Vulnerable Wolf /Vision

Little needles of pain coalesced where his fist tightened and pulled her head so that she was forced to look into his hard eyes. Had a gasp been possible, she would have. The normally guarded and tempered gates into his soul were gone, replaced with an inner maelstrom that only she could see.

The forest quailed under the lash of hail; lightning split asunder trees at random. Shadowed figures assaulted a weary, wounded wolf with taloned hands. Blood slicked the already rain-soaked ground, bits of fur, flesh, and melting shadows dotted the area. The wolfs claws sunk into the mud, providing little purchase for his weak defenses; he did not even attempt to attack now. Soon, the shadows would overwhelm him. Someone was screaming, she could hear it, but it seemed so far away...

She was falling, she knew this sensation; like falling in a dream and jolting awake as the ground rushes up to meet you. The solid impact of her body awkwardly slamming into the ground brought her fully out of the trance. Next to her lay a wolf, its gray-brown fur matted in places. No blood. There was no blood. The realization slammed into her mind and she choked back a sob. Relief flooded through her. She flung herself at the wolf and buried her hands and face into the fur around his neck. His breath came in ragged, shallow gulps.

A hand on her shoulder made Kala jump nearly out of her skin. She had forgotten the rest of the world existed.