What One Thinks is Only A Monster...

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Razgul glanced up at the back of Eska's head in question.
He knew generally what he was talking about but nothing seemed bad...
Unless he was having second thoughts about letting him go?
The pup was really quiet after that, thinking...
That is until an arrow slid past him and pushed into the hunter's thigh.

Raz yelped as the horse was jerked.
He had to fight himself to not unfurl his wings and take off but he held on tight.
"Essa?!"
The boy could smell blood and it really was bothering him.
Why had someone hurt the man?? Surely the arrow had been meant for Raz.
 
The hunter was breathing heavily, using his breath to control the intense pain in his leg. He had to focus, where did the arrow come from. After putting finger to his lips looking back at Raz, he replayed the moments over in his mind, steadying his horse under him as he watched it play out in his head. Quickly he'd calculated the angle of where the arrow must have come from, but there was nothing there anymore. Who ever it was, was not an amateur.

There were several long minutes of quiet waiting, the only sounds were those of their breathing and a light rustle as the wind blew the leaves. Then he heard it, Se's screech alerting him to where she was being held captive. But just as suddenly as she sounded out the location, her noise stopped sudden and unnatural. Eska's heart sank, whoever this was, they were not going to live to see morning now. His eyes caught the movement from where Se had screeched, and his bow was up immediately. The arrow flew and a man in all black started to fall, grasping onto the branch before finally falling to the ground. He was alive, but badly wounded, because the hunter wanted to know what was going on.
 
The wolf pup was already off the horse by the time the bird screeched.
He was bounding towards the fallen human but paused when he didn't get back up.
However, he did push a sharply clawed paw against his chest to keep him down, then glanced back at Eska.

The man beneath him smelled like the fat human's place.
It was disgusting and nearly had the wolf retching up his dinner.
He just wanted the hunter to make a move and fight back so he could slash his throat open with his fangs.
 
Eska trotted over on the horse, stopping just off the side of the road as he stared down into the other man's face with disgust. "So you have become a hunter of men Barris. I didn't you'd stoop so low." The man on the ground spat at the horses hooves, most of it was blood, coughing out a reply, "And I did not think I would see the day where the Great Hunter took animals for pets instead of tools, or stole from the man he sold to."

Eska's lip snarled a bit, and silently he nodded to Raz, turning his back then on the man that a long time ago he'd called friend. The hunter found his way into the forest again, near the river once more and dismounted, favoring his good leg as he leaned against a nearby tree. The arrow was still stuck in his leg and it would have to come out, soon.
 
Raz noted the word 'friend' and stared back down at the man after the nod from Eska to kill.
He thought for a moment but then decided against it.
He was already wounded but not so much that he couldn't move.
So, Razgul lunged and bit the man's ankle, crushing all the bones there before trotting after Eska.

When he found the hunter the pup quickly bounded over to him and started licking at the wound.
He also bit the arrow in half to make it easier to pull out.
 
Eska hissed at the movement of the arrow when it was bit in half. He was half glad the head was barely poking out the other side, because it meant his horse would have nothing more than a scratch, if that. Taking a few deep breaths first, forcing them hard out his mouth. the hunter leaned against the tree to steady himself and then in one sudden movement pushed the half arrow down till the wood was flush with his leg. The action left him panting, he'd screamed out through gritted teeth in the process. Trying the breathing thing again, he still had to pull it now from the back, he wanted nothing more than to make the pain stop, but that was obviously not going to be possible right now.

His eyes met Raz's for a moment, using the pup's gaze to steel himself against the next wave of excruciating pain. Again, in one fluid motion, the man grabbed the arrow head at the back of his thigh and pulled out as straight and as fast as he could at that angle. This time it left him on the ground, barely able to catch his breath, the blood pouring from the hole in his leg at a decent pace.
 
The pup had shifted and was leaning over the hunter's waist, licking at the wound as quickly as possible.
Saliva was a decent clotting agent so the bleeding should stop quickly.
Sure the licking was probably not very comfortable but after a few moments it shouldn't be too bad.
Raz was holding his waist with one hand as his other held the upper leg, making sure the other male couldn't move away.
He knew it hurt but it would probably keep him from bleeding to death.
 
The help standing was appreciated but after a minute or so of letting the kid lick it, which was odd beyond all belief for Eska, he wanted to sit down. Pointing to the satchel on the saddle, "Help me get that little jar, remember it? The one used with you on your wounds." While the pup went looking for that, the hunter was ripping off the bottom of his own shirt, getting ready to make a bandage. The man knew a wound like this would take weeks to heal, if he were lucky. Hopefully it didn't leave him limping the rest of his life too.

