Chapter 5 - In balance with nature „Do you all want to wait here until this village is also destroyed to the ground?“ said a black wolf standing on a wooden box. Some people had gathered around him. Others simply went about their daily business. The war between light and dark magicians had been going on for almost two centuries. Day after day, it took more and more victims. Not only among the magicians, but especially among the non-magicians. More and more mortals joined Satan out of desperation. Gabriel had not created any new white magicians since the creation of the first ones, and he probably would not. „I do not want to join this monster of hell, the devil himself“, the wolf continued to speak without interruption. Some people listened to him just for fun, but others were really interested in what the wolf had to propose. Among them was also a young wolf with dark-purple fur and light-green shining eyes. The wolf standing up there was his father. He was sure that he could win the crowd over to his side. „A number of groups have already joined together in the north to live in the forests and search for the magic of nature. We should join them. It is our only chance. The journey is long and will certainly not be without danger, but if we do not find a way to defend ourselves against the magicians, demons and the devil himself, what will happen to us? That is what I ask you! We will either die or become a part of the servants of the Prince of Hell“, the black wolf continued again. „As if nature would hold magic for us“, someone shouted from the middle of the group. What had the result that everywhere opened a whispering and murmuring. The young wolf stepped next to his father, but he did not stand on the box: „I, Saltus* , believe in the magic of nature. The Druids use their herbs and brew potions for recovery. These only work because they work so closely with nature. Why shouldn't nature have more to offer us. The magicians also get their power only from light and darkness. I am only 13 years old, but I firmly believe that we will find magic, in whatever way it is found.“ The people slowly spread out and finally only Saltus, his mother and his father were left. Saltus drooped his head: „Sorry father, I was just trying to help.“ He smiled: „You have done that well. They just can't share our hope. We will leave anyway. In the north, the group will be assisted by four druids who will take care of the health there. If we can make it to them, we'll have the hardest part behind us.“ „Is it very far there?“ Saltus wanted to know. „Yes, that is it, my son. But as long as we have hope, our will will push us forward“, he confirmed. They left the very next morning. In an old hay wagon they had stowed food, blankets, clothing, and firewood. Saltus' parents sat in front and would take turns driving the wagon. He, however, sat in the back with the luggage. His father would push the horse and the bumpy ride would begin. As they drove through the village, a few more people watched them go. Saltus wondered what they were thinking. Maybe some of them would follow them, but he was not sure. For the first part of the journey they drove on the main roads. It was easier to get ahead and also nice to meet some other people. „Look there“, his mother suddenly cried out, alarmed. His father immediately stopped the car: „Take it easy. Maybe they won't come here at all.“ Saltus drooped his ears and looked fearfully at the two magicians fighting there. The white magician seemed to be at a disadvantage. He also looked quite badly damaged. „Others will come“, he shouted to his enemy. He just laughed and swung his sword out of pure black magic. At first it looked as if nothing had happened at all, but then you could see a cut on his neck. He fell to his knees and then to the side. Saltus, scared, moved back in the wagon, so that he hit the wooden box with the clothes. Now the black magician noticed them and ran up to the family with a sneaky grin on his face. „Run!“ Saltus' father shouted and jumped off the wagon to face the magician. „Go Saltus!“ his mother shouted, also jumped out of the wagon and ran. Saltus jumped out of the wagon and ran after her. He didn't look back, because it was already clear to him that his father couldn't possibly survive. He was neither a warrior nor had he ever fought in any battles. Saltus would be lucky to escape with his own life. He heard a cry from his father, but he kept running. If he looked back now, it would be all over. Surely he would not be able to take another step, and yet the temptation was so great. Just as he was about to look back, the ground gave way beneath him and he fell into a pit. He hit the bottom of the pit and the earth slid down, covering him. Motionless he remained lying. Maybe he was lucky and the magician would not find him. There was probably no better chance of survival. He shot his eyes and hoped that somehow his mother would also save herself. For hours he stayed down there, silent and motionless. At least he could breathe a little, otherwise he would probably have had to leave his unwanted hiding place sooner. But he listened, heard the wind, the grains of earth