In the meantime, we kept darting through the woods north of Luceria. The night was perfect. The temperature was just right. The air was slightly chillier that usual, but I had this gorgeous coat of black fur that kept me nice and warm. And the scents were the most amazing part of this experience! My days, so many! If I was a great tracker in my human form, well… now I was the friggin’ king.
I could smell everything. Absolutely everything. The grass. The ripening clusters of fruits hanging heavily from nearby trees. The deer-like animals running away from us—ten of them, more than a mile away. They would’ve needed to get much farther than that if they wanted to lose me, that much I knew. A vast array of scents invaded my nostrils, as I tried to make sense of the world around me. Everything was new and amplified, and my skin tickled with delight.
Aida was beyond excited. Jovi was equally happy. I could smell it on them… the mixture of chemicals and hormones that gave away our emotions. It was as if my nose had zoomed in like some kind of super-performing olfactory microscope. I had the entire world under my nose.
Aida gave a brief growl as we began to slow down. We didn’t even need words to understand each other, though we could still talk and communicate. It had to do with our sibling connection, for sure. I recognized every sound, every move, and every eyelid drop—we were in perfect sync, bonded deeper than anyone else. It was an honor and a privilege. My brother and sister were fierce and phenomenal already. Their wolf forms simply augmented the best parts of them. My chest swelled with pride.
We spent the better part of an hour moving around, exploring the bushes and unmarked forest trails. Sometimes, we were easily distracted by small animals that bolted when they spotted us. Our instincts were to chase them around and catch them. We were predators, after all. It took me a while to focus.
We found one path, deeper and farther away from Luceria, that I found particularly interesting. It hadn’t been walked in years, judging by the greenery that covered the ground. But I could still see names and dates carved into the sturdy trees that guarded it on both sides. Travelers from all over Calliope had come through here, a long time ago. Their scents were, of course, gone. But I couldn’t help but wonder where they themselves might’ve gone. Whether they were still alive.
Glancing back, I could see Luceria’s towers through the few visible strips between the sprawling tree crowns. We were just two miles away. I was certain we’d covered a much larger distance, but, then again, we’d been running around and chasing rodents for almost an hour. But two miles was okay. Heck, it was great for my first night as a full wolf.
And what a night this is!
A twig broke, less than five hundred yards to my left. I stopped, then focused on that area of the woods. Through the darkness, I could see a silhouette—someone walking between the trees. Aida and Jovi came by my side, both of them sniffing the air.
Carefully, we lowered ourselves and snuck through the bushes. The closer we got to the stranger, the better we could see and hear him. And something was off about him. He was young, maybe an adolescent. I recognized his scent almost immediately. A fire fae. There was a whiff of charcoal and spices that came with his kind, one that had been permanently registered into my memory, a long time ago.
He was quite tall for his age, maybe an inch or two over me, but wiry. His skin was paler than normal for his species, and he was covered in a thin layer of sweat. He wore Fire Star regalia on his crimson tunic, and his pale blond hair was long and pulled into a braided tail down his back. His eyes were wide and bloodshot.
Whoever he was, he belonged to Sherus and Nuriya’s delegation. I’d seen them both earlier on one of the upper levels of Luceria. They were here on official business, if they’d brought a fire fae delegation with them. But even so, what was this guy doing in the woods? And why was he talking to himself?
“I won’t… No…” he murmured, as he hopped over a twirling tree root and made his way deeper into the forest. He didn’t even see or hear us—we were well hidden, just fifty yards from him. “No, I can’t… No, please… Stop asking.”
Had he lost his mind, maybe?
Aida, Jovi, and I exchanged glances, then kept following him. Needless to say, we were all curious. The fire fae wobbled for a while, before leaning against a tree. Aida was tempted to go ahead and help him—which would’ve resulted in a sweaty, rambling fire fae getting freaked out by a talking wolf.
