Danger in the Shadows

I woke up in my bed feeling calm and oddly refreshed. I realized I hadn't dreamed last night. I had no complaints about that; I've always welcomed the peaceful nights. My mind and body were no longer aching as well. I got up out of bed, dressed, then grabbed some cooked meat. While eating, I walked outside to see Abraxas still sleeping. I cautiously and stealthily tried to get back inside, hoping not to disturb his slumber. On my third step, I accidentally dropped my food on the ground. My eyes turned straight to Abraxas to see if he woke up. He was seemingly still fast asleep. Without looking away, I lowered my body to a crouch and grabbed the food. I took a few more steps and finally was inside.

After finishing my food, I walked to my fireplace and knelt beside it. I put my hands up to it and, just like last time, created a heat at my palms and fingertips. I began building the heat, putting all my focus into controlling it. It seemed like the harder I tried to focus, the worse it became, until it was building exponentially hotter like last time. Before I knew it, the wood went up in massive flames, filling the chimney, and probably bursting out the top. I fell backward onto my butt. Frustrated that the results were the same, I slammed my right hand on the floor.

Realizing I might've woken Abraxas, I rushed to my window and opened it. I saw Abraxas's head lift from his nest and turn toward me.

"Good morning, young Ladon," he said, as calm as could be.

"Morning. Sorry if I woke you."

"It is alright. I take it you were practicing? How did it go?"

"Nearly burnt down my cabin. I don't think I'm going to do it indoors again."

"That is a wise decision. Now, come outside, young Ladon. I have a few things to tell you."

"Alright."

I closed my window and walked to Abraxas curious of what he had to say. Is it more magic? Some secret on controlling it? Probably not.

Once I got close enough, he began saying, "Firstly, how are you feeling?"

"Even though I used magic, I'm feeling great right now. I didn't dream, so that's probably why."

"Well, that is certainly good. It is amazing what good sleep can do for a dragon or demidragon."

"What do you mean? Isn't sleep the same for humans too?"

"Yes; sleep is refreshing and great for them too. But sleep is especially beneficial for our kinds."

"How so?"

"Well, we heal even faster than we already do when we're sleeping. Like everything else, demidragons inherit this from their dragon. Ironically, it is called dragonsleep. A demidragon already heals faster than humans, but sleeping accelerates it further. It is not as good as it is for a dragon who can litterally regrow limbs given enough time, but it certainly is helpful."

"Wait. Dragons can regrow limbs?"

"Yes, young Ladon. It would take a long time, maybe sixty to seventy years depending on how much of it was severed. I am glad I never needed to do that. On top of that, dragons have a thing they can do called the great slumber. It is basically when a dragon hibernates for one or more centuries to recover. It is incredibly dangerous since we stay vulnerable during that time until we needed to wake up for food, but it is helpful for a dragon that needs to return from the brink of death."

"How often do dragons do that?"

"Very rarely. It is more of a last resort than anything else. With that said, I would not be surprised if there were a lot of dragons who needed it after the cull."

I never thought that dragons could do something like that. I guess that'd explain why they're so strong; they can just keep coming back from their injuries. I wish I could sleep away my scar.

"I have another question for you, young Ladon."

"What?"

"Have you ever heard of the Midnight Rangers?"

"I heard stories about them when I was a kid. Why?"

"Well, you may not know this, but they are actually real."

"Wait, really? Like real real?"

"Yes, young Ladon. They travel the continent giving aid to various villages, towns, and cities. Mostly, they fight off the beasts and monsters of the wilds so dragons can be the most of people's worries. Without their work, most of humanity, beyond a few places, would not be able to exist between the dragon attacks and beasts."

"That's amazing. I always thought they were made up to help soothe scared children."

"Plenty stories may have been, but the rangers are not. I have met quite a few in my time. They are diligent, swift, and hardworking. They protect civilization, train often, spending most of their time in the wild. They are probably the group of people I have the most respect and admiration for. But this leads me to my next question."

"What is it?"

"Well, throughout these weeks, I've seen you grow a little happier. And while I am proud of your growth, I think there are limitations in my ability to help you through some of your problems. I would like to ask if you would like to spend some time with the rangers to train your mind and body; to learn their ways and crafts. Besides, they have many different people of different walks of life. Maybe one of them will be able to help you find some answers you are looking for. This place will always be your home; I was just thinking that maybe they could help you."

"Are they in the area?"

"They are less than a day's travel on foot northwest of here, yes."

"What would I be doing?"

