially when he finds out Illiya died. She was like a older sister to him." "You mean IF he finds out, right?" the Shadow elder asks The four shake their heads in unison "Oh no," the man in gold colored clothing says, "it''s definitely a ''when he finds out,'' Shadow elder." "What do you mean, Air Elder?" the Light Elder asks, just as confused as the Shadow Elder is they the four elemental Elders'' reaction "And just who is this Guardian?" The four look at her and laughs, having forgotten their student''s way of thinking. "Sorry, we didn''t mean to laugh," the Fire Elder asks "But it''s no wonder you haven''t heard of him. Do you remember that wizard that caused trouble for the dragon clans in the plains a few years back? The one who was using magic to revert them to primeval states?" The Light and Shadow Elders both shiver a little before nodding in unison "Yea. That guy was nuts. He even managed..." the Shadow elder trails off as she realizes where the four of them are going with this "...wait, you mean to tell me that he''s the one who killed him? Why didn''t he tell anyone? He''d be more well known and a celebrity for just that alone. That wizard got a couple of Messengers before he was taken out." The four elemental Elders stay silent before the Earth Elder speaks up "Because he doesn''t ever look to be famous. He only cares about helping as many as he can within the bounds of the Laws. And since he managed to get cursed as a result of the battle, add onto the fact that he looks at it as only doing his duty, he doesn''t look at it as that much of a big deal." "What''s the curse?" the Light Elder asks. "I could-" "He doesn''t want it dispelled," the Water elder said, cutting her off "Not even you would be able to dispell it as it''s a part of his body now. He''s stuck it it for the rest of his life. Don''t worry though: it''s not a deadly curse, just an annoying one, as he put it." "And it''s not up to us to tell you what it is," the Air Elder says. "He can tell you if he wants to. Anyway, we''ve spoken enough for the day. We''ll tell him when he returns." The others nod before they all stand up, the Water elder putting out the fire. Before they leave, they all transform into dragons: a ruby red, a golden yellow, an emerald green, a dull sapphire blue, a dull cream, and a dull amythest. These six dragons are the Elders of Guardians who oversee training and deploy Guardians to where they are needed. [Well, we shall see each other whenever we need to convene,] the Fire Elder says. [Good luck in training the young ones that have chosen this path.] They all nod as they start walking to the cave entrance [You as well, Fire Elder,] the others say in unison. With that, they all leave the cave and fly in different directions, each one with the same thing on their minds: two were curious, the other four were worried. All these thoughts were for the young Guardian they decided to send to that dangerous area of the world. Chapter 1-The New Guardian Arrives So, this is the forest I always hear about? My name is Anthony and currently I''m sitting on a cliff that overlooks my new task. It''s, for lack of a better word, strange. There seems to be trees from many different kinds of forest: from evergreens, to oak to trees I think are from rain forests. It''s almost like someone took parts of forest from all over the world and planted them here. Not only that: there also seems to a thick fog over the tops of the trees so it''s hard to see any villages from where I am. And, to top it off: it''s massive. I can barely make out the northern, eastern, and western edges of it. It''s the maximum size for one Guardian. Any bigger and they would have had to send more than one here. Well, I''ve been sitting here to two hours and still can''t get a handle on this place. Might as well look for that circle tha Elders told me to look for. They wouldn''t tell me what it''s for or what happened to Illiya but I can probably guess what happened to her. After standing up and stretching my wings, I hop off the side of the cliff and glide down to where the edge of the forest is. I start looking for the magic circle that''s supposed to be here. According to the records of this place, the magic circle was drawn here by the first Guardian to come here. Apparently, it''s needed for every Guardian to activate it before they enter. Something about our bodies not being able to withstand the magic that''s here or something. I can''t really say and I don''t know if I believe it. But, you know what they say: better safe than sorry. I look around for a few minutes before I found it: a weathered magic circle carved into the ground. It was drawn half inside and half outside the forest. It had draconic runes carved into it that I''ve never seen before. Looks ancient. Just how long has this place been under Guardians'' protection!? I look at the forest''s entrance and then back to the circle. My instincts were telling me that this was going to hurt. Ancient magic like this circle always hurts...especially when it''s used on you. Shivering at some of the memories, I quickly tranform into anthropomorphic version of my fire dragon form. Very useful curse...well, as far as curses go! It could have been a pain. Well, it is a pain but only if I get another dragon form which isn''t something I plan on doing