Chapter 61: Savage
They ran through the forest, the sounds of snapping branches close behind them. Nox moved easily from one thick tree to the next. He used his Parkour skill, the dangerous run feeling almost easy.
Serian was a different story. She was an elf and this was her natural terrain. She was graceful but her injured ankle made her slow. She was lagging behind, her breathing coming in ragged bursts.
Nox glanced back, annoyance crossing his face. ’She’s too slow. She’s going to get us both killed.’ He was about to yell at her to keep up when he saw her land awkwardly on a thick root. Her ankle gave out completely.
She cried out, a loud sound of pain, and tumbled from the branch. She hit the forest floor with a heavy thud.
He kept going for another ten feet, then skidded to a stop, crouching on a low branch. He looked back. Serian was trying to push herself up, her face pale. The sounds of the pack were getting closer, low growls echoing through the trees. He could see the red glow of their eyes appearing in the darkness. They were closing in on her.
’Leave her,’ the old part of his brain screamed. ’She’s a liability. You have your own mission. Survive.’
He stayed there for a long second, his muscles tense, ready to run. He saw one of the farewolves, a huge, dark shape, step into the small clearing around Serian. It lowered its head, a hungry growl rumbling in its chest.
"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. He wasn’t sure why he was doing it, but he knew he couldn’t just leave her.
He jumped down from his branch, landing softly on the ground a few feet away from her. The wolves stopped, their glowing red eyes shifting to him, the new, bigger threat.
"Stay behind me," he said, not taking his eyes off the pack. There were at least five of them, circling slowly.
Serian pushed herself up, leaning against a tree for support. "Nox, no," she said, her voice tight with pain and urgency. "I can still fight. I can create a distraction, you can get away."