Dou Marcam [namelesshero x SoulNote]

[SoulNote]

Watching over the valley, Gordon goes back on all four. Sniffing the air, he turns his head left and right, “Nothing here” he growls. They need more meat before the humans arrives in their valley. Gordon makes a small growl to let the pack know that there is a small deer group ahead of them. Gordon starts to run towards the meat. In position he makes a howl, the rest of the pack makes a circle around the group. Silver white teeth, drooling with a red tongue sticking out of his mouth locks the first deer in his view. The once green valley with its quite bird whispering gets covered by gallons of blood and deer screaming.

[namelesshero]

The souls shine proudly after a battle
The birds have a belief:
This is the only way to obtain immortal soul


There was no one who could define a sky. Beyond the Earth, every inches of it, lies the eternal horizon, the Celestial Dome upon which everyone lived under. A grand sphere without start and without end, defying the Will of Gods itself. Within the sky, within the ether circulating in it, were those who lived by the Will of the Sky. The birds who soared high beyond humans' reach. Wings which brought them into the infinity beyond.

A place where only the chosen could walk through. The Holy Garden.

Above, the Sun glared proudly. Below, the Earth mocked those who had no wings. They who could never dance and stride and tread on the endless sky. All, except one which She dared not to tell. Because the one had no wings, yet the one played in that sacred palace.

But the day was different, for that particular one was not going toward the sky; its destination was the Earth below, who proceeded to give the harshest welcome to ones who defied the Will of Gods. From the sky fell down an object, its shape concealed by the glaring sun such that no one could clearly tell what it was. Its speed caught up with the Earth's embrace, slowly but sure accelerating to insane speed.

From the pale azure toward the deep blue toward the patches of green, that one kept on plummeting down, unaware that there were others treading the Earth. Several animals, wolves apparently, their teeth still gnawing on their unlucky prey. However, that one didn't go toward their direction. Rather, it went a bit farther, crashing down on the thick foliage of trees and bushes.

Loud noises echoed in the entire valley as the impact shook the ground. Trunks fell, leaves scattered without mercy. As of the one which fell down...to guess that it had been reduced into ashes would be a correct answer. However, once more those who defied the Will of Gods proved that they could even play around with fate.

On the center of the giant crater, remnants of the once-glorious forest patch, was a brown-haired girl. She didn't open her eyes, but no signs of wound was apparent on her skin.

[SoulNote]

Gordon howls and the others join him. Something is falling from the sky, something the valley of the wolf have never experienced. The wolfs stand ready behind Gordon, they growl and scratches the ground with their claws. Gordon is afraid this will be something that would hurt his tribe. Staring at the ball, has it makes a huge sound when hitting the ground. Walking five small steps towards it, *Sniff*. "Human!" Gordon howls to the beta hound to take care of the pack, "Go back! to the other end of our valley. Myself and my mate will take care of this"

The big brown wolf runs the other direction from which the ball formed house came from. They barked and tried to scare the ball away, by flashing their teeth. The black wolf's mate, a white beauty with no dirt in her fur stands beside him. Slowly but steady Gordon walks, but this time his size goes up. When he reaches the height of a small house, he stands looking at the human smelling creature.

[namelesshero]

Long live was the endless blue, where dreams reached beyond boundaries. It was quiet, once, except for the howls of the beasts. However, at this once another kind of noises filled the air. If the beasts ruled the Earth with their sharp fangs and steel-like claws, the voices belongs to those living in the sky. Chirps. Chirps. Birds flocked from their nests in the tall treetops, one by one flew circling where the crater was. They had no fear of the beast, as they always did in their entire life.

The human, the girl, slowly opened her eyes, the twin bluish hue moved toward where the songs were sung. Her face was lifted upward, her gaze ever-flowing toward the emptiness above. A few birds approached her. She lifted up one of her hands, letting them stood on it. Only later that she noticed the two beast...one beast, and another one which was somehow different.

This entire time, her face was fashioned with a smile. So did when her lips started to part, her joyous voice joining the chorus echoing up above. "Nice to meet you," she chimed.

[SoulNote]

Gordon sat down, still staring at the strange human. The birds came down to her, telling how long they have been waiting for this person. Gordon understood one thing, she was not a normal human being. Their smell, rotten rabbit meat mixed with blood from a bat. She smelled of the north wind,smelling her made him remember the cold north wind. He felt different in her presence.


His mate was still growling, staring at every single little move she made. "If she moves towards you, i will rip her to pieces" she Howled angrily towards her.

Gordon laid down, his body became smaller, his fur sucked into his skin and laying with his head on the white wolfs belly. It was Gordon in his human form, relaxing staring with the same eyes. She sang like a happy bird towards them. Gordon replied, "Hello, what are you doing here?" his tone was not happy, but it was neither angry. "I will be careful not to make a quick move, or my mate will eat you. She doesn't hate you, she is only over protective when i turn into this-this from you call human" Gordon petted his mate on the head and made a barking sound. She licked his face and laid down.

[namelesshero]

The strangest thing happened beyond her eyes. The beast, once in the form of a wolf, was now smelled, talked, lived like a human being. Yet she didn't flinch, neither did the birds. They feared not the beast because they considered them neither friends nor enemies. The birds long believed that nothing was impossible under the blue sky, and such she wasn't surprised by his sudden transformation.

