The Shadow Strikes ... and Someone Falls. Redmane finds herself in a battle of tooth and claw with an ancient evil.

"So what brings a mistake such as you to these forsaken lands? Why do you side with these worthless lives," the shadow hisses and Redmane finds herself promptly on the defensive as a series of claws streak in and glance off her blade in a shower of sparks. "Decided to hide in the forest, tail tucked between your legs, perhaps? Or, did you find love with some dog?"

"Why does everyone constantly question why I protect those I choose?" Redmane growls, and tries to push past the creature's defense. "And what of you, monster? What is your goal?"

That's the problem with a shadow ... it's rather hard to find out exactly where its body begins and ends. Redmane seems to find herself striking at air. "Amusement," the shadow rumbles, maw spreading into that red-toothed grin again. "Watching old enemies tear themselves apart is such delight."

"Rrraa!" Redmane growls in frustration, and tries to swipe at the grin itself to see if it's solid.

Erzsebet lands to one side of the the shadow-creature as it lunges forward, near the fallen omega that it had gripped within its claws. She looks to that wolf for a moment, obviously wondering if he's still alive - then turns at the sound of Redmane's voice. She stands so very still and stares, taking in the woman's half-female, half-wolf form.

The fallen wolf is alive, but barely. Its sides bear deep cuts and its breathing is shallow. Thomas is now slowly circling the shadow, eyes narrowed and ears perked forward.

The shadow's head dips and twists in unnatural movement and Redmane's sword finds nothing but air. Still grinning, it asks, "Now, why don't you join me against both our foes, hmm? Surely you would enjoy inflicting pain upon them. I can smell their blood on your sword."

"Amusement, or fear?" Redmane asks. "I think you fear the fey, and fear the wolves and fey working together even more. Before offering an alliance, offer me your name at least!"

Seeing the fallen omega twitch out of the corner of her eye, Erzsebet shakes herself briefly and seems to come out of her amazement. Then she goes to the wolf and little by little, manages to squirm underneath him so he is resting on her back. Then she stands, whining softly in pain when his back legs scrape over her wound. But she does manage to get him clear of the fight now raging between the shadow and Redmane.

"What is in a name? It is a label to mask the truth of what is," The shadow claims, "I cannot be defined by such simple things. I am the essence of darkness and hunger, of greed and desire, of gluttony and perversion. Where I walk, the lands whimper."

"And where such do not exist, do you have any true power?" Redmane asks, stepping forward to try and drive it back further.

The shadow doesn't exactly retreat, it circles Redmane, jaws still mocking her with that grin. As it twists and curls like a serpent, it hisses, "They exist everywhere, so I am never without power."

"Then I name you Afagdu, since despite your darkness you seem to know much," Redmane growls. "You tried to kill the first wolf to meet with the fey, did you not? And the emissaries they sent - did you dispose of them as well?"

The shadow somehow manages to cluck at Redmane with some sort of tongue. "Somebody has been nosy," it hisses.

Thomas is still circling slowly, attention focused on the creature. His movements are odd, as if stalking and sizing his prey.

"Hard not to be when a wolf's world is colored by scents," Redmane notes. "And how is it you know of my kind?"

"Ooo, now that would be telling. And I see no point of telling my next meal that much," the Shadow chides, its head darting forward to take a snap at Redmane.

Redmane brings her sword up to block, and calls to Erzsebet, "Bring the silver sword and the rest of the pack! Let them see their true enemy and undo what it has wrought!"

Red teeth close tight around Redmane's sword and sparks fly. Its head shakes back and forth violently, trying to wrench the blade from her hand!

The wolf-woman isn't about to let go, and tries to take a bite out the shadow as well.

Somehow, Redmane 'hears' Erzsebet snarl, This is not the moment, Murienn! I have a dying brother to attend to and I find it ill-advised to leave my family in a crisis!

Redmane's jaws sink into something. It's clammy, gooey, and tastes vile. Redmane is now looking directly into one its eyes. Out of the corner of her eyes, Redame sees the shadows arms come up and its claws extend for a killing strike...

And then over the creature's head she can see the lupine form of Thomas arcing in the air. His body is twisting and rippling as it comes down, forelegs shifting to furred arms and hind legs thickening. His eyes are wincing in pain and lips drawn back in a snarl as he lands with a thump on the creatures back. Quickly, he slips his arms under the creatures and holds, keeping the shadow's claws from sweeping down and disemboweling her.

