Darkest night

Chapter Two

The sun was high in the sky, warming the ground, the rays drifted down through the branches casting shadows on the white snow. All was still in this grove of trees, not an animal moved, the air smelled fresh and clean, the snow having washed away any traces of activity. A blanket of undisturbed snow covered the land below. Barrek stirred in his hollow of a tree.Yawning he rubbed his face. His eyes fuzzy with sleep glanced out at the forest. He shot up. Groaning he tried to stand. Slower this time, his legs were weak, pain flowed freely through his veins. Looking up he saw that he had slept until mid day. The sun hung high in the middle of the sky, its warmth beginning to melt the ice that coated the trees. Remembering his injured shoulder he decided to test it. The slightest roll. Something so little could not do much harm. Barrek placed his hand on his shoulder. He cried out in pain. He stopped. He stood their breathing heavily. Pain clouded his vision. He closed his eyes. After a moment he opened them again. He glanced at his shoulder. He winced when he saw it. Dried blood and dirt was caked in his wound, he would need to clean it and wrap it up, he hoped that it would not become infected. He stood there, doing a mental check of his body, he breathed slowly. He took a step, nothing other than a sore ankle from his running blindly through the dark. A bird sounded the alarm and took off from its perch, something dangerous was about, he needed to get a move on. Barrek felt the cold snow soaking into his socked feet. He sat back and pulled his boots back on. He smacked his lips, he needed water.

Nothing moved as Barrek limped through the trees, he needed to find fresh water to drink, he was in desperate need of water, he realized that the last time any type of nourishment had passed his lips was over a day ago. He glanced up at a low branch, his eyes glistened as he gazed at the snow that clung to it. His mouth felt dry. He snatched at the snow, pulling bits of it into his mouth. He felt better, he still needed to find stream, he would never survive this journey without it. Barrek tilted his ear, listening for the sound of water, he could not just wander around blindly and hope to find what he needed. Nothing for a moment. He focused all his senses- closing his eyes. His eyes shot open. He heard the faint sound of flowing water, he followed his ears. His mouth salivated at the thought that he would get to taste the refreshing flow of the water soon. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, freezing he looked about for whatever caused him to feel in danger. His head moved from side to side. Nothing. A small bird was flying over head. It was nothing to fear, still something was in the air that worried him. Barrek picked up the pace, he did not want to be out in the middle of nowhere if there was something dangerous around. Looking about himself he walked quickly, if anything was out there he would be ready for them, he kept his hand on the sword on his hip. The sound of the water grew louder, he was almost there, grimacing he tried to run, his ankle screaming out with each step, his heart thudded in tune with the pulsing of his injures. Roaring from the rushing of water blocked most sounds from his ears, breaking through the tree's Barrek saw a river flowing in front of him, he sighed in relief that nothing was amuck, dropping to his knees he was about to draw the water to his lips.

A low growl emitted from above. His hand stop halfway to his mouth. His heartbeat growing in speed. He looked up. There on the opposite bank sat a mountainous wolf. Frozen in place Barrek watched the animal. He scanned the surrounding area for its pack. Nowhere to be seen. It was a dark brown and grey, blood leaked from its side, it's pack must have left it alone to die. The wolf's tail twitched, it had finally noticed him, it crouched low readying itself to leap.. Barrek staying close to the ground backed up, he did not want to get in a fight with a hungry animal. Suddenly it jumped over the narrow river, landing about twenty feet away from him. His heart beat in his ears. Slowly it crept closer to him, backing Barrek into a tight cluster of trees. He had no other option but to fight. He lowered his hand to his stolen dagger he had stuck in his boot. Foam seeped from the wolf's mouth, a dangerous hunger beating on him through its eyes. It watched him, its red eyes piercing his own. It was waiting for its moment to attack. They both stood there, unmoving, sizing each other up, waiting for the other to move. Suddenly the wolf raced towards him! Barrek dove to the side at the same time he pulled his dagger free. The wolf grabbed a hold of his leg. Searing pain sucked the air out of him. Barrek thrust his dagger deep into its wound. The wolf howled and released his leg. Again Barrek dug his dagger in. The wolf lay there whining in pain. Its sad eyes looking back at him. Barrek's heart wilted some, he felt pity on the animal. He knelt down beside it, the wolf was breathing weakly.