Chapter III
Ulula
Ulula crashed through the undergrowth, fear searing the back of her throat, making her skin crawl. Horribly aware that her pursuer was gaining on her, she forced her muscles, which were screaming in protest at the extreme exertion they were under, to take her a bit further. Staggering onwards, she tore through spiky, prickly hedges, the brambles dragging on her bare skin and in tangling in her long dark hair. Long, red scratches ran along her naked body from other such encounters with the wild nature of the forest, and her hair was ripped from her scalp by the cruel pulling fingers of branches and brambles. The sweat on her face, twisted in determination, mingled with the tears of desperation streaming down her flushed cheeks.
Stumbling over tree roots, Ulula’s determination faded. She knew she couldn’t go on much longer, and the thought choked her with terror. Her torn feet caught under a root, and she felt the panic of falling, the pain as her battered and exhausted body was bruised by the impact, but as if from far away. She knew there was nothing she could do now. Even in the unlikely event she was able to heave herself off the ground and stagger on for a tiny while longer, her pursuer would trap her inevitably, a cornered animal with no escape. She had left a clear trail, the torn out strands of chestnut hair draped over the bushes fluttering in the wind like flags signalling her trail, the smell of her spilt blood thick in the air. More tears pricked her eyes as she saw the huge man-wolf tear his way easily through the bush she had fought her way through, and she hung her head in dread as he crouched to ready himself to pounce, aware that his prey was in no fit state to escape. As his crushing weight slammed into her, any remaining air was forced from her lungs. He sank his huge incisors into the torn flesh of her upper arm and began to drag her away. Pain exploded behind Ulula's streaming eyes, and a wild animal howl ripped through her. It hung in the air, pain mingling with betrayal, a cry for help mingling with an accusation. Her wolf pack heard, felt her pain, but were already grieving for their sister; none were brave enough to follow, to take on the terrifying newcomer mingling both Ulula's phases. Maybe they could have taken it on; Ulula never had a chance, as in her current human form, she was the weakest out of both her opposition and former allies; living with wolves had made her incomparably more savage and wild than any human, and she could easily bypass them with fighting, but against a creature with the bulk, savagery and predatory instincts of a huge wolf combined with the cunning and cruelty of a human, she was fighting a losing battle.
Her bare heels dragged over the loose stones of the rocky earth, carving shallow scarlet fissures down her raw skin. Thin streamers of blood rolled down her legs, leaving a bloody trail behind. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead as the excruciating pain of the werewolf’s fangs sank deep into her arm, stretching the gory wound as she was hauled across the ground, threatened to make her pass out; her vision was becoming unfocused, and her mind kept wandering, bizarre as it seemed that even her agony could not hold her attention for long.
As she was towed painfully from under the canopy of the trees, she saw the fading light of the sinking sun bleeding into the dark slash of the horizon. Please, she prayed, please let the moon come up soon…..
Her arm was wrenched viciously with a savage tug from her captor. Whimpering, Ulula cast her free arm about, searching wildly for purchase on a root, anything to hold onto to avoid being hauled away to wherever the wolf-man had in mind; no doubt somewhere heinous. She scrabbled uselessly at the ground, scattering rocks, dirt and leaf mulch. Finding nothing to grab, she dug her rapidly numbing fingers into the cold, hard soil, and clung on. He snarled, and yanked brutally on the arm held in his fangs. The pain built up inside her head, exploding behind her eyes. She screwed them tightly shut, gritting her teeth. The screaming in her head increased, until it drowned out all conscious thought, but all that escaped her clenched mouth was a low, agonised moan. She hung on desperately, struggling against the vicelike grip, until a faint glimmer rising into the darkening sky caught her attention. Shocked, relieved, she loosened her grip, allowing her fingers to slide out of the indent in the ground as he gave a wild tug. Following her gaze, he slowly turned his head, yellow eyes widening in shock as the rising moon was reflected in them.
The faint light illuminated them, spilling over her body. Ulula arched her back and howled, as the transformation began.
A wild howl ripped from her already raw throat and hung in the thick forest air, a warning. Her limbs elongated, her body contorting itself into an entirely new shape, to stay while the light flickered onto her. Extreme pain was a prerequisite of the transformation, though, so more yowls, growing ever more animal, escaped her widening jaw, past sharp fangs and blackening gums, as she writhed desperately to escape the inevitable.
Her huge adversary slowly backed away from her, fear showing in his yellow lupine eyes. However, though now somewhat more advantaged, Ulula was still in danger. The thick grey fur on the small she-wolf’s flank was matted and stained with the relentless, sluggish flood of blood from the long gash. However, she had the element of the doubt, and, bravely raising herself up, she was rewarded with the sight of the other werewolf slowly backing away.
A thought flitted across her mind, fleeting but anchoring itself to the bedrock of her mind. Her animal instincts were focussed on one object; escape. This had a chance about equal to that of an icicle in hell, but it was her only option.
Snarling less viciously than she would have liked, she advanced, her injured flank trembling and threatening to crumple beneath her with every agonising step. All she had to do was force him back a couple of steps…..
It worked.
The huge wolf turned tail and fled into the impenetrable darkness of a tree hollow. Only pure darkness, complete absence of moonlight, could transform a werewolf back to human. Her last glimpse as she limped away was of a bulky, naked man, bleeding almost as much as she, roaring with only the feeble volume of a human as he raced back after her. However, she had the few minutes of his transformation back to a wolf in which to escape.
However, after a few minutes, he was catching up fast again. A low whine rumbled through her throat as she hobbled along, excruciatingly slow.
Come on, come on, come ON….
Teeth closed around her leg.
This is the end…
The she-wolf’s bloodshot, agonised amber eyes fluttered shut. The other wolf began to drag his prey away.
Ulula tipped her head back to the night sky, stars scattered across the wide, dark expanse. Her mind was screaming at her not to give up, never to resign herself even when there was no way out. Never to let herself be a victim. But her exhausted, battered body was making the choice for her, and the screaming defiance in her head was fading into acquiescence.
No!
Her mind was still shrieking its denial through stifling barriers of exhaustion when the sky was obscured by two huge flying silhouettes, and strong hands gripped her and lifted her limp body. Her attacker’s huge jaw slackened, her leg sliding easily out from his mouth, and her frail and emaciated body was lifted into the sky by two dark avenging ang
