Chapter 11: The Chase Continues..
The dream was too good. It was one of those you don't get very often. So when you do dream that once in a lifetime dream, you start to believe that there is more to life than what you see everyday. The turquoise greenish river sparkled hard. Ivan closed his eyes, smiling. He floated and floated. Sometimes just beneath the surface, sometimes just a smidge above the water. The rays of sunshine danced like ballerinas, light, effortless, changing colors. He floated and watched. It felt ... divine! Little by little, Ivan realized that he was dreaming as immense happiness filled his body. Every part of him. He smiled, watching drops of water fly through the air like magical fairy dust. "Please don't end," he thought. It's been a long while since he felt that tranquil. Joy filled him whole and he remembered what it was like to feel loose and happy. The dream was beautiful, loving, safe. Occasionally, Ivan would turn his head and smile at his dead wife floating next to him. She was alive, just like he remembered her. To his right, he saw his long gone father. He wondered why they were floating with him. A strong nudge from the deep pushed all three of them above water and they saw a magnificent ancient city covered in malachite spread before them. As they floated past it, Ivan's mind grasped at every detail of the buildings. "Babylon must have looked like this.." his mind wandered. Just as soon as the city appeared, the trio went back down to floating just beneath the surface. Ivan wondered about what he just saw.. and his family... Why were they floating right next to him? Were they protecting him from beyond?
"OY! Wake up princess!" A loud, coarse voice reverberated through the air and into Ivan's dream. He grimaced. It was too early to wake up! He wanted to hold on to his dream with every piece of strength he had. "Don't let go, don't let go!!!" His mind screamed at him, struggling between two realities. "I know you can hear me mate!" Kolya gently touched Ivan's shoulder. "Oh well, I guess the real world has won again!" Ivan's mind admitted defeat, begrudgingly. He smiled weakly while slowly opening his eyes. "You were out for 5 hours, pal! Glad you are back!" Kolya nodded at Ivan, patting him on the shoulder again. "We are not that far from where you were almost attacked by a small pack of wolves. And that large helicopter crashed right by you, apparently. That's what Dmitry said. The boys ended up dragging you here in the middle of the night." He walked over to a small table in the corner, and poured boiling water into a tin cup. "We didn't know how bad you got injured, but all is well. Dmitry and Vovan rounded up Doctor Sawbones to look you over. He says, you are good! Nothing but a few bumps, small bruises and some frost bite. You will live to see another day!" Kolya laughed, throwing his head back. He picked up a pinch of loose tea leaves and dropped them inside the tin cup. "Here you go, drink up! It will make you feel better." Ivan pulled himself up, propping up against old, crusty pillows. "Thank you, Kolya." He took the tin cup from the older man's hands. A slight suspicion ran across his mind like a marathon runner, quickly disappearing into the dark corner of his mind, before he could even understand what bothered him. "Where are Dmitry and Vovan?" He half whispered. "I'd like to thank them for rescuing me from the cold and the wolves. I came this close.." He motioned with his hands to Kolya. The older man nodded, He walked up to the fire place, picked up a small log of the floor and threw it in the fire. The fire hissed back. "They are out, should be back soon. The wolves almost got you. Especially that big one?" Ivan nodded, "You've seen him?" Kolya turned his head and looked straight at Ivan, "Once. I tracked him a few months ago. His paws are three times bigger than those of a regular sized wolf." Ivan stared at Kolya and then turned his gaze to the small fire in the fireplace. "What about that helicopter? Who were those people?" Kolya gently shook his head from side to side, "That my friend, is what we need to know as soon as possible. But first things first." He pulled out a small three legged stool and made himself comfortable. "This is why it is so important for us to follow the tracks of the super pack, Ivan. They must be stopped before something really bad happens to our people." Ivan's face darkened. Kolya noticed his new friends mood change, and somberly continued, "I will tell you everything I know about the wolf because before this is done, most of us will die."
