Fate of Brightshadow

The basilisks in the Kalun'tak Forest were increasing in numbers, along with the amount of attacks against its denizens. The animals of the forest were disappearing, and the tribes peoples across the region were keeping to themselves. It was too dangerous to visit nearby tribes, or exchange in any annual trade fair. Reports from the Soaring Wings scouts were delivered to the elder scout - an old, meek man whom the scouts felt was unworthy of the position. Personally appointed by Chief Stormfalcon, Elder Scout Truefeather would receive the reports from the scouts, and deliver it to the council for review.


The reports gave the council ample hints that the threat of the basilisks were ever increasing against the people of Soaring Wings. Truefeather would ask about sending a hunting party against them, but Chief Stormfalcon would brush it off - relaying to the rest of the council that the scouts were probably reporting multiple incidents of the same attack. Nothing could be done to convince the council to do something about the new threat; not when Stormfalcon continued dismissing it.

Scout Brightshadow was displeased with it all. The politics, the leadership, everything. Staying inside his own tribe was always a discomfort for him. He preferred the company of his fellow scouts, outdoors - away from the tribespeople.

It had been two years since completing his scout training, and during the time since, Brightshadow and all the other scouts of Soaring Wings had been kept busy warding off their tribe from the imminent attacks by the basilisks. Brightshadow convinced his fellow scouts that they needed to act in absence of the Soaring Wings' hunters.

Trapping the beasts and collecting samples was a task both Brightshadow and Morningshade had discussed together. If along the way they had no choice but to destroy the disgusting lizard, then so be it. Bringing back samples of the basilisk to the healing huts became common practice among the scouts. The healers, instructed by Shaman Strongheart, would help create remedies, and antidotes of the vile, petrifying poison.

Later, in the dark of a moonless night, Brightshadow was awoken by his wolf companion, Winterfire. His body language gave Brightshadow enough time to conclude that they had intruders in the tribe. He opened a skylight from his home, and lifted Ahnshee into the night air; to alert the village. Then, he prepared himself for battle.

As the tribe began to wake from the falcon's cry, Brightshadow had stepped out and found there to be several large packs of basilisks stalking the immediate surroundings. For the first time, the creatures acted united, and attacked all at once. Scout Brightshadow shot a flare with his bow - guiding the frightened tribes people toward the escape route through a hidden cave. Urging his childhood friend, Morningshade, to follow the rest of the escapees, Brightshadow quickly and silently gathered his fellow scouts and anyone else able to stand and fight to go after the creatures.

Through the battle, the defenders of the tribe had found that the basilisks were more powerful than before. Their aggressive nature had multiplied, and their cunning and strength were doubled. Almost as though they were being controlled, the lizards knew where the tree dwellers attacks would come next. The birds of prey were of little help as their eyes were not meant to track creatures during the night. Those who had found their companionship with the owls had already been paralyzed, petrified, or killed.

Scout Brightshadow had an answer to their problems. With his wolf companion at his side, and his trusted scout mates, Brightshadow had proven to be a force to be reckoned with. Slowly, but surely the basilisks fell. Brightshadow had shown such tremendous courage, and his skills against the creatures became second nature. It was as if he were a creature of immense power, deflecting, and countering the attacks the basilisks would deliver.

As the night went on, he caught a glimpse of another creature in the shadows. A pair of glowing eyes, peering upon the attack. As the eyes turned toward Brightshadow, they had vanished. He had lost track of Winterfire, after assisting nearby scouts with more oncoming attacks. Instinct told him to find his wolf companion, and quickly. Suddenly, in the distance, the sound of a blood-curdling cry shrieked and echoed through the woods. The basilisks attacking the tribes people had begun to retreat into the shadows.

Brightshadow found that Winterfire was up against two basilisks. One of them was missing an eye - the same creature that had attacked Brightshadow during the falcon rescue two years ago. His wolf companion was already injured; semi-paralyzed. Brightshadow had no time to lose, and quickly knocked an arrow onto his bow, aiming at the one-eyed basilisk. He let it go, and it flew onto the side of the second basilisk, as it jumped in front of the first, snapping at Winterfire. The basilisk hissed, and turned over.

