"Mi-ike," a voice was calling to me in a sarcastic singsong tune. "Mi-ike, wake u-up!"
I could hear the voice, but I wasn't fully conscious yet. That is until I felt two powerful arms grab and shake me.
"Mike, snap out of it!"
I was jolted awake by the thrashing and came face to face with a wolfish maw filled with razor-sharp teeth. I almost fainted again.
"Oh no you don't. Come on, up and at 'em!" Ashkii said as he forced me to stand up.
Not surprisingly, I scurried across the room away from the creature. I realized that there were two reasons why this was stupid: 1) if
Ashkii had wanted to rip me apart, he wouldn't have gone through the trouble of explaining things and being nice, 2) if he wanted to rip
me apart, I doubt moving across the room would do me much good. But it was an instinct to get away from something scary. And
besides, I already felt better not staring at two rows of white daggers.
"I know you must be afraid, but please try to understand," Ashkii pleaded with me. "I needed to share this with someone and you're the
only one I can trust."
"So," I asked, calming down slightly at his gentle words, "You're not going to kill me?"
"No."
"Maim me?"
"Nope."
"Steal my soul or something?"
"Really?"
"Okay, okay," I resigned. "But there's a question I need to ask you. How are you a yeenadlooshi?"
"Good question," he answered, sitting down cross-legged. "The legends have everything wrong. Yeenadlooshi aren't associated with
witches. In fact, they were against witches. The legends say skinwalkers were created when someone hated the tribe, but they were
actually the tribes protectors. Yeenadlooshi were tribe members who protected the tribe from witches by turning their magic against them
with powers granted to them by the Creator. But it was secret, so many Navajos thought they were witches. When the white men came
in, the yeenadlooshi realized that they needed protection from witches as well. From then on, there has been a yeenadlooshi in every
populated place in the United States."
"There are more of you?!"
"Yes, each of us is responsible for a certain area. Since we live in a lightly populated area, I have a lot of space to cover. Which is my
second reason for telling you my secret. I need someone to help me protect the people of this area. I know I can trust you, so I want
you to help me. You don't have to become a yeenadlooshi, but I can make you one if you want. That is, if you will help me."
Shit, he wants me to help him fight witches. I'd like to tell him there's no need to hunt witches because they aren't real. But I just
watched him become a seven foot beast in front of me, so who's to say there aren't witches too? Besides, who else could or would help
him?
"Fine, I'll help," I conceded.
"Great, I knew I could count on you! But do you want to stay human or become a yeenadlooshi with me?"