The dream was too good. It was one of those you don't get very often. So when you do dream that once in a lifetime dream, you start to believe that there is more to life than what you see everyday. The turquoise greenish river sparkled hard. Ivan closed his eyes, smiling. He floated and floated. Sometimes just beneath the surface, sometimes just a smidge above the water. The rays of sunshine danced like ballerinas, light, effortless, changing colors. He floated and watched. It felt ... divine! Little by little, Ivan realized that he was dreaming as immense happiness filled his body. Every part of him. He smiled, watching drops of water fly through the air like magical fairy dust. "Please don't end," he thought. It's been a long while since he felt that tranquil. Joy filled him whole and he remembered what it was like to feel loose and happy. The dream was beautiful, loving, safe. Occasionally, Ivan would turn his head and smile at his dead wife floating next to him. She was alive, just like he remembered her. To his right, he saw his long gone father. He wondered why they were floating with him. A strong nudge from the deep pushed all three of them above water and they saw a magnificent ancient city covered in malachite spread before them. As they floated past it, Ivan's mind grasped at every detail of the buildings. "Babylon must have looked like this.." his mind wandered. Just as soon as the city appeared, the trio went back down to floating just beneath the surface. Ivan wondered about what he just saw.. and his family... Why were they floating right next to him? Were they protecting him from beyond?
"OY! Wake up princess!" A loud, coarse voice reverberated through the air and into Ivan's dream. He grimaced. It was too early to wake up! He wanted to hold on to his dream with every piece of strength he had. "Don't let go, don't let go!!!" His mind screamed at him, struggling between two realities. "I know you can hear me mate!" Kolya gently touched Ivan's shoulder. "Oh well, I guess the real world has won again!" Ivan's mind admitted defeat, begrudgingly. He smiled weakly while slowly opening his eyes. "You were out for 5 hours, pal! Glad you are back!" Kolya nodded at Ivan, patting him on the shoulder again. "We are not that far from where you were almost attacked by a small pack of wolves. And that large helicopter crashed right by you, apparently. That's what Dmitry said. The boys ended up dragging you here in the middle of the night." He walked over to a small table in the corner, and poured boiling water into a tin cup. "We didn't know how bad you got injured, but all is well. Dmitry and Vovan rounded up Doctor Sawbones to look you over. He says, you are good! Nothing but a few bumps, small bruises and some frost bite. You will live to see another day!" Kolya laughed, throwing his head back. He picked up a pinch of loose tea leaves and dropped them inside the tin cup. "Here you go, drink up! It will make you feel better." Ivan pulled himself up, propping up against old, crusty pillows. "Thank you, Kolya." He took the tin cup from the older man's hands. A slight suspicion ran across his mind like a marathon runner, quickly disappearing into the dark corner of his mind, before he could even understand what bothered him. "Where are Dmitry and Vovan?" He half whispered. "I'd like to thank them for rescuing me from the cold and the wolves. I came this close.." He motioned with his hands to Kolya. The older man nodded, He walked up to the fire place, picked up a small log of the floor and threw it in the fire. The fire hissed back. "They are out, should be back soon. The wolves almost got you. Especially that big one?" Ivan nodded, "You've seen him?" Kolya turned his head and looked straight at Ivan, "Once. I tracked him a few months ago. His paws are three times bigger than those of a regular sized wolf." Ivan stared at Kolya and then turned his gaze to the small fire in the fireplace. "What about that helicopter? Who were those people?" Kolya gently shook his head from side to side, "That my friend, is what we need to know as soon as possible. But first things first." He pulled out a small three legged stool and made himself comfortable. "This is why it is so important for us to follow the tracks of the super pack, Ivan. They must be stopped before something really bad happens to our people." Ivan's face darkened. Kolya noticed his new friends mood change, and somberly continued, "I will tell you everything I know about the wolf because before this is done, most of us will die."
