Chapter Text
The wind howled through the trees, leaves rustling and dropping to the floor in piles of brown, yellow and orange. The summer was gone, and now the autumn wind and rain arrived in the land of Navarre. The grass that had been crisp and green now was turning to sludgy mud, and the fog travelling from the emerald sea grew closer. The beauty and brightness of the kingdom was now a mist of grey and wet. The sunflowers that were spread across the valleys and gardens were now piles of weeds and dirt.
The woods that spanned across the land of Tyrrendor were deep and dark, the rustling of trees and bushes eerie to anyone who walked through them. It was said that the woods of Tyrrendor were the most frightening and dangerous. Creatures ugly as anything buried deep within the ground, feasting on prey at night, huntsmen preying on animals to take back to their families. The crazy old witch who lived in the cave, luring people inside to feast on. You would be taking a risk if you stepped foot in there.
The stories over the decades had frightened most people. All except the little hell pup that wandered through the sticky mud. With her bright white fur and bright purple eyes, the little pup padded through the woods.
Violet, the two-year-old hell pup who had been sent from the Barrens, the most dangerous place within the kingdom. Its desert-like grounds and scorched building scared people away, leaving only the most dangerous and disgusting creatures to live there. The deadly wyvern resided there, building nests for their young and producing more and more. They fed on scraps they could find and, if lucky, the bodies that they killed. People didn’t dare cross into the Barrens out of fear of the wyvern, the ugliest of all the creatures. The Barrens was also home to a number of other creatures. Hairless, like creatures that walked on two legs, with long arms and claws, and had no eyes but used their intensive hearing to seek out prey and kill. The vicious night wolves that hunted when the sun went down, with large teeth and scorching red eyes, their snarls loud and terrifying.
And of course, the bloodthirsty daemons. They took over the land, creating a civilisation and order within the Barrens. They looked like humans, except for their black wings, red eyes and long fangs, and their long dagger-like tails, which they kept hidden.
Jack Barlowe the so-called king of the Barrens and leader of the daemons, had taken to the throne. He was deadly and powerful and looking for more. Power was like a drug for him. Years of being cast out to the Barrens had fuelled his fire to take over the rest of Navarre, to rule it like the king he wanted to be. But it wasn’t that simple. Despite being deadly, the military that protected the land of Navarre had been trained for many years in hunting all creatures deadly, and even one step onto their land could mean a war breaking out.
That was why Jack had to be careful, to be patient. He was currently looking to take over the War College, Basgiath, but he needed more information. His own army he was building, including the wyvern and night wolves, would be perfect for slaughtering. But he needed to know the ins and outs. Storming the place would do nothing and only risk their lives more than anything. Jack was a smart daemon, and being a smart daemon, he knew to send one of his hell pups out to get the information.
The hell pups are tiny wolves, unlike the night wolves who roamed the Barrens and served at the feet of the daemons. Like loyal servants, they were feisty little pups with dark magic inside, the ability to telepathically speak to the daemons and other hell pups and also speak to humans and animals. They may have looked small, but they were mighty.
And that is exactly what Violet was sent to do. Jack had ordered her to go to the land and find out more about the war college. She was small and only young but could easily sneak into the college and get information. With her telepathic communication, she could feed the information back to Jack in no time and not risk anyone finding it. She was an adorable little pup; her bright purple eyes twinkled under sunlight, and her fur was as soft as snow. She was a young one but had wanted to prove herself to their master, Jack.
It was safe to say that Violet, despite her power and magic, had a problem. It wasn’t unnoticeable that she often had a hard time. keeping her mouth shut. The number of times Jack would groan and have to tell her to be quick was too many to count or remember. She couldn’t help herself. The very first time she spoke to a human and they understood her, she couldn’t believe it. Of course a couple moments later that human was attacked and mauled by the wyvern, but still. And being only two years old, she was still a pup. Some people found her annoying; others had learnt to just block out her voice.
