Secrets of a Hybrid

Rory POV

Silas leads the group down a secret path to his homeland while he begins to study Rory. Will her secrets be revealed as she tries to control her frenzy form?

Mountains, mountains, and more damn mountains! It’s been six days since we headed north toward the hidden path that will take us to Silas’ home in the capital city, Desfyra. We had to follow the secret path instead of the most direct route to Desfyra to stay away from adventures that were hunting me. Our little traveling group has been a freaking delight to journey with… I wish. In six days, I have had twenty-three arguments with Silas alone. I am titering on the edge of falling into frenzy mode. Em has helped me stop at least twelve transformations in the past few days. The worst part was the act of stopping the transformations caused my injuries to heal slower than normal for me.

This hidden path toward Desfyra followed around the edge of the Northern Mountains with built-in resting places for elves. Honestly, I was excited to share a bed with Em last night after sleeping on the ground so much, but Silas said we wouldn’t make it to the next rest stop for a few days, which means more nights spent on the ground. The trails were barely marked as we walked through the narrow cliffside. The cliffs were full of Dust Horn Goats, which sounded harmless, but they were the exact opposite. The cute little Dust Horns spit venom at other creatures crossing in their territory. The venom causes its victims to see illusions for hours. Braxton spent six hours tied to Silas’ waist with rope to keep him from wandering off the path. The giant orc rambled on and on about adorable woodland creatures. I wonder if Braxton was trying to pet a Dust Horn when he was hit by the venom. The good thing about the Dust Horns was the amount of prey to be caught for dinner. Hog tastes better than goat in my opinion, but I prefer goat to fish.

“Come on, Red. You’re moving too slow.” Silas called out from the front of the group.

Red was the nickname he gave me three days ago because of my deep red hair. Every time Silas called me Red my blood boiled like I should punch him in the face. I am proud to say that I only slugged him six times so far. He’s annoying with the way he bombards me with questions about my shifting, diet, magic, routine, and other unnecessary information about me. I know I agreed to let him study me, but this was ridiculous. It feels like I am an experiment in a wizard’s lab.

Braxton has been kinder toward me. He spent the evenings helping master my lightning magic. Unlike most people, my magic seems to be tied directly to my emotions. Every time I have used the lightning magic it was on instinct. I had no clear direction in my mind for what I wanted the magic to do. Every sizzle of electricity was reacting to my emotions to ensure my survival, but I needed to control it. If I don’t get it under control, someone will get hurt. Braxton says I am making good progress with controlling the shape of my lightning. Wielding it has been difficult though because of how different it was from the dirt of terrain magic. Lightning moves like water with the ferocity of fire guiding it forward.

Between Silas’ borderline stalking of everything I do and Braxton’s magic lessons, I haven’t had time to talk to Em like I want to. We were long overdue for a good heart-to-heart, but the timing never seemed to be right when we got a second away from our companions. I needed to tell her that she was right about Mr. Applegate. He wasn’t a threat to us. We needed to discuss seeing Myrra and facing Athyra. Braxton had told me Em had almost died to satisfy Athyra’s bloodlust, which was risky, to say the least. It felt like there was this huge gap between us with everything that happened last week.

“Red, are you listening?” He called again.

Annoying little elf. It started as a joke, but Silas seems to think I am as slow as a tortoise. He constantly pesters me to go faster. At some point, I decided to hide my speed as an act of defiance against his need to study me. I groaned and sped past him using my wolf speed without giving it much thought. I just let the cat out of the bag on my little secret. His long silky black hair whipped around his face, causing me to chuckle. I stopped just a few feet away from him as he tried to manage his tangled mess of hair. His grumpy face was beyond satisfying to see as huffed at me. Emalynn and Braxton laughed at the exchange. The fancy elf made it too easy to pick on him. Last night, I put a fuzzy caterpillar on his shoulder. He didn’t notice the bug until it crawled on his nose, and he screamed like a Dust Horn getting a horn to the thigh.

“So, you can go fast, Red,” His tongue clicked like he was disappointed in me. “Just how fast can you go?”

“Over 30 miles per hour,” I grinned at his surprised reaction. “Aren’t you going to write that down, Mr. Researcher?”

Silas’ face changed from surprised to conniving in an instant. I had been hiding my speed from him because he was already running tests on every other ability I had. He was pissed I was withholding information from him. With a small gesture of his hand, a gust of wind pushed me backward, knocking me onto my ass. The fancy little elf didn’t like my sarcastic humor. I forced myself back onto my feet and dusted off my black pants and boots. Silas sauntered his way over to me like he declared victory over our little prank war. He patted my wild red hair like I was a dog. This was his revenge for withholding information on my speed.

“Red, you might need to be more careful or the strong gusts of the Northern Mountains might knock you over.” Silas cooed at me like I was a child as he sent another gust of wind to push me over a second time.

My ass hit the dust ground once more, and I felt a tidal wave of frustration pour through me. Emalynn pushed the elf out of the way of her elbow and reached her hand out to me. “The Northern Mountains just need a little break. We have been walking for hours anyway.”

Braxton put his hand on Silas’ shoulder to discourage any further argument, but Silas needed to have the last word. “It’s all good, Em. Red, should just sit and stay for a while.”

My jaw clenched at his words. I was tired of his damn dog humor! Sure, I am part wolf, but he doesn’t seem to understand how degrading his jokes can be to my kind. “Shut up, Silas,” I commanded.