A brief silence fell as both hunters reflected on the full gravity of their situation. "My family has lived in this part of the world for generations, starting with my great-grandfather. He was a forester." Kolya rubbed his hands to warm them up and continued, "As soon as his family started growing, my great-grandfather turned to logging. He could make more money that way. Eventually, he ended up building a lot of cabins, especially around what we now know as Krasnoyarsk." Kolya coughed. The outside cold slowly oozed through the cracks in the walls into the room. He got up to add more wood to the fire. "Then my grandfather continued as a logger, and my father after him. I started as a logger but eventually turned to hunting.. Animals always interested me. How they behave, you know? I hunted everything from moose, to bear, to wolves... Eventually I became an expert in tracking and killing wolves." Kolya piled up three logs into the fire, and watched it crackle. After watching it for a moment, he walked back to his stool and sat down. The stool wasn't the most comfortable sitting arrangement, but he learned to make do. Ivan sipped his tea and waited for Kolya to start talking again. "Not so long ago, strange things started happening in our village. You, Ivan, have not lived there long enough to notice, so I will give you the background story." Ivan nodded, slightly smiling, encouraging Kolya to continue. "One sunny day, when all of us at the village were tending to our crops, we heard a scream. I remember it vividly. It was a mixture of hysteria, disbelief and imminent, inescapable death. Our men started running towards the scream without hesitation. The fastest, was Dmitry's boy, Boris. He was 14 at the time and tall. I saw him disappear into the woods in a matter of seconds. Of course, his father didn't like that. Dmitry was incredibly upset, but he ran into those woods right after his son. When the rest of us finally caught up with them, we couldn't believe what we were looking at. Boris and Dmitry were standing next to a giant hole in the ground. The hole was clearly a trap, but nothing like I've ever seen before. And what surprised us the most, was a little girl who was lying on the ground at the bottom of the hole. It was her who screamed and got all of our attention." Kolya shook his head, but continued, "Of course, we got our ladders and rope and got her safely out of the hole." Ivan waived his hand in the air in protest, "She was alive? She wasn't hurt, no broken bones or perhaps a bite? No bleeding at all?" Kolya nodded his head in agreement, "That's what surprised us. We couldn't question her right away, because she started crying in her mother's arms, and we thought we better leave her alone for a few days. Let her recover from whatever she saw." He sighed heavily, "Her parents took her home to rest. A group of us stayed behind to examine the trap. Later, we started scouting the area for clues. And we found them."
Ivan nodded, "You found tracks from the giant wolf." Kolya smiled, "Yes, we did. The tracks went all around the village several times, and inside the village as well. First thing we noticed is that the tracks were carefully masked using various methods. Those methods would only be known to a human, and yet, we believed that the giant wolf figured out how to mask his paw prints." Ivan shook his head, "Maybe, or maybe someone helped the wolf." Kolya smiled, "Now you are getting close. He definitely had help. We found piles of dead leaves covering his tracks. We also found some timber materials covering half the path out of the forest. We moved the timber and found large prints, that have been there awhile. Also, we discovered large puddles of water, and there wasn't any rain for weeks at a time. That's not all." Kolya coughed and cleared his throat, "Curiously, the little girl and her family quietly left the village the next day, and moved to Krasnoyarsk. Later they moved across the entire country, all the way to Kazan, some 2,000 miles away." Ivan leaned forward in his bed, "Has anyone ever spoken to them again? From our village, I mean." Kolya shook his head gently, "We tried! Dmitry's wife visited Kazan a year later or so. Her sister lives there with her family."
Riotous, screeching of the front door in the other room distracted Kolya from continuing his story. A booming voice followed all the commotion, "Where is the brave wolf hunter?" A muffled conversation could be heard through the thick wooden wall. "What did the doctor say?" Dmitry's distinctive voice overpowered others in the room. Another quieter discussion broke out, but no distinctive words came through. Ivan slowly sat up in his bed in anticipation of his friends busting through the door at any moment. They, on the other hand, didn't seem to hurry. Dmitry must have been pacing from one corner to the other, because the wood underneath his heavy, snow covered boots, made a lot of popping noise. Ivan looked at Kolya quizzically. Kolya slightly shrugged in return. The two men continued waiting in silence and preparing themselves for what news Dmitry might bring to them. Finally, a sudden thud raced through the air signaling that Dmitry was on the move again, and this time, Ivan knew he was about to see him.
The low build wooden door flew open, and Dmitry appeared. He looked at Ivan, then at Kolya and nodded. "How are ya fellas doing?" He asked loudly. Kolya responded without delay, "Not too bad, not too bad. Come on in and close the door my friend. You are letting the cold air in from the other room." Dmitry lightly tapped the door and let it close by itself. He walked up to Ivan's left side with a slightly concerned look on his half frozen face. "Feeling better Ivan? Are you able to get up and move around?" Ivan smiled, "Yes, I feel much stronger after getting rest. Sit down Dima. Grab that taburetka." He pointed towards a stool sitting behind the door. Dima turned his large body around and located the stool. He brought it closer to Ivan's bed, which happened to be in the direct view of Kolya as well. He heavily sat down allowing a large sigh of relief to escape his tired, frost bitten body.
