9 The Yin and Yang Wolves
Kezukhen woods
"Sekani, get out of there, what are you doing?" Hab who was injured in the left hand was shouting at Sekani who is facing a 10-foot tall Ice Wolf. Its fur was steaming with cold smoke as if dry ice, it claws and fangs are sharp and it shoots deadly ice spikes projectiles.
It was a successful hunt, and they were traveling back to the village but the beast suddenly appeared, they did not fight and opted to escape knowing the beasts' strength but the wolf was strangely enraged and attacked everyone on sight.
"Go now, I will delay the beast." Sekani said as he readied his Khopesh.
"What are you sayi..." Hab shouted confused, but he was interrupted "GO" Sekani shouted angrily as he blocked one of the claw with the sword and thrown a few meters away landing on his feet.
Sekani did not take away his eyes to the wolf and concentrated. While Hab was gritting his teeth and was reluctant to leave. "Amran take away Hab and escape now." Sekani shouted to one of the man, and they remaining hunters took away Hab forcefully.
"Let go bastards, let go of me." Hab wildly rejected but could not do anything about it and carried out by his men.
When all of them escaped, Sekani grinned. Then his body started to exude an ominous aura around him. Activated his black flame aura which was his fourth skill. It gave overall strength and agility. It gave no defensive capability but, all beings that Sekani considered as enemy will weaken and reduce their defense without them knowing.
The wolf felt the surge in power and it was now cautious but it's rage could not be quelled. It charged without fear. Sekani's flame tattoo glowed, and he also braced himself; a loud bang exploded as his sword and the wolf's claw met.
"At least I can compare to its strength." Sekani blurted as he tested the additional strength from the new skill. It was his first time using it since he acquired from leveling up in hunting. Without his flame tattoo, he was an average warrior but still his body was now starting to shape from constant training and the hunting gave him experience not only individually but also as a group.
Frozen trees and bushes, destroyed boulders; the area they were fighting before was now turned into something different. The battle was so fierce it recreated the surrounding area. Sekani did not know how long they are fighting, but it was satisfying, panting and bloodied; all his clothes tattered and many wounds in his body.
He sat in a tree, looking at the wolf on the floor, life less and injured. "Damn, how long since I felt like this. Am I getting addicted to fighting?" He could not understand but the fight just now gave him fulfillment and satisfaction. Then the crystal glowed as if telling him something. The crystal seems to be excited and it was now time to absorb its soul energy.
"Level-up again?" He felt again the sensation as the soul energy of the wolf was being transmitted to him from the stone. "You sure are something huh." Sekani said as if talking to the stone. Lately the stone send some kind of message in a form of feeling or urge. It gave him understanding of what the black crystal was trying to tell. It was also changing form every time it leveled up.
The crystal was now oval in shape, but it was still quite crude and unpolished, but he did not mind. He still did not know its mystery, and could not complain. He then meditated to know what will be the new ability he gained.
After several minutes, he slowly opened his eyes. His face was bruised and lips bloodied but his smile was as bright as the sun.
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Kezukhen
"BROTHER" A loud shout came from the inside of a room and it alerted the elders. When they rushed inside, Hab was awakened and was now pale and full of sweat.
"Hab, calm down or your wounds will open again. It was just a nightmare." His father the village elder and Chief Leader of the Walamian tribe was very worried of his son.
Yesterday evening the hunters came back wounded and Hab their leader was unconscious. He was pale from blood loss, but he was still fine. The hunters told everything and the village was devastated, their honorable guest who saved their princess valiantly sacrificed himself to let the hunters escape.
"Father, Se-Sekani was..." Hab's tears fall facing his father Sua.
"I know, I know. We already sent men to check, just rest for now." Sua said slowly to calm his son and Hab nodded politely while he returned to lay in the bed gritting his teeth in pain.
While that was happening. Sharifa was outside also saddened by the news, she already cried so much that she could not tear anymore. She could remember Sekani's smiles when they joke and teased each other and his serious face when they are crafting.
"Princess let's head back for now, the scouts will not return until this afternoon. You should rest for a while before they came back." Her mother comforted her and guided her back to his house.
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The horn sounded in the village and it was to alert that there were people coming, and this time around; it was the scouts. Sharifa who heard the horn quickly got out to check, and even Hab who was still injured walked out limping with his father supporting him.
