Prolouge

A man walked out of the animal skin tent. His skin as red as the dust in a desert. Sitting down by the fire he began to feed more wood into the diminishing flames. The man was Swooping Crow, an Indian warrior of his tribe and a much respected one at that. Looking up at the sky with his milk chocolate eyes, he let out an ear piercing howl to the full moon above. Soon he was listening in to the quiet woods around him. An owl hooted in a tree above him before taking off into the night on an unknown journey. A few seconds passed when a lonesome howl answered in return, soon followed by another howl. The man smiled and watched in the direction the howls were coming from. It was his turn to meet up with the spirits of the land and ask them for good luck for his people and their hunts. A few tense moments later, the bushes on the other side of the fire began to rustle as two white wolves stepped out side by side. One had the brightest blue eyes while the other one had a blue and green eye. The wolves were somewhat close to the same height though the one with the brightest blue eyes was an inch taller than her sister. Both wolves sat on the other side of the fire looking down at the man. They were bigger than normal wolves and much more smarter as well. A normal human would think the man insane to not be frightened by the two huge wolves in front of him but not Swooping Crow. He has learned to accept these wolves and knew they would not harm him.

"Greetings wise ones," Swooping Crow said in a deep, baritone voice. The eldest sister nodded her head at him while her little sister sat there with a wag of her tail. Swooping Crow watched as a bright light encircled the two wolves only to vanish later leaving two human looking girls. The only difference that made them stand out was both of them retained their ears and tails. The eldest one stepped forward with her sister following close beside her.

"You have called?" The eldest asked. Both sisters eyed him with curious eyes.

"Yes. My people, they need advice and luck." The youngest spoke up this time, her voice was a lot lighter, showing her age through it.

"What do you need from us?"

"A strange man came to our village today. He is seeking the two white spirits. We need advice on what to do." The sisters looked at each other before turning back to Swooping Crow.

"Do not let him by," the eldest said. "He is not worthy of our presence." Swooping Crow nodded.

"Now what luck do you wish of us tonight?" The youngest said.

"My wife and my son. My wife is expecting. She is sick and is weak. My son has his first hunt tomorrow and needs the strength of the wolf to help him see his way." The eldest nodded and in a swift movement, pulled something out of thin air. The capsule looked to be nothing more than a leaf wrapped up in a tear drop shape. Reaching out his hand, Swooping Crow accepted the gift that was placed in his open palm.

"Boil the nectar from the flower within and you wife will be healthy and stronger. You baby will be blessed with an easy birth and will come out healthy." Swooping Crow smiled graciously. Stepping back to let her sister through, he watched as she leaned down in front of him. Her eyes were glistening with an unknown power as she reached her hand out and touched his neck. A white flash appeared and when she took her hand away, there, around his neck on a string, was a wooden pendent with a wolf paw in the middle. Leaning back up she said.

"Give you son the pendent and he will be able to learn the ways of the wolf on his hunts. It will only work one time so he must use it wisely. When he has made his first hunt and has fully learned the ways of a wolf, the pendent will disappear and return back to us." She stepped back next to her sister and they both once more were swallowed up by the bright light before it disappeared and they were once more in their wolf forms. Standing up, Swooping Crow bowed low to the two wolves before they disappeared and he headed back to his village.

