----


    "Lyra, bring him over here!" He was unconsciously starting to rely


    on her.


    He saw her facing danger, thrusting her spear fearlessly at the


    Brontocérax-a predator that men from his tribe wouldn''t dare


    provoke so recklessly.


    Something stirred in Drakkar''s chest as he watched the beautiful,


    fearless woman... something called admiration. And moreplex


    feelings began to bloom.


    "Drakkar, he''sing!" Lyra had no idea what he nned, but she


    threw herself to the side, and the huge beast charged forward


    blindly, not realizing it was heading straight for the tree.


    BOOOOM!


    ''The treetop shook violently, cracks spread across the trunk that


    bravely held its ground, and on top of the dazed beast, an untamed


    warrior jumped down.


    With a roar and a thick branch, Lyra saw her man leap between the


    armored tes, into the vulnerable neck area, and fiercely stab the


    large splinter of wood.


    ''The Brontocérax gave onest desperate struggle and a frenzied


    roar before copsingpletely dead onto the ground.


    "Drakkar!" Lyra rushed over to make sure he was okay.


    From the height of the beast''s broad back, against the sun, the


    powerful werewolf appeared, covered in blood, staring at her with


    a mix of fascination and respect.


    ----


    "We did it, Lyra, you and me, just us." Lyra smiled, tracing the


    beautiful curve of his sharp masculine lips.


    They stared at each other intensely, discovering one another


    through their eyes.


    "This is what I meant when I said I could teach you. I''ve never


    underestimated you, Drakkar. To me, you''re the most amazing


    ''warrior that ever lived." She finally said what she truly felt in her


    heart.


    Drakkar stayed quiet, regretting his moment of weakness.


    He never


    really wanted to hand her over to another male.


    Something inside his chest roared to break free, to snap its chains,


    to im what was his.


    But then a sharp pain tore through him, one that few men could


    endure, reminding him of his curse and all his misery.


    Suddenly, something shifted in the air. Drakkar stood tall,


    watching the birds flying away in a hurry.


    "We have to leave. The blood will attract even bigger predators."


    He jumped down, grabbed Lyra''s hand, and pulled her away.


    "But the meat?"


    "It''s too tough and hard to get out from under the Brontocérax''s


    armor," he exined, rushing her back to a safe zone.


    "That''s a shame, it could''ve made an amazing shield..." Lyra


    thought out loud.


    ----


    Alight flickered in Drakkar''s mind. No one had ever thought of


    that, because hunting that predator was nearly impossible.


    "This way," he said, changing direction to circle back to their


    the beast had guarded so fiercely.


    "''That''s his cave," he told her, pointing at a dark opening at the


    base of the mountain.


    "T once came here to gather herbs and hurt him, so he remembered


    my scent and attacked me today in the forest," he told Lyra, both


    of them spying from behind a tree.


    "Let''s explore."