Chapter 8

One and a half year passed; Ulfvaldr and Tola lived their simple lives together. Every day, Ulfvaldr would go out, get food for Tola, and blood for himself. He made sure not to limit her diet to only meat; he gathered plants and vegetables, which Tola had told him were good to eat. Tola would prepare the food for herself, then they would spend the rest of the night together. After so many days, of spending time together with a nocturnal creature, Tola herself, had become somewhat nocturnal. She was up all night, and slept most of the days, during the summer. During winter, she would usually never see the light of day. The result of this, was her complexion; she had grown much paler, almost matching the skin colour of Ulfvaldr. She was also somewhat thinner. But she didn’t mind. She would spend all night together with Ulfvaldr, then as the dawn arrived, they would go to sleep, after having some intimate fun.

They wanted a family; a few kids. But they never got any, and they’d been trying; every single day. Sometimes, they would spend hours, mating. But Tola never got pregnant. As time passed, Ulfvaldr began to have a creeping suspicion. Maybe, the heavens didn’t think that it was enough to eradicate all his friends and family? Maybe the heavens didn’t think it was enough, to curse him from the rays of the sunlight? Maybe, the heavens didn’t think it was enough, to curse him to a life of slaying; a life, of drinking blood? Perhaps, the heavens had cursed him, to never leave even a single offspring; to never have children?

This thought had begun building up inside of his mind, but he didn’t dare acknowledge it. He wanted so dearly to bestow the only wish of Tola’s. Not only that, but he, too, wanted children. The only family he had now, was Tola. No matter how much he had grown to love her, it was a lonely life. Yet, he didn’t dare to go to another tribe. He was afraid of what they would think of him; what they would do to Tola. Thus, they had lived a lonely life, this past year and a half. But Tola never minded. She was ever loyal to Ulfvaldr; almost unnaturally so.

However, during these years, his mind had also calmed. He was no longer torn of his past; he had somewhat overcome it. Yet, he still didn’t forgive himself; he just didn’t let it bother him as much. From time to time, his dreams would be infested with nightmares, of the days’ bygone. But it never went past that; he still managed to live his life, without much trouble. However, as two years had passed by, the loneliness began to get to Tola’s head. She desperately needed more social interaction, and her complexion was getting worse and worse. Her lifestyle wasn’t healthy for her. She wasn’t naturally nocturnal, or as in Ulfvaldr’s case, unnaturally so.

Thus, she came up to Ulfvaldr, to ask him a question. Why didn’t they go out and find the secluded Shaman? She made the argument that he might know what was wrong Ulfvaldr, and maybe even cure his curse. And to top it off, she would get some much needed human interaction. Talking with Ulfvaldr, wasn’t the same as with normal people. Sure, he had regained most of his humanity, but there was still his bestial side, and sometimes, he had a hard time controlling it. Often he was void of emotions, and it could feel like talking to a wall, or a tree trunk. So, if they went to find this Shaman, they might need to stay there for a while, and Tola would have someone to talk to. The Shaman was also the least likely person to shun them.

Thus, they decided to set off. Ulfvaldr, of course, was more than willing to rid himself of the curse, so he had no objections. In fact, if he had known of this Shaman before, he would have long sought him out.

Thus, the very next sunset, they set out. Tola had never seen this Shaman before, but she had heard of him. He was supposed to live in seclusion, somewhere, deep in the forests. Thus, they went searching, in the direction, in which, Tola had been told through the stories. They went deep into the forest, until they were surrounded by towering trees, and shrouded in shadowy darkness, as not a speck of moonlight was let through the dense roof of foliage. Tola couldn’t see anything at all, but for Ulfvaldr, it was like walking in the midst of daylight.

Even though his condition brought many curses, it also brought many strengths and advantages. He could run faster than the fastest leopard, see clearly in darkness, as if it was day, hear the breathing of a spider, a mile away. His strengths were numerous. Yet, these strengths did not please him in the slightest, because of the cost they brought. Loathed by sunlight, thirsting for blood.

