Wolves aren't as brave as they seem

A folk tale from a fantasy world, yet one that carries more truth to us than it might seem.

Wolves aren’t as brave as they seem

“Wolves aren’t as brave as they seem. 

They’re tough 

and aggressive 

and they’re strong,

fiery weapons.

With teeth, sharp like razors

red from blood that they’ve savored

a violent fire burns in their eyes

in disguise, they’re a danger

But their blaze, fire burning,

filled with violence and with yearning,

is a burden, brings a war

for there’s still softness at the core.

And although they’re fierce and mighty,

in the night they howl,

frightened,

as the creatures of their nightmares,

swiftly take over their souls.”

That’s how the story goes. It’s widely known that Floryin is dangerous. The land is alive, its own inverse at night. But I don’t think many people truly realise what that means. The story of the wolves is told as a warning and yet so many people don’t get what it entails. They laugh by the campfire at the visuals it paints for the mind, as the children crawl closer to the light. I think they understand what it means, the children I mean,  they get what it warns for, while the adults just laugh, not seeing the signs. Perhaps to them, it’s just a good story, a tale that is told as a spine-chiller to instill fear in the kids’ minds. 

Wolves aren’t as brave as they seem, they’re afraid of the night. These people think they are braver, how many do you think died because of it?  The tale is a warning: don’t go out during the night, for even the wolves are frightened of its life. 

Wolves aren’t as brave as they seem, that’s what’s keeping them alive. 

Yes, it’s widely known that Floryin is dangerous, but what does this danger actually mean? For most people, the danger in this story is shaped as a wolf and the concept of a cowardly wolf is merely laughable to them. The story is used as mere folklore, a fairytale, nothing more. “Nothing is fiercer than fire,” they say. 

But not all fire burns high, brings destruction and pain. Some fire is captured and burns soft, warmth and light. Not all fire is hurtful and no fire is solely that. The story warns that even fire has nightmares, even danger gets scared. Of the ghosts that roam freely in the forests at night.

 

These beasts, unexpected, this danger, unshaped, it’s a true force of nature escaped. The form that it takes on stays unknown for us, for the ones who have seen it never survived what they saw. A trail of blood, splattered across the forest floor, follows the creature of our folklore. What it is stays uncertain, a shadow speaking in tongues, yet we know what its words mean as its cold fills our lungs. It’s an air that stops breathing, it’s the end of your life. Yes, these beasts are a riddle that no one can survive, somehow give us deja-vu as we’re gasping for air. A faint whisper, they’re screaming: “It’s not fair! It’s not fair!” 

they should’ve seen the signs. 

For the fire that wolves are, as told in the tale, burns bright, too, in our souls, feeds on air we inhale. And the cold of this creature suffocates us, we drown in the air that once warmed us, like water, no sound. But “Nothing is fiercer than fire,” they’d said. Now water has drowned them, their fire is dead. 

Yet most still don’t see the truth in this story that they tell by the fire as they glisten in glory. They don’t understand this reality’s right, that the story they’re telling is a cry, not a fight. And somehow they laugh at the fear of their children. Blind is their eye as they fail to discern.  

The face of this creature, still faceless, stays blank, but its scream, more a whisper, lures us in, strikes our back. I won’t fight it, we can’t win, so I’ll cry as they go. I know they won’t come back. 

They never did so. 

A smile of contentment from the creature, now fed. Next time hear the folklore and believe what it says. 

Author's Note

any and all constructive critism is welcome

Reviews

[Neha agrawal]

This gave me goosebumps.
Not just because it’s eerie, but because there’s something true buried under every line — about fear, about fire, about how we pretend to be brave until the dark proves us wrong.
The line “even fire has nightmares” wrecked me.
And that ending — “They never did so.” — is like a soft blow to the chest. Final. Quiet. Devastating.
You’ve written a warning disguised as a story, and somehow it feels like it’s about more than wolves, more than creatures.
It feels like it’s about us — the things we laugh off, the truths we ignore, the signs we miss.
I don’t know what Floryin really is… but I don’t want to go there. Not even in daylight.
This was haunting. Thank you for writing it.

[Nightmist]

Thank you so much, this is very nice to hear. I'm very glad the feeling and the message and warning behind it is clear.
Thank you so much for this lovely review!