"You would become one of them, learn how to fight, and spend a lot of time there, but you would be able to come back here whenever you want, should you choose to."

"Less than a day's travel, right?"

"Yes. Northwest of here."

"Maybe I'll check them out."

"They are going to be in the area for a couple months before they have to move on, so I recommend going to them as soon as you can, should you want to."

"I . . . are you sure it's a good idea?"

"I am certain, young Ladon. You can trust them."

"Okay. I guess I'll grab my things and go."

"Very well. When you find them, look for Sen: their leader. Tell her I sent you. She will know what to do."

"Okay."

"And be safe on your travels."

"I will."

I walked to my cabin and grabbed my cloak, dagger, bow and arrow, jerky, and tools. Not knowing how long I'd be away, I looked around the near empty cabin painting a perfect memory in my head so I could remember it while I'd be away. I'll make a table when I get back. I made sure my cellar door was secure, then left my cabin.

"I'll see you later, Abraxas"

Abraxas looked at me, almost perfectly hiding a quiver. "See you later, young Ladon."

I gave a small smile, turned away, and was off, heading northwest until I made it to my first challenge: the river. Unlike every other time I'd been here, I needed to cross it. The edge of the water was already deep enough for my foot to be fully submerged. Not wanting to get my clothes wet by swimming, I followed the river for an hour. Eventually, I reached a point where it split in two just to reconnect later. In between was a small island made of the same forest. I dipped my foot in to find the water wasn't quite as deep. I rolled my pants up to my knees, threw my boots across the river, then crossed to the island. I repeated what I just did to finish crossing the river, then put my boots back on, unrolled my pants, and continued northwest.

I kept walking while eating some jerky. About every second, I'd look around to ensure my safety. Plenty of beasts to give me trouble. After an hour of walking, I began to feel something. It was the eyes again. Just like last time I felt those eyes, I couldn't see them. I just knew they were above me. The only thing I smelled was the normal scents of the forest and something else; something I didn't notice last time. Something odd; unplaceable. It smelt like musky, wet fur or leather. Could've been anything else as well. After some more time went on, I began to feel more eyes gather above me. No matter where I looked, I couldn't find them. Just as I was going to focus my hearing to see if maybe I could notice something subtle, I realized something: the forest was silent again—dead silent. Just when I noticed this, I felt eyes gather around me on ground level as if they were hiding behind each and every tree and bush that surrounded me in a circle except for the one close behind. I felt trapped—unable to leave. I knew something was there. There must be. I'm not going crazy, right? Just when I turned around to look behind the tree, I heard a deep, low growl behind me. I turned back around to see a plume of black smoke next to a tree hiding all inside it but a pair of glowing red eyes. Just when I got a good look at it, two at a time, one from each side, more plumes quickly gathered around me in a circle, creating a large black wall around me filled with growls and pairs of red eyes. Even the trees were hidden by this dark smoke. I steeled myself. This is no dragon. I nocked an arrow.

After a few seconds of watching the terrifying wall of black, one pair of eyes began to move. Out of the wall moved one massive black wolf. It looked similar to a normal wolf, although its size equated to six, maybe eight of them. It made horses look small. As it walked out, it stared at me, piercing my eyes. I took a step forward to return the greeting. Holding eye contact with its big red eyes, I waited. With each passing second, I was growing more and more terrified. I knew if I showed it, I would likely die. We continued to stare in silence for a minute. Eventually, it took a step back, then another and another. It kept slowly walking back until it reentered the wall, leaving only its eyes visible.

I let out a small sigh, thinking I might've just dodged death. Right when I relaxed my arms, from my left, one of the wolves ran out of the wall toward me. As scales covered my neck, shoulders, arms, and some parts of my legs, I noticed it and its smaller body. I turned to it and let loose my first arrow, piercing the wolf just on the top-right of its neck. I fired again—same place, just on the left. I let loose again, hitting the shoulder of its front-right leg. With it slowed down just a bit, I kept releasing arrow after arrow in it as fast as I could. Eventually, after I loosed ten of my eighteen arrows into it, creating a porcupine, it slowed until it fell over its feet just infront of me.

It was dead.

