Excerpt

Solstice sat in the Rover and stayed awake for a few hours. She had brought a book with her, so she read by the light of a spell which brought a bright energy to one of her hands. When she was tired of reading, she got out and walked around the vehicle to stretch her legs for a bit. Then she got back in, tried to find a comfortable position, and dozed off for a while. She awoke a little before 5 a.m. and realized she had never gathered the pack’s clothes like Amber had asked her to. She hopped out, and began putting the clothes in order by roughly folding and stacking them into piles of whoever they belonged to. She set them on the hoods of the vehicles.

She stood outside, enjoying the fresh air’s pine-scented flavor, though not its chilliness. The forthcoming dawn wasn’t far off. The night sky was no longer black, but a dark blue that was growing incrementally brighter. The stars still glittered, and the half moon was still visible. She strolled around through the grass of the glade, the blades of which were starting to hint of the dampness of dew. She stared into the woods, finding the abstract patterns of shadows mesmerizing, and wishing she had brought her camera. She wandered around closer to the tree line. Then she thought she heard a rustling in the grass behind her.

Turning, she saw the shape of a wolf stalking towards her. The vehicles were almost fifty feet away, and the beast moved to intersect her direct path to them. She watched the wolf, trying to determine which pack member it was, or if it was one of them at all. She was relatively sure it was, but she wasn’t familiar with their individual markings as wolves to be certain. The predator moved slowly, its head low and bobbing from side to side. Then it halted to stare at her. She heard its tongue lap at its muzzle. She and the beast watched one another for a few moments. A sense of worry began to grow in her mind, and she recalled what Amber had said about wolves being able to sense fear. She did not want to give the beast, pack member or not, any idea of her trepidation. Remaining calm, she eased to one side, meaning to slowly go around the animal to the Rover. It tracked her with its eyes. Then it took a few darting steps towards her.

Solstice froze, and the wolf did, too. It was then that she detected the coppery smell of blood. Straining her eyes, she thought she could discern the matted stain of it on the beast’s face. Her intense scrutiny caused the animal to snarl, and its hair began to bristle along its back. Its body lowered slightly as it tensed in readiness to spring forward.

“Lou?” she asked nervously. “Is that you?”

The wolf trembled with aggression, its blue eyes glaring.

Her hands were down by her sides. Her fingers touched her thumbs in readiness to perform magical gestures, and she began to silently recite a spell. If it was Lou, or any of the other pack members, she didn’t want to hurt them, but she certainly didn’t want to be mauled herself. If it was a wolf of the wild, it was about to receive a very sudden and painful shock. A greenish glow started to emanate from her hands.

The creature growled, agitated by the sudden sense of arcane energy in the air. It hunkered down to charge. Then it sprang towards her with a snap of its sharp teeth.