Act I
What I feared did not come, the night passed noisily but no violence was spilled. Now the weather was clear, as the gentle light of dawn had entered our shelter.
I looked around, everyone was armed with their spears or bows. Even the champion of the Bear mother was standing ready with her axe, armoured in her bronze scale, she looked much better than when we found her. As I gave her my attention she noticed and gave me a grave smile, as I gawked at her ability to heal so much in one night.
I wonder if I can heal as fast as her when I finish this challenge, with that last thought I grabbed my own long bow and bundle of arrows. I wasn't the first to leave our shelter, but as I did I saw the dozens of snowmen we made were destroyed, the stakes broken with frozen grey blood on their splinters.
"Nothing here. . ." Someone said as we looked around, there were heavy and bloody foot prints everywhere but no sign of the Horror that made them. But then I noticed something, the same footprints had come and gone from the woods around the clearing we were all standing on.
Some of the trees had heavy slashes carved into them, was the Horror blinded by the winter storm? The thought crept into my mind, but it disappeared as I noticed the snowman I built was gone, turned into a bloody pile of snow and splinters.
"It was fun building you." With those words I started burying the pile with cleaner pale snow, before I turned and saw my group starting to gather near the warrior Kafla and our Koreyonos.
"You are but all young wolves, you will all die if you join this hunt." Kafla the warrior spoke, her mask was that of indifference as my entire Koryos watched as our Koreyonos stood parallel to her.
My sister was much younger, her body less developed compared to the olive skinned, red haired amazonian. Now that I think about it, everyone in my Koryos was pale skinned with different shades of brown hair.
"I know of your tribe champion! You are too far to call for other champions, right now it's wounded, right now it can be killed with what we have now!" My sister paused, as she saw me approaching them. Her reddened face turned pale again as her eyes turned gentle, looking back towards the Bear mother champion.
"You are too wounded to kill it alone, and trying to recruit warriors from the surrounding clans would be near impossible during winter. We are your only help, please let us help and win glory to our Koryos and clan." My sister lowered herself, it shocked me and I wasn't the only one as the others had the same reaction as it wasn't expected for our prideful Koreyonos to lower herself to anyone.
This made Kafla smile and then she patted the Koreyonos, both of the champion's hands were now holding my sister's shoulders. This made her look up, her face was filled with confusion.
"You have just learned one of the most important virtues that a leader must have. . . Humility, remember it well if we survive this hunt." With that said the champion Kafla moved on, walking towards a particularly bloody trail leading towards the mountainous east.
Act II
We followed the trail until the sun was at its highest, stopping at the entrance of a cavern. Everyone around me looked confident but no one moved as the champion looked indecisive.
"Sister Kafla, we can't give it the advantage." It was our Koreyonos who spoke, as she frowned at the cavern with bloody prints leading inside its dark caverns.
"I know, but we can't let it recover by waiting for it to leave." Kafla the champion knew that the only advantage we had was numbers, if we entered that cave we might end up fighting a bronze horror in the dark with limited space to move.
"Why not force it out?" I asked, this made everyone look at me.
"How? Exactly?" Kafla the champion asked, while everyone else looked confused or thoughtful.
"We use fire and smoke, we'll build a bonfire infront of the cave and then push smoky logs deeper in as we keep building bonfires." I told them my idea, it wasn't the most original but if the cave was small this would work if not then atleast we wouldn't fight in the dark damp cave.
After I spoke everyone looked at each other except for two as they thought of my words, there was a long pause but then the Koreyonos spoke.
"We split into two teams, one gathers wood the other would stay here to make sure the great evil wouldn't leave." Kafla nodded, as she smiled at me and then before I knew it three others were pushed to my side as the Koreyonos told us to start gathering wood.
Act III
Crackle* crackle* crackle* A large roaring fire was burning smoke that had long filled the entrance of the cave, yet nothing came out of it. The day was already at its last quarter, as we built the fifth bonfire after pushing the burning coals into the cave.
"Let us let this last fire burn out. . ." Champion Kafla spoke but then paused as she suddenly grabbed for her axe as she turned towards the cave. It took me a moment but I started hearing it too, the sound of bone scraping stone.
I armed myself as those around me did the same, those with spears raised them towards the cave while others had already readied an arrow into the string of their bows, I was included in the latter group.
But unlike the other wolves around me, my arrow was not made from napped flint but that of ivory. Creek* Creek* Creek* The sound paused then ROAR* A great roar came from the cave, and with it came a Horror that only the dreaming can conjure.
The ridiculously tall thing crawled out of the cave, on fire as it forced itself through the fire of the bonfire we had made. Its head was that of a horrifically burnt and bleeding bear skull with muscles snaking itself into its red eye sockets.
That was when I moved, I pulled the strings of my heavy bow and shot at its horrific bear skulled head. Tak* RAAA* It screamed, as one of its red eyes were forever closed as dark grey blood spurted out of its eye.
That scream was what started the battle, each archer shot the monster, most striking its arm the rest at its shoulder. Those with spears followed the champion as she rushed to the monster's head Swoosh* but all were forced back as the monster swiped its long bone clawed arm at them.
