Settling around the fire, they were all exhausted from the long day on the river. Dinner was dried meat and fruit, bread, and a canteen of water given to each of them from the Elves.
“Hey, this Elvish food isn’t too bad,” Henry said, biting into a piece of jerky.
“Yeah, it’s not bad at all,” Will agreed, “But I’d give anything for a piece of cheesy pizza.”
“Stop. Just stop,” Henry groaned. “You know how much I love pizza, especially your mom’s homemade, cheese pizza.” He set his food to the side. “All of a sudden, this dried meat doesn’t taste as good as it did a few seconds ago.”
Anna giggled. She didn’t want to say it out loud, but her mom did make the best pizza, and now, she also wanted some.
The woods were quiet and peaceful as the sun retreated behind the mountains, and the moon offered a faint glow.
“Tobin?” Anna asked, breaking the silence.
“Hmmm?” he hummed.
“Where is your family?”
Tobin tugged his cloak up over his body and sucked in a deep breath. “All of me kin is dead.”
“Anna!” Will’s head snapped to his sister, his eyes narrowed.
“Oh, Tobin, I’m so sorry!” Anna apologized. “I didn’t know.” She felt horrible she’d asked.
“No harm done. It happened long ago when I was a wee Bugul. Me kin was out harvestin’ crops late one evenin’ when dey was attacked by a pack of evil Howlers. All of dem were killed. Da Elves found me, an’ Lady Lavinia took me in. For dat, I’m forever grateful. I guess she felt bad ‘cause her own mudder was killed by a pack of Howlers.” Tobin rolled over and pulled his cloak up to his ear. “We best be gettin’ some sleep. In da mornin’, we have a long way ta travel.”
“Goodnight, Tobin,” Anna whispered.
“G’night, chil’ren.”
As night settled, the air became frigid. Anna shivered under her cloak, while the guys had no trouble falling fast asleep. As hard as Anna tried, her mind wouldn’t rest. Her thoughts were a whirlwind, worrying about her mother, wondering about her father, grandfather, their gifts, and the fate of Misteria.
Tobin’s wheezing, and Henry’s snoring, frequently interrupted her thoughts. Anna pulled the cloak tighter around herself, noticing a faint odor wafting on the breeze. It smelled like… death. And with every breath, it seemed to be getting stronger. Then, in the distance, she heard a creature howl.
“Will!” Anna whispered, shaking his shoulder. “Will, get up.”
The stench burned her nostrils, and the cracking of branches was getting closer. Her pulse raced and her heart thrummed loudly against her chest.
“Will,” she huffed again, pushing his arm.
When Will didn’t budge, Anna crawled to the edge of the tree and pulled back a few branches. In the distance, she saw three pairs of red, glowing eyes, swiftly approaching.
“Will!” she screamed, this time in her mind. She shuffled back to him.
“What’s your problem?” he snapped. “I finally got to sleep and now you wake me up?”
She threw her hand over his mouth. “There is something out there. I think it might be those creatures Tobin was talking about . . . those fire dogs. The Hellhounds.”
“Are you sure you didn’t just dream it up?” he answered, his eyelids heavy.
“No! There is something out there,” she urged, pointing with every word.
Will rubbed his eyes and crawled to the edge of the area. Anna pulled back the branches, and this time, they both witnessed the fiery, red eyes heading toward them.
“What do we do?” Anna cried.
“Tobin!” Will jumped over and yanked on his leg.
“No, no. I don’t wanna go,” Tobin whined in a deep sleep.
“Tobin!” Anna bellowed, grabbing his arm and furiously shaking him. When he didn’t wake, she smacked him on the forehead.
Tobin shot up from his deep sleep. “What in da Fairy fog?”
“What’s going on?” Henry asked, sitting up in a daze.
“Something’s coming!” Anna twisted Tobin’s big head in the direction of the red glowing eyes as Will moved the branches. Just in front of the beasts, a small figure was running. Whoever, or whatever it was, was running for their lives.
“Ooh, ooh,” Tobin whimpered. “It’s dem Hellhounds. Get down an’ stay quiet.” He dropped back down, pulling his cloak over his head.