Brightshadow had another arrow knocked and ready to fire at the one-eyed basilisk. Before he could release it, the basilisk swung its spiky, poisonous tail toward the wolf, knocking him down to the ground. The arrow was released, and it found its target, at the gut of the lizard. It groaned and hissed away, into the bushes. Brightshadow had the horrible, dreaded feeling that his wolf was dying from the injuries sustained in the fight - the poison creeping into his blood would soon stop the wolf's heart from beating.

He cried for help as he crouched over by Winterfire, tears streaming down his face. He yelled for someone to bring him an antidote for the poison, before his wolf was gone. Screaming at the wolf to hang on, he could not bear to lose another loved one. Still breathing, the wolf turned to face Brightshadow. Their eyes met, and the sudden emotion of joy and love filled the young man's body. The wolf, somehow communicated with Brightshadow, letting him know that it will be okay. An image came to the broken-hearted boy, an image of wolves coming together and welcoming Winterfire to their realm.

Morningshade came sprinting towards Brightshadow with an antidote. It was too late. Winterfire had passed on. The feeling inside Brightshadow had vanished, and soon he was overcome with grief and sadness. All the sorrow from his past came rushing up to him. He couldn't bear it; he had to run away.

He left before Morningshade could catch up to him. To Brightshadow, he was alone again. His falcon Ahnshee, mournfully followed her companion deeper into the woods. It seemed fate had once again visited upon him - taking away another member of his family.

But fate would soon deliver him a new family.

Scout Brightshadow, continued

Soon after Brightshadow had turned fourteen, he decided on his tribal career; a scout. Following in your parent's footsteps is very common among the tribe; but for him, there laid another darker purpose - to track the pack of basilisks that had ended the lives of his parents. Brightshadow had decided to skip the rite of passage and find his hawk companion, which was unusual within the tribe, as he felt emotionally unprepared to care for another.


Although this was frowned upon, no single tribesman was forced to complete, or even participate in the Soaring Wings rite of passage. Scouts, prodded by their parents, were usually obligated to fulfill the rite of passage as it is part of their scout training. Even though he did not have a hawk companion, his wolf proved to be an excellent substitute.

Brightshadow continued his path toward becoming a full-fledged scout. During a practice scout foray, he heard the distress call of a bird. Acting on instinct, he sent his wolf on ahead to find the scent of the bird. Receiving the all-clear call from his companion, Winterfire, he proceeded to follow the calls of the frantic bird. He placed a message within a pouch the wolf wore, to alert nearby scouts of the distress signal. He was not sure if he needed help, but followed the formal precautions as instructed through his training.

As he approached the location of the bird, he heard other sounds coming from nearby. Sounds of snapping, snarling, and hissing - a basilisk. From the sound of it, more than one.

Anger filled him, but he remembered what his father had once told him, "Controlling your anger and using its energy can help you solve a situation." He thought about the situation, and concluded that a diversion was the best course to follow. He managed to distract the prowling lizard monstrosities away from the frightened bird, and stepped through the bushes to take the bird out of harm's way.

As he approached the exact location of the bird - a nest atop a rotting tree - he noticed that the bird was a falcon, and had appeared to be injured. He quickly, but silently approached the falcon, and began soothing the frightened creature. After relaxing the bird, he immediately began patching up its injured wing. The bird seemed to understand that Brightshadow was there to help, and so remained calm.

Nearby bushes rustled, and then the sound of Winterfire's howl from a distance alerted Brightshadow that the basilisks had returned to catch their prey. Brightshadow quickly covered the hawk with a cloth, jumped down from the tree, and began to run the opposite direction. He heard his wolf howl again, and in the distance the sounds of the surrounding scouts and their hawks were on their way.

