The Night Hunt, Part 2

Continued from part 1
Unfortunately, as Cayel leaped, so did the night wolf. The wolf tried to jump to the lowest branch of the tree, attempting to reach the bird. The wolf fell short of the branch and tried to claw her way up the bark. Cayel landed deftly on his feet, realizing he had missed his chance. Seems the Goddesses weren't going to make it that easy.

The wolf was unable to gain the branch and fell back to the ground landing several feet away from Cayel. When the wolf spotted him, she hunched down, growling a warning at the tribesman. Cayel started to circle around the wolf keeping his knife at the ready. He had fought animals before, but never a night wolf. He decided caution would be the best course of action.

The night wolf's eyes followed Cayel as he moved. As Cayel went to take another step, the wolf leaped at Cayel. The wolf was quick and Cayel barely had time to react, diving to side as the wolf sailed through the spot where he had been standing. Cayel regained his feet as the wolf landed, spinning around to face Cayel again.

This time, the wolf was the one to start moving first, slowly closing the gap between them. The wolf let out another growl, the jinya bird forgotten. She was more interested in this new meal that had decided to present itself. She leaped again at Cayel, but this time he was ready and stepped aside bringing his knife across. He was rewarded by the sound of the wolf yelping.

As the wolf landed, Cayel saw a dark, wet spot on the wolf's side where blood was starting to flow. It was not a serious wound, but the wolf realized this prey might be more dangerous than she had anticipated. Before Cayel could react, the wolf turned and ran into the forest, a slight limp on the side Cayel had wounded.

When Cayel realized the wolf was running, he cursed under his breath. Chasing a night wolf through the forest would be a very bad idea, but he had to complete this quest. Besides, she was bleeding from the wound he had inflicted on her. She would weaken eventually, making it that much easier for him. He saw a trail of blood allowing him to follow her path. He once again thanked the Goddesses for their bright light.

He moved slowly through the trees, watching on all sides for the wolf to ambush him. The wolf had started fast, but he could see signs of her slowing down as he followed the blood trail. After several minutes, he stopped. He heard a rustling noise just up ahead. Assuming it was the wolf, Cayel crept forward quietly, preparing to attack. He didn't see the wolf just off to his side and wasn't prepared when she attacked.

She leaped up and sank her teeth into his forearm. He dropped the long knife and jerked his arm back, pulling her along with him. She let go and turned to attack again. Cayel fended off the second attack, pushing the wolf off of him. He could tell her would was slowing her down. When she leaped again, Cayel dived once again, landing beside his knife.

He quickly grabbed it and turned just as the wolf leaped him one more time. This time, Cayel was ready, though. As the wolf lunged into him, Cayel brought up his blade, sinking it deep into the wolf. The force of the wolf's rush pushed them both to the ground. As Cayel rolled over, he saw the wolf lying beside him, his knife sticking from her abdomen. She was still alive, but just barely. Cayel reach over and removed the knife, quickly finishing the job.

He sat there, resting from the fight and inspecting his wounded arm. The bite had left several puncture marks on his arm, but they weren't serious. He pulled a roll of cloth from a pouch on his belt and bound the wound so he wouldn't bleed out on the way back to the village.

Just as he was getting up, he heard another noise from the woods. He drew his knife again, expecting another attack, but was surprised to find a wolf pup emerging from a hole at the base of a nearby tree. He realized then that the wolf had been running back to her nest to protect her child.

Cayel stood there for a moment, trying to figure out what he should do. If he left the pup here, without its mother it would die for sure. After he thought about it, he realized there was only one thing he could do. The Elders probably wouldn't like the idea, but he would deal with that. Cayel scooped the pup up in his arm. The cub let out a startled yip, but then proceeded to start licking Cayel's arm. He smiled down at the pup before slinging the mother over his shoulder. It was going to be a long walk back to the village.

-Eddie