Our hero awoke under freezing cold water, unable to move. He didn’t remember how he got there or even whether he was dreaming. All he knew was that he couldn’t breathe—and he began to panic.

Fortunately, Ava found him just in time. She dove in and pulled him out onto the snow. He coughed up water. It froze as soon as it hit the air. That’s when the pain returned. All at once, every bone in his body felt like it was on fire. He cried out in agony.

“Quiet!” growled Ava. She was relieved he was alive, but terrified he would attract more danger. Winter’s predators always accompanied the first storm. They needed to get out of there as soon as possible. She could check on him later. “Can you stand?”

Our hero could not. He couldn’t even move—but only whimper.

“Agh! Ava . . .”

He started tugging on her fur with the only arm that worked.

“What?” she asked coldly.

“I’m . . . I’m sorry . . .”

“Never mind that, now. Just keep quiet. We’ll have to carry you.” She kept looking over her shoulder and sniffing the air.

“O . . . okay . . .” the boy squeaked.

“Henry, come and give me a hand,” Ava called out. But there was no answer. “Henry?” She looked around for him. He was standing in the snow, not moving, not talking, not even blinking. No expression on his face either. He just stood there, staring.

“H-h-Henry . . .” the boy whimpered. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t . . . get it. P-please . . . help me . . .”

But he still wasn’t responding. It made Ava very nervous. She knew that look in his eye. She’d seen it in animals before. Finally, after it became perfectly clear our hero wasn’t getting back up, he spoke. His voice sounded very different from before—lower and more serious.

“Step aside, Ava. You know the rules. Look at him. He’s useless. He can no longer serve any purpose.”

Our hero didn’t understand, but Ava did.

“He’s fine! He’s just hurt, that’s all.”

“Gah hah! Just hurt? Please! Look at him! He won’t last the night—and you know it.”

The boy couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Henry . . .” he whimpered. “W-what are you saying? We’re friends!”

“Friends? Friends? No, child. I don’t have any friends.”

“But . . . you said . . . you told me . . . and what about—”

“But nothing! I tricked you! Get it? I pretended to be your friend. Those were all lies! I just wanted to eat you! That’s why I brought you here. Gah hah! I knew you’d be dumb and desperate enough to climb! I knew you’d fall. And now, you’re mine!”

You could almost hear our hero’s heart break in two. His eyes filled with tears. The pain was even worse than his broken bones.

“No!” growled Ava. “Over my dead body.”

“But I want him.”

“Well, you can’t have him.”

“Why?”

“Because I won’t let you.”

“Why!?”

“Because—he’s too important.”

“WHY?”

“I don’t know why!” said Ava. “I just know he is and that’s enough. You can’t have him. Not him. And if you try, you’ll have to go through me.”

“Fine,” snarled Henry. “Let us settle it the old way. By the ancient law of combat, I will claim him.”

He lifted his massive paw and drew out his claws. They were like a set of razor-sharp hooks. He smiled with all of his teeth. Ava bared hers as well. Her hackles shot up. She bent low, ready to charge. Henry charged first.

“Grawr!” he shouted, like a battle cry. He began snorting and squealing like a pig with each stride. Snort, snort, snort! Wee! Wee! Then, he bellowed and roared like a bull. Moo!

Ava ducked under his paw as he swiped at her. It would have taken her head clean off. She bit into his side, tearing out a chunk of his flesh.

“Agh!” he cried. “Why, you little!” And he used his other paw to backhand her across the jaw. She flew into the snow. Ava felt dizzy after that, and before she could get up, Henry charged again. He headbutted her this time. She flew through the air and landed in the pond, the same pond she pulled our hero from. Henry laughed evilly and snorted some more.

“Brah! Hah! Hah! Snort, snort, snort. Where are you? Snort, snort.” Henry went to the pond and found her. He sunk his claws into her and pulled her out. “Ah! Hah! Gotcha! Heh! Heh! Heh!”

He held her up thinking she was defeated. But she suddenly squirmed free enough to slash him across his left eye. Henry wailed and howled in pain. But it wasn’t enough to make him let go. He still held Ava in his clutches—and now he was angry.

“Agh! My eye! So, you want to fight dirty, huh?”

He dunked her back under the water and held her there.

“Thought that was pretty funny, didn’t yeh!” he growled.

Our hero saw his friend flapping and struggling. Henry was drowning her. The boy knew she didn’t have much time. Henry started laughing again.

“Brah! Hah, hah, hah! Look at her squirm! Having fun under there? Hee, hee, hee!”

The boy looked around. What could he do? That’s when he saw his pointed staff. It wasn’t far. Maybe he could use his one good arm to crawl and get it. Maybe he could stick Henry with it when he wasn’t looking. He tried. He slowly crawled. It was very painful and he knew he couldn’t make any sound or Henry would hear.

“Die! Die!” Henry cried out. “Muah! Hah! Hah! Hah!”

Sometimes he would pull her out and give her a quick breath. But it was only because he wanted more time to enjoy drowning her. “Ho! Ho! Ho!”

