The Raven & The Wolf

Chapter Six

My mind drifts in and out for several hours. The only thing I’m really aware of is that I’m hot. My entire body is sweating, and it feels as if molten lava is in my veins. Occasionally my eyes spot a worried face when I open them. Hazel green eyes with unkempt sandy hair. A dark scruff is settling in. He appears to be looking at death every time his eyes are on me.

When I wake up fully I’m still sweating, but my body feels as if ice runs through it. My teeth chatter and I’m wrapped in three blankets several times. I’m on the ground, next to a log, but close to the fire. The horses are standing next to each other. Macy looks at me once she feels my eyes. Looks like the Hunter found Macy.

The next thing I’m aware of, is a yelp as a sharp ring comes from my saddle. It’s pitch black so I see a green glow. The Hunter stops Macy as she is heading over to me. He digs through the pouch and gawks at the glowing green stone.

“What is this?” He asks Macy as he pulls it out. He yelps and drops it as he finds it is hot. Stanya’s face appears, surrounded in a light blue bubble. The Hunter yelps and ducks behind Macy. He is jumpy.

“Natasha?” Stanya asks as her eyes search the area. She’s in her traveling clothes. Crap. I forgot we were to meet today. “Natasha where are you?”

“Natasha?” The Hunter muses as he slowly stands. He looks terrified. As if the aura is going to explode and kill him. Once he’s fully standing, he speaks. “Is that her name?”

Stanya’s eyes narrow as she looks at him. “Who are you?”

He holds his hands up. “I’m Hunter Gedric. I was hunting when I came across a man and his men about to kill this woman.” He walks over to me, so Stanya follows.

She gasps, recognizing me and my condition immediately. “What happened?”

Now his worry is showing. “I don’t know. She’s been in an unconscious state and is hot as fire. She’s getting worse.”

Stanya takes a look at me. She knows I’m awake, but I can’t open my eyes all the way. “Magic overload. Did he do anything to her?” She looks back at Gedric.

He nods. “I know he covered her in black a few times, but she fought him off. He was about to kill me when she interfered.”

Her eyes narrow. “Ari. How did she interfere?”

“She threw a green ball at him. And then blocked off his attacks once he saw she was still standing. She used some sort of diamond attack that knocked everyone on their ass, including a few trees, and teleported them somewhere. Then she fainted.”

“You need to get her to Brighton immediately. I’m already here. I’ll have everyone get ready for her.”

Gedric stares at her with a confused expression on his face. “Brighton? There is no such place.”

Stanya chuckles. “So you are human. That may be a little more difficult then. I cannot show you the way for I am too far. Nor can my magic reach you due to Natasha’s state. I’ll tell you that Brighton is a Sheik clan and is very much real. For our protection you need the magic of a Sheik, or an Illusionist of the Clans, to access it.”

“But I don’t have the magic of a Sheik.” He argues.

Again Stanya laughs. “Yes you do. And a strong one at that. Use Natasha to get into there.”

He looks at me in doubt then back at her. “Now how do I do that?”

“She is in a self-induced state. Her body is trying to burn off the sudden power spike. It looks like it’s overpowering her. You need to get her to use her power or else she’ll be dead. By the way she looks, it’ll be in an hour.” I couldn’t agree more.

He shifts uncomfortably. “How do I do that? She’s in a coma.”

“No she’s not. She’s awake, but the fever is overcoming her. She can barely open her eyes. You need to do it before her body overheats.”

Frustrated his hands fly up in the air. “How?”

Stanya looks at me. “Show him where Brighton is, Natasha. Now.”

He starts arguing with her as I try to locate my hands. They feel like jelly. That’s not a good thing. Once I find them, a hand shoots out of the blanket, finally receiving my brain’s command. I grab his ankle and channel some of my power through him. He’s screaming as his body starts protesting the foreign invasion. I go into his mind and show him the path to take to Brighton. “When there, touch the star tree and whistle a high shrill note, then a low one. The city will appear and so will Stanya.”

My body groans as my hand lets go. The fever has died but barely. It’s still fatal but I have extended my lifeline by a day. It’s a two day ride from here. Gedric drops on the ground panting, his entire body trembling

Stanya speaks. “Natasha has given you a very small amount of her power. It’s enough to get you into the city, and protect you in case Ari shows up. You need to start moving.”

Gedric looks up at her, his face sweating. “A small amount? I feel as if I can blast a mountain.”

She nods. “Natasha is very strong. The strongest in our history. She is young, and her level continuously grows. She’s very susceptible to magic overload, and her body usually absorbs an egregious amount her inner mind creates each time. The Elders fear that she’ll die because her body can’t handle it. The stone that I am talking to you through is filled with the overflow of magic from her last spike. It’s the biggest yet. Use it if you run into trouble.”

He looks at me as if I am a rabid wolf and I have bitten him. “What do you mean trouble?”

Stanya sighs. “There is a Sheik by the name of Ari after her. He is the man that nearly killed her. He is strong. Very strong. Since he has hit his magic prime, he can no longer get stronger naturally. Just maintain the amount of magic he was at when he hit puberty’s end. Unfortunately there is a way to drain a Sheik and insert their magic into his own body. By doing this, he tricks his body into thinking this has always been his power level, and he’ll maintain that new amount of power forever.

