10 Chapter Three - 2 || Soul Eater (1/2)
”What?!” Essairyn nearly yelped as they had quickly arrived at their destination, and the nightstalker was only a few meters away.
Upon their arrival, the nightstalker turned slightly towards the duo, and Essairyn came face-to-face with the beast as it gazed at her with dark, starlit eyes.
Suddenly, she was hit with an overwhelming sense of urgency to retreat that clashed with the mystic wonder she felt staring into those eyes. The feeling lasted but a moment as the beast turned downwards at the earthen mound where the solh'vunds had gathered around.
It was a solh'vund den. In the curve of the den's mouth, a mother and her pups laid. Sprawled out on her side, she looked frail with her eyes closed and her pups milling weakly about her belly.
The solh'vund that had approached Essairyn earlier stepped out from the pack onto the mound and was accompanied by another. The two sat stoically next to the mother's head, and she parted her weary, emerald eyes. She lifted them towards the sitting leader and the other solh'vund, and they exchanged silent farewells before her eyes listlessly closed again.
As if on cue, the nightstalker bent its head down to the mother and blinked with eyes that mirrored the night sky. Stardust filled their depths, and its mouth gaped open to reveal a maelstrom of starlit darkness. As if magnetic, specks of light arose from the mother's body and spiraled inside the gaping mouth. The warm, silvern starlight, the fragments of her body, eddied into the depths of the demon and disappeared among the twinkling stars.
Closing its mouth, the nightstalker squinted its eyes at the pups and then inhaled and blew a stream of soft myrtle light upon them. As the light hit the pups, they squirmed and began mewling. After the nightstalker closed its mouth and the last rays reached them, they wriggled their faces in an attempt to open their eyes.
Transfixed by the entire scene, Essairyn hardly realized it was over until the solh'vund beside the pack leader broke its vigil and padded over to the pups.
Their eyes were now open, and they took in the curious sight of their pack surrounding them as well as a monstrous demon, a human, and a spirit fox. Uneasy at the sight of their onlookers, the pups nuzzled into the lowered face of the larger solh'vund for protection. After a few seconds of consoling, the pups relaxed.
The leader then got up, looked at the nightstalker, and gave a nod. Upon that gesture, the beast demon rose to its full height, giving Essairyn a sidelong glance before it melted into the woods.
Right after, the crowd of solh'vunds departed, and a few remained to comfort the pups. Leaving the mound, the pack leader approached Essairyn and Akari who were still on the floating circle.
Directing the words at Essairyn, the leader stated more than asked, ”What brings you to the Spirit and Demon Forest? You are not familiar with our customs.”
Startled by the sudden words that she understood, Essairyn faltered, ”I-I understand you?” before resigning herself to the notion that most of the animals here could probably speak with humans.
”I actually just arrived here. I'm a traveller from Earth. My name's Essairyn. And this is Akari, a spirit I met and am traveling with,” she replied, gesturing at the fox who was perched on her shoulder.
The leader held a steadfast gaze as he introduced himself, ”Errol. Leader of the solh'vunds of the Spirit-Demon Forest.” He tipped his head at the den before adding, ”She was one of the best hunters. Her mate and her sisters are with her litter that the night guardian has healed.”
”Night guardian? You mean the nightstalker?” Essairyn queried.
”Yes, we call them night guardians. They can be fearsome creatures, but they protect the Spirit-Demon Forest as we do. They are unlike other nightstalkers..” he paused before continuing.
”They take souls, but only to keep the balance and health of the forest. Strengthening weak bodies is a special ability of theirs. In this case, the strength of her soul was used to fortify her litter's weak bodies. She had insisted on carrying them even though she knew she'd be at risk since her first miscarriage…”