moving through it, the grass rustling and nothing else. For a long time, no footsteps could be heard, not the swinging of a sword or even the voice of his mother, who was perhaps looking for him. He did not know if she was still alive. The magician had run past the pit, that he had probably noticed, but what had happened to his mother, he did not know. Had she escaped or would he find her dead body when he climbed up!? He was so afraid to look that he just lay there and did nothing but listen. Time seemed to stand still for him, he had moved a little to get better air. More he had not dared, before the dry mouth and the endless desire for water brought him to slowly sit up. His ears lowered, he lifted himself up, just enough to risk a look. His heart was racing, but he could not see the dark magician anywhere. Another deep breath and he climbed out of the pit. Again he let his eyes wander, no more wagon, no horses far and wide. His mother also seemed to have disappeared, but his father's lifeless body lay on the ground not far from the road. Saltus looked in the direction where the forest lay. He could hide there, maybe his mother had made it there. His hands balled into fists, he walked back to the road. He could never forgive himself for leaving his father behind if he could still be alive. As small as the chance might be. „Father?“, Saltus said in a low, croaky voice. His mouth was so dry and the fear of not getting an answer was tightening his throat. Gathering all his courage, he stepped closer. With one hand, Saltus grabbed his father's shoulder and shook him a little: „Father…“ Tears came to his eyes and he turned away from the lifeless body. With every second that passed, the realization sank in deeper and the tears in his eyes became more and more. As grief tightened Saltus' throat more and more, he made his way into the forest. The leaves rustled again and again in the wind, here and there something seemed to move, but from his mother was far and wide no sign. Saltus had been calling for her for quite a while, but had received no answer. Presumably she was dead. After all, he had only heard footsteps passing by the pit once. His eyes wandered back, even though he was no longer sure whether he had come from there at all. In the forest, everything seemed so the same, it was hard to tell exactly where he was. He was still thirsty and hungry. Just as he was about to take a break, a ray of light hit him in the face. Something in front of him must have reflected it. Hopefully, he quickened his steps and came to a small lake, which sparkled in the light of the sun. Relieved, he stepped onto the shore, knelt down and cupped some water with both hands to drink. Just as the water wet his throat, a shadow moved in the water. Saltus jumped back, scared, just in time before a graceful grayish-blue cat shot its upper body out of the water. She had wanted to grab him directly and hissed angrily that he had escaped her so closely. Immediately she got out of the water: „Come here, don't you like me?“ Without thinking much about it, Saltus turned his eyes away and ran as fast as he could. Stitching his sides, he finally stopped, only to realize that he had lost his way even further into the forest than before. The trees seemed to be even closer together there. Though he had been able to take a sip of water, it was nowhere near enough. He didn't want to go back to the creepy water woman either, if he could still find his way. With his back leaning against the tree trunk, Saltus had spent the night at a safe height on a branch. It hadn't been comfortable, but the tiredness of the day had quickly sent him into a world of dreams. The first rays of sunlight flashed through the leaf canopy and fresh dew had formed. Carefully, Saltus stood up and climbed down the tree. Thirst and hunger still plagued him. The small drops of water on the leaves of the bushes and the long grass looked attractive. He did not hesitate long and went to the first bush, where he licked down the dew leaf by leaf. When he had satisfied his thirst a little, he noticed some wild raspberries that had grown along the ground as well as between the bushes. Carefully he plucked one after the other and put them in his mouth. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing for a start. If only he could find another source of water. A river or even just a small pond where no creepy water woman would show up. After he had sated himself a bit, he looked around. As he still had no orientation, he took two sticks and stuck them into the ground so that they formed an "X". So he would at least know that he had been there before. After a short time of thinking, Saltus then took a direction and tried to better memorize the different trees, bushes and positions of them. He also thought about how to continue. Even if he could find his way out of the forest, he would never be able to find his way north on his own, or even defend himself. The forest offered him protection, some food and hopefully more water soon. No one would come looking for him. So he had to go through and hope for the best. Two large trees with white trunks crossed his path. Saltus