"Better," Redmame says, spitting out the ichor and trying to bite into the monster's 'throat' now.

Redmane's maw clamps into something and the disgusting taste once again fills her mouth. Shrieking, the shadow jerks backward, leaving a large lump of quivering flesh in her mouth. It slams its back against one of the nearby walls, compressing Thomas between it and itself. "Curse the alliances between Fey and others," he hisses, "Will I never be free of them?"

Striking again with her sword, Redmane tries to hit the wound she just created.

The creature has enough time to see the strike coming and it reaches around behind itself and yanks the wolf-fey out from behind itself. Swinging Thomas around, by his neck, the shadow tries to put the wolf-fey between itself and the oncoming blade. But, Redmane is just fast enough to sink the tip of the sword into something in the shadow. Thomas finds his nose mere inches from the edge of the iron sword...

Looking to Thomas, Redmane asks, "Are you burning?"

"A little," Thomas hisses, lupine face straining to pull away from that blade. The shadow's claws tighten around his neck, causing Thomas to make a gagging noise in the next second. "If you want to kill me," it taunts in a pained hiss, "You have to kill him first."

Instead, Redmane bites at the hand holding Thomas.

Thomas kicks wildly as he starts struggling for a breath. Redmane feels her jaws clamp down on something again. From the feel of it, one of its fingers., near the knuckle.

Using all the strength in her jaws, Redmane tries to bite through the finger while pulling back at the same time to tear the flesh.

There's a rather disgusting crunching sound and the finger comes away in Redmane's jaw. Howling, the shadow drops Thomas to the ground as it jerks sideways, also dislodging Redmane's sword. Clasping its hand to its nebulous body, it hisses, "I suppose that is your answer to my offer of alliance, then. Curse your kind, the fey, and these wolves. This time they will all die." The creature spits on the ground, then somehow slithers itself back towards the waterway.

"Coward!" Redmane calls after the retreating monster. "Fight me!" she yells, chasing after it as far as she can.

"Oh, I think I would rather watch you die. Lord December is coming," the creature cackles with glee as it drops off the edge of the 'peer' and into the canal. "He will kill the people his forefathers swore to protect so long ago out of misplaced love, pah. And that, dear child, is a violation of a fey's word, if you know anything of such bonds. It will wound him deep ... and then well, I will devour him and these lands will be mine"

"Thanks for the warning," Redmane growls, and then grins. She turns back and grabs up the severed finger. "Who is your healer, Erzsebet?" she asks.

"No, don't worry about me," Thomas growls as he pushes himself upright and leans against a wall. He reaches up and paws at the iron band around his neck, fingers pulling at it. The wolf-fey curls forward, wincing and growling low in his throat, "I hate iron."

"Not for you, for the omega," Redmane notes. "You're coming with me to the elders, Thomas."

Transformed into her female form now, Erzsebet is also near the water, washing out the last of the fallen omega's wounds. As Redmane looks on, she 'calls' to two of the other, thinner omegas and they come trotting over. She then instructs the other wolves to lie gently across the wounded one, to keep him from getting chilled by the cold air and blood loss. "Valeska has that duty," she calls back, her voice weaker than usual. "But she would have to come here, if your thought is for this young pup. He cannot be moved and I...I am...not able to carry him."

"We'll bring her here then," Redmane says, and heads for the exit tunnel. "C'mon, Thomas - it's time to get that collar off."

"I shouldn't have tried to shift. Even this far I can feel the iron; if it weren't for the fur my skin would be blistering," Thomas mutters to himself. He staggers to his feet and limps behind Redmane.

"Here," Redmane says, and cuts her palm with the tip of her sword. She then smears her own blood around the collar to try and block some of its effect on Thomas.

"You realize they may just gut us when they see us like this," Thomas points out, looking to still be in some pain.

"I'll shout them down if they try," Redmane promises, and hurries to the cave entrance.

The pair move through the woods. When they reach down, all the wolves turn and stare at them. Many start growling, but none of them seem particularly inclined to attack the pair as they move through town, not even Angryff. (Perhaps he has sword envy!). Soon enough, Redmane is barrelling towards the front door to the cathedral. Except ... this time the guards step in front, snarling. "Those who try to abandon the form are not welcome," they threaten.

Redmane thrusts out the severed finger of the monster at the guards, and demands, "Recognize this? No, you don't. There's been an attack, one of the omegas is wounded, and I need to see the elders right now!"

