Chapter 1: Too Long A Sleep
The crystals towered over every being; the sunlight caught in the blue and green prisms. Jack walked through the forest of crystals, gazing at their beauty. He ran his fingers along the smooth sides of one of the green crystals, smiling with satisfaction; he hadn’t had peace of mind for so long. His leather jacket flapped slightly in the gentle breeze, his hazel eyes reflected the crystals’ light and his light brown hair blew into his eyes.
Jack looked to the clear, blue, cloudless sky. The birds glided over head with grace. He sometimes wished he could be a bird and live a care-free life, flying and living on the wing.
He checked his phone quickly for the time. It read ‘Saturday 8th November, 1:37 pm.’
A crack came from behind him and he turned swiftly, smile vanishing. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he started to creep backwards slowly.
‘So much for tranquillity,’ he thought as a crack came from his where his foot fell onto a small crystal shard. ‘Damn,’ was his first thought as he was swept from his feet and whisked away by some unknown, shadowy wind.
His surroundings were a blur, his head was spinning; then he blacked out.
When he finally came round, he stood up and found his clothes were torn, his hair was scruffy and covered in dirt and that the last thing he remembered was the crystal forest. He scratched the back of his head, trying to dislodge a memory from the back of his mind so he could just see what it was.
He looked about him and saw he stood on the edge of a cliff; overlooking the gravel stones of a sloping seaside, waves crashing.
A wet nose touched Jack’s leg and he jumped. He looked down and saw a young, grey and silver striped cat. Jack started backing away but the cat looked up and followed him. Jack knew this cat must’ve had something to do with the wedged memory he couldn’t grasp.
He knelt down and picked up the cat and she meowed. Jack ran his cold fingers through her warm fur and smiled.
Jack sighed then spoke softly to the cat. “Can you help me remember that bit of my past which I know is there but I don’t know it?”
She mewed in agreement and then stood on Jack’s shoulder, purring to her heart’s content. Jack decided to call her Tyger, he liked that name. As he stood slowly, Tyger on his left shoulder, he put his hand in his pocket and pulled out his phone. It bleeped to tell him it had a low battery but Jack ignored it as he checked the time. He was surprised out of his mind when he saw what it read. ‘Saturday 29th November, 12:34 pm.’
Jack nearly collapsed to his knees, tears forming. He spoke in a quiet, shaky voice. “Wha-What? No… Thi-This isn’t possible! How could I have been out here for two weeks?”
A tear escaped his eye and fell onto his phone screen as it died. He looked at his watch, the silver metal catching the sun, the only thing he had left of his dad, and swallowed. It showed the same date and time. ‘So it is real. This is a nightmare. It must be!’
Jack placed his phone back into the pocket of his ripped leather jacket and wiped his eyes. He felt sick and like his life was at an end; all he had in the world was a cat. He turned and saw a town in the distance. A little spark of hope ignited within him and Tyger purred softly in his ear.
And so Jack ran for the town, unaware that a growling shadow watched him, its tail flicking, its stripes as lifeless as the night sky and its shadow fangs sharp as knives.
Chapter 2: The Terror Of The Shadows Begins
Jack skidded into the town, exasperated. He blinked and smiled ever so slightly. That small bit of happiness then quickly faded as he looked into the electrical shop. His lip twitched as it showed footage of him, clothes not nearly as ripped on the screen of the TV then as on him then, with Tyger as he swung a cricket bat at a shop window. The glass onscreen shattered and police appeared. Jack was fixated by the footage; he had no memory of this. As the onscreen him was being swarmed by police, onscreen Tyger hissed. Jack swore that momentarily, behind onscreen him and Tyger, that there was a large sabre-toothed tiger; made of shadows.
Jack clutched his head as Tyger hissed at the screen, her silver fur standing up. He started walking backwards shakily as older and older clips started playing, the oldest dating back to the last date he remembered; Saturday 8th November. In every clip he swore he could see the sabre toothed shadow tiger.
“Oi! It’s that kid and ‘is cat!” Jack heard a woman shout and saw her pointing at him. Jack stared in awe for a moment, Tyger hissing her head off in his defence, then made a break for it.
Jack ran through the town, at least ten people trailing him, shouting all kinds of abuse of which he knew, in this remembering of things, he didn’t deserve. Tyger was holding onto his shoulder for dear life as Jack heard a police siren scream behind him.
‘I can’t outrun a police car! I can barely keep this pace as it is!’ was all Jack could think of as he heard a voice through a loud speaker coming from the police car.
The thundering, crackling voice echoed in Jack’s ears. “REMAIN STILL! YOU WILL HALT! HALT NOW!”
“No! Never!” Jack yelled back. He skidded around a corner then jumped over a wall. His ankles collapsed as he landed from six feet high and his body ended up sprawled on the floor. Tyger flew off his shoulder and did a cat version of a commando roll to get back on her feet. She meowed in slightly discomfort as she licked her paw and started to clean herself. After a quick clean, she walked over to Jack and licked his face. Jack was still lying on the floor, listening to the yells of the mob and the sirens scream on by, his eyes screwed shut. He made his breathing as quiet as possible and even Tyger kept quiet, her ears pricked up; it was like she knew what to do.
A few minutes passed before all the hubbub died down. Jack’s surroundings were quiet but for his ragged breathing and Tyger’s soft purrs. He got shakily to his feet and found that his arm was cut and bleeding. He looked to the floor and saw several pieces of broken glass; one shard of which cut his arm. He sighed, ignoring the pain, and jumped to peek over the wall. His feet scrabbled to get a grip on the wall and when he finally did he jumped over again, more steady on his feet this time. Tyger landed by his side a moment later, emerald eyes glinting.
Jack checked his watch for the time. ‘15:46.’ Jack was surprised at how much time had passed. Luckily for him, the street was empty. Not wanting to have another run in with angry residents or have to out-run another police car with their wailing sirens, Jack decided to sneak away; swiftly and carefully. He found himself limping slightly after his fall but he went as fast as he could.
When he finally escaped the town, he found himself at a river. Tyger purred and nuzzled at his legs. His jeans were ripped at the side of his left leg and there was a large gash. He sat and splashed water on his leg, cleaning the wound. It stung him so badly he had to grit his teeth and yet he still let out the occasional wince.
As he did so, someone spoke from behind him. “How did you do that?!”
Jack nearly fell forwards into the river at the sound of the voice. He was worried that it was someone who was after him; like the others.
Jack swallowed, closed his eyes and then spoke with a faltering voice. “W-Who is that…?”
Jack noticed that Tyger was calm around the stranger so he stood and looked the stranger in the eye. His first reaction was to her flowing purple and golden hair and then to her azure crystal eyes. They stood, eye to eye, for a minute; maybe longer. Jack relaxed as Tyger jumped on his shoulder.
“My name’s Mist. What’s yours?”
“J-Jack. My cat is called Tyger. Why aren’t you screaming at me like the others?”
“A similar thing happened to me a year ago. I ran away with my pet dog but he was just a puppy then. We’ve run so far and been hidden so long. Eventually, the press and police forgot about us,” Mist explained to Jack as her dog leapt from behind her and nuzzled Tyger in a greeting. Tyger purred as Mist spoke again. “I assume you also woke after a while, with no memory, and then discovered what had happened?”
Jack nodded in silent agreement as Tyger and Mist’s dog played around. “How old is your dog?” Jack asked, inquisitively.
“Storm is a year and a half. He was twelve weeks old when we ran.”
