II
It wasn't long before the lykos woke up. The beast panicked, struggling for freedom in the thick mesh. It caught us by surprise, thrashing itself onto the ground, producing a loud ‘whump’ onto the snow-glazed dirt.
“That was an unusually loud thump for even a wolf this size,” Kadava inquired skeptically. “And did you feel the ground quake? That surely couldn’t have been from the wolf.”
“Thanks for your innate skills,” I chuckled. “How would you know that wasn’t from the lykos?”
Securing the net that encased the lykos, I struck another blow onto the wolf’s thick skull, immediately putting the lykos to sleep. We continued our march through the dusk-fallen forest with the lykos across our shoulders, trudging our way across old snow that haphazardly carpeted the level ground. Snowflakes began to fall again, no surprise on this island of ice.
“Say, what season are we in right now? I can’t quite tell,” Foku spoke, glancing up at the drifting snowflakes. On Lord Cryann’s island, the only season was winter.
“That’s a good question. Can’t quite figure it out myself either,” I replied monotonously.
We were too distracted by the intriguing conversation to have heard another thump, miles closer than the last. Luckily, Kadava’s ears were perched, listening to any strange sound that followed the first thump
“You guys didn’t hear that?”
“What, the snow?” I asked.
“You’re joking, right? There was another thump! I knew it wasn't the damn wolf!”
Kadava wouldn’t joke about this, especially about something he was specialized in. As a scout, he naturally had keen eyesight and sharp hearing. We stopped conversing and remained alert, trekking the path quietly and pausing at even the slightest sound.
“Twigs,” Foku whispered briefly.
We arrived at the center of the foreboding waste of trees, a clearing with a large boulder that lay within. Halfway from the entrance and halfway near the exit, the significant layout that symbolized the heart of the forest would have been a sign of hope for others, but to me we were stuck. Dusk was rapidly draping the sky, and the cold season prevented the sun to shine any longer than six hours on this island. It was near evening, and we had to find our way out of the forest before the sun set, or else we would spend the night camped within the trees.
“If it weren’t for that damned Tarsus,” I muttered bitterly, trailing off in my thoughts, “we would have gotten the wolf and found our way outta here hours ago.”
“We didn’t even bring equipment to set up camp out here,” Kadava whispered.
“Didn’t think we needed to,” I answered simply. The temperature dropped by another two degrees as the hour slipped by, and we were three quarters towards the exit.
“Full moon,” Foku observed, fascinated by the bright white sphere miles above us. “I’ve always wanted to learn the ways of caelomancy.”
“We’re almost there. We might not need to set cam--”
Thump!
The ground shook at the sudden sound and the freshly fallen snow leapt up, drifting gracefully back down to the dirt floor.
“I told you!” Kadava yelled in excitement.
“Are you crazy?!” I snapped harshly in a whisper. “You probably just gave our position away to whatever that was!”
That kid was great with senses, except for common sense.
“Sorry, I was...” Kadava whispered apologetically, dragging his words.
“What would roam the forest here, at this time of night?” Foku asked, switching our attention back to the mysterious noise.
“What if it was just Tarsus messing with us again?” I remarked bitterly.
That comment was quickly disposed when a shrill cry pierced the night.
“You both heard that, right?” Kadava plainly asked, frozen mid-step.
“That’s Tarsus! I know that voice from miles away. He’s still here?”
“No surprise. We’re still here too,” Foku pointed out.
“Run!” The faint distant voice seemed to command as it grew closer and more audible.
“That’s something Tarsus would never say,” Foku said.
“Something’s wrong and it can’t be Tarsus. Better get moving.”
The snow began to fall again as I led the three men pack with the lykos along the path, closer to the exit of the forest.
“Run!”
The voice was directly behind us now, followed by an earth-shattering stomp that caught us off balance. The dazed lykos fell off our backs as we regained footing. Tarsus suddenly sped past us, hollering to pick up the pace and run or die.
“Grab the wolf and follow Tarsus!”
