Night Attack

As twilight descended on the group, they decided to settle for the night, they had been traveling all day. They were in a clearing sitting around a fire, about to have dinner. Silax had just returned from foraging around their chosen point of rest.

He sat down and opened his bag, bringing out a bundle and unwrapping it, in it was cured meat, sliced into long strips, he set it next to the fruits and nut he gathered. That was going to be his dinner, jerky, wild berries, and nuts. Not the most luxurious of dinners, but he wasn't here on vacation.

He looked around to see what the others were having, Kal just sat on the log next to the fire drinking from his flask.

'What even is in that flask? There's no way that's all he's going to consume while we are out here.'

Elara on the other hand had brought out a bowl with a lid and a bottle from her bag. The bowl contained some leafy greens and little pieces of something orange. She poured a healthy amount of the orange liquid from bottle into the bowl. As she was mixing them together, she noticed him looking at her.

"Do you want some?"

Silax didn't like receiving things from people, not unless it was an exchange. He shook his head and pointed at the meal he had in front of him.

"I'm fine, I have my own dinner. Although I would like to know what it is."

Elara covered the bottles and stored them back in her bag.

"It's called Verdant Salad, it's a dish native to my hometown. It is wild greens tossed with a light vinaigrette made with wildflower honey and a touch of citrus. You should try some, you'd really enjoy it."

Silax picked up a piece of meat and bit into it, then he replied:

"Maybe some other time, I already went through the effort of getting this prepared."

Elara paused form a bit and turned her head to side a little, like she was in thought, then she smiled.

"I agree, you shouldn't waste food, but when it's time for your next meal you don't need to prepare anything else, I have more than enough to last us till we get back to Scola."

All that went through Silax mind was how he'd be indebted to her if he did that.

'Yeah, there's no way that's happening. I shouldn't say that though, turning her down after she offered three times wouldn't seem nice. There's no good that can come from getting into the bad books of someone I'm supposed to spend a few more days in close proximity to.'

"Alright, as long as I'm in the mood for something green, I'll let you know."

Elara nodded and started eating.

Kal whistled as they both ate their meal, he had a few rocks in his hands, which he began to throw at a tree that was in the distance. Each rock got embedded into the trunk of the tree, a testament to the force behind his throws.

When Silax and Elara were done with their meal, he suggested a schedule for keeping watch during the night.

"We'll each keep watch for four hours. I'll take first watch, then Silax the next, and Elara the final four hours."

They both nodded their head, signaling that they were okay with it.

"Alright then, you guys should get some rest, we have a long day ahead tomorrow. We have to make it to the castle before nightfall."

They both picked a tree to rest in cause neither of them brought tents, preferring to sleep high up in the trees.

Silax climb a tree with supple movement, leaping from branch to branch to get to a higher point. He sat on a branch and leaned his back on the trunk, he drew his dirk and rested it on his lap before closing his eyes to sleep.

Elara leaped of the ground and used the wind to propel herself high into the trees, she found a branch wide enough for her to lay on. She laid on it and used her bag as a pillow, closing her eyes so as to get some sleep.

Kal put out the fire leaving the whole clearing in darkness, the only light being the sparse moonlight that made their way through the trees reflecting off his eyes.

He remained unmoving from the spot where he sat all through his watch.

Soon the four hours of his watch was almost complete.

As he was preparing to go wake Silax up, a guttural growl echoed through the trees, breaking the silence. A pair of emerald eyes emerged from the darkness, followed by another, then another, and another, there were over ten pairs of eyes.

The growl woke the other two sleeping up in the trees. Silax was quick to react; grabbing his dirk from his laps, Elara was still a little disoriented from just waking up.

"Don't worry you two, just remain up there. I needed something exciting anyways."

Kal said this as he rolled up his sleeves and got up from the log he was sitting on. His eyes, usually calm pools of red, now had a glint in them, one that gave him an untamed look.

Seven wolves emerged from the shadows of the trees, their mangy fur bristling. They circled Kal, the hunger in their eyes evident as they sized up their prey. They bared their fangs in a ferocious snarl, but the blood-thirst couldn't hide the hunger in their eyes.

A pair of hulking, green-eyed wolves stood out from the seven. They were larger than the other five, their fangs were also longer and sharper.

The pack lunged at him, one of the larger wolves leading the charge. Kal didn't flinch, he met the first wolf head-on, twisting to dodge its bite as the beast lunged. His hand shot out, his long nail catching the wolf's thick fur near the shoulder. A sickening rip resonated as a chunk of flesh was torn free, sending the wolf yelping in pain. The injury incapacitated the beast, eliminating it from the battle.

The other large wolf, a hulking beast with fur the color of midnight, let out a low growl, the sound echoing through the silent forest. It pounced at Kal with a flash of yellow teeth, Kal sidestepped with lightning reflexes, as the wolf flew past him, he slammed his elbow into its ribcage.

A yelp of pain ripped through the night as the beast stumbled back, it quivered as it tried to remain standing, but it couldn't, it took one final breath and collapsed to the floor.

He rushed at another wolf, a primal roar erupting from his throat. His right hand, a blur of motion, slashed across the wolf's neck, carving right through it with his deadly fingernails. The beast's head flew into the air, a line of blood accompanying it from the neck.

The remaining wolves didn't seem discouraged by the deaths of the others, in fact the scent of blood seemed to embolden them. This time around they launched a more coordinated attack.

Kal danced through their snapping jaws and gnashing teeth, a whirlwind of bare feet and razor-sharp claws. He used the terrain to his advantage, leaping onto rocks and using them as platforms to deliver flying kicks that sent the wolves sprawling. He grappled with one, his fingernails sinking into its thick fur, and with a sickening crunch, snapped the creature's neck.

Kal let go of the wolf's body and looked around, he walked up to the only wolf left alive, the first one he injured and was left incapacitated by the attack, he plunged his hand into its chest and ripped out its heart. He had a smile of his face, one that conveyed elation.