Lone Wolf
By: Bay, 6th grade
A red moon shone on the land of Kundiar. Lakairn looked up, giving a small shiver. The moon had never been red before. What was going on? The red wolf stopped in his tracks, his yellow eyes scanning the sky. Nothing made a sound. No birds were flying, nothing was moving. Something in the air stunk. What had happened here? He hoped it hadn’t been Kartia, his old pack. He had left them about a year ago, leaving his mate behind. She had a dark brown pelt with green eyes, and was very beautiful. But, he had left her. He didn’t want the responsibility of being in a pack. It seemed too overwhelming.
He prayed that the foxes hadn’t done anything. Kartia had a serious rivalry with Nantior, the fox clan. What if they had started a war? He flattened his ears to his head. Then, what would happen?
He continued his search for the source of the stench. He gently sniffed the air, walking through the deep snow as he followed the disgusting scent. He followed it through a small patch of dark woods. He looked to the snowy ground. Streaks of red stained the white, and he saw the body of a fox lying on the ground not too far away. He turned away from the sight, but what he saw then nearly made him fall over.
The whole wolf pack was dead. Bodies of wolves and foxes lay everywhere. Burned out fires littered the area. The ground was a deep brown, instead of a pure white. He wandered amidst the wreckage, examining it all. He noticed some of his former pack members, those who had been his friends before he left. He saw his former mate lying on top of a fox, her eyes closed peacefully, as though she were having a dream. He gave a small gasp as he saw Kyuka, the leader of Nantior, lying dead on the ground. Her nine tails lay surrounding her on the dirt. He thought it was a myth, that a fox could have nine tails. But it was true. There was evidence right in front of him. He wondered who could have killed such a vicious creature.
He turned suddenly, hearing a whimper. It was coming from behind the body of their former leader, Keiron. He peered behind the corpse, and was shocked at what he saw.
A wolf pup lay in the dirt, apparently alive. She was asleep, fidgeting slightly. Her muzzle was stained with blood, and her ears were plastered on her head. Lakairn didn’t remember her. She must have been a new pup. He nudged her gently with his wet, black nose. She stirred slightly, and soon opened her eyes.
“Wha-whuh..?” She mumbled, looking around with half-closed lids. She looked up, giving a small shriek at the sight of the much larger wolf in front of her. She fell backwards, and rushed on top of the body of Keiron.
“Who are you?” She demanded, her tail flared. She bared her teeth, giving a small growl. Lakairn took a step forward, and said, “There is no need to fear me, little one.. I used to belong to this pack.”
He offered a large paw to her. She bit down hard on one of his toes. “Get away from my papa! You can’t get near him! He lead this pack well!” She snapped. Lakairn gave a small cry as she bit down. It did not hurt very much, for she seemed too tired to put any real force into attack, but still a few drops of blood fell to the snow. That must have been the body of Keiron.. he had to have been this pup’s daughter. He yanked his paw away from her, causing the small wolf to fall forward onto the snow. She rubbed her muzzle, and looked up at him. “Get out of here!” She snapped. “You don’t belong here anymore!”
Lakairn snarled. He had no patience for this annoying, spoiled youngster. “If you don’t stop pestering me, I’ll snap your neck before you can say you were sorry!” He shouted. The pup frowned. “Fine.. what’s your name?” Lakairn gave a disgusted snort, and responded, “My name is Lakairn. What’s yours?” He said, pretending to be interested, just to humor the pup. “I’m Kutaira… my papa, Keiron, lead this pack. But, the foxes started a war and I’m the only one left.” She said sadly, looking down. “I apologize for yelling at you, I just… I don’t want anything else bad to happen..”
Lakairn soon pitied the pup. He had never had anyone besides his mate, so he didn’t know about bonds. He placed a sympathetic paw on Kutaira’s shoulder. “It’s alright. You can stay with me.” The pup smiled. “Really?” The older wolf nodded, and Kutaira gave a yip of joy. “Thank you, Lakairn!” She nuzzled him affectionately. He turned towards the forest and said, “Come on, pup. Let’s go.” The two walked into the forest, leaving the scarred battlefield behind them.
“Papa, papa! Wait up!” Kutaira called, running to catch up with her father, who had much longer legs. Lakairn stopped, and looked at the small wolf who was bounding through the snow towards him. “You walk fast!” She panted, stopping by his side. Lakairn gave a small smile. “Come on, now, Kutai.” He said, using her new pet nickname. His daughter giggled and began to run ahead of him, wagging her tail happily. Lakairn looked sadly at the pup in front of him. Ever since she had gotten trapped in an avalanche, she called him her papa. She must have gotten hit on the head by a rock. He felt bad about fostering her like this, but decided that if he tried to reason with her, he would get nowhere.
About 30 minutes later, Kutaira’s stomach began to growl. “Papa, I’m hungry. Can I have something to eat?” Lakairn looked at the pup from his seat in the cave they lived in. “Of course, hold on a moment.” He said, and grabbed a small bit of elk he had stored in the back of the cave. He dropped it in front of the young wolf, who began to dig into it ravenously. Lakairn smiled, and walked outside the cave. He looked between the trees of the nearby forest. He gave a small gasp as he saw an ominous shadow slinking between the large pine trees. “Kutaira..” He whispered. The pup looked up at him. “What is it, papa?” “Get into the back of the cave… quickly.” He warned. The little wolf complied, hiding in the darkness of the cave.
The shadows moved again, and Lakairn caught a glimpse of yellow eyes. He took a step forward, and barked, “Who are you? Show yourselves!” The eyes appeared again, followed by a second pair of red eyes. Lakairn snarled loudly. One of the shadows slowly emerged from the dark woods, the other following suit. Lakairn dug his paws into the snowy ground, growling ferociously. The figures were two wolves. His snarling lessened only slightly. “Who are you?” He commanded.
One of the wolves, the one with red eyes, was the one that spoke. His voice was soft, clipped, and had an air of superiority. “My name is Sukemto.” His fur was black, with a slight tinge of blue. It was spiky and rugged, and his ears were large and perked. The second wolf finally spoke. “And my name is Noitar.” His reddish-orange fur contrasted greatly against the white and gray landscape. His fur was smooth and slightly shiny. His ears were flopped down at the tips. He looked almost like a fox, with a large bushy tail raised halfway in the air.
“My name is Lakairn.” He turned towards the cave, and said, “Kutaira, you can come out now.” The pup emerged shyly, looking up at the two larger wolves. Lakairn’s gaze returned to the two newcomers, and he said, “We’re the only survivors of the pack Kartia. They were all annihilated by Nantior, the fox clan.” Noitar flinched, and looked down. “My mother was a member of Nantior.. and my father was a member of Kartia.” He said sadly. Kutaira gave a gasp. “You mean.. you’re half fox?” She said, her eyes wide. “Yes… my father had a pup with one of the foxes, and he abandoned me when his mate found out, knowing that I could never be accepted.”
Sukemto scoffed. “And I met him one day when I got lost, and we’ve stuck together ever since, looking for wolves that would accept us.” Lakairn looked at the two, and smiled. “Well, you’ve found those wolves.” Kutaira smiled as well, and walked in front of Noitar. “We don’t mind that you’re half fox. I think that’s neat.” The older wolf gave a toothy smile, and ruffled her head. Even Sukemto managed a small smile. Lakairn grinned, and said, “Well, you hungry? We’ve got some elk in the cave.”
And, with tails held high, the new pack went together to share their first meal.