Chapter 5

I t wasn't long before the panic set in. I snuck out of the tower with only a wool cloak and old leather boots to shield myself from the elements. I had no money and only a rusty dinner knife for protection. With each crunch of snow beneath me, regrets built thicker and thicker. It was far too late to go back. Once Hela had returned upstairs, she would've checked my bedchamber. Guards must already be searching the tower grounds for me.

The temperature continued to drop as I carried on, pausing every so often to listen behind me. Nothing but silence scattered through the flat barren land. Nothing but snow extended as far as my eye could see. Packed ice melted into the night horizon in streaks of purplish hues. I peered into the deep blackness of the sky above and located the four twinkling points of the Crux. If I continued to keep it straight ahead, I could reach Ursae by dawn.

The tower was due North of the city, constructed at the dead center of a vast flatland extending for miles. I wasn't sure how much distance I'd need to travel before reaching the forest out-skirting the city walls, but based on the journey when I first arrived, I'd guess it would take me most of the remaining night. If my pace slowed even the slightest, I'd risk having to travel in daylight. Aside from a few withered shrubs, there was nothing but a vast openness surrounding me. I would be exposed with the next morning's dawn. Pulling my cloak tighter around my torso, I trudged on, my boots sinking deeper into the packed snowy ground.

The wind howled in my ears as flurries fell heavier and heavier into the frozen darkness. Sharp numbness crawled up my toes and into my legs. With a clenched jaw, I swallowed down the alarm rapidly bubbling up the back of my throat and broadened my stride. I needed to get across this unending stretch and find somewhere to weather the encroaching blizzard.

I walked for what felt like hours, keeping my eyes on the blurry horizon. Coaxing my frozen limbs to propel me forward with the thought of shelter. A sudden crack in the ice behind me halted me in my tracks. Another. And another. With each crack of the ground, the air electrified with a tense current.

The footsteps paused only a few feet behind me. My pulse raced beneath my wrists. Reaching for the dinner knife sheathed beneath the folds of my cloak, I whirled around to find a nightmarish face piercing through the snowy darkness.

Grey, frozen flesh drooped from a pale, cracked skull. Lines of dagger-like teeth filled a swollen purple mouth. The smell of the creature percolated into the air. As it hit my nostrils, I had to pinch myself to keep from gagging. With a shaking palm, I outstretched the knife in the creature's direction just as its deep, crimson eyes locked on to me.

A quiet groan skimmed over its extended lips as it crawled on four gangly limbs towards me. The hands and feet resembled human extremities far too closely. A cold sweat dripped from my brow as it lurched towards me, its limbs cracking unnaturally. I swiped at the creature as it grasped a sharp clawed hand towards me, the red glow emulating from those sunken eyes flickering like a flame.

It pounced for me with a deep, animalistic howl and I flung myself backwards, slipping on the ice. The back of my skull slammed against the packed frozen ground, knocking the air from my lungs. With blurred vision, I scrambled away as fast as I could.

I wasn't fast enough. It started towards me again, wrapping its long, skeletal fingers around my ankles. Its smile revealed rows of fang-like, yellowed teeth, and I could smell its putrid breath. A paralysis grew within me, extending to each of my limbs as it climbed over my feet, up my legs, across my torso, and on to my chest. Pain bubbled beneath my skin with each piercing grip of a claw.

Sobbing silently, I willed my hand, still clenching the knife, to move. Overcome with fear, I remained frozen. A rotten, grey tongue slid around its lips as it stroked my cheek with its claw. I begged my muscles to move. Still, I remained limp beneath the creature's weight. It leaned down and slid its frozen tongue across my cheek, licking up the salty tears that now streamed down my face. I needed to move. Gripping my fingers around the dinner knife, the sharp pinch of broken skin beneath its blade pulled me from my paralysis.

With all of my might, I jerked away from the creature's touch and plunged the dagger into its temple. A thick, black ooze dripped from the wound and splattered across my cheeks. The creature went limp instantly and fell to the side, its shriveled mouth only inches from my face. I suppressed the scream now roaring through my body and pushed its dead limbs away from me.

Its carcass rolled off with a squelch, and that same black substance pooled beneath it. I jerked upright, pulled the knife from its skull, and sprinted away as fast as I could. What the hell was that?

The soulless red eyes smoldered beneath my eyelids with each blink. I ran until my lungs pleaded for air, and my calves cramped with exhaustion. Finally, my muscles gave out, and I stumbled to my knees, sobbing and vomiting with sheer primal terror. Stories of dark, undead creatures lurking through the flatlands were told in the shadows of the city as ghost stories not for the faint of heart. However, I had thought them just that. Stories. Until tonight. I spat out the remnants of bile and forced myself up. I couldn't risk staying in one place any longer. Locating the Crux once more, I continued running.