One of the pair of guards snarls, "Why should we care about an omega?" The other, though, hits him hard on the side of his muzzle, retorting, "Because they are family and our duty too. Rank be damned, if one is hurt, they are still pack protected." He shoves the other guard aside now (who is clutching the side of his face), clearing the path for Redmane and Thomas. "Now, if I find you are lying, I will gut you personally later," the guard warns Redmane.

"Thank you," Redmane says, and then asks, "We need Valeska to go to the old cave; the wounded one can't be moved. Can you get the message to her?"

"Wait," the guard says. He reaches over and dips a finger into some of the creature's ichor that still drips from the finger. "We can track by its scent," the guard explains, then heads off to find the healer.

The Circle of the Fallen
Once a great cathedral to an ancient Goddess, this room has become the den of the elders. The center of the great room is an immense, smooth-stone floor. Once it must have been brightly polished marble with granite inlay ... but now it is dull, a shadow of its former self. A half-circle of granite is placed flush in the floor ... no, the symbol of the crescent moon.

"You're about to be attacked!" Redmane declares as soon as she's inside and sees the elders. "And not by your true enemy, either."

The muffled grumbling between the wolves draws to a stop when Redmane, sill in a hybrid form, marches into the chamber. They stare at her in a mix of disbelief, surprise, and anger.

The white wolf Redmane spoke to earlier steps forward. "We know that Lord December comes to find us," she somehow says. "But, it surprises me that you would come to warn us, are you not pleased?"

The knight throws the severed finger to the floor before the white wolf. "This attacked the omegas in the cave. It attacked the first wolf to ally with the fey. It killed your emissaries. It is the reason you feel betrayed. December is sworn to protect you, and by goading you into fighting one another this creature hopes to hurt the fey. Why should I be pleased about any of this? It's time to reestablish your old alliance and fight your true enemy, elder!" After a moment, she also adds, "Oh, and could you remove the collar from Thomas here? He changed to help in the fight."

The white wolf lowers its head to sniff at the finger. Before their eyes it bubbles and hisses. What remained off the flesh seems to boil away and the bone disintegrates into dust. As she sits back up, the wolf asks, "What makes you believe that Lord December would meet with us now, even if what you said was true?" As for Thomas, she seems to pay no attention to him right now.

"Because we can arrange it," Redmane says, gesturing to include Thomas. "Remove the restraints on those you have captured and restore to them to their birth forms - I tell you now, if they have love for any of you, then you can still have children together that will be of wolf blood. Stand in fey form yourself to show you are not animals. If I can bring Erzsebet to Lord December, he will listen."

"Why would seeing Erzsebet matter to him?" the white wolf asks as she now goes to sniff Thomas. Noting the blood smeared on the collar, she gives Redmane a rather odd look.

"Because she bears the same lineage as Lord December," Redmane claims. "If he doesn't see it by her face, then her scent should be enough. The story of your birth is on the walls of the old cave. There is also a back way out, along an underground river. The monster used that to attack from, but it is also a means of escape."

"How can we trust you?" the white wolf finally asks, looking at Redmane, then Thomas. "I am not blind to how our treatment may have been seen in your eyes."

"You may not trust me, but you know the rules that the fey must follow," Redmane says, and puts a hand on Thomas' shoulder. "Release Thomas from the collar, restore him to his natural form, and have him swear three times to the truth of what I'm telling you."

"How does anyone trust anyone? There can be all the proof in the world, all the oaths, and yet without a little faith and a willingness to allow yourself vulnerable. Much can be gained by being willing to simply trust someone without force and without terms," Thomas says slowly, having to think a lot on his words since the collar is rather ... distracting. "I trusted this woman without much evidence to her true intentions and she has yet to have shown me that it was ever misplaced." He considers something further, then adds, "And not only would I swear to what we have seen, I will offer you in oath, the promise to join your family willingly, should we be proven wrong. You won't need the binding of this ... iron to keep me."

Redmane lifts an eyebrow at Thomas' promise, and grins. She'd half-expected him to stay a wolf anyway.