was sure that he had not been to this place before. The two light- colored trees would certainly have stuck in his mind. A deer jumped when he stepped on a stick and ran away. The sound of birds singing as well as the soft purr of the wind made everything seem peaceful. A little further away he could hear a splashing sound and followed the noise. The louder the sound became, the faster his steps turned. It was a river that made its way through the middle of the forest. At the point where Saltus approached it, it was not particularly deep. Without much effort, he could see the bottom, so an unpleasant surprise was also out of the question. He knelt down to the river and scooped up water several times to drink. After quenching his thirst, he took off his shoes to relax his feet a bit in the cool water. It would certainly be best for him to stay near the river and find a suitable tree as a place to sleep. Some small fish swam past him. "I would need a fishing rod or a net," Saltus thought aloud to himself. The material for it could surely be put together somehow. The pressure dropped a bit, even though it wouldn't be easy, he could do it. A few months had passed. Saltus had created a kind of bed and roof on one of the trees with branches and twigs. Although he had not stayed directly by the river, he was close enough to it to be able to get water and do some fishing at any time. He had woven a fishing net from dried grasses and different plant fibers. In the shallow water of the river it was quite enough to bring him a few small fish. Whenever he had some time, he watched the animals of the forest. They instinctively avoided the lake and knew the best places to sun themselves or to find nuts. The squirrels were usually so agile that it took him a few tries to follow them. Sometimes he thought he could feel the life of the trees and bushes around him. Somehow the forest had become his home, so he didn't even wish to be anywhere else. The loss of his parents still hurt, but now he was sure he could make it without them. Right now Saltus was sitting at the foot of a tree, looking thoughtfully at the leaves of grass: „The Druids make potions from all these things, which have magical effects. So what magic is hidden here? If I could solve the riddle, I would have the chance to defend myself.“ Determined to get to the bottom of it, he put a hand on one of the roots of the tree, closing his eyes and trying to concentrate only on the tree. He stayed like this for an eternity, managing to block out more and more of the surrounding noise. Every movement of the tree, its branches and leaves he perceived, felt the life in it and something else strange. It seemed to be outside and inside, but he could not tell exactly what it was. Slowly Saltus tried to let it take effect on him, yet the feeling did not become clearer. He opened his eyes and took one deep breath: „Ok, maybe I should first start to see if this unknown is also with the other plants. Then I can certainly identify it better.“ Thoughtfully, he looked up at the sky: „Or mom, dad? What would you do?“ Because it was currently his only hope to find a common ground, he stood up to sit down in the grass again. There he laid his hand flat over the leaves of grass and concentrated. It took some time again before Saltus could block out everything else in the surroundings. As he had suspected, he sensed something strange, unknown to him, or at least unclassifiable. It seemed to have the same characteristics as the tree before. Likewise he proceeded with bushes, further trees, stones and finally even the water and the air. This seemingly invisible presence was everywhere and somehow seemed to connect everything. „Is this the magic I'm looking for?“, he asked himself and then looked at his hands. Could he perhaps, just like the magicians, create magic balls with them? First of all, Saltus was now hungry and went to the river to catch some fish. The first rays of the sun woke Saltus, yesterday he had not further studied this unknown energy and had been fishing for quite a while. In the meantime, it was much easier for him to light a small fire with the dry wood. However, he had no possibility to store the fish longer. When winter came, food would be rare. But he would think about that later. Like every morning, he climbed down from the tree and went to the river to drink something first. As he quenched his thirst, he thought about what he had learned the day before and what he could do with it now. Saltus was sure that he could learn magic. The only question was how. A few times he breathed in and out consciously, then stood upright and held out his hand. He tried to concentrate on the point above his hand, to form this unknown energy into a sphere, but nothing happened. For a moment he lowered his hand, only to hold it up again tensely: „Come on... please...“ Disappointed, he lowered his hand and shot a small stone away with his foot: „Damn!“ With difficulty, he swallowed his frustration and took a deep breath: „It is all right. I'll just have to try again.“ Determined, he shook out his hands and again held his right hand outstretched upward: „Just a little bit of magic...