Mist tugged her hair behind her ears and Jack realised he still needed to know so much more; and that Mist could tell him.
Jack asked many questions in the minutes that passed as they cleaned his wounds. He found out that Mist was sixteen, two years older than he was, and that Mist too had seen a shadow creature in the CCTV recordings; except that the creature was a griffin. She also said that she sometimes saw the creature in real life; and that before this all started she also felt the rushing feeling.
Jack sighed and cuddled Tyger closer to him. “Maybe if this has happened to us, there might be others too. It’s not a good feeling being a fugitive, all alone with nowhere to go and no idea what to do. But why us? And is it a coincidence that we both have animal companions?”
“I’m not sure if there are others like us. It can’t be just a coincidence that we both have animal companions; you didn’t have Tyger as a pet before. Animals are proven to have a sort of sixth sense though so maybe they know about the shadow creatures. As for why the creatures chose us…”
“You know as much as I do.”
Storm whined slightly and Tyger mewed. Mist smiled sadly then spoke softly. “He’s hungry; I know I am. You two must be as well.”
Jack nodded then stood, as did Tyger, Mist and Storm. They then wandered off, talking casually; unaware that both the shadow creatures were hidden behind them.
Jack’s shadow sabre-toothed tiger and Mist’s shadow griffin hissed unhappily as they walked off together.
“THEY CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO REMAIN TOGETHER!” hissed the griffin.
“INDEED THEY CANNOT. WE MAY HAVE TO RESTART THE PROCESS.”
“I HAVE A BETTER PLAN BROTHER. WHEN THE DARKNESS RISES AND WE ARE AT THE PEAK OF OUR STRENGTH, WE SHALL REMOVE THE GIRL. BREAK THE BOY’S HEART.”
The griffin flapped his wings and stood on his hind legs in celebration at his plan; his colleague tiger roaring in agreement.
Chapter 3: Forest Beware, Jack’s Angry
The chilling darkness of the night fell surprising fast. Jack and Mist had a large fish cooking over the fire so they could eat it. The aromas got up Jack’s nose and he stared, gormless and hungry. Tyger and Storm were already eating a fish each that Mist had caught from the river with a makeshift fishing rod. Jack was reflecting on what he’d learnt from Mist; the only thing he could do to stop being a fugitive would be to run even further, there could be others like him and Mist and that to eat and drink, you have to go wild. Jack felt safe around Mist because she knew what she was doing.
As Mist was taking the fish from the fire, a crack came from behind them and the fire flickered and died. Jack’s heart started beating faster and faster as Tyger started hissing at the lifeless night and Storm started barking as well in the opposite direction. A sharp wind picked up and Jack hugged himself to keep warm in the icy wind. He looked over to Mist’s direction; he could hardly see her. Mist’s hair was whipping around her face and getting into her eyes and the wind grew faster and faster. Jack clutched to Storm and Tyger, and to Mist’s hand, as he could barely stay in one place any more.
Suddenly, he felt the same sensation that he had when he was snatched away. He blinked twice than blacked out.
He woke up with Storm and Tyger sprawled over his chest, the sun rising with an orange tinge. He attempted to get up but found that with both animals lying on him, he was pinned to the floor. He looked over to where he thought Mist was and to his horror, she was gone. He started the pull Tyger off of him and she purred as she slept. Storm then rolled himself off Jack’s chest and Jack leapt up, looked about him for any clue as to what just happened.
He stepped backwards, onto the burnt sticks of the old fire, and clutched his head in a panic. As his animal companions kept sleeping, he walked around in a circle. His eyes were watering; he’d lost his only human friend in the world. As Tyger stirred, he tried to pull himself together.
“She might just have gone to find some food or something… Or… I-I don’t know…!” Jack tried to reassure himself as Tyger woke gently and started rubbing at Jack’s legs; she could sense his sadness. Jack picked her up and snuggled into her fur, his tears falling into her fur. She mewed to try to comfort him.
‘Mist wouldn’t leave without Storm would she? Maybe what happened last? Could she have been taken by a shadow creature?!’ Those were the thoughts that ran through Jack’s panicked mind. Tyger scrabbled onto Jack’s shoulder and Jack kneeled down at Storm’s side, slowly shaking him awake. When Storm awoke, he stood up, looked around for Mist and started whining.
“So, it’s pretty obvious you don’t know where she is either. She must have been taken then.”
Storm whined some more and licked Jack’s hand as he stroked him. Jack then got up and wandered slowly into the forest, Storm trotting slowly behind him, whimpering for Mist as he did so. Tyger was curled around Jack’s shoulder, half asleep. Jack didn’t mind; he found Tyger comforting around his neck.
Jack and his animal companions entered the thick forest as the sun broke through the line of the horizon, blazing with warmth.
Jack crept through the woods, looking out for either his shadow sabre-toothed tiger or Mist’s shadow griffin. He noticed a line of burnt sticks and tinder leading into the depth of the forest and decided he should follow it. Storm was sniffing at the ground for Mist’s scent and occasionally howling quietly to himself. Jack sighed and then smiled sadly. He knew Storm was the closest to Mist and Mist wouldn’t just leave without him; he was the only one she had for a long while. He knew they had a strong bond, despite how short a time they’d known each other, and it saddened him that they were separated.
Jack’s sad eyes looked around and glinted with tears. He clutched his head and wondered if he should just end it there and then. He then thought about Storm and Tyger and his mind was fighting with his heart.
He closed his eyes, letting the wind rush past him. He breathed slowly and deeply, barely making a sound; allowing himself to be at one with the wind and connect with Tyger and Storm. He knew it was ridiculous that he was doing so but he truly believed that this could help him find Mist. So he stood, unmoving, as he thought.
Time slowed around him. The space around him flexed. His mind was focussed on one thought. And he projected this thought around him; to all the animals that surrounded him.
‘WHERE. IS. MIST???!!!’
Tyger and Storm reacted; they ran in circles. The birds flapped their wings in agitation. A lone howl came from the distance, the howl then multiplying ten-fold. Jack blocked all the noise out as he concentrated, unaware of his power over the woodland creatures. A badger snuffled around his feet. Butterflies flittered around. The woodland commotion still remained unheard to Jack as he stayed stalk still.
This went on for several minutes; although Jack felt it as but a mere few seconds.
*****
Jack half limped, half waltzed through the forest. As he did so, birds settled on branches and watched him. He didn’t understand why but Tyger and Storm knew as well as the birds did as to why. Jack’s two animal companions had a new found trust in him. Storm had only before seen a hint of his power and that was his affinity with animals, nor did he know he could command all the woodland’s animals. Tyger gave Storm the odd look telling him she already knew. Jack himself didn’t know that he could yet all the animals did. Storm paused for a minute and howled stating to the wolf pack that howled when Jack sent his thoughts out earlier, that he was with him and that he would protect him all the way until his mission was fulfilled. The wolves replied in acknowledgement.
Jack did wonder as to why wolves were howling in the mid-morning but he paid no attention to it; he was sure it was due to Storm’s howling starting them off. As he continued to follow the burnt trail, he noticed that it went off in two directions.
‘Which way to go?’ Jack pondered as Storm sniffed around at the sticks of the left path and Tyger played around with a burnt leaf on the right. ‘I’ll wait for one of those two to signal one way or the other.’
He picked up a cremated stick and kicked it into the distance, annoyed at not knowing which way to go. Tyger hissed down the right path of half smoking sticks and Storm walked over and barked furiously. Curious, Jack peered down the path and saw Mist’s shadow griffin run off into the distance. He stepped back slightly and stepped on a thin half rotten branch, turning towards the left trail.
