~ The Wolves' Lair ~
SAPHIRA
"Can you tell him to slow down please?!"
Chloe's urgent cry only paints an amused smile on Saphira's lips as the younger girl clings to her waist for dear life, her face buried in Saphira's back as the wolf whose back they're both on hurtles through the woods. Chloe had been very hesitant to mount Lykos, and it took quite a bit of coaxing to get them both to warm up to the idea. Now that he has to deal with it, he seems intent on making this into as nerve-racking an experience as possible for her. He makes beelines for trees, avoiding them at the last second, or deliberately runs through low-hanging branches to make both girls have get low to his back. He seems to go out of his way to find every boulder or log to leap over and force them to have to cling on tighter.
Lykos can go about with all the antics that he wants, but in truth? Saphira is having a blast. After that ride with him, escaping the avalanche, she found that she had loved the rush it gave her. It was an odd thrill, feeling so alive while so close to death, unlike all other close brushes she has in encounters with monsters.
Chloe on the other hand, doesn't seem like she's enjoying this as much. Saphira can't blame her much. The most Chloe has ever done was hunt down some lone monsters. She's never been in a full-scale battle or otherwise, life-threatening experience.
"I could tell him, but I don't think he'd listen!" Saphira laughs, quickly ducking to avoid getting slapped in the face with a twig.
"Ow!" Chloe's yelp says that she didn't react as fast. "I thought you were like, training him or something!"
"Training him?"
Lykos lets them both know exactly what he thinks of that statement by bucking his hips mid-stride. Saphira squeaks and clings tighter to his fur.
"He's not my pet, Chloe. He's my friend," she corrects the healer girl.
"But he does listen to you, right?"
Saphira laughs again and shakes her head. "When he feels like it!"
"Ugh! Where are we going anyway?" Chloe asks.
"A good hunting ground for elk! Lykos and I always have great luck there! It's just a little far is all!" Saphira calls back over her shoulder. "Don't worry, we're almost there!"
The remainder of the ride continues in the fashion of which it had started. Lykos made it as thrilling for Saphira as it was unenjoyable for Chloe, though towards the end of the ride, even she was beginning to smile and let some laughs escape her. Another ten minutes pass, and finally, the three of them reach the desired hunting ground. It's a beautiful stretch; snowy plains with small clumps of trees dotting here and there, a stream only partially frozen that runs through the center. Hills rise up on either side of the plain that grow into small mountains.
Here, Lykos finally skids to a halt as Saphira slings herself off, landing with a short slide. Chloe is a little slower in her dismount, seeming to be in awe at the sight of their reached destination.
"Wow. It's beautiful here!" she exclaims with a deep breath.
"It is, and look!" Saphira exhales, pointing some distance ahead of them. On the plain, is their prize; a small herd of elk. One bull and maybe half a dozen cows, grazing peacefully. "I told you. This hunting ground is great!"
Lykos already looks greatly intrigued by the sight of their prey, slipping his tongue over his muzzle in anticipation. Saphira considers it a wise move that they get on the hunt now, or else he might just go charging off without them. Hunters are fast… wolves are much faster. Once Lykos gets going, he gets going and there's little they'd be able to do to catch him.
"Come on. Let's move around to those trees over there," Saphira says, pointing at the cluster of woods closest to the herd. "We can get a better shot from there without spooking them."
She and Chloe unsling their bows and scurry to the trees, moving closely to Lykos as he lowers his head in his usual stalking trot. The three move around opposite side of where the herd is, as to not get spotted before they're in position. The goal is usually to bring down an animal without causing them much stress or fear. A clean kill is always preferable for both hunter and prey. Once they're in the trees, they take a position at the tree-line, concealing themselves in the dry shrubbery. Saphira scans the herd, searching for a suitable target. While she's sure Lykos doesn't care either way, she likes to select a healthy animal rather than one that's diseased, unless it's injured in which case, killing it would be mercy.
Setting her sights on a mature, fat-looking cow elk grazing at the edge of the herd, Saphira decides this will be the animal to feed them.
"The cow on the edge there, right side," she whispers softly to Chloe.
"I see it. Ooh, that one looks chunky."
Lykos looks more than ready, crouched down low and prepared to chase should the elk get spooked or somehow survive the first shot. Saphira and Chloe carefully nock arrows to their strings and begin to take aim. She lines up her shot for the elk's heart, wanting it to go down quickly without pain. With a deep breath, she prepares to let her arrow fly.
"On the count of three?" she suggests.
"Yeah," Chloe agrees.
