Orenda’s Story [Part 2]
The warmth from the fire and the subtle cracking of the logs made Orenda drowsy. She sat back against a tree and kept her eyes shut. She heard Moon Beam and Maska eating grass in the distance and Maska's displeasure as she nipped him for getting to close. It brought a smile to Orenda's face, and she thought of the first time she saw Moon Beam.
Orenda awoke in the middle of the night to the sound of wolves and a horse in the distance. She did not like the idea of wolves attacking a horse. Quick as she could, she grabbed her crossbow and ran into the woods trying to find it. It was so dark, and she could not see well. She heard the horse call out in pain, and she felt as if she would listen to the horse die before she would find it.
The branches of trees scraped her arms and face, and she pressed on. She was near giving up when the clouds parted, and a bright beam from the moon showed her the way. She could see the horse backed up against a tree with three wolves circling it.
Orenda ran as fast as she could, hoping Mitra had sent her to save this beautiful beast from harm. She ran up and stunned each wolf, and in that instant, they turned on her. It was not what she had hoped to happen, so she braced herself for impact.
Orenda fell to the ground, and the horse came forward and with her front legs kicked the wolf off her and then with the full force of her upper body slammed down on the nearest wolf. Orenda climbed back up to her feet in time to save the horse from further attack, she grabbed her crossbow and got the wolf closest to the horse. The last remaining wolf ran off, which relieved Orenda; she doesn't like to see animals harmed least of all by her hand.
She turned to the horse which was in one single moonbeam the horse then came up to Orenda and nuzzled her cheek. Orenda noticed the bite marks, 'Oh you poor thing, here.' She healed the horse's wounds and gave her a gentle pat. 'There you are safe now.' Orenda turned to leave, and the horse followed her. She turned around, 'You want to come with me?' The horse took a few steps forward and nuzzled Orenda again. She smiled and then ran her hand down her neck. 'Then I shall call you Moon Beam, for I would not have found you without it.'
Orenda sat up from the tree and looked at both horses. She could remember the countless times she had taken Aylen, her daughter, out on Moon Beam and Maska. She enjoyed her face lighting up and trying to name everything she saw. Those were the moments that brightened Orenda's heart. She carried those memories with her always.