“His goal right now is to kidnap Natasha and steal her magic. If that is to happen, he’ll use his new amount of power to drain all of the Sheika, and the Illusionists as well, and trap it in his body. He’ll enslave all the Magicnites and humans. He’s an angry and dangerous man. You must keep him from getting her while she is in your care.”

Gedric’s jaw drops. “What the hell did I eat? This can’t be real.”

Stanya laughs. “You’re also a delusionist. This is too perfect. Look, if you don’t want to do this, then tell me where you are. I’ll have Halthin come and retrieve her.”

“Why can’t you do it?” He snaps.

She sighs. “Sadly, I’m only an Illusionist. And if Halthin is to get her, he has to lock onto your lifeline. Hers is too obstructed by magic to allow us to get a fix on her location. Another self-preservation technique. And if he was to transport her, the trip could kill her.”

He scuffs his boot and takes in my shallow, dry breathing. “I’ll do it. I’ll be there in two days. At least that is what Natasha says.”

Stanya raises her eyebrow. “She talked to you?”

Slowly he nods, unsure if he should have revealed that. “Just now. When she touched me. That is what scared me the most. Is that bad?”

Relief washes worry from her face. “No. It means she’s in excellent mental state. Ari didn’t touch her mind. Which means everything she knows is still hidden.”

“How did she do that?”

“It’s something you learn, but since you do have the possibility of Ari finding you, I’ll tell you something to stall him. Picture something you believe is indestructible around you. It’ll keep him out until he figures out how to break it. It’ll also give you some time to think of how to get Natasha out of there.”

He nods. “Alright. I’ll move at first light.”

“No!” Stanya says quickly. “Do it now. The longer Natasha is in this state, the longer it takes her to recover. And the longer she’ll be at deaths door.”

He groans. “Fine.”

“Keep the stone close.” Stanya tells him as she disappears.

After a few moments he pinches himself. He yelps and realizes that he’s not dreaming. It is then he chooses to freak out. He sits down and buries his head in his lap. Quick sharp breaths give me clue that he is hyperventilating right now. I nearly groan. But I can’t blame him. He’s taking on a lot right now. And just learned a lot talking to a person through a magic stone. He probably thinks he’s snapped and that he was talking to a rock the entire time.

“Okay. Okay.” He breathes. He takes two deep breaths and picks up the stone. He yelps and throws it against a tree. Why? Because it was cold instead of hot. At least that is my guess. Macy rolls her eyes.

“Shut up!” He snaps at her. “It’s not like you were exactly brave either.” She snorts and paws the dirt. Instead of laughing at the exchange like I wanted to, I cough as blood comes up my throat. Immediately Macy is at my side. She uses her giant head to push me up so I can puke out the blood instead of drowning in it. I cough once I’m done and stroke her nose to let her know I am okay. Quickly she lies down so I can rest against her. I catch Gedric looking at us in complete shock.

“How do you know she’s going to be alright?” He demands from Macy. It suddenly hits me. Gedric is not a Hunter that is human. He’s of a rarer breed than I. He is what we call Forest Folk. They live in the forests. Their people have developed the unique ability to talk to animals. To human ears, he would sound as if he’s talking like the animal he is speaking to. To the Sheika it sounds as if he’s talking to a person. Illusionists are the same way as the Sheiks. But to Magicnites, it sounds as if he isn’t speaking, just moving his lips.

“Well that’s a load of bull. I’ve never met this girl before in my life. Now I’m stuck into saving her. Why? Because I thought she was really in trouble. Now I have to go to a Sheik village to save a Sheik.” He spits on the ground. “I should just let her die.”

Macy roars and tries to bite him. He jumps out of the way. “Hey. Stop that.”

Macy nips my shoulder. I groan as my flesh feels as if its just been pinched. I can’t even feel pain properly. She nudges me with her head and bites at her leg. I know what she wants. For me to get on so she can save me herself. Sadly this wouldn’t be the first time she’s had to do this. Unwillingly, I find my arms and grab the horn of her saddle. She stands up, dragging the blankets off of me. She lays back down so I can pull myself on to her. It takes me five minutes, and another lungful of blood, to manage this. Once I’m on her, Macy snaps at Gedric and walks to the stone. She picks the chain up and starts walking off.

“Hold it.” He says to her with an amused expression on his face as he grabs her reins. She bites at him to force him to let go. His fingers barely escape her teeth.

“I’ll take her,” He says as he grabs her reins again. “But we should probably cover her face again if Ari, or whoever that guy is, is after her. That’s probably why her entire body is covered in clothes.” A few minutes later a new scarf is placed over my face. Once he has tied it behind my neck and meet the two separate knots together he wipes the sweat off around my eyes. He stares at my half open eyes for a minute before muttering something under his breath. He puts the rest of the mask on my face, a hood, concealing everything but my eyes again. Once the elastic snaps into place around my forehead Macy nudges my hand.

I rub her nose to calm her. “Gien gree,” I whisper to her. “Gien gree Macy.” My voice sounds as if it’s a snake hissing. When was the last time I had any water? I look up from my trembling hand and see Gedric staring at me in pure surprise. That’s right. I speak Forest Folk. He jumps as he sees a smirk in my eyes. Then he shakes his head and starts packing things up. He grabs the stone from Macy and puts it around his neck as he gets on his horse.