Devastating Discovery(2)

(Before the deadly battle….)

"Hah….hah…' Rough breathing penetrated the still atmosphere, tiered feet trudged the uneven grounds of the forest's soil. The woman clutched her sleeping son Sorren in her arms. Her eyes, tunneling in only at what was in front of her. Her senses were heightened, yet, she didnt filter in her surroundings. The only thought was the destination stuck at the front of her mind...home. She long since passed the blue trees, and the misty grounds. Now, blotched brown trees with sickly green leaves, bark laced with knife-sharp needles surrounded her. A slow-moving sticky sap seeped ominously between the needles, pitch black and elastic, like the slick poisonous liquid of a poisonous frog.

" *Pant* Were almost there *Pant* Sorren, just a little longer" She whispered this constantly seemingly trying to soothe the sleeping child, however, a small bit of it was to herself as well. She ignored the nauseating feeling that swirled in her stomach from inhaling the decaying air for too long.

"Almost *Pant* There" Sorren stirred in her arms as if responding to her mumblings. At the base of his neck, a small trinket slid out from his cotton shirt, it gleamed gently, without the source of light. The woman's green eyes caught sight of the trinket, her tunnel vision widening.

'A jewel? He's never had this before…" She thought as she gazed at the glowing crystal. She looked at her sleeping son's face, a small smile painted on his lips as if he was having a fond dream. A small image of the mysterious figure reappeared in her mind again. She remembered its piercing golden eyes that seemed to stare into her soul. 'Could that have….given this to him…' as suspicious thoughts filtered through her mind, it was suddenly interrupted.

"ANNIE, SORREN!" Annie raised her head up in shock at the familiar voice. Just beyond the two giant mahogany trees, her husband with a limp ran to her, his face dipped with worry. Annie let out a cry, one etched with relief and joy. " G-Gale" She pressed her exhausted body forward and stumbled towards him, her eyes never leaving his face.

The two reunited in a firm hug, heavy breaths filled the stagnant air. "Are you alright, are you hurt?" His husky voice sounded breathless as he peered at his wife's face. She looked pale and fatigued, but otherwise ok. "I'm fine...I'm just so happy to see you" she cried, she blinked back the oncoming tears.

Gale glanced at his son Sorren who was still sleeping. His eyes shook at the boy's ripped clothing and unkempt hair, which certainly wasn't like that before. "Don't worry, he's just sleeping, but he has signs of being hurt. However, his wounds were healed with an unknown herb" Annie said as she observed her husband's expression.

Gale's eyes shifted towards her at her explanation. "An unknown herb, what do you…" Annie shook her head. "I don't know either, it's not like the herbs I know of in the textbooks, but whatever it was, it works very well, and the person who utilized it...is somewhere in that forest," she said, remembering the mysterious silhouette in the blue trees.

Gale nodded his head, his thoughts jumbled with confusion. Annie was considered an expert in herbs and medicine, yet, she didn't know what herb was used to treat their son. There was also the possibility of someone or something living in those forests that was just as much experienced in herbal knowledge than themselves.

If it wasn't Annie, he'd laugh at the idea of someone living in that forest, but now... His eyes glanced at the distant shrubbery of the forest. Dark murky shadows concealed the trees, making their atmosphere appear fear-inducing. Although lacking a magic core, his instinct as a seasoned warrior sent alarm bells when looking at that forest. It was a true mystery indeed, the tales that derived here paid homage to its reputation.

"For now let's head back-" Gale's voice stopped.

"GYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH" A blood curdling cry pierced the still air. Gordon and Annie turned their bodies in the direction of the nearby village, something was happening there. Both ran quickly out of the forest.

When they arrived at the entrance of their village, their expressions stiffened in horror. Mercury red blood dripped from a shredded arm. Long thin flesh hung loosely, exposing the glistening white bone of the arm. It took both Gale and Annie some time to realize that the corpse under the wolf was the mangled body of a fellow village man, one who they knew all too well by the cotton yellow cap they would wear. But, that cap was now soaked in their own blood.

*GRRRRRRRRR* Pitch black teeth crunched the shredded arms into bits, red eyes glistening like magma stared at its meal in delight. A large muscular body draped in fiery red fur gleamed in the moonlight.

Gale slowly pushed Annie and their child Sorren behind him, Sorren who awoke at the sound of the scream stared at the scene with tears in his eyes, his heart pounded and his face paled greatly. He clutched his mother's dress, his tiny knuckles fading to white.

A woman screamed at the sight of the fallen victim, however, this proved fatal for her, as her cry sparked a deadly blaze to ignite the wolf's instincts of catching prey. Its bulky body turned and with its large paw ferociously cut the woman's body in threes, her body peeled like an orange.

This ignited more chaos and soon dozens of village men and women ran. The wolf grew frenzied and attacked any and everything on sight, shredding bodies and destroying homes. Men, women, and children, it spared no one, not even the cattle or the stationed horses. Annie could feel it, a disgusting wave of magi-toms that surrounded the wolf. It was utterly horrific.

