Game On

Chapter Forty-Two: Pay Up

Mark eyed the wolf, his grip tightening on his sword that dripped with fresh blood. The white wolf unsettled him. It was far bigger than any wolf he'd ever seen, and it was hard to even see it in the falling sheets of snow. He hadn't smelled it or heard it approach, which terrified him. What level was it? He had not considered the level of the creatures here and now that oversight could have killed Sean. Skadi cradled Sean's body in her arms as if he was a child, telling him in a voice as soft as the winter breeze. "I'd put your blade away, Traveler. Ruttisdir doesn't trust you and he will continue to do so, unless you stop posing a threat to him." Mark hesitated to put his sword away. Keeping his eyes on the wolf, he asked her curiously. "Are you a player or an NPC?" Skadi's blue lips curled into an amused smile when she said almost to herself. "What an interesting question." Without waiting for him, she turned on her heels and began to walk away.

Every fiber of Mark's body tensed. He couldn't let her leave with Sean. Sheathing his blade, he quickly walked after her. Barely able to keep up with her long stride. Just before he caught up to her, he skidded to a stop as the large wolf moved in his peripheral vision. The beast appeared to grow FAR larger! Jerking his head to look at it, he watched in horror as it rose from all fours to strong powerful hind legs. The wolf towered over him at a size of at least seven feet. Its torso exposed to reveal muscles that would make a body builder envious. The wolf's thick black claws glinted in the dim light reflecting off the snow and his dark eyes glared down at him like a fierce predator. The wolf's long white tail flicked behind him before he shook the snow from his back and shoulders. Then with a snort, the wolf moved toward the cliff to collect the bodies of the griffins that they'd hunted. Mark's heart raced as he watched the large wolf move through the snow with barely a sound.

Unlike the young werewolf that he'd seen at the manor, this one was a beast of frightening presence. He wasn't even sure that any silver could bring down a beast that big. Behind him, Skadi's voice carried to him on the breeze as she told him casually. "Come, Traveler. It's not safe for your kind here. In Fenrir country." Mark forced himself to move, asking her curiously. "Fenrir? The world ending wolf?" Skadi slowed her pace to allow him to catch up, before telling him in a quiet tone of voice. "Yes. You are at the end of this realms' world here. The packs run heavy here. Bigger game. Richer meat." Mark shielded his eyes from the snowflakes that pelted his face as they walked, glancing up at Sean with worried eyes. Skadi held Sean close enough to her fur coat that he hoped he wasn't freezing to death, but upon seeing the droplets of blood that sprinkled the snow behind her, he blurted out. "He's injured. Where are we going? We should stop and-"

Skadi didn't answer him, her eyes were focused ahead. The sudden loud howl from behind him made him nearly jump out of his skin. The sound echoed over the flat landscape and twisted into a haunting call the farther it drifted from them. Glancing behind him, he took a shaky breath. When had Ruttisdir gotten so close to them? Each of his hands was dragging two legs that belonged to two separate griffins. When he stopped howling, his ears perked up to listen for something. Mark stayed close to Skadi, flinching as he heard another distant howl that drifted on the wind. As they walked the distant fog of falling snow cleared up enough that he could make out the forest ahead. Trees with no green. Just twisted dark branches laden heavily with snow until they appeared to be mere shadows. Upon approaching the woods, Mark's keen vampire senses caught the distinct smell of smoke and glinting eyes watching them from around the dark trunks of trees.

Faintly he heard snarling, but whenever he tried to find the maker of the sound, he saw nothing. Skadi walked calmly through the thick trees toward a bright bonfire that had been set in a massive open clearing. Nestled on the other side of the clearing was the abandoned inn they'd been looking for. Although., the name appeared to be a flat out lie. For around the large bonfire were at least fifty werewolves. Some females. Some pups. A good portion of them males like Ruttisdir. When they saw Skadi, they bowed their heads with soft whimpers, but even with heads bowed, they snarled as Mark passed by them. Only to fall silent as Ruttisdir moved by them. Peeking over his shoulder, he eyed Ruttisdir as he moved away to leave three of the griffins for the pack to tear into. Dragging the last toward the inn. He assumed Ruttisdir was the alpha. The apex of his kind because no male matched his great size.