A Howl and a Locket

This wasn’t Aaya’s fault. She’d been half a mile away when she’d heard the scream. Sure she’d been expecting a scream, but in a more guttural and beastly sense. Not this. Her face cringed when she looked into the pit. Stuck on the numerous spikes that she’d spent days carving, was a man. Thankfully he was already dead so she didn’t have to put the poor guy out of his misery. Not thankfully, he was so wedged into the space that she knew she wouldn’t be able to pull him out.

Aaya wasn’t hungry enough to eat another human, unlike some other Southern people she’d met.

With the longest stick she could find, Aaya managed to squirm the man’s pack away from him. She sat down a few feet away under the afternoon sun and rummaged through it. Most of it was standard survival gear: a box of matches, a knife, a length of rope, and some jerky. Tucked in a side pocket and wrapped in cloth, was a locket. Etched onto the front of the heart-shaped locket was a symbol that made Aaya’s breath stop.

It was the crest of the Overseers. That meant that this locket was a gift, meant to give hope to the people who were left, from the Overseers to those out into the world still free. To find one, meant salvation and a way into the Silver City.

Aaya had never seen one of the lockets with her own eyes, but growing up her mother had carried a drawing of the Overseers symbol. Her mother knew that they only way her children would survive this world they’d been born into, was to follow that symbol.

With the locket buried deep inside her own pack, Aaya set off towards her hidey hole. All thoughts of the broken man in her pit were gone.

By the time she reached her destination, night had already began to fall. She squeezed through the tight crevice of the cliff wall, and once inside, stuffed her collection of rocks, moss, and branches into the same space.

With her new matches, she lit her lantern. Anxiously she pulled out the locket. She had to struggle to open the small clasp, but soon enough the locket laid open in her palm. Inside was a compass, with a silver-tipped needle pointing in a direction that definitely wasn’t true north.

Aaya knew instantly that the needle pointed towards the Silver City. She gave a small squeal of excitement. All of a sudden every story her mother had told her was coming true. She turned her eyes to the small encryption on the side of the locket. It bold cursive lettering, was an invitation to join the Overseers in the Silver City. With the locket and invitation, she would be guaranteed allowed entrance by the city’s guardians. It’d always confused her as to why the City was so selective. Her mother hadn’t known the answer either, but had stressed that those in power could play any games they wanted. They weren’t in a position to question, only to survive.

Aaya wrapped the locket up in a raggedy sock and hid it in a secret pocket in her shirt. As she chewed on a piece of dried jerky, she pulled out her small hand-drawn map and planned her trek. The journey would be long, but she’d taken on longer.

Outside, the howls started. She tried to ignore how close the howls were to her location. Howls meant danger, and death. She’d heard the howls all her life. The sound alone didn’t scare her anymore, but experience had taught her to be scared of where the howls came from. She’d lost the majority of her family to the howls, and she dreaded being next.

With her route memorized, Aaya folded it and put it with the locket. As she thought of the journey ahead, an image of her mother came to mind. This was a chance her mother had prayed for all of her children, and Aaya knew she couldn’t let it pass.

The next morning she packed her meager belongings, and headed north.

On the third day, as the sun sank low in the sky, she faced a crisis. She’d exited the woods long ago, and entered grassland. She’d spent her whole life in the mountains and forests. With the light fading fast, she was frantic to find any sort of shelter, but the whole area was bare of any structures. She couldn’t even find any trees that would bear her weight, let alone hide her.

Finally she found a dead tree that still had a sturdy-looking trunk. She climbed as high as she could, before the creak of the tree stopped her. With knife in hand, she settled in for a sleepless night.

As soon as the sun had disappeared, the howls started. Out here in the grasslands under the full moon, Aaya could see farther than she ever could in the woods. That meant she could see the pack of seven as they walked lazily towards her tree.

Each wolf had thick, dark fur, and large yellow eyes. Though their heights varied, they all still averaged six feet in height at the shoulder.

Her mother had said that the wolves were the product of a military push to end their reliance on human soldiers. They’d lost so many to the wars, that it was easier to train animals to take their place. What the military hadn’t counted on was that the drugs they’d used to enhance their size and strength, had also enhanced their intelligence.

As the wind blew through Aaya’s hair, the passing wolves all froze. As one they looked upwards, and saw her.

The largest wolf stepped closer to the tree and stared into Aaya’s eyes. The other wolves in the pack all fanned out around the tree.

