Ethan's mind raced in ti with his feet, desperately searching for answers. This was no dream, no delusion—everything felt too vivid, too real. The cold bite of the wind, the strain in his muscles, the sheer terror gnawing at his insides. But as real as it all felt, Ethan had no idea how to fight off a level 5 anything. He could barely keep his thoughts straight, let alone fight a creature twice his size, a freaking wolf.
The forest thickened, branches clawing at him as he ran. His lungs burned, and his legs scread for him to stop, but he couldn't—he wouldn't. He chanced a glance over his shoulder, the wolf's snarling face not far behind, its fangs gleaming as it closed the distance.
The next second, pain ripped across his body as the wolf's claws grazed his back, tearing through his clothes and leaving a burning line of agony in its wake. Ethan cried out, stumbling forward but refusing to fall. Every instinct scread for him to keep moving, even as his vision blurred with the intensity of the pain.
His legs felt like they were made of lead, every step heavier than the last, but he couldn't stop—wouldn't stop. The wolf was on him, close enough that he could feel its hot breath on the back of his neck, hear the snarl of triumph in its throat. His mind spiraled, fear gripping him tighter than the pain.
He barely took a few more steps when once again a vicious snarl sent a shiver down his spine. Another blow raked across his back, nearly sending him sprawling to the ground. Ethan gasped in pain, stumbling as blood soaked through his torn clothes. The second attack was even more brutal than the first.
His vision blurred, a mix of panic and exhaustion threatening to overwhelm him, but sheer survival instinct kept him on his feet. The direwolf was relentless, its hot breath now on his heels, every snarl a reminder that death was inches away. He was bleeding profusely and he felt faint, his strength draining by the second.
He couldn't keep this up for long. Any second death was going to arrive.
Ethan did not know why he was still alive but the prospect of dying so soon just as he found himself in this new world filled him with a desperate surge of defiance.
"I can't die here... not like this!" Ethan gritted through clenched teeth.
And then it struck him. Why was he even alive still? The wolf was definitely faster than him and clearly stronger than him, shouldn't he have been dead by now?
His vision wavered, but Ethan forced himself to focus. He took a deep, ragged breath and looked ahead, scanning the darkening forest as best as his blurred sight allowed. Was the wolf… playing with him?
The wolf behind him snarled again, and this ti before it could attack him one more ti, Ethan let out a preumptive shriek of agony and acted as if he was going to collapse, only to resu with his pathetic attempt at escape at the last second.
Ethan's plan was desperate, instinctive, and half-ford—but it worked. The damn thing did not attack him, let him run so more which was more like fast limping at this point.
This was not going to work. Even if the damned wolf simply toyed with him, how long could it possibly do that? He needed to find so other way to live. He needed sothing. A miracle.
And then he saw it.
A small burrow.
Ethan's heart lurched in his chest as his eyes locked onto the small hole nestled between the roots of a gnarled tree just a few feet ahead. It was small, barely noticeable in the dimming light of the forest, but it might be his only chance. His pulse pounded in his ears, his mind racing through the possibilities.
It wasn't much—a narrow opening in the earth—but it was sothing. The wolf was too large to follow him into such a cramped space. Maybe, just maybe, if he could reach it, he could buy himself enough ti to figure out a plan, provided the damn thing didn't turn into an excavator or sothing and claw its way in right behind him.
It was not perfect but it was the only plan he had.
"Please… let this work," Ethan muttered through labored breaths, his legs trembling beneath him. Every step felt like a monuntal effort now, his body screaming for rest, but he couldn't stop. Not yet.
The wolf's snarls grew louder behind him, and Ethan didn't dare glance back this ti. He focused all his remaining energy on that burrow, that small glimr of hope. With a final, desperate push, he threw himself forward, half-falling, half-diving toward the opening in the earth.
His body crashed into the dirt, sharp rocks scraping against his arms and chest, but he didn't care. He scrambled on his hands and knees, forcing himself into the tight space, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
The earthy sll of the burrow filled his nostrils as he clawed his way deeper, dirt caking his torn clothes and bloodied skin like his life depended on it.
The wolf skidded to a halt just outside the entrance. It then slowly lowered its head and peered into the darkness with its amber eyes. Its lips slowly curled upwards into what could only be called a smile. A nasty one.
This was not over.
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