Chapter 2: The Decision Made, The Change Completed, and The Teacher Found
#2 of Rohan's Journey
Hey guys, this came earlier than I thought. I guess I'm kind of addicted to writing (weird huh?).Anyway feel free to comment and critic.
Edit: Found a word missing, put it there.
Pronunciation
Krynn (like it looks, rhymes with 'in')
Caramon (Car a mon, like it looks.)
Rohan awoke slowly, soon standing to stretch. He looked around; it seemed, somehow, brighter. Not in the amount of light, but in the in how the clearing felt. He felt, different too. Not the same as yesterday, even after the change. Brushing the feeling off, he looked for Raistlin, who was nowhere to be found. "Now where did that wolf go?" Rohan thought aloud. He realized his voice was deeper, now a rich baritone. "Ah, I see you have made your decision." said Raistlin as he appeared from the shadows. "How did you do that, and what do you mean?" asked Rohan, puzzled. "It's actually quite easy, and it will be one of the first things you learn from my pack. As to what I mean, I mean that your decision is quite obviously made. If you want to know how I know look behind you." explained Raistlin.
Rohan looked behind him, and almost fell over in surprise, but he was sort of used to it by now. He had a tail, not only that, but he realized he had grown yet again, now towering at 7'2". His arms were now as thick as his legs had been as a human, which was made more impressive since he had always been climbing, and his legs had a similar growth. "Why didn't this happen before?" asked Rohan. "You still had doubts." Raistlin said simply. "You mean about going with you to your pack?" Rohan asked. "Yes, your doubts made you unknowingly resist the changes," Raistlin explained. "Is that why it hurt so much?" asked Rohan. "No," replied Raistlin, "that was all of your bones changing." Rohan winced, remembering the all-encompassing pain. "So, will you come with me?" Raistlin asked. "I want to go back to my village one last time." said Rohan. "Fine, but be quick, and do not be seen," Raistlin said, "I will be waiting here." "Right." said Rohan as he walked off towards the village.
As he walked through the forest, he wondered about his new body and what he could now do. He stopped and looked for a tall tree; there it was, at least 40 feet. He surveyed his route with an experienced eye, this would have been impossible when he was human. The bottom would be the toughest, even now, almost two feet taller. It was a good 15 feet to the lowest branch. He jumped as high as he could, and sailed a good 10 feet above the intended branch. Too surprised to do anything, he landed softly on the ground. "I'm gonna need to find some taller trees." Rohan thought. He remembered he was supposed to be hurrying and took off at a run, far faster than he ever thought possible. He soon reached his village, it was now late morning, and the market would soon open. He needed to hurry if he didn't want to be seen.
He felt so alone, having to sneak into his own house, but if his landlord had come while he was gone, there would have been no stopping the mayhem. Looking around one last time and gathering all his money and his mother's pendant, she had left to him when she died from sickness when he was 14. It was a small black pendant, it was very unusual; he had said it glowed when he was a child, but no one else thought so. They could never agree on its shape some said it was a star, others said it was clearly the head of an animal, but what kind they couldn't say. He thought they were just teasing him though, because for him it was always the same; a small ring with a single character in the center. He took it, and left the house.
He decided to go one more place before he left. He went out side and leaped onto the roof. Quickly hopping from roof to roof without a sound, he made it to the local jeweler's house shortly. Since the markets were going to open soon he knew he had little time but also the jeweler probably wasn't home. He nimbly flipped into the open second-story window from the roof without a sound. He looked around and went searching the rest of the floor; he found what he was looking for, the chain that the jeweler used to show his talent for his craft whenever the traders passed through. He had said that it was made from a metal that had fallen from the sky. The jeweler had made it into a single chain; unfortunately, there was hardly any metal, so the chain was only about 30 inches long; however, it was a deep red, unlike anything anyone had ever seen. Rohan had seen it once and had thought of it when he realized that there was no way he could wear his pendant. Rohan took the chain and left all of his money on the workbench, his way to try to make up for taking the chain; and with that he left.
Rohan stepped into the clearing, and seeing Raistlin, he decided to try something. He quietly walked up behind the wolf, who was laying down, staring into the forest. When he got there he inhaled deeply, ready to scare the wolf. "Oh, you're back." said Raistlin. Rohan exhaled slowly, "How did you know I was here?" asked Rohan, disappointed. "Well, first, you weren't as quiet as you probably thought you were. Second, I could smell you, but don't worry this is just another thing you're going to learn. Now, shall we go?" said Raistlin. Raistlin walked off, with Rohan soon following.