Saphira nods and begins to count them down. "One. Two. Thr-"
Before she can finish her count, the wolf beside her suddenly raises his head with a soft grunt. Lykos would never just risk giving them away for no good reason, so the moment his head pops up with his ears erect, she lowers her bow and pays attention. His nose is twitching and his eyes are darting this way and that. A shift and increase in the wind has the fur along his spine standing on end.
"Lykos?" Saphira whispers, but the wolf seems to be beyond hearing her. A low growl stirs from within him, the sound sending a shiver up her spine. Whatever he senses, it cannot be good.
"What's wrong with him?" Chloe hisses, having noticed his odd behavior as well.
"I don't know, but something's up," Saphira replies.
The elk seem to sense something amiss as well. The large ungulates are growing restless, and the lead bull takes it upon himself to begin to guide his herd away at a rather brisk pace, but Saphira is no longer concerned about the escaping meat. Chloe shuffles closer to her, as if for comfort, while Lykos steps out from the cover of the trees with his gaze aimed at the rising mountains on the right side of the valley. The direction of the wind is sweeping over them from that direction, so whatever scent Lykos has picked up, the source is coming from there. Saphira rises and reaches out for him, but he shrugs her off and continues to head towards the mountains, suddenly picking up his pace into a lope.
"Lykos, wait!" Saphira calls after him, replacing her arrow back in the quiver and hurrying in his tracks. "Chloe, come on!"
"Where is he going?" Chloe questions, looking bewildered, but Saphira has no answer for her. She has about as much knowledge of the wolf's intent as she does.
Lykos doesn't give either of them much time to discuss or argue because his lope quickens into a steady, long-stride bound, easily covering more distance than either of them with every stride. Saphira and Chloe find themselves having to begin to sprint to keep up with him, and his sudden urgency only makes Saphira that much more nervous. Just what has gotten into him? What is pulling him so strongly that he ignores her?
The two girls pursue the wolf across the plains and up into the wooded mountains. Even the weather makes Saphira's skin tingle with uncertainty as the wind begins to whistle, and the gray clouds above seem to grow in density, creating an even darker overcast. Normally, when the weather begins to turn like this, they would be heading back to the ravine and from there, she would return to the camp. But Lykos shows no signs of turning back or even slowing down. He forges ahead, charging through the snow. The farther up the mountains they go, the more nervous Saphira becomes, and it seems like Chloe doesn't look like she's any more in comfort than she is.
It soon becomes apparent that another storm is on the way, and it's coming fast. It's still early noon, but the darkness cast by the heavy clouds makes it seem as if nightfall is nearly upon them. The falling, tiny flecks of ice sting her cheeks as the wind whips them into her face, but Saphira pays the sensation little mind as she and Chloe continue to race after Lykos. He's pulling farther and farther ahead, and no matter how many times she calls and whistles for him, his pace never falters. She doesn't know what they should expect to find. A small, fleeting part of her, the part that doesn't want to accept something is wrong, is hoping that all he's on is the scent of fresh-kill. But the realistic part of her knows that can't be the case.
They have been on quite a few hunts together, and while he would sometimes pay some interest to a carcass that they did not kill themselves, he would never take off like this over it.
Something else has him captivated.
Then she hears it.
The haunting, eerie cry of a wolf.
The sound is faint, distorted and difficult to pinpoint through the whistling winds slicing through the woods of the mountains, but she heard it nonetheless. The howl has her blood running cold and her hand reaching over her shoulder for an arrow.
"Saph!" Chloe's alarmed, but hushed voice calls to her. "Did you-"
"I did. Keep your bow nocked," Saphira commands, interrupting her. She aims her voice ahead of them to Lykos, who is almost cloaked by the whirling white around them. "Lykos!"
He heeds her call, thanks the gods! Halting in his tracks, he throws a very agitated glance over his shoulder and calls back with a soft, but clearly urgent bark. His ears swivel left and right, as do his eyes. He wasn't telling her to hurry because he's in a rush. He's telling her to stay close.
"Come on!" Saphira hisses to Chloe.
The two girls pick up the pace, forcing their way through the snow and up the steep slope. With a brief shot over her shoulder, Saphira sees that they are already very high up the mountain. The woods are becoming scarce, the trees gradually being replaced by jagged boulders and sheer rock walls.
A couple more howls pierce the wind. Then another. Then another. These are not the howls of wild gray wolves. While they sound similar, there is something different about the calls of Lycaon's wolves. It's not something one can hear in the call itself, but more so something they can feel.