Braxton stepped between us to keep Silas from saying anything in response while Em pulled away from them. She led me around the curve of the cliff path until the guys were out of sight. Em sat on the ground with her back resting against the cliff wall and patted the ground next to her, inviting me to join her. I reluctantly nodded and settled beside her. She didn’t say anything to try to calm me down or anything. Instead, she gazed at the horizon. We were surrounded by mountains with a loud river running below the cliffside. Trekking along the cliffs of the edge of the Northern Mountains has been a challenge. Hardly anyone knows a safe path to take near the Northern Mountains, so the path we were on was difficult due to little foot traffic. I can understand why Silas calls this the ‘Secret Road to the Elves’.

“Damn, Silas. Why does he get on my nerves so easily? It feels like he has been watching me nonstop since I woke up six days ago. He notes everything I eat, how I walk, how much sleep I get, and yesterday, he told me I have been screaming in my sleep!” The frustration just came spilling out of me like a waterfall. “At least Braxton gives me privacy, Silas has awkward questions about my bathroom habits. This morning I told him to shove it up his ass with a stick. Em, I am not sure I can take much more.”

Emalynn gave me a sympathetic look. “Sorry, Ro. He just finds you fascinating or at least that’s how Braxton explains it. You are a rare creature with unknown limits. He wants to understand you.”

“It’s like he forgets I am a person too.” I sighed.

A sudden rumbling noise above us caught my attention. Rocks began tumbling over the cliffs above us. I quickly pushed Em away as I scrambled to move out of the way. A Dust Horn came falling off the cliff with the tumbling rocks. Within two minutes, I had been pummeled by falling rocks, bitten by the stumbling Dust Horn, and dragged through the dirt by Emalynn. I only had a few minutes before that goat’s venom would cloud my mind with hallucinations and illusions. I tried to reach into my pack to find the recipe for the antidote to the venom. I was pretty sure there was one in my mom’s herbs and remedies book. My mind felt like it was going numb as I raced through my pack to find the book. I felt the spine of the book with my fingertips and threw it at Emalynn at the same moment Braxton and Silas reached us.

Braxton rushed toward Emalynn to help her up as Silas began healing me with his magic. The warm magic spilled over like being wrapped in a plush blanket. His magic seemed to have this calming tone to it that immediately relaxed me, but I knew his magic wouldn’t stop the venom from clouding my mind. I looked up at the elf healing me and there was something very attractive about him, but then he opened his damn mouth and complained about always having to heal me.

“You have a pretty face, but your damned mouth ruins it,” I muttered as he drew me into his arms. He gave me the weirdest look before noticing the goat bite mark on my arm.

“Were you bitten by a Dust Horn?” He asked.

I tried to focus on his face to understand what he was saying, but I got too distracted by the fuzzy caterpillars I saw crawling across his face. “Si..lassy, you got buggies on your pretty face.”

“Well, that answers that question. You were bitten.” Silas held me up in his arms. “What about you Emera? Any bites or injuries?”

My brain felt like it was humming as I tried to listen to the conversation. Did he just call Emalynn a different name?

“No, I am fine. Ro pushed me out of the way in time.” Emalynn answered as Braxton helped her up. Emalynn picked up something that seemed familiar to me, but then she turned into a dancing hog right in front of me. I was in awe. “Ro threw her remedy book at me just a minute ago. Maybe there’s a dust horn remedy in here.”

“She had a remedy book this whole time? Where was that when I was exposed to the goat venom?” Braxton asked.

Goat venom? Suddenly, the green orc looked like a giant green goat. I scramble onto Silas’ lap screaming, “Green goat! Run!”

Silas looked down at me with an odd disappointed expression as caterpillars roamed his face. “Emera, can you make that remedy? I think she will be harder to deal with than Braxton was.”

I cocked my head at him and pointed at Emalynn. “The dancing hog’s name is Emalynn caterpillar face.”

Silas just shook his head at me. “Whatever you say Red.”

“Red is the color of roses, not my name. I am Rory Bishop!” I whined at him.

Silas just nodded at me, holding me close to him like I might escape. He felt warm, and I liked that. I leaned into him, watching the caterpillars trail across his face. The dancing hog and giant green goat disappeared from my vision entirely. Why was the fuzz face looking upset? His golden eyes looked like little suns staring down at me. This elf man was too good-looking. All elves are good-looking to a point, but his sunny eyes and silky hair made him kind of beautiful.

“Fuzz face, why do you stalk me?”

He looked offended by my words. “I am not a stalker.”

“You were when I first met you, and you watch me all the time. That makes you a stalker, Fuzz Face.” I poked his nose.

He shook my finger off his nose. “I am a researcher, Red. To fully understand something, I learn everything I can about it. You are a very rare creature that has piqued my interest. I want to learn everything about you as a hybrid.”

Hybrid. That word made my inside tremble. It felt like a poisonous word. A word that I never wanted to hear again because of every bad thing that came with it. “Don’t say that.”

Two of his black caterpillars scrunched together above his eyes. “Don’t say what?”

“The ‘H’ word,” I whispered.

“Hybrid?”

My whole body began to tremble inside and out. Why did he say that word? It was such a horrible word that made me panic. I could feel a rush of cold magic flow through me. It spread across my whole body as everything began to tingle. Stupid! Why did he say that? Pain slammed into my head hard as I rolled away from Fuzz Face. My head pounded as I felt a hot liquid spill into my hair. My hearing changed. I could hear Emalynn mumbling to herself over a fire and the crash of each spurt of water over the rocks in the river. My mouth ached as I pricked my tongue on a sharp tooth. Red fur sprouted from my skin and my bones rearranged. I felt myself cry and scream as I took a new form. My mind was numb and full of pain. I watched through my eyes what was happening, but I had no control over anything. This form…is it? Frenzy form… Shit.