Chapter 39: The Assassin and the Stones

The darkness of the land made it pretty difficult to see. No stars in the sky. There never was a sun. The sun lived elsewhere. This place was trapped in the dark. The few animals who lurked here had adapted to the darkness, and could see a bit - a mountain was silhouetted in the pitch-dark land, and occasionally you could hear cries, although no one was ever quite sure what it was of. The place was cold as well; not freezing-cold, but just cold enough to send shivers down your spine. It was hard to believe anything would want to live here. But some unlucky animals called this place "home".

"No, no, no!" a voice spat from a cave in the side of the jagged mountains. Inside, there was a white fox with yellow eyes cowering under something from the shadows. All you could see were red eyes glowing from the darkness, but nothing more of the figure the fox was scared of.

"V-Vortex, it's true," the fox insisted. "The Earth Guardian, they're coming."

"And you're saying this Earth Guardian has the power to talk to Yin and Yang," the red-eyed shadow - Vortex - spoke, "that would mean they could get them to stop fighting, and the plan would be ruined. And who is this Earth Guardian, Vexus?"

The fox, apparently named Vexus, hesitated. "I do not know, Vortex," he sighed. "All I know is, I had a dream. And it said the Earth Guardian is on their way. That's it. Whether they travel alone, I do not know. Theirr name, I do not know. Their appearance? I. Do. Not Know." He growled at the last sentence, as if getting angry.

The glowing red eyes got close to Vexus, and he jumped back, whimpering with fear. Vortex's voice hissed. "Well, you'd better find out fast. Or I will have no further use for you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-Y-Yes," Vexus managed, nodding very quickly. 

"Good!" Vortex was silent for a few seconds, but then his red eyes narrowed. "Send in Ophir. I have a task for him."

Seeming relieved to get away from the red eyes, Vexus quickly padded out of the dark cave and into the still-dark world around him. He trotted in silence through the dark, walking along the base of the mountains. His white pelt appeared darker due to the lack of light, but his eyes were much more noticeable; in fact, they were somewhat glowing.

Suddenly, Vexus gasped as something slithered by. It then curled into an arch as it made its way up from the ground and it shifted into a something with a canine-like body and pointy ears, white eyes and a long, constantly-moving tail. Its tongue flickered and hissed at Vexus, before shifting into a snake-like thing and slithering off once more.

"Shadow Trackers," Vexus whispered in annoyance before continuing his walk. Shadow Trackers were kind of like minions, listening to those with authority, who lived in the Land of Yin, and the Land of Yin only. Shadow Trackers listened to Yin itself, and Vortex too - since Yin didn't really command the Shadow Trackers anymore, Vortex stepped in and took them over, and now they saw his as an authority figure. They did whatever Vortex asked. They always looked black with white eyes, but could shift form - their original form was supposedly its canine-like-form with the long tail and pointy ears, but for whatever reason it liked shifting into snake-like forms to move around quickly. No one was really sure why, because it was believed they didn't really have a mind of their own - the animal who commanded it seemed to give the Shadow Tracker what it should think. And, hence the name, Shadow Trackers were excellent at finding animals. Vortex sent the Shadow Trackers after the Earth Guardian, Vexus recalled, the ones he sent haven't quite returned yet...

Whooping and laughing reached Vexus's ears. He turned at a crevice in the side of the mountain. Ophir's in there, he thought. With a grimace he headed for the crevice. This was where Ophir's family - all wolves - lived; the children in this family were crafty and their idea of "funny" was someone nearly dying from one of their pranks. The parents of this family were careless. Ophir was one of the children, and he was often among them with their deadly pranking and laughing at others.

"Excuse me?" he called.

"THINKFAST!" howled a voice, and next thing Vexus knew, he was crushed under the weight of someone. Laughter filled Vexus's ears as he left out a grunt of pain.

"Get...off," Vexus gasped.

"Oh, I dunno. I'm feeling rather comfortable right here," laughed Vexus's attacker.

"P-Please," Vexus begged.

