Main Characters


Carvard - Leader of Demon Tribe


Shaman Eri - Shaman of the Demon Tribe


Shaman Mich- Father of Eri, Elder, Shaman of the Demon Tribe



Prolog

A small, black pelt of a Zolnixi pup with multiple shades of blue patterns etched in his pelt. He lets out a low howl as he jumps around happily.

"Carvard! Would you quit jumping around!" snaps the mom as she sticks her head out of the den. "I have to be watching your two younger sisters! Don't make me come out there!"

"Aw! Come on Mom!!" yells Carvard as he starts to prowl farther and farther away from the den.

"I can't come out and watch you so stay put!"

"Yes Mom!" yells Carvard as he sneaks through the trees, he was stalking the latest villain, he really couldn't remember who he was stalking, and he didn't think it mattered. He searched quietly with light footsteps as he makes sure to quietly glides on the forest floor. He was strong, his muscles rippling under his pelt as he hears a rustle in the leaves of a nearby bush. He launches off with his hind hunches speeding through the moss covered ground. He knew better than to lumber in with no battle strategy, and before he sprang into the bushes, he took survey of the surroundings. The only thing in the meadow was a little fox with white and black markings with gray blue and purple patterns tattooed on her pelt. On her back were two buds of purple and red glowing wings. She was pawing at something at the ground with her three tails wagging. It looked like nothing really, but she was alone. Smile grows on Carvard's face, easy prey. If he was able to kill her, he could pay a human to skin her. It would be a good pelt to have for his collect, he's growing collection. The more beautiful and decorative the pelt, the more strong the animal it came from was. In the demon pack, only the strong was able to get those beautiful patterns of swirls and splotches only came from the strong. The mating policy of he Demon Tribe where very strict about their future warriors. He pushed around the dirt under the pads of his feet, waiting for the perfect time to pounce.

In a growling storm, Carvard took off and soared over the bush, pinning the Zolnixi pup to the ground. His teeth bared to her throat, ready to snap it at any moment encase she tried to fight back. Instead of the her kicking him away or snapping at Carvard's throat her bright red eyes started to grow wide and tear up. Soon her lower lip started to quiver and she started to whimper.

"Why won't you fight back?" growls Carvard as he hesitates. He couldn't just snap her neck when she doesn't even put up a fight.

"Daddy! Daddy!" wailed the little pup as tears roll down her fur.

"What?" asks Carvard as he looks around stunned. Never had a member of the Demon Tribe ever asked for their 'Daddy' when on the battlefield in combat. Soon, a huge black-pelted male Zolnixi barreled out of the closest den. He had purple, red, light blue and white markings covering his body. His giant glowing red and purple fairy wings were spread wide which only made him look that much bigger. His three tails were erect and fluffed with rage, increasing his size. He was covered in feathers and ropes, the symbol of a shaman. Carvard backs off instantly his ears flatten to his skull and his tail under his legs, scared. There has been rumors about this Shaman, he was vicious. His sacrifices were always alive when was doing a ritual for the tribe. None of his victims ever survived. But his predictions and spells were the most accurate in all of Sylestia.

The Shaman lowers himself on his hunches, fur bristle and the veins pop on his bulging muscles. Even though Shamans are suppose to be pacifists, always in the back lines to heal or power up the attacking lines. Shaman Mich, the Zolnixi standing in front of him, was always leading the front lines. But about 3-4 moons ago, he stopped. Moved from the general den cluster of the Demon Tribe and he stopped fighting and stopped communicating with the anyone in the tribe. He became a social outcast and Carvard was thinking that he knew why. It was probably because of the small female pup who was now hiding under his front legs. Once the pup had escaped Carvard and was under her father's protection, the heart-stopping teeth-y growl soon shrank to a just a ticked off grimace.

The grown alpha Zolnixi and the young pup just stare at each other for a few minutes until the grown Zolnixi scoffs and noses the little female into his den.

"Wait! Daddy! It's only polite to offer him a bite of our catch?" snaps the female pup digging her heels into the ground, trying to stop him from pushing her.

"No"

"But I want a friend!"

"No"

"Come on! No one ever comes up here!"

"No!"

"I actually have to get back home," says Carvard as he tries to slowly slink back to his mother's den.

