Chapter 8: Rodain.

I opened my eyes to the noonday sun and quickly shut them again. The bright light hurt them. Every inch of me seemed to ache slightly, it was like I had stayed up all night. I moaned softly and cracked open my eyes again.
“ Ah, so you’re awake then. I was worried you wouldn’t wake up before the others did. Come one girl. On your feet. I’ve got some questions to ask you.” A voice said firmly.
I turned my head to see who was bossing me around and gasped. I was in the mouth of a canyon. The yellow-brown walls rose above me on either side. In front of me was a blackened forest. Laying under one half burned tree was a large Rowalkin, fast asleep. A few feet away from the me was Masiaka. He was also asleep, and curled up next to his face was a little silver ball of fur. I tried to remember what had happened that night. I remembered fighting something, but I couldn’t remember what. I sat thinking for a moment until the voice spoke again, interrupting my thoughts.
“ I’m behind you. Turn around and come here. Copperhead managed to catch a few Pakuna who had run into the open fields when the fire started.”
I obeyed the voice and turned around. Standing several yards away there was a she wolf. I couldn’t tell her subspecies, every time I tried to place her with one I failed. She seemed to have some characteristics of all of them. She was a soft gray color except for the tips of her ears and her tail with where a creamy brown. Her eyes were the oddest color I had ever seen on a wolf, they were blue-gray, the same color as storm clouds that come after a drought and pour down rain, but at the same time spout thunder and lightning spout thunder. And I felt the same way about this wolf that I did about those clouds. I didn’t know whether to be thankful for it, or afraid for my life.
Standing next to the wolf was a Songeagle. I could tell by the long feathers that fells off of either side of its jaw and formed a sort of beard the it was a male. He had deep copper colored scales and his feathers were a lighter shade of the same color. He scared me almost as much as the wolf did.
But at least I could tell now what pack and subspecies the she-wolf belonged to. She was one of the Ravenas. The wolves who had the ability to bond to bird and a natural control of the elements. Unlike most Aldhi the Ravenas didn’t need to be taught to reach out and control the elements. Instead they had to learn how to let the elements go and not control them twenty-four-seven.
But the thing that distinguished them from all the other packs was the bonding ability. They claimed that everybody had it, and a few even said that a wolf could bond to any animal, not just birds. I personally thought those wolves were raving loonies.
“ Well girl? Are you just going to sit there all day long staring at me like you expected me to scold you for being a bad cub? Or, are you going to come over here and eat? I myself would choose the second option, you did do most of the work in that healing last night,” She said.
“ Healing?” I asked.
“You don’t remember? Girl, you and Masiaka got attacked by a Scalefang. The thing beat you up pretty dern bad, but Taiga ‘nd I, we showed up before anything bad happened and put a stop to the whole thing.”
“How? And for that matter who are you?”
“ Some folks call me Misty. The Songeagle’s name , roughly translated, means Copperhead. I used Air to throw the flying toad into the fire, and then it old the fire to go away. Do you want to eat any of this or not?”
I growled, feeling annoyed, and stumbled sleepily over to the Pakunas. I grabbed one and backed a little ways away and began to eat. The events of the night before slowly began to come back to me. I was thinking about them when misty interrupted my thoughts again.
“ So, Rodain, care to tell me why a Scalefang is trailing you?” She asked.
“ Ravensbane. I don’t have any idea why the bloody thing was trailing me. Other than me being Kyrnin. They really seem to have a hate for us. Where the hell did you get the idea it was trailing me?” I said gruffly.
Misty gave me a cool look . Then she swished her tail in a way that especially grated my nerves.
“It just seemed kinda strange to see a Scalefang of all creatures attacking a sightless and a clearly powerful Aldhi. Scalefangs can see magic y’know.”
“ Of course I know! I’m Kyrnin., not some Rowalkin pup that thinks magic is one of his mother’s little cub stories. I know everything about Scalefangs I could ever want to know and some I don’t want to know.”
“Right, right. Of course… of course...”
I bristled and began to growl and was about to inform Misty of some very rude things about her parents when a smooth voice interrupted me.
“ Misty ,dear, stop it. You’re upsetting the poor girl. If that Scalefang was following her it was only to pick off the leader of the Kyrnin. I doubt the attracted it’s attention in... some other way. She looks relatively inexperienced so nothing she did could be that spectacular. Unless the Kyrnin teach their pups a lot more than I thought they did.”
