They were attacked just as the sun began to rise. Creak had been sleeping a dreamless, peaceful sleep when the sharp whistling woke her.

"Would you please stop, Vern." She rolled over to hit him only to have him catch her hand.

Creak opened her eyes, suddenly alert. Vern looked alarmed as he pressed a finger against his lips. Creak didn't need him to tell her to be quiet. An unsettling feel came over her and she shook with fear.

The whistles were high and sounded like young children shrieking in pain.

'What is it?' Creak wondered in her head.

"A sound of death." Gorgos said gravely.

Creak shook her head. 'But where is it coming from?'

The sound was all around them, but Creak couldn't find it's source. The sun threw shadows through the trees, leaving many dark places. Perfect places for horrors to hind out of sight.

Vern heard it before her. A low growl was their only warning. Bright red eyes glowed in the darkness of a pine tree. Eyes full of hatred and excitement.

"Run!" Vern yelled just as the giant wolf lunged at them. It landed in between them, keeping them separated. Creak ran for the trees, but another wolf jumped in front of her. She screamed as she stumbled backward.

Vern had run the opposite direction, but didn't make it far. The red-eyed, white wolf pounced on him, its long claws digging into his back. Creak ran as the creature lowered its mouth to finish off her best friend.

"Vern!" She cried as she slammed into the wolf, sending them both tumbling. They wrestled in the snow, both fighting to be the first to gain an advantage.

Vern got to his feet to help, but a pack of grey wolves ran in to circle him. Every time he tried to break their ring around him, they would snap their teeth at him. Yelling, Vern slammed into the ring only to have the four wolves pounce on him. Vern screamed and struggled under the creatures as they bit and clawed at him.

A few feet away Creak found herself on top of the white wolf. She wrapped her hands around it's thick neck and squeezed with everything she had. The creature made a desperate whistle as it's eyes began to bulge.

The whistle had been a desperate cry for help from a pack leader to it's pack. The other wolves could not ignore their leader. All four grey wolves left Vern, bloodied but still breathing, and circled Creak.

'Don't let go!' She screamed in her head as one of the wolves jumped onto her. The force took the wind out of her, but she still held the leader in a death grip.

The wolf on her back sank its teeth into her shoulder. Creak screamed as a thousand razors sliced through her winter coat and into her flesh. Her gripped was lost and she rolled off the white wolf in a desperate attempt to escape.

Tears in her eyes, Creak crawled as fast as she could, but it wasn't fast enough. A wolf jumped onto her back and trapped her. It's claws poked small holes in her back making her scream in pain.

'This is it.' Creak thought to herself. 'I'm going to die.'

As the pain threaten to sink her into darkness, Creak heard a battle cry come into the clearing. Her face was pressed to the ground and she struggled underneath the wolf.

She heard a sharp whistle of pain as the wolf above her was run through with a sword. The weight of the creature left and Creak was finally able to turn to look at her savior.

Riptide stood in front of her, his sword drawn and bloody. His eyes shifted as his watched the remaining wolves circle them slowly.

Creak couldn't help but admire him as he lunged at a wolf just a second before it attacked him. His early intuition left an easy opening to kill the creature. Rip slipped his sword under the wolf and let it's lunge carry it right into his sword.

He was beautiful when he fought. His black hair blew in the wind as he spun and finished the wolf off. His eyes shown a stormy grey with rage as his glared at the wolves.

He shook with anger and the way he stood in front of her confused her. He was protecting her.

'Why?' Creak thought. 'Does he need to take me to the king alive?'

"ơཞ," Angel sang happily. "ɱąყცɛ ɧɛ ཞɛąƖƖყ ɖơɛʂŋ'ɬ ῳąŋɬ ყơų ɬơ ɖıɛ?"

Creak hated the way her heart skipped a beat at the words. That was ridiculous. How could Riptide care enough about her to protect her?
Creak didn't know what to think as Riptide watched the wolves and the wolves warily watched him back.

* * *

Seeing the fear in Creak's eyes as the wolf almost finished her off sent Riptide into a rage he had never felt before. The foul creature was going to kill her, but Rip wouldn't let that happen. He couldn't let that happen.

With a great battle cry, Rip ran right at the wolf and plunged his sword into it heart. He couldn't keep the crazed glare off his face as the creature fell to the ground. Creak looked at him wide-eyed. She was probably wondering why he would save her.