any time soon. The curse? Well, at the base of my tail on the underside of it, there is a blue mark of what looks like a dragon eating a cresent moon. Thanks to that mark, I''m forced to have anthropomorphic versions of all my dragon forms. Inconvienient, sure. No one likes having forms thrust onto them all of a sudden...especially if they are injured. I''m not going into details about that. Well, let''s get this over with. I can''t stay here for too long. As I step closer to the forest and the circle, my instincts kept telling me to run away. It was like I was being stared down by a predator despite being one myself. It was starting to make me angry...which is easy to do in my fire dragon forms: easily angered and slow to calm down. Thankfully, I have 106 years of experience. Good thing I was hatched as a fire dragon. When I got to the middle of the circle, my fear and my anger as a result of that fear is reaching a tipping point. I stood there, glaring at the forest. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. [Yes, yes. Growl and intimidate me all you want! I will be your next Guardian so deal with it!] I growled at the forest, talking to it without really thinking about how it looked to see a dragon growling at a forest. [For now, just sit there like a good little forest and let me do what I need to do before I enter!] Yes, yes; I know it''s not really a little forest by any defintion of the word. I was mostly angry and needed venting and the closest thing was the very thing that was scaring me. After a few seconds of staring the forest down, I sit down in the middle of the circle cross-legged and closed my eyes. If you''re wondering what I''m doing, I''m funneling my magic into the circle. I have no idea what the thing does or how much magic it''ll take but I wanted to get to work as soon as possible. I already wasted time yelling at the forest. After a few seconds, I start getting an odd feeling. It felt like some other magic was starting to mix my own and circulate back into the circle. I open my eyes but I don''t stop funneling my magic. I glare at the entrance of the forest. It wasn''t an angry glare; more of a curiosity glare. I was wondering what exactly was happening since it''s only happened to me once...when I got my curse mark. The difference was that it didn''t feel malicious so I knew it wasn''t trying to curse me. Just what are yo- I couldn''t even finish my thought before my head started pounding. Information about the forest started flooding into my head: from the types my flora to the types of animals and where they are. The types of races that live here was also forced in: from humans to elves; from the fae races to the more endangered races of gnome and many others. Honestly, it''s hard to keep track of all the information when it feels like your mind is melting. I keep roaring in pain and hold my head as I fall over. However, I never did stop funneling my magic. The blasted forest wouldn''t let me and trust me: I tried. It lasted for a few minutes before I felt the pain starting to ease up and my magic stopped going into the circle. I roll over on my back, panting heavily as I stared at the sky No wonder you have to be really strong to come here! That would kill you otherwise given how much magic I used and the information that floods into your head. On the brightside though: if I feel something off, I''ll know that something wrong is going on in the forest that''ll likely need my attention. With a sigh, I stand up. I still feel tired but I need to get to work...and that means finding a place to live while I''m here. However, as soon as I step foot into the forest, I feel a shiver run down my spine. I stop walking and look around. I got a bad feeling all of a sudden and it worried me a little. I stop looking when I look directly ahead of me. Instincts I never knew I had told me something was happening over there and I needed to hurry. Humans chasing someone. Hunters? No, this feeling isn''t one I would get if my life was in danger. Hmmm, angry mob chasing someone from their village? It''s likely but why did they chase them so far? Also, why are they chasing a wolf half-breed? Something isn''t right! I look up and see some birds coming towards me. They stop where I can see them and confirm my suspicions. I was shocked that my guess was right as I look at the magic circle I left. Shaking my head, I look at the birds to talk to them. [I''m going to need your help getting the person being chased to safely. I''m exhausted and can''t go into my human form and get there in time. I''ll tell them to follow you but stay hidden until I get there and stop the persuers. Just take them where the last Guardian stayed!] The birds fly away and I let out a sigh. That feeling is going to take some gettimg used to but for now, I have to act. I spread my wings and hop into the air and start flying as quick as I can towards where my intincts were telling me to go. I just hope I get there in time. Chapter 2-Running Away and Getting Information Why did this happen? I don''t understand! Why have I been run out of my home?!? These thoughts are running through my mind as I hide behind a tree, hoping that my pursuers don''t find me before I have a chance to catch my breath. Their scents are getting closer. I can hear their footsteps grow louder