Chapter 99: [99] The Wolf That Smiles Back
"That... is a Vorthak."
The Vorthak stood fifteen feet away, its crystalline fur refracting the dying light into prismatic patterns that hurt to look at directly. Each breath from its massive lungs created clouds of vapor that crystallized and fell to the ground like snow. Xavier had seen wolves before—even fought one during a contract in the Carpathians—but this thing belonged to an entirely different category of predator.
"Gunnar," Xavier said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Do you have a knife or something I can use?"
Fortuna, I know we haven’t seen eye to eye, but please... I won’t call you a fraud again if the answer is yes.
The trader’s knuckles were white around his crossbow grip. "In the wagon. Under the driver’s seat."
Well... that’s half a point to you Fortuna.
"Of course it is." Xavier fought the urge to run his hand through his hair, knowing any sudden movement might trigger an attack.
The Vorthak’s massive head tilted, studying them with an intelligence that made Xavier’s skin crawl. This wasn’t some mindless predator—it was evaluating, calculating. Its nostrils flared, sampling their scents, and Xavier could practically see it categorizing each of them as threat, prey, or irrelevant.
Pink light began to emanate from beneath his skin, starting as a faint glow around his hands and spreading up his arms. The Input Buffer system was coming online, responding to the threat. Xavier felt the strange mechanical pulse of his Essentia awakening, that gamified sensation that had become second nature over the past weeks at Catalyst.