Another wolf rushed out from behind. I turned to see it was faster than the last one. I let loose arrow after arrow as it rushed toward me, only four managing to hit it. By the time I fired the last one, the wolf was already a few feet from me. It lunged at me with its claws as I fell back using my bow to block it. As it rushed over me, it clawed straight through my bow like nothing, barely missing my face. On the ground, I reached in my cloak, grabbed my dagger, then pulled out and dropped my tool holding. I got up, dagger in hand, just as the wolf began running back around to me. In seconds, it was already on me again. This time, instead of testing the waters, it leapt on me. I wrestled its claws with my hands and dagger while dodging to the side of each snap of its jaws with my head. Eventually, I managed to grab its leg with my left hand, then pulled myself up using all the force I could muster to drive my dagger into its underside. I stabbed it as many times as I could, hoping to reach its heart, until it fell on me. That makes two.

After pushing it off, I got back up. I heard growling from all directions as I realized they were just figuring out if I was worth it or not. They must've been the weakest. This isn't over yet. Frantically, I took my cloak off then wrapped it around my left arm the best I could, making sure it was thickest on my forearm. I had a small hip pouch holding my jerky, so I tore it off and held it by its strap. As soon as I finished, three wolves rushed out of the wall at slightly different timings: one from the front, left, and right. I turned to the one in the front since it was getting the closest. I threw my jerky pouch to the left one, knowing it would come second, hoping to distract it for a while. When the wolf from the front reached me, I blocked its jaws with my wrapped arm. Not paying attention to the potential damage to my arm, I used the opportunity to stab it in the side of the neck several times until the third wolf clawed through my back, making me leave my dagger in the first wolf's neck as I fell in pain. The first wolf began thrashing my wrapped arm while the third reached for my leg. Just as its jaws clamped down, I kicked it with my right as hard as possible, making it yelp as it backed away. After that, I managed to pull myself back up, using as much strength as I could to punch the first wolf in the head. It wasn't giving up on my arm, so I grabbed it by the jaw, lifted it up by the head, and slammed it on its back. It let go of me, twisting itself back on its legs quickly. Pushing through all the pain, I slowly brought myself back up. I looked at my left arm through the tear in my wrapping to see some cracked scales and blood, not much. I looked around me to see the first wolf bleeding with my dagger still in his neck, the third probably waiting for the first again, and the second returning its attention from my jerky—to me.

It was obvious my chances were bleak at best. Maybe I could kill the bleeding one. Even if I could, I don't think I'll make it. But maybe if I do kill him, I can use my dagger on the others. How many more will come after them? If they send anymore, I'm definitely dead. Fuck. A seething huff left me heavely as a rage inside came to give me strength. With each increasingly louder breath, I readied for my death. If I'm gonna die, so will they. The bloody wolf ran first so I ran at it. It went to bite me but I narrowly dodged it. Grabbing it by the side of the mouth, I pulled my dagger out of it and stabbed its lower neck repeatedly. I pushed its lifeless body away as I heard the second and third wolf rush toward me.

I turned to the other two. "FUCKING COME AND GET SOME!!!"

As soon as I finished, the third wolf reached me. While running into me, it lowered its head. I jammed my dagger deep in its ear as it used its head to throw me off the ground. I fell on my back and rolled to my feet to see that wolf lose its strength to the dagger in its head. That makes four. Breathing heavely, I realized I was growing tired and was nowhere near the tree I'd like to have my back to.

The second wolf suddenly stopped running at me. Its action confused me until I felt the heavy steps of the largest among them walking behind me. I turned around to see the massive wolf from before slowly walking to me. I saw the wall of black smoke cease its flow, revealing every wolf in the vicinity. Slowly, I backed away as every growling and snarling wolf in the area creeped up to me. Eventually, the largest one lagged behind, seemingly wanting the others to continue where the dead ones left off. The second wolf was the closest to me. After enough time, I reached the tree I was at in the beginning. I was starting to get a little lightheaded as my legs felt weak. The second wolf showed its teeth as it closed in.

Just when it was ready to strike, a man ran down the tree, curved sword in hand, and flipped onto the second wolf, stabbing it through its head. Just after that, arrows rained from the trees, none of them missing. Men and women, clad in cloaks and leather armor, ran down every tree, rappelling by ropes with curved swords in hand. Just as they were about to reach the ground, they kicked off their trunks, detached from their ropes, and ran into the frey. The first one looked back at me, smiled, and ran into battle with the rest of them. I saw arrows continue to fly into the wolves as all the men and women on the ground fought them in close quarters. Looking around, I saw one woman with a short white ponytail catch a clawing wolf with a dagger as she plunged her sword into its heart. I saw a woman with red and black skin, and backswept horns and hair of the same color contort the fingers of one of her hands toward a wolf as it rose in the air, limbs cracking and bending until a man ran up to it, stabbed into its heart, then threw his sword into a wolf charging behind her. I saw a massive man with a sword larger and longer than anyone else's walk up to the largest wolf. The wolf attacked him, but he simply dodged, cut its leg off, then drove his blade into its neck as deep as it could be driven. Before five minutes could pass, almost every wolf in sight was killed.

