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Ahead, through the storm, he saw the dark silhouettes of ht to the edge of the river, so he would have to pass al the trees to continue southward Yet he had no other choice If he waited for the stor, studying the trees as he approached, watching the branches and the spaces between for the tiniestat his back now, propelling hi, and he felt a moment of relief that the storht the scent that the shifting wind had brought, a familiar smell that nearly froze hio had found him

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

THE SPIRIT OF BRUTALITY

JACK LONDON RAN FOR HIS LIFE, and the Wendigo followed He did not look back--he had seen it before, at night, and although now the storht shield his view soht But though he did not look, his other senses were alight, and he knew that theof the breeze ht up with hi footsteps crunched snow and splintered plants; and the air itself seeer cleansed by the wintry storm, the air Jack breathed was tainted by death

He could turn and shoot, but he was certain that would do no good Still, he kept hold of his rifle because he didn’t want the thing to think he had given up hope How many travelers, explorers, and staht, shedding bags and weapons left and right as they ran blindly toward their deaths? He had no way of knowing and no wish to find out And if he were to die here today, he would do so with dignity

I’ve got toat his mind

Whatever fate Lesya had intended for him, he hadsince she had found him If it hadn’t been for that, he would have collapsed or even died by now, and terrified though he was, deep down a sth he felt, the speed he ran He wondered if all victi chased down by predators felt this way, just for a moment

Jack reached the cover of the trees and ied direction He sensed outward and felt a fox cowering in fear a hundred steps away, and closer by lay a regular trail trodden by the fox and its fa this trail, su a foxlike bark as he went The land sloped up from the river here, and his pace slowed…and then froed snap of trees and branches splintering as the Wendigo caht, switching direction quickly, leaping over the hole in which he knew the fox fah the storm, and it could have closed in and ripped ully and then darted to the left, away from the fox trail He kept the rowls ru in his throat were not his own In the pressures of pursuit, his plan had no concrete foro If he could do that, perhaps the chance for escape would present itself

Jack darted right and left again, trying to keep low to the ground He dodged a large fallen tree, rejecting the tee himself coht be able to sined attributes of a fox, but his talents were still young, and he could never hide the true smell of his blood or the sound of his hu to shift his attention froain Can it se theht huht be a distraction to it at best But he had to try

At the next fallen tree, Jack paused and looked behind hi up the slope It careat li tree itself Its size certainlyto step forward, a sharp tearing sound reverberated through the woods, like roots snapping as their owner hauled itself froround The air around it seemed splashed with blood--ittrees--and Jack realized the sound ca’s torso

He sought its face, a dayti, and after a beat it paused, taking in great bellowing breaths as it sniffed hiht, leaves fell, and then Jack felt its full attention fixed upon him

He tried to breathe but could not And as he turned and started running again, he realized his terrible !

Soon, he knew, he would have to stop and fight

But first he needed to hts, and for that he needed a place to hide away

He explored out and ahead of hi also to use Lesya’s lessons and the sic she had placed within him to summon the traits of wild anie talents she had cultivated in hiht, there was no way to truly assess just how effective they were There would be no second chances today

Clasping his rifle, the weight of gold hauling hiled on Soon he sensed a cave so smell of what had once inhabited it Hearound nervously in case its for that moment to return But such fears were foolish, and he al Wendigo--saw only trees swaying down the slope, its bulk blurred through the forest--and then he went for the cave

The remains of the black bear’s den were still there, and Jack quickly rolled a and gruround, fur bristling in cautious anger at what approached And as he heard the Wendigo corew still

It paused somewhere beyond the cave