"Oh, get off of 'im, Elim," chuckled a voice.

The weight on Vexus lifted off, and the fox quickly scrambled to his feet. He turned to look at who had attacked him: Elim, the biggest of the children. His fur was dark brown and he had yellow eyes and a light brown undertail. He smirked. "Not so tough, are you Vexus?" he said, prodding Vexus with his paw.

"Of course he isn't!" laughed another voice. A light brown wolf with black markings under his green eyes pushed Vexus, making the fox fall over. The wolf laughed. "He's just Vortex's measly little messenger is all!"

Howls of laughter erupted.

"Quiet," barked a cold voice. Immediately the laughter stopped. Bright green eyes glowed in the darkness, and a dark brown female wolf stepped out of the shadows. She pushed her way through the group of children, who quickly parted as she came through, until she was standing right over Vexus. "What do you want, Vexus?"

Vexus immediately recognized her: Nome, the mother of this family. She was cold and - although she never said so - obviously approved of her children's pranks, as she didn't tell them not to pull them. "Vortex sent me," Vexus said, trying to hide the fear in his voice, "he wants to see Ophir."

Moans could be heard.

"Why does he want Ophir?" demanded a girl's voice.

"Yeah!" agreed another girl, "Ophir is--"

"The best wolf here?" piped up a voice. A gray wolf with green eyes came out of the shadows, smirking. He had dark gray markings over his eyes. He made his way to the rest of the group, keeping the smirk upon his face. "Yeah, I thought so."

"Shut up, Ophir," growled one of the girls. 

"So," Ophir turned to Vexus. "Vortex needs me?"
"Yes. Come with me," Vexus nodded, turning to leave the crevice.

"See you all later. Obviously, Vortex picked the best wolf here," Ophir smiled, following Vexus.

"Oh, right, Ophir!"

"Yeah, sure! He probably only called you to kill you!"

"Don't let your tail get stuck on the way out!"

Suddenly, a rock flew Vexus's way and he yelped in alarm, jumping back. Laughter came from behind him.

"Nice one, Ruby!" laughed one of the girls.

"Why, thank you. If only it'd actually hit him!"

"That's because your aim is terrible."
"Shut up, Nikolai!"

Vexus was now out of earshot of the voices, and shivered. He absolutely hated Ophir's family, always trying to avoid them; all they ever did was pick on others, and seemed to especially like making a target of Vexus himself. But, like most of the animals around here, they saw Vortex as a great leader, which was why they were mad that he wanted to see Ophir.

Vexus and Ophir were now at Vortex's cave. Vexus padded inside, returning to his red-eyed leader. Ophir followed, still wearing the smirk he had when Vexus has called his name. 

As the fox and wolf headed deeper into the shadows, their pawsteps echoed throughout the cave. Vexus could hear the sound of water: drip. Drip. Drip. It actually may not be water, Vexus told himself, shivering. Last time I thought there was water in here, it turned out to be fresh blood... he recoiled at the memory of finding a torn-up coyote body in the cave.

"Ah, Vexus, you're back," said a voice. The glowing red eyes were there, eyeing Vexus and Ophir.

"I brought him," Vexus managed.

"Do you think I am blind? Of course you did," Vortex growled.

"I-I'm not...no longer of u-use to you now, right?" Vexus asked nervously, recalling Vortex's words. Was that a hint that I may be growing useless? he thought worriedly.

Vortex was quiet for a few moments, then spoke. "No, Vexus. I think I have some further use for you. When it comes to messengers, it doesn't get much better than you..."
"It doesn't?" Vexus perked up, feeling pleased at the compliment.

"Yes, despite your idiocy and the fact that you're a wimp, at least you're up for the job."

Ophir snickered, and Vexus's head fell with a sigh. "Do you wish to dismiss me?"
"No, Vexus, I think you can be allowed to know what's going on," Vortex said. "After all, I've let you in on everything this far, right?"
Vortex is in a good mood, Vexus realized. Compliments (despite he seemed to take it back), being allowed to know his plans? Despite it didn't seem like much, that was Vortex on one of his better days - which, actually, were pretty rare.

