Kal's Devastation

Kal threw the heart aside and looked across the clearing, behind the trees, the remaining pairs of eyes began to get closer. Six wolves walked out, five of them had black fur just like the others he had just fought, and they were as tall as the first two, but the last one had gray fur and was taller than the rest of them.

It was the alpha of the pack; it stood behind as the other five circled Kal. 

Kal cracked his neck and stretched his body as they circled him. The pack, initially confident, now had a hint of fear in their eyes, but that wasn't going to stop them. The pack erupted in a frenzy of snarls and snapping jaws as they surrounded Kal.

One wolf, bolder than the others, charged at him, going for his leg. It snapped at Kal's leg, leaving a bloody scratch. He hissed and looked at his leg, his first real injury, but the pain only fueled his excitement.

It leaped at Kal again, but this time Kal dropped low, spinning under the snapping jaws and coming up behind the beast. With a loud laugh, he brought both hands down in a vicious swipe, his nails finding the wolf's throat and leaving it bloody.

The remaining wolves, emboldened by their comrade's drawing of blood, renewed their attack. He used the terrain to his advantage, dodging around a fallen log just as a wolf's jaws snapped shut where his head had been a moment before.

He managed to take down another wolf in the frenzy.

The others hesitated, momentarily stunned. Kal used the opening. He spun with unexpected agility, his long legs giving him great mobility. He met another wolf in mid-air, this time around using his knee and slamming it into the wolf's chest with a sickening thud. The hit broke the wolf's ribcage leaving its heart punctured.

The last two wolves, excluding the alpha, began to circle cautiously. They had never encountered such a strange prey. Kal met their gaze, with a grin of excitement stretched out on his face.

One wolf, younger and rasher, lunged. This time, Kal was ready. He sidestepped the attack, letting the wolf's momentum carry it past him. Then, with a well-placed kick, sent the beast smashing into a tree, the tree broke apart and parts of it tore into the wolf, putting an end to its life.

The other wolf, older and wiser, looked at Kal, looked at his fallen comrades and then at the alpha behind him. He let out a long, mournful howl that echoed through the night, a lament for the fallen.

Then, with a final snarl it jumped at Kal, Kal stood his ground, meeting the wolf head on, he grabbed the wolf's head and slammed it into a nearby rock. The crunch was definitive, he let go and let it crumble to the floor.

Only one wolf remained, the alpha; a massive beast that was as tall Kal, it had a scarred muzzle and a single cloudy eye. It glared at Kal, and Kal met its gaze, a predator and a prey locking eyes.

Which was which?

The alpha charged, a flash of gray fur against the night, a low growl rumbling in its throat. Kal sidestepped once more, but this time the wolf anticipated the move, it had seen Kal make that same movement when he fought his pack.

Next thing Kal felt was a searing pain on his arm, the alpha had sunk its teeth into his left arm, it waved its head from side to side trying to rip Kal's arm of his shoulders. Kal thrust his other arm at the wolf's face, aiming for its one good eye but missing and only managing to slash its snout.

Although he missed his target, the attacked worked, the wolf had let go of his grip on his arm. Kal looked at his arm, a streak of red was blooming on his sleeve.

With a surge of adrenaline and a primal shout that echoed through the forest, Kal launched himself at the alpha. He grappled with the beast a flurry of limbs and fur, he eventually managed to pin the alpha down.

He rained blows down on its head, his nails tearing through muscle and fur. The alpha roared in pain, trying to push him away, but Kal wouldn't relent. His hands found the creature's throat, his fingers digging into the soft flesh. He felt the powerful muscles straining against him, but he held on, his own primal instincts taking over.

A tense silence stretched as Kal tried to rip into the wolf's throat. The still silence of the night was punctuated only by the labored breaths of the two combatants.

Slowly, the alpha's struggles began to weaken, then Kal's fingers made their way through its throat, as its cloudy eye glazed over, then went still.

Kal released his grip as he panted heavily.

Kal stood up from the corpse of the alpha, his body bruised and bleeding, yet victorious. The silence of the night had returned, broken only by the ragged gasps of his own breath.

He looked at his hands, his instruments of devastation, stained with blood.

He was no warrior, just a man who enjoyed the simple pleasures of life, the sun on his skin, the taste of fresh rainwater, and sometimes the feel of his fingers ripping through an opponent.

Kal walked back to where he had been siting and picked up his flask, he opened it and took several large gulps from it. After drinking from his flask, he flopped onto the floor and leaned on the log.

"That drained me."

Silax and Elara had both watched all the whole confrontation in silence, Silax didn't even realize when he had loosened the grip on his blade. He jumped down from where he was perched on the tree and walked over to Kal.

"Are you okay?" Silax asked.

Kal raised his hand and gave a thumbs up.

"Peachy." Kal said in response.

Silax stared at him for a few seconds then shrugged his shoulders. The sound of Elara landing on the floor made him turn his head, then he looked around at the state of the clearing.

"We should clear this up, place them outside the clearing. The smell of blood could attract other animals."

He and Elara began gathering the bodies of the direwolves together, the whole clearing was a mess, the blood of the direwolves covered every almost every inch of soil in the clearing, their entrails littered everywhere.