"Nonsense!" says the female pup as she weaves away from the pushing grown male and rushes over to Carvard. A pup who just had his teeth to her neck, and she was asking him to dinner. "Come eat with us! We just caught some-"

"No really! My mom will get mad if I'm not home for dinner. Plus she'll get mad if I hang out with..." he trails off at the end, thinking he said a little too much.

"With the Crazy Shaman?" scoffs Shaman Mich as he walks into the den. He pauses a few inches into the shadows of the den and looks back, his red eyes glinting for a second. "Come and join us."

"Um...." says Carvard as he tries to look as small as possible.

"Come on!" says the female pup as she pushes him, so much stronger then she looks.

"Hey! Whoa! What are you doing!" says Carvard, afraid of going in there.

"Just shut up and eat!" laughs the female pup as pulls him into the den.

To be continued

Chapter 1

Carvard tried to concentrate on his magic spell. He has been practicing since he took over the leadership position of the Demon Tribe after he killed the previous leader. He didn't have a problem with the guy, but he was in Carvard's way to the top so he killed him. Now Carvard was trying to protect everyone at once, so he was trying to increase his magic ability. He has been practicing with two teachers, both Shaman Mich and the talented Shaman of the Night Clan, a trusted ally of the Demon Tribe since Carvard took over. Carvard had ties with them biologically. His mother came from the tribe. It was only because his mom had the misfortune of being born with red eyes. None of her liter had the same trait, and she also had the most beautiful black pelt scattered with dark blue, blue, and cyan patterns all over her pelt. The mythical purple and red fire wings that grew from Carvard's back was from his father. A powerful Zolnixi, but wasn't driven to take over the tribe like Carvard had.

Carvard had to concentrate on the red ball of magic that was not sticking to the perfectly round sphere that Carvard was imagining it. Will power the the first key to magic. If the caster couldn't will the magic obey them then it the magic caster shouldn't be welding that kind of magic. That's what the Night Clan Shaman told him. Will power was power, and right now Carvard's will power was losing, badly, to magic. After a few moons of practicing this simple spell ball, he still couldn't get it completely circular. Not like Eri. Sorry, Shaman Eri, she had passed the Test of a Shaman a few moons into her training, youngest Shaman to date. The entire Demon Tribe was ecstatic, having a party and rejoicing. After years of ignoring the family, they finally accepted them after they were of some use to the tribe. Most tribes were lucky to keep one Shaman, not many Zolnixis could pass the Test of a Shaman, let alone live through it. Most of the Shamans that were alive were old and tired and weak. Years of studying the trade has left them no time to train or learn battle strategy. Unlike the Demon Tribe. The Demon Tribe had two strong Shamans, one was strong, a general even, in the front lines of every battle. The other young and female expected to pass on her talent to her kids like her father. The ball of magic shutters, threatening to burst. He needed to focus. If he wanted the Demon Tribe to excel, to succeed where no other tribe or clan has. To not only have three shamans, but also to have one of them be the strongest leader the tribes have ever seen. They would be unstoppable.

thump thump

The magic ball shattered as his concentration finally breaks, spilling the magic all over his den. The overgrown crawling vines increased in growth at the surplus of energy they were given. Great, he was going to have to find a Bulbori that was either brave enough or stupid enough to step into a Zolnixi den.

"What!" yelled Carvard, he expected his second in command to just blurt out whatever the problem is. She normally had the decency to give Carvard his space. So when a small little white, black, and blue-gray head popped in.

"Shaman Eri," said Carvard, his ears flattening to his skull as he turns back to his bright red magic circle and tried to create another red magic bubble. He had to focus. But as long as Eri was in the room, he had a little trouble getting his thoughts together. There has always been a rivalry, at least with him, between Eri and himself. Well for him at least, Eri seemed perfectly oblivious to the fact, even though she excelled at everything without even trying. Carvard thought if he could excel in his own career path, the path of a warrior, then he would beat Eri for good. But 12 moons before Carvard became leader of the Demon Tribe. And it has always vexed him. But it didn't stop Eri for forcing him out of his den for dinner, no matter how much he insisted that he didn't want to go. He figured that it was just that time of the week to eat with them.

"Carvard? Carvard?" asked Eri as she managed to squeeze her monstrous wings into the den. When they were little, they were tiny, barely noticeable, then one day, almost like it was overnight, they popped out and were giant. The Shaman's den had to be re-sized since even her father's wings weren't that big.