Chapter 1: The Reporter

 The man was standing in front of his mirror. He had found a relatively cheap hotel for a perfect price. He would only be needing the hotel for three weeks, enough time to hopefully get the story he was assigned to. Looking once more at his clean, shaven face. He marveled at his green eyes, so much like his mothers. He had the looks of his father with thick brown hair and blue eyes. His face was nicely proportioned and his teeth as straight as rail road tracks bleached white. He had one diamond earring in his left ear, another gift from his mother before her passing for his birthday. He was the ripe age of 20, fresh out of his teen years and just getting into the role of an adult. When the man straightened his tie around his neck, he checked out his new suit which was graciously offered to him by his boss. The black material made him look professional and he stood up straight, puffing out his chest. Turning off the light of the bathroom, he picked up the piece of paper on the night stand by his bed. He read his assignment over and wondered how he had managed to get assigned to this myth. He had read up on stories about the white spirits of Northern Woods and had never really believed any of it. He found it hard how two white wolves could possibly go through the woods without being spotted by a single soul or help people without really being there. He also did not believe in werewolves either. Sighing, he tucked the slip of paper into his front breast pocket and picked up his brief case from the dresser, making sure he had his room key tucked in his wallet he headed out to find the location of his informant.  Pushing the down button on the elevator he waited for it to arrive from the 17th floor. He unfortunately had a room on the 15th floor as the more expensive rooms were on the highest upper levels. That's where they kept all the condos for the highly rich and expensive people. He had the meek pay of a middle class man and could only afforded rooms under the price of 2,000 dollars. With a loud ding signaling that the elevator had arrived, the doors creaked as they rolled back on rusty wheels to allow the man in. Stepping into the metal box he pressed the ground floor and was about to hit the closed door button when a shout came from down the hallway. Stopping the half closed doors with his body he looked to notice a much younger looking man running down the hall. His hand held out as if he was trying to mentally stop the doors from fully closing. Reaching the elevator, the man stood aside to let the boy though before letting the doors close. Huffing and gasping for breath, the boy nodded his thanks to the man and offered his hand.

"My name is John. What's yours?" The man hesitated for a bit before taking up the hand shake.

"Josh. Josh Silverstream." The boy straightened up.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Silverstream," the boy said grinning.

"Nice to meet you to John. Tell me, how old are you?" Josh asked.

"I'm 19 turning 20 in a week," the boy said beaming as if that was something spectacular.

"Uh-huh, and where are your parents?" Josh asked.

"I'm not living with them anymore. But they are back in Oregon. I'm here to find a job and make something out of my life."

"I see. Well good luck with that kid. The real world is a whole lot harder then it seems."

"Oh I know sir. I'm well prepared for it. I got my masters degree in being a Forest Ranger."

"Ah. Well that is an excellent choice. I would have been one myself if I hadn't fallen in love with being a reporter."

"A reporter? What are you here to cover?" John asked.

"Some myth my boss has decided was important enough to investigate." Josh shrugged as if he could care less.

"About what?" John persisted.

"About some white spirit mumbo jumbo." The boy's face lit up.

"Ah! The Winter Spirits!" Josh looked at the boy in shock.

"You heard of it?" Josh asked. The boy nodded eagerly.

"Ya. In fact I know the man who has seen them before. His name is Swooping Crow. He says that they have the power to do everything, even change the weather. They even saved his wife from death and helped give him a beautiful baby girl." Josh was now looking at the boy with a new light to his eyes.

"So you believe they are real?"

"Well ya. Everyone here does. They are major legends in this part of the town. In fact, they are practically worshiped by the natives." Josh rubbed his chin. He was contemplating on asking the kid more questions but the elevator dinged and the doors squeaked open once more. Stepping out, the two men looked around the well polished lobby. Fake palm trees were almost in every corner with real and fake flowers mixed in. The ceiling produced an expensive glass chandelier with a magnificent gold coated ceiling with intricate swirls. Pictures on the wall displayed white wolves howling, playing or even a pack of them running. In the biggest picture of all stood a man in a portrait. The secretary told him when he first arrived that it was the owner of the hotel who is said to have been blessed by the Winter Spirits and healed from his cancer only to live to the ripe old age of 100 before slipping away in his sleep.

"Well, I guess this is where we part." Josh was snapped back into reality as John spoke.

"I guess but can I ask you a question kid?"

"Sure," John said turning around. "What is it?"

"Where do I find this Swooping Crow man as you call him?"