I let out one big, heavy breath followed by an even larger sigh as I lowered myself to sit against the tree. I looked at the white-haired one.

"Thomas. How many escaped?"

"Three, captain."

"We can get them later. Gather the bodies, skin them, collect their edible bits, and leave the rest for nature to claim."

"Yes, captain."

My attention was taken away as two young men walked up to me.

The first one said, "Hey, this is shadow wolf territory, kid. Should'uh known that."

The second one warned, "Careful, Lon. We got a demidragon here."

"A demidragon in shadow wolf territory, huh? That afraid of humans, are ya? What do you think, Roan?"

"He looks pretty afraid to me, Lon."

Curbing a mild anger, I answered, "Abraxas sent me. To find the Midnight Rangers."

Lon turned his eyes to mine. "That old fart sent you? Well, you found u—"

I immediately got up, grabbed him by his neck, turned him around, and shoved him into the tree while giving him a death stare. "Don't you DARE talk about him like that!"

Suddenly, a new voice rushed in; the voice of a woman. "Woah woah woah. Calm down, kid. He deserves it, but I'm trying to prevent death here."

I felt my arms grow weaker. The anger lasted no longer than my remaining energy.

"Fine," I said as my scales changed back to skin. I pushed Lon away, sat back down before my legs could collapse.

When I looked up, I saw a woman with a long, golden blonde ponytail, and a big leather shoulder sling pack hanging down to her hip.

She reached out her hand. "Hi. I'm Yara."

"Ladon," I responded, not reciprocating the handshake.

"Are you wounded? Are you hurt?"

"Probably."

"Can I take a look?"

I nodded, slightly.

She kneeled down and lightly grabbed my left arm. As she unwrapped it, I saw many of the rangers here who weren't busy with the shadow wolf bodies walk over to me. As she finished unwrapping my arm, I saw her face turn from a soft, kind look to shock and near-horror at the sight of my arm.

"Well, you've seen some hel, huh? The good news is the bite from the wolf is barely even surface deep. The bad news is you're definitely gonna need a new cloak. It was a smart move wrapping your arm like that."

I saw a bunch of the rangers look at my arm in surprise. I would've felt more embarrassed had it not been for the burning and stabbing I felt in my back.

"Can I see your back?" Yara asked, probably noticing my discomfort.

I turned around. Yara proceeded to lift my shirt a little.

"Are you alright with taking your shirt off, Ladon?"

"Do I have to?"

"It would help me out if you did."

"Fine."

I painfully took off my shirt, revealing the extent of my back wound. After a few seconds, I felt a cold rag against my back, making my body tense quickly from the sudden sharp sting it gave.

"Sorry. I need to clean the wound before I bandage it. Bear with it for me. It'll be done soon."

After she was done applying that painful rag, she began wrapping bandages around my torso to cover my wound.

"So . . . What is someone like you doing in shadow wolf territory?"

"Someone like me?"

"Yeah; a kid. A demidragon. Such an unexpected place to be: this far in the forest."

"Abraxas sent me to find the rangers."

"Well, you found more than just us. It was pretty impressive what you pulled off there. Shadow wolves are pretty tough creatures, though their undersides are less tough."

"Thanks."

"No problem, but I can't recommend you do that again. You're lucky we were here to help."

Why didn't they help sooner?

I didn't say anything back. I just stayed silent untill she was done. I put my shirt back on and turned around to face her.

"Thank you, Yara."

"Of course. I didn't have any stitches on hand, so you're probably gonna get a scar, but at least it was cleaned. When we get to camp, come to my tent; I have stitching supplies there. Oh, and don't listen to Lon and Roan. They're assholes."

"Okay. Thank you."

I grabbed my tools and cloak before getting up. Just when I finished standing up, I saw a whole group of rangers almost crowding me. Like a gate, they parted in the middle to make way for the massive man and the woman with a short white ponytail approaching me. Now that I got a better look at her, I noticed she had an eyepatch on her left eye and a scar going across the same eye. She looked average height, and no weaker for it. The man had shorter hair than hers and was clearly the tallest and strongest person here. The woman looked fierce, strong, and tough. It clearly made sense that she's the captain.

The woman spoke. "So. Why are you here, kid?"