Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Cinder's POV:
Attack
It's been a full day since I rescued that girl and so far there's been… absolutely no change. No excited mutterings, no sparks of hope glowing in people's eyes, no rumours. The werewolves have just continued with their sad, suffering lives.
But as the saying goes: if at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
So that's how I find myself wandering through the town yet again, looking for another "damsel in distress".
I sigh and glance around the corner of a building. There are a few townsfolk hurrying down the street, but other than that nothing. I'm not sure whether to be disappointed, or relieved. On the one hand, no-one is getting violently abused. On the other hand, I can't do what I came here to do, and that's play hero.
With a huff I turn away from the street. Maybe if I go another route, I'll have more luck.
"You're disguise sucks."
I jump at the sudden statement, but before I can turn to confront the speaker, I'm suddenly hit on the back of the head. I grunt with pain and shake my head to clear it of the fuzziness that's already settled over my thoughts. Whoever this guy is, they hit hard.
I whirl around, already reaching for the other person's mind, but instead of facing a human, I'm staring into the eyes of a giant blond wolf.
That's going to make my life much harder.
The wolf crouches down, and I can see the muscles tensing underneath its pale fur. That is the only warning I receive before it lunges forward, teeth flashing towards my throat. I duck out of the way and curl my fingers into fists, for all the good they'll do. This thing is way faster, stronger and a heck of a lot more durable than I am. Plus, it's received actual combat training. The only training I've ever gotten was from being dragged into watching those dumb martial arts movies with Thorne, and I'm pretty sure that flashy, twirly, inexplicably-immune-to-gravity type of fighting isn't going to do me much good here.
But no way am I just going to lay down and die. So I guess that leaves good-old-fashioned kicks and punches.
The wolf pounces again, and again I sidestep it, but it suddenly lashes out with its claws and draws deep gashes into my thigh. I grit my teeth against a cry of pain, unwilling to give this beast the satisfaction of knowing how much it hurt me, and punch it right in the nose.
I've never punched anyone before. It hurts more than I thought it would. My knuckles are aching, and my fingers are sore from the hard impact. I can see why boxers wear those cushioned gloves. I can only hope it hurt the wolf more than it hurt me.
Judging from the blood dribbling from its nose and the really angry way its growling at me right now, I'd say the chances of that are pretty good.
"I don't suppose we're fighting for first blood or something, are we?" I joke weakly.
The wolf growls louder and, faster than I can blink, pounces again.
I don't have time to dodge it. It's practically a bullet as it flies through the air, slamming into my chest with the force of a battering ram. It knocks me to the ground, crushing me beneath its weight. It opens its jaws and starts towards my neck.
There's a loud bang. The wolf howls in pain and stumbles off me. I sit up, gasping for air and glance over to it, wondering what could have made it move like that.
The answer is obvious.
Blood is steadily seeping from a hole in its shoulder, staining its blond fur and ugly shade of pink.
"Was wondering when I'd finally get to use this."
I whirl around at the familiar voice and see Scarlet, stepping out of the shadows of a nearby building, her gun steadily trained on the wolf's head.
"How long have you been there?" I demand.
She rolls her eyes. "Oh please, did you seriously think we were going to just let you wander around by yourself? No offence Cinder, but you're basically a magnet for trouble. And I don't know if you've noticed, but you're kinda pivotal to this whole revolution thing so we can't exactly afford to let anything happen to you."
"So, I'm not allowed to think that you following me all day isn't creepy?" I ask.
Scarlet sucks in a breath between her teeth. "When you put it like that, it sounds weird. Think of me as, like, your secret bodyguard. And in case you've forgotten, if I hadn't been following you, you'd be dead right now, so I think a little thanks is in order."
A low snarl interrupts our argument. The wolf is staring at us, studying us, and I get the distinct impression that it's trying to figure out who to kill first: the person it's supposed to kill, or the threat to its survival.
I narrow my eyes. Like I'm going to give it the time to make the choice.
I dart forward, reaching for its animal mind as I do. It's hard. My gift only works on human minds, and in this form, it's almost completely immune to my powers.
The "almost" is what I'm counting on.
I command the wolf to stay still, to not move a single inch. It half-works. The wolf moves, but very slowly, unsurely.
Not breaking my stride, I reach down to the ground, snatching up a rock from the path, and bring it down hard on the wolf's skull.
It totters on its feet, swaying this way and that as it struggles to maintain its balance even as its mind slips into unconsciousness. Finally, its eyes slide shut, and it falls to the ground.
Scarlet exhales sharply. "Well. That was exciting. What do you want to do with this guy?"
I narrow my eyes at the unconscious wolf. Something about it seems… familiar. Something about the sheen of its white-blond fur, or the sharpness of its ice blue eyes, even the small snippet I heard of its voice.
I think I might have an idea on who this is. But I need to be sure. And if I'm right… I might just have a new ally.
"We're taking him with us."
A/N: Jacin attacks!
Please review!
