Continue your journey
Your shirt tears slightly, revealing a long wound. Meldibar shakes his
head in disbelief.
"Why didn't you tell me about this?" He asks. You stare at
him, your eyes telling volumes. He looks carefully at you, then nods.
"You didn't know," he continues, "I understand."
He opens his rucksack, withdrawing a small blue bottle, and a long
roll of cloth.
"This may hurt," he warns. Then, with a gentleness never
before seen in werewolves, he dripped some dark liquid onto the wound.
You buckle up with pain, arching your back as he whispers �I'm sorry.�
Then, he firmly wraps the bandage round your chest, tying it up in a
firm knot.
�There, does that feel better?� He questions. You nod, your throat
still choked by tears. He gives you big warm hug, rubbing your back. A
memory stirs in your mind, your father�rubbing your back�being taken
away�changed. You look back into Meldibar�s eyes.
�What is you name?� he asks. You wriggle around uncomfortably. You
think harder, until one word rings in your head. �Mirabel, my name is
Mirabel.� A spark of recognition flares in his eyes, and some of your
suspicions are confirmed. You continue on, saying nothing. As you
reach the beginnings of the scrublands, a loud howl comes from the
trees.
A swarm of small shapes drop from the trees. As they rush towards you,
you suddenly recognize them, �GOBLINS!� you cry. Meldibar spins
around, snarling.
�Draw your sword Mirabel; it�s time that you used it!� You start to
draw your sword, but then as a turn of thought crosses your mind, you
let it fall back into the scabbard, and put an arrow to your bow. �No,
Mirabel!� Meldibar orders, �It�s too far away!� Ignoring him, you pull
the bowstring taut. As the leading goblin gets in your sights, you
release the string, sounding a loud twang as the arrow arches across
the sky, striking the goblin in the middle of the forehead. Meldibar
gasps, �That was amazing!� he breathes, �I swear that only a daughter
of the Anears could do that!�
With a cry of surprise, the goblins turned and fled. You stand there,
knocked by the thought. You? A daughter of Anears? It couldn�t be
true! Meldibar gathers you up in one arm. You struggle against his
unstoppable power.
�No.� He bundles you up. �You are tired, sleep.� You drowsily try to
keep your eyelids up, but slowly, they droop shut, releasing you from
the world of the wary, to the dreaming world of sleep. Meldibar
carries on into the night, his unfathomable strength holding off all,
until the morning.
As you carry on, you feel a strange pain in your side. You say nothing
to Meldibar, but as you continue, the pain grows. Suddenly you can
hold it no longer. You scream, causing Meldibar to turn suddenly and
shout "What is the matter?"
