A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

Oliver watched with interest to see what plan the serious youth had come up with to make the most of his friend's abilities. In particular, he wanted to see how he now dealt with the problem of Kaya, who'd entered the fray without even a spear to his name.

The Black Wolves gave them no more time to think. The second Oliver had disappeared behind the three, all the wolves focused their attention their way, and curled the muscles of their haunches, rushing in a sprint, their jaws parted, and salvia dripping.

The different packs became one large mass of black bodies that sought to charge the three boys all at once. The fastest monsters inevitably made their way to the front, whilst the bulk of the pack's mass was left in the centre.

The lone man being made to meet them was Karesh. With the size of some of them, it was almost as bad as facing down a herd of buffalo. Well, not quite, but it certainly felt like it to the three of them.

He was clearly cowered by the bulk of them, at least initially. Merely from the droop of his shoulders, one could tell. Karesh always stood up tall, almost thuggishly with the way he carried himself. Here, he was being made to feel a pressure that he simply wasn't used to him. It got to him, and it almost crushed him – almost.

"AAAGGGHHHH!" He howled away the fear, replacing it with anger. It was a tried and tested technique for many men, and for Karesh, it worked just as well. Don't think, just swing. See what happens. If the swing isn't good enough then… damn it, just swing again, until the minute that you can't.

His first swing caught the pack right in the centre as they came at him like a wave, attempting to wash over him. There were five Black Wolves in the front line, and of course, he couldn't reach them all, but he did manage to get the first straight through the skull, as he used the length of his blade to reach it before it reached him.

That momentum carried on to a second beast, slowing it when it caught it on the shoulder, but not exactly stopping it entirely.

Then the wave crashed down on him. Black Wolves rushed past him to the left, and to the right, slamming into Jorah, who stood his ground with his spear, and took another one down, as it impaled itself head-on.

As of yet, Kaya had escaped the first charge. He was almost directly behind Karesh, though a little off to the left. The force of the initial charge wasn't something he had to deal with. He didn't know the dread that Karesh felt when that wave hit him, and the only escape from it he had was the wedge that he'd cut open himself.

But now the second row was coming, even as the first swam past them, and attempted to surround them. Agan Karesh had to swing, even faster this time, more brutally, catching another monster across the jaw, and slaying it midcharge before it could reach him.

Once again Jorah caught a Black Wolf with his spear, and then another he stabbed through the side as it attempted to run past him.

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Only when the Black Wolves attempted to circle back again did Kaya's role become obvious.

Those monsters that had made it past them had already lost their speed. They were so focused on killing them that they didn't see the worth in rushing out again, just to get another good charge. Their single goal was to reach their enemy, and now that they'd reached them, they pressed in, using the full weight of their mass.

"Kaya! It's yours now!" Jorah said, sweating. He could see the Black Wolves rushing for his and Karesh's back out of the corner of his eye, but he could do nothing to challenge them.

A muzzle neared his hind leg. He grunted, trying to pull it out of the way, but he was too late. The Black Wolves in front of him were too much of a distraction. He had to hold at least one front. He had to trust in his friend, and stick to the plan… but Gods, where was Kaya?

"Urah!" A fist slammed into the side of the Black Wolf's jaw with a sudden, snapping through its muzzle, and sending a good handful of teeth flying. Another right cross came over the top of it. Kaya twisted his hip fully into the strike, throwing it downwards, almost turning it into a hammer fist.

It caught the Black Wolf just around its eyes, shattering it inwards, sending it hurtling back, covered in blood.

It was impossible to tell whether the combination had been enough to kill it, but it was certainly enough to immobilize it. There was no time to finish it off. There were already five more wolves demanding Kaya's attention, whilst Karesh dealt with the remaining two rows of the charge.

His speed proved a blessing in those close quarters. The size of the Black Wolves didn't lend them much of a benefit when there were so many of them. They bulled into each other, each of them vying for a piece of the ever-tasty human flesh.

Again Kaya struck at one, an uppercut this time, using the stretch reflex from his previous strike to move straight into this one. Somehow, Jorah had managed to keep track well enough of what was happening behind him to spare a correction.

"Kaya! You don't need to kill all of them, just stun them and buy us time!" Jorah said.

"Right!" Kaya said back. His uppercut left the Black Wolf splayed out on the floor. He could have finished it there and then, but he devoted his attention to the next, just as Jorah had told him.

This one, he dared to throw a hammer fist at, his new zone of progress inspiring creativity, daring him to move away from what he knew, and to try that which felt right in its place. The hammer fist proved to be just what he needed. It stopped a Black Wolf midstrike. The creature made a yelp from the pain, and was forced to back off.