Samuel conjured fire to his hands at once, letting the flames lick between his fingers and flare brightly. They immediately cast more light around the area, and the wolves stepped back hurriedly, falling silent. He took the chance to glance around quickly, making sure that there weren’t any other threats around him. The ground between the trees seemed otherwise deserted.

He could have kicked himself. Of course, a brand new forest would mean that the trees teemed with animals. So it shouldn’t have been a surprise that he’d find wolves here. He took a step backward towards his bags, wondering if he had enough time to snatch them up before fleeing. He really didn’t feel like he stood a chance in a fight here, not without getting hurt somehow.

The lead wolf took a few tentative paces forward as he moved, and Samuel froze, holding the flame out for the beasts to see. They clearly didn’t like the presence of fire, but it wasn’t discouraging them from seeing him as prey. Cursing quietly to himself, Samuel stood as tall as he could, trying to make himself seem bigger.

“Go away!” he shouted suddenly, trying to scare them. “Begone!”

The lead wolf suddenly darted forward, growling as he dove at Samuel. The young mage made the flames flash brighter, and the wolf jumped away. But now the other two were flanking him, and he was surrounded on all sides. Clearly, a fight was unavoidable. He abandoned the idea of saving his packs and send a small fireball flying at the lead wolf.

The beast jumped out of the way of the fire just in time, yelping as it felt the touch of the flame. Then the other two jumped at Samuel, their jaws aiming for his arms. He jumped back, splashing more flames on the ground below him. The flames spiraled out in a small circle on the forest floor, not burning the greenery there, but protecting him from all sides. The wolves didn’t want to feel that burning sensation.

Suddenly, a mass of water flew out from the darkness of the trees, splashing over him and quenching the flames on the ground. Bewildered, Samuel looked to where they came from and cursed. Five more figures were there. For a moment, Samuel remembered the Draul a hundred years ago, who had attacked him and Shigeru as they’d traveled to find Neratas. But these were different. They were humans and elves, and they had no sense of corruption about them.

“Begone, spellflinger,” One of the figures shouted. “We do not welcome those who attack our beasts.”

“They attacked me first!” Samuel said. He made a quick blast of air to dry himself. “I was just defending myself!”

The wolves had retreated from him now, moving to cower behind the newcomers. These must be some of Grimr’s druids, he thought. Obviously, they had no clue who he was, only viewing him as a threat and intruder. There was nothing but suspicion and distrust in their eyes. One of them lifted a longbow, drawing an arrow and pointing it at him.

“We do not tolerate bandits using our woods for shelter.” The lead druid said. He was a powerfully built man wearing a bear’s pelt over his otherwise bare chest. “Leave now, while we are merciful.”

“Last time I checked, this forest belongs to Grimr,” Samuel said, feeling an irrational burst of anger. “And you don’t look anything like the Grimr I remember.”

“That is Lord Grimr to you, spellflinger.” The druid spat back. “Now leave!”

In spite of himself, Samuel laughed. He remembered the dry sarcastic wit of his Ancient friend when they’d traveled together. “I doubt he likes being called a lord. That doesn’t seem in character for him.”

That was clearly the wrong thing to say. The leader’s face darkened with anger, and he drew a heavy club from his belt. The archer, seeing his leader’s intent, let loose the arrow he’d drawn. The shaft leaped across the space between them, faster than the eye could track. Samuel was faster still, and the arrow ricocheted against his mana barrier, flying off at an odd angle.

“Halika,” he said quickly, holding his hands out. “Matandang Talim!”

The crystal blade in its dark blue scabbard appeared in his hands, just in time to block the overhead crushing strike of the leader. The force behind the blow still staggered Samuel, but he mustered his strength and pushed the heavy weapon aside. Then, gathering mana into his left hand, he punched the leader as hard as he could. The big man was sent staggering back, and Samuel leaped clear.

Two vines reached down from nearby trees. The first one snagged around his right hand, pulling it to the side, rendering his sword useless. The second nearly got his left arm, but he conjured more fire to his palm, and the vine burned away. He grabbed the other with his flaming hand, freeing his right arm. Now the leader was swinging again, and he was forced to parry that heavy club again.

His old battle awareness now working properly, Samuel noticed the druid on the far left beginning to cast a spell, and he sent a bolt of disruptive mana towards him. It was his unique talent, and it wasn’t until then that he remembered he could counter magicks cast by others. The spell that the druid had been about to cast was blown back in his face, and a huge burst of water sent him and two of his allies flying back out of sight.

Samuel struck the leader with his blade, still in its scabbard. This attack had much more force behind it, and the big druid was sent flying to the side a foot or two away. Samuel stopped the last standing druid from shooting him again by throwing another spell. A thin bolt of lightning leaped from his finger, striking the druid in the arm and forcing him to drop the bow as he cried out in pain.

He might have been weakened considerably in his hundred years away, he thought, but these druids weren’t much of a challenge. Despite their numerical advantage, Samuel could tell that they hadn’t been studying for long. They were at about the same level as Apprentice mages from the college in Milagre. Since he’d already dueled with two mages of that caliber in his life, and gotten a lot stronger since, he faced no real challenge.

“By the gods,” he muttered. “What happened to the druid’s warm, welcoming nature? Was that all a lie? Do you just attack anyone that enters the forest now?”

There was no answer from the druid he’d stuck with lightning, and the other three were blasted so far back that they couldn’t have heard his question. The leader of the druids, however, chose not to answer his question verbally, instead choosing to rush into an attack once again. Samuel jumped to the side to avoid the club, then blasted the man back with a burst of air.

“Just stop already!” he said forcefully. “I don’t like fighting, and you’re clearly losing.”

This, of course, didn’t accomplish what he wanted. Quite the opposite, as the druid leader seemed to only get angrier. He jumped to his feet with a howl of rage and charged. As he ran, his form shimmered, and Samuel was suddenly facing the giant form of a bear. Shouting in surprise, he jumped sideways again, letting the beast lumber past him. He hit a tree in his haste, slamming against the trunk hard enough to knock out anything smaller.

While he was dazed, Samuel slammed more wind into him, pinning him in place with a constant torrent of air. The bear growled in fury and pain, but Samuel didn’t let up. With another strong gust, the bear’s head slammed against the tree again and fell silent. Slowly, the bear faded, returning to the form of the large druid leader. Samuel heaved a deep sigh. This was definitely not the way he wanted his first journey back in Ahya to go.

He was just getting ready to pick his rucksack up from the ground and leave when he heard another growl. At first, he thought it was the wolves returning to the attack, and he whirled around. But the wolves had run away. Scanning the area quickly, Samuel’s heart stopped for a moment. On the path, blocking his escape route, was a panther. Jet black and massive, it was a powerful beast. Natural energy radiated from it like a bright sun.

Samuel knew at once that he stood no chance against this beast. Even as it leaped at him, he made no attempt to block or attack it, ducking low. The enormous black cat sailed over his head as he rolled, coming back up on the road. It hit the tree harder than the bear had done, but it wasn’t even dazed. It clung to the trunk for a second, then dropped almost silently to the forest floor and began to pace forward.

Samuel took one look at those huge paws with claws partially extended, then at the angry violet eyes, and took a hurried step back. He unsheathed the ancient blade now, taking some relief in how the runes flared to life a little brighter than before. If this beast was determined to kill him, he’d try his best to beat it.

The beast paused at the sight of the blade, its eyes narrowed in concentration. It was such a surprisingly human expression that even Samuel paused in his movements. It was almost as if the panther has recognized the weapon. But that was impossible with how old it was. Unless….

“Grimr?” He asked hesitantly. “Is that you?”