Finally, our hero made it to his staff. But he couldn’t stand up. Even holding it hurt. Still, he knew he had to save his friend. So, with all of his remaining strength, he turned himself onto his back and launched his staff like a javelin. He could feel his broken bones move and the cuts on his body open up more. It hit Henry, but it wasn’t very strong or accurate. It merely pricked him in the hip. Nevertheless, it distracted him enough to save Ava.

“Agh!” Henry yelped. He spun around with fury in his eyes and looked at the boy like he was going to charge him next. He lifted Ava out and slammed her on the ground.

“Now,” he growled. She couldn’t move. “I want you to watch this, Ava. I want you to see me eat him. I want you to hear his cries and begging. I’ll start with his toes. Then his legs! Then his knees! His fat little belly! And last, his face!”

Henry looked thoroughly like a monster now. He licked his lips and began kicking his back leg like a bull ready to charge. He let out a bellow. Our hero was frozen in fear. Then Henry ran at him—snorting and oinking like a pig again. Snort, snort, snort. Wee! Wee! Moo! Ava was down. Our hero had no more defenses. He was helpless. Wee! Wee! Snort, snort, snort! Henry ran right on top of the boy and then stood up on both his hind legs, like a giant. He looked down and roared at him. The sound reminded the boy of being up in the storm. It was over. He knew it. He closed his eyes and braced himself for his doom. But just before Henry struck, he heard a sound in the distance . . .

It was howling. Not Ava’s howling. Ava couldn’t howl like that. This was something different. Henry recognized it. It was . . . the one in the forest everyone feared—even our heroes: Maul, the winter wolf lord! He was coming with his pack! Henry suddenly went from looking like a monster, to a frightened and cornered mouse. He crouched down and listened again, unsure if it was real or just the wind. “No . . . no . . .” he stuttered. Then he heard it again. All three of them did. Owooo!

Maul was no ordinary wolf. He was three times bigger, pure muscle, with massive razor-sharp fangs. He was known for singlehandedly slaying animals as big as elephants. He only came in winter. The fact that he had come this early meant he must have been extra hungry.

Henry had almost forgotten the boy was still there. He sniffed the air and looked around wildly. He started shaking.

“Oh, no . . . he’s here.”

He glanced down at our hero and Ava and put his claws away. He wanted to eat them, but he dared not stay a moment longer. He left them in the snow and took off running. The boy never saw him in that forest again.

Our hero sunk into the snow, exhausted. Ava struggled to her feet and limped over to check on him.

“He’s gone,” she said. “Good riddance.”

The boy was sprawled out, almost buried. The blizzard was getting heavier. It was a sad sight to behold. He was helpless. It reminded Ava of when she first found him in the snow as a baby.

“Now,” she said. “Listen! You’ve got to get up. We’ve got to go. Henry is gone. But Maul will be here soon. He’s a thousand times worse. I can’t take him by myself. His pack will track us down and find us. You’ve got to get up.”

“I can’t, Ava,” our hero whined. “Look at me. I can’t get up. Just leave me. I don’t mind. Like you said, everybody dies.”

“Enough of that!” she barked. “Move it, I said! I never asked for your opinion! On your feet, soldier! Now!”

“Ugh . . .okay . . .” he squeaked. “I’ll . . . try.”

“That’s it!”

He attempted to use his good arm to lift himself up. He pushed with all his strength, but he just collapsed. Then they heard more howls. It was much louder and clearer. They were getting close. Ava sensed this right away and she lost all patience.

“Grr! Get up!” she barked, as though trying to scare him now—as though she was going to eat him herself if he didn’t obey. “GET UP! GET UP! GET UP! NOW!”

He tried again—but failed. He fell even harder and it hurt even more. Now he was screaming in pain. Maul would hear them for sure! They were probably already bounding toward them, closing in.

“I can’t!” our hero cried. “I can’t . . . I’m sorry!”

“Blast!” said Ava. “Fine. Have it your way. I’ll carry you myself.” She got down, bit into his arm and threw him over her shoulder, onto her back. “Hold on,” she commanded him. “And bite down on my fur if you need to. This is going to hurt—a lot. And you’re going to need to be quiet. No more of this whining.” And she took off at full speed.

Ava hurried with him through the rest of Snake Valley and into another part of the forest. She could hear and even smell the other wolves behind her. They were hungry. They were growling. Maul himself wouldn’t have been far behind. She weaved through the trees. She knew these woods well—including the places where her and the boy had placed traps. For they were now getting very close to their cave. She was heading to their secret back entrance.

Ava could hear the twigs they laid snap and the yelps as Maul’s minions fell into the holes they’d dug. A few got close. The boy could feel their breath on his feet as they nipped at his heels and toes. Ava kicked them away.

She outsmarted them with shortcuts and led some into traps. Four wolves got caught in a big net. Two were crushed under a log that fell from the trees. One was shot with an arrow from a bow that had been placed in a bush. But there were still a lot more of the gang coming.

Finally, Ava reached the entrance. She hit a switch the boy had designed that released large stones to block the way in. The other wolves nearly made it inside with them, but were crushed. Boom! Boom! Boom! It sounded like bowling balls being dumped down a flight of stairs. Our heroes barely avoided being crushed themselves. But they had made it.