(S1) Chapter 8: Jar

"I saw your actions towards a slave... Your kind adherence with the innocent girl's corpse," she preceded. “Why would you do that to a stranger?”

“... Why not? She needed help. And it didn’t come when she needed it the most, she never should have suffered harassment from those vile knights.”

“How did you know?”

“I had those contusions before.”

"Oh, right… I’m sorry. You have no stigma of mistreating dark-skinned people, do you? I deemed that you can help me save my enslaved niece."

"Me? But what can I do?" 

"You have the power to defeat Mraz. You do it and I'll stop his nefarious laws." Her arms fold in accordance with her grimace expression. "Several months ago, people in my town went missing and most of them are from dark-skinned families, including my niece. Enslaving people of that color was enforced in Plandreas and Lanbarc metropolises. That's when I knew why my niece was missing. 

"Dark-skinned people commenced a riot but that increased the number of slaves being sold throughout the country without the prior notice from the family. Can you imagine how inhumane was that? They're treating dark people like wild dogs. And it's upsetting that such slavery takes place under the regime of the Vengeance pack. This is breaking the oath of peace between humans and werewolves." 

"But you're a moon priestess," I scratched my jaw, "you must've done something to discipline these werewolves." 

"I tried but something is floundering me. It might be the reason behind Mraz's laws. I've tried to warn and convince him but that smug idiot is stubborn... perhaps they only listen to their Alpha." 

"So, a niece of a Moon Priestess isn't a valid reason for the exception? And who exactly is this Mraz? I heard that name from the old men..."

"He's just a werewolf, like you, but he’s the Delta. And he’s handling the government of Lanbarc." 

"Do you need my power to defeat him? Was that even legal—?" I pursed my lips. This is rudeness for she's done something illegal for me! "Okay. I think it will not be necessary to defeat him. I've murdered knights unexpectedly and I don't want an additional crime. We can at least immobilize him with your enchantment. And I'll do the physical battles when necessary."

She rubs her hands and holds those. That made her act formal. Her expression is cleared in relief after assuming that I'm ready to coordinate. "Well, that's not a bad idea."

"Do you have a plan?" I asked. 

We talked about it during our trek back to the Lanbarc metropolis. We're walking down the road covered with fire trees side-by-side. The sunbeam is passing through the leaves and that's pleasing. Other citizens are passing by the road but we can only count those. One of them is an old man pushing a wooden pushcart.

We've recharged with rest and fed our energy. But I can't clear my mind from the precarious rate of success with our plan to ambush. "So, all I have to do is to let them capture me for they will take me directly to Mraz. And when that happens..."

"We'll immobilize him."

"You're pretty confident." 

"Are you not? I thought this would excite you." 

"It's my very first battle— And how did you know I'm excited!?" 

"Because that's who you are." 

"Ah, you're creepy. How long have you been stalking me...?" 

"Since I knew you can be helpful. But at some point, you're different." Her smile at me is complacent. "I mean I thought you'll be glad by killing someone. But you refrained. Your kind has a notorious reputation. They were feared. Only the powerful dared to fight them. Some did it like suicide.

"The Vengeance pack put an end to those years of terror. And now they hold the lands that were invaded to preserve and maintain freedom from those wolves. Moon priests and priestesses were part of their victory, but only because of an oath to keep the peace between two different races. It's not that we sustain their pack."

"I... I don't know if I have such an origin. I don't know what I am, really."

When she stopped walking, I did the same. "Because there's an enchantment in your mind that seals your memories including your power for a limited time. Whoever did that was a skilled enchanter. I've got something to show you that will give you a glimpse of your origin." Her hands covered my neck and pulled my face closer to hers. 

"Uh, what are you—"

"Look me in the eye." 

She's so close that my vision doubles! And yet she's serious about this. When I cooperated, I saw depictions in her eyes; massacre, gore, lamentation, silver wolves just like me are slaughtering another pack of wolves. Both male and female. They all look like blood-thirsty beasts born to be a weakness of the werewolves. 

"It's a memory from an oppressed werewolf," she said. The vision was cut and the cerulean glow in her eyes diminished. I just found myself dozing at her. "I thought you're the same as them. But you're different. You're not the type of a silver wolf who wishes destruction just like how everyone defines them."

"Am I meant to be like that?"

"Absolutely no. But maybe you were given the chance to write your own destiny." She smiles. "It's not my intention to freak you out. I can only sense your curiosity. Someone must be hiding this from you, that's why you can't remember. Whatever it may be, it's up to you to figure that out." 