Thus, they searched. They spend night after night, scouring the forest, searching for any hint of habitation. Night after night passed, until they seemed sure that there was no stone left unturned in the entire forest, yet, they still hadn’t even found the slightest hint of the Shaman. They had looked in every conceivable place, be it in the trees, in caves, or under rocks. Yet, the only humans they found, were the occasional hunters or travellers.

Several days later, they were walking through the woods, rather casually, as they had already somewhat given up hope. They had already searched for so long, yet they still had no results to show.

“Hey, let’s just give up. This Shaman clearly isn’t here,” Ulfvaldr said, as he prepared to go back home. Tola looked at him with a slightly hesitant, if not guilty look. After all, this had been her idea, but in the end it had only been a waste of time.

“I guess,” she eventually answered, before they turned around, to go back in the direction of their little, elevated cave. They walked casually, as they were not too far from the mountain range at this point. Yet, somehow, after one hour, two hours, and finally three hours, they still hadn’t made it to the end of the forest. It was only then that they noticed something was wrong. A bit wary, they started to mark the trees where they walked, yet, a few moments later, they came back to those very same marks.

“What’s going on?” Ulfvaldr asked. Tola shook her head.

“I don’t know,” she answered rather anxiously.

“Let’s go in another direction.”

They started walking in another direction, but the result was the same. Eventually, they would find themselves in the exact same place, as before. They tried several more times, and each time, the time it took them to get back to the same place, was different. One time, it might just take five minutes, or even less, yet once, they walked for almost an hour.

“There’s clearly something going one here,” Ulfvaldr said, his voice a little low. Tola didn’t answer; she didn’t know what to say.

“Hmm… Then let’s try using speed,” Ulfvaldr said, as he grabbed Tola, and suddenly sped away at full speed. But it was no different. They kept going through the same little space, just vastly faster. Finally, he stopped, and shouted a low frustrated growl.

“What the hell is going on!” He demanded. He started looking around, furiously, using his senses to the fullest, trying to hear the lowest of sounds, feel just a slightly irregular wind. Suddenly, however, he started hearing a low laugh. His neck turned around, to an unnatural degree, at unnatural speed, that even caused a bout of wind.

A bit of a distance away from him, he saw a woman. Once, she was perhaps of tall stature, but now, she was hunched down, supporting herself on an old stick. Her hair was gray, with streaks of white; her face was old and wrinkled, looking quite ragged. However, her eyes were the weirdest part. They were completely white, as if she was blind, but they were incandescent, showing a weird energy or aura. The old woman stepped slightly back, as she noticed that she was found. She gave quite the surprised expression.

“Oh my, quite impressive. You actually found me,” she said with an old, raspy hoarse voice.

“Who are you?” Ulfvaldr asked, as Tola turned around, to look at the sudden newcomer.

“I believe I’m the one you’ve been looking for, these past days,” she answered.

“You’re the shaman? Why did you hide?” Ulfvaldr said in a monotone, emotionless voice.

“I didn’t quite hide from you; I was just testing you. Or playing with you. I find you quite peculiar; not quite human, if I’m to be frank. How is it that you’re so fast? And how did you find me just now?” She asked him in succession.

“My speed and strength is the reason I came to find you,” Ulfvaldr answered.

“Is that so? Then, let’s go to my home. We can talk there,” the old woman said, as she turned around, and started to slowly walk away. As she walked, the scenery around them suddenly changed, and they could even see the edge of the forest now, peering into the small mountain range, quite surprising the young Tola, and not so young Ulfvaldr.

They followed the old woman, as she slowly walked, and shortly after, they arrived at an old hut. Inside the hut, was an assortment of weird trinkets. Several skulls, not limited to just animals. In the skulls, were various items, like small bones, or various plants. There were even old, dried eye balls in one of them. The smell inside, was not quite pleasing to Ulfvaldr’s nose.