"He is in the least occupied part of the town, deep in the woods. You will have to take a jeep to reach his village but I should warn you. Unless you have been blessed with a white lily, there is highly no chance he will see you."

"A White lily?" Josh asked confused. John nodded.

"He said that he will only see the man destined to find the Winter Spirits if he has a white lily. And you can only get those if you are blessed by the Winter Spirits themselves." Josh groaned. There goes his story.

"How does one be blessed?" He asked.

"I don't know. It's said that if you stand at the edge of the woods to the trail that leads to his village, a white lily will show in your hand, but only if you are permitted to enter the woods. If not, you will perish if you go in or he will just turn you away."

"How are you able to see them then?"

"I'm friends with his village. When I moved here, he took me in until I was able to get on my own two feet. I am technically a member of their tribe so I can come and go as I please. You on the other hand will probably have a problem. But I wish you luck none the same." With that, John raced off outside leaving Josh standing there debating on if he should just call the entire thing off and tell his boss it was a lost cause. Sighing, he headed out the spinning doors of the lobby and stood on the side walk outside. It wasn't much of a big town, but it had a good enough highway going through it with a lot of cars going by and enough stores and restraints to be mistaken to be a small city. Houses were on the outskirts of the town and the rest of the area was surrounded by dense woods. The hotel he was staying in was the only hotel around for three or four more miles before you really reached the big city. Glancing at his watch, he made his way to a jeep rental shop at the very entrance to the town.

Pushing open the glass door, a bell rang above his head telling the workers in the back room that they have a visitor. An old man came wobbling out from the back room which was separated by a blanket draped over the door way.

"May I help you?" The old man asked while leaning on the counter, a cane in the other hand.

"Yes. I would like to rent a jeep?" The old man went to the cash register and punched in some numbers.

"That will be 678 dollars and 67 cents please." Josh groaned inwardly and counted out the money. Handing the bills and change to the man, he rang up the register and handed Josh a single key.

"You're jeep is jeep number 98. It is expected to be back here no later than 10:00 PM. If you are late there will be an additional 300 dollar fee." Josh nodded and with a thank you headed out to the parking lot to find his jeep. When he found jeep #98, he climbed in, placing his stuff in the back before starting up the car. It felt good to be behind the wheel again, even if it was in a jeep. Turning out onto the streets, he headed to the location of the path that will hopefully take him to the village his informant lived in. He hoped that he wouldn't need a white lily to get in. He prayed that it was all nothing but a myth and that he would answer a few questions so he could write it off as one.

Reaching the dirt path on the edge of the woods, he peered into the woods. The trees were so dense that it looked dark inside, almost as if night had already fallen. All sorts of birds sang in the trees and the sound of frogs in a pond somewhere in the woods greeted him. He noticed three white rabbits hopping under a bush, nibbling on shoots of grass and clovers while keeping their eyes and ears peeled for danger. Looking at his paper again and mentally beating himself up for wearing a suit in the woods he put the car in drive and began to head in. He knew he would probably end up lost but he had hoped that the boy's story wasn't true and that he would be ok.

As soon as he reached the beginning of the trail he noticed within the corner of his eye a white lily appear on the dash board. Screeching the car to a halt he stared at the flower in shock. Quickly closing his eyes and rubbing them, he opened his eyes up again, hoping he just imaged it all but nope, the lily was still there, the petals delicate to the touch. Sighing he moaned.

"What am I getting myself into." Putting the car back into drive he drove down the trail.

Chapter 2: Swooping Crow and the Legend

Turning on his lights the deeper he went into the woods. He started to feel fear seep into his body. He had hoped he wasn't lost as the dirt path soon had disappeared before him leaving him rolling over nothing but grass, twigs, and the occasional mud puddle. Looking around his surroundings, he wondered if he had missed a turn or something and debated on turning back but he was too deep into the woods. Turning a big car like the jeep around this far in the woods was just screaming for him to get stuck and stranded. Checking the time on his phone, he was surprised to see that it was only 11:00 am yet it felt to be midnight in the woods.