"First off, Vexus, I learned something," Vortex said. "One of the Shadow Trackers came to me while you were gone. They had seen the Earth Guardian has...friends."
"Friends?" Vexus echoed.

"Yes. The Earth Guardian does not travel alone," Vortex confirmed. "The Shadow Tracker showed me that she's in a group of eight. A meerkat. Two Border Collies. A bobcat. Four wolves. And the Earth Guardian themself. We must eliminate the Earth Guardian - and the rest of the group, if they fight to protect them - and you know why, Vexus."
Vexus nodded. The Earth Guardian is a threat to Vortex's plans, he remembered.

"They're on their way here. To destroy what I had started," Vortex growled. "I'm sending more Shadow Trackers to spy on them and find out more about our enemy. But in the meantime...Ophir, this is where you come in."
Ophir perked up. "What am I going to do?"
"Once we find out enough to know what this group is up to, I want you to find some way to...get rid of them," Vortex hissed.

Vexus suppressed a shiver. "Does that mean..." Ophir said, hesitating.

"Kill them? Yes," Vortex growled. "And you know what the fun part is? I'm letting you decide how. Painful and slow is preferred. And before you do, kindly let them know that their death is because they decided to try and interfere with me."
"Of course," Ophir smiled. "I'll carry it out, Vortex."
"Splendid. Now..." His red eyes glowed even brighter.

A hissing sound made Vexus jump with alarm. A Shadow Tracker slithered in, examining Vexus and Ophir with the flick of its tongue, and then it slithered up to Vortex's side.

"Ophir, take this Shadow Tracker with you," said Vortex. "It'll take you to the group, and leave you once you get there."
"But how do I--?" Ophir began.

"Find your way back?" Vortex chuckled. "Oh, that's the fun part. You got to try and find the way back yourself. Be sure to remember the way, because I'm not helping you."
"But why? If I do such an important job for you...shouldn't I get some help?" Ophir asked.

Vexus recoiled, expecting Vortex to growl, but he, strangely, seemed calm. "Ophir, please do not ask questions when I tell you something. Since you're new to my plans, you're being let off with a warning. Clear?"
"Clear," Ophir repeated nervously.

"Finding your way back proves that you're not only a killer, but smart. Then I'll know I can use you again. If you don't, then you've already completed the task you're useful for, and I no longer need you." Vortex explained. "Now go."
"Now?" Ophir said.

"Yes. And do know I'll be watching you," Vortex added. His eyes glowed again, and Vexus knew he was speaking to the Shadow Tracker. The Shadow Tracker hissed and slithered up to Ophir, who turned to leave, padding for the exit.

"And Ophir? It's an assassination mission. I expect it to be all I'm hoping for," Vortex called.

"I'll kill them," promised Ophir's voice.

Silence filled the cave as Vexus awaited further orders.

"Now Vexus, come with me. I'm going to show you one of the best parts of this plan," Vortex said.

"You're coming out of your cave?" Vexus said in disbelief, but then realized it was bad to sound so shocked. Then again, all Vexus had ever seen of Vortex was her glowing red eyes and had heard her voice; in fact, Vexus was sure that no one had ever seen Vortex's full appearance.

"Of course, Vexus. What kind of leader doesn't come out of their den every once in a while?" Vortex insisted. "Now come on."

Vortex stepped out of the shadows, and his glowing eyes died down a bit, but still remained glowing, like everyone else's eyes in the Land of Yin. Vexus studied her. He was a wolf. Dark pelt and red eyes, with a blue lightning mark on his side. He turned to Vexus. "Well?"
Vexus snapped out of his thoughts of finally seeing his leader's appearance. "L-Let's go, then..."

