The Doomcaw’s Hunt

Uther stared at the beast.

Its void-like eyes stared directly at him, dark and empty, as if they were windows into nothingness. The creature’s head tilted slowly, studying him with an unnatural stillness that made his skin crawl.

The only time he had seen the beast had been from afar, and thankfully, it had taken some other animal with it. But now it was staring directly at him.

Its wings were white, almost one with the snow. They blended perfectly with the blizzard, making the beast nearly invisible against the white backdrop. If not for its dark, hollow eyes, Uther might have missed it entirely.

He hadn’t moved.

He was certain of that.

Everyone in the Nightshade Pack knew better than to move when this beast was involved.

But then he cast a glance at the leaves of the tree where he was perched.

The leaves were moving.

Fuck.

His heart sank.

The Doomcaw had not been watching him because he had moved.

It had been watching the movement of the leaves.

Uther swallowed hard.

He wondered if this was how he was going to die.

He would never get to see his sister again.

The thought sent a chill down his spine that had nothing to do with the cold.

He had promised her he would go back to her.

He couldn’t leave her alone.

Perhaps if he…

No.

The beast had seen him.

There was no way he would be able to escape.

His eyes watered, but he forced himself to blink the tears away.

One thing was certain.

He wasn’t going to go down without a fight.

Just then, an arrow struck the Doomcaw.

The beast released a pained sound, a high, piercing shriek that cut through the howling wind.

Its head snapped toward the source of the attack.

Uther’s eyes widened as he saw Helios jump out of the tree he had been hiding in.

The moment he landed, he shifted.

A brown wolf took his place.

He didn’t waste a second either.

He ran.

The Doomcaw followed immediately.

Its enormous wings spread as it launched itself forward, its claws raised high as it lunged after him.

Uther’s entire body shook with fear.

But he couldn’t stop to think about how he was still alive.

Helios was in danger.

“Fuck,” he cursed under his breath.

He immediately tried to nock an arrow, but his hands were shaking too violently.

The string slipped beneath his fingers.

He cursed again.

Then arrows flew from various positions in the trees around them.

One.

Two.

Three.

Then another dozen.

The arrows struck the Doomcaw’s wings and body, but the beast barely slowed.

Its head turned from one direction to another, following the movement of the attacks.

Yet it refused to abandon its pursuit of Helios’s wolf.

It was too close now.

Much too close.

——

Ethan watched with wide eyes as the Doomcaw swooped toward Helios’s wolf.

His heart pounded.

This could not be happening. He turned to the warriors with him.

“No one dies!” he shouted, his voice cutting through the storm. “No one is fucking dying here not in my squad. Heed my commands, do everything you can to take the beast down.”

As he spoke, Ethan ran toward Helios’s wolf.

His body shifted while he moved.

A powerful wolf took over, his paws digging into the snow as he surged forward.

The Doomcaw descended.

Its claws reached for Helios’s wolf but Ethan’s wolf slammed into it from the side.

His claws raked across the Doomcaw’s flank, tearing through some of its feathers and scratching the flesh beneath.

The beast cawed sharply.

It twisted in midair before landing heavily in the snow.

Its head snapped toward Ethan who shifted back immediately.

His sword already in his hand.

He was scared.

Of course he was. No one in the pack had faced a doomcaw. They didn’t even get the chance to study it before the war.

But this wasn’t the first time he had faced an unknown enemy and he would rather die than see anyone in his squad die because he made a promise before the goddess before the war began, he would let no one die…not under his watch.

The Doomcaw attacked.

It lunged forward with terrifying speed towards Ethan who dropped low immediately, back sliding with the snow.

The beast’s claws swept over his head, missing him by inches.

He rolled across the snow and came up on one knee just as the Doomcaw turned.

It was already coming again.

Ethan barely managed to raise his sword when it’s claw struck against his sword.

The force sent him sliding backward.

“Fuck!”

The beast cawed directly in his face.

Its breath was hot against his skin despite the freezing weather.

Ethan kicked against its chest and pushed himself away just as Helios’s wolf attacked from behind.

His fangs snapped around one of the Doomcaw’s wings, but the beast reacted instantly.

It struck him with one powerful swipe sending the wolf flying.

His body crashed against a nearby tree.

He whimpered, shaking his head as he struggled to stand. He growled lowly, eyes still fixed on the beast.

Then he moved again attacking from the front while Ethan attacked from behind.

The Doomcaw twisted between them, its wings beating violently.

Snow exploded around them.

Laia cursed loudly.

It was obvious Ethan and Helios wouldn’t be able to take the beast down alone.

Even the arrows were doing little.

She turned toward Nia who nodded at her.

They didn’t need words.

Both women tightened their grips on their shortswords.

Laia moved first.

She ran then twisted through the air and struck the Doomcaw’s side.

Her blade scraped across its body, cutting through feathers and leaving a shallow wound.

The beast shrieked.

Nia attacked from below.

Her sword struck one of its legs.

The Doomcaw stumbled.

“Now!” Laia shouted.

The other warriors immediately joined them.

Wolves attacked from every direction.

Fangs snapped.

Claws tore.

Swords flashed through the storm.

The Doomcaw fought back with frightening strength, its wings beating hard enough to send snow flying in every direction.

One wolf was thrown into a tree.

Another rolled across the snow.

A warrior was forced to duck beneath a sweeping claw.

But no one retreated.

They had learned enough about the Doomcaw to understand one thing.

If they ran, someone would die.

So they stayed.

They attacked.

They surrounded the beast and refused to give it an opportunity to focus on a single target.

The Doomcaw cawed again.

The sound was deafening.

Then something moved behind them.

A small white shape emerged from the snow.

Then another.

Then another.

Virelops.

Their red eyes glinted through the darkness.

No one needed to be told why they had gathered.

Blood.

There was too much blood around them both from the doomcaw and the warriors themselves. And the birelops numbers only kept on increasing.

The Nightshade warriors froze for half a second.

There were only a few of them gathered here.

How were they supposed to fight both the Doomcaw and the Virelops?

Suddenly a branch snapped somewhere behind them.

Everyone turned, their senses picking up the scent immediately.

“Found some of these scums,” he said.

The Enclave had found them too.