Another howl erupted from Storm as he signalled to the wolf pack to be wary of the shadow creatures. The wolves howled back with acknowledgement yet again, this time also adding that they’d fight the creatures tooth and claw.
Tyger sniffed at the other path and – finding it safe for them to go down – started to trot down it, Storm following. Jack then walked after them, shaken.
Chapter 4: The Birds Sing For Him
Tyger’s mind was all scrabbled up. She was with Jack before he forgot all about his raids and he knew his powers during said raid of which he was a fugitive for. She stayed with him because no villain would have those powers. She did not know that Jack had forgot about his past. She was confused when she observed Jack’s reactions to the woodland creatures obeying him. Storm had not told her if Mist had these powers also but she was certain she had a skill of some sort. She stopped for a minute and cleaned herself, flicking her tail as she did so.
Jack stopped and watched Tyger clean herself, content. He felt more relaxed with his animal friends; as he did for all his life. He had a German Shepard when he was younger but when his dad left he took the dog with him. At that moment, he remembered he had Mist’s few possessions in his pockets. He found a solar panel phone charger and plugged his empty phone into in, holding it out as he walked on.
Storm knew Mist had a power similar to Jack’s but it was largely different in his mind. He hadn’t signalled the wolves about Mist nor had had he told Tyger. He shook his head as Jack stopped momentarily and looked at the trail of ashes again.
“Mist… Where are you?” Jack said to himself under his brea
A beep from the solar panel phone charger. Jack scrabbled for his phone – now fully charged – to call someone. He thought feverishly fast about who to call. As he pulled out his phone, he smiled and immediately called home.
The response was the worst he could think of.
As he spoke his first word, his mother scream abuse down the phone. No “I want you back” or “Where have you been?” responses at all. His own mother now only knew a demon.
Every person he called, his friends, his family, would spit abuse down the line then hang up on him, leaving him with tears running down his cheeks.
Everyone. Except his dad. His father was the last person he called; and the kindest. He opened up to him. He vowed to keep him safe. And he told him his secrets. A similar thing happened to him as a teen; he left Jack’s mother when she didn’t believe his ‘stories’.
Jack hung up approximately three minutes later. He was now more determined then ever to find Mist and swore he wouldn’t lose her again. He looked around him and noticed Tyger had disappeared. There were no paw prints, no trail; nothing. He went off to find her, leaving the trail of burn sticks and ashes far behind and, unfortunately, Storm also.
Storm sniffed around at the floor for Jack’s scent. Jack left so fast that by the time Storm had stopped being surprised, he’d disappeared. He whined nervously and kept sniffing for Jack’s scent.
He found it a few minutes later and raced off to find him; but little did he know what he would find.
The two shadow creatures lay behind the trees - beside the ash trail - on their stomachs as they watched Storm race away.
“WE HAVE DRAWN THE MALE YOUNGLING AWAY FROM THE PATH. HOW DID YOU DO IT BROTHER?” hissed the tiger, satisfied.
“I HAVE REMOVED THE BOY’S FELINE COMPANION. AND, LET’S SIMPLY SAY, HIS MORAL SHALL WE WEIGHED DOWN LIKE AN ANCHOR!”
The griffin raised his head and let out a shriek of success. The tiger smirked and his sabre-teeth looked more menacing then ever.
“TELL ME BROTHER. TELL ME WHAT YOU’VE DONE.”
“WAIT AND SEE. I’M SURE YOU’D BE IMPRESSED.”
They roared in unison and padded off, fading into the shadows cast by the trees.
***
By the time Storm had caught up with Jack, evening had come. They had wandered about ten miles from the ash trail in search of Tyger. Jack was sure he’d find her soon.
How right he was.
Five minutes later, after Storm had followed a scent trail, they stumbled into each other as Storm stood stalk still. Jack looked at what Storm was sniffing out and wis
Jack cautiously flipped her limp body over and saw two deep, gaping holes in her torso. It looked like two knives had severed her flesh. He held her slumped body over his left elbow and held Tyger’s right paw with his other hand. He stroked the fur on her paw with his thumb and sat on a tree stump nearby.
“You didn’t deserve this,” Jack said softly and kissed her forehead. “I’ll find whoever – or whatever – did this to you and even this up.”
He let go of her paw and ran his fingers through the fur on her head. He played with her flopping tail and a tear fell from his left eye. The birds in the surrounding forest landed on branches, watching Jack hold Tyger’s body, silent in the evening air. An owl landed on a fallen log and hooted, the hoot like a note in a gentle lullaby.
Birds flocked and watched Jack talk to Tyger’s body, drawn close by his powers. They felt the connection between him and Tyger being severed as they landed; severed prematurely. The owl hooted again and a soft evening chorus started, the birds singing Jack to comfort.
“The birds are singing for us. They must know something. Hmm…?” Jack acknowledged the birds’ evening symphony. Storm howled softly as Jack lay Tyger’s body down.
The distant wolves howled in harmony with Storm and a magnificent stag appeared. His antlers embodied his prowess and might. He lowered his head to Jack as he covered Tyger’s body with auburn leaves.
The birds, stag and canines, Storm and the wolf pack, felt Jack’s enormous power and they felt it growing. Jack’s sadness and anger was expanding his communications with the woodland creatures; making them ever more protective of him.
As Jack stood away and shed a final tear, the birds fell silent.
‘I. AM. HERE. AND. WOODLAND AL L RUN.’
Jack’s mental command was so strong even the people and animals in the nearby villages and towns heard him in their heads. Jack had found his power through loss; he knew his abilities.
His eyes blazed with recognition at his powers and raised his head to the skies. He closed his eyes, reached out mentally and opened his mouth, a bird-like caw erupting outwards. He held his left hand skywards and re-opened his eyes.
“Come to me, mighty eagle of the skies. We shall fly and find Mist together.” He picked up Storm under his right arm as he spoke. “So take us to your aerial kingdom and share the air.”
A pure white eagle with blazing blue eyes, as huge as a glider, swooped down and Jack grabbed onto its left leg, placing his foot on the talons.
Wifusia, the white eagle, ruled the skies. She was literally a legend; a shape-shifting creature of magic and mystery. Many humans claimed to have seen her in one form or another throughout history and many have tried to hunt her, only to vanish unexplainably soon after announcing it. In the modern world, her legacy had vanished. She was known only to the people like Jack, the masters of Earth’s mortal animals. Jack was glad of her help as they circled over the forest, searching for Mist.
Wifusia shared her extraordinary vision powers with Jack, making his eyes match hers. Storm whimpered as they flew, he was scared of the heights.
Jack embraced soaring on the thermals with Wifusia and glazed around for Mist. He had in his pockets all of Mist’s belongings, all gadgets he’d noticed. Was gadgetry influence Mist’s power? Like Jack’s over the animals? He did wonder about that.
Suddenly, Wifusia tucked in her wings and stooped. Jack was surprised at first then spotted Mist sitting in a clearing, building something of which Jack was unsure what it was.
Wifusia skimmed over the trees and Jack and Storm jumped as soon as they were over the clearing. Wifusia flew away into the night sky as Jack walked over to Mist.
“Mist?” Jack asked carefully. She looked up and immediately jumped to her feet and backed away, holding what looked like a make-shift bow and arrow.