by the minute. I take a deep breath to gather my thoughts, trying to keep calm. I can''t panic just yet. My name is Vera. I honestly don''t know how I can hear and smell better than other people. Another weird thing I can do is I can understand what dogs are saying...actually, that goes for any canine. I don''t know how but I''ve never questioned it. I''ve always been able to. Ok, now that I''ve gathered... [Follow...the birds..] A voice suddenly breaks me out of my stupor. It sounds...exhausted. And really angry. I look around for the source and try to pick up its scent. Nothing. It must be upwind from me. [Don''t bother...looking for me. You have...no time. They will lead..you to safety. A wolf pack...will be waiting for you...to keep you guarded until...someone they trust gets there. Now, GO!] I jumped when the voice yelled in my head that last word. I look around for whatever birds it was talking about. I see them and the sight is confusing: all sorts of birds ranging from sparrows to hawks are sitting in the trees around me as if waiting for something. [GO! Quit standing there and...go NOW or I swear by your ansestors I''ll give you to your pursuers!?! FOLLOW THE BIRDS!] The voice seemed panicky now, almost like it really wouldn''t give me up but I didn''t want to test that theory. It was even angrier now so without a second thought, I followed the birds that are perched in trees. They didn''t seem to be taking me in a straight line...which is pretty smart. It''s almost as if someone trained them to do this. When I was far enough away from where I was, I glanced back at where I was. Emerging from behind the tree where I was just hiding behind was a boy wearing tattered silk clothing. His shoulders were slumped and he was breathing heavily. I was about to run back to him when a hawk suddenly blocked my path and screeched in my face. I jump back a little before glaring at the bird. "Move! I have to get him away too or those people might hurt him!" I pleaded with the bird. It let out another loud screech before it was joined by two other hawks to block me. They all screech in unison, forcing me to cover my ears because of how loud it was. My ears were ringing as I look at the hawks. They didn''t seem to be moving and they looked like they were getting ready to attack me if I tried breaking through. "Okay, I''m going but if that boy gets hurt, I''m blaming you!" The hawks'' eyes seemed to soften for a second before hardening again. I take one more look at the boy, who was now sitting on the ground, before turning back around and running again. It wasn''t until I was out of sight of that boy that the path of trees the birds were making started to straighten out. I stop to catch my breath and look back at the trees behind me and notice the birds were gone. Which means even if I wanted to go back to help, I couldn''t thanks to the random turns the path took me. Deciding it was safe enough, I start walking at a brisk pace. I wasn''t completely safe yet and the sun was a little past halfway in the sky. -2 hours later- My pace was slowed to a walk as I followed the birds. I stopped and leaned against a tree before looking at the path made by the birds. "I''ve got to rest for a while." I said to the birds, hoping they would understand. It seemed to have worked as they all perched up in the trees around me. I breath a sigh of relief before I sat down at the base of the tree I was leaning against. "I don''t suppose you''d know if we''re almost to where you''re taking me? Not that I would understand you anyway..." The last part I said to myself. I can''t understand the language of birds but I can understand canines...which is another mystery about me that eludes me. One of a few that I''ve never been able to solve. I looked up at the sky, my tiredness starting to get to me as my eyes start to fall. I''ve been on the run since I was woken up by my mother when the sun was just starting to come up so I was really tired. But I knew I had to keep going; I had to get away. One problem though: my body wouldn''t move and my eyes were getting heavier by the minute. Before I knew it, my consciousness faded as I fell asleep where I sat. *Anthony POV* I''m currently walking in the direction the girl went. Her scents were confusing: grey wolf and human; mixed perfectly together as if it was a natural thing. There are a few things that are unnatural about that combination of scents but the most common are only three: lycanthropes, shapeshifters, and druids. I''ve already ruled out the first: lycanthropy. It''s usually caused by two things: a curse or some sort of virus; the virus is the most common. That''s why humans have myths about a werewolf''s bite turning someone who''s been bitten by one. The virus is unique in that it will stay dormant until the rays of a full moon shine onto the victim, activating a very ancient-type of magic that uses the lunar cycle. Ancient magic is strange in that it is time specific; it has to be or it would backfire onto the caster. If one doesn''t put the specific time into the formula, they would die depending on the strength of the spell... This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Ah...I''ve gotten off topic. Anyway, I couldn''t see any bite marks or feel any sort of invasive energies coming off of her when I saw her. So