Page 3

Vuk

FOUR DAYS UNTIL THE FULL MOON.

M y head is pounding as too-bright sunlight hits the backs of my eyelids, dragging me from a deep sleep. A moan rumbles out of my throat, coming out strangely pitched. When I try to roll away from the offending brightness, my body doesn’t move like it should.

My growing confusion isn’t helping the headache pounding behind my eyes, and it takes a moment to pry them open, only to find I can’t focus. No matter how much I blink, everything is flat and gray.

It’s all wrong. The forest. The scents. My body— especially my body.

I shake my head, but that only makes my vision swim, and the headache intensify. When I try to push myself to my feet, I can’t find my balance and topple to the side because my feet are gone. So are my hands.

Another high-pitched whine rings in my ears when I stare in confusion at… paws . My hands, with their four fingers tipped with razor-sharp claws, are now fluffy nubs, covered in a thick reddish coat of fur.

The sound and scent of a nearby stream draws my attention and I struggle to the edge.

A wolf.

I can’t believe what stares back at me in the slow-moving water.

I’m a wolf…

My back legs give out and I sit on my haunches, trying to make sense of how this happened.

The last thing I remember was hunting for the coming moon ceremony.

It was a clear night with the waxing moon throwing silvery light across the meadow as I ran with the other hunters.

The air was brisk, scented with the tang of woodsmoke and evergreen as we chased down our prey.

One moment I was howling with my pack, the next I’m waking up in a strange forest, confused and disoriented, trapped in a strange body.

How can this be? I am not a wolf. Not an animal. I am lycan .

A deep growl rumbles through my chest as I push myself to my feet—paws. I lift my nose—snout—and breathe in the myriad of scents brought on the wind. Many of them are different, although still familiar enough to recognize. Plants, animals, and… humans .

I snort to get the bitter scent of those foul creatures out of my nose.

Humans have long been our enemies. They attack us for every perceived slight, believing we are somehow evil because we were created to be stronger than them.

We do our best to stay up in the mountains and forests, away from their sprawling villages that scar the valleys and poison the water.

They breed like vermin and judging by their prevalent scent on the wind, they are all over this territory, too.

Are they responsible for bringing me here? If they are, then how? I didn’t think humans had magic, another reason for them to hate us. Why trap me here in the body of a wolf?

My nose twitches as I catalog the many scents in this strange place slowly moving away from the stream.

The trees here are strange, with bare trunks and colorful leaves that fall to cover the ground where they dry up and shrivel.

I’m unused to walking on all four limbs, so it takes a bit to get control of my new gait.

The dried leaves coating the ground are a hinderance as well, keeping me from moving silently.

My home forest is filled with needle baring trees that do not shed, making traveling silent and effortless.

As I make my way through the strange forest, I become more and more familiar with this new body. Picking up my pace until I’m loping through the morning brightness while my nose works to understand all I can about this place.

This forest is thriving. It’s alive with clean streams and thick foliage.

Doing its part to protect the balance between predator and prey.

Where I am from, the humans have no regard for this balance.

They only care about their comforts, ignoring the destruction they leave in their wake.

So, it’s a surprise to see such well-cared for land saturated with human presence.

Making my way through the trees and narrow trails, I capture sharper notes of magic under the bitter human stink.

I change course and soon I’m running at full speed toward where the vibrating scent is growing stronger.

Hope blooms in my chest that the source of the magic will give me the answers I seek.

That is, until I run headlong into an invisible barrier, and I’m knocked back with a sharp yelp.

With a shake of my head, I slowly get back on my feet, scanning the space in front of me, but there is nothing except the heavy scent of magic crackling through the air.

I slowly approach an area that stops me in my tracks.

An invisible barrier hums with power. Edging closer, the hum grows stronger until a sharp electrical zap reaches out to snap at me, warning me I’ve reached the threshold.

My weak wolf vision searches for the cause of the strange force. When my head tips back, I see them. A line of runes carved high into the trees.

The fur along my back lifts as I stumble back with a growl.

These aren’t the sorts of runes my kind use for protection or divination.

These are something ancient only our elders might know anything about.

I’ve been taught to believe magic is neither good nor evil.

Rather, it’s how you use it. However, if I had to choose a distinction now, I would consider these to be made of foul magic.

The skin beneath my thick coat itches with the warning to stay away.

But that only makes me want to get past them even more.

Keeping an eye on the trees carved with the runes, I follow them.

The sun makes its way across the sky while I follow the barrier, testing it every several feet without any signs of weakness. Just as the sun sinks below the horizon, I find myself right back where I started.

I am surrounded. Caged.

Panic coils in my stomach. Am I the reason for the runes? Were they carved to keep me captive? But who would do this? And why? Questions run through my mind as I puzzle over what to do next.

