Coping with Stress

Psyre felt immense pleasure as his hits slammed into the wolf. As it jumped back, the pressure on his leg lessened, and it a searing pain shot through it once again. The wolf retreated a short way and then began running around him before he had fully recovered his balance. He knew the wolf couldn't take much more, but it was also running faster than he could hope to. There was no way that he was going to catch this beast and kill it. Not without it slowing down more. But it also couldn't attack him without exposing itself to his staff and/or spells. (Circumference of the circle the wolf is running is approximately 60 feet, so the wolf is covering pi radians/sec, so Psyre would have to turn a full circle every 2 seconds in order to face the wolf the whole time. I was able to turn at that speed for a while without getting too dizzy, is there a specific limit Psyre should face?) Psyre turned so that he was facing the wolf as it ran around him. The wolf was running fast, and surely couldn't keep it up forever, but Psyre could tell he would get dizzy if the wolf didn't attack or run soon. He lowered his stance a bit so that he'd be ready to run at and attack the wolf, as it would be better to miss and leave himself open than to get dizzy and fall.

(can't really think of the limit, so, not sure)
The wolf, seeing the man follow its turns as it circled him, decided to close in. It was now or never, and the wolf was not about to just run.
Quickly, it decided to close the circle and try again to pounce upon the man. Closing the distance between them quickly, the wolf make another full circle, closing the distance rapidly, before making to jump after the rotation.
It would, however, watch the human carefully to see if it would have to simply charge him instead of pouncing upon him
If the man did not keep up with this last circle, it would then pounce, biting and clawing at the same time for a total of 80 damage. If the man was able to keep up, then it would simply charge him and try to either bite or claw, but not both.

As the wolf closed distance in the circle, Psyre realized there was no way he could keep spinning at that speed without losing his balance. Then, knowing full well how risky it was, he took some drastic action. He spun as fast as he could for a fraction of a second, sliding his left hand to meet his right so that he held the staff like a greatclub as he did so. Then, he set his feet and, with the staff fully extended in front of him, spun back toward the wolf, so that his momentum and its would work together to deliver a huge blow. He knew the wolf was fast, but hoped it couldn't change its direction that quickly while going so fast. If it could, he was sure to be mauled, and if it could stop itself in time or duck under, he would be off-balanced and vulnerable.

At the same time, this could end the fight. Or, if it didn't, he could always take one more hit in order to deliver the finishing blow. Anyway, he had already begun, there was no room for second guessing.

The wolf watched the man turn, but then saw its opening. The man seemed to have turned too fast, for some strange reason. The wolf did not question this though, an opening was an opportunity, and it planned on taking it. It kept its direction, and ran directly at the man; but it seemed he had planned this.
As the wolf charged him, it felt a huge blow strike it, and once again, it fell back (18 health), letting out a low yelp.
It struggled to its feet again. The human had to die now. The wolf was on its last stretch of life as it jumped towards the man, and bit once again at his legs (60 damage). It had to kill the human now, or be killed itself, and the wolf was not about to let this human kill it. Not this easily. No, it would take him out with it.
(Sorry for the short post, really tired and had a long day)

Psyre felt his arms shake as the staff slammed into the wolf yet again. This time, the wolf's yelp seemed almost feeble. It was almost dead. But it was also filled with a hatred so intense that it threw itself at him with reckless abandon. Once more, the wolf leaped forward and bit his leg. (145 hp - (60 - 5 from armor) = 90 hp remaining in topic) Psyre cried out in pain. His legs were soaked in blood and his vision pulsed red for a moment. Beginning to feel somewhat faint and disoriented, Psyre felt his staff slipping out of his hands. He let it fall. Then, with a shriek of rage and agony, he slammed his right palm down over the wolf's eyes and his left hand against its side and, without a moment's hesitation, let loose a Lesser Disruption from each hand (100 AP - 100 = 0 remaining in topic). He knew it was wasteful, risky, and probably a terrible idea, but the pain prevented him from thinking straight. He let loose everything he had. This fight would end. And he would win.

As he felt the energy leave his body and cover the negligible distance between himself and the wolf, a wave of exhaustion swept over Psyre. He was going all-out in this fight. And not the kind of all-out he had used when training, in which he worked himself to exhaustion, but the kind of all-out that leaves your nerves frayed and your heart racing. He had no idea if he would survive the next few minutes, having spent almost all his reserves on this last attack. He had come here to relieve stress, and he had found a brutal fight to the death that he wasn't sure he could win. And he felt more alive than he ever had before.

(welp, that wasn't over kill at all.)
The wolf shot away from Psyre due to the force of the spells (-92 hp left), a snapping sound softly heard as it happened.
It was there, 2 feet away from Psyre, that the wolf lay, not moving again, dead.
It made no sound, made no movement, and would lay there until the forces of nature took its toll and the body decayed.
Psyre had won this fight.

(Haha nope. Stress makes a man go wild.)
The wolf went flying, knocked back by the raw force of Psyre's last-ditch attempt to kill it. Psyre heard something snap and then saw the limp form of the wolf a couple feet away. Did I do it? Did I win? Yes, he thought. Yes, I did.

After taking a few minutes to steady his breathing, he knelt next to the wolf and began skinning it. He also took out the organs and threw them to be eaten by other animals, but packed up the meat and pelt to take with him. Here was a creature he had killed with no aid. A powerful wolf of the forest. Now, he just had to keep moving up. He packed up everything he was going to take, and then set about applying a tourniquet to his leg. He carefully wrapped it tightly enough that the bandage began to staunch the blood flow. Then, with his newfound confidence and strength, not to mention his physical spoils, he set off to return to the castle, where he would add a stripe of wolf fur to his robe.

As he began the trek back, his fatigue was clear, but he still knew the forest and how to navigate it. He walked with a calm, assured demeanor through the well-known trees. He was exhausted, but also self-sure and somewhat exuberant.

[Exit]

(In-Topic words = 1703. Requesting:
Attributes: + 34 Strength
Skills: Finish Wild Sense (takes 400 words, 1300 left), learn Lithe Form (- 500 words, 800 left), begin Spirited Escape (- 300 words, 500 in topic words left, 1200 remaining to learn Spirited Escape)
Runes: Inscribe Soul Shield and Servant Wind, as per the Inscription post (- 500 words total, 0 left))

Approved.