Sheltim
New Member
Sheltim sat down, surrounded by softly chanting voices. The smell of
incense wafted through the air.
Focus a voice called out.
Focus he thought to himself.
The movement around Sheltim stopped. The voices quieted. Sheltim's
mind drifted, thinking back... back to his days as a cog in the wheel.
To what he was before he Awakened. To the people he'd known before...
Sheltim opened his eyes to find himself in a forest clearing,
surrounded by trees taller than he could see. The world around him
seemed both blurred and yet more sharply defined than he had ever seen
it. He'd never seen anything quite like this, not even when astrally
projecting.
The shrill cry of a bird broke him out of his revery. He glanced
upward and watched as a bird flew away. He glanced left, right,
forward, back. Everything looked the same. There was sunlight, but no
sun. No way to get his bearings. He was pondering his options when a
low gravelly voice spoke from behind him: "What are you doing in my
land?"
Sheltim started and spun around. A lean gray wolf stood behind him.
The wolf gave a toothy grin. "Some hunter you are, letting yourself be
surprised like that."
Sheltim stared at it, trying to gather his thoughts. "You're Wolf!"
"And you're observant. I'm certainly not Dog. Now what are you doing here?"
"I came to talk to you - to understand my totem, and myself."
The grin came back. "If you're lucky, I'll talk to you. The rest is up to you."
A pause. "You want to understand me? Then hunt. Find me." And with
that, the wolf turned and leapt through the treeline, moving
impossibly fast.
Sheltim shrugged, then smiled. At least I won't be bored. The
hunt was on.
----------
Several times the trail would disappear, and just as Sheltim was ready
to despair, he would find paw prints, a broken branch, something. It
took every bit of his skill, mundane and magical, to keep moving.
Minutes turned to hours. Eternities passed by.
Suddenly he stumbled in surprise. He had run through a thick treeline
and into another clearing. Laying in the center was the wolf, calmly
watching him. "Not bad for a pup" it said, "you've earned a few
minutes of my time."
----------
Sheltim opened his eyes and was surprised to see the nighttime sky
outside the window. He was covered in sweat, and exhausted from his
ordeal. A wolf pup was curled up at his feet. The wolf pup stood up as
Sheltim did. It turned to him and introduced itself. "Wolf asked me to
keep an eye on you."
incense wafted through the air.
Focus a voice called out.
Focus he thought to himself.
The movement around Sheltim stopped. The voices quieted. Sheltim's
mind drifted, thinking back... back to his days as a cog in the wheel.
To what he was before he Awakened. To the people he'd known before...
Sheltim opened his eyes to find himself in a forest clearing,
surrounded by trees taller than he could see. The world around him
seemed both blurred and yet more sharply defined than he had ever seen
it. He'd never seen anything quite like this, not even when astrally
projecting.
The shrill cry of a bird broke him out of his revery. He glanced
upward and watched as a bird flew away. He glanced left, right,
forward, back. Everything looked the same. There was sunlight, but no
sun. No way to get his bearings. He was pondering his options when a
low gravelly voice spoke from behind him: "What are you doing in my
land?"
Sheltim started and spun around. A lean gray wolf stood behind him.
The wolf gave a toothy grin. "Some hunter you are, letting yourself be
surprised like that."
Sheltim stared at it, trying to gather his thoughts. "You're Wolf!"
"And you're observant. I'm certainly not Dog. Now what are you doing here?"
"I came to talk to you - to understand my totem, and myself."
The grin came back. "If you're lucky, I'll talk to you. The rest is up to you."
A pause. "You want to understand me? Then hunt. Find me." And with
that, the wolf turned and leapt through the treeline, moving
impossibly fast.
Sheltim shrugged, then smiled. At least I won't be bored. The
hunt was on.
----------
Several times the trail would disappear, and just as Sheltim was ready
to despair, he would find paw prints, a broken branch, something. It
took every bit of his skill, mundane and magical, to keep moving.
Minutes turned to hours. Eternities passed by.
Suddenly he stumbled in surprise. He had run through a thick treeline
and into another clearing. Laying in the center was the wolf, calmly
watching him. "Not bad for a pup" it said, "you've earned a few
minutes of my time."
----------
Sheltim opened his eyes and was surprised to see the nighttime sky
outside the window. He was covered in sweat, and exhausted from his
ordeal. A wolf pup was curled up at his feet. The wolf pup stood up as
Sheltim did. It turned to him and introduced itself. "Wolf asked me to
keep an eye on you."