He wasn't that lucky, however. Having caught scent of the bird, the basilisks ambushed Brightshadow. Instinct took over, and he quickly unsheathed his hook staff - a device used mainly to climb trees. A basilisk fell to the floor, and Brightshadow had to react again as two more basilisk revealed themselves from the bushes. Winterfire leaped over and tackled one of the creatures down, while Brightshadow, using his staff, was keeping the jaws of another from biting his head off.

He kicked it off, and quickly scrambled for his pocket dagger. Suddenly, and unintentionally, he looked into its mesmerizing eyes, and lost his focus on the attacks. The world seemed to melt away, so long as he continued staring. The sound of a shrieking falcon snapped him out of it, and he quickly took in his surroundings to see what had just happened.

The falcon he had been protecting got out of the cloth bag and pierced the basilisk's eye, causing it to hiss and retreat to the bushes. The basilisk attacking Brightshadow's wolf did the same and quickly scurried into the bushes.

At the village, he took the injured falcon to the healer's hut. There, the healers mended to the falcon's wounds, and properly bandaged and healed it. It was there when Morningshade's father, Shaman Strongheart, along with the leader of the tribe, Chief Stormfalcon entered the room where Brightshadow had been with the bird. The shaman peered into the eyes of the falcon, and then declared that the creature, guided by the spirits, had found his human companion to journey through the wilds. Brightshadow named the falcon, Ahnshee.

At the age of fifteen, Brightshadow had earned his title as scout. With both his falcon and wolf companion, he proved to be one of the most versatile scouts in the field. Things were beginning to look up.

Soaring Wings - Brightshadow's Tale

A child of the Soaring Wings tribe, Brightflame was the son of Elder Scout Hawkflame, and Mercenary Scout Alon'dra. He became known to everyone within the tribe as the son of the wild, being as how both his parents were practically outsiders of the tribe.

At the age of five, the young mischievous boy became lost during a horrible snowstorm. His parents, and the rest of the scouts were on the lookout for the young boy, but could not find him anywhere near the tribal grounds.

As fate would have it, Brightflame was returned back safely, accompanied by a young wolf later known as Winterfire. It seemed as though Brightflame followed his parents out of their home and into the snowy woods. The blizzard struck, and Brightflame became lost. Cold and scared, the boy cried out, and then came the young wolf companion to his side. The white and brown-spotted wolf kept him warm, and gave him comfort. He nudged the boy into a small cave where they both waited out the snowstorm. It was there when a connection was made between them, and Brightflame never felt alone again.

Having an animal companion is not uncommon within the tribes of the Kalun'tak Forest. However, Soaring Wings takes pride in obtaining hawks and falcons as their primary companions. After arguing and debating with the elder council and the chief of the tribe, Hawkflame had managed to convince them into letting Brightflame keep his new companion.

Afterwards, life for young Brightflame was innocent and wonderful, and his parents had shown him a kind of love and compassion that would allow the young boy to blossom into a true tribesman of the Soaring Wings.

But, as it turned out, fate again would cross paths with Brightflame.

At the age of thirteen, Brightflame's parents were involved in a horrible scouting foray. Ambushed by a group of newly discovered lizards, dubbed basilisks, both Hawkflame and Alon'dra were killed. Those who were part of Hawkflame's scout party were also lost. A devastating day for all of Soaring Wings, and one too horrible for Brightflame to bear.


Young Brightflame hid in the shadows of his tribal hut. Too stricken with grief, and with no relatives to comfort him, the only friend he had was his wolf companion Winterfire. Morningshade, a childhood friend who was daughter to the wise shaman of the tribe, would bring him meals, a shoulder to lean on, and generally watched over him during his time of grieving. Though he was too deep into his own depression to notice her outstretched arm, Brightflame did slowly recover.

As Brightflame emerged from the turmoil, he went before the council of elders and explained that the person known as Brightflame was no more. Instead he was a shadow of his former self, and therefore  asked the elders to approve his name change.  It was agreed upon solemnly. From that day on, he was never to be known as Brightflame, but as Brightshadow.

To Be Continued...