“Well, young one, pray tell,” the old woman asked.

“Well, I’m not sure you could call me young. I’m probably older than you, after all,” Ulfvaldr began. The old woman gave him a weird look, gesturing for him to explain further.

“Well, my story begins a very, very long time ago, I feel; actually I’m not quite sure how long. But, it’s long. I remember being frozen, for a long time, which might be why I retain my youthful look,” Ulfvaldr said, as he began retelling his life, from the day the first disaster struck his tribe. The old woman was truly shocked from the story. Not just the events, but the setting too.

A vast, frozen wasteland, where ice and snow reached as far as the eye could see. She had never even heard of such a place, or such a time, so she knew this was a long time ago. Especially since said frozen wasteland was supposed to be right here, where they stand. However, as they came to the huge bat, her white eyes seemed to sparkle, for some reason. Especially at the part where he ate the beast, and gained his powers, and the curse. Finally, she said something,

“I think I have an idea. I’ve heard of beasts similar to the giant bat, but my memory is groggy. I will need to go somewhere; a sacred place. The journey shall take me a full moon; you can come find me then,” the old woman said. Ulfvaldr nodded, then left without ceremony. For some reason, he felt weary around this woman. Especially when he told her about the beast bat. That sparkling look; it wasn’t just a look of excitement; it was contaminated with greed.

“She was a lot older than I expected,” Tola said, slightly disappointed. “Quite rare,” she continued.

“Yes. But be careful around her. There’s something weird about her; I’m not quite sure what she’s planning. For now, though, we’ll just have to trust her,” he said. Tola looked at him, wondering what he meant. She didn’t have quite the knack for seeing through people, like Ulfvaldr did. In fact, Ulfvaldr was unnaturally capable at that. Sometimes, it felt like he could see through your soul, with those deep, red eyes of his. It unsettled Tola.

A while later, they were back home, in their little cave. Things were calm for the next month, as they waited for the old woman to finish her trip. In the end, they waited for one month, and one week, to be sure that she was finished. Then, they set out once more, in search of the hut. This time, however, they found it quickly, as they had already been there once before. Inside the hut, was indeed the old, wrinkled woman. She looked at the two of them, with a bit of surprise.

“Ah, you finally came back. About time, I already got back a week ago,” she said, slightly annoyed. “Oh, and great news! I found out what that bat was!” She said, with a proud look, as she slightly straightened her hunched back.

“Well, tell me already then,” Ulfvaldr said impatiently.

“Alright, alright, but you could be politer. Anyways, that bat was one of the Primordials. Beasts born at the dawn of time, or so they say. The beast you fought and killed was the Primordial Bat. It was no small achievement, to kill it. It was probably young, or perhaps sick. Who knows. Maybe you’re just very good at killing Primordials, which would be good, since you’ll be killing more of them,” the old woman said, with a mischievous smile, as her white eyes glistered.

“What do you mean?” Ulfvaldr asked, a bit suspicious in her. There it was again; that look in her eyes.

“To rid you of your curse, we’ll be needing the bodies of three more Primordials, which would be all the Primordials, at least that I know of,” she said.

“Well, what are they, and where do I find them?” He asked.

“Hehe, straight to point, are you? Well, let me tell you then. I have no idea! Well, not completely, I do know a bit though. Like, what they are. You’ll need to find the Wolf Primordial, the Horse Primordial, and the Fox Primordial. I don’t know if that’s their names though; there’s only that much you can learn from pictures, painted on a wall. As for where to find them; that’s the hard part. I know that the Fox Primordial is somewhere, far towards the rising sun. The other two should be closer, though. The Wolf Primordial is in one of the forests of our land. Quite convenient. As for the horse, I have absolutely no idea. But fret not, the Primordials will probably be attracted to you, if you get close enough,” she said, excitedly explaining all the details she knew.

