The Servant of the Wolf

Astrid was in the field that belonged to her family, wrapped in a stillness only interrupted
by the sound that her sickle made when it hit the red rye. It was almost evening and she was
alone, her parents had been working outside the borderlands for months and her brother
should not delay in returning once he sold the supplies in the nearest town.

So despite her young age, just fifteen years, she was in charge of her small farm when the
others were busy. And she agreed with that. She preferred a family atmosphere, far from
the noise of the cities that were gradually modernizing and leaving behind something they
had always treasured in their family: magic.

Beautiful magic. Dangerous magic. As much an inhabitant of the world as they are, but
displaced by their dependence on destiny. You did not choose it, it was she who pointed at
you with her finger and marked the rest of your life, whether you wanted to or not.

When Astrid had been cutting the field for almost two hours, she ended up filling a wicker
basket hanging from her shoulders. She straightened up and stretched her back, glancing
back. It was the third to fill to the top, with a sigh she smiled. After so much effort with all
the rye collected she could prepare the best red bread. She took off the large straw hat she
wore during the harvest and fanned herself with it.

She had already decided to enter the house when she spotted something among the grown
stems that moved with speed. Then a harmonious shriek. She knelt down and welcomed a
small blue rabbit with open arms. Which was not normal, not just its color; instead of flesh
it was made of a sweet smoke that shaped it.

Astrid moved closer to caress him and her fingers did not pierce his bluish fur. It was as
soft as silk. Then she heard more screams. They were her friend's companions.

- What is it, little ones? -she asked. She noticed them restless, and was right. The creatures
jumped into place and with twists they pointed to the east, where Astrid knew the beach
was. They found something they wanted to show her.
Without pausing to think about it Astrid left the basket full of rye at the entrance to her
house and got into her family's cart. The old pair of horses dragged the wooden vehicle at a
slow but steady pace.

Finally, she glimpsed in the distance the line of the sea and, closer stranded in the sand, a
boat. But what surprised her were the people next to the boat, who were conscious. The
young girl got out of the cart and approached quickly. They were a man who appeared to be
coming of age and a girl who hopefully reached nine. Both were dressed in dark clothes,
soaked by the shipwreck and stained with mud. They also shared a cinnamon-colored skin,
which contrasted with their bright eyes.

The man saw her and tensed until Astrid's features were recognizable. She was aware of her
beauty and the effect it had on others. For some reason her whitish skin, golden hair picked
up in a messy ribbon at the nape of her neck and aquamarine eyes made people let their
guard down.

With the silent permission of the shipwrecked, Astrid approached.

- Are you all right? What happened to you? -Said in the sweetest voice she could intone.

At first the young man was reluctant to speak, but as he continued to look at the girl, his
words gradually came out.

-My sister and I... we expected to reach the capital of Magnolia, but in the middle of the sea
a storm broke out and... we lost our way. I thought we were going to die. -His voice
sounded tired, defeated.

Astrid looked at them for a moment and made a decision. She had work to do.

-If you want, I can help you. I will take them to my farm to give them shelter and a good
plate of food.

The man, even with his defenses down, showed a hint of mistrust. Astrid noticed it and
leaned toward him, with an idea in mind. It worked.

-Wait, those marks on your face...

He finally figured it out. The magic that Astrid's family loved so much marked them as it
should be. In the case of the youngest daughter, beneath her eyes was a delicate web of blue
lines, which disappeared at the hairline just above her ears.

-You don't have to worry about anything. -This time her voice came out caramelized,
fulfilling the role they expected of her.

-Sister, wake up. This girl is a flutist. We are saved!

The beautiful magic blessed her, her and her family, as a flutist, a person with affinity to
nature and its spirits. Little is known about her customs, at least for the general public. Only
on certain nights they played their instrument and became one with the earth and whatever
was on it. People destined to take care of the world that is their home.

She knew it very well, she had been selected from birth and would fulfill the desire for
magic whenever necessary.

The girl leaned on her brother and looked at her with big puppy eyes. She was very thin.
Both needed food.

Satisfied, Astrid told them to get in the carriage and leave before the tide rose. During the
short trip she met them, they were called Solas and Elaine, both orphans who were looking
for fortune and a better life in the capital. The typical dream of the fugitives.

Once at their farm, illuminated by the scarce rays of sunshine, she took them inside, where
she illuminated the dining room with white candles and offered them a good loaf of bread,
cheese and fresh milk as an aperitif. The brothers ate with enthusiasm, so engrossed in their
stomachs that they only ate and ate, while Astrid in turn prevented the table from running
out of food.

Cinnamon-colored hands grabbed bread, smoked meat, fruit mixes, juices, dairy products
and even caramel sweets. Both were so full that they practically tucked into the dining
room chairs.

Seeing them almost falling asleep due to fatigue and a full stomach, Astrid showed them a
guest room, which her family always had unoccupied in case some lover of the open field
passed by and needed a place to spend the night.
-Thank you very much for your kindness, young flutist. We owe you our lives.