“ The concentration was completely on his hand, however, nothing happens again. Motionless he remained in this position, closed his eyes and felt into this still unknown feeling in his surroundings. It was pleasant, as if one did not have to worry about anything and was simply one with everything. Slowly he opened his eyes as he let the feeling gently drift him. Once again, there was no energy ball hovering over his hand, but countless greenish shimmering points of light in the entire environment around him. Amazed, he reached for one of these points and everything disappeared as quickly as it had come. Saltus wondered how he could actually manage to use this magic. Shining so sporadically did him no good at all, but it was everywhere. Somewhat uncertainly, he picked up a stick and stuck it forward, took a deep breath, and felt into the energy again. One point of light after another appeared and with a little patience and concentration he managed to get them to shoot towards his stick, first singly and then all at once. Then, all at once, more small branches, green leaves and beautiful white flowers sprouted from the stick, as if someone had flipped a switch. Shocked, Saltus dropped the stick, which now almost looked like a bouquet of flowers: „This is already somewhat different than I had expected.“ A few weeks passed until Saltus had figured out how to make plants grow and move according to his will. As it turned out, nature magic was completely different from light or dark magic. It served more to create than to use the energy itself as an attack or defense. He was in the process of growing a bush, which he gave the form of a person. Sighing, he looked at his freshly planted work: „Some company would be nice. There was always a lot of dancing and laughing in the village, even though times were hard.“ Thoughtfully, he looked at the bush and pointed the branch at it, which he always used to direct his magic properly. The branch was used as a gathering point for the magic. Back and forth he swung the branch in his hand so that the bush began to move its grown arm. First one and then the other. Smiling, Saltus tried to go even further, so that the bush moved its head and also its upper body: „Let's see if you can walk too.“ First the roots on one side loosened and the bush took a step forward, then the second followed. Saltus made the bush walk up and down, twisting and bending. It wasn't a real person, but he didn't feel quite so lonely anymore. The more he spent time with the bush, the easier it was for him to control it. Finally, he didn't even have to keep pointing at it with the branch and could dance together with the bush. Laughing, Saltus danced with the bush and finally leaned tiredly against a tree: „If I can make a plant dance, can I do more? Where are the limits?“ The bush stood still and its roots grew back in the ground. But the strange figure remained as it was. After Saltus had rested for some time, eaten and drunk something, and collected a few items such as stones and sticks, he took one of the stones and packed it on the ground in front of him. „So stone, let's see if there's more to you than that“, Saltus said to himself as he looked at the gray stone, about the size of a hand. Determined, he pointed his branch at it and concentrated, but the stone only began to wobble. Saltus wasn't going to give up that easily, however. He kept trying and tried to command the boulder with words: „Stone transform... Stone become a plant... Stone become green and powerful... Stone grow...“ Sighing, he paused for a moment before pointing the branch at the stone again and began to spoke in lyrical words out of exasperation, but also amusement at himself: „Oh stone, oh stone, don't you want to be a plant? All green and soft, so transform yourself right away. On the spot, magic light you up. By the earth, by the water, I summon you, transform yourself.“ To Saltus' surprise, the stone was captured by the magic, expanded, and changed. Finally, there stood a small tree, rooted and gray, as the stone had been before. As the surprise passed, more and more a smile came over Saltus' lips, which developed into a wide grin: „I made it!“ He jumped in the air with joy and then hurried to the new gray little tree. Saltus touched it with his fingers all over, the leaves gave way and the branches were flexible, but everything felt rough and hard: „It seems that some features have been saved.“ To perhaps give the stone tree its actual nature after all, Saltus packs a small stick next to it. As before, he concentrated, but now on the new little tree and on the stick, whose attributes were to replace those of the stone. Over his branch he bundled the nature magic from the environment and spoke in lyrical words, which came up spontaneously in his head: „You little tree made of stone, take the power, take the strength that creates new life. Be like the branch, without haste, softer and full of life, that is what I will give you. Transform yourself. Transform yourself!