Attack of the prey

In the heart of the vast misty autumn forest, where golden leaves blanketed the ground and the crisp air smelled of pine and earth in the changing of the seasons, Stolas began a patrol one evening just as twilight began to settle over the land. The sun dipped below the horizon, bringing with it the chill of night while the Goetia padded silently through the woods, going on his usual routes along the edges of Hellborn territory to ensure the pack remained safe. Fledgling packs like Hellborn were often the targets of stronger packs, and he would not let another home fall to ash and ruin around him.

However, the enemies he expected to see were not the ones he came across. As Stolas rounded a particularly large oak tree, he noticed something unusual. The air was filled with a series of sharp, aggressive chattering noises. Curiosity piqued, he moved closer and saw a stark white rabbit sitting near the trunk of the tree, its puffy tail flicking and jittering anxiously. The rabbit was so bright and out of place against the dark woods that it immediately caught Stolas' attention. His head tilted, watching the little creature as he went to move past it, and to his surprise, the rabbit did not immediately bound away from the wolf as he expected it to. Instead, it remained perfectly seated in place while Stolas passed by. Huh... Peculiar...

But if he had thought the rabbit's behavior was peculiar before, he was utterly perplexed when he suddenly felt a sharp nipping at one of his heels. Yelping in surprise, Stolas all but jumped out of his skin and leapt away, spinning about in a frenzy to see that same rabbit right behind him. Wide gray eyes stared in surprise back into the malice filled gaze of the lagomorph. The rabbit just stared up at him, bucked teeth bared as if it were trying to snarl at him. Stolas stared in utter disbelief. Had this rabbit just attacked him?! Then before his very eyes, Stolas watched as the herbivorous prey animal once more lunged for his legs, snapping its bucked teeth at his wrist and toes. The dire wolf backpedaled a step to get out of its range, but the rabid rabbit was persistent and continued its advance, seemingly fearless of the massive apex predator.

"What the hell is your issue?!" the fallen prince snapped back at the manic lagomorph, realizing it probably could not speak the lupine tongue. He did not relish the idea of killing for sport, but this rabbit was proving that this might be the first recorded case of justifiable lethal force in self defense against a hare! He could certainly not tell anyone about this. They would laugh him right out of the pack! But he was not about to be routed from his patrol by a damned prey animal! Scowling with a snarl, Stolas refused to give up another inch of ground. The rabbit came for him again and Stolas responded by punting the football sized creature across the clearing, watching it go sailing through the air and collapsing a short distance away. Served it right. With a harrumph and a nod, Stolas turned and began to leave the clearing to return to his patrol.

And then another sharp bite came at his heel. Stolas yipped and jerked away from the pain, spinning about to see that bloody rabbit once more, looking even more infuriated than ever! What on earth had possessed this animal?! Some sort of demonic spirit? Were these woods truly haunted? "Begone, strange and foul creature! Next time, my mercy will reach its limits!" Stolas snarled at the rabbit and lunged for it, trying to scare it back. But to his shock, the rabbit did not retreat. Instead, it rushed him like it was anticipating a fight! The rabbit ducked underneath the wolf's larger form, and before he knew it Stolas felt those flat teeth chomping down on his hind toes. Little stabs of pain lanced through his paw as he scrambled to get the bunny from out beneath him. Okay, play time was over!

Sidestepping to put some space between himself as the violent lagomorph, Stolas found his opening and took it. As soon as he could reach the rabbit, those powerful lupine jaws were closing down around its back, biting down hard enough for the prince to taste blood. The rabbit let out an awful pained squeaking sound and tried to kick and thrash its way to freedom, but Stolas had had enough. He was ending this absurdity of a fight. Thrashing his head from side to side to stun and disorient the rabbit, the dire wolf waited until he felt the fight leave the rabbit's flailing body, then he chucked the creature like a rag doll at the giant oak tree. The rabbit's body smacked into the solid trunk with a sickening smack and cracking of bones before it collapsed limp to the ground, bloody and dead. The fight had not been much of a fight in the end, but it was still so bizarre that Stolas just did not know how to process it.

Taking a moment to recompose himself, the Goetia prince wiped the blood from his mouth and smoothed down his fur. He checked himself for injuries and, when none were found, continued on his way. His report back to Widow would not make mention of the murderous rabbit he had encountered along the way.

"Stolas"