“Wh-Who are you?!” Mist asked, a slight scowl showing. She looked to Storm. “That’s my dog. You stole my dog!”
Mist was now shouting, her eyes furious. Storm whimpered as she did and approached them, slinging her makeshift quiver of arrows over her shoulder, still holding her bow tightly in her right hand. She walked towards Storm and he growled slightly, knowing his owner had changed for the worse.
Jack sensed Storm’s thoughts. ‘She’s lost her memory again!’
Jack whipped his head from Mist to Storm and back again, panicked.
“Mist, you have to remember! It’s me, Jack!”
Mist halted and looked him in the eye. “How did you know my name? And what have you done to my dog?” Mist turned and started walking away. “No matter. I have a new animal friend.”
She held her arm out and a robin fluttered down. Storm looked hurt but didn’t show it as Mist and the robin walked into the forest and were once again lost.
Chapter 5: Bad Memories And Desicions
Jack sat on the floor where Mist sat and closed his eyes. He rested his arms on his knees and his head on his arms, sighing. Storm came over, whined, and lay beside him.
“I suppose...,” he looked at Storm, “that that’s another friend lost,” he looked ahead, “forever. Unless she remembers, which she won’t, because I’m certain that she’s lost her memory the same way as when she started life on the run like I did.”
Jack noticed an unfinished arrow lay at his side. It was crude but sharp. The arrowhead was a piece of sharpened wood and the point looked deadly. The shaft was three pieces of willow twined together and soft grey feathers lay where the fletchings would be. It was distinctly an arrow, no matter the materials. He wondered how Mist could make such amazing things as he twirled it around his fingers.
Another thing he noticed was a rucksack made from animal hide. He walked over and picked it up and, finding it empty, pulled out everything from his pockets and put them in. One item was his phone. The rest were Mist’s old gadgets. Her solar panel charger, folding fishing rod, metal strikers for fire-starting, a dog whistle, a water purifier, a smaller bow and, finally, Mist’s arrow. Jack then found two last things of his; a metal bottle and collar with Tyger’s name on. He didn’t remember having this. He noticed it had two tags. One had Tyger’s name and the other had Jack’s. He sighs and a tear escaped him. He put the bottle in the bag, closed it and shouldered it. He then tightened the collar on his right wrist, like a bracelet, and smiled sadly.
Wifusia stood perched on a tree branch on the highest mountain in the area. High above the clouds, she watched the happenings unfold beneath her. She spread her wings and screeched to the moon. She felt Jack’s sadness, despite only having been in contact with him for no more then twelve hours. She screeched again, angry that the shadow creatures had done this to the woodland’s animal lord. She had known of the shadow creatures and their actions for as long as she could remember; and they did too know of Wifusia. Wifusia had nev
Sometimes when the wrong person was taken, much like Jack’s dad, Wifusia helped them back to society by shifting into human form and using her knowledge. She had others to help her but she had not seen them in decades; nor had she seen an animal lord of any kind for centuries.
As she let out a final screech and took off, a hollowing, echoing cry came from the midst of the forest and another from the river behind her.
She circled over the clearing, slowly lowering herself to the ground, just as Jack was being watched by the shadows creatures of himself and of Mist.
The shadow tiger growled at Jack and then hissed to his accomplice. “ANOTHER TWIST MUST COME! HE KNOWS OF HIS POWERS AND WILL USE THEM! HE HAS THE SKY EAGLE ON HIS SIDE. LUCKILY, I HAVE A PLAN.”
“TELL ME BROTHER?” asked the griffin with a gruff voice. He flapped his wings in agitation as he looked up and saw Wifusia. “AND TELL SOON. WIFUSIA HAS COME!”
“MAKE HIM FORGOT HIS PO WERS. MAKE HIM ERASE WIFUSIA FROM HIS MIND AND NOTHING ELSE.”
Together, they leapt into the air and faded into the night, a bone-chilling roar fading as they did.
Jack hugged himself in the night air. His ripped leather jacket had not provided any warmth at all and it was too dark to venture into the depth of the trees for wood. He sighed and shivered; he had nothing to start and sustain a fire with.
A chilling wind picked up and Jack snuggled up with Storm, who was already fast asleep. Storm’s fur gave Jack a bit of warmth and comfort as he looked up. Wifusia was still high above and wouldn’t reach the clearing for a while. He closed his eyes, shuddering, as the wind blew faster and faster. It whistled past his ears like a bullet would do and shook him to the bones. It didn’t occur to him that it was the shadow creatures’ wind that had appeared, despite that he had encountered it twice before. He drifted off peacefully, at odds with the freezing wind.
Wifusia felt a change in the wind below her as her snow white feathers ruffled. She tucked in her wings and dived as fast as she could to save Jack; she knew the shadow creatures had returned and were trying to rid Jack of his powers once more.
Three minutes passed and it began apparent to Wifusia that she could not reach Jack. The winds were not allowing her wing tips to even brush the treetops and she shrieked in annoyance. This woke up Jack, who thought his eardrums burst when he heard Wifusia’s cry, and he panicked.
Wifusia signaled Jack mentally. ‘RUN! THEY’RE TRYING TO RID YOU OF YOUR MEMORY OF YOUR PO WERS!’
Jack understood and nodded, picking up his rucksack and a half-sleeping Storm as he ran into the forest depths.
Jack ran for half an hour then collapsed, exhausted. He looked to the stars and saw the mood shining in the middle of the sky. He checked his watch quickly. Just past midnight. Jack screwed his eyes shut and rubbed them, yawning.
“I need some sleep. I really need some sleep…!” Jack told himself, leaning his back on a tree.
Storm stirred and looked at Jack, bright-eyed as ever. He whined and then pricked his ears. Together, they both turned their heads south, howls loud. Storm joined in with the howling and Jack fell asleep to the midnight lullaby, as if he were one of the wolves’ cubs.
***
As morning broke, Jack was already up and walking. He still wanted to find Mist and make her remember that she was his friend and that they could help each other.
He looked back to watch Storm walk slowly behind him then looked at his watch. It was six in the morning and Jack was still tired but he could sleep no more. He was itching to get up and around to find Mist. He was worried about is she was alright or not and was determined to find her and know if she was alright. Jack sighed and looked to the morning sky. He didn’t know what happened to Wifusia after the night before. And, boy, he wouldn’t have wanted to; it would have upset him yet again to see his friend – and guardian – in pain.
Wifusia lay, in her human form, sprawled on the ground. Her hair was as white as the feathers on her eagle form and her eyes matched that eagle form too. She wore animal hide clothes and her hair was braided with gold threads. She looked up and the shadow griffin and sabre-toothed tiger stood over her and she remembered the battle last night.
~~~
Eagle form Wifusia flew in a circle, climbing higher and higher. Jack had ran and the shadows creatures had found out she was there. The griffin flew into the sky after her and clawed her left wing. She turned swiftly and locked talons with the griffin. She fla nev
The griffin started pulling her down with him until they brushed the treetops. The sabre-toothed tiger leapt on her back and she fell to the ground. Wifusia’s energy was sapped and she crashed to the forest floor and she shifted into her human form.
~~~
Human form Wifusia looked the two creatures in the eye and spoke weakly.
“Why did you attack my eagle self…? I have done nothing wrong…”
“YOU WERE HELPING THE HUMAN YOUNGLING. HE MUST FIND HIS OWN WAY! IT IS THE LORE AND WE HAVE AL
“How little you know.”
The time Wifusia spent unconscious renewed her strength and, in a fla fla
Soon, Wifusia was nothing but a dark shape in the sky, soaring free on the thermals. She still was hurt slightly from the scrabble with the shadow creatures but all the previous animals were killed before the shadow creatures could be stopped and Wifusia, and all the woodland creatures, swore to protect Jack with their lives.
Jack didn’t know his powers were that significant; he didn’t really like them all the time anyway. He found them useful to communicate with Wifusia, Storm and the woodland creatures but found he got some unwanted attention from them too when his feelings built up and escalated and then projected into the forest – and beyond – for all the animals to hear.
Wifusia landed in her nest on the tree at the peak of th
Jack looked around the forest. The birds twittered to each other and a herd of deer snuffled around but still no Mist. Jack sighed, sad that Mist no longer knew him as a friend and ally. He sometimes imagined that taking off into the sky like there was no tomorrow; flying to his heart’s content. He also imagined himself sometimes like a dolphin, swimming away beneath the transparent waters; or like a bear, rampaging through the woods non-stop to reach his goal. His only goal then was to find Mist. He knew Wifusia had to rest so was searching on foot to no success.
Jack still occasionally thought that this was all a nightmare and that he’d wake up in his warm bed, at home, loved. ‘But is this is a nightmare, how come I’ve gone through all this pain?’ Jack wondered to himself. ‘Definitely not a nightmare then; still conscious.”
He looked around again, sighed then sat on the ground, his eyes closed. Storm padded over and whined and put his head on Jack’s lap. Storm’s eyes looked longingly into Jack’s and Jack ran his fingers through Storm’s fur.
“At least I’ve got you. I know you’re missing Mist.”
Storm whined again as if to say “Yes” to Jack. Jack didn’t use his powers of mental communication because he felt it intruded on Storm’s, and ind
“I’m sorry Storm. I’ll try to make her remember; promise.”
Jack stroked Storm’s ears back, the tags on the old collar around his wrist jangling as he did so. He then looked at the tags more closely and sighed. He spoke to himself as he did so. “I’m sorry Tyger. I wis
Jack blinked once and a tear rolled down his cheek. As he opened his sad eyes, he looked up. Despite everything, he finally felt at peace. One thing was worrying him though.
He knew where Mist went because Storm was leading him but he nev
Jack looked at Storm once more. ‘Are you sure she came this way?’
‘Po sitive. One-hundred percent sure.’
‘If you’re sure. So I suppose I have no choice?’
‘My nose said this way. Mist came this way. So, no, I suppose we have no choice.’
Jack’s eyes widened slightly. ‘That is so reassuring.’
‘I know.’
‘I was being sarcastic.’
A deep, gruff voice spoke from behind them. “You ain’t got a damn chance in hell kid.”
Jack turned slowly and Storm growled at the man. This man had a wolf standing at his side. The wolf looked slender; too slender.
Jack reached out to her immediately. ‘Are you meant to look like that or-’
Jack was cut off as the wolf replied. ‘Of course not! And he means what he says. He’s with the police huntin’ ya down. He just found me one day and made me follow him. I got pups due any day now!’
The she-wolf whined and the man shoved her away. She slinked backwards slightly in submission. Jack didn’t like what he saw. “What do you mean ‘I don’t have a chance’ ?” Jack asked as he slowly reached for his bow and lone arrow.
“I mean,” the man took a dagger from his inside pocket, “that you’re coming with me before I have to use this.”
Jack’s mind was racing. He was panicking about if he should shoot his with his one arrow, and risk missing, or make a run for it and hope he could outrun this man. Jack had one other choice going through his mind. If he could out maneuver this man in the vain hope he threw the dagger and missed, he could grab the dagger and run. He decided on the latter option.
“You’ll have to catch me first!”
Jack side-stepped as Storm and the she-wolf hid behind the trees. He swerved by the man as he lashed his arms out to grab him. Jack ducked under his arms and jogged backwards, taunting him. “It’s that all you’ve got?! I assume you’re with the police! If you are then how are you so slow?!”
“I’m just warming up kid…”
The man lashed out for Jack again, swinging the arm holding the dagger. Jack leapt back but the dagger caught his right arm. Ignoring the pain, he charged at the man. As he lashed again, Jack ducked under his arm. The dagger flew out of his hand and got itself stuck in a tree trunk opposite them. Both Jack and the man looked to the dagger then to each other. Both of them raced towards the tree and Jack tripped the man up as he grabbed the dagger and yanked it from the tree.
As the man fell to the floor, Jack looked down at him, eyes seemingly turning dark for a moment.
“Why did you come after me?” Jack asked, a certain roughness to his voice. The man made no reply. “I asked you a question! So… Answer me…”
The man did nothing to reply but instead jumped to his feet and grabbed Jack’s wrist; the one holding the dagger. Jack tried to pull his arm away, his teeth gritted, as the man’s grip increased.
The man grabbed Jack’s collar with his other hand and pulled him to his eye level. “You nev
Jack kept his nerve steady as the man spoke into his face. Carefully and calmly, he asked the man, “So what is your name then…?”
The man threw Jack to the floor. “My name is something you’ll find out at court!”
He leapt at Jack again but Jack sprung up in time and twisted away from him. The dagger was still held firm in his left hand, ready to strike if he had to.
“Who do you work for?” Jack asked in a last ditch attempt to get answers.
“The police; who else?!”
Jack’s moral sank again as he lunged at the man and slashed the dagger. He cut the man’s shoulder and he shouted in pain. As the man ran at Jack, Jack slashed again, striking across his chest. Something came over Jack and he kept slashing at the man.
With each slash or strike, he cried something out for his anger to flow. Most of the time he screamed for Mist or if there were any others who were in custody because of the same situation Jack was in.
One final strike fell as Jack yelled out. “Why me?!”
Then all was silent.
Jack stepped backwards and wiped the blood off the dagger. He then looked down at the man as Storm and the she-wolf emerged from the trees, looking horrified. Jack then found out why as he checked the man over. His eyes grew wide and his heart was pounding.
Both Storm and the she-wolf communicated with Jack at the same time. ‘What have you done?!’
Chapter 6: The Bear Of Forest Justice
“I… I’ve killed him... I killed someone, oh my god, how… What did I do?!”
Jack didn’t realize how many times he had struck the man with the dagger in his blind anger. Blood pooled on the floor and the man lay face down in his own blood. Jack clutched at his own head, dizzy and sick with worry and guilt.
As Jack took off his ripped leather jacket to wrap up the dagger and another part to bandage his arm, the she-wolf looked at him.
‘What have you done, Animal Lord? Recoko will not be happy, not at all. Intruders being killed in the forest by those of the forest, you included, with no just cause or reason is a very serious matter. Recoko will not be happy! Now I will return to my pack before I’m caught here with you!”
With that, the she-wolf ran off, howling. Storm contem-plated following her but stayed with Jack.
“Recoko…? Who’s that?”
As if a way of an answer, a large, ruby red and wood brown bear broke through the trees with a roar. Its eyes were emerald green and as clear as day.
‘Animal Lord. Ally of Wifusia. I am Recoko. I am the guardian and judge of this forest and all its inhabitants.’
Jack looked at his blood soaked hands as he spoke. “Don’t call me Animal Lord. I’m just Jack. An innocent kid snatched from a natural wonder that is a forest of crystals near my home, waking up one day with no memory of the time that was passed between being taken and waking up; to find only that I had committed criminal acts which I didn’t do. I found one other person like me to have her snatched away. My cat companion was killed by… something and I’m trying to find my friend and get her memory of me back. With her dog.
“I don’t deserve the title of Animal Lord seeing as I don’t even like this power; I find it too intrusive to both the animals and I. If I didn’t have this power I wouldn’t even be here in the first place!”
As Jack shouted the last two words, he looked at Recoko. He licked his dry lips as the bear looked him in the eye.
‘Your story is strong; but your will is stronger. Your nature makes you do reckless and unintended things; both good and bad. Your rage is deadly but your caring and gentle heart makes up for this.
‘You do deserve the title of Animal Lord; you are just and swift to respond, you care about those you love and you are sly. Most of your decisions are made purposefully and with good cause; the few that aren’t are made recklessly and give you cause to regret. Love is your most powerful ally, but also your weakness. Hold fast onto your feelings youngling.’
Jack thought for a moment and noticed that Recoko summed him up perfectly. He then looked to the blood on his hands.
“What do I do? I killed a man… I didn’t mean to kill him but I did…”
‘Jack, that is not for me to answer. I may be your ally but not your heart. You do know that don’t you?’ Recoko raised his paw to the town. ‘I know that you think walking through there is a risk, and you’d be right in saying that, but would you let your friend go it alone?’ Jack shook his head and Recoko continued. ‘You will find her if you are determined enough. Your heart won’t permit that you leave her. You may face hate from the humans of the town but shake it off and tell them you’re on a mission… of your heart.’
As Recoko lowered his paw, Jack looked to Storm then back to his hands. The blood was now as dry as a stone as he clenched his hands in a fist then unclenched them, causing the blood to crack.
Jack looked into the eyes of Recoko and nodded. “I will find Mist; no matter what happens to me or what gets in my way. However long it takes,” he looked to Storm, “I will find her. For my heart’s peace, for Storm and…,” he looked at the collar tightened around his wrist, feeling emotional, “Tyger… I will find Mist for you…”
Jack set off half an hour later, after hastily cobbling together some more arrows. They weren’t made anywhere near as Mist’s old one but they made resemblance and they were sharp so Jack thought he did pretty good.
Shouldering his rucksack, he and Storm strode confidently into the town. Jack was only putting it on as a front though; he wasn’t really confident at all. As he walked through the town gate, numerous people’s heads turned to face him. Storm whimpered and backed away slightly as one of the people shouted at them. Jack still wasn’t used to all the shouting so he legged it. Storm ran a different way but nobody followed him; luckily.
Jack sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him through the town, hoping to get to the other side before anyone caught him. He jumped over a low wall, panting, as he tried to avoid every person. He ran down the main street with three police cars, and about fifty people, trailing.
Jack spoke to himself in raggedy brea
Jack charged around a corner and skidded past a man at his grocery stall, nearly knocking off his feet. Another small group of people emerged from an alleyway and Jack nearly ran into them.
As he kept running down the street, a police car caught him off guard and it clipped his leg. He skidded along the pavement and yelled slightly in pain. As he got to his knees, several police officers came at him, tasers pointed at his chest.
Jack gave in as his knees buckled when he attempted to get to his feet. He lay on his stomach, panting and gasping for brea nev
Jack did wonder what was going through the minds of the officers and the people as one of the female officers cuffed and cautioned him. He paid no attention as he was thrown into the back of the police van but as it drove off, he saw Storm in a corner of an alley.
He yelled in vain to him. “Storm! Get out of here!”
As a taser hit him square on the back, a sickening pain rushed through him and he collapsed.
Storm had watched all of this unfold and as Jack was dragged away, Storm felt alone. He pined quietly when the she-wolf came from behind him, her beige fur looking healthier and her eyes brighter then when Storm had first met her.
Storm and the she-wolf started communicating as they looked each other in the eye.
‘You’re the she-wolf we saved earlier.’
‘Yes. But my name is Azure. We can help the youngling Animal Lord, no matter how grim the situation looks.’
‘I promised to keep him safe. I have failed.’
Storm lowered his head, dropped his ears and let his tail fall. He felt so guilty because he promised the wolf pack in the forest.
‘Don’t worry yourself Storm. He’ll be safe. I am different from the rest of my forest pack. I did hear your promise and I know you will keep it. I can sense the future sometimes; when it’s important that is.’
‘Then your sense must be wrong!’
‘It has failed neither my pack nor I yet.’
Storm whined as he licked a cut on his front right paw. He then lay down and looked into Azure’s eyes. He believed her; and more importantly, he trusted her. Azure lay down too and she felt the same about Storm. This friendship and trust bridge was going to prove vital to Jack.
When Jack’s vision cleared as he came around he found his hands still cuffed behind his back. He found them uncomfortable as he shuffled to sit up. He was sat on a bunk bed in a small, cold cell. He stood up and noticed he now wore a blue jumpsuit instead of his tattered leather jacket, shirt and jeans. His cuts still hurt but they weren’t bleeding so whoever arrested him must have cleaned them.
“The freak returns… and he’s locked him here with me!” Jack heard Mist’s voice and turned; seeing her sat on the top bunk. She wore a similar jumpsuit but wasn’t cuffed. Jack felt slightly nervous as she jumped down and looked eye to eye with him. “I’ve tried to remember but it hurts… But something in the back of my mind makes me want to trust you… I don’t know! I guess I have to trust you, hey? You’ve had the same thing happen to you that I experienced… But that was years ago. But where is my dog, Storm?!”
“He escaped. And I have had a slight different experience then you.”
“How so?”
As Jack spoke his reply, one of the cell guards walked in. “I killed someone in my rage when you were taken away from me.”
And with that statement, Jack was pulled away from Mist, protests coming from both of them. Mist grabbed the bars of the window in the door as Jack yelled at the guard and to Mist. He felt relieved that he had her back; mostly, but he now didn’t know what was to happen to him after that statement escaped him.
Chapter 7: Remembering And Escaping
Jack was pushed, fighting, into a chair by the guard as the warden watched from behind his desk. The warden pulled off his unnecessary sunglasses and put them on top of his head, his brown, spiked hair making the sunglasses look lost in a forest. His grey eyes looked unforgiving as another officer held Jack in the chair as the guard told the warden what Jack had said.
The guard secured Jack to the chair with a rope as the warden stood up, took off his black jacket, to reveal a florescent orange t-shirt underneath, and walked over. The guard and officer left as Jack was left struggling at the rope.
The warden spoke with a kind yet assertive voice. “You really killed someone, huh?”
Jack remained silent as the warden walked around his chair and ran his finger along the ropes. Jack felt slightly uncomfort-able as he did so and didn’t give him any answers. “If I did, why would I even tell you…?”
The warden laughed. “Don’t play clever with me kid. You will tell me, I know you will. I have ways to make you tell me. It’s easier if you just tell me now. If it was an accident, I’ll go slightly easier on you. Promise.”
Jack was more worried about Mist the himself so asked the warden, “What about Mist?”
The warden looked flummoxed. “Who’s Mist?”
“The girl who was in my cell.”
“Ah, yes, her. She’s done nothing for years so we’ll keep her safe for you.”
“Who was the guy with the she-wolf who was after me?”
“Him? He’s nothing. He’s good at his job… normally. We found his dagger in your rucksack…”
Jack gulped as the warden took it out and waved it about. He stuck it into his desk and it stood there, the point barely embedded into the wood of his desk. Jack avoided eye contact as he stared, uneasy, at the dagger. The blade was still covered in blood and Jack bit his lip.
Jack stammered as he spoke. “Y-you found that then…?”
“How did you get it?”
Jack spilled the answer under the pressure from the warden. He told him what happened; but not about Recoko. When he finished, he was panting for brea th, he didn’t brea
“I-I’m sorry…!”
“You killed him?”
Jack nodded nervously.
“Ah well. I was going to fire him anyway; he nev
The warden stared into Jack’s eyes and walked towards him, leaning on the back of his chair and drawing his eyes into Jack’s, their foreheads nearly touching. Jack felt the warden’s brea
A tear ran down Jack’s cheek. “I didn’t mean to…! Believe me…”
“I don’t know if I do, so…,” the warden stood upright again, “bring the girl in.”
Jack was horrified when Mist was pulled in and thrown to the floor. He pulled at the cuffs that held his hands behind his back as the warden pulled Mist up by the back of her collar.
Mist mouthed to Jack two words, ‘I remember…’
Jack mouthed back, ‘Thank you.’
Mist gritting her teeth and closed her eyes as the warden grabbed the dagger.
“I said could make you tell me and I meant it. If I hurt your little friend here you will tell me if you killed him purposefully.”
Jack growled softly like a wolf and blinked, his eyes suddenly dark. Recoko crashed through the wall and roared, Wifusia gliding overhead. Wifusia cawed and Mist shot Jack a confused look. He winked back and she smiled. The warden staggered back and Mist collapsed to the floor. Recoko stood over the warden and Mist and roared.
“Leave them be!” Jack shouted as Wifusia used her claws to brea
“I’m sorry Jack.”
“It’s ok Mist, you’re back now.”
The warden got up and ran away as Jack found his rucksack and repacked the dagger. He also found another rucksack and discovered it was Mist’s so threw it over to her.
Together, they grabbed onto one of Wifusia’s legs each and flew into the sky and Recoko bounded back to the forest.
Chapter 8: Shadows’ Secrets At A Storm’s Heart
Mist knew for definite from the moment Wifusia took off that she was scared of heights. She took her mind off it as Jack filled her in on what had happened.
Mist found it weird, flying while holding onto the leg of a giant white eagle. She didn’t feel the most safe hanging there with the only support for her feet being Wifusia’s talons. As Wifusia swooped and Jack laughed with joy, Mist felt nauseous.
“I don’t feel too good up here!” Mist shouted to Jack as they rode the thermals.
“I’ll ask her to land,” replied Jack. “By the way, do you know what your power is? Like how mine is Animal Lord? Most people who are taken have powers; Wifusia told me.”
Mist just stared blankly at Jack as Wifusia dived slowly to the ground.
Jack laughed softly as they landed in a large forest clearing. As they got off of her, Storm and Azure charged through the woods to meet them. Storm knocked Mist down and licked her face with happiness and Azure trotted over towards Jack.
‘Animal Lord. We meet again,’ Azure communicated with Jack as she lowered her head. ‘I am Azure. You saved my life before and now I will protect you until my heart fails to beat anymore.’
‘Don’t think like that!’
‘I can sense the future sometimes and your future is powerful.’
‘Don’t tell me then!’
Jack chuckled as Azure shook her fur. As Storm got off Mist and licked the cut on his paw again, Jack frowned and looked at Mist with a slightly worried face. Mist held Storm’s paw and looked at the cut. She pulled some anti-septic from her rucksack and sprayed the cut before using some fabric to cover it. Storm whined and whimpered as she did all this but she reassured him.
Thunder clouds started gath
Wifusia poked Jack with her claw. ‘We have to move out. The storm; we won’t be able to fly if it advances any furth
Jack nodded then turned to Mist. “We gotta move out. If we don’t fly now we’ll be stuck here; stuck here helpless in a storm. Surrounded by a forest which could go up in blazes if lightning strikes. I don’t want to die, alone, in a forest.”
“You’re not alone. You’ve got me,” said Mist, smiling.
Jack gave a slight smile back, winking as he did. Behind him, Wifusia fla
Jack held fast to her feathers as she sped faster and faster, hoping to ride the storm to another, safer place. ‘Like flying into a storm is going to be any safer then being exposed in any town or village…’ Jack thought to himself, slightly worried at what was about to happen.
Three long hours passed. The storm nev
“You’re really into your techno-babble aren’t you?”
Mist replied, not looking eye to eye, but between her GPS thing and the clouds. “Yup. Always loved how stuff worked. My dad was an inventor. Mum nev
“Sheesh, she nev
“But that didn’t stop me. I got even more productive, made more stuff. My mum got angry. Then this happened.”
Jack looked ahead of him. He blinked sadly once, then shut his eyes and listened to his surroundings. He blocked out the noise of the storm and could hear Wifusia’s gentle yet powerful wing beats, her steady brea
Jack’s eyes snapped open when something disturbed him. Something was wrong; very wrong.
Mist’s eyes grew wide as she looked at her GPS device. “We’ve moved...,” faltered Mist. “From Britain t-to Russia
‘It was a portal in the clouds. The shadow beasts… They really want your necks. Britain Russia
As Azure trailed off worryingly, Wifusia dived, almost exhausted.
As soon as they landed, Storm and Azure leapt from her talons and Jack and Mist jumped off her back. Wifusia folded her wings in and closed her eyes, tired. She drifted off quickly. With a happy sigh, Jack sat down next to the tired bird. The sky was still raging; and Jack could see how easily it was for the shadow beasts to set a trap and bring them elsewhere. He sighed and snuggled into Wifusia’s feathers for warmth. Wifusia hummed contently and carried on sleeping. Mist hugged onto Storm’s neck and he nuzzled his snout onto her.
Azure however looked to the sky. Her nose twitched as lightning struck. Her ears flicked back and she howled to the stricken sky. Other wolves howled back, as if in conversation.
Jack looked at Azure. Azure howled once more and gazed towards Jack, making eye contact.
‘You’ve been here before haven’t you?’ asked a curious Jack.
Azure’s sad eyes looked back, like crystals. ‘Yes. I can morph my shape and I have come here many times; that portal in the clouds we traveled through,’ she gazed skywards, ‘you’re not the first. Many more like you, hunted, transported; killed.’
Jack didn’t like how that sentence ended. He gulped as Azure walked over.
‘I was meant to protect them; the victims of the shadow beasts. But this trap was unexpected. I am but one. While I have allies they cannot tell people like you from normal people. I hope you and Mist survive long enough to return home.’
Jack nodded and Azure lay down at his feet. Jack felt safe around her; after all, she was a shape shifting, wolf guardian. Sort of. Azure curled up and covered her head with her tail before quickly becoming in as deep a sleep as Wifusia. Jack looked in Mist’s direction. She was playing about with Storm for the first time since Jack had rescued her, and her memory.
Jack sighed. He needed rest. As he rested his head against Wifusia’s side and closed his eyes, he thought back to his past; his life before all of this happening. He remembered his dad and his old pet, his feelings when his mum made his dad leave and all the less happy times thereon. He then thought about what he was doing on the day that he was taken.
That morning, Jack was walking through a field. Birds always watched him and he did wonder why, but he now knew. He thought nothing of it then but when a wild, injured deer allowed him close that day, he began to wonder.
He remembered how blue the sky was as he walked on to the crystal forest. It was a natural phenomena, having appeared seemingly from nowhere, and was still unexplained. Jack always thought it was odd how he, and the animals, were always the only ones ever in the crystal forest. His mum knew nothing of it and insisted he should let go of imaginary places. Jack’s mum never listened to him, not after she made his dad leave.