But Jack had made it very clear to her that if she did well on this mission, he’d be very pleased, and that alone made her run to the valley. As she padded through the woods, humming a small tune to herself, her mind was wandering a mile a minute. It was as if she couldn’t focus on anything. But she knew she had an expectation to meet, so she had to stay focused. Basgiath was about an hour's walk from the forest, and by her speed she could make it in half an hour. As she stepped through the fallen leaves and sniffed the ground looking for scents, her ears pricked as she heard a noise.
“Mmm,” she hummed to herself, waiting for a further sign, but nothing.
“Oh well, must have been a bird,” she shrugged and carried on.
As she trudged further through the sticky grass, she heard another noise. She stopped and spun on her heels, looking behind her, eyes narrowing.
“Focus, Violet, you’ve got a job to do. Get to the college, get the information, and bring it back to Master,” she repeated to herself, turning on her heel. She trotted further, tail swishing behind her when she heard the sound of voices. People? Creatures? She didn’t know.
“People… maybe they could help me,” she said as she threw herself into a run. The sound grew louder, leaves crunching and branches snapping as she heard the increase of voices. To be precise, male voices. She reached a small clearing with bushes and stayed hidden behind. A group of large men, covered in black uniforms, stood in a group, muttering to each other. Each of them had daggers strapped to their sides, black leather gloves covering their hands, thick boots covered in mud and what looked like satchels over their backs.
They looked deadly and dangerous, but Violet didn’t seem to take the hint and trotted over happily.
“Hi, I don’t suppose you can help me,” she announced herself to the group, who all turned and stared down at her. Only then, when they looked, did she see the symbol etched into their uniforms. Military, but not with the college; no, these men worked for someone else.
“It’s a hell pup,” one announced and reached behind his back for something.
“Um, I better get going,” Violet said nervously before running between the men’s legs. An onslaught of shouting and running erupted, and a violent chase began through the murky woods. Violet panted, darting back and forth from trees and bushes, easily missing the nets they were firing at her. She laughed out loud at their failed attempts of capturing her, turning her head to shout an insult back at them.
“Haha, you missed me,” she laughed; however, her running was cut short when she crashed into the trunk of a large tree. The bark broke at the impact, and she was temporarily dazed, wobbling on her paws.
“Oh no, I need to watch where I’m going,” she grumbled before she finally got her balance back. The men skidded to a halt around her and smirked.
“We got you now,” one grinned before reaching for his net gun, aiming it at her.
“Oh come on, let’s talk this out; I’m sure I’ve got something you want,” she teased before punching and sinking her teeth into his knee. He screamed and kicked as her teeth bit through the tight fabric of his pants, and she was flung to the side. Violet skidded across the floor, her white fur caked in mud, and she grinned as the other two advanced on her. She lay on the floor, closing her eyes for a moment before a shadow pulled itself from the ground and wrapped itself around one of the men’s necks, choking him. His partner yanked out a dagger, intending to use it on the small pup, but was stopped.
“No, we need her alive,” one screamed. Violet pushed herself back as if ready to pounce, but suddenly a loud bang shot out through the trees, vibrating the earth. A net of strong rope enveloped her tightly, curling her up into a ball, and she rolled across the grass. She fought and clawed at the net, but it was too strong and durable even for her claws and teeth. The atmosphere settled, and another man she hadn’t seen strode casually, holding his net gun in his hands.
“Come on, let’s get her back,” he said simply. One of the men picked up the net, Violet dangling in the rope as she clawed and begged.
“Hey! Come on, I was only having some fun; let’s not be too hasty here.” They reached a clearing with four hours tied to the trunks of trees. The man carrying Violet threw her onto the saddle, securing the net with another piece of rope.
“Come on, I’m sure I can give you something you want; let’s talk deals,” she pleaded before the man pulled himself up on his horse and the group rode back.
“Oh no, Master is not going to be happy,” she mumbled.