"I'm too busy to eat with you for dinner. I have to practice my magic," explained Carvard as the bubble popped as Eri called for him, twice.

"That's not why I'm here. I'm here to make a deal with you," said Eri as she broke his line of sight, shattering the third bubble he made with her there. He let out at growl as he bared his teeth. He was really starting to get ticked off with her now.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch until I'm finished with my proposal," explained Eri, knowing Carvard after all these years she knew when he was willing to start a fight over a simple annoyance and when he could be as happy as a clam. "What if I told you that you don't have to come to dinner with me and daddy ever again?"

"What?" asked Carvard as his full attention goes to the petite little Zolnixi.

"No more dinners. Ever," repeated Eri, emphasizing the last word.

"What do I have to do?" asked Carvard, suspicious. She loved her dinners, for the longest time it was the only interaction she got outside of her little den and covered meadow. For the longest time she needed Carvard. She would never give up those memories, those hopes without a fight, to offer them up means that what she wanted was very big. And he was a little scared of it.

"I want you to teach me how to fight," said Eri as she looked into his eyes. There was no sparkle like they would when she was joking nor did they look a very red-purple color either when she was being sarcastic. She was serious, and that made Carvard confused. For years Mich has been trying to teach Eri how to fight. Making her stand outside for days until she tried the newest move he taught her. She never moved once. She would rather play with butterflies then kill her prey. Now she was changing her entire personality...

"For what exactly?" asked Carvard, very concerned.

"My daddy is getting old. I'm seeing it in his steps, in his chewing, in his magic, in the way he fights. And we're out in the middle of no where. If we get attacked by a clan or even another tribe from that side of camp. Especially with how old Daddy's getting and that I'm terrible in a fight. Which means we'll both be dead and no one will help us out."

"Come on you know that I-"

"What? Teleport to save us? You would want to protect your tribe, as you should. You are the leader now. We're still outsiders in the tribe. They would criticize you for helping us instead of stopping the enemies. So I need to learn to protect myself."

"What do you want to learn?"

"Everything," says Eri as she give a little smile, and it scared Carvard a little.

Chapter 2

"Okay," said Carvard as he finished getting Eri out of her den. "We're going to start slow."

They were poking through the border of Faerina's shrine, a place where low level Myconids liked to hang around. They would help to beef up Eri as well as give her confidence and teach her a move or two.

"Now we're going to start slow, nothing too hard," said Carvard as he made sure the path was clear. He wanted to slowly work their way through the following areas so she could get strong. It was all about experience. She couldn't get stronger by just sitting in her den, studying books. It had taken Carvard twice as long to get enough experience as a leader for him to get equal amount of experience in the studying for being a shaman. Even though they both required constant upkeep and a large amount of practice for each new lesson.

"Why nothing hard?" asked Eri as she trotted out into plain sight, well passed Carvard into range of every enemy that was looking for a fight.

"What are you doing! Are you crazy!" yelled Carvard as he stepped onto the path, against his better judgement, and tried to put Eri behind his shoulder, the best position to defend her.

"Stop being so over protective!" said Eri as she pushed pass him to trot down the path. This wasn't going to be good.

"Eri! Please!" said Carvard as he tried to scout ahead. None of the other pups in the Demon Tribe would have stayed behind his shoulder like all good trainees were instructed. This was going to be difficult to train her.

"You have to stay behind him shoulder," said Carvard, starting to panic a little.

"Why?" asked Eri, looking at him with her big red eyes in curiosity. Before he could give her the tactical reason behind the fact that having the protected second party should stand close to the first party but not completely behind so that the second party can get hands on experience if they are attacked by over two enemies but still not be attacked directly by the opposing force, when two males and a female humans in black clothing stepped onto the path.

"Look at these wild sylestis," snickered the bandits as they take out their swords, pose to attack.

"Stand behind me," growled Carvard as his fur bristles in aggravation.

