Verena's Whistle: Varangian Descendants Book I by K. Panikian (essential reading txt) 📗

coming out of the northern side of the clearing, where the group of besy walked out of the woods last night. I didn’t see any other tracks that looked new.

“Okay,” I stood up and turned to Owen. “Do you see any trees with nice, low branches?”

We found one tree on the east side of the clearing that had good sight lines into the crater bowl, so we set up one camera there. The other we set up about a quarter-mile away from the clearing on our snowshoe path. Hopefully, it was close enough that it would pick up that blue pulsing light while also staying out of range of any interfering magic.

As we walked back to the snow machine, Owen fell in beside me on the trail. The pommel of his sword, with its snarling wolf face, was right beside my gloved hand. I took a half-step away. Owen saw me do it and his face looked hurt for a moment, and then went blank. He paused and motioned for me to step ahead again.

“It’s not that I don’t want to walk next to you,” I told him quickly. “I’m nervous about the sword.”

“You think if you touch it, you’ll turn into a wolf too?”

“I don’t know. This entire situation is unfamiliar to me. It makes me really nervous to be around unknown magic.”

“I think that’s a little close-minded, Very,” Owen responded. “And short-sighted,” he added. “I should be experimenting with this power so that we can use it, not hiding from it. It’s a gift from a god!”

“Have you read any Greek myths?” I retorted. “The deceptive gift is a very common plot line. Pandora? Midas? Gifts from gods come with strings.” My voice had risen and I tried to temper my tone back down.

“I’m worried about you and I’m worried for you. I would just like you to be more careful, I guess,” I finished. “Please, no more surprises for a little while.”

“You’re worried about me?”

Of course, that was all he heard.

“I’m worried that you’re too reckless. I think you’re acting like you have something to prove and you’re taking big risks.”

“Big risks lead to big rewards,” he countered. “I feel like now I can be an actual asset in this fight.”

“And what if that’s all you are now? A weapon? What if you can’t control this? What if you go insane?”

“That’s a lot of what-ifs,” Owen sighed. “Okay, what if you whistle at me the wrong way and set me on fire? Being with someone special means taking risks. I think you’re worth it.” We walked in silence for a moment.

“I hope you’re worth it,” I finally muttered back.

“I like that you’re worried about me,” he answered and smiled down at me. We started walking again and he grabbed my gloved hand in his own.

BACK in the kitchen, we turned on the receivers for the cameras. They both seemed to be working. In one we could see straight into the center of the crater and in the other, the snowy trail through the woods.

“Where is everyone?” I wondered aloud after we were done playing with the receivers. It was pretty late in the morning. I checked my note on the counter and saw Julian added a line about going for a run.

I peeked down the hall and saw Theo’s door was still shut.

“We need to have a council of war, but I guess it can wait,” I said to Owen. “Do you want to go in the backyard and experiment with your sword?”

“Yes,” was the emphatic response.

A few minutes later we were in the back. I was in my coat, hat, and gloves and Owen was stripping and shivering. His toes looked blue in the snow.

“Let’s check your clothing and foot sizes when you transform,” I said, “so we can get you clothes that won’t rip apart.”

“Yeah,” Owen answered, teeth chattering. “Good idea.”

I sat on the steps of the deck, my saber in my lap, and nodded at him. “Ready when you are.”

Owen bent down and picked up the wolf sword. He held it loosely in his right hand. Nothing happened. He stood there for a few more moments before looking up at me on the deck. “Ideas?”

“What were you thinking about last night when you transformed?”

“I guess I was a little bit mad, maybe worried too… Um, a little disappointed.”

We waited some more.

“Did you say anything out loud? Touch anything specific on the sword?”

“I realized I was still wearing it and I went to unstrap it. I reached down, gripped it just under the crossguard and then changed my grip to the pommel.” He touched the wolf’s head and, in a flash, transformed.

He grew about a foot in height and wider all over. His arms and legs became muscled to the level of almost-grotesque. There were lots of veins. His shoulders in particular were massive and thick.

His head had dark gray fur that extended down his neck—his ruff? —all the way to his upper torso where it turned into skin again. His skin was gray though, all over.

His eyes were yellow and his ears swiveled this way and that. His mouth opened, sharp teeth gleaming, and said, “How do I look?”

“Extremely scary,” I affirmed. “How do you feel?”

“I feel like myself.” He paused. “I’m not cold anymore.”

“Maybe instead of clothes we get you some armor for your chest, and a kilt, like Anubis, so when you transform it won’t rip,” I mused. “Your feet are definitely bigger. Take one big step into that snow there,” I pointed to a pristine patch, “and we’ll measure it later.”

He stepped and then started moving around the yard, stretching his arms, swinging his sword. “I feel really strong,” he said, “like I could chop a tree in half.”

“Are you feeling urges to chop things?” I asked.

He bared a wolf grin at me. “Not yet.”

“I want to see what happens when someone clashes swords with you, but I don’t want to do it alone. Let’s try that later with Julian. You’re