All Is Fair In Love And War

Chapter 15

Carter held on for dear life as for the second time that day, his stomach was left behind as the tiny rowboat reached warp speed. Water sprayed his face, thunder rumbled over head, and lightning crackled making the hairs on his neck stand on end. A scream stuck in his throat.

The rowboat came to a sudden stop. Carter lost his balance, falling on his hands and knees. He sat there for a moment, shaking.

"I swear to the gods," he muttered to himself, shakily getting to his feet. "If I never get in another boat again, it'll be too soon."

He climbed out of the rowboat, which had managed to beach itself with its supersonic speeds. He slowly made his way along the beach, eyes scanning the jagged mountains that rose up into the clouds. He frowned.

"Definitely no climbing." He glanced behind him. He couldn't see the ship through the fog that surrounded the island. He sighed. "I really hope that damn boat is still there by the time I get back."

To his right came a low hissing noise. Carter turned toward it, brows furrowing. He squinted and was just able to make out a cavern entrance through the fog. He made his way towards it cautiously. "Oh, yay. So much fun." He grumbled and climbed through the entrance.

His footsteps echoed off the rocks, adding to the creepiness factor. He felt like he was being watched with every step. A pebble skittered in the darkness and he froze, waiting, listening. The sounds reverberating off the cave walls made a weird echoing noise in his hearing aids, making it hard to decipher where any particular thing was coming from. Carter was starting to wonder if he should've fought more for Douxie to come.

With a deep breath, he steeled his nerves and kept walking. The cave seemed to go on forever, an endless tunnel of wet rocks and craggly stone. But soon, a new entrance opened in front of him. It led to a circular grass field. The storm was worse here, the wind blowing so hard it nearly knocked him off his feet. The thunder was loud and constant, and the lighting struck the ground multiple times.

Carter froze when he saw the lone figure laying in the middle of the field. A giant wolf, easily four times larger than a regular wolf, was laying calmly in the center of the stormy field, glowing blue eyes watching him carefully. Around its front two paws were long bronze chains that seemed to keep it in place.

"Fenris..." Carter breathed out, fear and wonder sinking in. He never broke eye contact with the beast.

The Wolf seemed to smile at him. A cold, vicious sort of smile. "How long I have waited for my revenge." His voice echoed in Carter's head. "Come closer, son of war. Let me see my victory."

Carter took a step back, hands going to his scimitar hilts. "No thanks."

Another voice rang urgently in his mind. "No! Do not turn back! The gods made the mistake of mistrusting the Wolf! Show him what you can do. Prove yourself worthy of his devotion!"

"Of my what?" Carter hissed under his breath. He wasn't even sure if the magic head voice lady could hear him talk outloud.

"Battle him. Fight Fenris and win. Best him in combat and he will serve you."

Apparently she could.

"Not sure if that's a great idea."

Head voice lady remained annoyingly silent.

Carter closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Slowly, he met Fenris' gaze again. "What do you want?"

Fenris snarled with a grin. "My freedom, child. I've been imprisoned here for a millenia because the fools who run your world saw me as a threat."