-Don't worry about it, we are destined to keep our word.

In a totally outlandish impulse, Solas kissed her on the cheek, surprising her. She was not
accustomed to the treatment of people outside her family. When she saw them it was from a
distance, because her parents or brother took on the role of host. It was her first time alone.

The young man separated from her slowly, apparently distressed but with a mischievous
gleam in his eyes. He murmured a "good night" and took shelter in the room.

Astrid was paralyzed in her place. Although she was surprised, the sudden contact did not
seem entirely unpleasant to her. Slowly she touched her cheek, as if the kiss had left a mark
on her skin. She felt it warm. It was, in a sense, comforting. And one more reason to see her
existence as something beneficial to the world.

Coming out of that stupor, the girl went to her room, from where she came out with an
object wrapped in a clean green cloth. She held it in her hands like a treasure as she headed
outside, extinguishing the candles on the way.

Standing at the entrance to her house she whistled into the moonlit night. Soon her rabbit
friends materialized. Since the meeting with the brothers they had disappeared into thin air,
but they never left. They were accompanying them on the way back and during dinner, they
even observed with their deep red eyes Astrid's kiss perched on the nearby shelves, as still
as statues.

Now with the guests in a deep sleep they could stop hiding. The young girl marked by
magic smiled at them and unwrapped the object, which was as precious as her life: a finely
crafted golden flute adorned with tiny floral vines. Her main working tool.

The three creatures watched her, expectantly, sitting on their hind legs and heads slightly
inclined, as if they wanted to understand the situation. And of course they did. Just as she
had practiced several times before all alone. They were prepared and anxious.

Astrid took a deep breath, filling her lungs as much as she could, brought the flute closer to
her lips and blew. The night was not interrupted by the melodious whistle of the instrument,
it became one with him, the wonderful combination of tranquility and mystery.
The blue rabbits, true spirits of the forest, woke up. Attentive to the music, something
asleep inside trembled, and they let themselves be carried away. The change began.

Even keeping their original color and made by smoke, they became bestial.

They grew in size, their legs were crowned with razor-sharp silver claws. The extremities
increased with musculature and the head, previously so adorable, presented a mouth full of
fangs, eyes elongated with vertical irises, accompanied by a third, which opened in their
forehead.

Thus the young girl finished the first part of the song and was surprised to see her beloved
companions. They were almost twice her height, they could stand without problems on
their hind legs, now so slender with claws similar to knives.

For the first time she witnessed her true form, and she felt proud of herself. Her parents
would be so proud. She was tempted to caress them as she had done for as long as she
could remember but stopped with one hand raised. The first part was finished, the second
was to be done without interruption.

With parsimony, she returns to play the flute with her lips. This time the sound was duller
and with a single note. The creatures enthralled by the music blinked several times, turned
into a blue cloud that enveloped her and soaked in her silent orders. Then the cloud entered
the house.

Astrid preferred to stay outside while they did their job.

Solas had not slept since he and his sister had escaped in search of a better life. Far from
long hours of exhausting work, a terrible remuneration and, above all, far from a tutor
whom Solas, taking the place of his small family, put up with mistreatment.

When the storm caught them and the journey was over, the gods put in their way a beautiful
girl who was willing to help them. And nothing less than a flute player.
After so much time he and Elaine finally had a full stomach and a bed ready to rest. But he
still could not let himself be carried away by sleep. Something, he didn't know very well
what, kept him awake.

He sat on the bed and watched his sister sleeping next to him. Her face looked peaceful. No
doubt he loved her, he would do anything for her. To Solas, it was a small creature he had
to protect.

He caressed her head gently, something to which she did not react as expected, and covered
herself more with the blanket. He could not wait for the dawn to come and continue their
journey. He would probably ask the piper for provisions for the road and perhaps, just
perhaps, and she would like to continue to help them...

Almost seduced by sleep a slight smell woke him up. At that time everything was dark and
Elaine's soft breath could barely be heard, she skewered between the blankets. Solas
concentrated. No doubt there was something different. It was a sweet aroma different from
the food they had enjoyed before.

His survival instinct made him rise and he headed for his backpack lying in a corner of the
room. He searched his pockets and drew out a small knife with which he used to skin prey.
A souvenir of his late grandfather.

- What is it brother? -said Elaine. Apparently his movement woke her up, she was already
rubbing her eyes.

-No, it's nothing. Go back to sleep, a long journey awaits us. -He put the knife behind his
back, it's not as if he could see it well in the dark, but above all didn't want to scare her
unnecessarily. It had to be his imagination.

The girl nodded between yawns and lay down again.

- May I have some water? -she asked in a whisper.

-Of course. I'll be right back. -It was the answer of Solas, who was already going out the
door when Elaine shouted. A heartbreaking cry.
Even in the darkness Solas, terrified, distinguished between the shadows an animal. Giant
and wild. The mutant rabbit-like thing was squatting on the bed with its fangs stalking
Elaine, cornering her in the corner of the bed. Trapped.

