Running was in his blood. That’s why they gave DeGrey the Dredger one of his many names. Escaping his captors was a flame that kept him from slowing down. That was until he found the captured beast. A large wolf that was caught in a trap. The heat of the sun caused him to sweat, but he didn’t notice it anymore. The taste and sting of salt held no meaning anymore. The air was dry and black sand covered his body.

A beast like this caught in the middle of nowhere meant one thing. ‘They’ve found me.’ DeGrey moved to a rock outcropping and set up his rifle to catch any scouts who might have caught up to him. He looked around and all he saw were hills made of silence. Nothing but the wind and dust to keep him company. He loaded a bullet and watched the area.

DeGrey pulled out a telescope and scouted the area around the trapped wolf. Its front right paw was locked in a large monster trap he’d recognized. ‘Hallowed Blades and their reckless behavior.’ He thought. The wolf howled and then whimpered as it gave into the pain. Upon closer inspection he noticed that the wolf had gnawed through half of its arm. Each time it went back and tried to take another bite it cringed.

He clenched his fist. ‘Unfortunate that such a fine beast had to be captured.’ He used the telescope to spy the rest of the area. No rustling in the bushes, no movement in the mountains, and no sign of smoke or camp. ‘Maybe it was just a trap left behind.’

Feeling that pit in his stomach grow as the wolf cried he grabbed his cloak. DeGrey put his rifle away and pulled on his wolf head hood and took his time to approach. What he planned to do was dangerous, but so was living especially with his current predicament. He pulled forth his machete and got closer to the wolf. It seemed to notice DeGrey, but didn’t react. Perhaps the hood worked or it was just not bothered by another predator. It continued to whine as its flesh and bone were rotting and infected.

He held a piece of jerky for the wolf. “Hungry?” No response. The wolf’s indifference didn’t matter to DeGrey. Reaching into his bag he threw a handful of the dried meat to the wolf. He waited for it to inspect the food and to start eating. It took a few more pieces to get it to turn away from its injury, but eventually the beast ate with ravenous hunger.

Satisfied DeGrey got to work. He pulled his cloak forward and located the lighting runes. Grabbing a small piece of Obsidian from one of his alchemy pouches he traced the rune and then performed a practiced set of motions with his hands. Electricity fueled his body. He’d only have a few moments till the Obsidian ran out.

He leapt forward with precision landing on the wolf keeping it in place. Its reaction was as he expected. The wolf bit him in the arm. Luckily his body was currently fueled with hex and he didn’t register the pain. In one quick movement DeGrey sliced the wolf’s rotten arm off at the shoulder. With the final trace of Lighting in his veins he grabbed another piece of Obsidian, traced the fyre rune and engulfed his right hand in a blaze of red hot energy.

He cauterized the wound. It happened so quickly that the wolf didn’t know how to react. DeGrey pulled out some ointment and rubbed it on the shoulder. He jumped off of the wolf and stepped away. He tossed more jerky and a black mouse to the wolf and kept his distance. It growled at him, but began to limp around. It sniffed its appendage and looked at DeGrey. It was hard to tell if it knew what was going on, but he could see the intelligence in its eyes.

Even as it ate the food it continued to growl and give DeGrey what he had interpreted as a stink eye. Once it was done it barked at the Dredger once more and ran off into the mountains. He waited till it was gone and kept moving on his path. ‘Sad to see something that intelligent in pain.’

[-[o]-]

After scouting the area for any danger DeGrey sat in a cave as the sun began to set and the moons were visible going across the sky. He made and maintained a small fire while he went through his gear. He had all of the essentials. He’d assumed they would catch up tomorrow. At least the scouts would be here. That’s when he would strike.

He threw the Rune Etched Bones across the cave and followed the patterns. He nodded and went to work. DeGrey thought about what he would need to defend against the men chasing him. ‘Explosives. Those usually do the trick of deterring pests.’ He reached into his alchemy kit and mixed explosive materials into three flasks.

Stolen story; please report.