With the fading light, I’m surprised to find my vision vastly improves. It’s still monochrome, but the clarity sharpens dramatically. I’m pacing back and forth when a rabbit suddenly darts past me, triggering my prey instinct. My stomach clenches with hunger and I’m after it without a thought.

The rabbit takes me on a good chase, but in the end it’s no match for my speed.

It’s not much of a meal, but it quiets the gnawing in my stomach I’ve been ignoring.

After the meager meal, I turn my attention back to the barrier when I’m hit with a new scent.

A bouquet that draws my complete attention. It’s sweet, clean, fresh…

Lifting my nose higher, I breathe in more of the compelling scent then sneeze. The fur along my back bristles and my lips peel back from my teeth with a snarl. Human .

That can’t be right. My heart starts pounding at the strangely appealing human scent. Confusion muddling my thoughts as I turn away from the barrier and start toward its source.

Is this human to blame for bringing me here? If it is, I will make it send me back.

As the strangely sweet human scent lures me deep into the forest, the last of the sun’s light fades to night, plunging everything into inky darkness.

With each step the scent grows stronger. As I make my way up a slight rise, my hackles raise and when I reach the top, I come to an abrupt stop. On the other side of the rise is a clearing, with a small group working together to make camp.

They look nothing like the humans I’m familiar with.

The shelter is unlike any I’ve ever seen before.

Made from a lightweight material that doesn’t look like it would protect them from so much as a slight breeze.

The light color contrasts rather than blends into the surroundings, making them far too easily seen.

The two working on the shelter talk loudly to each other while a third human builds up a fire that will draw even more attention to them.

I’m stunned by the complete disregard for their surroundings they are showing.

The way they are completely oblivious of the fact an enemy is lurking a dozen yards away.

Have these humans become so arrogant they think they are the most dangerous creature in the entire forest?

It would be so easy to attack. They wouldn’t see me coming until it was too late. I doubt they would even fight back.

I crouch down, digging my claws into the soft ground. I’ve never come across a group of humans less watchful. It would serve them right to attack while they are unaware and end their pathetic lives. My tail sways back and forth as I prepare to lunge.

Except, attacking them when they have no idea of the danger would serve nothing, and teach them even less. And if I kill them, I’ll lose any chance to find out if they have something to do with bringing me here.

That’s what I tell myself, ignoring the reality that the appealing scent has my curiosity piqued. Because it’s coming from one of the humans below.

A low growl slips past my teeth and one of the humans setting up the strange shelter lifts her head. Her hair is dark and pulled back from her face and into a twisted rope that drapes over her shoulder. Onyx eyes narrow as they stare in my direction. My body tenses.

Something about this female draws my attention.

When I look at her, my heart speeds up. There is something alluring about her, something I don’t feel when I look at the others.

Perhaps it’s the darker tone of her skin, especially compared to her companions.

Or the way her dark eyes sparkle as they slowly scan the darkness.

Dragging more of their scents into my nose, I realize the scent that had me running here is her’s .

I drop to my belly with a huff. What does that mean?

I’ve never come across another human—or lycan for that matter—who’s scent grabbed me the way hers has.

It must be something to do with this world.

Just like it’s nothing more than curiosity has me watching them, instead of attacking like my instinct would normally be riding me to do.

The darker female turns to speak with another female.

This one’s brown hair and pale skin are not as appealing to me.

The third human is male with swarthy skin and a thick, dark beard.

He leans back from the fire he’s been feeding, brushing his hands on his thighs before turning his attention to the brown-haired female.

I sniff the air again and realize their scents mingle. They must be a mated pair. My attention returns to the dark female. She shares no other odor besides her own. This pleases me. My tail begins a slow wag that I cut off abruptly, because it shouldn’t.

Humans are filthy creatures, evil to their core. I must remind myself I have no reason to think these are any different.

A frustrated growl rumbles out of me, and I cut it off sharply when their heads snap up and turn in my direction.

I’m hidden by shadows and when it becomes clear they can’t see me, the mated pair goes back to what they were doing.

However, the dark female continues to stare.

Her eyes don’t lock with mine as she searches the tree line, but something in the way she holds herself suggests she can sense I’m watching her.

When she finally drops her attention back to her task, I push myself to my feet, intending to loop back into the forest, but instead I find myself circling their small camp. I’m careful to keep to the shadows as I search for anything that might suggest their reason for being here.

Are they hunting me? I see no weapons to suggest they are hunting at all. But then why would they be here?

I decide to keep a close eye on them so they can’t catch me off guard.

Perhaps I can flip our roles and use them as leverage to escape this trap I’ve found myself in.

Yes, I like that, I decide using the shadows to circle the small camp.

I return to my original spot and drop to the ground, where I can watch them without being seen.