Isilmé tilted her face to the bright sunlight and smiled into its warmth as she crested the hill.
It had been three weeks now since she'd set foot beyond her father's druid grove on her way to the humanr's main city of Storm Keep and now she could see it' s massive stone walls nestled into a shallow valley, pressed against the mountain face like a nursing infant. She turned with her clear smile to the young lean wolf that was loping from the thick, shadowed tree line to her side.
"We're here Narmo." The pup seemed to smile back at her, panting softly in the summer's heat. She absently scratched just behind his right ear as her quicksilver eyes followed the path her feet would take to the city's main gates. It seemed a metropolis of tents resided across the flat plain between the hills and the castle walls. Cloth of every style and color rippled gently in the wind, spread out before her like a kaleidoscope playground. She adjusted the single strap of her leather bag more comfortably across her shoulder and headed down the hill.
Even before she descended the hill completely a million scents caught the breeze to find her. Foods and spices, perfumes and potions, it was all so new to her. As she entered the sprawling lanes of cloth and wooden frames she was astounded the buzz of life. People crammed the narrow makeshift alleys, vying for space, attention, or a clear way to make their way through to the next booth, though everyone made way for a donkey drawn cart, driven by a grizzled man who paid no heed to what was ahead of him. Here and there, back and forth were shouts from this vendor or that, slander against this man's ability to work armor, boasts of the potency of this man's tonics.
Watching in rapt fascination, Isilmé didn't notice Narmo tearing through the tall grass behind her, after a rabbit and headed straight for the mass of humanity. As something from a nightmare Narmo emerged from the grass at a full run, jaws gaping as he swooped down on the terrified rabbit. It was only a matter of moments before the marketplace changed from a bustling business area to a screaming bloody riot. Before her mind would recognize what was happening, Isilmé sat in horror as she watched three panicked men knock over a woman, throwing an infant from her arms. The baby's screams seemed enough to pierce Isilm's stupor and she bolted into action.
Frantically she endeavored to maneuver through the writhing hysteria, trying with all her might make her voice heard above the shouting and cries of pain and shock. If only she could catch up with the wolf this would all be over and dealt with, but body after body blocked her way, pushing her back with a force much more powerful than her own strength. With a sudden burst of desperation she launched herself into the air, over the heads of her obstacles. She landed sharply on someone's shoulder, but she quickly shifted her weight to her other foot, propelling herself forward onto someone else's back. She felt them tumble beneath her but she fought forward nimbly, Narmo in her sights again, seemingly unaware of the uproar around him as he continued as best as he could after his prey.
"Narmo," she yelled with such force and volume she thought her lungs would break through her chest,"Auta! " As quickly as it had begun it was now over. Narmo froze mid-step and sat, his tongue lolling happily from the side of his mouth. Her words seemed to work not only on her companion but the humans around her as well. They appeared to notice her for the first time now as she tumbled from a man's shoulders to the ground rather unceremoniously.
Isilmé went to Narmo's side quickly, not wanting to look at the carnage behind her though she could feel hundreds of disdainfully incredulous eyes boring into her back. As she hurried herself and Narmo as quickly as possible away from the ruined market she shuddered at the silence in her ears.
She couldn't hear that baby crying anymore.