Sacrifice

    Nathan scanned his surroundings with keen wolf senses. His golden eyes missed nothing as he peered through the underbrush where he was hiding, watching three human Hunters as they scoured the ground for any trace of his passing. They would find nothing. At least, nothing that would lead them to where he was.

    Nathan was a Changer, an ancient breed that possessed the ability to shift forms at will, a race that was believed to be extinct by the very Hunters that sought him. They captured him in the guise of a human, and had yet to discover his true form. In fact, no human had ever figured it out.

    As a child, he learned that the ability to change was being bred out of them by the Hunters who sought and destroyed all who possessed the Gift. The Hunters called themselves Protectors of the Secret, and they believed they were given a divine assignment to rid the world of the supernatural: anything that proved more powerful or knowledgeable than themselves.

    Nathan watched on as they spoke amongst themselves. The leader - a tall man with short cropped, black hair, an angular jaw line, and bright green eyes - ranted at the other two men as though his escape was their fault. In actuality, it was that same man who gave Nathan the chance he needed to escape the cruel underground prison.

    “I apologize, my lord. There is no excuse for my failure,” the human with long red hair sniveled. “I will sense him if he is within a mile, of that I assure you.”

    Nathan smirked. He was hiding not even fifty feet from where they stood.

    “There is no option for failure now,” the leader told him sternly. “If he manages to get to the Fairies before you find him, you will lose your soul. Are you prepared to allow the Master access to your soul, Finly?”

    Finly shook his head, and his dark brown eyes grew wide with fear. “No, my lord.”

    The leader nodded once. “Good then, I can count on you. You have one day, Finly, but then I will be forced to tell the Master how you left the prisoner unguarded and allowed for his escape.”

    Finly swallowed and took off at a run. He didn't have anything to do with Nathan's escape, yet he would pay the price for his Lord’s failure.

    Nathan smirked, not at the man’s fear, but, at the fact that once again, the leader of the group provided him what he needed. He knew just who to seek for aid.



                                      *                              *                                *                                *                          *



    The wind streamed through Nathan’s dark fur as he ran. Forced to wait until the Hunters departed, he was beyond aggravated at the necessity. If they spotted him, or heard him move, he would not have the time he needed to traverse the distance to the Sacred Garden; the home of the Fairies. As it was, he was unsure if he would make it.

    Meetings with Fairies needed to take place during the night. They would not venture out of their homes in the daylight, claiming that the energy from the sun weakened them, while the moon’s energy empowered them. He found it somewhat hard to believe, but whether he believed or not didn’t change the facts. If he wanted their help, it had to be on their terms. Fairies seldom helped anyone, but thanks to Nathan’s misspent youth, the Queen herself owed him a favor.

    Nathan shot a quick look up at the sky; he still possessed some time before sunrise. The trees around him retained a soft silver glow which cascaded from the stars above him, promising an end to his wild plight. 

    He came upon the Lake of Dreams and lapped at the still water with relish. His body was still weak from his harsh treatment during the term of his imprisonment, resulting in much less endurance than he was accustomed.

    He wondered briefly if the Fairies would even acknowledge his presence considering how concerned they were about contact with the world outside of their Garden. He hoped they did, for their sake as well as his.

    Nathan watched in fascination as a dainty woman appeared above the water, her delicate wings fluttering quickly to enable her to hover in front of his snout. With his mouth still dripping water, he inclined his head in greeting.

    “Greetings, Honored One,” he announced in the customary way. “I have come to seek aid.”

    The Fairy smiled, a mischievous tilting of her lips, as she hovered above the water. “A Changer that requires aid? Now that is something new.”

    Nathan tilted his head. “As is the fact that the Queen herself greets guests,” he replied.

    The tiny woman shrugged one shoulder. “Not so strange considering who the guest is, Nathan.”

    “You remember then,” he commented, his voice steady despite the jitter of nerves he felt squirm through his stomach.

    “How could I forget?” she asked. “If not for your abilities, my kingdom would have perished,” she paused to send him a wink and a smile. “Even after one hundred years, none dare enter my Gardens, lest they suffer the wrath of my pet.”

    Nathan dipped his head in respect. “It was my honor to aid you in your time of need.”

    “And now you require the fulfillment of our pact, am I right?”

    “Yes,” he acknowledged. “I require your aid. My people have been hunted and killed to the point of extinction. I no longer have anywhere to run.”

    “You will stay here, then,” she replied.

    Nathan shook his head. “No, even here they would find me. Illusion will not save me, and it would jeopardize your kind, as well. I require for you to use your power to strip me of mine.”

    The fairy Queen’s silver eyes widened with horror, and she shook her head. “I cannot do as you ask. It is forbidden.”

    “Forbidden by whom?” he asked, his tone contemptuous. “The Goddess who would not save you? The one who turned her back on you?” 

    The fairy glared at him. “I will not debate my faith with you, Changer.”

    Nathan paced the edge of the lake with agitation and sighed. “My apologies, I just don’t know what else to do. There are only a few Changers left, and I alone know where they are. If the Hunters manage to take me again, they will glean the information whether I will it or not, and my people will cease to be.”

    “Then I will make you forget,” the Queen replied. “I will cast a spell that causes your mind to repel the memories of your kind.”

    Nathan’s pacing slowed as he absorbed her offer and then nodded. “Agreed.”

    “You will be alone in the world, Nathan. You will have no knowledge of magic, fairies, or Changing. You will be forced to relearn your abilities, if it is even possible with no one to train you.”

    Nathan shrugged his powerful shoulders. “I do not care. It will save my people, and that is all I ask for.”

    “Very well.”

    The Fairy Queen rose into the air to fly above him, spreading silver dust over his fur as she sang to him, her voice so pure and clear that he was soothed by the melody and lulled into sleep by the harmony that echoed through the trees around him. The last thoughts that sifted through his mind before the darkness claimed him were that he would never again see his beloved family, but the sacrifice was well worth their lives.