“Oh, and one more thing. I don’t think it’s a good idea to take the girl with you. You’ll be travelling all over, and fighting. She could get hurt. So, I propose that she stays here; that way, I can teach her my ways. As you can see, I’m growing old. I won’t live for many more years, so I want to pass down my ways to someone. I believe Tola has aptitude. What do you say girl?” The old woman asked. Tola looked towards Ulfvaldr for a bit, but he didn’t say anything. This was her decision.

“Alright, I’ll stay. I won’t be able to take care of myself alone, anyway. This is better,” she said, with a small smile. Ulfvaldr nodded, then said,

“Fine. Then, I’ll be leaving. I don’t know how long I’ll take, but I promise to be back as soon as possible. If it takes too long, I’ll come back home, with an update,” he said, as he looked Tola in the eyes. “Be careful,” he then said, with an expression, which advised caution. And thus, he left.

His first order of business, was to find the Wolf Primordial. According to the old Shaman, it was the one closest to his current location. Therefore, he left the forest. He was fairly sure that it wasn’t there, since he had already searched it thoroughly before. After leaving the forest, he travelled around for several days, scouring all the forests he could find. Weeks flew by, but he still hadn’t found a single sign of the wolf. He even used his abilities to control swarms of bats, scouring the known world.

He spent day after day, week after week; month after month, before one day, he came upon a forest; a forest, shrouded in darkness; a veil of shadows, strewn all over the woods. Even during daytime, it would seem as the darkest of nights. The sight stunned Ulfvaldr; it was as if both sunlight and moonlight refused entirely to reach this forest. Of course, Ulfvaldr didn’t realize this straight away, as he would only venture out at night. It was only the next day that he noticed how unnaturally dark it was. Even when he came upon a clearing, it was still dark. As he looked up to the sky, he noticed how there was still a veil of darkness, covering the entire forest.

Thus, he made a decision. He went to the edges of the forest, despite it being the time of daylight. Outside, however, it was still dark. He could see that it was only a good fifty meters away that the daylight appeared. It was as if there was an invisible wall, blocking all of the light, somehow. Luckily for Ulfvaldr, he had no trouble with darkness; if he did, he would surely be trapped in eternal darkness, doomed to a lonely death in complete seclusion.

Immediately, he knew, something had to be special about this place. Perhaps, this was the special lair, of the Wolf Primordial? He could only hope. It had already been several months, and he had yet to find even a single Primordial Beast. Thus, with conviction, he once more stepped foot into the Shrouded Forest.

Inside the forest, he trod carefully; not because he couldn’t see, but because of the unknown. He did not want to suffer an ambush. Thus, he walked, searching in every remote corner of the forest, but the entire forest was completely devoid of life. Not a single animal was to be found in this void; it was completely desolated.

He could only keep walking through the narrow trees, made of seemingly black bark, as dark as it was. It was amazing in itself that any plant life could live in there, as not a shred of light could reach any of the vegetation, but nevertheless, it was still full of plant life and vegetation. Some places were so dense with trees that you could barely walk through it, and in some places, the grass could reach to your waist, limiting your movement. However, Ulfvaldr was none the wiser; he didn’t possess a shred of knowledge on how plants grew and lived.

And, as thus, he walked through the forest, for days on end, looking for any sign of the Wolf Primordial, or anything else for that matter. Sometimes, he would speed through the forest at great speeds, but other times, he would slow down, impeded by the dense vegetation of the forest. After several days, there was not a stone unturned in the entire forest; yet, he still hadn’t found anything important, as usual. He didn’t even rest for a moment, as the forest was in a perpetual night, and he didn’t even drink anything, for several days. He was growing very thirsty, and he would need to get something to drink soon.

Then, he sped up, and started traversing towards the edge of the forest. He’d just have to come back here again later, when he’d found something to drink. However, his thoughts were quickly deferred. For as he was about to step his foot outside the forest, that which he had been searching for, for many days, appeared before him. In front of him, just outside the forest, covered in a perpetuum of darkness, stood a wolf, seven feet tall, with fur as dark that it seemed as of all light in a vast area was absorbed into his fur.

