After howling the cub felt a little better, but had no-idea what to do. His pack usually moved on after a few days of staying in one place, but he had no pack! Should he stay here; where he felt the safest, and knew where the food was, and the major hunters. Or should he try and seek refuge in a new pack where he could learn and grow up, become part of a new wolf family. Undecided, he wandered around and found some over-ripe cloudberries that he snuffled up. Suddenly he heard rustling in the bush opposite the side of the den from him. The wolf wasn't afraid. It couldn't be anything dangerous as even the biggest predators of the forest could move deathly quiet.
After a few seconds the creature stepped out. It was a human like you or me except he had a large chunk of flesh missing from his leg. The wolf on the other hand had never seen anything like him. This creature had only hair on his head, and weirdest of all it had no tail. Although the cub had never seen a human before he knew what the man was. He had heard the elder wolves talking about this strange new pack that had no tails and walked on their back legs. The elders had told stories of how these murderous animals had infiltrated our forest, killing the 'unkillable' and dragging the body to whatever horrific torture they were going to do to it. The cub had heard only one name for them, and that was Bad-Tall-Tailless.
The hunter had a gun but the wolf didn't know what that was so called it a Beast, that spat out Loud-Bangs – referring to its destructiveness and the gunshot.
The man grinned, an almost insane look on his face after seeing the defenceless cub on the floor. He hadn't taken the wolves yet simply because there were too many of them to carry. Once he could get in touch with his cronies they would be whizzed out of here faster than you could say 'Wolf'. This cub in front of him would make a lovely scarf for his wife, he thought, picking up his gun and pointing it at the cub. The wolf instinctively whirled around and darted through the trees sheltering his den. He soon saw a bullet streak past him, ricocheting off a rock in the opposite direction. The cub wasn't worried, even-though he was still young, he could still out-run the bumbling Bad-Tall-Tailless and took joy in it. But as dark came, he stopped in a clearing, and understood exactly what leaving the den meant; He couldn't return.
He thought back to when he first had his taste of meat with the male pack-brothers. He felt really big and tough then, eating with the big fierce males. But now he felt small and insignificant, and wondered how he would be able to catch any food. He looked at the Bright-White-Eye in the sky with her many little cubs (the moon and stars) and listened to foreign packs howling their pleas to her. Then he had an idea! He would find one of these packs and join their range. He howled his pleas to the moon and rival packs. After a few minutes, hopefully waiting he finally heard a response, “We will have you. Come to our range little one and run with us”, the cub howled his thanks and resolved to find the welcoming pack. He padded around looking for something to eat, he found some juniper berries and a small rotting carcass. He smell – with sadness – that a pack had previously been here, and had recently moved away.
* * *
Its been many days and nights – or lights and darks to the cub – since he left in pursuit of his new pack. He stumbled through the branches and roots, on the brink of starvation. He looked around. This part of the forest was unfamiliar to him, it unnerved him. The trees were thicker and he could hardly see the Great-Up (sky) through the almost black leaves. Every gnarled root or overturned tree looked like a great beast waiting top grasp him if he strayed too near. It was dark again, although the cub couldn't tell dark from light in this alien world. The cub was almost blind in the pitch black, occasionally stumbling into the odd tree, until gradually he could see a small flickering light in the distance. He galloped to it and saw two Tall-Tailless' (people) saw next to it. Wolf didn't know if these were bad. He hovered for a bit, until curiosity got the better of him, as he stalked up to the light.
“Aww look at the cute wolf cub!” squealed the female person. The cub took no notice of them, transfixed on the dancing of the flames that the people had made, so as to have some light.
“Yeah. One soon to be dead wolf!” snarled the girls companion, lunging for his gun and pointing it at him
“You do that and I'm leaving you in this god-forsaken hell-hole!” The girl said jumping at the man's gun to divert him, “Look at him! He's so thin! You think his parents abandoned him or something?”
“Whaddya think your doing! You want your head blown off!” shouted the man slightly disappointed that he couldn't shoot the wolf.
