Chapter 4: Bane style
So with pups in pocket I make my way west toward my new prey at a speed that would leave horses green in envy.
But not a few minutes before I reach my destination I smell something else…..hmmm….I smell damp fur, berries and….wolves blood?….ahhh I see this must be the bear that fatally wounded the mother of my new pups.
I'm not quite sure of the size of the beast but I could always use a new cloak, the one I have now seems rather plain for my taste, and it seems material for said new cloak just found itself in my path.
It seems my new cloak was tracking the boar I was going after, what a wonderful coincidence.
I'm not sure how intelligent these two pups are but I imagine they would get some form of closure watching their new master end the life of what took away their mother.
So closing in on my new cloak, moving silently through the snow powdered, bushes and shrubs, making sure I'm always down wind I finally see the living cloak slowly meander toward the direction I smelled my boar, with it's head down sniffing out the trail.
And wasn't he just a big boy….even on all fours he stood just over 6'5, he would stand over 11 feet tall on his hind legs which means…..he's definitely big enough for my new cloak.
Some would be intimidated by such a sight but honestly to me after my experiences he's absolutely adorable in comparison, no more threatening then a winning the Pooh plushie
So while keeping quiet I take out my little passengers from the inner lined pockets of my cloak who seemed rather content to stay in and whined a little when I took them out.
The was until their bodies stiffened in my palms as the started to smell the air, they knew that scent….how could they not? It still had their mother blood drying on it's paws…
The pups were starting to shiver in fear, I guess they still had a little trauma from the whole ordeal, well I suppose it only happened a little while ago, but hopefully what happens next will help em out with that…I'll put on a bit of a show for them.
So I placed their still shivering forms onto the ground and give a quick and quiet pep talk I'm sure they don't understand "alright gang huddle up, I know you smell that big fella just upwind so, just watch"
I started making my way toward the big ol brown bear with the two pups I've yet to name about 5 steps behind with tails still tucked as I made my way into the open where my cloak was still tracking tomorrows dinner.
The bear suddenly shot its head up my direction with anger on its face as it roars in defiance at the affront my presence seems to to cause, only to take a closer look and realise I'm a lot bigger then he thought I would be…he's probably used to being the big dog around here.
But without much hesitation he stands on his hind legs to try and establish his superiority over me in size and all I can is…..that is such a bad idea idea..
I take a quick peek backwards to my two little wards and see them terrified with tails tucked and shivering but also snarling with their cute puppy faces.
So without much fanfare I take a boxing stance a move forward, slowly enough for me but for the bear it would have looked like I was sprinting as he swipes at me with his left paw and I simply ducked under it and flow into a right straight into his ribs which results in a *CRUNCH* followed by a left straight into the opposite ribs resulting in another *CRUNCH* and finishing it with a nice crunchy uppercut which lifted the bear off his feet and sent him onto his back howling in a desperate pain..
The pups at this point are stunned at the fight that ended in the blink of an eye with their new "master" absolutely destroying the scariest and biggest predator they had seen in their very short lives, the one that took the life of their mother..
The fight was pretty much over, I really pulled my punches as I didn't want to damage the fur, but I definitely shattered its ribs and jaw and normally I'm not one for unnecessary cruelty towards animals that have done me no harm but I mentality promised my pups a show and a show is what their gonna get…
So I walk up behind the bear now yowling and thrashing in pain and kick it onto its side and grab a fist full of fur from its neck and its lower back in each hand and hoist it with minimal effort over my head.
The pups are in awe of this as I can't help but bask in their adoration a little and as the bear thrashes around I bring it down as I knelt slightly and broke his back bane style over my knee and drop him to the ground.
The yowl intensified to now epic proportions but also starts making wet choking sounds….that caused his shattered ribs to puncture its lungs.
And again I'm not normally one for unwarranted cruelty like this but I wanted to show my pups I was the alpha early in a very unforgettable fashion, these things are most likely dire wolves, if not at least have some dire wolf blood in them…and from my time on fenris as a space wolf you can't ever be seen as anything less than an alpha to wolves….not that a dire wolf from planetos could actually compare, but the lesson should be transferable.
So ignoring the look of awe of my new fledgling pack and the wet choking on the "boss" bear I walk up behind him and and wrap my arms around his throat and with a quick snap it's done.
I store away the body and move towards the pups who are still just looking at me, no tails wagging or tucked, just completely still and just scoop them up without a word and tuck them back into my inner pockets and start moving toward tomorrow dinner...
I found it quickly enough by some random trees using its snout to shovel through some dirt and snow, clearly looking for some roots or worms or whatever they eat.
But my blade was already in its skulls before it realised it was in danger and another corpse stored in my inventory…..
I'm getting a little hungry now and I'm sure the pups are the same…
It takes me only about 10 minutes at a brisk walk before I spot the glow from the fires in the now darkened forest as night has started to settle in.
I take out the corpses of the buck,bear and boar to carry them back to camp, not that I care if people knew I used "magic" buts it's just not practical for me yet…
So I hoisted the bear across my shoulders and took the buck and boar under each arm….I would look ridiculous from an outside perspective but it's the best way for me to carry them back to camp…
So I trundle my way back to camp and am met with a round of gasps and "by the gods!" As my quarry was the first thing that anyone noticed…not surprising really considering it would take 2 grown men to carry the buck or the boar currently sitting under my arms, but I'd say the majority of the gasps and whatnot came from the "gargantuan" monster of a bear currently resting across my shoulders as I reason it would take a horse or two and a sizeable cart to move that thing as is.
I ignore the looks from everyone and ask "anyone here good at skinning? I need this bears hide skinned properly as in planning to make it into a cloak" I know most people here could bleed and butcher without much hassle but I need an experienced set of hands to skin this bear and I'm guessing a seamstress to fashion it into a cloak….I'm fairly sure there's a seamstress amongst these people I just can't remember who.
A man approached from the rabble of the crowd, he looks fairly seasoned looking man with salt and pepper hair and extended stubble for a beard, he has typical northerner features of a strong jaw line, dark hair and greyish eyes "aye m'lord, I'd say I'm an old hand when it comes to skinning, my profession is actually leather working but any leather worker worth his salt would know a thing or two about skinning….and not to sound to arrogant m'lord but I'm quiet good at what I do"
"Fantastic" and with a shrug I drop the bear behind me and drops the buck and boar to my sides " I also need these two bled and butchered, save the hide I'm sure we could use the leather for something…so where's dinner?"
The girl who informed me about my food before I left approached me , I really should learn these peoples names, I've been travelling with them for over a month, but the old "me" wasn't much of a conversationalist….I suppose I can do that later…
"Your food is ready m'lord, it's being prepared over by the wagons"
Guess I'll have something to eat and see about learning some more about the people around me.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone