NightEye

Culling

Pux's POV

The days fly by as fast as the wolf runs.

    When I awake, I go to the edge of the woods to find Sam. When I find him, we either sit there and talk, venture through the woods, or spend time with his grandmother at his house. Bill never shows his ugly face again, but Wilson does, but only a few times. And when he does appear, he stays well away from me.

    But this morning, I see something out of the ordinary: Miaia, standing in her Tilvani form, with Sam pinned under her claws.

    I rush forward with a yell, and tackle the larger Tilvani. With a surprised yelp, the Great Healer falls, and Sam scrambles away from her.

    I get to my feet, and draw my blades. They glow silver, the clear metal my father called siax alighting my Tilvani blood with flame. Miaia, wisely, gets up and backs away, staying out of range of my knives.

    From the corner of my eye I see Sam, in wolf form, growling at the Tilvani. Miaia’s sky eyes grow wide as she beholds the wolf, and she looks back at me.

    “Sam is not human, Miaia. He is called a Lupa. He is a creature of the woods, same as us. Harm him, and you harm me. Do you wish to harm me, house-mother?” I say in the Tilvani tongue, unconsciously twining my mind around Sam’s so he can understand what I say. Miaia shakes her head, but growls.

    “He trespassed. Has been. I have scented him in the woods, near Fawl’s Mount. Do not tell me that you have brought him to the very place where your father-.” Miaia stops, shaking her head as of to rid herself of a thought.

    “Where my father what?” I growl, anger alighting in my chest like the flames of forest fires. Miaia shakes her head once more and growls, trying to dissuade me from asking about my father.

     Sam steps forward, mottled face acute and watchful. “Tell us, Miaia. I can keep secrets better than you know,” he says. The Tilvani looks at him, and is about to say something when the beat of thunder rolls across the valley.

    Sam’s eyes go wide, and he says,”No, no. Not the soldiers. It’s not even Culling Day yet.” Without any more words, Sam runs off, leaving Miaia and me looking at each other with confused expressions.

    Not even thinking, I race after Sam, though his longer legs and head start carry him faster and farther than I can run. Miaia runs beside me in her Tilvani form, her wolf face scrunched up in confusion.

    As we near town, I see Sam slow ahead of us. He shifts into human form as we near, and looks at Miaia, waiting for her to do the same.

    After Miaia shifts, we all head towards the town square, where the sound of thunder rolls from. As we near, I can hear the distinct sound of sticks hitting metal. When we enter the square, I see men in shiny clothes hitting round plates with wooden sticks. They all stop suddenly as a man steps forward from their ranks.

    This man, with his short silver hair and cuning gray eyes, radiates confidence and diligence. His gaze sweeps the crowd, resting on a few faces. His eyes trails towards Sam, then to me. His eyes widen slightly at the sight of me, but he says nothing to it.

    “Today, my friends, is the new Culling Day. All men of the age of twenty-one or older step forward now. Hurry up, we haven’t got all day,” the man says, impatience tinting his words at the end.

    Only five men step forward, including Sam’s brother Billy. Sam had told me that Wilson had gone back to war a couple days ago, so he will not witness his brother being chosen for battle.