Page 98 of Empowering the Wolf's Heart

“Free the mother. I will care for him,” I told her.

Alia glanced up at me and blinked. It took a moment for her to realize she was frozen, her hands stained with blood from both the dead Red and the little sphinx.

The little sphinx stopped hissing and blinked up at me when I neared. The human emotion there nearly broke me. He did not understand why he had been harmed for protecting those he loved.

Neither did I.

I pressed against the wound in his side and soothed him with a low purr. He responded better than expected, relaxing into the ground and lifting his wing so I could better see the wound.

It was an ugly, jagged hole in his side. I packed it with clean cloth that I kept on hand. It was soaked with yarrow powder to help the wound clot.

The smaller sphinx was a tiny ball, her wings covering her head as she shivered with fear.

A low keen came from above me. I turned to find Alia before the massive sphinx. It would be a boon to have Ran around, but I suspected Alia asked her to stay away to make them feel less threatened.

Alia released the ropes. The mother sphinx stopped clacking her beak. Alia bowed before the massive creature and set her forehead on the ground. “I am deeply sorry for how you have been treated. I have no right to ask, but please allow us to help you and your little ones. It will be my personal goal to care for you and yours until you may choose a pathway forward to whatever destination you desire.”

The sphinx flapped her wings, glanced at me caring for her pups, then bent down and booped her nose against Alia’s bowed head.

Alia looked up and smiled. She reached up a hand and set it on the creature’s beak. The sphinx released a massive sigh that fluttered Alia’s hair. Alia rose and put her hands around the sphinx’s neck, unable to reach halfway around.

The sphinx melted. Tears dropped from the mother’s eyes as Alia embraced her.

The baby sphinx beneath me released a tiny moan as I pressed tighter against the wound. “Forgive me, little one. You will be cared for,” I said, to which he relaxed.

A massive wave of displaced air settled above me. I glanced up to the mother, who stared at me with mistrust.

“Should I release him, he will bleed out,” I said, meeting her eyes with understanding. I showed her my neck, allowing her tosee I was no threat to her or her babe and would allow her to kill me easily should she wish it.

She pushed her beak against my head. A tiny, unmanly squeak escaped me.

A giggle came from just beside the sphinx. Alia covered her mouth with her hand, but her eyes were dancing with laughter.

My pride took a hit, and I ducked my head to hide the redness of my cheeks, but if my embarrassment was able to make her eyes sparkle, I would make such a fool of myself a thousand times over.

Doc arrived in a bustle of energy and took over, getting the wounds field dressed and bleeding stopped before he directed them through the city toward the Matriarch’s Tent.

The sphinx followed Alia through the city as placid as a draft horse with its master, although her back reached halfway up the two-story shops.

I stood guard outside the massive tent as Alia and Doc got the sphinxes settled, watching the people around us. What was once a human Red village was quickly becoming a melting pot of wild magical creatures and humans. The humans of the village were a bit uncertain at first, and a few had fought with the new creatures, but overall, co-existing was going much smoother than should have been possible.

Just outside the massive tent were unicorns munching on grass along the cobblestones, human and werewolf children running and playing at their feet. Horned rabbits hopped along the pathways of gardens, causing massive surges in growth since their magical inclination was to assist in plant growth when they were happy.

Alia placed recovering horned rabbits with farmers who grew food, and it was causing a massive upsurge in the food supply.

Elves were rare, but one limped from the tent and nodded to me before heading over to a human on the other side of themarket. The human’s eyes nearly glowed when she spotted the elf, and her smile made his steps quicken. Meanwhile, another human hmphed and mouthed a curse against evil.

A large part of this integration was due to Alia sensing needs before they became explosive. She gave a family of nine flour and meat and a horned rabbit with seeds to grow before they starved to death. She hugged an elderly woman before she sought retribution on a werewolf for the death of her son.

I stalked the streets during the night, ensuring no one caused trouble while my Red slept. I had busted a few heads, accidentally stolen a few fingers, and knocked some sense into a werewolf who was attempting to steal from a shopkeeper.

Through it all, Alia remained strong. A few weeks passed and her nightmares worsened. She hardly slept, and the only time I could speak with her was when she was slumped before a fire eating dinner prior to being carted her off to bed by me.

She was killing herself, and I didn’t know what to do about it.

And I had to leave.

Mother’s Command was insistent, and it could overtake me should I not listen. It tugged like a string. She had sent me for the matriarch who was no longer matriarch, so it did not matter much this month. But she had a Command over me to report on every full moon, which would be when her three Commands were restored. Anxiety coiled in my gut like a sleeping serpent.

---