2 The Tussle

Daryn reached the other side of the stream. This time faster than the wolf. Giving him a lot more distance from the wolf and once he got on land he didn't give the wolf a chance to cover the distance to him he ran. Though this time he was a tad slower.

''Lets see how you catch me now'' he breathed.

Without a second a look at the wolf he started on the trail downstream. Daryn heard a soft tap on the trail behind him. He didn't need to look to know the wolf had jumped to his side of the stream. He quickened his pace.

Jumping over logs and branches. Dodging a few stones and thorns. His mind was working on urgent accuracy taking as much data as he could as he ran. He noticed the wolf gaining again and this time it was mad!!

'What time do it have to rest?'

He jumped into the stream again. This time the wolf didn't follow. Daryn stopped and turned to look at the wolf running ahead. Thinking that perhaps the huge animal had gotten tired of the chase but still afraid it might return on the path, he tried crossing over in the other direction.

His feet struck something beneath him perhaps a stone in the stream.

'Curses'

Daryn tripped.

No longer concentrating, the stream currents took him off his feet. Dragging him along with the rapid moving water....towards a waterfall. He definitely didn't see this coming.

He reached out to anything he could hold on to. Even tried putting his feet back under the moving water to get balance or atleast slow down...but nothing worked.

As he got closer to his death, he tried again to hold on to a big rock that stood along his way but his knee struck a smaller one just as the currents pushed at his lower body and he lost grip.

Daryn watched as his life flashed before his eyes. The plane crash and the time he woke up in this jungle.

He snorted

He mocked his own fate. To survive death in a plane crash only to die in another crash this time a different medium. His luck was really ugly.

But before he reached the waterfall, he began to pull to the side of the stream though just a tug at his sweat shirt. Daryn started laughing happily at the fortunate turn of events but as the force continued to pull him, he heard a growl from behind him.

Panick shot through him. The first thing that came to mind was the wolf. The clever animal had come to claim its prize for its patience and labourous pursuit.

Instinctively, Daryn wrestled his release from the wolf's grip.

Believing that even if he fell over the waterfall, he still had a chance of survival but he would to be dead in seconds if the wolf managed to get him on land. And he almost got himself released from the grip.

He prepared to swim for the waterfall at the slightest release. The wolf growled angrily at his attempt for freedom already getting frustrated with the boy.

" You did not think it was going to be easy did you?"

The slightest opportunity came and Daryn took it. He tried to run away. The wolf roared behind him and made for a chase inside the rushing currents of the stream both already at the edge of the waterfall.

Daryn tried jumping along with the currents but the huge animal got to him before he made the jump.

He felt a searing pain at his shoulder. A surprising weight along with a mind numbing pain at his right shoulder. The wolf growled in satisfaction at the taste of Daryn's blood on its tongue and used the grip on the boy's shoulders to pull him towards land.

Oh Daryn did not like that idea one bit and opposed the pull. Angered, the wolf deepened the bite to grip him firmly plus the currents of the stream was not helping. Determined not to allow the wolf drag him to land, he put his whole weight down to the stream and tried crawling. There was little distance left to get to the edge of the waterfall and Daryn planned on making it.

The huge animal was the only reason he had not been carried by the currents. The wolf's weight alone anchored him and prevented that from happening...which was not fortunate at this point.

Daryn still held on to the rocks he could find beneath the stream hoping they would not be uprooted from the stream bed leaving him to be pulled back by the massive creature....struggling helplessly not to be made lunch. As he thought about it Daryn shivered.

The wolf tried to deepen the hold further on Daryn's shoulder and lost footing.

The Anchor gone, they both fell over the waterfall.

Daryns weight was not enough to hold him and keep him from falling. He followed the wolf over the edge.