Denizens of the Labyrinth

The wolf man led the way, he had let go of the pack leader and after whistling, the wolves all follow him. Tails low and ears pinned back.

He led them out of the caves and though Jazmel and Sadé walked alongside the wolves. None of them tried to attack them at all.

They had escaped the innards of the caves and Jazmel breathed easy to find the sun still hung high in the sky. He smiled a little to himself and when the man led them to a small alcove where a den had once been, he sighed at what once had been.

“What will you do?” Jazmel asked him. Wondering what his next steps would be.

“I have to kill them.” He motioned, waving his hands at the wolves and then he realised why they had all been so dejected on their climbing out of the caves.

“All of them?” Sadé said and he looked at her, seeing her eyes wet with tears.

“The pups are not tainted, but they have no way of living on their own right now. The others are tainted, and I have no way of ridding them of it. I must kill them for the sake of their own dignity. They have all recognised it and that is why they are all present.” He said and though his voice did not crack, Jazmel could hear the pain in his voice all the same.

Then Jazmel remembered that his shadow had consumed the dark Mana before.

“If I could get the dark Mana out of them, would you still have to kill them?” he asked, and the man spun on him.

“There is no such ability!” he snapped but he could not hide the hope in his eyes.

As if by instinct his shadow spread and within a breaths moment, the man created distance in his dart backwards. Not even being able to explain, he sighed.

“Consume the dark Mana.” He said aloud, not sure if he even needed to. His shadow wraith pulled the taint out of all the wolves and one by one they fell to the ground, exhausted. The wolf leader, a grizzled and scarred wolf was wrapped in his shadow completely before the job was complete.

DARK MANA CONSUMED

EXP EARNED

LEVEL UP

In his mind the notifications pinged on the system but also a howl rang in his mind. The shadow wraith had taken on the characteristics of the wolf and in his mind’s eye he saw a solder with haunted yellow eyes. It slammed a fist over its chest, before collapsing back into his shadow.

“Well, that was cool.” Sadé uttered and Jazmel turned to her, smiling.

“Thank you.” The man said, suddenly extremely close. He had stealthily gotten close, and Jazmel had not even noticed.

“I owe you a service. Thank you.”

He moved past Jazmel slowly and then taking a pup in each hand, he checked to make sure they were all good before moving to the pack leader.

“You have done things beneath you in these woods, but I do not blame you. What happened to you was not your fault.” The pack leader whined but kept its head low.

“I am giving you a chance to regain favour in these woods. Take in these pups and raise them right. I will also leave the woods to you to protect with your pack. Make sure they grow the right way. Nothing dark can ever take set in these woods.” He explained and mystified Jazmel listened as he spoke with the wolf who listened intently.

“I have placed some of my spirit in both pups and they will be linked to me. If anything happens, I will know, but I trust you to do the right thing now. You owe it to their parents that you killed.” This drew a larger whine from the wolves.

“If you consume another wolf, I will kill all of you. If you break this agreement with me, I will come back and destroy you all.” He warned them and the wolf lowered its head even further. He scratched its head affectionally, and a whisper of a smile slipped his face.

“Take them. Raise them well, I will deal with the dark wolf.” The pack leader rose up and with a bark, wolves came to him. Softly taking a pup up in their mouths. They ran off, looking for a new den to make a home.

PING! The system sounded in Jazmel’s mind.

WITNESS

YOU WITNESSED A PACK BEING MADE

YOU SAVED A LIFE

EXP REWARD

He shuddered as exp flooded into him and he wondered if his stats had risen.

The man turned now and focused his eyes on Jazmel.

“Will you help me hunt the dark wolf down?” he asked, Sadé stepped forward and smiled.

“Yes, I can’t let anything happen to those pups!” she smiled, and the man stifled a toothy grin behind a hand.

“I am Bannerman.” He introduced himself and Jazmel and Sadé followed suit.

“Let us head to the east, we need to make it to the foot of the mountain before nightfall. That is where the dark wolf will be.” He told them both.

“How do you know?” Sadé asked him and with a mirthless smiled he answered.

“He is my father.”