Suddenly, the howls seem to become more excited, with bays and barks mingling with the haunting cries… and it sounds like it's coming from behind them.
Saphira and Chloe both turn around with their bows at the ready, but by the time they're facing back down the trail up which they had come, Lykos is back by their side. Using his body and shoulder, he shoves them both off the trail and practically throws them down into the brush, behind a large mound of snow. Saphira gasps at his rough handling of them, but before she can protest, the bays and howls of the wolves sounds much closer. She, Chloe, and Lykos get low on their bellies, and peek over the snow, through the dense thickets.
A few moments later, and the opposite side of the trail bursts with multiple, black-furred beasts charging out of the brush, snarling and snapping as they bound up the mountain in the direction that they had been going.
Wolves.
Ten or so of the huge, bristling monsters, hurtling up the slope. Despite the fact that any soft sound wouldn't be heard over the fury of the snowstorm, Saphira remains absolutely still, even keeping her breathing in check for fear that the wolves would still somehow hear her. One halts in its tracks with its muzzle turned up to the air with twitching nostrils. Its blood-red eyes narrow before it aims its snout to the ground, seeming to be extremely interested- or suspicious- of the scent it has picked up on. Saphira and Chloe both press themselves into the snow, as if they could become one with it. The beast then snaps its hungry, primal gaze directly towards their hiding spot.
Oh no…
For what feels like hours, the wolf just stares in their direction, seeming to even make direct eye contact with Saphira as it scans the environment, but the cloudy air and the thickets between them must not allow it to spot them, because it just continues sweeping the brush. Still, that wolf doesn't seem to be convinced that they are not there. Beside Saphira, Lykos gathers his legs beneath his body, as if he's getting ready to pounce. Quickly, she reaches out and clutches a handful of his fur, silently warning him to stay put with them. On her left, Chloe seems to be on the verge of taking aim, and Saphira nudges her as well. The daughter of Apollo casts her a confused, frightened expression, but Saphira shakes her head.
The wolf doesn't know. He doesn't know, and in a few moments, he's going to lose interest and move on…
Or not. The wolf then takes a step towards their cover. Chloe and Lykos both shift on either side of Saphira, clearly ready to fight, but before the wolf can come any closer, a howl rings out from farther ahead, where its pack had run off. Distracted by the call, the wolf replies with a howl of its own, and takes off to disappear around a corner of the mountain.
Saphira releases her breath finally and drops her head forward onto the snow. No words can describe the relief she feels in this moment, though it is brief and fleeting. Lykos begins to emerge from cover and push his way through the thickets.
"What is he doing? We can't go after them with just us three!" Chloe hisses, tugging frantically on Saphira's sleeve. "That was way too many wolves!"
"I know but-"
Saphira casts a glance back at Lykos. He's staring at her with wide, anxious eyes. She doesn't understand. Why does he want to follow those wolves so bad? She thought he wanted nothing to do with his kind, so why the sudden urge to go to them?
"Saph!" Chloe jars her from her thoughts.
"I'm thinking!" Saphira says.
The healer throws her hands up into the air in exasperation. "What is there to think about?! They outnumber us and we're in unfamiliar territory! We have to get back and tell Thalia!"
"He wants to show us something, Chloe! He wouldn't have brought us up here if it wasn't important!" she retorts.
"What if they catch us?"
"They won't."
Saphira returns her gaze to the wolf's. This is a huge risk, no doubt, but she trusts him. If anything happens, they can get out of it if they work together, as one. Whatever this is, she chooses to believe that he brought them here for a reason. Despite her friend's pleading eyes, Saphira rises from their hiding spot and nods to Lykos to continue leading them on.
"Let's go, Chloe," she says. She does hate bringing her into a potentially life-threatening situation, but there is absolutely no way she will leave her here or send her home by herself. It's best that she keeps her where she can make sure she's okay.
Probably realizing that there is no arguing this, Chloe reluctantly saddles up and follows them from the thickets, back onto the trail. Rather than go wrapping up the side of the mountain, it takes a sharp, right dip around the corner of a sheer rock face. Is it going into the mountain, Saphira wonders?
They're about to find out.
As they round the corner, they see that the trail leads up to the wide entrance of a cave. On either side of the cave is a pair of torches, their flame sheltered just enough by the mountain to remain ablaze despite the wind. Saphira readies her bow, fitting a silver arrow to the string as they approach. The cave entrance appears to lead into a very long tunnel, with sides of stone and shadows cast by the torches placed so sparingly that the tunnel is dimly lit. This cave is anything except inviting.
