«Hmm, some kind of fantasy!» thought Maxim.
* * *
During the entire journey, those two in front, the driver and the one who was next to him, did not utter a word. Kanny felt so constrained that he was afraid not only to say anything, but to make any sound at all, until the car stopped. It was as if words were completely unnecessary here in this black car. It wasn’t the first time. These men and others like them have always behaved in this way. The werewolf had no idea who they were, and what rank they occupied in the general system, and preferred not to interfere in their business. When they arrived at the place, the two remained motionless and did not even look in his direction when he got out of the car. As soon as he slammed the door behind him, the Land Cruiser moved away and drove back into the forest.
Kanny looked around. The red rays of the setting sun illuminated the tops of the trees, the weather was completely calm, and it was unusually quiet. This place was known to him from the very beginning, when he first experienced transformation. If he were now in the skin of a wolf, he probably would have flattened his ears and tucked his tail, so terrible were the memories.
«Probably, the master is already here and waiting for me,» he thought, and, moving on half-bent, went to the center of the circle, marked by several flat stones located along its perimeter. The feeling of the Spell was so obvious here, that he was ready to get on all fours without waiting for an order. Reaching the center, Kanny, as usual, stripped naked putting his clothes in a bag, lowered his head and froze. It is unknown how much time passed while he stood there. The concept of «time» was somehow lost in this place, and especially in the center of the circle. Five minutes could feel like an eternity, and vice versa, several days felt like five minutes. The evening was chilly, and Kanny was already freezing, when at some point the owner suddenly appeared out of nowhere and put a hand on his shoulder, making him flinch in surprise.
«Are you afraid?» the sorcerer asked in an ingratiating voice. That’s right. You need to be afraid. And even more so now, when we have some problems.» He made an impressive pause and continued with the intonation of the boa named Kaa from a famous cartoon, Jungle Book. «It’s a pity, of course, that we had to interrupt your vacation, but… this is partly your fault, little Kanny. Therefore, in order for us to correct the situation, you will have to stay here a little while.»
Kanny put his head between his shoulders and nodded like a little boy.
«This, apparently, is necessary so that your success does not inflate your head. Remember those two you left alive? So… they still give us problems, and I regret that I also did not remove them immediately because it has created this whole situation. But unlike you, I didn’t cancel them, because they have a relative from the special forces, and these guys are from a camp allied to us, and they need to be treated at a special rate. So, at first, I was angry with you, but then when I found out who their brother was, I was even glad and thought that we better clear their memory and everything, and deliver them to the edge of the field with your help, as you yourself know, otherwise he might come here, start prowling around and so on. We do not need that do we? Hm, yeah… and you know what? Now I regret not finishing them off. And that’s because one of them stole a special chip from my desk. You have one too, in order to keep you in touch with me. So… now, if he shows it to his brother, if he hasn’t shown it already, then they may suspect something, and return their memory to them by way of hypnosis. And they know how to do it in this fifth department of theirs.»
The sorcerer paused again, and spoke almost in a whisper into Kanny’s ear. «Anyway, listen to your assignment, kid. You will need to rush headlong into the village and kill these two. Everything should look like they were just torn to pieces by a wild beast. No suspicion or evidence. And one more thing, wolf cub… since you did an excellent job with the last task, there is a new order for you. You need to be raised one more level so that you become more independent, and you could now transform yourself. I would have done it before you took down this rebellious board of directors. Then you would have completed the task even better and, who knows, maybe you didn’t make this unfortunate mistake, but it’s not me who decides. So, what is, that is.»
The sorcerer fell silent, stroked Kanny’s head like a dog, and suddenly continued in a different, rather resolute tone.» So that’s what you’re here for. Today is your day, little wolf. I brought you here to initiate you into the next level. From now on, you will have the power to become a wolf, and return to a human again, whenever you wish. However, remember, I gave you this power, and I can take it away from you if you suddenly want to stop obeying me. So don’t forget that I need to continue to be afraid. Do you understand?»
Kanny obsequiously nodded his head, like a child, trying not to demonstrate his emotions, because what the owner said caused him great joy.
«Now get ready. Close your eyes and start casting the initiation spell. You still remember it, right?»
Of course, he remembered it. He had the feeling that he remembered it all his life. He obediently closed his eyes and began to recite the necessary words. As soon as he uttered the first sounds, the presence of the Spell enveloped his being in a dense thick fog…
Biting his lower lip with annoyance watching how the transformation of one creature’s flesh becomes another before his eyes, Alex thought, «How could I have made such a mistake? As if the mind was clouded. And after all, I pressed the same toggle switch. It is strange that he did not click to the end. Hmm… and Kanny… the puppy! It doesn’t look like him either. Remove three dozen bosses and slow down on two teenagers… Wow! Like some kind of obsession. It looks very similar to the machinations of the Enemy. The sorcerer spat in anger, and mechanically took a step back, because at that moment the werewolf was completely transformed, and he smelled of the sharp smell of a dog.
* * *
As Peter had said, as soon as they reached the wasteland, located at the very edge of the village, there was a noise of blades, the wind picked up, and a minute later a small military helicopter was already standing in front of them, rotating its propeller.
«Forward!» commanded Peter, and all three ran to the hatch of this reverently rumbling aircraft that opened its door in front of them. They jumped inside. Before the villagers could run to the noise, the helicopter took off into the air and disappeared behind the trees. However, none of those inside the air transport paid any attention to the man running after them screaming. Hoping to be noticed, he continued to yell and wave his arms until the helicopter was completely out of sight.
«Uh, what is it! That’s how! Didn’t I have time. That’s bad luck,» the man lamented, bending over and taking a breath.
«What, Uncle Venya, did not have time?» one village boy asked him, who, out of curiosity, also ran to the wasteland in the hope that he would have time to look at the flying miracle.
«I didn’t, you see. Ah-ah-ah, I didn’t have enough time,» Uncle Venya lamented, breathing heavily. He was dressed in a light khaki windbreaker, and on his head was a very real American hat, which cowboys have worn for years. Hunter Venya was very proud of this hat, because it was a gift from an real American who once, after visiting Russia, stopped by this place.
«What has happened, old man? Why were you running so hard?» asked his pretty blue-eyed neighbor Marianna, nicknamed «Dumpy», who had come up by this time.
«Well, is it… Strogin’s children who were found in a bale of hay? Now their brother has taken them somewhere.»
«To be honest,