The sweet smell of earlier hit Solas hard in the nose. He saw the smoke coming out of the
thing and his sister's face, now more clearly. She cried, frightened.

He wanted to take action. He lifted the knife and ran to bed when a claw pushed him. His
back hit the wall and he could see another one of those things, exactly the same, with his
front legs raised.

The blow made him dizzy. He tried to get up and attack but it was too late.

- Brother! -Elaine shouted just before the creature extinguished the voice with its great
jaws. The girl's body collapsed to the ground, rivers of blood running from the pit where
her head once stood.

Solas could only scream. His sister was dead. The sudden loss of his loved one was as
heartbreaking as the scream that announced the end of the little one. He would never see
her again. She was dead.

And he too would be soon if he did not do something.

Forgetting the physical pain he threw himself at the nearest animal. He buried the knife in
his neck, but it went through him.

Are they really made of smoke? he thought, moving away. The strange rabbits were staring
at him, mortally still. The one in bed still had Elaine's blood dripping from his mouth.

Anger and fear froze him. Enough for the second to attack him head-on, but Solas was able
to pull back in time. The claws tore through his chest, leaving wounds.

Feeling the running pain he checked the marks for a second. They were not so deep.
Undeterred he threw the knife, waiting for the creatures to be distracted. And so it was.

Holding the wound, the best he could, ran out the door. He passed through the house in the
dark, not paying attention to whether he was being followed or not. He did not think of
Astrid either. Where his savior would be.
He could escape into the night with the moon as his witness, wounded, orphaned and
pursued by monsters. He continued running until he reached the field of red rye without
slowing down.

The plants stung him in the chest. His legs trembled in the race, resisting his speed. His
stomach wanted to return the best dinner he ever had in his short life.

Would his fate be devoured by monsters made of smoke in the middle of nowhere? Was he
really so hated by everyone? By the Gods?

He almost wanted to laugh at his situation. Such irony that when he sees hope, it is
destroyed.

With effort he forced himself to continue running, almost reaching the end of the field,
although he did not know what he would do next. If he managed to save himself.

He barely set foot on the ground when a large silhouette appeared in front of him. It was
another Monster, it was waiting for him.

He could not reverse fast enough. The thing leapt with its powerful hind legs and fell on
him. The weight took his breath away. Despite being out of shape the rabbit lived up to its
size.

Solas found himself face down in the red rye field with the drooling monster of expectation.

He tried to get rid of it but it was useless. The doomed one did not move. Solas struck the
ground with his fists again and again. His throat screamed with hatred and despair. Tears
streamed down the dirt on his face. His legs were completely trapped.

The thing supported its claws in front of Solas as it exposed its dangerous teeth. The eye on
his forehead looked directly at him without blinking, challenging him to flee.

Already defeated, Solas could only groan in pain at his situation. He could do no more.

The monstrous rabbit delighted in his human feast.

Too bad his prey did not scream for the last time.
Astrid had seen it all. Deep down she would have wanted to help them, but it would have
been a waste. Or so she wanted to think.

At last it had dawned and the only evidence that strangers had been in her house was the
dried blood from the room where they slept and on the field, which mixed with the rye
plantation. There was no trace of their bodies or their clothing.

Shortly after devouring the unfortunate, her friends found her sitting in the dining room.
They were small and normal again. They also looked more lively, the first meal is always
gratifying. They accompanied her as she parsimoniously cleaned her flute.

She was still at work with the echoes of screams in her mind when her brother finally
appeared. Nazan looked very much like her, he had a beauty that could entice both men and
women even if he wasn't magnificent. He was tall and thin, with long blond hair and always
disheveled. It was mostly his eyes, almost celestial, that caught his victims. His marks drew
graceful green swirls on his cheeks.

The horses pulling the cart announced his arrival and Astrid went out to meet him, followed
by his companions.

Nazan stepped down from the cart with his spirits by his side. They were three hunting
mastiffs, their colors varying from forest green to a deep blue.

To Astrid's astonishment, her brother was not surprised to see the blood in their house. He
gave a long whistle as he left his backpack in the living room.

-Who would think my little sister would grow so much in one night? -He stirred her playful
hair. -Just wait for Mom and Dad to find out. Although they would have preferred, like me,
that you take care of them a little farther from our house.

- Was it really good? At first, I wanted to help them but my rabbits asked for their first meal
and...

-Don't worry about it. They are to blame for trusting strangers. Besides, you couldn't refuse
your friends. Remember," he gently grabbed her shoulder and brought his face very close to
hers, "you always have to satisfy the Wolf. Do it or you will be dead.
Astrid nodded. He was right. They were truly servants of the Great Six-Eyed Wolf. Her
beloved and loyal servants. She had just proved it for the first time.

And, as her family had always proved to her, it would not be the last.