"Please don't tell me we're going in there," Chloe pleads, keeping her voice low.
To answer her question, Saphira nudges Lykos to continue moving, and they lead the way into the mouth of the tunnel.
"Of course we are," Chloe mutters as she casts a glance around them before they enter.
Even with the few torches that don the walls, Saphira's eyes are having a difficult time adjusting to the darkness. She can't make out much of anything, so she hopes that Lykos with his wolf's eyes will be able to see what lurks in the shadows. She finds herself becoming very in tune with his posture in movement; the direction that his eyes and ears turn, whether his fur rises or his fangs become bared, anything that would signify to her that there is something posing a threat.
Feeling something brush against her boot, Saphira casts her eyes downward and squints. A chill runs down her spine upon realizing that it's a human skull… part of one, at least. Clearly, they are not the first to have stumbled into this underground death trap that hides the monsters.
"Watch your step," she warns with a soft tone. She has no desire for their presence to be given away should one of them step on a bone and snap it. Even such a small crackle would echo and carry throughout this cave like a gunshot, and there's no telling just how many beasts lurk here.
Soon, there is a small, distant glow at the end of the tunnel. It's flickering, like flames, but also appears to be the sign of an opening of some sort. Keeping her bow trained on the glow, Saphira heads alongside Lykos and Chloe, approaching it and expecting something to come hurtling towards them at any second. Nothing does. They reach the end of the tunnel and step out of the opening.
And the sight is horrifying.
The massive cavern they are met with is even more immense and open than a colosseum, huge enough for several giant drakons to coil up in here comfortably. It's illuminated primarily by a gigantic ring of roaring flames circling the entire perimeter, along with the numerous campfires that dot all along the cavern floors. Tall spires of rock reach up all the way to the ceiling. But what is horrifying, is the population of the inhabitants.
Hundreds, and hundreds, of wolves.
Everywhere she looks, the black beasts are occupying almost every foot of this cavern, from the floors, to the ledges that wrap around the sides of the spires, to the perches that jut out from the walls. Many are resting, either curled up in their bestial forms or sprawled out in their human states. Others appear to be feasting on scraps of meat or gnawing on bones, with fights breaking out here and there over the prizes. The snarls and growls echo and fill the cavern and her ears. As if that wasn't enough, she spots quite a few monsters that are not wolves, but appear to have allied themselves with the feral, snarling dogs anyway. Laistrygonian giants, hyperboreans, dracaena women, even a large dragon dozing on the far side at the base of a spire.
It's an army big enough to wipe out Camp Half-blood and the Hunters of Artemis together.
"This is a nightmare," Chloe whispers, pressing herself against Saphira's side, and there's no arguing with that statement. Saphira shakes her head, realizing what this place is.
"This is it. This is their lair. This is what we've been trying to find for months!" she hisses.
"There's so many of them." Chloe nervously bites her lip. "How in Hades are we supposed to be able to fight this?"
Before either of them can say anything further, the horde of wolves begin to mobilize. Their numbers and haste makes their footsteps sound as if an army of drummers is beating their instruments within this very cavern. The racket fills her ears and makes it almost impossible to hear herself think. The wolves shift to the far side of the cavern, gathering up in a mass beneath one of the largest of the rock ledges. Something of importance must be happening. Saphira aims her sights to the top of the ledge, where another dark tunnel is spotted. Squinting, she makes out the forms of two humanoid figures emerging from the tunnel. From this distance, it's hard to distinguish their features, but one appears to be much taller than the other, while the other wears some kind of cloak.
Beside her, Saphira feels Lykos shift his weight and go rigid. She glances at him to see that his hackles are raised and his ears are pinned back, with his icy gaze staring directly at the two figures.
"What is it?" she asks him quietly, but he seems beyond hearing her, only continuing to stare across the cavern.
"My wolves!"
The voice rings out loud and clear, carried to them by bouncing off the cavern walls. It's a male's voice, sounding raspy but with an air of power and confidence. Turning her attention back to the spectacle, Saphira realizes that the shorter figure in the cloak is the one speaking, having asserted himself to the edge of his rocky perch. He casts his hands out to the sky, as if presenting himself as some kind of hero.
"Your king, has finally returned!" he roars.
The declaration has all the beasts erupting into an uproar, bellowing, howling, and shrieking. Their king… surely that's not…
Saphira's jaw would have hit the floor if not attached to her face. It's him. The first to be cursed, the most powerful of his kind, the self-proclaimed King of the Wolves. The one responsible for the deaths of so many of her sisters.