We walked on the road again when the old man caught us doing something lewd from their perspective. “No— it’s…” I was trying to explain yet Dandeline is nonchalant about it!

☪ ✧ ✧

We've been hiding behind the trees for a few minutes now, mustering every confidence that might be floating in the air… or in her scent. The knights and steeds are surveilling the outside up to the entrance of the metropolis. "Your objective is to let them capture you— And what are you doing?" 

“Sniffing your shoulder.” 

She pinches my nose and pushes my face.

“What if other werewolves thought you’re a walking cake? This sweet smell can tempt me to eat you~” I teased. 

"You’re not taking this seriously." 

"But maybe I can play just a bit." 

Her sigh sounds defeated. "Okay. If you insist." 

I set my feet on the ground, narrowed my eyes to the gate, then dashed toward it. Trees that surround the wide road strengthen the air converging on me. There are still tens of steps to the entrance when the knights sounded the bell of warning and formed their defenses withal. Although that doesn't count to bother me, what bothers me will be my painful tackle.

I leaped with exceeding height to skip the defenses of their steeds, the steel gate cluttered when I hit it with my foot, the gate dented and tilted so that it almost fell to the knights in the frontline, and that became my path to sneak in. "DON'T LET HIM GET AWAY!" I heard the knight's commands.

Too bad, I passed by them easily. It's time to play chase in this crowded city just a little. That's exciting! The steeds are after me already. The people who're afraid to be implicated are stepping aside. 

I run onto a snug road congested by habitants' properties. Knights with steeds lost track of me. This road led me to another crowded market with little space at the center. The purchaser who's unaware of the situation is cluelessly staring at me. I have spare coins in my pocket to buy a jar of water. The merchant is startled by the speed of gulping I do. And I almost choked when the knights found me. "Thanks," I said to the merchant and left the emptied jar.

I diverted my path to another snug road, I pulled a knot of a tent to make it collapse and block the way. Some of the knights stumbled with each other. There's a way out of this snug road ahead but a knight with a steed appeared from there. He's aiming an arrow at me and before the firing happens, I leaped and kicked him out of the horse. 

I went horseback riding! But when I thought this fun would become fair, the horse broke with force and hurled me away from its back. Horses hate werewolves then. I never thought it can be trained with great acknowledgment. Not just that, this horse is kicking me! I grabbed a hold of its hooves before it might break my bones then pushed it to its rider.

"Right, horses are warriors too," I mumbled and nodded to myself then ran again. This time, the road led me to Lanbarc's center space. People are walking in different directions, tall buildings and towers surround the circle, and I'm totally exposed here. My excitement is leading me astray from my objectives. I guess this is time out.

Passively, I made my stance in the middle of the crowd when the knights with steeds started surrounding me. "Alright, the game is over," I said. I took off my hood and revealed my whole right arm to them all. "Hear my petition before you take me to Mraz! The laws against the slaves are obviously discriminating against someone like me! They all deserve to be treated like humans! But you are blindly doing the opposite.

"I beg you... to stop this inhumanity." 

I put my arms down and meet everyone's glances. Only disappointment and hopelessness reflected unto me. I don't see anyone who's on the same page as mine. One of the knights chained my hands from behind and then the other followed to detain my moves. 

"I will not resist, so please— aw... be gentle." They kicked my knees, weighing down my shoulders to force me on my bent knees, and then another knight performed the same enchantment in front of my face. An undercover enchanter. 

"We will deliver your petition to the court. But to tell you, you're not the only one who wasted an effort for that," he said. The radiating magic circle appeared from his hand and it presented a beautiful, mesmerizing vision of a beautiful moon. From thenceforth, I felt numb and it drained my consciousness. 

My mission is progressing.

☪ ✧ ✧

I jerked up to arise and found myself in a murky, wide, and serene room. But other than being in the room, I'm also inside a giant silver cage. Yet again, the charitable part of that is the round mattress sagged in the middle of the whole floor where I'm lying down. This room is like the inside of a tower. The light coming from above isn't natural, and I cannot justify from what.

Nevertheless, that's my only source of light here. Or maybe I should train my wolf vision in the dark. I have no idea how it works. I scratched my head, then tapped it. My body feels the same as before I lost sight of everything. They treat me differently now. Suddenly, I heard a tiny sound of a click in the dark side of the room. I looked in that direction. There's someone in there.

"Sharp ears, aye?" the man said. He walked into the light where I could see him outside the cage. He leaned his arms on the bar and he's eating crunchy nuts. He's older in age, taller, quite bald with a moon tattoo on his left head, and looks intimidating.

"You're Mraz?" 

"I am. We finally meet, the last silver wolf."