Driving a few more feet he soon spotted a patch of light through the trees and smiled. Heading for the light, he found himself in a wide open field and centered in the middle of the field was a village full of teepee tents with squeals of children running around and playing while mothers hung up washed clothing and fathers laughed at their friend’s jokes. A huge fire sat in the middle of the camp, the smoke billowing off of it drifting the scent of cooking meat to his nose making his mouth water. His stomach rumbled at the thought of food and he wondered if this was the village he was supposed to find. Stopping his car, he noticed a few heads turning towards him which made him feel awkward. Turning the car off he climbed out only to notice that the lily was now in his right hand. He hadn't remembered picking it up. Placing the lily back in the car on the dashboard he closed the door only to find it now in his left hand.

"Huh, that's strange," he said to himself.

"What is?" Josh turned around at the sound of the baritone voice behind him. Meeting the Indian man face to face his eyes locking with his he held up the flower.

"This. I never picked it up off of the dashboard." The Indian man's eyes widened as he looked at the flower.

"Come. I must speak with you." He turned around and headed into the village with Josh trying to keep up with the pace. The other occupants of the village watched his every move but whispers were spreading around as they saw the white lily in his left hand. Josh felt red blossom on his cheeks in a blush. He was not used to all of this attention and wondered if this is what the celebrities he had interviewed through his career felt like this as reporters from all sorts of companies surrounded them. Following the man into his tent, the man motioned for him to take a seat. Sitting down on the bear skin carpet, he crossed his legs and laid the lily down next to him. The Indian sat across from him, a little fire place in between them. Lifting a lit pipe to his mouth the man sucked in a little and blew out a puff of smoke which floated up out of the hole in the middle of the tent.

"You are in possession of a rare flower my friend," the Indian spoke in his baritone voice. Josh looked at the lily.

"How so?" He asked, once more looking at the man.

"Only chosen one gets the lily," the Indian said. Once more he was puffing out the smoke from the pipe. His milk chocolate eyes studying him.

"The chosen one?" He asked. He wondered if this man had been smoking the pipe a little too long.

"The one who will be able to see the Winter Spirits," the Indian said. "My name is Swooping Crow."

"My name is..." he was cut off by Swooping Crow as he said.

"You are Josh Silverstream. 20 year old reporter who hates the idea of being assigned to something many believe is a myth," Swooping Crow said. Josh stared at him.

"How did you know that?"

"Winter Spirits told me so," he said, waving his hands around. Josh looked around. He didn't see any Winter Spirits.

"Seeing is not something you do with your eyes but your heart." Josh once more looked at Swooping Crow.

"Ok. Well let's get down to business." He took out a recorder from his brief case and turned it on.

"Mr. Crow. What is the legend behind this myth? Is it real?" Swooping Crow smiled, the wrinkles around his eyes making him look older.

"Yes. The legend is true my friend. But it was not always how people remember it."

"How did it begin?" Josh asked.

"Well. It all began with two little girls. They were born within the woods by two different she-wolves. Their father was Alpha of their pack. The babes came out unlike any other wolf pup. They had the ears of a wolf, the tail of a wolf, but the body of a human. The father was furious at this sight and commanded them to be sent away for death. The mother's pleaded with their Alpha to let their pups live but he would not be moved. Two wolves ripped the young girls away from their mothers screaming and crying and dragged them off into the woods to be left to the mercy of the wild. Three days passed and their mothers searched endlessly for their missing daughters but they could not be found. Turning back to their pack they were interrupted by two seemingly older wolves with the pelts as white as snow and eyes with the brightest glow. The two she-wolves stopped in their tracks as they looked at the pair. One with the brightest blue eyes and the other with a blue and green eye. Each as magnificent as the first snow."

"How did they get the nickname Winter Spirits?" Josh asked.

"My people, when we first encountered the two wolves. We were mesmerized by their power and beauty. They were unlike any other wolf alive. Each with a different power. These wolves felt like powerful spirits and their fur was a white as winter. We then decided they will be called Winter Spirits. The oldest has the power of love and healing. She can manipulate the way people feel and look at one another. She can cure the sick and heal the weak. Her sister has the power to give luck and fortune. He can manipulate the weather and bring on the visions of what is to come. Together, the two sisters are more powerful than time itself. Each one able to live for thousands of years without ever turning old. You see, these two wolves were the missing daughters of the she-wolves. Nature has spared them and enhanced their growth."

"Why?" Josh asked. He was getting caught up in the story.

"It is said the Mother Nature took pity on the pups for their differences and wanted to give them the ability to switch back and forth between the two species. She also marveled at their powers and enhanced them with immortality so they could best use their powers to help the land and the people and creatures that walk it."

"Did the she-wolves ever find out they were their daughters?" Josh asked.

"Sadly no. Heartbroken, the two wolves died of starvation. Refusing to eat from their loss. The Alpha male, the girl’s father. Moved the pack to a different region. We do not know what happened to them after. Ever since then, our tribe has worshiped the Winter Spirits and has been blessed with their generosity too many times. In exchange for their help, we protect their secret and keep their memory alive."

"But aren’t they just a myth?"

"To many yes. But in reality no. They are as real as you and I." Josh gulped. The idea of there being powerful wolves in the world made his skin crawl.

"Where do they live?"

"In these woods," Swooping Crow said and as if hearing what he said, a pair of howls sounded out even father in the woods.

"What was that?" Josh asked. Goosebumps dotted his arms and he had a sense of fear wash over him.

"Do not fear the howl. They will not hurt you."

"Not hurt me? They sounded hungry!" Josh was nearly about to panic. His heart pumped faster in his cheats as if it were a drum being beaten on. Each pumps rushing his blood faster through his veins causing him to feel the urge to run.

"What many men seek is often right under their noses. They have heard their tale and have answered," Swooping Crow said closing his eyes.

"Who? Who have answered!"

"The Winter Spirits."

Chapter 3: The sighting

Josh jumped up. Quickly shutting the recording device off he said.

"Well, it was nice meeting you and all Mr. Crow. But I really have to get back. Thank you for the lovely tale." He backed out of the tent and looked around at the woods around him. No one was in the camp and he noticed it was dark out. Looking at his watch he saw it was 9:00.

"Holly crap!" He couldn't believe how much time had passed and he rushed to the jeep and quickly hopped in. Turning on the car lights and starting the jeep up, he peeled off into the woods and followed the way he had come.

About a mile into the woods his lights flashed on something white which caused him to screech to a stop. There, illuminated within the lights, were two big white wolves staring at him.

What many men seek is often right under their noses. They have heard their tale and have answered Swooping Crow's voice rang through his head as he looked at the white wolves. One with the brightest blue eyes and one with a blue and green eye. Both wolves looked at him with a knowing look and both threw their heads up in a howl. The sound vibrated through his body and rang in his ears, only this time, it wasn't as scary as it had sounded before.

When they stopped howling and looked at him once more, they vanished into the underbrush without so much as a movement in the bushes or another sighting of their white pelt. Josh sat there frozen in place. His car lights still shinning in the spot where the wolves used to be. He had actually seen the Winter Spirits. Snapping out of the daze which he had fallen into, he peeled off into the woods and just barely made it in time to get the jeep back.

"Cutting it a little close Mr." the old man said over his glasses as I handed him the key.

"I know and I'm sorry. I just lost track of the time and had the most incredible sighting ever."

"Well, just don't do it again," the man said as if he knew he would be returning.

Imprint

Publication Date: 04-20-2014

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
This is a dedication to my love of wolves and the hopes that someday, this land will be roamed with many packs of wild wolves like the good old days where they were the dominant predator and we worshiped them.