Spliced

Wolf found himself in darkness. He stood still and listened. The ground beneath his feet was hard like concrete. Nearby he could smell the rot of wood. A moment ago he had been standing in a courtyard with Indi. The next thing he knew he’d felt like he’d been falling and then nothing. No landing. No sudden stop. If his senses hadn’t felt so attuned he might have wondered if he was even still awake. He listened for sounds and somewhere nearby he heard the slow drip of water. A leaky pipe maybe? Was he underground? There had been something on the ground beneath him. He’d only just noticed it before he’d fell. A rune of some sort. But he hadn’t had enough time to read it properly.

Werewolf eyes were good but they weren’t this good. Luckily he didn’t need his sight. He used his nose and ears to guide him. He walked slowly and quietly, pausing every now and again to listen. He found the wall. It was concrete too, structural. Yes, he was pretty sure he was in the basement. He hadn’t known this thing had a basement. The few plans he’d seen didn’t show one. He wondered if he should wait in case Indi came through after him. He figured he would hear her if she did so he took the time to explore the room just in case there was a way back as well. He didn’t think there would be. He had seen enough of the rune to think it went one-way but it was always possible there was another.

Eventually he decided Indi wasn’t coming. He hoped she was alright. She’d been outside at least, sort of. A courtyard would be easy to locate, even if they had to get a rider and pegasus up there. Amanda and Sirius usually had a couple on their farm. As long as Indi stayed there, he didn’t think she’d be too hard to find.

The room he landed in had only one exit and so he took it. As he stepped out of the room he felt the floor change beneath his feet. Instead of concrete there were planks of wood and what he was sure he could smell as soil. He suspected the room had been made of concrete specifically for the spell. If that were so then what was he about to find down here? He reached out and took a few steps forward once he left the room but he found no other walls to suggest he was in a hallway.

He went a little to the right even though his instincts were telling him to go the other way. Assuming he’d kept the same orientation, which wasn’t certain, then the left would take him back toward the centre of the house, assuming that that was the direction he wanted to go. For all he knew the entrance might be the other way, if there even was one.

He’d gone right initially mostly to see what was there. Finding nothing of interest he switched and went left. Left also happened to be toward the sound of the dripping pipe. Perhaps if he could find those then he could follow them out.

It didn’t take long before he found himself ankle deep in water. A few more steps and suddenly he was knee deep. He paused, reconsidering continuing, but then he caught sight of a glimmer of light up ahead. He wasn’t sure what kind of light but it was something. He felt a strange sensation on his ankle. He reached down to brush whatever it was off. He touched the back of something slimy. Something latched onto his leg. He didn’t panic. He knew what it was. There were leeches in the water. It didn’t bother him too much. They would do no harm. It did give him the motivation to keep moving forward. Leeches would be heading toward him wherever they were and he’d prefer to keep as many off as he could. The faster he moved the sooner he could get out of here and shed them.

He briefly reconsidered the idea of continuing when the next step took him in up to his waist. But he pushed on. He was committed now. There was another hole a few metres on. This one sent his feet kicking for lost purchase in the water. It was over his head, but sinking down a foot or two he found the ground again and pushed off, now forced to swim. He considered changing into wolf form but that would mean going back and shedding his clothes.

He was about half way to the light when he felt something grab his ankle. Something that was definitely not a leech. He tried to shake it off. It seemed to be working but then he felt something slice his side. He knew instantly he’d been cut. Feeling exposed as he was he began the transform. Claws formed and his clothes split apart. His jaw elongated and sharp, thick, pointed canines came down from his mouth. Instantly his smell improved ten-fold. Something splashed nearby. Another thing grabbed him but he slashed out with his claws. He felt teeth sink into his shoulder and he bit back.

He tasted flesh, slimy, scaly. They thrashed in the water together. Biting! Kicking! Clawing! He heard the snarls, the yelps. He heard more coming. He recognised their scent, their sound, their taste and he knew what they were. Knew his best chance was to get out of the water. He growled back, sunk his teeth in and pulled. Kicking out with his hind paws he sprang loose from the fight. He swam strongly toward the light. He knew they would be faster and so he listened. Whenever he felt one was getting to close he turned and fought like the wolf he was.

