The Ghost of the Forest Part 15

The Ghost of the Forest Part 15 by Oliver Wyatt-Burton

Orion proceeded out into the sunlight, shielding his sight with his right paw. He could see the quarry more clearly than he had the night before, it still had a bleakness to it.
"Orion!" called Moon somewhat impatiently, gesturing for him to come. Orion didn't know why, but he felt rather nervous, why was Moon in such a hurry to return to Grendor? And what was the connection between the Melkur and the disappearance of the snowy owls? Lord Granite had travelled alongside Orion on his way up, he patted Orion heartily on his shoulder.
"Well this'll be it Orion, all the best! If ever you find yourself back in Normandine, please do come and visit!" smiled Granite. Orion turned to him and smiled.
"Of course I will Lord Granite, but I have to ask this; what's going on? You and Moon weren't talking about just the old days were you?" asked Orion, folding his arms and expecting an explanation. Granite's smile fell and he looked to Moon and closed his eyes.
"I'm afraid I can't say my friend, Moon has promised she'll tell you on the way. Sometimes to make things right we must do things we'd never dream of doing, stay strong Orion, stay strong" he whispered, looking at Orion one last time and proceeding back into the tunnels. Orion looked forward, took a deep breath, readjusted his pouch and scampered over to Moon, she spread her wings, Orion jumped on and she took to the air in a heartbeat.

The wind ripped through Orion's fur as he clung tight to Moon's feathers, he could see Normandine shrinking out of view.
"So Moon, what's happening?" shouted Orion through the wind.
"Orion, do you recall that I told you that the Melkur once did a terrible thing?" asked Moon, to which Orion recalled the conversation.
"Yes, yes I do!" cried Orion back to her.
"The snowy owls have agreed to return to Grendor but at a price, they want the Melkur dead" replied Moon ominously.
"WHAT?!" cried Orion in shock, was he really about to witness the murder of an ancient vole?

The Forest of Grendor loomed into view, but Orion knew it would be a while before they returned to the shade of it's trees, Orion could see the stream and the village where the water voles lived, he felt a pang of guilt in his stomach as Moon began to descend upon it. Moon landed in the centre of the village and Orion dismounted in time to see the locals scurrying away from Moon.
"Hey everyone, don't worry! Don't worry!" cried Orion, holding his paws up in a surrendering fashion, smiling hopefully around.
"Orion?" asked a soft voice, he turned around, it was Vincent, the first vole he had met, accompanied by Gordon and Connor, all of which were eyeing Moon and shaking fearfully. Orion smiled and waved.
"Guys! Hey! It's sure been a while, have you all been well?" asked Orion, approaching them, but Vincent looked at him somewhat angrily.
"Why the hell have you brought that monster to this village?" demanded Vincent, to which Orion was taken aback, but then it dawned on him. He looked a traitor.
"Vincent, this is my friend, Moon!" started Orion, but Moon placed a wing before him to stop him, she shook her head.
"Orion, I have not told you what happened there were snowy owls in this village last" said Moon.
"A tale we can tell our young adventurer together!" called the Melkur, approaching the crowd. There were gasps and muttering amongst the fearful voles, Orion looked around, what would they do if they knew what was going to happen?

"Orion, today is the day you learn my terrible secret, learn it well as it will be a crucial event in what's to come" said the Melkur, eyeing Moon sadly. Moon hung her head in shame and began to speak.
"Quite a while ago, seventy-five years to be exact, I fell upon this village, injured. My wing was broken and there wasn't much else that I could do. The Melkur tended to my wounds, convincing the voles that I could be trusted. They of course were not convinced so easily, a day later a visitor came to the village, it was you ancestor Rodger" said Moon, looking to Orion. Orion recalled reading this in Rodger's journal, yet he continued to listen.
"Rodger came to our village seeking a staff, a staff imbued with magic that had been kept with our people for many years. He believed that with this staff, he could bring back the foxes and send the wolf Mateus away from the other side of Grendor. Of course I had the staff, it had been passed through my family for generations, but I warned him, this staff had a curse. It's wielder would live longer than their average lifespan, that is how Rodger, Moon, myself and Lord Granite of Normandine have come to live for so long" said the Melkur, walking to Orion and Moon. It all made sense, Rodger must have had that staff, otherwise how else could he have lived for over a century, and kept Mateus from destroying their community?