'Let her be confused.' He thought as the wolves circled them. 'I got better things to worry about.'

Not letting himself look at the beautiful criminal behind him, Rip focused on the wolves and accidently slipped a few seconds into the future.

The world felt brighter and it kind of hurt his eyes. The future was weird. Everything slightly glowed instead of being black and white like the past had been. The wolves around him growled with anger. He had killed one of their pack members and for that they would kill him.

'I'd like to see them try.' Rip thought with a glare as a grey wolf lunged at him.

Rip had seen it coming, so it was an easy kill. He positioned his sword where he knew the wolf would jump, so the creature landed stomach first onto it's pointed tip. It slid to the ground and Rip quickly ended its misery.

Glancing around at the three remaining wolves, one white and two grey, Rip narrowed his eyes.

'Come on!' He wanted to yell at them as the wolves kept their distance. 'There smart.' Rip thought. 'They've discovered I'm dangerous. They're making a new plan. They're waiting for me to make a mistake.'

Rip shifted his eyes to the red-eyed leader. "Come at me!" He yelled with his arms out tauntingly. His grey eyes narrowed and he growled. "I dare you!"

The wolf almost smiled at him. It liked a challenge. With a sharp whistle the beast attacked.

* * *

"Come at me!" Riptide taunted. He spread his arms and glared. "I dare you!"

Creak didn't know what he was doing, but she knew it wasn't smart. Maybe killing the first two wolves had made him a bit too cocky. She worried that he would get them killed.

Creak screamed as the white wolf jumped on Rip sending them both to the ground and knocking his sword out of his hand. Yelling, Rip held onto the beast and rolled across the snow. Creak would have watched the whole thing in horror if the other two wolves hadn't attacked her.
They both charged her and Creak scrambled to her feet. Running, she grabbed Rip's sword off the ground and held it in front of her. Her hand shook with fear as the wolves circled around her. She struggled to watch them both, fearing what would happen if they both attacked at the same time.

She wanted to look for Vern, but she couldn't take her eyes off the beasts. Doing so would definitely be the end of her. Creak smiled crazily. "I'm sick of waiting." She mumbled to herself. "Let's get this over with."

Taking a deep breath, Creak yelled and lunged at one of the wolves. She held the sword out in front of her as she slammed into the beast.

Creak had never used a sword before, but she figured if she just kept stabbing at her enemy it would eventually die.

"Kill it!" Gorgos laughed giddily. "Kill it! Kill it!"

"I'm trying!" Creak screamed as she repeatedly hit the wolf with Rip's sword. "It's a lot harder than Rip makes it look!"

Eventually her strategy worked and the wolf made one last whistle before it went still.

Covered in blood and breathing heavily, Creak turned to the last wolf. "You want a turn?"

The wolf's yellow eyes widened and it growled to show off its teeth. Slowly it crept towards her and Creak couldn't keep the smile off her face. If it wanted a fight, she would give it a fight.

"Creak!" A voice cut through her concentration and almost brought her to her knees. Stans. Her brother had found her.

She almost turned around, but the wolf's growl reminded her that she was still in danger. "Stans." She said without looking away from the wolf. "Don't come any closer."

* * *

Stans could hear the fear in his baby sister's voice. She didn't want him to come any closer, but she was in danger. Creak was his responsibly; she was his only family. She was the only one he loved; his only reason to live. If she died, he would die with her.

Seeing his little sister, bleeding and in pain, changed something in Stans. He wasn't scared anymore. He knew what he needed to do. He wouldn't stay away like Creak had told him. He wouldn't let her die while he still lived.

So when the wolf lunged at his sister, he stepped in front of her.

* * *

"Stans!" Creak screamed as the wolf relentlessly sliced its claws through her brother's stomach. "No!"

She grabbed the wolf and, with a strength she didn't know she had, threw it. The beast slammed against the ground and Creak ran at it with Rip's sword raised above her head. She wouldn't give it time to get up and attack anyone else.

Kicking the wolf down again, Creak slammed the sword down and straight through the beast's neck. Breathing heavily, Creak kicked the head as hard as she could sending it into the woods.

"No one hurts my brother!" She growled before the sword slipped out of her hand and she ran to Stans.