However, the eyes of this seven feet tall wolf, were the absolute opposite of his fur. His eyes, glowed white and yellow, seemingly in an eternal fight with the light absorbing fur, flickering about, throwing random strands of light into all directions, with seemingly no coordination. Out of the mouth of wolf, grew two, large, canine teeth, almost two feet in length. The silvery teeth were so shiny that you could see your reflection from them.

It was almost as if it was a giant sabretooth tiger, concealed in the furs of a wolf. Out of its four, large paws, grew large, sharp claws. They seemed as if they could rip apart rocks, and had a shining glister to them. It was truly a majestic beast, in the truest sense of the word. Then, as the maw of the ferocious beast opened, a deep, growly, almost ancient voice resounded,

“You have searched, and you have found. Why have you come?” The beast asked in a human tongue, something Ulfvaldr had never thought possible for an animal.

“I have come in search of you, Wolf Primordial. There are questions, which I must ask,” Ulfvaldr answered back, without even the slightest hint of hesitation or unrest. The wolf stood, staring down at the smaller being, as if judging him, or evaluating him.

“In these days, I have observed you. You are not as other humans. No, you’re far different; even a beast would tremble from your eyes; even I, tremble from those deep, fearful eyes. I cannot fathom who, or what you are. But I will try to sate whatever questions you bare, if you sate mine,” the beast said.

“You have a deal. If you answer all my questions, then I shall answer thine,” Ulfvaldr said, and the almost colossal wolf nodded his head.

“Then, I shall ask. First, what do you know of the Primordial Bat?” He asked, however, the black wolf only gave a confused look.

“In all my life, I have never heard of a Bat Primordial, and neither had my father, as far as my knowledge spans,”

“Your father? You had parents? Where are they?” He asked back, as he didn’t believe them to have forefathers; he believed them to be birthed by the world.

“I did indeed have a father, but he is long dead,”

“How did they die?”

“How most of us Primordials die; shortly after I was born. You see, at the end of a Primordial’s lifespan, they will give birth to an offspring, who will then be the new Primordial.” The beast answered. This new revelation had proven insightful to Ulfvaldr. He now knew that they were not immortal beings, unfettered by time. Then that would mean that whatever Primordials existed back then, were long dead.

“Interesting. Then, would you mind telling me how long a Primordial lives?” He asked.

“A few hundred years, I fathom,” the wolf primordial answered, much to the shock of Ulfvaldr. He had never expected them to be that long lived. He didn’t even know how long he had been frozen for, but he attributed him still being alive, to the fact that he was frozen, and his body couldn’t age as it was frozen. The reason he hadn’t died, was from the fact that he was hard to kill; nigh impossible to kill. He still remembered that time he got stabbed in the heart.

“I see. Well then, tell me, do you know where the Horse Primordial resides? I need to find him,” Ulfvaldr said to the wolf, who looked onwards for a while, wondering why he would need with the Horse Primordial.

“The Horse Primordial? I do know his location. If you go in that direction,” he said, as he pointed with his paw, “then, you will find a valley, quite the opposite of my forest. It is always bright there, and its adorned in golden grass. In that valley, is where the Horse Primordial resides. However, it’ll take at least a few days to get there, even with your speed. Now, let me ask you a question. Why do you need the Horse Primordial, and also, what are you? Are you the Primordial of the humans, if there even is such a thing?” the Wolf Primordial answered, then asked.

“I see. You have served me well, I shall admit. Then, let me sate your curiosity. First, as for what I am; I do not know. However, what I do know, is that a very long time ago, I met the young Bat Primordial, and killed it, then ate it. I suspect that’s where my power is from. However, my power immediately got far, far stronger than even that Primordial, as soon as my transformation finished. And as for the reason I need that Horse Primordial, is the same reason for why I sought you out. I need to kill him, to rid myself of this curse,” he said, lowering his voice significantly, at the last few words.

