Communion “Damn it, old man! Where are you taking me?” The old man turned around to face his nephew, a sour Took on his face. “So impatient. It's not your bones creakin’ up thisill. You're young and strong. So shut up.” He turned back around and kepe walking up the steep bill, reaching out to grasp pine branches to pull himself up, Little John Fox shook his head in disgust. His uncle was older than God, they said on the res. He sure acted like it. Dragging him out in this weather — cold enough to freeze amanaliveifhe stoodstillfor oolong —andmarchinghim up Vision Hill before the sun even rose high enough to at least thaw some of the ice. The old man had to be senile. ‘mon, Uncle. Let’sjustgetback in the pickupand turn con the heater, We're goingto freeze ourassesblue out he The old man didn’t respond. He kepe pulling himself methodically up the hill, even though the effort seemed to cause him pain, But his endurance never seemed to run out; he never paused, he just kept going. Lite John sighed and followed him, quickly carci up. He had come back co the reservation from eve to sec his family and give chem some of the money he'd earned in the city. He never expected his uncle to wake him at three in the morning, force him inc his beat-up pickup truck and driveallehe way out here. His father was upand looked worried, but he howed his head when Jobin asked him to calm Uncledown toger him ro stop with this foolishness. He just said, "Respect your uncle, sr Respect what? An old coot who thought he was shaman? Joba sneered behind his uncle's hack. He knew real shamans now, not the crazy old human kind, but the wolfen kind. He felt a flush of p thing he couldn't tell his folks tha had happened to him at college. How he'd changed into a werewolf. No, he couldn't let them know because his enemies would come The Wyrm had many minions, all too ready to hunt the innocent, He didn't like leaving his new pack behind for ide at bis secret, the one Communion et enthe weekend, but Mother Larissa insisted hve see his par- ents, Why she gave a damn, he didn’t know. But he did as Fhe was told. And he was regretting it Hisuncle disappeared over the rise and John knew that they had reached the top. He ran the last few steps co join his uncle, walking across an open field of snow and heading for a large rock “You have never been here before,” Uncle said as he walked, “And that'smny fault. Iwastoo busy when you wes rowing up, when you needed chis the most. Then you ‘went away’ and it was too late. But now you'te back and we'll ge chs done right.” Set what done, Uncle? You haven't told me what all this is about.” “You learned all sorts of had ways growing up. Helping the warriors un liquor and cigarettes, getting shot at and shootinygback. Lucky you werenever caught. Ifyou wound tap in jail, we might never have seen you again.” “Look, don't get down on the warriors, They're just trying to make good money. Nobody lets usearn anything the leyal way, so if we have to break the law, then so be it ‘The money I made got me to college, remember” Oh, yeah, college. Real important. They'll fill your head al full of erap. Fil itso thick nothing else wil fit in Nothing good, at least. How much do you know of our traditional ways, Litele Joh: “don’t need to know much, Most of that’s in the past. Our ways are now.” Uncle shook hishead and stoppedas he goto the rock He began to pull things out of his Teather bag: a pipe, tobacco, rattle and some animal reeth and claws, "Our past snow. Our ways are forever. They havent forgotten, and we've got co honor them. Ie's our duty.” “Who are they?” “The spirits. The animals. Those beings all around us who give us life and protect us from evil.” Little John smiled. He knew about spirits: he'd seen some of them, Larissa said he was a Theutge a sprit man But he knew that only the Garou could teach him about spirits, because only they could see them, travel to their nd the Umbra, Humans ike Uncle might he touched by them, but they couldn't ralk to them, really. He sighed Time to humor the old man. “Okay, spirits. | know about them. Let’s light up the pipe and smoke a few for them and go home, okay?” Unele glared at him, "Sit down. Well smoke, all right. But it ain’ tobacco.” Litele John sat down, confused. “What do you mean? That's not hash, isi? [didn’t expect that from you.” Uncle smiled. "No, it’s not marijuana, e's something special. Something I made up just for you and your jour- ney." He began packing herbs into the pipe, and John. ould tll by the colors — white, yellow and red — that it wasn’t tobacco. “Journey?! thought this hill was our journey. You mean, we're going somewher Uncle lit the pipe with a match and faced the east. He offered the pipe to that direction, mumbling to himself. He then tuned in a circle, offering smoke tall the directions He then tooka puff himself A smile erepr onto hisface and he looked around, giggling, He winked to the air, then handed the pipe to John. “Go ahead, chey're waiting.” John shrugged his shoulders and took atoke. He held it inand couldn't help bursmile himself. lefelt oes, slightly euphoric, He opened his eyes and saw Unele stare at hit smiling. But his smile was full of sharp tecth and his eyes those of a wolf John's throat caught and he b ently. He shut his eyes as they hegan to water and then opened them again. His uncle was gone and the land- scape had come alive. The moon was up and the sun was gone. The pine trees swayed in a bre be watching him. He couldn't say why, but he felt eyes all over him. He stood up and looked for Uncle, There was no sign of him; even the pipe and animal fetishes were gone. Little John shook his head tn clear it. muse have slept for hours. That stuff is powerful, Wonder what it was. Uncle must be back atthe truck a coughing vio- 1 coughing. hut seemed to He began walking in the direction from where they'd come when he heard a branch snap in the nearby woods. He halted and looked around. Nothing, Must have heen a squirrel, He kept walking. ‘Somethingsmall and white launched itselffrom the edge of the woods right onto is chest. Surprised, John slipped in the snow and fell. A rabbit sat on his chest, looking right into his eyes. John swore it was grinning at him. Then, it spoke: “I got him! Hurry up, while he's still down!” Theareaexploded intoactivity- A deerran forward and landed on hislegs, pinning them down. A moose galloped forward and landed his two front legs onto Joba's shout ders, pinning them down and snapping his collarhones. ‘Aaargh!" John yelled. “Getoffof me! Wk ‘The rabbit bean biting his neck, opening his jugular. Blood sprayed into the air and across the snow, staining, the rabbit's fur red. The deer began nibbling at his lees devouring his hastrings. John gaped in horror, his mind fogyy with pain. ‘A raven flew from the sky and landed on his cheek: sn [get in on this? “Sure!” the rabbit said. "But hs livers mine.” “No problem,” the raven said. “I like eyes.” And it reached its beak down and plucked out John’s right eye John screamed and tried to shift inte Crinos form, His body began co change, fur growing out and his chest expanding. The cabbie yelled out: "Just what was waiting for!” and burrowed into his expanding rib cae, reaching in and nibbling his liver. John fainted Axis Mundi