Once his leg was bandaged, Eska had time to think about what had just happened. Se was gone now, an old acquaintance had tracked them under orders of the Fat Man. Where there was one, there'd be more, but now their travel time might be cut down. They would have maybe a day before someone passing on the road saw the body, if it were still there. But Barris not returning would mean failure, and if the Fat man really wanted his head, others would be sent. While he thought about it, he was saying his thoughts aloud, in hopes the pup would understand some of it at the very least.
 
Raz did as told and got the item quickly.
He remembered what it was and didn't need to search much for it.
Once the other man was taken care of in terms of injury he backed up and pawed at the ground, splaying out his wings.
He was trying to say that they should fly.
The ride wasn't nearly as bumpy as the horse and heck, if they got caught again his horse might be killed.
It was the safest route even though Eska probably hated the idea.

Hopefully he would figure it out soon though.
 
Yea, Eska totally understood and while he didn't like the idea, he had to agree it wouldn't be expected and wasn't going to leave as many tracks. Using the tree trunk, he forced himself to standing again, breathing still a bit heavy as the ointment was still just starting to work its magic. Carefully, and favoring the good leg, he hobbled over to the saddle, removing a few things into a bag he could easily carry on his back. Slowly after he removed the saddle and reigns.

Closing his eyes, the hunter placed his forehead to his horse's nose bridge, whispering softly to the creature in the language of the northern tribe people. When he opened his eyes again, they were a little moist but he was doing what had to be done. Turning the steed from him he slapped the rear flank hard and off the horse went into the woods, free now. In only a couple short hours, Eska had lost the two creatures that had been his sole companions for years. He'd trained them, raised them and now he was alone, with a pup who just a week ago would have eaten head face off just as soon as help him. The hunter's whole world was turned upside down today, it was rather humbling.
 
It was hard for the pup to not chase after the horse.
It was, after all, a very good source of meat in his eyes that was just running away.
Hell, it practically begged to be taken down.
However, he knew it was Eska's, free or not, and would not harm another of his friends.

Once the horse had vanished from sight the young wolf walked over to the hunter and carefully moved between his legs like the last two times, just much slower.
That gave the man time to adjust and balance instead of flip out.
As soon as the human was settled Razgul flexed his wings and started at a low trot.
He was taking the long way to getting off the ground but is was much easier and less jerky.
So, after about a minute of swift running and flapping they finally took off.

The night was very calm and the currents far above the forest were nice and warm....it was a great night to just enjoy flying.

(g2g vet)
 
The hunter was thankful for the chance to mount on the wolf's back slower this time. And the pup even took off slower, which caused the man to realize that maybe Raz wasn't as wild as he'd first thought. Carefully he kept his body close to the other's back, arms wrapped around the wolf's neck with his cheek pressed to the back of Raz's head. The fur was nice and soft, and after everything that happened tonight, it was soothing to Eska's heart to have his arms wrapped around a warm living creature.

For the first hour, the hunter worked on keeping himself calm, breathing steady in and out, his eyes still shut to the vision of the ground whisking past him miles below. But finally, after a while, he peeked, daring only to look forward at what was ahead or above them, not below. Because he was calmer, the man was able to actually see the beauty in flying. It was a totally new experience. Sure he'd flown with Se's vision, but his body had always been firmly planted to the earth. Now he got to experience closer to what Se actually felt while she cut through the air. The weightless feeling was certainly exhilarating and he didn't think there were words in the human language to describe this feeling he had.

Taking a deep breath, he took a quick glance down, pleased to see the wolf pup had managed to stay on course following the river. They would have two maybe three more nights of following it before they'd have a day of moving more west away from the water and to the village Raz used to hunt for his pack.
 
The days past bye swiftly as they slept during the day and flew at night.
Razgul hunted boar and deer, leaving the remaining meat in the area for the local wild life to finish off.
Awhile later they finally landed in the underbrush where his pack's dens were.
However...
The pup's ears perked, tail swishing eagerly as he looked and sniffed around.
But...where were the wolves?

Raz slowly slid Eska off his back and then bounded down a large den.
There was no one there...
The den had basically been abandoned and after inspecting all the others, they were the same.
He bounded out of the last one and went straight up to the hunter, whimpering and pawing at him in confusion.
Where had all of the wolves gone??
 
