The next few seconds happened too fast for my mind to process.

Before I could even breathe, the strange wolf lunged at Ellias, its fangs glinting under the faint light of the moon. Its leap was so sudden, so violent, that the ground itself seemed to shake beneath its weight.

Ellias moved, but not quickly enough. The two of them collided in a blur of fur, claws, and teeth. The sound that erupted from the fight was something primal deep growls, snapping jaws, and claws scraping against rock. The ...