Vali wasn’t afraid of a wolf, sure. But what stood in front of him was as close to a wolf as a lion was to a cat.

For one, its size was absurd. He suspected the animal would be over ten feet tall if it stood on its hind legs. If a lion was to stand next to it, it would look like a fat housecat standing next to a dog. It was the first thing Vali was taken aback by, but not the most striking thing about it.

It didn’t end with the impossible size. Its huge claws shimmered with a faint blue light as if they were made out of glass. They would be beautiful, if not for the killing machine they were attached to. Vali couldn’t make sure if the teeth had the same qualities to them, as they were covered in blood and fleshy bits.

Vali didn’t have the chance to observe more to see other differences than a baseline wolf, as it started to circle him with caution. As the hulking animal slowly moved around Vali, observing, he saw the same hue of light that he saw in the claws. The fur of the animal refracted light in the same manner as the claws, but subtler. As it moved, the sunlight slipping through the leaves struck the fur of the animal in strange angles, resulting in glimmers. The lights danced across the animal’s spine, and under the shade of the forest, its beauty mesmerized Vali. Almost.

Too bad the said animal was out to get his life.

Done with observing, Vali saw the animal’s muscle tense under the dense fur, ready for a plunge. The animal was done considering: Vali was soon-to-be food. The cautious gait of the wolf disappeared in a blink. Vali knew what was coming next. He also knew, that if he stood still, the wolf would be soon on top of him, and Vali’s flesh and blood would be the next decoration on the predatory animal’s teeth.

‘I’ll be damned if I let a mutt kill me.’ The thought fueled him, pushing him to act. His grip tightened around the metal spear until his hands hurt from the action. Putting all his considerable weight behind the movement, he thrust the spear, intending to kill it, or wound it bad enough to weaken it, in a single move. It was a simple equation in Vali’s mind; pointy metal plus living thing equals dead.

What he forgot to consider in that equation was, just how fast the wolf could be. Which unfortunately for Vali, was deceptively fast for its size. The feral wolf twisted around the pointy end of the spear with an almost unnatural agility. He felt some resistance against his arms, something pushing. The spear grazed the fur, a shallow cut. He could see red at the tip. Yet he couldn’t be happy about it.

The wolf ignored the small wound, not even stopping for a second. Before Vali could even react, the wolf leaped towards his face. With a ferocious howl, the wolf approached with its horrendous jaws open, giving Vali a good look down its throat.

The wolf had gone from a relatively safe distance away, to a few inches away from his face. It was fast, way too fast. He didn’t have any time to act. His reflexes couldn’t even kick in properly, he only felt his muscles tense in desperation, barely lifting a single leg out of the ground. It wouldn’t help. Not at this point.

Time slowed down to a halt for Vali, as he looked death in the face. He could only observe in a mix of horror and wonder, his eyes unmoving. He knew this was it. He would die in but a moment.

He had no way of avoiding the jaw of the wolf. The solid, sharp teeth would clamp down on his soft, fleshy throat. They would hook and pull, ripping out what they couldn’t cut, crushing what they couldn’t rip. Tendon and bone alike made no difference to the animal. A single bite would be enough for the wolf. For those crystal teeth. He could see better now when they were right in his face.

It was as if he was observing the blade of a guillotine, just before it fell on his neck. Hard to realize death is at the door until feeling the cold, razor-sharp metal’s touch on the back of your neck. It was sobering.

A sight that he endured for what felt like an eternity, but took less time than a heartbeat.

He would die in this unknown forest, as the dinner of an oversized dog. Simply because he was cocky. When looking back, it was the obvious outcome of his actions.

‘And for what?’ He mused. ‘Just because someone would be indebted to me enough to be my friend?’ How naïve, he reprimanded himself.

He could smell the dog’s breath by now. Time kept flowing so, so slow. Like the last grains of sand in an hourglass, his last moments slipped by painfully.

The dirt would embrace him, the person who achieved nothing before his death. The person who was achieving nothing, as he died. The same old flawed soul, dying the same way he lived. Fueled by the absence of happiness in his life, and filled to the brim with anger.

