Dead Rainbow

Wolf in the Night

It was dusk before they finished interviewing the farmers along the edge of the woods. Cattle were taken from three different fields the previous night and they stood at a broken fence with the great darkened forest before them. 

Øregård held a torch the farmers had given them. It was nearly night and the moon was large and full on the horizon. 

"Do you need this to see?" asked Øregård. 

"I know the spell of the Dark Eye, do you have night vision?"

The big green armored brut nodded and snubbed the torch out in the dirt. He left it stuck in a notch in the farmer's fence and they entered the forest.

"Tenebri oculi." 

The night woods came to life for Redwing. The moonlight filtered through the lush branches and cast moving shadows across the forest floor. He saw birds sheltering in trees for the night, small hedgehogs emerging for their nocturnal foragings, and deer bedded down in tall grass. Everywhere he looked, he saw the living forest in wonderous grayscaled perfection. He wondered how the world appeared to Øregård in the dark.

"This way." He clearly had no issue following tracks by moonlight. 

Redwing followed him deep into the forest. For much of their hike, it got darker and darker but he could still see shapes, objects, and signs of life. After several hours of perusing drag marks and tracks, they came to a clearing and a series of rolling forest hills. The moon peaked out from behind a cloud and rained down silver light. 

Three startled deer ran through the lit clearing. Øregård froze and held his jagged sword out to his side. 

"Ready your bow," he said so faintly Redwing wasn't sure if he actually heard it.

Redwing took his crossbow off his back and pulled back the bow as quietly as he could. He took out his resist evil potion and dipped three bolts into it, loaded the first one, and tucked the other two, one in each boot. He leveled the heavy projectile weapon at his waist and walked out of the woods into the clearing. 

Øregård moved in a flash and ran up the slope of the short hill. When he reached the top a howl shot out across the clearing into the forest and it was returned. The second howl came from behind. Redwing turned around and looked back into shadowy darkness. Behind him, Øregård grunted and the smashing sound of his armored self falling down the hill caused Redwing to whip back around again. 

A huge wolf, as big as he was, tackled him and wrestled with grasping prehensile claws. Øregård fought back but the creature was able to use its weight to keep his sword arm down on the ground. It bit at his neck with gigantic lion-esque jaws. Pointed furry ears stook up into the air above the brindle coated wolf. 

Redwing hesitated. 

"Shoot it!" 

He panicked, raised his bow, and fired a bolt straight into Øregård's arm. 

"Ahh! You idiot! Shoot the wolf, not me!"

Redwing pulled a bolt out of his boot and clicked it into place. He heard an animal rushing through the woods behind him and turned to face it. The wolf was enormous with blazing orange eyes and ferocious canines. It was right on top of him when he fired.

The bolt crossed the short distance in a second and ripped clear through the creature's torso. It sailed out of the wolf's back and pinged off a tree. Fallen at Redwing's feet was the body of a naked man with a bloody hole in his back. 

The wolf fighting Øregård roared with fury and tore wildly at his neck. Redwing grabbed the other bolt out of his shoe and loaded it. Øregård freed his sword hand and jabbed his wicked blade into the side of the wolf. It released his head, jumped away, and stormed down the hill toward Redwing. He raised his crossbow and pulled the trigger.