Eska didn't like the looks of how quiet it was. Even at night, when the pack would be most active, there wasn't even a pup coming to inspect what the noise was. His eyes searched around the area, he was still limping a little, but the leg was recovering fairly well otherwise. Another week and it would be back to normal or so. The hunter frowned as Raz came back to him, his suspicions only growing now.

"I can go get information, see if the village has been attacked lately or something. It's probably best that you not come, at least not in wolf form." Yea, he was totally giving Raz the option to join him as a human. The wings could be covered with a cloak, and he could say the boy was mute so no one tried starting a conversation with him. Either way, Eska had a sneaking suspicion the answer was in the village, and it wasn't going to be pretty. The only reason he'd invited the pup to join him was because when he found out if this theory was right, the man didn't want to have to be the one to tell the kid...
 
Razgul nodded and quickly shifted into his human form.
He grabbed Eska's wings and quickly tugged in towards the town.
The boy needed to know what happened to his pack! He'd been in charge of keeping them fed and safe and now they were gone!
Maybe they had just moved to avoid being hunted...that was completely logical, right?
Right?!?!
Geez, the kid was half-whimpering as he all-but pulled the human up to the gate.
 
The man sighed as he was pulled off to the village, he was still limping and forced the pup to slow down, reminding him on their way that Raz should not try talking and leave things up to him.

The second they got to the gates, one of the guards recognized him, and shouted excitedly to let them in. As the two entered there was much cheering and when the hunter finally was able to ask one of the guards why they were so excited he got this response, "Sir, you were like a blessing to our village. We used to live in fear of being attacked every night. Now we do not fear when the sun goes down. When you took down that winged monstrosity, we were able to rid our area of the rest of the foul beasts and make our home safe once again!"

Immediately, Eska grabbed for Raz's hand and would do whatever he could to stop the boy from making a scene right there while they were out numbered. He was seriously hoping the pup didn't understand most of what the guard had said to him.
 
Eska was partially in tuned with what Razgul understood.
He did, however, pick up the word 'rid' and 'winged' especially because he'd heard them used several times in terms of getting rid of his kind.
The boy knew he was supposed to remain quiet but he couldn't just stand there in confusion.
Though it hurt to speak the question it had to be asked in a way he could understand the reply.
So, with a hesitant breath he spoke:
"Wolf's dead?"

It definitely burned saying those words but now Raz was listening intently, trying to focus on what the guard says in response.
 
The guard smiled cheerfully, as if it were Christmas morning as he answered, "Yes, all the wolves are dead down to the very last pup, thanks to this man right here." And he clapped Eska on the back, who nodded politely, though was watching Raz's expression for the reaction. He thanked the guard quickly for the information and did his best to pull the boy away and hopefully back through the gates. With his leg still injured, he'd not be able to help the pup if he went crazy and was shot at, and in anger the boy wouldn't be as careful as he normally might have been.
 
One could see the denial on the boy's face as he tried to register what had actually been said.
His eyes had slowly dropped to the ground, staring blankly at the dirt while Eska tried to drag him off.
As they exited the city Razgul finally snapped.
He didn't shift but he snarl loudly and shove Eska into the dirt.
The kid stood over him, contemplating killing the hunter...but one thing about the wolves was that they didn't hold grudges to the point of killing another.
Sure males fought for territory but they were almost never fatal and never over grudging.
So, holding back as much as he could he kicked dirt onto the man and then bolted for the forest.
He'd go to his own den and curl up way at the bottom in the darkness.
If the man came there was no guarantee he'd let the hunter live again.
 
Thankfully the scene was directed entirely at himself, and done outside the gates...yay for not having a fight he couldn't win. With his leg still healing, it didn't take much for Raz to unbalance the hunter to get him to the ground. Oddly enough, the man didn't fight back, didn't even go for the knives at his belt. He completely understood how the pup was feeling, and knew that he was himself mostly to blame for Raz no longer having a family. After the wolf disappeared into the dark woods, Eska lay there still on the ground, the dirt kicked on him still, for another good ten minutes. Finally with a long sigh he managed to get himself standing again.

It took nearly an hour and a half for the hunter to track Raz back to the den and actually manage to make his way, hobbling along. Several times he had to stop, resting against a tree for a moment or two before continuing. When he made it, and saw the pup just curled up on the ground, his heart sank. Carefully he spoke up, "There's nothing I can do to change what happened, and maybe you don't even understand me, but I'm sorry."
 
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