"I had listened to Rodger's request and intentions, I found them to be reasonable enough, but then a commotion happened, Moon, or rather Katie as I knew her, her kind had taken a rogue turn, they were attacking the village and I had no choice, I had to protect my people, and so I summoned a most ferocious storm, all the snowy owls of Grendor perished and there were some casualties, such as young Vincent, his father and mother were lost and so I adopted him and his brothers into my care. But my crime wasn't to be without punishment. An order was passed that I should never leave this village, Winters passed and Moon could not completely bring the ones of old and I surrendered my staff to Rodger" continued the Melkur.

Orion looked around, the voles were still listening, looking at the event unfolding. He knew what had to happen now, the Melkur would die and nature would return to how it once was, but then something came to mind.
"Hold on, Rodger never managed to destroy Mateus or bring the foxes back, how come he never managed to do that?" asked Orion, looking to Moon and then to the Melkur.
"The staff was traditionally passed to it's successor on the predecessor's death bed, the magic and true power would then pass. The occasion of Rodger's acquisition, I had not died and so he was able to protect his community from Mateus but never cause fatal damage. Rodger is since dead and cannot pass the true power to you, but I can give you the blessing before my death" said the Melkur. The voles gasped in shock and Orion felt tears welling in his eyes. he bowed before the Melkur, drooping his head.
"It would be an honour, Melkur, I'll find the staff and finish what my ancestor set out to do" vowed Orion, placing a paw over his heart. The Melkur smiled and offered a paw, to which he helped Orion back up on his feet and he smiled.
"Orion, squirrel of Grendor. As the sun sets on my life, I, Timothy Farthington, pass my legacy on to you. I request that you protect my fellow voles and bring the world to how it once was, will you accept?" beamed Melkur, looking hopefully to Orion. Orion smiled, protecting an entire village was a huge responsibility, but he couldn't just let it go unguarded.
"I shall do all I can, I will find that staff and the world will indeed be as it once was" nodded Orion, shaking his hand. The Melkur turned to Moon and smiled a brave smile.
"Katie, my dear old friend. My death should not be a burden for you to bear, Grendor shall once again know snow this Winter, and for that I am glad" said the Melkur reassuringly, smiling up at her. Moon sighed sadly.
"I wish there could have been another way Timothy, I too have been tempted by something, perhaps I should wear the Melkur title next" hooted Moon sadly. But the Melkur shook his head.
"No, there shall be none after myself, come along Katie, let's finish this" said the Melkur, leading her away from the village.

"So it's actually going to happen? Moon will kill the Melkur and you'll be our new guardian?" asked Vincent, looking Orion up and down, to which Orion sighed happily.
"For now it would seem, I have a plan Vincent, I'll be the guardian for now, but as soon as I've returned the world to the way it once was, I'd like to make you the rightful guardian" said Orion, looking proudly at his friend.
"Orion, hardly any of us voles know who you really are" said Gordon nervously, with Connor nodding in tow. Orion looked to the three brothers, in receiving the Melkur's title, did that also mean he inherited these three too?
"Vincent, Gordon, and of course Connor, this new role will be tough for me to come to grips with too, indeed I am in the middle of my own lifespan perhaps, but I aim to protect this village the best I can" said Orion, he climbed the Melkur's hut and looked down to the water voles.
"My dear new friends, my name is Bradley Ranstead, a squirrel from the Forest of Grendor, and descendant of Rodger Brushtail. Seventy five years ago, he came to this village and was witness to a terrible crime, and in his honour and that of my predecessor, Timothy Farthington, I promise that as long as I may live, I'll not see a reason for you all to panic or suffer!" cried Orion, there was a pause and then Vincent began clapping, so did his brothers, and then the rest of the village. Orion returned to the ground, pondering what to do next.

"Now my friends, I have a great task ahead of me, and I feel that we shall need to assemble a team, I am but a humble squirrel, if we are to take down a great beast like Mateus, we'll need all the help we can get. Vincent, I need you and your brothers to venture into Grendor and find the community, I have a need to speak with their leader, Troy Ranstead. Please request that he come here, so that he and I can arrange to recruit others".
Vincent, Gordon and Connor nodded and proceeded off, Orion waved the other voles to continue their business. Heading to the Melkur's hut, he saw Moon looking at him from a distance.
"Moon, how did it go?" asked Orion hopefully.
"The deed is done and Timothy has gone to join our other deceased friends, as one day we all shall" said Moon ominously. Orion patted her right wing heartily, he had a good feeling that their troubles would eventually be over.