<span style="font-family:Philosopher">Avi didn’t dare look away from the wolves. They were massive and deadly creatures, their bodies genetically engineered to maul, bite, and kill creatures much bigger than themselves. A sense of dread ran up and down the mercenary's spine as the beasts closed in on him. They were almost as long as he was tall, their eyes peering into him with the intensity of any apex predator: sharp, piercing, ready to close in for the kill. Avi's body tensed up, fear choking him until he felt like he couldn't breathe. If he so much as blinked, he’d be dead. Even after arrows whizzed by and buried themselves into some of the beasts’ hides, he didn’t look away. <br/>
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Avi’s breath was quick and shallow, his heart slamming in his </span><span style="font-family:font1522365474">rib cage</span><span style="font-family:Philosopher">. The remainder of the wolves were closing in on him, albeit lower in numbers. Their eyes were different than before. They were cautious in their movements, simply watching him, waiting for an opportunity to pounce. He let out a low growl, forcing his legs to stop shaking. Every fiber in his body screamed at him to slay the beasts. It was something primal, a natural state of mind that put survival over logic. Yet, the elf said otherwise, utterly contradicting everything he felt was right. He clenched the hilt of his blade until his knuckles turned white. “</span><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#b30000"><span style="font-family:Philosopher">Are you insane</span></span><span style="font-family:Philosopher">?!” He snapped at Naya, unaware of her location. Knowing her race’s inherent nature, she was probably high up in some tree, safe in the confines that the wolves could not get her. Avi cursed, waving his blade whenever one of the beasts took a step forward. <br/>
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Putting out the fire would be suicide. Everything that came out of the elf’s mouth sounded absurd and against everything he knew. Human eyes weren’t adapted to the night. Direwolves, however, thrived in the shadows, hunted from them. Naturally, the act of extinguishing his only source of light would spell out his demise. He would be defenseless in the dark, nothing more than a bag of flesh for the wolves to consume. Avi dared a look at the canopy, his eyes searching for the elf. Movement caught his eye, but it was not from above. One of the wolves lunged at him, snarling as its jaw opened, revealing two sets of bone crushing, flesh ripping teeth. Avi reeled back, ready to wrestle the beast before two arrows planted themselves into its body -- one in its rear, the other lodged in its neck. The wolf whimpered, making a sound halfway between a growl and a yelp before going still. <br/>
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Avi took a steadying breath, calming his nerves before taking action. If the elf wanted him dead, she would’ve stayed in her hiding spot and let the wolves tear him apart while she watched. The fact that she shot at the beasts told him that in the <i>least</i>, she wanted him to stay alive. Another wolf pounced, but this time, he was ready. Avi brought his sword up and slashed across the underside of its belly, red liquid gushing from where he cut as the wolf crashed into the ground. He glanced at the fire, and then back to the animals. He hesitated for a moment before kicking gravel onto the fire until it was no more than a smoldering pile of embers that smoked into the night sky. Slowly, with his sword still out, Avi took a few steps back until his heels touched the bank of the pond. The wolves watched him intently, low growls emerging from their throats. Surprisingly, they did not advance. The killing intent that once burned in their eyes simmered, their bodies turning and moving back into the forest.<br/>
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After they were all gone, Avi exhaled, falling back onto his butt. It was all so absurd. The elf, the wolves, those monsters. His brain couldn’t make sense of the last couple hours, almost shattering into a million pieces in the face of the unknown. A dull giggle escaped from his throat. He tilted his head back, his smile cracking wider as his giggle crescendoed into a maniacal laugh. He couldn’t stop his diaphragm from convulsing as he projected his voice to the night sky. This went on for a few moments before he finally calmed down, his body winding down from its adrenaline rush. He sighed, burying his face in his palms as the sounds of the night filled the air once more.<br/>
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“...<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#b30000">Thank you</span>, <span class="fixed-color" style="color:#b30000">Naya</span>.” </span>