Word count: 338 // +3 points
Very nice thread indeed!
Alduin was puzzled by Jaden’s words. What he could have meant by them, he wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t curious enough to stop the man to find out. Instead, he took the words and etched them into his memory so that he might think on them back in Anathema. When the black wolf finally faded from sight, Alduin sighed a heavy breath of relief and let his defenses fall. Nothing about that meeting had been easy, and the emotional toll it took on him was far worse than any physical strain he’d felt before. Finally, he let his body collapse onto the ground so he could sit and find himself again.
He didn’t speak. He didn’t move. The only evidence left of his beating heart was the occasional blink of his eyelids. There was so much to say, and so much to do. He had hoped for more time to prepare, but he knew that his vengeance could not wait for long. The road ahead of him would be far more challenging than the Alcan Highway had been. As he thought of the bloody battle to come, he shuddered. Jaden was a warrior, there was no mistaking it. While Alduin was certainly capable of holding his own, he knew he didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in Hell against the other Alaskan beast. The reality of it had been known to the male as soon as he laid eyes on his darker counterpart, and his thoughts had been directed at future training schedules and sparring matches with his pack.
And then he smiled. The thought of his new family brought him comfort and peace. He would, at least, have them to lean on and go to for help when he needed it. He was certain that Jaden had nothing of the sort, and this gave the wolf hope. So with his newfound confidence, he rose and turned to start his journey back home. The road was long, but he would take it in stride one step at a time.
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