“But someone’s out there,” Will said, peering back through the branches to get a closer look. He grabbed his bow and nocked an arrow to it.
“Will, don’t do anything stupid!” Anna warned, grabbing hold of his shirt to pull him back.
Then she glimpsed a boy sprinting toward them.
“Help!” he screamed.
The Hellhounds were catching up to him fast, burning crimson eyes focused on their prey. Thick steam shot from their nostrils while howls pierced the air as they tore through the forest.
“Over here,” Will yelled, frantically waving his arms at the boy. He made as much movement as possible, hoping he would see him. “Over here!”
The boy’s head snapped toward Will and he immediately changed direction, sprinting toward their tree. Without thought, Will dropped his bow and arrows and climbed halfway down the tree, bracing himself on a sturdy branch.
“Will!” Anna screamed, her face panic-stricken and pale. “What are you doing?”
Will didn’t answer. He had to stay focused as he extended his arm down as far as he could to attempt to catch the boy.
Henry, Anna, and Tobin were hollering, begging Will to climb back up to safety. But he couldn’t. If he didn’t help, he knew the boy would die. The Hellhounds bounded toward him, nearly fifty yards behind, gaining with every step. Their eyes were glowing blood red, intent and set on killing their prey. Flames shot from sharp-fanged mouths as they barked.
As the boy approached, Will saw the whites of his widened eyes.
“Jump,” he hollered.
A few yards away, the boy leaped and grabbed hold of Will’s hand, but Will’s sweaty palm caused their fingers to slip. The boy fell, crashing back to the ground.
The Hellhound’s horrific growls cut through the cold night.
“Get back up here, Will!” Henry bellowed. He climbed down a bit, laying across a large branch, barely reaching Will’s shoulder, but grabbed ahold of him anyway, attempting to steady him.
“Will!” Anna wailed.
The Hellhounds bounded toward them, with smoke and flames billowing from their muzzles.
The boy leaped again, and this time, Will caught his wrist.
A sudden, unexplainable power surged through Will’s body, and with a sudden jolt, he lifted the boy easily, right as the Hellhounds snapped at his feet. The boy grabbed hold of a branch and climbed to safety.
The three beasts circled below the tree, their hackles raised, sharp as needles. The heavy stench of death permeated the air. Razor-sharp teeth were bared, their muzzles still wet with blood.
“Get up here, Will!” Anna shrieked, dropping down next to Henry. She stretched her arm out to her brother. As Will turned and reached for their hands, his foot slipped.
Anna screamed as Will fell, dangling helplessly from Henry’s grasp. She stretched her arm further down, and as Will swung up to catch it, a Hellhound leaped and caught his calf, sinking its teeth deep into his flesh.
Will roared in pain, kicking the beast’s face with his free foot. But its sharp teeth sunk deeper, locking tightly around his ankle.
“He’s slipping!” Henry cried, holding on with all his might. The weight of the Hellhound and its thrashing caused Will’s grip to slip from Henry’s. “Will, I can’t hold on.” Henry’s wide eyes filled with tears.
As Will’s fingers slipped from Henry’s, another set of firm hands grabbed his wrist tightly, securing him.
It was the boy.
Anna bawled as her brother’s eyes met hers. “Don’t let go, Will,” she wept. “Don’t let go!”
&
nbsp; A sudden burst of blinding light shot out from Anna’s amulet…as bright as the sun.
The Hellhound attached to Will’s ankle released its grip with a tortured howl. All three beasts yelped and bounded away as if the light had wounded them.
Henry and the boy pulled Will to safety, and they all sat breathless for a moment.
Will moaned as the pain from the Hellhound bite pulsed through his leg. It was unlike any other pain he’d ever experienced. His body was trembling, and a cold sweat quickly overcame him.
Anna crawled over to him as he carefully lifted his pant leg to examine his injury.
Anna gasped as Will revealed his wound—charred flesh, gruesomely torn all the way down to the bone.
The sight of Will’s shredded leg made her woozy, but she shook it off and sucked in a breath. Ripping a piece of fabric from her cloak, she tied it tightly around his calf, just above the wound.
