Hidden Essence Book I - The Bloody Moon

Chapter XXV

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My eyes have been closed for too long. Am I dead already? It feels like I can still open them though. I slowly peek through my lids and realize that I am still where I was a few seconds ago. The forest. What? Where is... My thoughts are interrupted by the loud growling of wolves near me. I let my head fall to the side that the sound is coming from and my eyes widen at the sight. "What..." My voice is the weakest it has ever been. Also my body has started to burn again. The peace is gone. The Alpha is tackling another wolf that I don't really recognize. It's too dark. The brown fur looks like it might be Becka. She recovered? The Alpha wolf bites at the brown wolf, but he misses as the brown wolf kicks him away with his feet. The Alpha lands on his back a few feet further and the brown wolf stands up in a magestic, powerful way. This wolf is too large to be Becka. Who is this? My vision blurs again because of the tears but I try and blink them away as much as I can. I'm crying because my body is legitimately aching. It's like someone is stabbing me over and over again all over my body. The brutal fight that is happening in front of me is very hectic as both wolves fall and stand back to hit each other and fall again. It looks like they want to fight and hurt each other, but they don't want to kill each other. I think the pain is making me halucinate or something. I need to get myself up though. I survived this, one of my pack members came to my rescue and I would love to meet that awfully strong wolf, but for that I need to secure myself somewhere safe.

My first movement occurs at my fingers. I try my best to stretch and curl my them and it works. Step by step I then try to lift my arms from the ground. This is a bit more tricky. Arms are heavier than they look and cuts hurt more than they should. After a ton of effort and groaning I manage to lift one arm up and I try to push myself up somehow with only that one pathetic arm. I roll on one side and of course that is the side with my injured arm, so I hiss in pain when I do so. What an idiot. The pain fuels my energy though and I somehow bounce up from the ground onto my hands and knees, like the dogs that I'm supposed to fight. The irony. I look up to the nearest tree and clamp one of my hands onto it to pull myself up. I must look like a very ill and old lady, but at this point I don't care. All I care about is saving myself. Life gave me the opportunity to stay alive and wise wolves told me that those opportunities are there to take. I get onto one foot and a little later the other one follows. What a glory, I can finally stand. My legs are a bit wobbly though. I might just stay against this tree for a while instead of risking to fall onto my butt again. I lean my back against it carefully, because I know I have a very painful wound there. I take a look at the fighting wolves. The brown one is losing, which is quite normal. He's fighting an Alpha, what exactly did he expect when he went into that fight? He is doing pretty well though. He dodges practically all the hits the Alpha gives him, even though he can't land one on the Alpha either. The Alpha shows a different side of him. A more reserved side. He's not entirely giving himself in this fight. He holds himself back, but why? Is this a wolf thing? Strange. The brown one growls deeply and when the Alpha does the same the brown one loses it for some reason. He starts swinging with his claws and he ends up launching himself towards the Alpha. The Alpha wolf didn't see that one coming as he stumbles back with the brown weight on top of him. He doesn't let him surprise him again as he immediately pushes the brown wolf off of him quite roughly and something in me cringes when the wolf slams into the closest tree behind him. The brown one. I recognize that feeling. That pull. I take a close look at the wolf, subconsciously removing myself from the tree and moving forward. "Chase?" My voice cracks and it makes him look up from where he's laying. His eyes are bloodred, the fright vibrates through my body as the unfamiliar color shines into my eyes. It's him. My legs are wobbling even more than before and threaten to make me fall onto my knees. It's not him, his eyes are not of that murderous color. He staggers to his feet as he whines silently and I tear my gaze away from him as the color becomes too much to handle for my senses. I want to cry, but at the same time I don't. I feel safe because he's here, but he's not here. It's so confusing. Wait. There was another wolf. I turn my gaze back to him and the Alpha. They're both staring at one another, exchanging challenging gazes. Another wolf appears out of nowhere and runs up to me at lightspeed, catching me off guard. I scream out, because that is the only thing I can do before he knocks me down with another cut, this time across my cheek. A flash pain strikes me and I groan as I drop onto the ground. If I hadn't turned my face to the other side, he would've probably ripped my eyes out! It feels like he left one of his claws in there to permanently sting me. The ground has become my biggest friend today. I start to cough a little roughly because of the lack of oxigen I assume and crawl a bit away from where I think he is. I'm shred and broken, but I know Chase is there and he is in danger. I won't leave him to his destiny, I can't. I don't feel another attack, but I do hear a lot of growling and fighting. I want to turn around and see what all of this noise is about, but my body has officially given up as I let my upper half drop into the mud and try and get some air into my lungs. Never thought breathing could be this hard to accomplish. My cut open cheek is buried into the mud and in all honesty it feels good, better than anything else right now. I hear a very sad whimper before a loud drop can be heard. Oh no.