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from his vanquished hands. The wolf was unfazed however,
somehow breaking free and thrusting his heavily-booted
foot squarely into my face. But my body was chiseled from
unfiltered purpose, and blows from even the greatest beast
would not immediately prevail against it. Suddenly, the
wolf wrapped his shattered arms around my midsection,
and in a display of exhilarating desperation and strength,
lifted me into the air and smashed us both through a nearby
window. The cool wind, the bottomless night, the weightless
blood and glass that caught the moonlight, the raging wolf
himself—gifts, all. Our descent ended violently atop a large
rooftop. Debris and blood rained down around us, the fallout
from a beautiful dream. I rose to my feet, but the poor wolf
would never rise again. The sight cut me deeper than his
knives. Finally, I stopped laughing.
The din of battle melted away, and I inherited the
remaining names from the dead hunter’s list. I looked into
the night—it was thinly pierced by the tiny amber lights of
distant glowing windows. What power or device illuminated
the rooms behind those windows, I couldn’t say. They
shined like gentle stars made from the calm of autumn. And
the moon, while visible, seemed restrained by the city’s
presence—only the dimmest light drifted down to the world
below. As I took in these exquisite sights, the wind grappled
with my coat, snatching at my hair and beard. I took a deep
breath, wondering if I inhaled air or darkness.
A slightly elevated rooftop hovered nearby, well within
range of a spirited leap, so I climbed into the night, soon
reaching the apex of my ascent. My destination was visible at
this vantage—a distant and nearly collapsed apartment high-
rise. Traveling the open streets was too risky an alternative,
so I decided to find another way across to the next building.
After I quietly laid my shoulder into it, the rooftop door
opened gently enough. The muted sound flitted down the
narrow stairwell and would have gained the hallways below,
had it not been for my expanding silence. I descended to the
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