“He needs medicine,” the boy spoke. “A Hellhound bite can be fatal. Their teeth have venom, which slowly seeps into their victims, eventually killing them.”
“What?” Anna exhaled, tears flowing down her cheeks.
“I have medicine,” Tobin said, shuffling to his bag, dumping its contents onto the stone table.
Sifting through his things, he pulled out various small pouches, setting them to the side. Quickly opening each pouch, he sniffed, then selected one. With the pouch in his hand, he made his way over to Will.
Kneeling next to him, he took Will’s hand and poured a powdery substance—about the size of a grape—into his palm.
“Swallow it,” he ordered, handing him a canteen of water.
“What’s this?” Will asked, sniffing it.
“White willow bark. It’ll help with yer pain. Take it, now,” Tobin urged, lifting Will’s hand toward his mouth.
Will poured the powder onto his tongue and took a swig of water.
He swallowed and gagged. “Ugh. It’s so bitter.”
Anna stared at the wound, hoping it would magically heal before her very eyes…but it didn’t.
“Give it some time,” Tobin added, combining the ingredients of the other three pouches. The first looked like dried leaves, the next like dried flowers, and the last bag held brownish seeds. Tobin measured them precisely, removing stems, and placing them into a small stone mortar where he also added a bit of water. He then mixed the concoction together with a stone pestle, creating a paste.
“I’m not eating that,” Will groaned, his face becoming paler.
“Ya don’t eat dis. Dis goes on yer wounds.” Tobin looked over to Henry and the boy. “Ya two might have ta hold ‘em down. Dis is gonna hurt a bit.”
Will’s eyes caught Anna’s, and for the first time, she witnessed a fear she’d never seen before. It was a look she never wanted to see on her brother’s face again. It scared her, especially knowing she couldn’t do anything to help.
Will must have known she was afraid because he said, “If it takes my leg, I want it replaced with a wooden pirate one. Scratch that. A golden peg leg.” He was trying to lighten her mood, even now, while he was in excruciating pain.
“You’re kidding, right? A golden pirate leg?”
He shrugged and she couldn’t help but shake her head and grin.
When Tobin finished the paste, he tore a long piece of fabric from his cloak, then plucked a few large leaves from the tree. Taking the paste from the bowl, he slathered it in the center of the leaves and knelt by Will’s ankle.
Will glanced at Henry and gave a slight nod. “Just do it.”
Henry and the boy each grabbed one of Will’s arms, while Anna pressed the area right above his knee, trying to keep his leg steady. The tourniquet she’d made didn’t look like it was helping. He was losing a lot of blood.
“Jus’ breathe,” Tobin urged, giving Will a concerned look.
Will nodded and gritted his teeth.
Anna watched as Tobin whispered into his hand, then placed the leaves over Will’s wounds, rubbing the medicine over them.
Will clenched his teeth and groaned. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and then his eyes rolled back and he went limp.
“Will! What happened?” Anna wailed, shaking him.
“He’s unconscious. It’s best to let him rest,” the boy said.
“Will he be okay?” Her eyes fixed on her brother’s pale face.
“He should be, now dat he has da medicine. We’ll know fer sure in a few hours,” Tobin replied.
Anna nodded, wiping the tears from her face, as they gently laid Will’s head down. For the first time, she really took notice of the boy Will had rescued. He looked a few years older than them, maybe in his late teens, and had a small goatee on his chin. Anna blinked several times, swearing she saw two small horns and pointed ears peeking out from his brownish, unkempt hair.
The boy cleared his throat, making Anna blush. He’d caught her staring.
“Are you all right?” she asked. “I mean, you’re not injured, are you?
“I’m fine,” he answered, “thanks to all of you.” He then stood and Anna and Henry inhaled sharply. The top half of the boy was human, but the bottom half was . . . a goat. They hadn’t noticed before with all the commotion, and they were hidden under his tunic and a pair of torn pants.
“What are you?” Henry exhaled.
“He’s a Satyr,” Tobin noted matter-of-factly.