It wasn’t any different when he phoned her. He remembered that phone call he made, all the sudden hate. He had done nothing wrong, he wasn’t even aware of the events that had happened following his kidnapping by the shadow beast that was a sabre-toothed tiger.
He hated the shadow creatures for all that they stood for and vowed to himself, quietly, that one day he would be rid of them so that people like him with powers were not treated like criminals.
Jack sighed a final time and drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 9: Nightmares
Jack’s dream was the most disturbing he dreamt in a while.
He dreamt he was walking through a town; a ghost town. The ground was slightly black – burnt - and the houses and buildings were broken and wrecked. He looked down at his feet then looked up again. A sudden mob of people stood in front of him, and among them were several police officers. Instead of normal eyes, these people had raging balls of black fire.
“This is just a dream!” Jack tried to reassure himself as the sky turned swiftly a deep green. His gaze shot upwards as it did so, the shadow creature that was the sabre-toothed tiger leaping from one ruined rooftop to another. He could hear its deep chuckles.
“I’M AFRAID YOUR END IS NEAR ANIMAL LORD!”
Jack was hating this dream as he yelled back, “THIS IS JUST A DREAM!”
The mob laughed and Jack redirected his gaze back to them. They were seeming less and less human by the minute. They started approaching Jack and he used all his strength to call animals by his side. He could feel that they were there but they weren’t coming; they couldn’t, something was stopping them.
Jack was alone in this dream. “Why are you doing this?!” he screamed at the mob, afraid.
Someone yelled back. A farmer, but not a farmer. As this ‘man’ stepped forward, pitchfork in hand, Jack looked at his feet.
Shadowy wisps in the rough form of paws were where his feet should have been and Jack began to slowly back away.
“You destroyed our town! We were peaceful then you came along, with a pack of cats and massive wolves at your command and you told them to tear our little place apart! Then you set some of our houses alight! That’s why we locked up every good for nothing animal after we killed those beasts!”
Jack faltered. He knew this wasn’t real but it felt like back when Tyger was still around. “I haven’t done anything! I don’t remember any of this, I wouldn’t do this…!”
But the mob in this dream would have none of it. The police officers started to step towards him and their ethereal, lifeless eyes bore into Jack’s inner soul. He had a fear, a fear that was not kindled, for these people in his dream. He thought they would really kill him as he slept.
Jack tried to wake up. He couldn’t bring himself round. So instead he addressed the officers.
“So what happens now? This is just a dream,” said Jack, looking about for the sabre-toothed tiger again. “You can’t kill me!”
“But you do not know what we can do; or what we are,” replied the farmer, eyes burning stronger as it fed off Jack’s fear.
***
Mist shook Jack awake and he yelled out. Mist looked at him in surprise.
“What was that for?” she asked, curious.
Jack explained the dream to her. He was scared that the events of the dream would really happen and that he would be at the mercy of the creatures.
Mist took his hand in hers and looked into his eyes. It was like a warm comfort for Jack, knowing that she had proper eyes, not shadowy fireballs.
“Don’t let it scare you,” said Mist, her voice soft and gentle.
“Too late for that,” was Jack’s reply. He was shaking; not only because of the cold but because of how scared he was. He wondered how Mist wasn’t cold, seeing as she just wore a plain white t-shirt and jeans. Jack still had his tattered leather jacket and was wearing that, as well as a pale green shirt and grey jogging bottoms.
Wifusia fluffed her feathers and Jack felt a tad warmer. He looked at the sky. The storm had died but it was still gloomy. He checked his watch. He knew it would be correct because it had a Global Tracking Device fitted in it, so it would easily adjust accordingly. ‘Wednesday 3rd December, 6:55am.’
Jack sighed as Azure walked past. She and Jack made wordless eye contact as she trotted off – to hunt was Jack’s assumption.
He had only just noticed that he and his friends were by a lake. It was clear blue and the water was still. Behind him was a small forest, nowhere near as large as where he had started.
‘They’re clever. Forest to a different, unknown forest. Most people wouldn’t notice a change.’
Birds flew over-head and Jack once again wished he was one of them. If he was, he knew he could so easily escape this hell he was living in and fly free; fly free forever.
***
Jack had yet another nightmare that night. He was stood atop a hill, overlooking a vast valley. Half of it was alight with fire. The sky was full of smoke and Jack was finding it hard to breathe.
He looked to his right. Jack was startled when he saw Mist there. She was glaring him down with the same eyes of black fire. Her hair was no longer the stunning golden colour but in fact a hazy dark grey, almost black. It looked almost as it was also smoke but the darker shading made Jack sure that it wasn’t.
Jack looked back down to the valley. He suddenly realised that his hand was stinging so he raised it to see why it hurt. A gash cut across his palm and he knew it immediately; it was a swipe of a knife.
He looked back at Mist, stunned silent at what he saw below. He looked this nightmare version of Mist up and down and saw in her hand she held a knife of black obsidian; almost as black as her blank eyes. From the knife itself seeped a red and black smoke.
Nightmare Mist took a step towards Jack and he raised his hands slightly.
“Why have you destroyed the valley?!” Mist demanded, clutching the makeshift knife tight, her knuckle white.
“I didn’t do it!” Jack protested. He looked Mist with his eyes brimming as he continued. “You know that! You off all people know that I” – he held his hand over his heart – “wouldn’t ever do that!”
As he moved his hand to signal the flaming valley, he noticed the sky was the same colour as his last nightmare.
Mist’s eyes showed no emotion; no mercy for Jack. They remained as black spheres of fire and – no matter how hard Jack wished – they didn’t change back to her gentle eyes that he knew.
Jack ran his fingers through his hair nervously. He only noticed then that his hair was flat against his forehead and he was sweating with nerves. At that moment, a deep chuckle reverberated through the valley. Jack cursed loudly, shouting his anger for all the world of his nightmares to hear.
Mist narrowed her eyes and Jack supposed he was slightly glad because he could see less of those chilling eyes. He reached out to the nearby animals only to get no response. He closed his eyes as Mist took another step closer to him.
She spoke, but not with the voice Jack knew. The shadow sabre-toothed tiger’s voice rasped from her mouth. “WHAT MAKES YOU SO SURE THAT WE CAN’T KILL YOU IN YOUR DREAMS? WE HAD OUR PORTAL GET YOU TO RUSSIA. WE’VE REMAINED UNKNOWN FOR MANY A CENTURY. YOU MAY HAVE POWER BUT WE HAVE MORE.”
Jack opened one eye and stepped back, finding his back against a rock. It was icy cold and Jack felt like it was freezing him to it. He was paralysed with fear as the knife point was held again
“THE END IS NEAR ANIMAL LORD.”
“Then let it come. I will die if I must.”
Mist hesitated and pressed the knife harder against Jack’s throat.
***
Jack woke suddenly. He sat up quickly, making himself dizzy, and held his forehead. His breathing was unsteady and he close his eyes slowly.
The day was young and the rays of sunlight barely broke the horizon. Jack gazed at the clear sky. He marvelled at the soft orange colour that was there and appreciated every second of wonder. Leaning back on a tree, he watched the silhouettes of massive flocks of birds flying on by.
He closed his eyes, listening to the gentle bird song all around him. As he did so, he thought about how he’d get back. He thought about asking Wifusia if she’d be able to fly back but he remained unsure if she was strong enough to.
