A Shadow Watches

It was unknown when she passed out, but raising her head from the pillow, she knew why. There was that familiar heavenly softness again, woven into the fabric. The pillows were made from the same fluffy wool as the sheep that had nearly incapacitated her. For it to render her completely unconscious, bypassing her meditative state was nothing short of bizarre, yet highly refreshing.

A loud banging further jolted her awake. Vaelara flinched, her drowsiness dissolved, eyes snapping to the door, while her ears perked up to a screeching outside.

“Miss Elf! Miss Elf! Please open up!”

The familiar voice of the girl from before called from behind the door, frantic with fear. Still in her leather garb from the day before, outside of her furred cloak, Vaelara reached for her sword, opening the window.

“Wind’s guidance.” She chanted, pushing off the windowsill.

Her body launched as if carried by the wind itself, crossing the town streets in mere moments before touching the ground and landing under her feet, kicking up dust in her wake. The scream was louder, as were the growl and maniacal laughter.

Scanning the town square, she spotted the grey dire wolves and three people who were not from the town’s residence. Unlike the casual or working clothes that offered comfort and a simple style, the group of two men and one woman wore roughshod armor and leather. Judging by the dirt on their skin and matted hair, they likely haven’t bathed in a week or so. Simple bandits, from the look of them.

“Spread out and search the area!”

The trio brandished their short swords, waving them around to elicit fear. The dire wolves beside them only growled and snapped at the townspeople, regarding the bandits as no threat or simply as their pets. Vaelara filed this away as she approached, allowing one of them to notice her and her larger sword.

“Oi, oi! An Elf?” The woman alerted her fellows, turning their attention from a young maiden and an older person. “Are you here to get spoils?”

The woman asked, pointing with her blade. Her allies moved to encircle Vaelara, both men and wolves alike. She figured the dire wolves must have been trained to some capacity to follow such subtle orders. Something about that seemed desirable on her part.

“Well, there’s nothing here for you to take.” The woman continued, her mouth revealing gaps in her teeth. “Get lost, Elf!”

Vaelara ignored them, readying her sword with both hands and taking a stance. Nothing about them appeared to have been prepared for thieving, which she thought was odd in itself. She would have to sort that out later after incapacitating them.

With a turn of her weapon, the flat side of the blade was swung wide as Vaelara charged towards the woman, who screamed from her sudden burst of speed. Her cry was broken by the impact of dense iron that knocked the wind out of her from the side. Her body tumbled, crashed, and lay still on the ground. Vaelara might have heard a crack from the hit, but was unsure if she was internally bleeding. She’d had to be careful not to injure them too badly.

As the howl and growl of the dire wolves enclosed her, Vaelara could care little about them. She used the sharp end of her weapon to cleave the three that made their attack from behind end in their forms being broken and bloodied.

“Nelli! You’ll pay for that, you bitch!”

One of the other bandits rushed in, sword at their side for a thrusting attack. Vaelara prepared to sidestep and redirect the man to a nearby wall before something pierced the ground. An arrow, buried in the ground, made the bandit stop mid-charge, startled by the sudden projectile. The man turned wildly for the person who attempted to shoot him, only to take the butt of a hilt to the jaw, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

“This wasn’t supposed to happen!” The third bandit exclaimed, watching everything go up in smoke.

He quickly turned and bolted for the town gate, leaving his friends behind. Having been closer to the town’s entrance, the marauder was already halfway there before another arrow streaked through the air. Instead of delving into the dirt or stone, it dug into the shoulder of the invader. He yelped aloud, taking a fall face-first into the stones.

Vaelara turned, tracking the trajectory of the arrow. The launch point came from the roof she’d already been on before, where a familiar young archer perched. She noticed his presence and the look of surprise on his face as he pumped his fist. She nearly thanked him, but didn’t. A well-aimed throw of her sword could have had the same effect, more or less. Bringing her attention back to the bandits, her eyes caught sight of the unexpected.

Pools of shadow cracked open beneath the three bandits. Their bodies sank into the ground, as if the earth itself swallowed them with black tendrils.

“Dire wolf, up ahead!” The archer alerted, pointing ahead at something from a distance.

Vaelara scanned the tree line and nearly missed its form due to its stillness, the mist, and its distance of several yards. A dire wolf, marked with a darker coat of fur and standing twice as large as the others, stood within the shadow of the thick trees. Its red eyes stared back at Vaelara, unmoving. She kept her eyes on the beast, sensing an intelligence behind those eyes, but fiercer and more deadly. It blinked once before fading into the shadows, never moving, simply vanishing into the mist.

She began to wonder if the pay of 50 silver sept a week should be greater than what was offered.