Nick and Stella were deep in the woods, tromping through the overgrowth as the shouting of the Arogian warriors diminished. They kept going even as her breathing got heavier until they came into a small clearing with moss-covered rocks. She suddenly collapsed, gasping for air. Nick stopped and helped her to her feet, setting her on a rock.
"You alright?" He asked, worried. She nodded and looked around before saying a spell.
"Didymus," She said, and two orbs flew back into her staff. He looked at her, confused.
"What did you do?" He asked. She breathed in for a while before she coughed, covering her mouth.
"Distraction spell, should keep the warriors off of you for a while," She said. He nodded and stood up, picking up twigs and logs, setting them up on the ground into a campfire. He pulled out his Kusaris and struck them next to the wood, fire erupting from the blades, igniting the wood. He sat down and stared into the flames as she looked at him. She then finally walked up to him, sitting next to him. He looked at her before going back to the flames.
"You should get some sleep, I'll keep watch," He said, still staring at the flames. She looked at him before she shrugged, slipping her cloak off to reveal a black dress with black boots up to her knees. She folded the cloak and laid on it before she asked a question.
"Nick, why are you wanted for murder?" She asked, turning to look at him. His form stiffened as he spoke to her.
"Good night," He said.
***
"Stella, wake up," Nick whispered, shaking her. She sat up, groggy as she looked at him.
"What's going on?" She asked until she saw the problem.
All around them, were at least twenty people. They wore coats and shirts made of animal pelts, held weapons made of bones and all had black eyes with white pupils, staring at them. Nick stood next to her, Kusaris in hand as he eyeballed all of them, waiting.
"Who are they?" She whispered to him. He held up his hand as he watched a group of them part, one of the men walked up to them, smiling as he flashed his hand, which was covered in sharp bone. He stopped three feet from them as he sniffed the air, growling.
"You smell delicious," He said, smiling.
"Wait, us?" She said, grabbing her staff.
"They're lycans, they crave living flesh. But they won't get ours," Nick informed her, spinning the Kusaris. The Lycan laughed when someone stumbled into the clearing, making everyone look. It was a young girl, about the same age as Stella, except she had terribly cut red hair, eyes that were the same as the lycans, and wore clothes made of wolf pelts. She had a muzzle on her mouth as she thrashed against her constraints around her wrists.
"Let me go!" She yelled, growling at the two lycans. One of them poked her with a sword as she bit at them.
"We found her in our territory, scavenging our food," One of the lycans said, laughing. The one lycan looked at the girl with anger before he growled.
"I will deal with her after we feast," He said, turning back to Nick only to get a Kusari in between the eyes. He screamed in pain as Nick pulled the chain, pulling the lycan closer before he grabbed his other Kusari, stabbing him in the gut, swinging him around, and slamming him into the ground head first, a sickening snap echoing through the woods as the lycan's lifeless body laid on the ground.
All of the lycans looked at Nick with shock as he pulled the chain, the Kusaris fly back in his hands. Then, they all attacked, some turning into wolves. He grabbed one of the wolves by its mouth and pulled, breaking it's jaw. He then threw his Kusaris at a lycan with a bone spear, stabbing him in the chest as he pulled it close, grabbed it by its wound and ripped it in half. He kept ruthlessly murdering the lycans one by one, but when groups tried to attack him, Stella would yell a spell, disintegrating them into shadows. Soon, the rest of the lycans, about three of them, ran away, yelping in fear. He stood there, covered in lycan blood, taking in deep breaths of air, looking at the dead bodies of the lycans, waiting for one to move when he heard cheering. He turned to look at the tied up lycan, who was smiling brightly at him.
"Bravo, Spirit of Arogia, bravo!" She cheered. Stella walked up to him as he slid the Kusaris on his waist.
"What do we do about her?" She whispered, looking at the lycan. Nick frowned at the lycan, who was smiling at them.
"Leave her," He said, then he walked away. The lycan and Stella looked at him, shocked.
"What?!" They both said. He turned to look at Stella, nodding at the lycan.
"We'll wait for the Arogian warriors to come and take her, then they can do what they want to her for all I care," He said.
"Wait, wait, wait! I can help! Don't leave me to those savages!" The lycan said, pleading.
"I am an Arogian," He said, frowning. He turned to leave, along with Stella when the lycan yelled something that caught Nick's attention.
"I know how to break your blood oath!" The lycan yelled. He froze in place as he slowly turned around, looking at her.
"How do you know about my oath?" He said quietly. She rolled her eyes and stood up, hands still tied behind her back.
"You're the Spirit of Arogia, everyone knows about it," She said, smiling. Suddenly, they heard a shout deep in the woods as the sound of dogs got closer. He looked at Stella, then at the lycan, before he sighed.
"Come on then," He said. She smiled and turned around, showing her tied hands.
"Can you release me?" She asked, but he shook his head.
"No. Stella, keep an eye on... it," He said with disgust. They left the clearing and she started talking.
"I'm not an it or whatever you call me, my name is Hati," She said, looking at Nick.
"Whatever," Nick said.