- The Invasion -
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A few hours had passed, and as they talked, a thunderous sound echoed near the village, as if the ground itself trembled beneath the impact. The noise resembled gunfire, tearing through the stillness of the night.
Both stood up quickly, alert.
— It's a hunters' attack — said the Alpha, his expression turning grim.
— How do you know that? — Samuel asked.
— Those sounds... they're from the weapons of those hunters — the Alpha replied, his gaze fixed on the horizon.
Without wasting a second, some humans mounted their horses and rushed toward the noise. Samuel watched as the Alpha vanished in an instant, without saying a word. "He disappeared? I need to do something. I'm not just going to stand here," he thought.
Samuel hurried into his cabin and grabbed his backpack. As he stepped outside, he saw Alaric running toward him, panting heavily.
— They're attacking the Moon pack! We need to go, now! We have to save the people there. Come on! — Alaric shouted, desperation in his voice.
Without hesitation, Samuel joined him. Mounted on their horses, they rode toward the pack. As they approached, the scene grew more chaotic. Wolves fled in panic, while many lay fallen — victims of a brutal slaughter. The air reeked of blood and smoke, screams of pain and despair echoing all around.
— We can't go any further with the horses. We have to run, now! — Alaric yelled, his voice cutting through the chaos.
In the middle of the confusion, something bounced on the ground and rolled toward them.
— JUMP! — Alaric screamed, terror on his face.
It was a bomb. The explosion hurled them like leaves in the wind. Samuel was thrown into the forest, rolling down a hill, while Alaric, unconscious, crashed against a tree with a sickening thud.
Samuel got up, disoriented. His vision was blurred, ears ringing with distant screams. He touched his head and felt warm blood trickling down his face. "What was that? Damn it... I hope Alaric's okay." The sound of explosions and gunfire grew closer, forcing him to act.
He searched for Alaric, but couldn't find him. With no time to lose, he pressed on and soon stumbled upon a group of hunters. They were so focused on their brutality that they didn't see him. They were attacking a group of wolves that fought desperately, but in vain. There stood the Alpha of the pack, bravely defending her two surviving cubs. Two wolves already lay dead, their bodies motionless.
In a brief moment of distraction, the Alpha was struck. Samuel's heart raced. He tried to move in to help, but was intercepted by a hunter trying to drag him toward the group. With a swift movement, Samuel broke free, grabbed the man's weapon, and shot him. The hunter fell, a look of shock on his face. The sound drew the attention of three other hunters, who also fell within seconds, taken down by Samuel's quick shots.
As the last remaining hunters captured one of the cubs, the Alpha, with her last strength and magic, cast a spell that hit several nearby enemies. She flung one of her cubs away and shouted:
— Run, Alex! Run!
She collapsed to the ground, nearly dead, but with a sad smile on her face as she looked at her cub one last time. Samuel watched the small wolf run, and for a brief moment, a powerful connection surged between them — as if fate had intertwined their paths. Without hesitation, Samuel fired again, killing the last hunters. Only one escaped, taking the captured cub with him.
Samuel approached the wolves, but found them all dead — or nearly so. The Alpha still breathed, barely. He knelt beside her.
— Ma'am, can you hear me?
She didn't respond. Her mouth was full of blood, and her eyes were slowly losing their color.
— I'm sorry... I got here too late... — Samuel said, overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness.
He looked toward where the cub had fled and whispered:
— I'll go after him. I'll save him. Just hold on...
The Alpha looked at Samuel with tears in her eyes — a mixture of gratitude and sorrow — and with her final breath, she murmured:
— Alex... take care of him, please...
— I will. I promise. — Samuel replied.
Her eyes dimmed. She was gone.
The weight of her death crashed over Samuel like a storm. "Humans... always being humans. What did that light even see in me? Chose me for what? To watch my world be destroyed by my own kind?" he thought, filled with guilt and grief.
He was tired of so much suffering. The pain threatened to consume him, but something pulled him back to reality. He still had a reason to keep going — one last soul to protect. A lonesome wolf. He had made a promise to that mother, and even if he hadn't shown emotion at the time, he knew who she was... and more importantly, who that cub was.
"I won't let them hurt your son. That's a promise."
Samuel stood up and stepped into the forest once more, now in search of the little wolf — Alex.
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