she isn''t a lycan. That leaves shapeshifter and druid...I''m leaning towards that latter: at least a human hybrid of one. The human scent is stronger than the grey wolf scent; not by much mind you but enough to be noticeable if you have a strong sense of smell. As I was thinking this, I came upon a sight that confused me: the girl, sleeping at the base of a tree and surrounded on all sides by the birds that I had helping her escape. As I got closer, a sand hawk perched on my shoulder. [Sorry, young dragon. She said she was tired and just sat down,] the hawk said. [We wanted to keep going but she couldn''t understand us. She feels...like a predator to some of the others here.] I blinked when it called me young dragon but I didn''t interrupt. Birds tend to have one track minds and interrupting them can make them lose track of what they were wanting to tell you. ''Young dragon? How did...nevermind. It''s not important. What is important is what they think she is and why she was chased from her village.'' "A predator? Well, she does have a grey wolf scent.. Tell me: does she feel similar to the humans that feel like they respect you or the ones who feel like they belong in the forest?" The hawk was silent for a few minutes, with it''s head tilting a few times before regaining it''s composure. [She definitely belongs here. The other wolves may even take her in as a hatchling...or is it pup for them? Hmm, I''m just going to go with..] "Alright, I get it," I say, wanting to stop the hawk from going in random directions. I still needed information. "If it comes to that, I''ll ask the wolf packs to raise her for a few years. Hopefully it won''t but it''ll be nice to have a backup plan. But that''s for later: where''s Illiya?" [Illiya? Who''s that? The only other dragon that''s been here was one whose human form had silver hair and green eyes. She was nice. Last I heard was from when parents told stories about her. She stayed in nesting places of the featherless ones a lot but then one day, she stopped coming to the forest and it became a lot more dangerous here after. Which reminds me: a lot of featherless hatchlings have been taken from their nests for a while. Not just human ones; the pointy eared humans, the really short humans, even some hatchlings of the human things that live in the lake.] I listened to what the hawk was saying and a scenario started forming in my mind; it didn''t make me feel good either. In fact: it confirmed my suspicion about her fate: Illiya is dead. Likely with a trap laid by hunters but what was the bait? Hmm, children coming up missing, a trap laid by hunters and springs it on Illiya..which means they did their homework on how to draw her into it. From what I know about her, if a young one from any race was targeted for something, she would have rushed headlo.. I stopped my thought process before widening my eyes in realization before I let out a growl from my throat. I heard the girl stir before I stopped growling and I looked at her. What connection does she have with the missing children? "Tell me something: these missing children; was there a wolf involved?" I inquired to the hawk. I have a suspicion and I need confirmation. Something was going on and it wasn''t looking good for the girl or the missing children. She wasn''t involved with the kidnappings but now she is suspected of doing it. She''s too young and she wouldn''t be able to take any children heavier than an infant. But who would frame a young half druid? And why? [Yep! It started before I was even an egg! Started with the humans then branched into the other humans that aren''t humans] I let out a sigh before I felt several presences around me. I close my eyes and concentrated on it. "Ah. The wolf packs are here. Four of them: two pairs of rival packs...this could be a problem.." I look at the hawk "The birds can go back to your regular lives now. The wolf packs are here. Turns out all four of them came." The hake tilted it''s head [Only four? Sure there''s only four of them in this part but there are around twenty packs spread out all over the place. You presence was only felt in...] The hawk stopped talking to think [In only four percent of the forest, ?uvar,] a deep voice suddenly interrupted. I turn to see a wolf approaching. "?uvar? Been a while since I''ve heard the language of the wolves. Anyway, I believe we need to get her somewhere safe. I felt a neutral area when I funneled my magic into the Guardian Circle at the edge. Is that where Illiya stayed when she stayed in the forest?" [Yes. And about 30 kilometars around that area is neutral. No territorial disputes go into that area but it is a good place to raise the pups. There is a cave in the middle and seems to be the exact middle of the forest.] I nod before going over to the girl. I''ll get her name later. "I''m going to carry her. This pup has been through a lot and it''s not even midday yet. She needs to rest. Besides, what she is being framed for is now my concern. More than human children have been taken from their homes and I don''t like what that could mean." I bent down and put my arms under her before lifting her and starting to walk in the direction of the neutral area. Many things were going through my head and I hope it wasn''t what I was thinking. I don''t think I can handle another one...