The sky had transitioned to a deep shade of periwinkle when I finally stopped to catch breath. Placing my hands on my knees in support, I wheezed. The frigid air burned in my lungs as I struggled to take in enough oxygen. Between the loud heaves of my chest, a faint yelp echoed through the air. Grasping for the dinner knife again, I scanned the surrounding snowpack.

A slight flurry of black caught my eye as I squinted through the blizzard, praying to the Gods it wasn't another of those creatures for me to fight off. The yelping continued as I took a few steps towards the wriggling mass in the distance, stretching the knife out as far as I could in front of me.

As I got closer, the mass appeared soft with spikes of dark fur. A short tail slapped at the frozen ground from one end. It cried in fear as I approached. Dropping the knife, I fell to my knees, stroking my fingers delicately down its little furry spine.

A sharpness erupted at the tip of my index finger as two little fangs pierced my skin, drawing a bead of blood. Yellow eyes and a snout, no longer than my thumb, snarled up at me. I jerked my fingers away as the tiny creature nipped at me again. The little mass of fur and fluff was a wolf pup. Judging by her size, only a few months in age.

"What are you doing out here, little one?" I said, again reaching towards the jet black pup. She rolled on to her stomach and pawed at my hands. A soft warning to keep my distance. She growled weakly, deep in her belly.

"It's okay, I won't hurt you. Let me help you, little one. Where's your mother?" I said, keeping my voice calm. After another attempt warily reaching my index finger towards her fur, the pup nudged at my palm with a cold, wet nose. A matted, bloody mound of fur lay limp in the near distance. The pup smelled of the black ooze that seeped from my previous attacker. The poor creature was alone in this world, orphaned and lost. That made two of us.

"It's okay. You're safe."

She tilted her snout, sniffing the scent of blood stained on my hands.

"I won't hurt you. I promise. It's okay."

I stroked down her fragile spine as she wriggled toward me, the yellow of her eyes bouncing moonlight across the frozen land. Craving my warmth, she crawled into my outstretched arms. Slowly, I wrapped my hands around her belly and lifted her to my chest. Her delicate bones protruded from beneath a pelt of silky, thick fur.

As I nestled the little creature into my cloak, a jolt of electricity channeled through me, emulating from my feet to the crown of my head. The current sparked through my chest and I nearly dropped her from the shock. She poked her head out from beneath the thick woolen fabric and gazed up at me, her eyes gleaming in wonder.

"You felt that too, didn't you, little one?" She huffed in response and buried herself beneath my cloak again, curling into the warmth radiating from my chest. I chuckled and stroked her soft, juvenile fur until her breathing evened into a uniform rise and fall. Clasping my cloak further up my neck, I continued forward, keeping a watchful eye on my surroundings, hoping to catch sight of the pup's littermates. There was nothing but silence and snow.

By the time the tree line of Ursae came into view, a flame of crimson licked across the horizon and the indigo winter night had turned a shade of burnt sienna. I sped for the trees, heart pounding as the golden sun of dawn crept closer to the horizon. As the last shadow of night faded away, I dove for cover under a row of tall balsam firs. Panting, I curled up in a bed of dead, snowy pines and stroked the wolf pup who had stirred.

"We're safe, little one." She peeped from her wool cocoon and yawned widely. "For now." I chuckled and scratched behind her ear, my pulse normalizing. As we watched the sunrise together, it hit me suddenly that this was real. I wouldn't wake up in my tower bedchambers. Freedom tasted warm, like a sun ray across my cheeks.

The pup nestled into the crook of my neck, huffing deeply as she closed her eyes. I stroked her fur, welcoming the comfort of my new companion.

"I wonder if you have a name."

She leaned into my touch. Opening her eyes, the yellow amber glinted in the new dawn light. She had powerful eyes. Blazing eyes. Eyes that felt as old as time. They reminded me of a glimmering, golden star, orbiting across the northern sky.

"Arcturas. That's what I'll call you." I poked the tip of her wet, spongy nose.

Huffing lazily, she tucked her ears back and fit her head against mine. We stayed there for a little while, curled together beneath the shelter of thick firs. The branches were deep enough to block the snowfall and harsh whistling wind. Eventually I dozed into a shallow sleep, the image of those horrendous red eyes chased away by the warmth of the tiny creature nestled against my body .