Next he pulled his knives and placed them throughout his clothing to always have another weapon to fight with. Four knives would be helpful. One in each hand and two as back up. Memories of bloody conflicts when he was unable to move his arms and had to fight to stay alive. Not many were skilled at the Bloody Fang fighting technique. ‘Let’s hope it doesn’t get to the point when I need to hold one with teeth.’ He left the cave and felt the air. The bones spoke true and a chill was about to pass through the night.

He took the ribbon markers and placed them at different intervals. ‘Idiots will probably think I did it on purpose.’ DeGrey moved rocks, made footprints, and other markers to create a path. Once all of his distractions were set up he grabbed some rope and cut five feet. He climbed the small stone outcropping and hung it from a few feet up. He tied one of his explosives to the rope. When they pulled it he would know.

He returned to the cave and set up his rifle. He attached his telescope to point toward his false trail. He adjusted the rifle barrel and stock to compensate for the distance. 100 feet of distance wasn’t an issue. With his plan ready DeGrey put out his fire, laid his cloak next to his rifle and laid down for some sleep. One way or another tomorrow would mark the end of the chase.

[-[o]-]

The warm fur and scent of raw meat was a strange thing to wake to, but not the worst. The night was cold, but at some point DeGrey stopped noticing. The three legged wolf curled against his back must have made a difference. When he stirred the wolf rose. It didn’t growl or bite. It pulled an animal it hunted to DeGrey and began to eat.

Before he could appreciate the gesture and feast with his new friend DeGrey heard an explosive at the nearby rock formation. He whistled and told the wolf to leave. Its eyes were black as obsidian and refused to move. Familiar with a stubborn beast like himself DeGrey smiled and rolled over. With the telescope he was able to see the result of his trap.

Two men had inspected his false trail. One was on the ground not moving and the other looked dazed eyes wide looking around trying to catch their bearings. With no hesitation DeGrey pulled the trigger taking the one who stood between the eyes. Crimson painted the black stone.

He adjusted his position and shot the man who was on the ground. The last movement he had was the bullet passing through his skull. A familiar crack sounded through the area. He spied on them for a few minutes to make sure they didn’t move.

DeGrey loaded another bullet. He waited and was ready for the third scout. He took a deep breath and waited. ‘There was always a third waiting.’ All he could do now was wait. ‘Think before you come closer.’ He thought. It seemed that when you were chasing someone people didn’t use their brains much. They were like animals. DeGrey looked at his new companion and realized the fault in his thinking. That wasn’t true though animals would stop and be aware of their surroundings.

Before he had the chance to react a man dropped from the cave mouth and fired a bullet at DeGrey. The wolf leapt at the man. DeGrey drew his pistol and shot him. It hit his shoulder. He fell and the wolf landed on top of the man. DeGrey ran over stabbing him in the throat. The wolf finished the job by taking out his jugular.

DeGrey pet the wolf. “Be ready. More are on their way.” The wolf growled and took bites out of the man. His corpse had valuable tools. A gun, bullets, and another knife. DeGrey took what he could carry, loading the second revolver. He packed up all of his weapons and tools and waited. He heard footsteps and the sound of marching animals. They didn’t come one by one. They had learned their lesson. They rode up and walked in full force upon the cave.

He pulled out his rifle and started shooting them. Pests that needed to be exterminated. He killed three more before they were too close and able to shoot at him. 12 men all trained to hunt slaves like himself were too much for him. They were led by Captain Blood. The man who owned DeGrey. He shook his head and got off of his riding lizard.

“Now my friend there’s no need to continue this game. You’ve killed my scouts. You’ve accrued a debt larger than some men would ever be able to earn in their life.” DeGrey shot the wide brimmed hat off of his head. Captain Blood threw an explosive into the cave. DeGrey ran out of the cave guns ablaze followed by the wolf. None of the men shot at him anymore. The captain raised his hands with two more explosives ready to detonate. “Now you’re just being rude.” Captain Blood got onto his lizard and threw another grenade.

Each one went off and caused DeGrey to get closer to his group. Before he knew it he was surrounded by men riding lizards and those on foot. They wouldn’t shoot such a valuable asset. DeGrey managed to get two more in the head before they were able to restrain him with rope. He did his best to cut the rope, but eventually you don’t have any more energy to keep going. There were too many. His last act of defiance was placing a knife in his bloody mouth. At least this way he could keep fighting.