Some of his men zipped past us, dropping their weapons and garments along the way to ensure a greater speed advantage to escape whatever was pursuing them. The heavy burden upon our backs slowed down our agility, but the growing thundering noise of an approaching threat kept us moving. It was a slow, rhythmic pace, but every time the heavy thunderous step took another stride, it was miles and miles closer; nevertheless, a large monster that would reach us in no time.
We caught up to the last of Tarsus’ men, despite the big wolf heaved across our backs. I glanced over and recognized the Arretan sharpshooter, with his bow strapped around his arm. No doubt he stopped to recover that expensive bow, even at all costs.
“What is it?” I asked him. The snow began to fall faster and faster, hindering our haste.
The ranger glanced at me and furrowed his brows in anger as he recalled the three of us.
“Why don’t you find out?” He spat with a heavy accent, picking up the pace to swiftly shift through the winter storm and looming forest.
We kept our constant dash, following the last of the Night Guild. It wasn’t long before the border of the forest finally came into sight, and most of the Night Guild had trickled out already.
“Almost there!”
A good fifteen meters more and we would be out of the cold forest. I pushed myself onwards and sprinted towards the exit, with Foku and Tarsus following my footsteps closely.
Suddenly, a behemoth slammed down before us, a foot in front of me, halting our movements abruptly. The Arretan ranger had narrowly escaped the silhouette’s devastating landing.
“Oh...damn,” I whispered.
The titan was concealed by its own shadow, a giant towering high above the weak crooked trees. A red glint reflected off its broad shoulders under the bright moonlight. The head was draped, and strapped onto its back was a double-bladed axe that glistened with an attractive gold. The beast was heavily armoured, a dark maroon in the black night. It was magnificent and awe-striking; none other than the one and only spoken in the legends.
“You...you think it’s here for the wolf?” Foku whispered nervously behind me, a trembling voice coated with fear.
I don’t reply, petrified before the looming titan.
The great figure did not speak. On the contrary, it lowered its right arm and unfurled its enormous palm in front of me, waiting.
Quickly, I untangled the net that had once held the lykos captive. The lykos was still dazed, but beginning to regain strength. I brought the heavy lykos with Foku and Kadava to the hand and placed the wolf in its palm. The huge palm wrapped around the wolf gently in response, and with the index finger of its other hand, it began to stroke the lykos’ silk coat carefully. The behemoth stood up with the injured wolf and produced a low grumble as it stared at the three of us. After a moment, it leaped high into the sky, landing somewhere distant behind us with the same forceful stomp we had previously heard.
“Well, we just lost our game.”
“Oh, we might’ve lost our game, but we met the legend today. Have you ever seen the Potestatem Primo with your own eyes?”
“You sure that was Potestatem? I mean, that could have been any of the four Primos.”
“Certain. Potestatem wields an axe and is armoured in red, or so it says in the legends.”
Four guardians of Grozorg roamed the nation and were known as the Primos. As the epics stated, each of the four resembled an aspect that upheld the nation; power, magic, stealth, and restoration. Of course, many had known the existence of the four Primos, but only a select few had actually witnessed them with their own eyes. Potestatem Primo, the largest of them all, was known for its dedication to the conservation of wildlife, and it was no surprise to see it recover an endangered species from our very hands.
“Even though we didn’t gain anything today, we, on the other hand, conquered a live lykos and met the Potestatem itself!”
“How often is it to meet two living myths in the same day?”
“That’s true. But what matters most is that we beat Tarsus.”
“Two living myths in the same day...” I echoed Kadava’s words. “Isn’t that a bit...odd?”
We started the trek back to our guild, ambivalent about everything that had just occurred.
“What do you think the Potestatem’s gonna do with the lykos?” Kadava asked, disappointment in his voice.
“Probably release it somewhere else, perhaps on Lord Naterra’s island or something. The forest there is a lot denser, and hunting is also illegal there. Chances are there are more lykos there too.”
“Maybe.”
“Well on the bright side, we now know that the guardians aren’t dormant or anything. It was a small deed, but a good deed by the Potestatem, and he also spared our lives.”
“I guess...”
“Don’t think too much about it. We have a big day tomorrow because I’m gonna find a way to get back at Tarsus,” I grinned devilishly.
We left the dark looming trees and headed back to our hideout on Mainland Grozorg.