As they walked deeper into the forest, Rohan looked around observing his surroundings. This was in the deepest part of the forest, where he had never gone before because he didn't want to meet the wolves again. They soon passed the spot where twice before he had been surrounded by wolves and left peacefully each time. "So where are we going anyway?" asked Rohan. "To my pack's home," replied Raistlin, "but you will soon go to your teacher." "How long can I stay there?" Rohan asked. "You may stay for a day and a night, but you have not proved yourself to the pack, so after that you must leave for your training. If you complete your training you may stay here as long as you wish." said Raistlin. "Oh," said the slightly dejected Rohan, "wait, what do you mean 'if'?" "Look, we're here." said Raistlin. Rohan glanced up, and his jaw dropped.
They were standing in front of the largest cave he had ever seen. It had to be almost 15 feet tall. As they walked inside, the size of the cave became apparent. The cave was even taller inside, reaching 20 feet; it was like a huge dome. He looked around and saw the wolf pack, there were about 50 wolves in the cave, and he saw some 20 pups. "Do you like my pack?" asked the black wolf as he stepped forward. "It's very impressive." replied Rohan. "Thank you Rohan, I am Krynn." Krynn replied. "Would it be alright if I stayed here for the night?" asked Rohan. "Yes, but you must know that you will have to leave tomorrow." said Krynn "Thank you, Raistlin mentioned that as well." Rohan said. Rohan looked around, all the wolves in the cave were looking at him; it was an eerie feeling with so many eyes on him. "Listen!" said Krynn loudly, "this is Rohan; he will be staying with us for a day, while he is here you will treat him as part of the pack." "Yes, Leader." replied the pack in unison. With that Rohan was swarmed by all the pups in the cave.
Rohan played with the pups into the night until they were called back by their mothers. "Awwww, do we have to?" asked a pup named Caramon. "Yes." came the reply. "Bye mister Rohan!" chorused the pups. "Bye." Rohan said, slightly disappointed as well. He looked around and realized that it was late in the night, he hadn't noticed because to him it still appeared to be bright daylight. Knowing it was just part of the changes he found a place to sleep and curled up.
"Wake up. Rohan, wake up." For the third time he woke up to the face of a wolf; this time however it was not the now familiar face of Raistlin, but the face of Caramon. The little white muzzle and black face look worried. "What is it?" Rohan asked. "Do you have to leave?" asked the little Caramon. "Yes, I need to get stronger." said Rohan. "Stronger? But you look like you could pick up Leader Krynn and Raistlin at the same time." Caramon said. "No, not like that, but I do need to be stronger." said Rohan. Seeing that it was morning Rohan got up and walked outside. He found Raistlin and asked him where to find the teacher. "That is something I need to talk to you about." said Raistlin. "Your teacher is never in the same place twice, so you will probably be moving often; however we were told to bring you to a certain stream when you ready to train. Come with me." Raistlin said as he walked deeper into the forest.
Rohan followed and they soon reached a stream. This stream was the clearest stream Rohan had ever seen. "Why is it so clear?" asked Rohan. "Listen closely, what do you hear?" said Raistlin. "A stream." Rohan replied. "Anything else?" asked Raistlin. "No, why?" said Rohan "You don't hear anything else because there isn't anything else. No animals come near this stream. Even now I am uncomfortable being this close." Raistlin said. "What do I do then?" asked Rohan. "Stay here until your teacher arrives. You will know when your teacher arrives. I'm going back to the pack." said Raistlin. "Wait, I want to know, why isn't it your pack instead of Krynn's; you could easily beat him." said Rohan. "I respect him, he is wise. Besides, leading a pack isn't all about strength." explained Raistlin. "Oh, I didn't think about that." said Rohan. "Don't worry about it; come back if you finish your training." Raistlin said as he walked back. "Wait he said 'if' again." thought Rohan. He looked for Raistlin but he was nowhere to be found.
Sighing, Rohan decided to survey the changes that happened the second time. He looked and saw almost the same thing. Only small changes had happened to his face. His eyes now had vertical slits for pupils, much like that of a cat. His eyes remained the green specked gold. His teeth had gotten a little bigger as well. He examined his tail next; it was exactly the same as a wolf's, just bigger. He sat back against a tree and waited, wondering who his teacher would be. "Narcissistic and lazy, not a good combination." said a voice from the forest. "You must be Rohan, I'm Tanis, and I will be your teacher."
End of Chapter 2, Chapter 3 coming soon. (I really am addicted). :)