From the corner of his eye, behind the wolf, he saw. A familiar face, in a running motion towards him. Eyes filled with horror; a hand outstretched. The biggest regret of his life.

Vali wanted to scream. ‘Even after all that,’ He wailed, ‘You still want to help me?!’

The realization hit him like a truck. An ever-so-small spark was lit inside him. In less time than it took to blink, Vali felt every single one of his pent-up emotions burst forth. All of his grief; for the people he had lost, his guilt; for his own actions. All the helplessness he felt. All the envy.

And then, they were all gone, usurped by the spark. An emotion much stronger. The singular emotion he was extremely familiar with. He felt anger. At himself, for not being able to change anything, even until his last moment.

The spark grew, fueled by his emotions, by himself. Until the spark grew into a flame, and the flame grew into something else entirely.

The flame spread, licking every corner of his being. Everything that made him himself. It was in his mind, in its mind.

At that moment, Vali was gone.

His muscles fired up as if they were an old engine that was tasting fuel for the first time in years. His nerves burned as if they were soaked in liquid pain. With bloodshot eyes, it looked deep into the wolf’s maw, only an inch away.

A sickening crunch resounded as a fist landed on the wolf’s jaw from below, closing it shut.

And then, the flame was gone.

Time started flowing normally again for Vali, who had no idea what happened. The wolf landed on him, scampering, seemingly as confused as he was. He wanted to push it away, punch at it, do something to not waste this chance. But his body didn’t agree with him.

His foot still unsteady, he fell back onto the soft dirt, the wolf coming down with him in a heap. Still dazed, he finally managed to find the energy to try and push the animal away, only to raise a broken and twisted left arm.

His mouth opened, a howl of pain trying to leave his lungs, but only a weak whimper left his lips. Teeth tightly clenched, he watched helplessly as the wolf slowly got up to its feet. Vali tried to raise his weapon with the other arm but the shaky limb refused his commands.

Two silhouettes ran past him and into the wolf, one reaching the animal before the other and smacking it across the face with a piece of metal. The animal, still not fully recovered, recoiled. Instead of trying to bite back, it took two careful steps back, observing. Seeing the reaction of the animal, Vali hoped it would flee. Yet it didn’t.

He heard footsteps approach him, but he couldn’t take his eyes away from the wolf. His concentration was broken when he felt two people on each side pull him up strongly to his feet. “We have to get you to a hospital! Now!” The familiar voice of Denny to his left resounded as he felt his eyes glue onto his broken and battered arm.

“Like hell there is one! Take him and run, we will try to scare the wolf away.” Jonas spoke with urgency on his other side.

Denny opened his mouth to say something, but Vali had no intention to let him speak. “Shut up! I’m okay now.” He rasped, not sounding okay at all. He still felt spent, but little by little some energy was returning back to his body. He pushed the two away, standing on his own, albeit with shaky feet. “That thing isn’t going to get scared away by your tears, dumbass.” He raised his spear with one hand, his breathing heavy.

“Neither by your wet pants,” Jonas spoke, irritated. “so go away.”

Vali didn’t even hear him, as his eyes scanned the people. Besides Jonas and Denny, he saw the two who were facing the wolf. One was the redhead girl who he had fought before ending up here. The other person, Vali didn’t have any clue who it was. Regardless, the two were having a staring contest with the stubborn animal.

What he was observing, though, wasn’t who they were, but what they had as weapons. They all held blunt metal pieces. His tired brain worked overtime, trying to figure a way out. Eyes darting around, he ignored the arguing of the two besides him. “Do as I fucking say, or I’m leaving you guys to die.” He spoke, loud enough to be heard by everyone. He walked towards the wolf, squeezing himself between the two people who were facing it. The wolf watched his movements, not daring to act, as he raised his spear with one hand, pointing it towards the wolf. “Stick to my sides and follow me. I will poke it; you guys whack it when it gets too close.” He kept speaking as they watched him incredulously. “Jon, doc, stand behind us and make sure the mutt doesn’t bite the other two.” He took a breath, trying to calm his nerves before speaking his last words.

“When I tell you to, run back as fast as you can.” He didn’t break eye contact with the wolf as he finished. “Save your questions for after I save your asses.”

And he raised his spear, ready for round two.