The warrior and the wolves with spears fought off the monster's arm as it struggled to crawl out. While those with bows kept shooting at its shoulders and head.
I was doing my best to hit its head again, but I kept missing, some of my arrows striking its shoulder and or missing entirely going into the cave. As I tried to take another arrow from my quiver I felt nothing, I looked down to see my small bag of arrows and it was empty.
ROAR* Another roar, it made me look back, as I saw it finally out of the cave, one arm crippled laying at its side uselessly as the horror towered over everyone in the snow covered hill we all stood on.
The warrior rushed in fighting off the horror's last remaining arm, while the wolves with her tried to force the monster's crushing jaws and long bone pike riddled legs from ending the Bear mother's champion.
I fought as much as I could, taking the spear of a fallen sister, stabbing at its legs and jumping back whenever it would swing its arm. Then after what felt like hours the thing fell Thump*.
A heavy blow from the Kafla struck its head while the surviving wolves stabbed at its chest and back. Haa* Haa* Haaa* The sound of heavy breathing echoed in my ears, my eyes blurred from sweat and exhaustion.
[You have killed a bronze ranked greater evil Hungry bear spirit.]
The voice cut through the sound of bodies falling onto the snow and heavy steaming breaths. I was looking up, every part of my body screaming in pain. Then I felt arms on me, as I was forced up, two of my wolf sisters were standing on each of my sides supporting me as they walked me close to the fire.
The champion was wounded, her armor useless clinging to her shoulders, but somehow she was still able to stand as she cut into the Horror, taking out three soul cores. She tossed one to me and the other to the Koreyonos. I looked shocked but that seemed to only make her laugh.
Act IV
"That went better than I thought it would have." Klafa spoke as we ate after a long stretch of mourning silence. No one had died during the battle, but many were wounded and even with what I know we still lost almost half of our Koryos.
Only six of the nine wolves survived their wounds, the other three had their wounds infected by something I did not know how to cure. I tried my best, by cleaning their wounds and patching them.
They only lived for a few more hours, after I treated them. They died in the beds made of hide and dry grass while I was feeding them. The pain that made me cry, was worse than the one burning at my shoulder as my own bloody wound healed.
"No one should have died." I spoke out, after I finished my bowl looking towards the entrance of the shelter, there were three corpses there wrapped in horse hide.
"Do not worry brother, will free their souls in the morning. . . So they can start hunting with our ancestors." The Koreyonos spoke, patting me on my head. Still I hated it, to see someone die not of battle but a simple infection.
They didn't need to die, if I only had some antibiotics. . . Slap* Haa* I slapped myself feeling the pain on my face calmed me down, the tears did not come again. Then I looked around, seeing many smiling, especially my sister.
"We have done a great thing today, we have slayed a monster that could have destroyed a great many clans. We deserve our rest, our food, and be able to remember those that had left much earlier than us." My voice echoed as we continued our food and then we all started singing. I didn't know the song but still I sang along with them.
After all that we slept, and for me it was dreamless as I was already inside a dream. Then I opened my eyes to see that the morning light was entering our shelter. I moved towards the entrance with a smile, I picked up some wood and started building a large pyre.
I didn't have time to enjoy the solitude, for the Bear mother champion Kafla quietly exited the shelter and started helping me. Her way of stacking the logs looked more practiced than my own clumsy attempts at building a pyre.
"I've talked with your Koreyonos, we made a deal. Once your Koryos cleanse yourselves of the wolf spirit, I'll help your clan join my tribe." I gave her a smile, I really shouldn't care because I would be long gone by then, but still I was happy to hear it.
From how dangerous this dream was, it was good to know my Koryos would be able to grow up inside something that might eventually become a village, not just a small gathering of huts.
"I'm happy to hear that, for I sense the valley's becoming more dangerous. It wouldn't be today, or tomorrow, but I swear it to the patrons, if the clans do not unite. will become food for the next evil thing." My words created a silence between us, it took moments before it was broken only by the crunching steps coming out of the shelter.
Within the hour the pyre was built, the corpses laying comfortably on the pyre. I stepped forward, because for some reason it was culturally the man's job to play the priest whenever those that died needed their souls released.
"Wolf father, I bring to you the souls of the young wolves, of our Koryos." As I spoke I held a torch of red fire, right over the pyre.
"They had fought bravely! Won glory to the clan and Koryos! Died from wounds dealt by a greater evil, let them hunt with you oh lord of wolves, let our ancestors see that even our clan wolves can fight as fiercely as any warrior." Those were my last words as I dropped the fire onto the pyre.
But then as the others tossed their torches onto the pyre, the flames turned pale white. The pyre burnt with a holy fire, making everyone take a step back. AWHOO* A powerful howl came from the distance as the fire burnt strongly and then nothing was left but white ash.
[The dead Wolf father had stirred hearing your prayer, you have received a dream essence.]
[Wolf fang: Iron rank - A necklace worn by those who had proved themself a true wolf.]