The Chronicles of Slave Nano No. 04

The hare called back, "we must get to a place where the Goddess's magic can protect us."

The most important thing was for Goddess Eostra's talismans to be restored to her. I caught up with the last girl, quickly removed the fragment of the mirror and the green gems, and thrust the cuckoo clock in her hand.

"You must take this and deliver it," I said.

She nodded and dashed ahead to catch up with the others. Then I turned and faced the pursuing wolves. All I could do was buy the maidens and the hare some time. The silver wolves faced me, their lips drawn back to reveal their razor sharp teeth snarling in anger. The light of the moon made their silver coats glitter in the night air. I had no idea what I would do; I only knew that I had to delay the wolves long enough for the others to get to a safe place.

There were five wolves. The leader of the pack approached me suspiciously growling intently, the saliva dribbling from his teeth. I had the fragment of the magic mirror in my hand. The wolf was stalking me slowly, waiting for the right moment to pounce. We circled one another, me also choosing my moment carefully. We were only a few feet from one another. I saw the wolf's muscles tense and his silver fur rise. It had to be now. I raised my arm and propelled the fragment of mirror at the wolf. It struck him right between the eyes and he collapsed, struck dead with one fatal blow. I held up the three green stones. The other wolves, seeing their leader struck down, were now hesitant and fearful. I approached the dead wolf and pulled the blood stained mirror from his skull. The other wolves had started to back away into the forest, fearful of the powerful magic that I could wield.

I myself backed away and went deeper into the forest and then turned away and started to follow the trail of broken undergrowth left by the others. I only had a few hundred more yards before I broke through into a glade. My intervention had been just enough to ensure that the handmaidens had escaped into the protection of their mistress.

The luminous orb of the moon lit up a scene of joy and celebration. It reflected in a pond in the centre of the glade, which I later learned was a pool of Goddess Eostra's tears in sorrow at the loss and desecration of her kingdom. But now it was being filled with tears of happiness. She was hugging each of her handmaidens in turn. Her life force had already turned the rabbits back into hares and the cuckoos into swans which were now floating majestically on the pool.

Goddess Eostra herself turned towards me. She was an image of natural pagan beauty. She wore a magnificent green silk cloak decorated with hare, primrose and egg motifs and underneath it a canary yellow dress. Her lock of blonde curls was crowned with a circle of daffodils. She approached me and gave me a hug. I breathed in the invigorating fresh smell of spring that surrounded her.

"Thank you Slave Nano. You are a true devotee of the Goddesses. I will send report back to Goddess Nemesis on how you have acquitted yourself for me. But, as you can see, I am overjoyed to have my magical talismans restored to me. Now, I have the power to celebrate the spring equinox and restore the magic of my forest."