Past

"Father?" Eric was overwhelmed for a moment, hearing the voice of his own father made him remember the last moments of his life on Earth...

*****

"I don't get the point in this!" he muttered under his breath as he collected some dry wood for the fireplace his parents wanted to build.

"No... I've been reunited with my family after so long... they're doing this so we can act more like a family, I guess... so I have to be grateful to them"

He smiled weakly, looking at his hand. "These hands that have spilled human blood... does a person like me deserve a loving family?" he said, remembering his childhood and the many things he had been forced to do just to survive.

With a sigh, he dismissed his thoughts and went back to collecting firewood. After he judged he had gathered enough, he started heading back to their camp.

"Huh... who would have thought my parents would enjoy the wild nature so much?"

Walking through the forest, he enjoyed the wind playing with his short hair and the crisp mountain air.

"Maybe... just maybe, I can forget my past... forgive myself and live a good life,"

His thoughts were interrupted as he heard a scream from the direction of their camp.

Without hesitation, Eric dropped the wood and dashed with full force toward the source of the scream.

"What happened?!" he cursed softly as he ran.

Once the smell of blood reached his nostrils, his eyes widened and he increased his pace even more.

Approaching the source of the scream, he saw his father on the ground, one wolf trying to bite off his neck, while the other was biting his raised hand.

"NO!" he screamed, trying to get the attention of the wolves. Digging his foot deep into the ground, he exploded in the direction of the wolves.

In the next second, he was already upon the wolf that was trying to crush his father's throat.

Managing to separate them, he lifted the 40-kilogram wolf with ease and threw it to the side, only for the second wolf to jump on his back and bite his right shoulder.

Instinctively, he jumped back, placing his weight on the wolf. With a scream, the wolf let go. Immediately, Eric rotated his body and caught the jaws of the wolf with his hands.

He rotated the upper part of the jaw to the left while rotating the lower jaw to the right. The beast shuddered for a moment, then its jaws cracked and broke.

Getting up on his feet, he witnessed the wolf he had thrown to the side charge at him with its mouth open.

Filled with adrenaline and rage, remembering how the wolf had bitten his father's neck, he stepped toward the wolf.

The wolf jumped with its mouth open, ready to deliver a devastating bite. Without hesitation, Eric drove his hand into the beast's mouth.

Pushing further and further, he pierced the beast's stomach and instantly killed it.

Throwing the beast aside, he ran up to his father.

"FATHER! STAY WITH ME! TALK TO ME!"

'There has to be a way to save him, right?!' With that thought, he approached his father, only for his eyes to narrow in horror. The amount of blood spilling from his father told him all he needed to know.

His father was about to die here.

"Eric..." His father's voice brought him back to reality. He grasped his shoulder weakly, clearly moments away from dying.

"There are more... your mother... your sister..." These were the last words his father spoke before his eyes dulled, indicating he was no longer alive.

"FUCK!" Eric, not having time to mourn his father's death, got up and dashed to their camp, instantly realizing what his father had been trying to tell him.

"Mother, sister, please be safe!" he muttered under his breath as he dashed through the forest, not sparing even a little bit of strength.

Arriving at the camp, his eyes narrowed as he saw his worst fears come true. His mother was clutching his sister, desperately trying to protect her from the pack of wolves.

After that, all Eric saw was red.

…

"Where am I?" he asked himself. He was covered in injuries from head to toe, and the amount of blood he was losing was no laughing matter.

He didn't have any medical experience, but he instantly knew he was as good as dead.

Observing his surroundings, he saw about a dozen wolves lying on the ground, dead. Some had crushed skulls, others had ripped limbs.

"What… was the point of my life?" he asked himself, trying not to collapse as he was barely standing on his two feet.

He wasn't able to protect his mother or sister, the wolves were simply too much...

At least that's what he thought until he heard a faint breathing. Shifting his gaze, he saw his young sister, taking shallow breaths.

She was alive.

Without hesitation, he picked her up and began running to the nearest town, hoping he could make it in time.

It was a weird experience, he thought he was running, but he wasn't able to feel his legs. His vision had become so blurry, it almost prevented him from seeing anything.

And yet, he didn't stop running.

His feet produced slapping noises with each step he took, because of the blood dripping from his torso to his legs.

'Please! I have to be able to save my sister at least! Otherwise... what was the point of my life?' With these thoughts, he ran. He wasn't sure if it was one kilometer or ten, but finally, he saw a building with a red cross on the entrance.

'Did I make it?' he asked himself as he entered the building, then he heard the ear-piercing scream of a nurse standing close to the entrance.

As he passed his injured sister to the doctor, Eric felt gratitude.

'It seems all that training wasn't so useless after all.'

That was the last thought he had on Earth before collapsing dead on the floor, everything becoming darker.