"Sekani?" It was the only word most of the villagers blurted as they saw him like he was a ghost. Sekani could only smile awkwardly while his injuries were wrapped in linen bandages and behind him was the scouts carrying the dead body of the ice wolf.
The villagers welcomed Sekani like a hero and Sharifa could not endure it anymore and embraced Sekani while she cried. "I am fine, sorry for worrying you." Sekani knew what the villagers felt specially Sharifa who became close to him by the day. He also saw Hab at the corner head down and crying.
Sekani approached him and patted his shoulders. "Hab, I am fine now, I apologize for worrying you." Hab finally broke down and embraced Sekani like a long-lost brother while he cried.
It was a very emotional moment but the villagers were happy that Sekani was safe.
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That night Sekani did not only bring the body of the wolf as prize but also news of a pressing issue. According to Sekani's report, when he and the scout team was on their way, beasts were acting strangely. They were somehow agitated, and even those docile beasts are attacking anyone they saw.
"Mhh, this has happened also decades ago when I was around a teenager." Sua said as he knitted his brows. Then he continued his explanation.
Around 20 years ago the Walamian also encountered the same problem; it was somehow a rare event for the tribes but it happened again now in just 20 years which is very rare.
Evolved beast are rare, and they are usually considered guardians, but if one is born there will be chaos in the wild. It destabilized the balance of power between guardians and their hunting grounds are disrupted also. Battles will usually occur between the new guardian and the old, no matter what the result; chaos will always occur.
A chain effect will happen, and many of the high ranking beasts escape and hunt on other grounds which irritates the beasts in that area. Scarcity of food, stress, and scarcity of female mates will lead to them getting aggressive and sometimes attack village and towns which they do not usually do.
"Why don't we find the new guardian and kill it so that the balance will return." Sekani with curiosity asked. He knows it is difficult, but he needs information about these guardians.
"These guardians are strong, they are rank around X and aside from their strength they are evolved and has higher intelligence and possess lots of skills. And the most terrifying thing was they can command lesser beasts in their lineage. Making it more difficult, that is why we need a proper army to defeat one." Sua said with serious face making the others nervous.
"Then how do we deal with it." Sekani asked again now satisfied of the details.
"Nothing, they will just calm down eventually, but we still need to double our security from now onwards till it calmed down, and lessen the hunting." Sua said with worried look.
Sekani knew that life was hard even without encountering troubles, and now that a troublesome issue came, it would be much harder.
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After a few days, a small celebration was held during the night after everything settled in the village. It was to honor the bravery of Sekani. He was presented with the highest rank in their military called 'Star Warrior'. Wearing his necklace with a golden fang as its pendant; he can now command any warrior in the Walamian tribe.
Every elder had speeches and came Sharifa's turn. "Sekani, I thank you with all my heart for not only saving me and also my brother." She bowed respectfully to Sekani, and he just smiled and welcomed it. But it changed after Sharifa's second sentence.
"I would like you to be my husband." Sharifa took of his an inch wide golden bracelet carved with the symbol of a white wolf's head all around. The wolf's head was facing front, and the texture of it seems to be made of ivory. It was simple and elegant.
She stood there with both hands cupped and securing the bracelet while offering it to Sekani. He did not know what to do and looked at the elders, but they just smiled and nodded and even Hab was giving a thumbs up.
Sekani was so nervous after looking at her again. Sharifa was very beautiful that day with her white linen long dress with an inch wide strap; simple dangling star earings and moon pendant necklace.
With his heart thumping very intensively he slowly grabbed the bracelet. "Guess this was my good karma for being kind." He thought to himself. After grabbing the bracelet and wearing it, Sua approached and gave him another same bracelet but with black wolves.
"In our culture men should also give their bracelet to the woman, but since you have none; this will be yours." Sua smiled and offered the bracelet. After receiving it, he then offered it with two hands also imitating Sharifa.
The villagers clapped and shouted their names merrily, and they were approached by the elders and the relatives of the royal family which is Sua. They do not have the exact system of monarchy, but they still follow a monarchical kind of system with the tribe leader as their king and his family the royalties. The only difference is the beliefs and other rules.