“Child, what are you doing up there?” The wolf’s voice was thick and gravelly. The fact that it could speak sent a shiver up Aaya’s spine. Only the strongest tier of wolves were able to speak. Even so, there was almost a note of softness and concern laced within.

“Go away.” Aaya hated how small her voice sounded.

Below the wolf tilted its head to the side. “Are you alone Child?”

Aaya didn’t answer. She was conflicted. On one hand, she didn’t want to admit that she was alone and make herself an easy target. On the other hand, she’d been taught to never give up locations to the wolves.

Although, nowadays she didn’t have anyone to give up.

The wolf leaned up onto the trunk. The moonlight hit their eyes, and the pupils turned a dark purple. “Child, are you alone?” Aaya still didn’t answer. The wolf leaned in closer and the dead tree swayed under the heavy weight. The wolf’s eyes narrowed as it glared at the tree. “Come down Child, it’s dangerous up there.”

Aaya shook her head.

The wolf gave a series of sharp barks to its pack. Three wolves joined up and pushed against the dead wood. With an audible snap the trunk gave way.

Aaya couldn’t help the scream that escaped her lips. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the hard impact of the ground. Instead, she landed on soft fur. That didn’t last long as she was shrugged off by the wolf that had caught her. Like a newborn pup, she pulled to her feet by the scruff of her collar.

The first wolf stepped forward and caught Aaya’s eyes. “Follow us Child, it is just as dangerous down here.” The pack surrounded Aaya, and she had no choice but to follow as they herded her away.

The hairs on the back of her neck were ramrod straight as Aaya nearly sprinted to keep up. For every one step of the wolves, she had to take three. Howls filled the air around them, presumably from other packs, and occasionally one of her guards would answer with a howl of their own.

She had no idea where she was being led. After what she estimated to be a few hours or so, lights popped up in the distance. The large wolf stopped and gave a loud howl. The howl was returned, but by the sound of a horn. A few moments later a smaller collection of light came towards them.

The truck that pulled up was small, with only enough room in the cab for two people. A tall, large man got out and approached the pack.

“What do you want?” He grumbled. “We paid tribute this month.”

The large wolf turned their attention to Aaya, and she felt herself pushed forward. “We found this child in a tree. She will join you.”

The man’s eyes narrowed as he examined Aaya’s small frame in the headlights. He shook his head. “She’s too skinny, and we have enough females. Take her to Tedin.”

The wolf shook their head. “Tedin has taken too many females. Anymore and his tribute will suffer. You however barely managed to provide enough tribute. We merely wish to help you. You will take the Child, and you will put her to work. Her small hands should be of great help.” The wolf’s voice was sharp now, and Aaya got the feeling that this was not a request.

The man got the same feeling as he stepped forward and took Aaya by the arm. She was thrown roughly into the front seat. He got in on the other side, started the truck, and pulled away from the pack. Aaya could see the yellow eyes of the wolves in the side mirror as they followed their progress.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause trouble.”

The man groaned. “Save it, not like any of us have a choice.”

Aaya sighed heavily. “Once the sun rises I’ll leave-”

The man cut her off. “If you aren’t here the next time Inge counts head, it’ll be my head! You’re trapped here with the rest of us.” He gave a low growl as the truck bounced over a small hill. “What are you doing out here anyway?”

Aaya went quiet as she racked her brain for an answer. Finally, she told the truth. “I was on my way to the Silver City.”

A loud laugh filled the cabin. “You must be from the South if you still believe in that nonsense.”

Aaya turned with large eyes to the man. “What do you mean nonsense? The Silver City is the only place where we can live in safety from the wolves.”

He smiled grimly. “The Silver City fell years ago. The only way to live ‘safely’ anymore is in a work camp. Luckily those bastards haven’t managed to grow opposable thumbs yet.” He tightened his grip on the wheel. “As long as that holds true, the human race still has a reason to live.”

Aaya dug out the locket and held it up. “Liar. I found the Overseer’s locket.” She yelled as the man tore the locket out of her hands.

He held up the piece of jewelry in front of his face. “Didn’t come from our camp.” Aaya didn’t time to argue before he tossed it out the window. “Those trinkets are traps set by the wolves. After the city fell, the wolves ordered their camps to making more of those damn things.” A large wooden gate loomed over them. He stopped the truck and gave three quick hits of the horn. “Why bother hunting slaves in the woods, when they could bait them to come to them.” The gate slowly opened inward. “My advice, forget about the Silver City and forget about the Overseers.”

As the truck entered the compound, the last words Aaya’s father had told her before he’d died rang in her head: the most dangerous wolf is the one that thinks it’s a sheep.