The wolf immediately stepped back a few steps, and formed a growl with his jaw.

“You tricked me!” He said, as he lowered his body, preparing to attack. Then, without another word, he leapt, swirling his claws at Ulfvaldr. Ulfvaldr, however, easily sidestepped, and got out of his range, then back stepped, deeper into the forest.

“Hah, are you stupid? Going deeper into the forest, deeper into the darkness? Didn’t you think that I was capable of fighting in the dark, when I live in a forest, shrouded in complete darkness?” The wolf howled.

However, when he followed Ulfvaldr into the forest, he got completely lost. No matter where he looked, he couldn’t find him. However, just as he was about to give up, and escape, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his side, then a colossal force pushed him away, into a tree.

“Perhaps you might see well in the darkness, but it’s different for me. I don’t just see well in the dark; I live in it. I can’t even step foot outside the dark, and into the sunlight. It’s my entire world. When its night, I can see much clearer than I ever could in the day. In such an environment, its simply too easy to stay out of sight,” Ulfvaldr said, as he slowly walked towards the limping wolf.

The huge wolf looked onwards, with a hint of fear in its eyes, but that slight fear quickly washed away, as it stood tall once more. Then, it lowered its head, ready to attack at any moment. And just like that, the several meter-tall wolf lunged forwards, swiping its large claws in an open arc. However, in the eyes of Ulfvaldr, the wolf seemed to only come towards him slowly, as he almost hung in the air. Ulfvaldr could only sigh, and step out of the way, easily, as the wolf crashed into the ground.

The wolf tumbled and rolled on the ground, as it finally crashed into a tree, stopping its momentum. As the wolf lay whimpering, below the tree, Ulfvaldr started walking towards it, with a guilty expression,

“I’m sorry, but I don’t want to live like this,” he said, as he neared closer and closer. The wolf seemed frozen in fright, until finally, Ulfvaldr stood right in front of the unlucky wolf.

“I want to grow old with Tola; to have children. So please, forgive me, and I am sorry,” he said slowly, but without change in expression, as he raised his fist and formed it into a spear hand. Then, without a word, without any form of ceremony, he pierced his hand into the chest of the large wolf into its heart. With a powerful motion, he pulled his arm out of wounded wolf, a heart in his hand.

“If only I had more time… time to grow my strength,” the wolf whispered, as it gave him one last, bewildered stare, before the glowing light in its eyes finally faded away, and the wolf lost all its strength, collapsing on the ground. Ulfvaldr stood up, placed the heart in a hide bag, then sighed deeply. He felt guilty about killing the noble and innocent wolf, but he didn’t feel regret. After all, this would allow him freedom.

But even when he held the wolf’s heart, he still didn’t feel any bloodlust towards it. It even slightly appalled him, like drinking the blood of the wolf would be bad to him, somehow. Even the small was disgusting to him, even though he couldn’t understand why. Even the blood the of normal animals didn’t feel appalling, like this. But he couldn’t think up an answer, he didn’t want to risk trying the blood.

Thus, as he had killed the wolf, and taken his heart, he finally gave the wolf a burial. He dragged the wolf carcass deep into the forest, to the most beautiful spot, then buried a large hole, which would come to be the final resting place, of the noble Primordial Wolf. With the wolf finally buried, he left this forest in a hurry, towards the direction, which the wolf had pointed prior, leaving the old forest behind him.

Now, his next goal, was the Primordial Horse.

Several hours later, as the sun rose in the sky, light shined on the dark forest, for the first time in eternity. As this happened, a lone hunter walked up the hill, and witnessed the sight of the now bright forest. For as long as this lone hunter could remember, this forest had always been dark, even during the day. It was even told in stories to children that anyone who ever dared enter the dark forest, would never return. However, now, the forest had darkened. Thus, the lone hunter made a decision; one that would come to change his life for eternity.