The girl lifted her hand higher, causing the birds atop her palm to fly away. The chorus had stopped as the birds returned to their life. Some stayed in the tall treetops, others resumed their journey in the ever-expanding sky. On the other hand, she stayed on the ground, her eyes didn't wander far from the man and his 'mate'. "What am I doing here...? To tell you the truth, that's what I want to ask to myself, too," with a light step, ignoring the man's warning, she leapt out from the crater. Like a feather dancing in the wind, her slim figure soared easily. Her feet landed in front of the two beast, the smile from before never left her lips.

"Let me introduce myself again, then. My name is Aeria, nice to meet you," she extended her hand, waiting for a shake.

[SoulNote]

The girls movements controlled by elegance and purity was with in her smooth movements. She lifted her hand, and the birds flew back to their own nests. Answering his question he watched her leap over to them. Something was totally different from when a normal human takes a jump. The air held her in its palm lifting her gently so she wouldn't break. His eyes was big from watching the air flow go around her.

Standing in front of them Gordon held a hand over the growling wolfs nose, staring her back down. "Stay down" He made sure his wolf wouldn't attack her. He started over again with a more mannered way, his rudeness from before came from his repugnance of smelly human begins. "Hello Aeria, my name is Gordon" he took her hand and gave it the shake she had been waited for. He took a step back, "I have to apologize for my rude behavior. My past with humans was not, of the most pleasant i have been trough"

A howl in the distance, came to Gordon ear. "Areia, we have to leave. The humans had spotted your entrance, and they have a way of handling newcomers with metal" Making a howl back, the white wolf tapped her nose on Arias hand "She wants you to sit on her back, i will take your house with me. We need to run further into the woods, before the humans turn their gaze on you" Standing besides her the white wolf licked her hand. Gordon turned back into the big shadow colored being bigger most of the trees. He stood in front of them, to scare of any human with in their gaze "Let's go!"

[namelesshero]

His shake was firm and strong, obviously a fist belonging to a man. It made her wonder which was the true form of this particular person; the beast, or the human? Such power to transform was something not of this nature, something beyond normal understanding. Perhaps...it was similar to her. One way or another.

As he responded in a courtly manner, she chuckled. His way with words changed so fluently. He was surely not a mindless beast, even if he lived amongst the beasts. "It is a nice family, Gordon. I wonder if your power..." she was about to inquire his ability to transform, yet a howl distracted the others from her. It was a sign of something, which she couldn't understand clearly, but the man explained it to her without her needing to ask.

"Humans..." he talked as if he wasn't one of them. Had his ties with people so thin? Nevertheless, she obliged, sitting atop the beautiful white wolf. It felt different than riding a horse. Wilder, but at the same time more firm. She clenched the wolf's fur tight so she wouldn't fall.

[SoulNote]

Running behind them Gordon replayed the unfinished question, "I will answer, your questions when we are alone" Gordon's steps were heavy and shook the ground every time one of his paws hit the ground. They trees lined up nearly as a shield so the humans couldn't see them. The white wolf headed to into the thicker part of the forest, the trees branches holding hands no tree stood alone.

"Keep calm and let, her guide you; she won't harm you anymore. The white wolf will lead you into a place where no man has ever placed its view" Gordon turned back into human standing in front of the entrance. His formed changed again, not a wolf but a hawk. *Squeek* He flew high up over the forest, using his eyesight to find where the humans had placed themselves. *Squeek* he looped around and flew back down between the leafs to the animal's sanctuary. Where the mate of Gordon and Aeria stood.

Gordon turned from a little hawk back to the normal sized human showing the Latin Word "Animalis" on his arm. "We are safe, for now. The humans are on the track of the beta male" He laid down besides his kin, she began to lick his neck. "So, your question?" he said, laying down his head on her paw.

[namelesshero]

The wolves led her to a place beneath the sea of leaves. Trees were their protectors, a place where the hands of humans couldn't reach. The sanctuary of the beasts. Aeria stepped down from the white wolf as soon as they arrived, worrying that carrying her weight would harm the wolf. Given how light she leapt though, even with Aeria atop her, the worry seemed meaningless.

It was beautiful in a way. While humans created beauties from their imaginations, such place was wild beyond recognition. Mother Nature shaped this place based on its image. Aeria glanced at the wolf; she looked rather content now, although just a while ago she'd growled angrily toward the human girl. The wolf had placed a lot of trust on Gordon.

Gust of wind blown in an instant, caused by the flapping of a majestic animal's wings. Although small, the hawk caught Aeria's attention immediately. Something was different with this hawk; what was in her mind became reality as the bird changed into the human figure she knew. This time, in the midst of his transform, she caught a glimpse of the Word engraved on his arm. "Animalis".

"How did you do that?" She questioned in awe. "Changing into a wolf, then a hawk...what are you actually...?"

======

Hunters treaded the forest with a mix of caution and haste. The presence of the wolves in "their" valley was a source of constant unease, especially because the wolves were too cunning to be caught. They'd rushed into the valley because of the sudden explosion happening in its center, yet their objective had changed the moment they spotted the wolf.

It seemed to be the whole pack, but rather than attacking back, the wolves retreated into the sea of trees. As usual, the humans couldn't keep up with them. Soon they were left behind, forever lost their track. It had been occuring for years, and the villagers could do nothing but grind their teeth each time the wolves took their share of the hunt. For the humans, selfish as they were, the valley were theirs, and the wolves were a nuisance.

"They went that way. Please, mister..."

"Grado," said the man covered entirely by brown-colored robe. His face was hidden by his hood, yet one could see a scar running from his forehead to his chin. "Do not forget that the price is high..." he grinned, showing lines of sharp teeth. The villagers hired him out of desperation, yet at the same time they started to question themselves.

Since the man felt more like a beast rather than a human...