Wake of the Dead | Three

Chapter Sixty | Jasper

Jasper had no time to move before a massive force of brown fur and pure muscle slammed into him. Well this isn't ideal. All of the breath had been knocked out of his lungs, his body battered as if he'd been hit by a freight train—he may as well have been. He rolled across the ground, unable to stop, even after digging his nails into the dirt to try and steady himself.

As soon as he managed to stand up, a massive paw slammed into his side. He flew back against the dirt wall, gasping for air. His vision blurred momentarily, the only thing he could make out was the bear's black, beady eyes and razor-sharp, ivory fangs. Huge paws that held claws at least an inch long raised up, a bellowing snarl reverberated through the gigantic animal's throat. Jasper forced his muscles to work, no matter how tired he was and ducked. Both of the bear's front paws slammed just where his head would have been.

Ducking under the animal's stomach, he scrambled to get as far away as possible, only for powerful teeth to grip the back of his shirt and swing him into the air. He went flying and hit the ground hard, fresh blood from where the fangs had grazed his flesh dripped onto the dirty soil. "Hey, bear!" Rixon yelled from the other side. The massive animal turned and let out a higher-pitched roar when a gunshot landed in its hind, one of Casimir's arrows in its shoulder hunch. Oh god no, you've just made it angry!

Before the bear could charge at Raven, Darren dragged the boy out of the way just in time to avoid snapping jaws. "You stupid meat slug, I'm the one you want!" Jasper yelled. Shit, oh no, oh God, why would you say that! He had to keep his friends safe. Rixon was too busy protecting Darren and Raven—the two least experienced fighters—to fire off another round. Casimir's bow wouldn't do much unless he got a lucky shot, that would be hard with the beast racing around constantly.

Jasper unsheathed his largest hunting knife, narrowing his eyes with a determined snarl. You've got ancestors who fought off tigers with pointy sticks, you can fight this thing...right? He gulped. Wrong. Jasper barely jumped back in time to avoid the massive animal's black claws from taking a chunk out of him. He gripped the knife handle tighter in his hand and grabbed onto the bear's snout, shoving its head aside and managing to stab it in the shoulder. As the bear lashed its head aside, Jasper was once again tossed like a rag doll, thankfully taking his knife with him.

The bear growled, stalking closer and closer by the second. I just need one good hit in. One. Then it'll back off. Just as his thoughts were processed and he staggered to his feet again, a ripping agony in the left side of his hip tore through his shirt and jeans, blood sprayed across the soil as he held back tears and clenched his teeth. The bear pinned him down, Jasper allowed a few pitiful whimpers to escape him as he pulled back his foot and slammed it into the bear's nose. Every single graze, every movement left ripples of torment traveling up his spine and neck.

The bear snarled and opened its jaws. Well, here goes nothing. Jasper gripped his knife and clawed at the beast's muzzle, slamming the blade into the roof of its mouth. The animal screamed—or what he imagined would be if it could—and pulled back away from him. He quickly yanked out the knife before it jogged a few paces away, its tongue lapping at the blood gathering around its jowls. It won't die from that. It'll just be painful. Remind it not to fuck with humans. But his heart sank when he heard a smaller series of grunts, two cubs poked their heads out from the nearby bushes. The mother bear quickly herded them away, after a single glance back at Jasper.

Oh...that's why. Yeah if my kid was in danger I'd be angry too. But damn, did she put up a good fight. Jasper brought it short, deep breaths to try and alleviate any agony he felt, his teeth clenched as the rest of the patrol rushed over to him. "How bad is it?" He groaned. Even just talking forced him to let out a sharp exhale, trying to hold back sobs. It was a burning pain, like getting stabbed, aching beneath the skin and radiating all through his flesh—but much, much worse than a single knife.