Rebirth

Chapter 10: Returning to the Fur-Pack

"So you found her? That's great." After Cynthia jumped in her bath, I told Zhaniah about what happened. She wasn't too surprised that I stepped in, to her, it was always in my nature. The Wolf-Pack cuts on my arm were glowing a faint red color, reflecting in the window. "Yeah. She's bathing right now. We'll come back to the pack and regroup so we can move forward to find everyone else."

"Oh, NOW you want help?"

"It gets lonely. We'll talk later." The connection cut, and the glowing ceased. I sighed, sitting on the bed. It took me a week to find one person. Truth be told, I didn't expect myself to be able to find anyone else, not at this pace. I barely saved Cynthia, how was I gonna expect to arrive just in the nick of time like a knight in shining armor for Michael or Jocelynn. I hadn't even considered Ashley and Julienn to be here in this world either, mainly because them being here would be totally and completely far fetched. They're not the type to mingle with these kinds of folk.

"Mama. Do you have any clothes?" Cynthia yelled from the bathroom. I paused, slapping myself in the forehead. Of course she needed clothes. "Hold on, I'll be back." I said, moving from the room and searching for clothes. If none of this works out, I could be a personal servant.

We left the following morning, making sure to hurry back. I "acquired" a couple horses from the group last night. At least this way, Cynthia wouldn't struggle to keep up, and we could make it back to Zhaniah's pack within a 2-3 days. The horses here were vastly different from the ones I knew. They ran on their own supply of magic- from what I was told - and would be able to run continuously for a week straight without any rest. We were in a major rush, so that bit of information was handy to have.

It was the second night since we left the town. Cynthia was crouched up in a sleeping bag next to me, fast asleep. I stared at the heart of the campfire, my mind drifting in a seemingly blank state. I was wide awake, but it felt like my body had fallen asleep hours ago. I couldn't begin explaining it, but it felt like I was going through rapid changes since I got to this world. First, my physical appearance. Second, my magic powers and healing, then my advanced site that allows me to see magic auras. Now, it was my sense of smell. What's next? I get black tattoos and grow wings? As ridiculous as the idea was, the thought of soaring through the sky was pretty cool. Swoop down and catch my enemies, like a hawk does its prey.

My eyes glanced at Cynthia, then I sat back against the tree, closing my eyes and drifting into sleep. This, is where my dreams begun.

A void of pitch blackness. The temperature felt like it shifted between blazing hot, and freezing cold. Even with my new eyes, I couldn't focus my vision past the darkness, and it was hard to navigate. I just allowed my body to float forward, or whatever direction I was going. There was an echo, one that replayed and never seemed to end. It kept saying, "Awake, Awake," And I first took that as Cynthia trying to wake me up. No, I figured out that definitely wasn't the case. The longer I drifted, the more I felt something uncomfortable in my chest. Two somethings actually. One was thicker and heavier on than the other, and a voice kept replaying from that area.

I really wasn't sure what to make of it, and wanted to brush it away. Something inside, my inner thoughts maybe, told me it wasn't something to ignore.

My eyes opened as the campfire went out. Cynthia was already up and about, petting her horse and singing to it. My horse was nudging me, waiting for me to awake. I gave him a gentle rub on his side, sitting up and climbing on, yawning. "Are you sure you can ride?" Cynthia asked, climbing on hers. "You did just wake up, and you do look half dead honestly."

"Thanks for the confidence boost.." I said, making my horse move along, with Cynthia not too far behind. The ride was refreshing, and exactly what I needed to wake up fully. We came into town after about 30 minutes. It was still busy and happy as when I left, and a couple new stores opened up. I lead Cynthia to the alleyway where I met the pack, but stopped cold when I saw they weren't there. I was going to connect to Zhaniah and ask, but then I remembered I could sense and pinpoint her position anywhere. Closing my eyes, I focused on Zhaniah. A signal shot out from me, like a sonar, and soon enough, I got a response. Opening my eyes, I spotted the response come from the biggest structure in the town. It looked like a castle from where we were. I turned to Cynthia, nodding to the large place, and we began making our way there.

Truth be told, I expected a lot of things from Zhaniah, even more so when we arrived in this world, but her buying an ENTIRE guild hall for her pack was something I thought was a lot, even for her. I figured she'd want to stay in the wild like wolves normally do. Then again, she had a room of her own, so I should've expecting this.

Through open guild doors, Beowulf was walking by, a solemn look on his face. I smiled, about to call to him, but instead, I got an even better idea. I got off my horse, making the doors close so no one saw me, then swiftly kicked them open like they nothing but a thick wall of butter. "GUESS WHO'S BACK!"

"Well well, if it isn't the Queen's new lap dog," One of the pack said, making the others laugh. That one was the first one to take a punch and hit the stone wolf head. "Wanna say that again, loser?!"

"Oh, he's looking to brawl." The wolf behind me said, standing.

"I could stretch my legs." Another said, and before I knew it, I started a massive brawl within the hall. I sat back, admiring my handiwork and looked at an approaching Cynthia. "Did you have to start this?"

"Of course. We're in a new world, better to release old stress right?" I said, giving a toothy grin.

"Geez, you're.. something else." She said, looking at Beowulf, who was shocked out of his mind. I was guessing the pack was never this rowdy, and until I came along, he hadn't expected them to be.

"WHAT IS ALL THIS!!" Zhaniah's voice boomed through the hall, even freaking out me and Cynthia. She looked extremely angry, and when she looked at me and Cynthia, she tossed mental daggers at me. I rose my hands defensively, chuckling nervously a bit. The guild was about to settle, when Zhaniah herself crashed down on one of the tables, and kicked one of the pack into the walls. "YOU DARE START A BRAWL WITHOUT ME?!"
"Ok, I wasn't expecting that," Beowulf and I said in unison. I moved my head to the side as another one of the pack, the medic- I think his name was Sansas - hit the wall behind us. "Is he gonna be ok?"

"I think so," Beowulf replied. unsure.

The brawling began to die down after awhile. Of course, Zhaniah was the top dog- or top wolf in this case -and everyone accepted her crazy strength. She may not have any magic, but that wolf blood coursing through her veins is nothing to take light of. She called Cynthia and I to her new office, sitting behind her desk and watching us. "Glad you're both back."

"Likewise." I said. "You were right. Searching for everyone would be an impossible job on my own."

"What made you change your mind anyway?" She asked, cupping her hands.

"It took me a week to find Cynthia, and that was by sheer luck. Looking for everyone would take months, maybe even years. Who knows what could happen in that time frame? For instance, Michael could become a psychotic killer, or Jocelynn could end up as Satan's daughter!"

"That's a very positive outlook you have for them huh?"

"That's the lightest thing I could think of." I said, sitting in one of the chairs.

"Interesting then." She paused. "Anyway, you came at the right time. We could use the extra pair of hands."

"Why? What's going on," Cynthia asked.

"We'll be going to war soon." Zhaniah said.

Cynthia and I exchanged looks. I wasn't sure if we were having the same thoughts at what she just told us, but our next actions said we were on the same page. We looked back the Queen and shot up for our seats. "WHAT?!"