Wolf stared at the fire, mesmerised by the swirling of colour and the heat emanating from it, like there was nothing else in the world except him and this Bright-Beast that he had never witnessed before. He wondered what it would do if he touched it. Therefore without contemplation the wolf swiped at the fire and yelped in pain. It bit him! He licked his fore-paw tenderly and and looked at it. It was red and swollen and as hot as the Beast that did it! - he referred to the fire as a beast as he felt the pain in his paw and though it had bitten him. He heard the breathless yip and yowling of the people, that sounded like they were laughing at him! One of the Tall-tailesses walked towards Wolf with a piece of red meat that smelt like boar. He snapped it up and felt the energy surge through him. That would keep him going for many days, or lights as the wolf thought. He barked his thanks, unsure if the human understood him and ran off to continue his journey, leaving the puzzled people behind, or as he liked to call them; the bumbling Tall-Taillesses.
As he galloped on there was a fierce, bright joy in him that couldn't be tamed. He was growing larger, his pads were toughening; his limbs, growing stronger everyday. Soon he realised he would be able to hunt for himself instead of living off the various lingon and juniper berries that he came across. He had the strong stride of an adult wolf, quite unlike the stumbling lope of his youth, able to run the Wolf-Lope that never ends.
He noticed that his surroundings were more pleasant to him now. He could see the vast 'Up' through the trees now and there were many rivers or Fast-Wets that he could stalk for weak prey. The howling of his new pack had ceased since he had entered – from hat he gathered was – their territory. The loss of his pack had saddened him greatly but wolves live in the present, and after singing his lament and wishing they would go into the Wolf-Heaven where prey is plentiful and everyone gets along, h felt it was time to let them go. More than anything though Wolf missed howling with a pack and eating with the tougher males.
* * *
Finally he was several lopes away from the den of his new pack, when he realised there was something behind him. He leaped to the side just in time, to avoid being speared by the horn of a wild boar. It was foaming by the mouth and had a tranquilliser sticking out of him. Wolf realised that it was sick and tried growling to show he was friendly, but the boar pawed the ground and snorted. Wolf knew he wasn't big enough to fight the boar but if he didn't try the boar would follow him to the den. The boar lowered his tusks for a second assault. Wolf had only seconds to act, he jumped clear over the boar, landing lightly on his feet behind it. The boar reared, roaring in anger and agony.
Wolf didn't notice the three wolves that had come to meet him, in the bushes, poised to help should he get into trouble. Wolf leaped onto the boars back and bit into its neck. The boar bucked, slamming Wolf into a nearby tree. He lay slumped against the bottom of the tree, appearing unconscious. The boar scraped its feet against the floor, like a black bull, getting ready to charge. One of the three wolves tried to run and help Wolf but the leader stopped him, “I want to see him do it on his own,” the other wolf snorted his contempt but stayed put. Wolf opened his eyes and stood up, shaking slightly. The boar charged straight at him but, this time Wolf was ready. He ducked under the boar and clamped his jaws around its neck, and ragged his head. The boar kicked weakly, and then passed into the probable boar heaven. The three wolves bounded out from the bush, licking and praising Wolf. “That was quite a feat little one. Even one as strong and fit as me would have trouble bringing down a fully grown boar on their own. Well done.”
Without warning a loud bang filled the forest. Wolf recognised that sound and dread ran through his spine. The Bad-Tall-Tailless stepped out from behind a tree clapping his hands in mock applause. The other wolves fled into the bush but Would stood his ground even-though the man's appearance had shot fear into his heart; his black lips peeled back in a snarl, baring formidable white fangs. He was no longer a cub, but a young male wolf. Wolf roared at the killer. “MURDURER!” The man stood there unflinching muttering something unintelligible to himself. There were yellow scabs on his head and clumps of hair missing. Wolf realised that he must have the sickness too, but it didn't lessen his anger of the Bad-Tall-Tailless. Wolf darted towards the person pinning him on the floor and clamping his teeth around his neck. Bad-Tall-Tailless muttered something before wolf snapped his neck and sent the Bad-Tall-Tailless, tumbling into the never-ending abyss of darkness.
His Pack-Brothers crowded around him and helped him climb the hill up-to their den. While Wolf clambered up the hill he pondered over his journey from his old den to his new den. The dangers he's faced, but he couldn't understand why the murderer had followed a lowly, little cub. Did the person not have any bigger more profitable foes to contend with. Or maybe it was the sickness, Wolf concluded.
So against all the odds a young, helpless cub found its way through the forest to another pack, where he could nurture and hone his fighting skills that would soon lead to him ruling and protecting his own tribe of wolves...
