This spun through my mind as we killed two more. It was all the rest would allow as they rushed to close their circle around us. Retreating, we hurriedly leaped over the fresh bodies, reached the edge of the clearing to put our back to a tree, then I had Auric call for the wolves.

My children joyfully darted from their cover, their full throated snarls more than drowning out the cries of our common enemy. While they provided distraction, we waded into the slaughter, stabbing a goblyn and taking its short sword away. A second weapon doubled our effectiveness, but one of them clubbed us and another swiped a claw at our left flank, connecting. Auric felt the impacts but I paid little attention, being too busy keeping him in motion to pause.

Whenever one fell another took its place, but their numbers were finite, and they were hard pressed to deal with both Auric and the wolves. The latter did not seem to hold their interest. A goblyn, being dragged to the ground by three wolves, still futilely tried to reach out for us, even as it was being torn to shreds. We cut our way through two more, but I felt Auric slowing. His body was reaching its physical limit. His breath sawed in painful gasps, and he was losing muscle control. The goblyn with the club got in another strike, this time cracking it solidly down on Auric's left arm. He could not help dropping the blade. The goblyn tried for another strike, and if the wolves had not gone for the thing just in time, we might have come to grief then and there.

There were some five or six left, and Auric was fast nearing exhaustion. It made it more difficult for me to order him about. Our link through my hypnosis and the amulet was beginning to waver. I forced him to use his injured arm to fish out the copper wand, then actually spare a look at his hand to see if the wand was in the grip of his numbed fingers. With his breath almost gone, it was hard to make him speak the necessary words of summoning. I thought he had botched it, but suddenly saw a flare of light as the energies stored in the wand obediently lashed forth, hurling themselves against their targets, engulfing them.

Screams. Earsplitting, twisting, agonized screeches-And then it was all over except for the stink of burned flesh.

Auric fell back against the tree for support, panting like my wolves, who had had the sense to dodge out of the way when they saw the daylight bright glow forming around his left hand. They were quite clear of the area when the blue and purple flames licked out to envelop the remaining goblyns. For a few moments the grove was lighted by the malignant blaze of pure magical power as it ate the damned things to the bone. It burned itself out just as quickly, leaving behind charred corpses and a thick drift of black smoke.

The fire blinded us both for a short time. In the mine I blinked in frustration, until the afterimages of the goblyn's writhing forms finally started to fade from the crystal, and I could make out the shapes of my wolves milling about. None of them seemed to be seriously hurt, which astonished me. If the Vistani rumors of them were correct, goblyns are deadly with their slashing claws, and their usual form of attack is to grasp one's neck and start tearing into your face with their long teeth. They supposedly subsisted on raw flesh and were not above cannibalism, though unwary hermits had apparently been the preferred diet for this mob.

Druids might also be included, if they had allowed themselves to be captured. Auric's fellows were not the only ones inhabiting this forest to judge by this grove. He had made no mention of them, and I had specifically asked if anyone else dwelled in Forlorn. He was honestly ignorant of their presence. That was not too surprising. If the druids were as reclusive a lot as I remembered from Qwilym's tale, they could be as evasive as shadows.

The other mystery was why the goblyns had not been more forceful in their attack. Auric, even with me controlling his moves and with the help of the wolves, was still no match for a dozen of them. If they had really wanted to kill they should have succeeded. Therefore their master desired a prisoner, not a half-eaten carcass, which left the questions of who their master might be and how he'd known to send his servants.

The latter seemed to have a ready answer: perhaps the lord of this tiny country was as aware of intruders entering as I was for my own land. Was he like me, a child of the night? Or perhaps another lich like Azalin? Charming thought. Dare I hope that he was also trapped within his borders? Certainly I could hope, but I would prepare for the worst just in case. Yes, there were decided advantages to being a pessimist.

The castle Auric mentioned seemed as good a place as any to start looking into things, but I wasn't certain where it was. Oh, to be able to transform into a bat for a real view of the forest, not to mention leaving behind the distracting hurts Auric had collected. His arm throbbed mightily, a bruised bone perhaps, and the clawing he had taken burned like fire. He was becoming harder and harder to influence, to convince him that this was an unpleasant dream. He kept shaking his head, saying he wanted to wake up and leave.

A good idea, that. For all I knew a second lot of the disgusting creatures might this moment be on their way to deal with his intrusion. My grip on Auric was weakening by the minute, but I hated having to leave behind the dead goblyns. Portions of them could prove useful as components for certain kinds of spellwork, and the waste was galling. Perhaps I could hire people to cross the border and bring back a body or two. My wolves were making immediate profit from several of them already-as a change from preying on sheep and the occasional shepherd, I supposed.

The more I thought on it the greater my annoyance grew. I might as well get something tangible out of this expedition for all this trouble. Tired as Auric was, he could take at least one of the smaller ones along.

With considerable coaxing I had him pick out a corpse with a straight heart wound and order the wolves to pull it from the grove. I didn't want any protective magic lingering there to interfere with my spell. I told him to raise the wand directly over head and gave him the word to activate its stored travel incantation with the instruction to return himself and his burden to the mine.

He, along with the dead goblyn, appeared just outside the entrance, much to the surprise of the wolves there. I wasn't worried about the wolves left in Forlorn; they could find their way home easily enough. Those that welcomed him now sniffed with fierce curiosity at the goblyn, but through him I ordered them off before they decided to make a meal of it. My complete control over Auric was suddenly back. He was within Barovia again. Not that I had any further use for him.

A wave of weariness swept over him. Damn his weak human body. I relinquished my hold on his mind. The last fleeting glimpse I had through the amulet was the ground rushing up to meet him as he collapsed.

I was Strahd once more, looking through my own eyes. And I was decidedly uncomfortable in this cramped alcove. Something weighed me down as well, lots of somethings. I shifted slightly, stirring them, and they squeaked and chittered nervously, trying to hang onto their new perch. Baffling for a moment, then I understood that hundreds of bats covered me toe-to-chin like a living blanket. It almost made me laugh. Very devoted of them to be sure, trying to keep me warm.

Simply standing up might crush some of them, so I avoided the problem by dissolving into mist form. They were discommoded anyway to tell by their surprised protests as their bed suddenly vanished. As I drifted toward the entry, I sensed them skittering and flapping around the cave chamber on their way back up to the roof.