He moved from room to room, searching for any sign of the package he was supposed to collect. It was clear that Delver had left in a hurry, but where could he have gone?
He sniffed the air, picking up a faint scent of herbs and something metallic, like blood. But then, he caught a different scent—one that wasn't quite as old, one that hadn't faded with time, it was a human scent, mixed with something else, something powerful and enticing. The scent of magic, and something even darker. The scent was fresh, lingering in the air like a trail leading away from the house.
The man sniffed the air again, his senses honing in on the trail. It was faint but unmistakable, and it led away from the house, back toward the road. The man's eyes narrowed, a low growl rumbling in his throat. He realized that it must be the man he encounter in the road who had taken the package.
Without wasting another moment, the man stepped outside, and his muscles rippled and expanded, his bones elongating as thick fur sprouted from his skin. His face contorted, becoming more lupine, and his eyes glowed with a feral intensity. Within seconds, the man had fully transformed into a massive wolf, his powerful frame towering over the doorway.
He lifted his head and let out a long, echoing howl, the sound reverberating through the trees and across the town. A moment later, another howl answered from somewhere in the distance, and then another. The wolves were closing in. With a final snarl, he lowered his head and set off at a run, following Alexander's scent through the streets of Grimsby.
The wheels of the carriage clattered loudly over the cobblestone road, the rhythmic noise mingling with the steady clop of the horses' hooves. Alexander sat in the back of the carriage, his eyes darting from one side of the road to the other, the unease in Alexander's chest grew stronger. The distant howl of a wolf echoed through the trees, sending a shiver down his spine. It was a sound he knew all too well, one he had heard not long ago in Grimsby.
In his mind, he recalled the lessons from the Academy about the creatures that roamed the magical world, werewolves among them. Although they were rare and mostly forgotten in the world, the reality of encountering one had become all too vivid for him.
"It's not even night yet," the driver muttered under his breath, his eyes darting to the shadowed woods. "Why are there wolves howling?"
The feeling of being watched had grown stronger, a creeping sensation that made the hairs on the back of Alexander's neck stand on end. He could feel it in his bones—a sense that they were being hunted, that something was following them, closing in with every second.
He knew he couldn't stay in the carriage much longer. The wolves—no, the werewolves—were on their trail, and staying in one place would make him an easy target. He needed to act fast.
Alexander took a deep breath, and focused on the shadows cast by the trees, channeling his magic into a spell of concealment. It was a trick he had learned early on at the Academy, one that allowed him to blend into the shadows and become nearly invisible.
He whispered the incantation under his breath, feeling the magic flow through him as he wove the spell around himself. A thin layer of darkness enveloped him, blending his form into the shadows and making him nearly invisible to the untrained eye.
Next, he cast a substitution spell, a more advanced technique that allowed him to create a shadowy replica of himself on the seat where he sat. The magical duplicate was an exact copy, down to the smallest detail, and would serve as a decoy if anyone—or anything—came looking for him. He concentrated, forming an image of himself sitting in the carriage, and then placed his magic robe on the decoy to make it more convincing.
Satisfied with his preparations, Alexander glanced at the driver, who was still focused on the road ahead, and waited for the right moment. When the carriage hit a bump and the driver was momentarily distracted, Alexander slipped silently out of the carriage, landing softly on the dirt road below.
He moved quickly, casting a spell, a trick he had picked up from an old book on magical stealth, to mask his scent and cover his tracks as he slipped into the underbrush. The spell would create a small barrier of magical energy around him, preventing his scent from drifting on the wind and making it harder for the werewolves to follow.
He moved cautiously through the dense foliage, his steps light and his senses alert. The path he chose wound away from the main road, leading deeper into the forest where the trees grew thick and the shadows darkened. He knew he needed to put as much distance as possible between himself and the carriage. The longer he could stay hidden, the better his chances of escape.
As he moved, the feeling of unease gradually lessened. However, Alexander's relief was short-lived. After about twenty minutes of walking, a low growl rumbled through the trees, followed by the sound of twigs snapping underfoot. Alexander froze, his hand instinctively going to the wand at his side, and he strained his ears, trying to pinpoint the source of the noise.
Before he could react, a pack of wolves emerged from the shadows, their eyes glowing a menacing green in the dim light. They were large and lean, their fur matted and dark, their teeth bared in snarls, a few of them had blood smeared on their muzzles that sent a chill down Alexander's spine.
Alexander realized he had been found, his concealment magic had kept him hidden for a while, but it hadn't been enough to throw the wolves off his trail. They had tracked him through the forest, following his scent like a pack of hounds on a hunt.
His mind raced as he tried to think of a way out, but before he could act, a low growl rumbled through the air. A figure emerged from the bushes, tall and imposing. It was the man he had met in the town earlier—the werewolf. He had fully transformed, standing nearly two meters tall, his body covered in thick, coarse fur, his eyes glowed a bright green, radiating malice.
The werewolf threw the magic robe that Alexander had left in the carriage onto the ground, his lips curling into a sneer. "Did you really think you could fool us, little mage?" he snarled, his voice a guttural growl. "Give me the package, and maybe I'll spare your life."
Seeing the magic robe and the blood smeared on a few wolves' muzzles, his heart sank-they had found the carriage and attacked the driver, likely killing him in the process. It was clear there was no way to end this peacefully, even surrendering the package. The werewolves wouldn't just let him go, and they couldn't afford to leave any witnesses.
With a flick of his wrist, Alexander summoned a ball of fire, the flames crackling and dancing in his palm. "I'm not giving you anything. If you want it, you'll have to take it from me."
After said that, he hurled the ball of fire at the pack of wolves, the flames exploding in a burst of heat and light. The wolves yelped and scattered, dodging the flames as they leapt into the underbrush.But the werewolf didn't flinch, lunged at Alexander with a roar, the flames hit him square in the chest, igniting its fur.
But the fire didn't seem to slow it down for long. The werewolf quickly shook off the flames, its fur still smoldering, and fixed its gaze on Alexander with renewed fury. It charged at him again, its claws slashing through the air in a deadly arc.
Alexander ducked under the attack, rolling to the side and casting another fire spell. This time, the flames caught one of the wolves in the side, sending it yelping into the trees. After seeing that, the werewolf retreated to the edge of the clearing and began to command his pack to attack and overpower Alexander from all sides.
He fought back with everything he had, casting spells and dodging attacks as he tried to keep the wolves at bay. But there were too many of them, and they were too fast. For every wolf he drove back, two more took its place, their eyes glowing with hunger and rage.
Alexander could feel his strength fading, his spells growing weaker with each cast. The wolves were wearing him down, their relentless assault pushing him closer and closer to exhaustion. He knew he couldn't keep this up much longer. He needed to end this, and fast.