“ The stone tree, as well as the small stick, began to glow greenish before the stick literally dissolved into this energy and merged into the little tree. Tiny magic sparks jumped around and hit the surrounding bushes. The bushes sprouted and turned gray in places, the same color as the stone. Saltus backed away, a little shocked: „What happened?“ Only when the last spark of magic stopped glowing did he step closer again to look at the result. The affected gray areas of the bushes were hard and rough. He tried to pick off one of the newly grown leaves, but was unable to do so. The little tree had also changed and now looked like a normal young tree. Skeptically, Saltus tried to cut off one of the leaves, but without success. However, as he had planned, the outside of the tree had changed. At first look, it appeared to be a normal, small tree. Nevertheless, Saltus was a little worried that his little experiment had gotten a little out of control: „That could also turn out differently. I would need something to contain it, some kind of protection? Like the light magicians do, or at least something like that.“ Captured by the thought, he began to draw a circle in the earth with his branch, all around the little tree with some distance. Meanwhile, he concentrated on the shield he wanted to create - a magic-proof room - and spoke a few words to himself to give the whole thing more effect: „I greet the rising sun, give this circle your pleasure. High in the south you stand now, help me to do this spell. When you set in the west, let the effect of the circle blow away. Light, fire, heat and life, let me give this circle your protection. So be it!“ At first, only the edges of the circle lit up, before for a short moment, the entire inner ground also shimmered greenish. Smiling, Saltus looked at the circle: „Well, here we go.“ „I think I can take the next step“, Saltus said to himself. Some weeks had already passed and he had managed to let the nature magic work within the circle without it spilling over to things outside. In addition, he had managed to stop the sparks flying by meditating beforehand and cleansing himself inwardly of all other thoughts. The little tree had become a real normal tree in the meantime. The attributes of the stone had completely disappeared. He had also repaired his accident with the bushes. Thus Saltus could now transform objects, make them appear normal on the outside as well as change their properties. His eyes fell on the bush in human form: „This time it will be different, but I have to plan it well.“ While Saltus was thinking about what his own creature should look like, he began to walk around in the forest and collect possible objects that he could use. There was a wide selection: stones, twigs, feathers, tufts of fur, leaves, flowers and much more. „It should be masculine, strong, skilled, able to protect me in danger, but friendly and good company.“ After Saltus had collected all his objects, he put them aside and chose a sufficiently free area in the forest. He began to clear this of all disturbing things, such as larger stones, twigs, leaves and acorns. Checking he looked over the ground: „That looks good already. Now the protection circle.“ Saltus picked up his branch and began to draw the circle into the ground: „I greet the rising sun with all its pleasure, I greet the midday sun and ask you for strength so that you create a protection circle. I greet in the west the setting sun still far away, dissolve the protection circle, when stands the first star. And in the north the noon night sun stands, the power of later goes in. So be it and be done.“ Day after day that he had practiced, his spells and his spells had become more effective. The nature magic felt familiar by now and gave him a sense of security. Like last time, the circle glowed greenish, as did the inner ground, before everything seemed normal again. Now the planning had to be exact, after all he wanted to create a living and self- thinking being. He sat down in the center of the circle and meditated, concentrating on his breathing and letting all other thoughts disappear. His concentration should be only on his intention. He stayed like this for about half an hour, listening to himself, blocking out his worries and letting the nature around him take effect on him, before he stood up and stepped to his selection of objects: „What would be the best?“ He didn't want to take the stones, his being shouldn't be hard like stone, even if he might be able to fix that afterwards. He also quickly ruled out the branches and twigs, because he wanted to get away from the running bush. His choice finally fell on one of the feathers, a hawk feather: „This is perfect.“ He placed the feather in the center of the circle: „Living, thinking... best to give you something of mine, but what?“ Unsure what would be best, he looked down at himself: „These are also all just dead objects.“ When he let his eyes wander, he discovered a thorn bush and went to it. He pricked his finger with one of the thorns so that blood came out: „Blood is alive, so it could work with that.