He stood in the middle of her camp, sniffing the air, trying to get a read on the bear. He heard it shuffling and huffing to his right. He turned and sniffed again, and this time he caught the scent. A brown bear! It was one of the big ones. This wasn't going to be pretty: those bastards play for keeps, and they fear nothing. He let loose a low growl, the hair on his neck and back rising up. his tail out straight behind him.
The bear heard him and answered back with a growl of its own. Nope, this was going to get ugly; it was determined to get whatever it wanted. His anger at the situation finally hit him full force, adrenaline pumping into his blood and something else, something unique to his kind. His muscles started to ripple, and the fire in his eyes burned fiercely, glowing red-hot.
He drew in a huge breath, filling his lungs to maximum capacity. The growl that started was too low for a human to hear, but the bear heard it. Dagomarus let it rip through his throat, pushing it out with all his anger and power. The pitch rose until it was ear-shattering, his fury directed at the bear.
The bear paused for a second, then charged into the campsite, stopping just ten paces away from Dagomarus. It let loose its own challenge and pushed off the ground with its front legs. The bear hopped up and down three times and roared again. Dagomarus went silent; he knew if he wasted another breath. on a growl, the bear would jump him. He slowly lowered himself to the ground, gathering his power in his legs for a leap of hinowwgoingstohriptintogmearShebstartedgtoafranticallybsearchsforsthedflashlighththatpshewalwaysikeptonextltothersinctheatenttaHerefingertipsrbrushedaupiagainstothelcool metal wanddshersnatchedtitaupegShesquicklyefiguredoouttwhichtendrwasutheccorrectnone handajusthasbsheehitetheobuttoniathermassivetheadhof here.friendusslidoff the ground with every ounce of strength and furyStercus, flying right into the bear's chest, going for the throat. He hit the bear hard,Asinusomehow it remained standing. He fell away from the bear with a chunk of flesh and fur in his mouth. He had missed the jugular vein and got a mouthful of fat and skin instead. The bear swung one of its forelegs, catching him in the ribs. He yelped while flying through the air. He hit a tree hard and landed on his back, dazed. He couldn't breathe, his muscles screaming in agony. He could still feel all four legs, so he hadn't broken his spine, but he did feel four new broken ribs, and there were at least three gashes that had gone deep into the muscle of his side.
The bear grabbed the backpack and started shredding it, trying to get to the food inside. It ignored the wolf, figuring that nothing would bother him after that hit. Dagomarus knew that if he didn't get up now, the bear would find her inside the tent next, and that would not be good. He rolled over onto his feet and got up slowly, trying to keep his movement out of the bear's notice. He moved off to the bear's left flank, positioning himself to make another attack on the wound he had inflicted the first time. The bear ignored him, continuing to shred the contents of the backpack. Dagomarus found his spot and gathered himself for one more leap.
This time, the bear wouldn't be able to swipe at him so easily or put as much force into a swing. He didn't need another one of those hits. When the bear shoved its head into the food wrappings. Dagomarus made his move. He shot forward, digging his muzzle into the open wound on the bear's neck, reaching that prize -the jugular and the windpipe in one bite. He bit down as hard as he could, locking his jaws on those precious tubes of life-sustaining flesh and muscle.
The bear reacted immediately by pushing off the ground, standing up on its hind legs, trying to swing loose the ferocious wolf locked to its throat. Dagomarus began to tear into the bear's sides and belly with his claws, trying to inflict as much damage as he could. He knew that if he shook loose, this would be his last chance of saving her. He fought with every ounce of strength he had. The bear tried to growl and roar, but the air had nowhere to go; Dagomarus had its windpipe squeezed shut. and the blood going to its brain was flowing out of its neck instead. The bear shuddered and let loose one last spasm of fight, but it was over.
The bear fell to the ground, carrying Dagomarus with it. They landed with a huge thud as almost three thousand pounds of muscle and bone combined hit the ground. Dagomarus had twisted his body along the bear's side to keep from getting smashed. He kept his hold on the bear until he was absolutely sure it was dead. When he couldn't feel a heartbeat for several seconds, he let go.
There was a slurping wet sound as he removed his muzzle from inside the wound. He had done it! He had killed the beast! Commodum habitus es Asinus!I own your ass! He was so relieved that he had killed the bear and saved her from certain death. He was so proud of himself that he went right to the tent flap and stuck his head inside to share his joy. A beam of light suddenly blinded him, and then she screamed and passed out. O Stercus! He had just scared her right out of her mind. He felt like a complete dumbass. Asinus stultissimus -yep, that was him all right.
He left her where she was; he was dripping blood and wasn't about to make her any angrier when she woke up. He turned back to the bear carcass and figured that it would be a shame to let all that fresh meat go to waste. He tore into the bear and ate until he couldn't eat anymore. He left the remains and went to the creek to wash up and finish healing. With that much fresh meat in his belly, it wouldn't take any time at all for his wounds to heal-even his new ones.
She was dreaming of ferocious beasts growling and snarling at each other when she suddenly realized it wasn't a dream. There really was something outside her tent making the most god-awful, ground-rumbling. otherworldly noise she had ever heard. Her hand shot out and found the space that the wolf had occupied empty, and she couldn't see a thing. It was totally black inside the tent. Then there was another roar, but this one was different, vaguely familiar. Then it hit her-a grizzly bear made those sounds. But that other grow!! Christ! It made her blood turn to ice when she heard it again. She could feel the concussion from that growl deep in her chest. The sound hit her like a fist and set off a deep-seated fear, one that she had never felt before-completely primal, way down deep in her subconscious.
This was something that primitive humans must have run screaming into the night to escape. The grizzly made one more snarling roar in response, and then it just stopped: then the ground shook. Something massive had just hit the ground. The next thing she heard was the distinctive sound of ripping flesh. Thick fluid splashed onto the side of the tent. Then nothing. Total silence. She could hear her heart thudding in her chest and thought it must be loud enough to hear three miles away.
Movement outside the tent flap caused her to whimper. Oh God! Whatever is out there is now going to rip into me! She started to frantically search for the flashlight that she always kept next to her in the tent. Her fingertips brushed up against the cool metal. and she snatched it up. She quickly figured out which end was the correct one, and just as she hit the button, the massive head of her "friend" slid past the flap and looked right into her face. Two red orbs stared back at her, the massive jaws dripping blood and bits of flesh caught between the fangs. She screamed and then passed out.