Vortex padded for the exit, and Vexus quickly padded after him, not wanting to have Vortex get angry at him for being too slow. They trotted in silence and then left the cave, going to the outside world.
The familiar glowing red eyes came back as Vortex continued to trot east. Vexus, his eyes glowing as well, quickly followed her. "Where are we going?" he asked nervously. East of the Land of Yin was the Land of Yang - it was bright over there, and it's where all good lived. On the borderline of the Land of Yin and the Land of Yang was where the Protectors were: warriors who defended the Land of Yin and Yang from outsiders and anyone who could cause trouble. But could anyone - even Vortex - cross sides? The Protectors also kept animals from switching sides, so the animals in the Land of Yin stayed in the Land of Yin, and those in the Land of Yang in the Land of Yang.
"Oh, we're just going to remove the Father Stones," Vortex replied with an unsettling smile.
"R-Remove the Father Stones?" Vexus echoed. He had heard the Mother Stones, which were elsewhere, was what the Father Stones worked through to help animals on the mainland. "But..."
"The Father Stones help with what the Earth Guardian's group relies on," Vortex said. "And if they're removed of that...well, easier for us to get them away from interfering with my plan."
"Ah...th-that makes sense," Vexus gulped. Still doesn't make it any less dangerous, he told himself.
Finally, they were at a large hill that Vexus knew marked the ending of the Land of Yin. Vortex headed for the hill, starting to climb it, and Vexus followed him.
At the top of the hill, there was black smoke that was rising up higher and higher into the sky - separating the Land of Yin from the Land of Yang. Vexus was sure that, on the other side, it wasn't black smoke. The black smoke fit the Land of Yin. It certainly couldn't fit the Land of Yang.
Vortex padded alongside the smoke wall, and Vexus followed. The Protectors could attack us at any moment, Vexus realized. If they saw Vexus and Vortex walking along the border, that was a good excuse to send them back at the best; kill them at the worst.
The rest of the walk was, thankfully, uneventful. Vortex and Vexus made it to a large cave; at the entrance were two pillars, lit with fire, revealing the mouth of the cavern. Vortex didn't hesitate to dive inside. Vexus reluctantly followed inside.
As they kept walking - Vexus sticking to Vortex's smell for guidance, which strangely smelled of death - and they went deeper into the cave. Vexus couldn't see anything.
Suddenly, Vexus could see. He noticed there were torches on the wall and hieroglyphics on the wall. But it appeared to be a dead end.
Vortex walked up to the hieroglyphics, examining them. He then growled. "Pathetic riddle," he hissed, "don't they realize you don't need to solve this puzzle to get to the Father Stones?"
Vexus watched as Vortex's eyes glowed, and then the wall exploded. Crying out, Vexus went flying back and landed hard on the floor. He scrambled to his paws to see Vortex hadn't moved at all. "Well? Come on."
Nodding, Vexus quickly padded after Vortex into a new room. Light filtered in from a crack in the ceiling, and Vexus could see that, at the back of the room, were two large stones that were sitting on pillars. Light came in, shining on the stones. Vortex approached them.
"The precious Father Stones," he mocked. "Oh, how important they are to the Earth Guardian and their friends." Not quite knowing what to say, Vexus sat down. "But of course...once these Stones are removed, this group's powers will be weakened." Vortex eyed the Stone on the left.
"Bending Stone," Vortex commented. "Their connection with the elements..."
Vortex's eyes glowed harshly and the Bending Stone flew out of its pillar. The light that had been shining on the pillar disappeared. "...Gone," Vortex smiled.
Vexus then watched as Vortex approached the stone on the right, which still had light shining on it. "Peacebender Stone. This is how the dead communicate with the living. This is how the Earth Guardian and their friends will know what to do. But say...this Stone wasn't connecting those two worlds? Well, the Earth Guardian won't know what to do now. Oh, dear..."
Vortex's eyes glowed and the Peacebender Stone flew out of the pillar.
The light that had previously been there left.
"And now we have the utmost advantage," Vortex gave an unsettling grin.

Author's Note:
Sorry I haven't posted in a while! D: Hope this makes up for it...
Oh, and kudos to whoever can guess the name pattern in Ophir's family! :)
Hint: "The Toughest Race on Earth".