Jovi cut her off and quietly urged her to stand down. I understood where he was coming from, especially when the fae’s fingers began to spark. That wasn’t normal. We were better off observing his behavior, for now. If our intervention was needed, one of us could keep an eye on the guy, while the other two ran back to get help. There wasn’t much a werewolf or three could do against a fire fae, anyway, especially since we didn’t know what his problem was.
“No… Please, I beg you, stop pressuring me!” the fae cried out. “I don’t want to do it!”
What was it, exactly, that he didn’t want to do?
I got the answer to my question a split second later, as bright fires erupted from the palms of his hands. He shrieked and moved back, shocked by his utter lack of control. I hadn’t even known a fae could start a fire like this. They always needed a source to begin with, to amplify and manipulate. Vita, Caia, Ben, and every other fae I knew had lighters on them, at all times. On foreign or field missions, the rest of the crew carried lighters, too, just in case the fae needed them.
“What the hell?!” the fae blurted, then looked at his bare hands. “What are you doing? Stop it!”
Another blaze burst from his hands. He immediately balled them into tight fists, panting as he moved farther back. Whatever was going on with him wasn’t just anything but normal, it was also dangerous.
“Leave me alone!” he shouted, and walked away.
In his wake, a small fire began to eat away at a dried-up shrub. Seconds later, it swallowed an entire tree. Aida and I ran after the guy, while Jovi headed back to the castle. Lumi was still in the garden, with Douma, Field, and Anjani. They were more than enough to subdue this fire fae, if it came down to that.
In the meantime, we followed him around, as he kept telling himself no, that he wouldn’t do it, that this needs to stop, and so on. He clearly needed help, and we couldn’t do much to stop him. I left the forest fire to Lumi. She was more than capable to put it out.
“I said stop!” the fire fae snapped again.
But his body refused to listen, as two more fireballs erupted from his bare hands. They, too, began working their way up a couple of trees. Okay. Lumi’s going to put the fires out. Plural…
She’d done a lot more with less. Fortunately, the air was humid and the temperature low enough to discourage a wildfire. Even so, we had to be careful, so we kept a reasonable distance from the fire fae, as he went on rambling and casting fires like friggin’ palm-sneezes.
I hadn’t expected this kind of excitement tonight, but, hey. Trouble never announced itself. It always popped up uninvited.
Aida
The night had been perfect until now.
I inwardly cursed and showed an angry fist to the universe for spoiling it all. Based on the scents coming from the young fire fae, I knew he was in great distress. His powers were out of control. The more he resisted whatever it was that had a grip on him, the more uncontrolled his fires became. At this point, amber lights flickered in the woods behind us. An hour or two later, judging by the winds alone, the trees were going to be alight.
“I don’t care! I don’t want to! Just leave me alone!” the fae grumbled. Then, all of a sudden, he ran off, crying hysterically. “Leave me alone! Just leave me alone!”
Dmitri and I went after him but came to a sudden halt when he burst into flames and shot ahead like a comet, ramming through trees and bushes. We tried to resume the chase, but the young fae vanished about six hundred yards away, swallowed by the darkness. The ensuing silence was creepy, sending shivers down my spine. My senses were on high alert as I led my brother in tracking the fae.
By the time we reached the last spot where we’d seen him, there were only small fires eating away at the grass, twigs, and dried leaves around us. His scent had faded almost completely. That couldn’t be right. We’d seen him only minutes before.
Dmitri and I looked at each other, equally confused.
We had to persist. Our noses were bound to pick up a stronger trace again.
My heart skipped at the sight of a big, black shadow, somewhere to my right. The hairs on my back popped up, my defensive instincts kicking in as I let a low, warning growl out. Dmitri chimed in, and by the stars, had I been only human and accidentally crossing paths with my brother like this, I would’ve run off screaming.
But the shadow didn’t budge.
Only when he stepped into the small clearing ahead did I recognize him. Big and black, with rich, shaggy fur and penetrating gray eyes. He was huge. We were pups compared to him. It was Dad! The great Bastien Blackhall, in pure wolf form. It had been a while since I’d last seen him like this, and it felt amazing. The Blackhalls were at it, like a big furry family!
He growled at us. “What are you two doing here?”