The white wolf steps away. Her body ripples and shudders. Fur gives way to flesh and within moments the old woman who had first bound Thomas and Redmane now stands before them both. "There is ... twisted irony on how the collars are opened. To free a fey within its grasp, they must drink of the blood of a fey," she explains as she walks back to Thomas and kneels before him. She drags a jagged claw along her palm, cutting line in it from which blood wells to the surface. She holds it over the iron collar and lets drops of her blood fall upon it. Each drop bubbles, hisses, then boils away into the air. After several drops fall, ancient runes glow along the band. There is a audible click and the collar separates into two halves and falls to the floor with a clank.

"That.. wasn't why my own blood was on the collar," Redmane mutters, in case the elder thought differently.

Thomas rubs lightly as his neck. "That feels better," he has to admit. He's still in the half-wolf form, though.

"How do we.. finish the transformation?" Redmane whispers to the elder.

"You can shift back if you so choose, fey," the elder says, though she looks a bit ... sad? "You have to think about who you were, feel your body change and shift to what you believe you are. And, most importantly, the form you shift to, you must accept who that form in ... in all things. If there were any parts of yourself that you denied then you will find yourself unable to ever fully be that form again."

"Do I have to try in front of her?" Thomas asks the elder and nods towards Redmane.

"Well, we can do that later then, when you're more prepared," Redmane mutters to Thomas. "First, we need to intercept December before he finds the ward around the city. Erzsebet and I can do that, and convince him to come to the cave. You and the elder can tend to the omegas there. Does this sound a fair plan to you?"

"Except that Erzsebet is wounded," Thomas points out a bit grimly, "And the creature's claws were poisonous. I am not sure she will be in enough shape to help much." He considers something further, then taps the side of his nose, "But, with how much I smelled that creature, I imagine I could find out exactly where it went, and quickly. So ... if you think you can lure Lord December to the cave, well, I think I could lure the creature there as well." Then he looks to the elders before back to Redmane, finally asking, "Do you think you and the pack could defeat it?"

"It's flesh, and can be overcome," Redmane notes, thinking on the plan. "You hope to recreate the scene in the history, is that it, Thomas?"

"There is a certain romance and poetry to such, yes. It may help remind everyone why there was unity in the first place and allow the more recent events to be more quickly forgiven," Thomas admits. "Or, it may not. It is just a guess. If you disagree, we will try something else."

"Just don't go alone, please," Redmane asks. "I'll go find December, if someone can guide me."

"I work better alone," Thomas claims.

"And if you fall to it again?" Redmane asks.

"You would have to adjust your plan," Thomas says simply. His ears flick for a bit, then he asks, "You're really worried I might get hurt, aren't you?"

"Of course I am," Redmane says. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Just ... why does it matter if I do?" Thomas actually asks.

Redmane blinks. "Why.. why.. must everyone question my feelings?" she growls in frustration. "I don't want anyone getting hurt! Is that simple and clear enough? I'm bound by oath to protect the innocent and fight evil!"

"It matters because I live a dangerous life, Redmane. Every day could easily be my last," Thomas points out, "I don't want you getting hurt or feeling the need to rescue me because of my choices."

Thomas also reaches out and taps Redmane's nose, adding, "And, because I wanted to know if it was because I was your friend, or just because you wanted everyone safe. Well, I have my answer to that. Anyway, I need to get prepared." The half-wolf stands, then dips his heads to the elders, "Show me to my belongings. I may need a few of them."

Redmane grumbles, and mutters, "I can't win no matter what with him.." Then she's back to business. "I'll need to return to the cave, and have someone show me the way from there to Lord December's camp.. and probably stick around to show me back to the cave as well, or report that he's not coming."

As Thomas is lead out of the chamber, one of the elders steps forward. "I will guide her," he declares to the council. Then to Redmane, the wolf dips his head, "You may call me Dimitri."

"Thank you, Dimitri," Redmane says. She looks to the old woman, and asks, "Please, see to the omegas in the cave, and help Erzsebet."

"Of course," the old woman says. She turns and growls to the remaining wolves in the chamber, then waves them away before she too leaves.

Redmane takes a deep breath, and heads for the door. I think Thomas dropped my bundle in the snow outside of the cave, she thinks. It'll be half-soaked through by now. I'll have to remember to throw a snowball at him later..

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This site serves as a chronicle of sessions in an online roleplaying campaign moderated by Conrad "Lynx" Wong and May "Rowan" Wasserman. The contents of this site are (c) 2001, 2002 by Conrad Wong and May Wasserman except where stated otherwise. Despite the "children's fantasy" theme of this campaign, this site is not intended for young readership, due to mild language and violence.