Gale grabbed his wife's hand and dove away from the chaos, every vital part of his very being was screaming not to approach that beast, it was like looking at the bleeding eyes of death. Annie awoke from her stupor she snatched her hand from Gales hold and ran in the opposite direction at full speed. "ANNIE!!!" Gale cried " WE NEED TO GRAB CALLIE AND CALE!" she called back.

Luckily the wolf's attention was at the fields where the wheat was planted, dozens of people had run there. However, guilt settled in Annie's heart, she felt ashamed at her relief that her life wasn't lost and the attention wasn't on them. This dark shame cut deeply through her heart.

The house was still intact, however, it wasn't like it was in perfect condition. The roof had holes and the door was broken down, trapping the small children. Soon the house itself would collapse. A young man was trying to kick down the door. Annie recognized him immediately.

" JEAN!!!" She shouted the man's name, who immediately turned to her.

" Oh thank goodness you alls alright, the little children are stuck in there. I tried kicking the door down but it ain't budging" Jean said, shame was written all over his face. Shame at being so powerless and weak.

"It's ok Jean, I'll use magic to blow it apart" Jean's face morphed into horror.

"DON'T DO THAT!!" He grabbed her hand before she could even chant a word. Annie looked exasperated and confused, if she didn't use magic then the building where her precious children were would collapse. Jean reading her expression still shook his head, his eyes were frantic.

"If you use any magic, that things gonna come barreling over here, I don't know how but that wolf can sense magic!" He cried. Annie was shocked "WHAT!?" Gale, who finally caught up with his wife, limped forward and grabbed Jean by the collar, his face glazed in anger. "WHAT NONSENSE ARE YOU SPOUTING, THERE'S NO WAY THAT A LOW-RANKED WOLF CAN SENSE MAGIC!"

Jean held his stare " IM TELLING THE TRUTH, THAT THING IMMEDIATELY RIPPED APART OLD MAN JENKINS," This prompted both Annie and Gale to recoil in shock. Jenkins was the village elder and the only person with the fire affinity in the village. You can say he was the lifeline of the village. Yet, the news of his death brought despair to the family.

Jean was shaking in anger "I-I saw it with my own two eyes….he was the first to die, his body tore to shreds like paper, we couldn't do nothin but watch! And then...it attacked anyone who had even an ounce of magic, even the Lil children were….'' Jean paused and bit his lip at the terrible memory, a small ounce of blood trickling down his chin.

Sorren who heard this was just as shocked, it felt like everything was crashing down around them. The loud yowling of pain from the dying villagers, the eruption of flames as they ate away at the village homes, the destroyed crops. Everything, it all felt like an endless nightmare.

"Stand back" Gale commanded, Jean stepped back, confusion laced in his eyes. "Oi, ya ain't forgetting that limp in ya leg are you" Jean cried nervously. Annie nodded "He's right Gale if you use the leg of yours it can relapse internally!" Gale grinned, it was a grin she knew all too well in her years married to him. "Just watch me," he said confidently. Gale sucked in a deep breath, raised his leg, and slammed down hard towards the blocked wood.

*CRASH*

Loads of wood and dust fluttered in the air, the way was opened and Gale ran in searching every nook and cranny for his two youngest children. "GALE HERE THEY ARE" Annie cried pointing under the bed of the children's bedroom. she dashed right behind him once the door was cleared.

Callie and Cale who still were like tiny toddlers were crying, they were frightened by all the noise and the shaking. "Have you seen the Nannie?" Gale cried. Annie shook her head and pointed in the direction of the living room. Gale looked and winced, the Nannie, a good-natured woman, was pierced by a long piece of wood in her abdomen, her body hung loosely like a ragdoll. 'it must have fallen from the roof' Gale thought sadly. She most likely hid the children while the wolf was attacking, but was met with an unfortunate end in spite of that.

Gale and Annie rushed outside with their children and ran with Jean following behind them.

*THOOOOOOM*

A loud crash erupted in front of them, the ground cracked from the impact. Behind the rising smoke, red-eyes glowed menacingly at their targets. Gale cursed inwardly, it would seem the wolf reacted to loud noise as well.

"JEAN, TAKE MY WIFE AND CHILDREN AND GET OUT OF HERE" Gale yelled. He took a large stick from a broken building and swung it a few times, adjusting himself. "W-what!? What about you? Jean cried " DON'T ARGUE JUST GO BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!" Jean looked back and forth between the snarling wolf and Gale who were facing off with each other. He quickly grabbed Annie's hand and dashed off, not looking back.

"W-WAIT NO GALE '' Annie screamed, as she was forcibly having her body pulled she looked back at her husband. Gale gave her a fearless smile and a thumbs up. His steady eyes saying "Just leave it to me".

Sorren, who clutched his mother's hand, looked back at his father one last time. His father's eyes connected with his green ones. His father looked calm, not an ounce of fear on his face. Even though he grew distant, Sorren could see it. His father's gaze, and he understood.

He needed to keep his mother and siblings safe. As the eldest son, he was now tasked with the responsibility and future of his family. Sorren Pierce, who is 8 years old, bit his lips and ran. He'd rather focused on pain, than the burning tears that trickled down his face.