They were wolves too. Wolves of a different sort. Known as Wendigos. They had no fur, only skin, and webbed paws. Gills let them stay under a long time and long spindly limbs. Their sight was bad. They hunted only by sound and the feel of the water on their skin and everything which moved within it. Once out of the water and silent he would have the advantage. But here in the water, this was their territory. And so while he swam strong, he did not panic. He did not thrash. For that they would hear and the panic would draw more of them.

He made it to the shallows. He knew he was bleeding all over but as a wolf his skin was tough. He could handle it. He shook himself off and then leapt from that spot onto dry ground. He walked slowly.

Just as he was about to relax. Just as he though he might be free, one of the beasts leapt from the water and landed right on his back. It went for his neck. He howled a mighty howl right in it’s ear. In surprise it loosened it’s hold just enough that Wolf could throw it off. It whimpered as it hit the wall. He growled at it and backed away toward the light. A small gap between some boards at the top of a short flight of stairs promised salvation.

The wendigo slunk back into the water, evidently having relised his opponent was tougher than he’d have liked. Wolf climbed the stairs. At the top was not a door, although it looked like it had been some sort of doorway at one point, it was now boarded over. Luckily the boards looked damp and easy to tear. He grabbed one between his teeth and gave it a good tug. It came free. A couple more boards like that and he’d made a hole in the wall just enough for a wolf to squeeze through.

He emerged into what looked like an oversized conservatory. The floor was a black and white patchwork and he was surrounded by hundreds of plants, all in various sizes from tiny cacti to full grown trees. What had looked like bright sun when he was in the darkness now appeared much dimmer, the dying rays of a setting sun. Wolf’s good low-light eyesight in this form let him see the area about as well as if it had been fully lit. The most disconcerting thing however was that he seemed to have somehow moved from the south-west to the very end of the north-east wing. He assumed that the teleportation must have involved some sideways movement for he was sure he had not travelled that far through the basement.

As he wandered further into the conservatory he was hit by many different smells. Some sweet. He could swear one of them was pineapple although he could see no pineapple trees. There were roses somewhere too, although they were also out of sight. There were tomatoes, basil, thyme, coriander, monkswood, and so many more. Only once in his life had he seen so many plants in one place and that had been in the botanical gardens of Mercy, one of the largest cities in the southern continents.

He remained in wolf form for now. It kept him protected from any attacks in addition to giving him an advantage sense wise. Plus, he’d lost his clothes in the transform. He shook himself once more sending droplets of water raining down on nearby plants. He looked skyward trying to find evidence of an automatic sprinkler system. According to Kass this place had been unlived in for a few weeks at least, and yet the plants all looked well taken care of, if a little overgrown. Perhaps the sprinklers were hidden among the trees.

He cornered around toward where the end of wing must be. He stopped when he caught sight of a figure standing near a tree and facing away from him. She was red-headed and short and had the unmistakable shape and clothing of Amanda, but the smell was wrong.

He had figured wolf form would help him find them easier. All the better to hear and smell but now, past the sweet scent of the trees, herbs, and flowers, he could pick up the obvious odor of decay, and it came from her. If he had been in his human form he would have yelled out. As he was not he settled for low growl instead.

The figure, who looked like Amanda did not seem to hear him. Against his better judgement he took a step forward. Then another. Until he was only metres away. The smell was overpowering now and every bone in his body willed him to turn tail and run. But curiosity would not let him. He growled again.

The figure slowly turned. She smiled at him. She had Amanda’s face. She looked exactly like Amanda. Every little detail. Except for the smell. Wolf knew that and he knew that this could not be her. Could it?

She held out her hands welcoming. She looked happy to see him. Wolf was torn. He took a hesitant step back. The moment his weight shifted, her expression changed to one of anger.

Something shiny entered her hand. A knife!

She lunged toward him.