34 - Finn


    We were tangled in a chaotic mess of fur and snapping jaws. The foul odor of this rogue was so overwhelming it almost made me gag, but I refused to relent, sinking my teeth into him repeatedly. Although he moved quickly, his attacks were reckless and uncoordinated. His ws swiped wildly but never found their target because he was fueled by anger, not precision. My wolf pulled back, then lunged sideways, spinning around to mp onto his nk. He tore into the muscle, and we were rewarded with a desperate howl as the rogue hit the ground, attempting to hobble away. My wolf wasn''t about to let that happen. He leapt onto the man''s back, teeth sinking into his throat again and again until the rogue finally copsed, motionless.


    Once my wolf detected the cessation of the pulse in the man''s neck, he released him, dropping the body to the earth. We immediately resumed our hunt for our mate. Around me, the sounds of battle echoed growls, snarls, and the sh of ws. This group wasn''t foolish, but their n remained unclear. They hadn''t broken through our defenses to prate deeper into Dark Moon territory. There were no demands, no threats, and no clear objective I could discern. Yet, despite the confusion, my instincts pulled me steadily toward Greta.


    Suddenly, two grey wolves darted out from the shadows toward me. They looked barely past adolescence but carried no hint of hesitation. Instead, they radiated fury, as if driven by a burning vendetta. I kept them in my sight, watching as they circled, trying to intimidate me. Their reckless bravado gave me a moment''s respite from my previous skirmish. "Idiots," I thought grimly.


    I could hear another pair lurking in the brush to my left. Like the first two, they were poorly trained. If this was truly Janelle''s group, what was she thinking? Theirck of discipline was a death sentence for all of us. When Sammy and I were part of her rogue pack, training was rigorous. Not as strict as Dark Moon''s, but enough to keep us coordinated and alive in battle.


    The first wolf lunged, ws like razor des shing through the air. He missed, but his attack pushed me dangerously close to his partner. She sprang onto my back. Instead of resisting, I let her momentum carry us to the ground, rolling toward herpanion. She hadn''t expected the sudden drop, and her paws lost their grip. Ipleted the roll and swiped at her underbelly with my ws, tearing through exposed flesh. A sharp huff escaped her as the other two wolves rushed to join the fight.


    I quickly assessed the situation and pivoted as one wolf leapt into the air and the other darted toward my back nk. The airborne wolf didn''tnd on me directly but managed to rake my muzzle with his hind ws. I was lucky to avoid more serious injury to my legs.


    Now, all four wolves were on me—a whirlwind of ws, teeth, and thrashing tails. Thergest wolf attacked again, this time seeding in knocking me to the ground. A searing, blinding pain erupted in my side as his teeth sank in. The agony forced my body to buck violently, dislodging him. But before I could recover, the bigger wolf lunged once more. A wave of nausea and dread crashed over me.


    Yet, fear didn''t take hold. Something was wrong with Greta. She was terrified— terrified of only one thing. My mind shifted into autopilot as adrenaline surged through me. I had to reach her. These wolves had to be stopped. My consciousness receded to the backseat; my wolf took full control, driven by the same desperate need to protect Greta.


    We charged at the first two smaller wolves, tearing the throat out of one and hurling his lifeless body into the other. It was a swift, brutal dance of teeth and ws. There was no time to restrain them-only to end this quickly and move on to her. Capturing was irrelevant when her safety was at stake.


    The remaining two wolves sensed the sudden shift in my ferocity. The smaller of the two retreated slowly, but there was no escaping death this time. He would never again threaten our pack or any other. My wolf pounced, pinning him to the ground. The wolf turned his head submissively, silently begging for mercy. But we don''t need warriors who crumble at the first sign of defeat. We dispatched him swiftly and turned our attention to the female.


    Shey sprawled over the male she hade with, likely his mate. She made no effort to defend herself anymore. I ignored her and fixed my gaze on the biggest wolf, who had been watching my every move with cold calction.