"I came out here to train!" said Eri as she continues to walk past his shoulder area trying to become the first party. Carvard forced her back, baring his teeth to show that he wasn't messing around. Eri put her ears down and lowers her stance, looking up at him with her big eyes. Carvard grunted as he turned back towards the attacking party. He leap into action, bounding down the path and ripping into the first bandit. He felt a stab from his left side as one of he bandits drove a knife into his side. He whipped around and grabbed a hold of the sword ripping it out of the bandits hands and throwing down the pathway. He then took a chunk out of the first bandit's shoulder, him screaming in pain. Carvard pushed off his chest, sending him flying backwards and attaching onto the sword of the third bandit, latching onto it and not letting go. Blood filled his mouth but he didn't budge. The second Bandit, the one who lost his sword and wasn't knocked out decided that it was a good idea to start kicking him in the side hoping Carvard would let go. Carvard pulled the sword out of the bandit's hands and threw it down the path. Both of them take out there knifes, protocol for bandit's trying to take wild sylesti, ready to pounce at Carvard. Carvard, posed and ready for the attack with his muscles contracting and flexing in anticipation, bared his teeth so that his muzzle was completely scrunched up as a low rumble erupted from his throat. He has won with worst odds then this.

There was a grotesque sound came from behind the group that freaked Carvard out. It was a mixture between a growl and a roar that was high-pitched and deep. It was hard to explain since Carvard had never even encountered a sound like that ever in his life. All heads whipped around towards the small little Zolnixi as her eyes glowed a bright red as the two swords Carvard had thrown away were floating in the air in a red magic circle and the swords spinning in that circle's path. Her wings were flared and made her look ten times bigger and glowed purple and red like a glowfish. Eri started gnashing with her teeth, a glowing red light erupting from her jaws like foam from a rabid animal. It spilled over and dripped onto the path with smoke rising with every drip. The two bandits were quivering in their boots, but they just gripped tighter on their knives thinking that this Zolnixi would be a prize to be won. If they could tame her, then they would be unstoppable.

"Eri!" yelled Carvard as he gets tense all over again, thinking out a plan so that he wouldn't hurt her but so he could stop this type of magic from happening. Shamans for centuries have been trying to perfect this kind of magic. All have become rabid and exterminated a few clans and tribes each time another one of these spells were cast.

The bandits lunge at her. Carvard panics, scrambling to his feet and trying to trip up one of the bandits, hoping they wouldn't hurt her. The last male bandit falls to the ground, hard, and Carvard pins him down and rips into his shoulder, tasting his blood. The bandit screams in pain and Carvard lands the final blow, making sure he wouldn't hurt anyone else. When Carvard looked up to see the damage from Eri, he noticed that she had the female bandit with a sword through her chest and Eri sniffing around the wound in curiosity, the glowing whatever from the transformation was gone and her wings were folded up and she hand no red glowing cirles around her. She was perfectly fine. She was more then fine, she was... normal.

"I beat one!" said Eri with a wide grin on her face. "I didn't do so bad! Standing behind your shoulder, ha! I could do it without your help! I don't need you anymore!"

"Don't get cocky! It could just be beginners luck. Unless.. you want to try and kill yourself!" said Carvard as he inspects Eri.

"W-what are you doing?" asked Eri as she tries to move away from Carvard's prying eyes and curious nose.

"You went Zver," said Carvard as he continues to inspect every section of Eri.

"What?"

"You went Zver," repeated Carvard.

"No... No I couldn't have!" said Eri with a laugh. "Zver is... I controlled it though! I was able to... But..."

"You realize what this means for the Demon Tribe right?" asked Carvard as his face lights up in happiness.

"No! You can't tell anyone!" pleads Eri. "No one can know about this!"

"What?" asked Carvard. "But no Shaman has ever been able to master the Zver technique! A technique that can give us a leg up! And-"

"Please," said Eri as her ears flat to her skull and her eyes grow wide in fear like a rabbit. And it hit Carvard like a ton of bricks.

"You know don't you? You know that you would Zver out. Didn't you."

"Dad knew. He told me what happened after I did it the first time."

"The first time?"

"This isn't the first time. This is the reason why I wanted you to train me. If Daddy and I get attacked again, I can't Zver out again. Not in front of other sylestis! NEVER in front of sylestis! I will be weaponized by my tribe! I have to learn to fight without using the Zver technique. Please Carvard! Please!"

"First you have to tell me the story," said Carvard as he sits down, ready to hear a long story.

To Be Continued

looking pritty cool mind hleping me with my fan fic and giveing feed bake pliz
https://www.sylestia.com/forums/?thread=35302

Updated~!! I will be writing Eri's story in Chapter 3