“ Even though Saltus had never experimented with natural magic in this direction, and yet for every attempt there was a first time. Back in the circle, he let some blood drip onto the feather and then put his finger in his mouth, hoping that the wound would quickly stop bleeding, even if it was only minimal. With one finger in his mouth, he took his branch with the other hand and began to write characteristics in the ground around in the circle: Wolf, 23 years old, friendly, loyal, curious, helpful, intelligent, careful, responsible, invulnerable, fighting skills. No sooner had he written down the last word than he took his finger out of his mouth and found that it had stopped bleeding. While pointing his branch at the hawk feather, he remained in the circle and concentratedly spoke an incantation: „The life brings, baptized in blood, runs through its cycle here, be bound, found as a wolf into life. 23 years are already over, do not worry about it. Your kindness, your loyalty, curious you can be, and helpful as well as intelligent, until your last breath.“ While Saltus spoke the spell, the words glowed greenish, before the glow flowed over to the feather and disappeared in it: „Careful and responsible you shall be, maturing in knowledge fine. Also invulnerable and skills to fight you will have, I give you all these gifts. Come and show yourself! I summon you! I summon you!“ The feather began to float and spread out in greenish light, growing larger and taking more and more the shape of a person, the form of a wolf. After the light faded more and more, a brown wolf stood where the feather once was. His fur had some white spots and his eyes were those of a hawk. Saltus smiled, lowered the branch and reached for him carefully: „Hello, I am Saltus.“ The wolf looked down at himself, considered his hands, and then looked at Saltus, instinctively speaking to him: „Saltus, my master.“ „Saltus, Saltus is quite enough. Please do not call me master“, he replied to the wolf and felt a bit funny about it, „You need a name or you have a name?“ Shaking his head, the wolf answered: „You can give me a name.“ „I would like to be friends with you and as a name... how about Avis* ? Do you like it?“ A friendly nod followed: „Avis is beautiful. I will gladly be your friend.“ „I am very pleased“, Saltus returned his smile with his own, „We are friends and friends are familiar with each other. I am so glad you are here Avis. Now I am no longer alone and maybe we can even find a way out of the forest.“ „Have you found a good path through the forest?“ Saltus asked his new companion. A few weeks had passed since Avis had been created. As it turned out, the hawk's eyes were not the only hawkish thing about Avis; he could also transform into a small hawk and fly over the surrounding area or scout out the forest. „I think I have found a safe way, Saltus. We should take water with us, because it is far to the next river“, Avis replied as soon as he had turned back, „First comes nothing but trees. No lake and small river far and wide. In the other direction there is a lake, but you said that it is dangerous there.“ Saltus nodded and thought back to his experience at the lake: „It's better if we don't risk it. Let's concentrate on stocking up on water today and we'll leave tomorrow morning.“ In the meantime, Avis had also received clothing from Saltus, which he had created from various plants: blue pants made from forget-me-nots, a green shirt made from maple leaves, brown boots made from wood fibers, and white gloves made from yarrow. After several days of walking, Avis and Saltus had escaped the forest. They had walked to the next river, which led to another forest. In avoid to sleep in the open air, they had chosen the way into the unknown forest and had stayed close to the river. „Hey, you guys!“, ra male voice called out. Avis immediately wheeled around and spotted another wolf: „Who are you?“ Saltus had also turned to the voice and had mixed feelings. For a long time he had not met anyone, and now someone showed up here in the middle of the forest. The strange wolf came closer, his clothes were made of cotton and he carried a flowering branch behind his ear: „I am one of the western sorcerers and who are you?“ „Sorcerers? What is it?“, Saltus asked in wonder. He had never heard of that before. Smiling, the stranger answered: „Sorcerers are, so to speak, the people of nature magicians, like the druids only more powerful. The female form is called witch. We are separate from the other magicians and therefore we want to be called differently. The northern sorcerers and witches decided that and a few of them trained us. But we are still in the early stages. And where did you come from? You didn't want to join us by any chance?“ From time to time, other people from villages and towns came to learn nature magic. Just as Saltus had once set out with his parents to search for the northern nature magicians. Perhaps they would not have needed to travel so far and would never have met the dark magician. Avis looked questioningly at Saltus, because the decision was up to him. He broke away from his thoughts and did not think twice: „We come from a forest nearby. I can already use some nature magic and would like to learn more.“ The sorcerer smiled a little amused at this: „Is that so? Then come with us and show us what you can already do.“