I slowly turned around, my anger quickly melting away to be replaced by confusion. Behind me stood the Rowalkin. She was big, even for her species, and had the air of one who knew she was in charge about her. She strangely made me think of my grandmother who had ruled over my family with an iron fang until her death. I didn’t know why though. This wolf was the farthest thing from my frail grandmother that I had ever seen.
As I mentioned before she was big, and was a gray color, though a different and darker gray tone from Misty. She had a red-brown ruff and broad, red-brown, tiger like stripes running across her back. She looked down at me in an amused way. I looked back and forth from her to Misty.
Misty was now wearing a similar amused expression. Between the two of them I felt trapped.
“Aww. Come on Taiga. Calm down. I was only seeing if they really were out here on that ridiculous excuse Masiaka gave me. Well, now the truth really becomes evident. I can see why he chose her. She’s very healthy looking, and pretty. Though her temper and language do need some work.” Misty said.
My eyes widened, Taiga. So that was who this big Rowalkin was. I of course knew that she was the Rowalkin leader, but I had never met her before this. The gears in my still sleepy head began to turn. If she is Taiga of the Rowalkins…And these two are as good friends as they appear to be. Then this Misty must be- Oh. Ravensbane. It’s her. I thought to myself.
I spun to face Misty. Which was not the most brilliant decision on my part. I tripped over my own to legs and ended up half falling. This ruined any illusion of grace I had been maintaining up to this point. I cursed under my breath and then stood back up. Taiga was giggling and misty was smirking. I growled another curse and then spoke.
“ You. You’re Misty of the Ravennas. The famous healer!”
“ I thought we were clear on that Hon. But yes, I’m her.”
“ You’re the one Masiaka said could train me.”
“ I am? ”
“ Yeah, he didn’t seem all too happy about it though. Actually I mentioned you and he said that you could do it. So, can you do it? Can you teach me how to control water?”
“You seem to have a good enough grip on it already.”
“ No I don’t! Just recently have I been able to get a decent hold on it. And it’s still like trying to hold an angry eel. And I don’t know how to do half of what I COULD be doing with it . I need to be taught.”
Misty sniffed and gave Taiga an exasperated look. Taiga just shrugged and pleasantly smiled.
“ She probably does need to be taught, and you’re the only one that I can think of that might be able to do it, Misty,” said Taiga. Misty harrumphed.
“Right. Whatever. Maybe I will teacher her. Maybe I won’t. I need to thin k about it. So both of y’all let me alone about it. I’ll give you my answer about it when we get back to Taiga’s pack,” Misty said sulkily. I stared at her in confusion.
“Why are ‘we’ going back to Taiga’s pack? Masiaka and I have a job we’ve got to finish,” I said.
“Oh? I suppose you’re going to go find Lightfall?” Misty said sarcastically.
“Yes, we are. How’d you know that?”
“ A little bird told me.”
I grumbled another curse under my breath and lashed my tail in a cat like way. Misty was really getting on my nerves. But, I figured I needed to be on her good side if she was going to teach me. So I decided to let give up arguing with her.
“I’m going to go lay down for a little while. I ache a little all over from what that healing took out of me, and I’ve used more magic in the past few days then I normally would use in a month. I don’t think I can trek back to…to… where ever Taiga’s pack is.” I mumbled. Misty nodded as if approving and then made a sound in her throat and jerked her head as if indicating for someone to follow her. I thought it was me at first, but then Taiga got to her feet and padded over to Misty and I realized that it was actually the Rowalkin that Misty had wanted to talk to.
I watched the two of them walk off down the canyon, whispering to each other and occasionally giggling, then got up and began to snuffle around for a comfy place to take a nap. It was kind of hard since everything by the forest was burned, and the yellow-green grass along the floor of the box canyon was scratchy and dry feeling. It felt almost itchy to walk on and I don’t think I could fall asleep on it again.
I finally came upon a place where a different type of grass was growing from the normal type in the canyon. This type was longish, and emerald green and looked soft. I placed a paw in it to test how it felt. It felt wonderful. When I lay down in it I rolled in it or a minute or two and then lay on my back looking at the sky.
Clouds drifted along at a lazy pace over head. I closed my eyes and let the sunshine warm me. I felt as happy as a cat on it’s favorite sunning rock, and probably looked like one too. I fell asleep pretty quickly.
That’s when the dream came.