lifted the sword again, and now let go of the water energy, letting it fall back inside him. He stoked the fire, but kept it close, willing the blade to be hot and sharp. If the magic was strong enough, he should be able to make this fast enough that the pup would feel almost nothing.
He started toward the blocked den, keeping a tight rein on the fire energy, forcing it down into a tight, white-hot band. The pup looked up, and for a moment he feared it would dash across the clearing or even under the thicket, but it turned immediately back to the mud and dug even faster.
Now he was close enough to get a better look at the creature. Like its parents, it was dark grey over most of its coat, with black stripes on its ruff, feet, and nose. The very tip of its tail was a shock of white, as were the tops of its ears. Unlike its parents, it didn't have any traces of lurid green or dark red; a couple of patches might have been deep blue, but under the soak of the rain it was hard to tell. Of spines it had only nubs—undeveloped, perhaps? He had no idea when they grew the poisonous barbs, but it seemed merciful they weren't born with them.
When he was close enough to touch it, the wolf turned, and he raised his sword, expecting it to growl or attack. Instead it hung its head, exhausted, its bright blue eyes gone dull and vacant. It sat and leaned against the log, panting.
* Quickly now, * Ruby whispered gently.
Carefully Vidarian turned his wrist, aiming the point of his sword at the top of the pup's head. From this angle it would be difficult to strike the top of the spine as he'd hoped, so the blow must be sure. He lifted the sword, hand tightening around the hilt as he wound the fire energy tighter one last time.
The pup looked up, mournful and tired, and his eyes flashed white, reflecting a burst of lightning that crashed through the forest behind them. The light seemed to strike right to Vidarian's soul, seeking out his every thought and memory. For that moment it was as if those eyes belonged not to an animal, but to another being, a soul that knew Vidarian's like no other.
Rain hissed down around them, renewed, in waves that drifted across the clearing. Vidarian's arm didn't move, stayed locked until it ached with the weight of the sword.
Finally, he lowered his arm, then reflexively returned the blade to its sheath. He knelt.
* You're not serious, * Ruby burst, revealing that, however close her mind was to his, she hadn't experienced what Vidarian just had. He wasn't sure whether to be reassured or worried.
“A wild creature like this,” Vidarian said, leaning back on his heels and slowly raising his hand toward the wolf pup. “Never seen humans, he's wet and miserable and cornered. What do you think he'll do?”
* He'll bite you and you'll get a disease. *
He stopped his hand, which the pup was looking at with curiosity, but not fear. “I'll take that bet. If he bites me, I'll kill him.” The words were even difficult to say. “But if he doesn't, I'm bringing him back with us. Agreed?”
* What's there to agree to? It's not as if I have any leverage here. * Her acidity was back.
“Good enough.”
Vidarian reached again, palm flat, to the wolf. It stretched its nose to him, then carefully, gently, licked his hand. Just as the pink tongue brushed his skin, a jolt of electricity shot through his fingers, and he yanked them back with a yelp.
The pup's ears drooped sadly and it whined, while Ruby crowed, * There! You see! *
“He didn't…” Vidarian slowly clenched and unclenched his hand, wincing. “He didn't bite me. He shocked me.”
* Like there's a difference? *
“Of course there is. He didn't mean to.” Ruby filled his mind with a disgusted noise, but he ignored her, reaching out to the pup again. This time it put its head under his palm, and he petted it, carefully.
* You have gone completely soft in the head. *
“The gate's magic mutated him,” Vidarian said, now understanding the nubs that ringed the pup's neck and paws instead of spines. “It's a wonder the other wolves didn't kill him themselves.”
* A wonder, * Ruby echoed flatly.
The pup stood, looked up again for permission, then, with a low wave of