I really should have run.
It was easily three, four, five times my height, and probably the same in weight. Its eyes were wild, one glazed over, a nasty, gnarled scar trailing through it, through its nose, down through its lip.
I hoped that it hurt.
It roared as it charged, and I bellowed back just as fierce, John's gun firing once, twice, and then a funny clicking noise, and he began to curse a blue streak behind me, and it said a lot that Jack wasn't gasping "Father!" as the man tried to fix the gun.
The bear was getting closer, and John wouldn't be able to fix the gun in time. I could see the whites of its eyes and, so, I lurched forward, flattening my ears back to protect them from lashing claws and snapping teeth, attempting to startle it, remembering the one time I'd spooked off a grizzly by lunging forward and barking, but this bear wasn't falling forward, kept running and, so, without a second thought, I leaped, setting my teeth into one of those gnarled ears, going limp and letting my dead weight pull the beast's head along.
It was getting far too close to John and Jack for my comfort.
It yelled its rage, and I let go of its ear, hitting the ground hard, knocking the breath out of me. I rolled and clambered to my paws, lowering my head to protect my throat and arching my back, snarling as loud as I could. "Eyes on me, asshole!" The bear reared up and roared angrily as I spat out the mouthful of furry flesh, dropping down and charging, impossibly fast.
I jumped out of the way, and I wasn't old anymore. I was as young as I'd been the day I'd been brought here, only a few years old and fit to take on the world. Nothing could have stopped me, could have kept me from fighting this bear. It twisted, and its claws brushed passed my nose. I lunged, setting my teeth into those massive paws of its, jaw creaking as I strained to fit my mouth around it.
John was cursing loudly as it reared up and twisted, my paws leaving the ground, and slammed me into the cliff face. I squealed, and let go, stars bursting from my eyes as I slid to the ground. It lunged towards me, yellowed teeth opening wide as it prepared to take my face off, only to jolt back as a bullet shattered the stone next to its head. It wasn't stunned for long, but it was long enough for me to get my paws beneath me and leap up, setting my teeth into the side of its neck, trying for its jugular, only to get a mouthful of loose fur and flesh.
The bear twisted, and reared up, and reached for me. Claws tore across my back, and I let go before it could really get a grip on me, scrabbling away, but a harsh blow to my shoulder sent a searing pain racing through me, blood splattering through the air, knocking me off my feet and sending me tumbling across the rock.
The beast was on me before I could move, setting its teeth into my hip hard enough that I heard more than felt the bone shatter and beginning to thrash me around, and there was an awful shrieking sound that I wanted to yell at to shut up! but oh, wait, that was me.
A gun was firing, but the bear was unbothered, more focused on me than the bullets that flew wide, John struggling to hit the beast that was moving so much, scared of striking me by mistake. It finally let go when a bullet struck it on the shoulder, dropping me unceremoniously to the ground and turning to roar at John and Jack, and I laid, still, for a long moment as I panted for breath, whining. Oh, oh, that hurt. My aching everything.
...and, of course, the bear was charging at them. Because of course it was.
I yelped as I staggered to my paws, stumbling, and barreled forward, blood spraying as I barked to draw its attention. It worked, thankfully, the beast of a bear whirling about to face me, charging to meet me midway. It snapped at me, but I managed to twist out of the way, rearing up on my hind legs and sinking my teeth into the fur of its head, teeth scraping painfully against bone. The bear made a horrible screaming sound, and reared up until my paws left the ground, thrashing around, but I didn't let go, only clung on until the flesh I clung onto tore free, bearing muscle and bone and dumping me to the ground.
The bear staggered, rumbling as it brought a paw up to rub at its face, and I took advantage of its distraction to leap up and set my teeth into its forearm on its blind side, nearly releasing my grip as a bullet flew passed my head. Blood poured down my throat, its fur threatening to choke me as it swung me around, and then I realized my mistake as it sank its teeth in, pain exploding in my shoulder. I clenched my jaw, tighter and tighter, until my teeth scraped against bone, and its jaw clenched, tighter and tighter, until finally I had to let go, vision graying with the pain.
A bullet struck the bear in the shoulder, and it grunted, letting go of me. I staggered away, adrenaline pumping through my veins, and I darted in again to snap at its heel, lunging in and biting, trying to snap the tendon of its ankle, and then the bear was whirling, a paw slamming into my stomach, pain was burning white hot, a gun fired, oddly tinny-