“That, I am,” the boy replied, with a wide smile.
Anna’s mother had told them stories of the Satyr, and they were some of her favorites. “What’s your name?” she asked.
“Please forgive my rudeness,” the boy said with a slight bow of his head. “My name is Thaddeus.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Thaddeus,” Anna greeted. “You’re the first Satyr we’ve ever met. Actually, the first we’ve ever seen.”
Thaddeus smiled. “Then this is a rare occasion indeed.”
“Why were the Hellhounds after you?” Henry questioned, after laying Will’s cloak over him.
Thaddeus turned and gazed out into the darkness from the direction he’d run. “There was a large celebration in the glade. My friend Kira and I were walking by the river,” he started to explain. “As we sat on the bank, loud screams filled the air. By the time we reached the glade, the Hellhounds were there. It was a massacre, and all we could do was watch.” Tears pooled in his dark brown eyes. “I grabbed Kira’s hand, and we ran into the forest. But the Hellhounds caught our scent and chased after us.” His head dropped, and his chest rose and fell heavily. “She fell. Before I could get to her—to help her . . .” he paused, shaking his head. “They were too fast. They were on her in seconds.” Tears cascaded down his cheeks as he turned his head away.
Anna walked over to him and laid her hand on his shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Thaddeus,” she breathed. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to watch someone she cared for die. Her heart was aching for him.
She glanced over at Will, who was lying still on the floor, and didn’t want to think of the heartache and pain she would experience if she ever lost him.
Thaddeus turned back to Anna, pain etched on his face. “Her screams will haunt me forever. She didn’t deserve to die. Not like that.”
“No, she didn’t,” Anna agreed, her eyes pooled with tears. “I wish there were something we could do.”
“Dere is,” Tobin answered. “Find Rhyder an’ stop dis evil once an’ fer all.”
Anna sighed, overwhelmed. After seeing those creatures and hearing the kinds of terror they were spreading across this land—a land she was beginning to feel a part of—she wanted to help.
“What made dem Hellhounds leave?” Tobin asked. “Hellhounds never run from dere prey.”
“It was the light. The light hurts their eyes. It’s why they only come out at night,” Thaddeus explained, pointing to the amulet around Anna’s chest. “It came from her.”
Anna shook her head. “I didn’t do anything.”
Henry stepped b
eside her. “It was you, Anna. I saw it.”
“The light came from the amulet Lavinia gave me. When Will was slipping, I—I wished I could save him, and then . . . it started glowing.” Anna took the amulet in her fingers and examined it.
“Tis not da amulet,” Tobin murmured.
“It was the amulet,” Anna corrected.
Tobin grinned. “Twas you, child. Da amulet is an object through which magic can be channeled. Da real magic comes from inside, an’ when ya needed it most, it came ta ya.”
“Just like it did with Will,” Henry said. “Did you see how he lifted Thaddeus with one arm so easily? That was awesome.”
“He saved my life,” Thaddeus breathed, his eyes on Will. He then looked at Anna. “And you saved him.”
Anna didn’t know how she felt about all of it, but the thought of having magical powers, and witnessing a small part of it, gave her a glimmer of hope. Hope that they might survive and find their mother, and possibly help others along the way.
“What part of Misteria are you from?” Thaddeus asked. “I haven’t seen you in these parts.”
“We’re not from Misteria,” Anna replied. “We just arrived yesterday.”
“From where?” His brow furrowed.
“From the human world. Tobin led us through a portal,” Anna explained. “We came here to find our mom.”
“Dere mudder is Lady Talia,” Tobin announced.
“Talia?” Thaddeus questioned, his eyes narrowing on Anna. “Talia is your mother?”
“Yes. Do you know her?” It seemed everyone in Misteria knew who she was.
“Of course,” he replied, his expression was one of shock. “Talia is a friend of the Satyr. She was at the celebration tonight.”
“No.” Terror rushed over Anna. She shook her head. “She left with Elves to search for our grandfather. It couldn’t have been her. Right, Tobin?” She turned her gaze to him.
“I don’t know, child,” Tobin said softly.