"Lycaon," she murmurs.
Chloe snaps her gaze at her, but Saphira pays her no mind at all. Lykos still has yet to move a muscle, fixated by the sight of who had once been his leader being praised and welcomed by his army of ravenous wolves. Lycaon raises his fist and the masses fall silent, obeying his command in an instant. Despite not being able to really see his face, Saphira can almost just tell that he's smiling, casting his vile sneer over the cavern.
"Thank you, my brothers, my sons! I understand that you longed for my return from the Pit, but long no more! Fret no more, for tonight is the beginnings of a new era for us all!" he declares. "Soon we will have our glory, our vengeance, and most of all, our fresh meat!"
Another uproar of approval from the masses of wolves and monsters that is also quickly silenced before he continues.
"Alas, I cannot control the spotlight forever. I will now have you direct your attention to our partner, who has also returned from what seemed to be certain doom! We welcome you back in our presence, old friend!"
Lycaon steps aside and extends his hand to the other individual who had entered the cavern alongside him. The second, taller figure steps forward to claim the center of attention and seems to place a hand over his chest as he introduces himself. For the first time, Saphira notices that his eyes are a bright burning red. Not like the crimson blood-red of the eyes but more… mechanical.
"Greetings once again, to you all! I know that we did not work together very long during the uprising of the Earth Mother, and I am deeply regretful that we had to reunite this way, for both I and your beloved king were slain in combat," the second speaker begins.
His voice sends a shudder through Saphira. He sounds very familiar, but his voice is a little distorted by the distance and echo of the cavern that she cannot be certain of the recollection.
He continues. "But now that we are both resurrected and returned to this world, we can begin to make right what is wrong. We can begin to rise up, all of us, against our common foe and crush them once and for all!"
His final statement is the one that makes Saphira feel as her body is freezing over.
"I, Orion, Son of Gaea, Bane of the Twin Archers, solemnly swear to you that we will face those wretched brats of Artemis again, and this time, we will wipe them out from the face of the earth, and then we will kill Artemis herself!"
"T-that's not possible," Chloe stammers, shaking her head in shock or disbelief or both. "That can't be him. He was… he was-"
No matter how much Saphira wishes to deny this herself, she knows that there is no denying it. There is no changing the truth of which lies right in front of them. She's incredulous. The man- no, the monster, that stands on that ledge, is real. That bastard, that traitorous scum, who turned against Lady Artemis despite her having accepted and even befriending him so closely that she had mourned his initial death thousands of years ago. He who even made the previous lieutenant drive herself to the limit and beyond trying to hunt him down for his atrocities… this especially makes Saphira's blood begin to boil.
"It's him," she growls. "It's Orion."
Chloe latches on to her sleeve and tugs it desperately. "We need to get out of here and back to camp!"
Despite her shared fear, Saphira finds herself itching to take aim at the gloating bastard, to fire an arrow directly into his forehead, right between his automaton eyes. For years, the mere thought of him had tortured Zoe Nightshade, for failing to find him despite her constant efforts. He may not have been the cause of her death, but he was one of the causes of her pain, and that's reason enough to kill him.
"Saph!"
Tearing her eyes away from the object of her revenge-lust, Saphira meets Chloe's gaze and comes to her senses. Even if she could land the shot from here, it would mean nothing, as a giant can only be killed by a demigod and a god working together. All she would do is anger him and the several hundred monsters in this cursed place.
"Come on!" Saphira mutters and turns to Lykos. "Lykos!"
The wolf finally snaps out of his trance and focuses on her. His yellow eyes are filled with a mixture of emotions; fear, anger, and… despair?
Saphira climbs onto his back and pulls Chloe on behind her. She pats his shoulder urgently and leans in to whisper into his ear.
"Get us out of here, bud. Fast."
And fast he does. Lykos pivots around and begins to lope, quickly building up to his top speed and races away. Within a minute, they are hurtling out of the tunnel and back into the storming, howling blizzard that has not ceased in its assault of the mountain. Despite the horrid weather, Lykos presses on, charging through the ice and wind like a missile. Saphira clings tightly to his scruff while Chloe secures herself with her arms around Saphira's waist.
They were here the whole time, gathering in numbers and strength, biding their time until their king would return to them. Now, two of the Hunt's greatest enemies are back and united their forces. With those two working together again, there's no telling of the damage they can do, the lives they can take.
And Saphira doesn't know if they'll have what it takes to stop them.
