Awakening (2 book series)
Awakening – Rejected Mate Chapter 67

I don't know what I thought I would achieve and honestly, I didn't have time to ponder either the science or the stupidity, but I throw air at a bear in a bid to save my own hide. Then groan as logic slaps me in the head for being an idiot. Like something out of a Hollywood movie though, I watch in wide eyed disbelief, as the bear is hit with an almost invisible force that ripples the air around it, sending the milky veil into shimmering, flowing movement, like mesmerizing water after a rock is thrown in. It makes its body indent crazily, like I just rammed it with a truck at crazy speed, and for a milli-second, time slows down as I take this all in. It's thrown back more than three times the distance it threw me, flying high in an arc through the clearing and lands with a shuddering thud on the floor below the tree line spectacularly. I swear, the ground quakes with the force and reverberates through my healing body dully, bringing a calm to the forest that was not there before. Complete silence as everything stops, and all of nature pauses to say, 'what in the hell was that?!

The air pulsates around it silently, the veil moving over and away like I blew a candle and the smoke disperses in the waves of breath into nothingness. Disappearing like it never was, and I'm as shocked as the damn bear at what I just did, sitting stupefied, watching in complete disbelief. Panting, with an erratic heartbeat, hunched up in my poised pose but dumbstruck and blinking at it.

It seems stunned for a moment, rolls, and crawls to its trembling legs, blinking my way, and then turns and takes off at a ridiculously slow speed, no longer willing to combat whatever I just did. It's not recovered though, it's clumsy, and swaying, and crashing into the undergrowth.

It doesn't get very far, as I watch from my perched semi kneeling position. It's staggering sideways, then slowing to a bumbling uncoordinated mess of a stop, falls over its own feet and slumps face down on the ground. It's like it's drunk and as it lets out a long noisy groaning exhale, I pull myself to my feet, and watch as it falls completely silent.

I can hear a heartbeat in the air around us, so suddenly it makes me jump; slow, labored, one, two more, and stop. I'm shocked that it was so pitch clear while so far away. It couldn't have been its heartbeat, surely? It had to be mine, but I can't hear it anymore, and I check my pulse to be sure I'm not actually dead and already crossed over to the other side. Nope, still beating as I press my clawed paw to my b****t and snort out a thankful half growl.

I blow out my lungful of air and give myself a few seconds to fully heal every single tiny injury it inflicted, stretching out my ribs to be sure. I stay in wolf form and slowly edge forward to see if it's still alive, trying to recover my wits, and focus for a second attack. Surprised to see my fire, and food, was free from our thrashing around and still smoking away gently, untouched. It smells pretty good too, and my mouth waters with how hungry this has suddenly made me. Weird.

My bag is kicked to one side, but nothing looks ripped, and I catch sight of the t-shirt still sticking out, bringing a sense of calm to my internal rage, which had still been simmering away all on its own. I pass it and come up at the bear from the side, veering left cautiously, and keeping my distance in case this is a ploy to get me close.

The bear has its eyes wide open, glassy, its tongue hanging from an open mouth, framed with teeth, eliciting no breath, and blood streams from both nostrils. It's vacant, staring at nothing, and I realise whatever I did, it messed the bear up inside, and it's dead. I can tell without touching it that it's life force and aura is completely gone. My senses tuning in and replaceing nothing.

I did that. With whatever I threw that I couldn't see, I killed the bear.