The low build wooden door flew open, and Dmitry appeared. He looked at Ivan, then at Kolya and nodded. "How are ya fellas doing?" He asked loudly. Kolya responded without delay, "Not too bad, not too bad. Come on in and close the door my friend. You are letting the cold air in from the other room." Dmitry lightly tapped the door and let it close by itself. He walked up to Ivan's left side with a slightly concerned look on his half frozen face. "Feeling better Ivan? Are you able to get up and move around?" Ivan smiled, "Yes, I feel much stronger after getting rest. Sit down Dima. Grab that taburetka." He pointed towards a stool sitting behind the door. Dima turned his large body around and located the stool. He brought it closer to Ivan's bed, which happened to be in the direct view of Kolya as well. He heavily sat down allowing a large sigh of relief to escape his tired, frost bitten body.
Both Kolya and Ivan let Dmitry catch his breath for a moment. Taking great care not to make much noise, Kolya poured some hot boiling water into a wooden cup, through some tea leaves in there and handed it to Dmitry. "Drink up old boy, it will give you energy." Dmitry nodded gratefully. "Thank you brother, this will do the trick. I've been out there so long, I can't feel most of my body." Ivan chuckled, "Yes, that frostbite will cost you and arm and a leg." All three men laughed. "You see that Vovan is not with me, that's because he is still out there. Setting up a trap for that beast." Kolya shook his head vehemently. "No, no, no, he won't catch him. I know Vovan's father was a well known wolf hunter, the most famous in Taiga in fact, but Vovan will only hurt himself." Dmitry disagreed, "You don't know him as well as I do." Kolya, turning a little red, interrupted Dmitry, "But I do hunt wolves, I have hunted them for the last 25 years. And this one is different, very different. It's smarter, it's faster, it thinks. It's going to know every single trap set for him. Wolves, in general, have an elevated sense of self-preservation, and this wolf is an impossible Rambo wolf. I've hunted it when it attacked our village, remember?"
"Gents, Gents.. before we get into a big argument, do we know who actually died in that helicopter crash? Did you and Vovan have a chance to look at the crash scene?" Ivan through an inquiring glance at Dmitry. He nodded in response. "Yes." He responded somewhat cautiously. Peculiarly, he looked around and lowered his voice. "Once we got you from the crash and brought you back here, we went out there to look for information." Ivan impatiently asked, "And?" Dmitry exhaled. "We arrived and found the crash untouched from when we left it with you. There were burned bodies, for sure. Terrible sight once you start looking at it closely." He shook his head from side to side. "How many bodies did you see?" Ivan asked. Kolya noticed there was something bitter about Ivan's tone of voice. "We found 4 men and 2 women, burned from head to toe." Dmitry recounted the gruesome scene, "The women were dressed well, must have been wealthy. Some rings, some necklaces we noticed, but we didn't touch them. We left them. Neither one of us wanted to touch those burned bodies." Ivan nodded. "I understand, I would've left them also. Nothing can be done to help them now." Dmitry also nodded in agreement. "The men we found were military. I think they were escorting the women." Ivan lunged violently forward and almost fell of the bed. His two companions glanced at one another surprised. "Sorry mates, something was stuck in my throat for a second." Ivan was not a good liar, but he didn't care. The painful realization that Sofia could have been on that helicopter made him throw up in his mouth. He swallowed without hesitation. How long has it been since he saw her last, a thousand years it seemed. Too long. Too fucking long. The idea that Sofia was dead made him acutely aware of his inadequacies, short-comings, perhaps even being a total and complete failure. He forced himself to look straight ahead and gather leftovers of his mental strength to ask more details. "Get a grip man!" Ivan told himself and smiled at his fellow hunters. Dmitry didn't need to be asked, he could tell Ivan was itching to know what else they found." He slurped the rest of his tea down, and slammed the cup on the bedside table. "There was a box, small, kind of decorative. Vovan was making his way towards the box to pick up when the Shaman appeared." Ivan looked perplexed, "Who is the Shaman?" Kolya laughed, "He is a male witch. Well known in taiga, and also well feared." Ivan shook his head, "I've never heard of a male witch before." Dmitry nodded, "Yes, Kolya is right. The Shaman has been around for a long time, he is older now but very powerful. He makes mystical things happen, unexplainable things. People stay away from him usually. We left as soon as we saw him. We didn't pick up the box, I am sorry." Dmitry looked solemn as he readjusted the seat underneath him.
Loud voice called from the outside. Dmitry pulled the curtain from the window and simply said, "The Shaman is here! Get ready, we need to question him!"
Loud voice called from the outside. Dmitry pulled the curtain from the window and simply said, "The Shaman is here! Get ready, we need to question him!"
