A glimpse at things to come

               Minntist ran along the soot covered trail as fast as his paws allowed, he remembered this part of the forest rather well so it didn’t require much focus to gain a lead on his pursuers. He risked a glance up towards the red tinted overcast sky. Snow fell gently through the air. It was as pretty a sight he had to admit, even if it was ash that drifted through the air instead of actual snow. But Mint couldn’t be too picky about where he found beauty. In this world beauty was hard to come by.

                Death however, death was everywhere you looked: bleached bones, burned out trees, and dried up rivers were everywhere you’re eyes had the displeasure of falling. As if some god of fire and ash had tired with the world and had decided to burn it to the ground.  Perierat hadn’t always been this way; it used to be a planet overflowing with life and diversity. But then judgment day had come; the day the great spirits had taken all the righteous into the heavens, and then released demons to destroy the unworthy.

                So now, the world belonged to demons, cut throats, and cultists.

                And, unfortunately Minntist

                He’d been left behind, forgotten. He’d like to say he didn’t know why, that it was likely just an oversight he’d been left, and that any second he’d ascend into heaven on a beam of light and a chorus of “sorry! Almost forgot you!”

                But he could not.

                Mint had spent his entire life being forgotten, being left behind. He’d dared to hope, that perhaps the gods would be able to see passed the curse that had branded our young fox his entire life.

                They had not.

                Mint was forced to stop for a moment, he leaned his side against a log as he panted. It wasn’t the sort of shrill quick pant that you get from doing a good bit of running; it was a long gasping pant you got when you were dying. Not to say that Mint was dying of course, no, he was just running for his life.

                “Come’on little morsel, slow down and we’ll kill ya quick!” promised the vicious voice of a wolf.

                “Awww… but Haws… I though you promised we’d give this one a good run!” another taunting voice pleaded with mock disappointment.

                “Hmm…” Haws pretended to think on this for a moment. “Alright Jerry. Sorry Foxy boy! Sounds like Jerry’d rather have ya runnin’!”

                Mint slowly pushed himself from the ash covered log he was leaning on, and turned slowly to face his pursuers

                “Well shoot!” Jerry said with an evil cackle, “Looks like he’s plum tuckered out!”

                “Guess we’ll just have to gut ‘em and eat ‘em!”

                Minntist purple eyes took a quick evaluation of his foes. They were shadow hounds, (albeit pathetic ones) which were a lot like regular hounds only they could travel short distances through patches of darkness. That explains how they kept up. He thought with slight annoyance.

                Minntist knew he’d have to be careful, shadow hounds occasionally knew a spell or two. Granted it didn’t look likethey knew any, other ways they would’ve used it to catch him earlier. But it never hurt to be careful.

                The hounds began slowly circling Mint grinning sadistically. The young fox drew from his manna well and began casting a spell.

                “What’s wrong little fox? Wolf got your tongue?” Haws asked smiling at his own joke.

                “Yeah! And your teeth to?” Jerry asked stupidly.

                Minntist had decided to go with one of his more simple spells. He summoned two malleable balls of mage steel.

                “Shut up Jerry! Ye ruined the joke!” Haws said smacking Jerry with his tail.

                “I must say I’m very impressed with you two, I don’t get caught very often.” Mint said evenly.

                “Oh really, Ya here that Jer? We managed to impress a little fox!” they both had a good laugh at that.

That’s right, just keep talking Mint thought forming the unseen mage steel into two, four pointed throwing starts about the size of a table top.

                “Do ya happen to know what we are little one?” Haws asked evilly.

                Mint shrugged, “Wolves?”

                Haws chuckled wickedly “Har har har!” he boomed. “We aint your everyday wolves kid!” he smiled, “Would you like to guess what makes us so special?”

                “hmmm….” Minntist said feinting thoughtfulness, “You’re ugly, inbred, blighters with a hygiene problem?” Mint asked smiling dryly.

                Haws looked stunned for a moment. Then he growled.

                “Haws! We can’t let him talk about mama like that!” Jerry shouted angrily.

                “SHUT UP!” Haws yelled turning furiously to his brother.

                There was the sound of mage steel hitting flesh (which sounds a lot like regular steel hitting flesh, only with more glitter.) fallowed by the sound of a skull hitting the earth. Poor Jerry never got to hear the second sound though.

                It’s difficult to hear much without a head.

                Haws stared in horror as his brothers headless corpus fell to the ash covered earth. Minntist took Haw’s hesitance as a chance to launch his second blade. Haws, no newbie to fighting, threw himself sideways, letting Mint’s blade hit uselessly into a tree.

                “YOU KILLED HIM!” Haws shouted accusingly.

                Mint didn’t gratify him with an answer. Instead he leapt onto a nearby tree branch and began casting another spell. Haws ran into the shadow of a nearby tree, reappearing right bellow Minntist’s perch. Haws jumped towards Mint his jaws bit down hard, but his teeth hit only dead wood as the fox jumped to another tree.

                “Ye can’t run forever!” Haws screamed pouncing towards his new target. To a normal wolf such a jump (well over 12 feet) would’ve been imposable, shadow hounds were not normal wolves.

                Mint didn’t have time to think, so his instincts thought for him. Rather than bothering to forge the magic into a spell, he merely let it out in one powerful spread shot. Mint was blown from his newly obtained perch, and Haws’s lower jaw was blown from his head.

                Haws let out a dying howl as mint pulled himself from an ash pile. Slowly, the white fox approached the dead forms of his enemies. His stomach growled.

                Minntist sighed. He wished he could be picky about his food.