Hey Guys, Shadow again. I had to write a story for Academy English (I loved writing it) so I decided to share it with ya’ll. So, without further ado, I present to you…”A Wolf’s Tale”
“Arrooo,” the howl rang out over the snow-covered forest. Amber narrowed his eyes, there was no reply. His brothers had brought him hunting on this cool, crisp night, so where were they? Amber lifted his head to howl again, but stopped, he pricked his ears, yes! There it was! His brother, Onyx, was returning his call. Amber wagged his tail in excitement, or was it relief? This was his first time hunting, and the fear that he had gotten separated from his brothers was still evident in the wild beat of his heart. Suddenly, Amber was snapped out of his thoughts by another howl, this one from his other brother, Topaz. Every hair on Amber’s pelt prickled. Topaz’s howl was not one of assurance, nor one of positioning, but a desperate cry for help.
Amber’s heart started going a mile-a-minute again What was happening to his brother? Onyx’s bark cut across the night, a command, on telling Amber to get to Topaz as fast as he could. Amber didn’t hesitate, he jumped off the large boulder he’d been using as a platform, and started running as soon as his paws met hard-packed, snow. He thundered across the ground, fluffs of snow coming loose with every step. As his claws dug in, to get traction, and then pushed out, freeing the soft snow from the top layer of ice. Amber’s mind raced with all the horrible things that could have possibly happened to Topaz, changing with the beat of his heart.
A sharp, musky smell entered his nostrils, Topaz! Amber extended his stride, claws out-stretched. With one tremendous leap he landed in the clearing where Topaz lay. Amber bit back a yelp, the scene before him would have him wailing to the moon if he wasn’t careful. His brother’s legs were twisted in all sorts of odd angles, and a pool of blood stained the snow around him. Amber padded forward quietly, tears brimming his eyes. “Topaz?” he whimpered. Topaz flicked an ear to show he had heard him. Amber’s heart had slowed down to a normal pace, but now it felt like it was slowly coming apart. His stomach twisted in a mix of fear, concern, and…regret. Regret for not being with his brother, to protect him. Amber hastily pushed away the though, he was younger than Topaz and he was here now, and Onyx would be soon. He strode over to Topaz’s body, his older brother’s golden brown pelt stained with a dark crimson tint, and his sides barely rising and falling with every intake of air. Amber took a deep breath, “Topaz, what happened?” he asked, his voice barely a murmur. Topaz lifted his head, slowly, painfully, “Amber? Grizzly bear…tried…kill…couldn’t,” he gasped and his words nothing but a formed pant of air. Amber rushed forward, creating a pillow for his brother’s head as he laid it back down. “Don’t worry Topaz! Onyx will be here soon!” he said, with a confidence even he didn’t feel. Topaz numbly shook his head, “No, I won’t make it till then. Amber, please-“ he didn’t finish because he was cut off by Amber. “Stop!” he screamed, “Don’t say that!” the tears now running down his long in hot streaks. Amber licked his brother’s head repeatedly, but Topaz only opened his eyes one final time, “Amber tell Mother, Father, and Onyx I love them, and you dear brother, I will watch over you from the stars…” with that, he closed his eyes, forever. “Topaz! Topaz!!!!” Amber howled, his tears running from his eyes, down his neck, melting the snow, pooling around his paws. A rustling in the bushes announced Onyx’s presence. The dark-pelted form of his brother came around to the opposite side of Topaz’s body. “We have to carry his body back to the cave,” Onyx’s gruff tones cut through the air, like a sparrow in flight, across the small clearing. Amber nodded numbly, still grieving for the fallen Topaz. He lowered his head to the ground, lifting his brother onto his back, Onyx beside him. Together they carried their beloved brother back to their cave.
Amber barked when they were outside of the cave, his mother, Sapphire, and his father, Thor, padded out. Upon seeing her dead son’s golden pelt, Sapphire wailed an eerie, and mournful cry to the moon, one that only a grieving mother could make, as she rushed forward. Thor came forward more slowly, not speaking. He locked eyes with Onyx, “What happened?” he demanded, in a closely controlled voice, keeping his emotions in check. Onyx grunted and pointed, with his nose, at Amber. Thor looked at his youngest son. Amber understood immediately and he dropped to his knees, Onyx did the same, letting Topaz’s body fall gently to the snow.
Then Amber climbed to his paws and padded to his father. “What happened?” he repeated, using the same controlled tone. Amber felt a shudder run through his body. “From what I could make out, Father, it was a grizzly bear,” he murmured, eyes low. Thor nodded, “I see, I will have to warn the main pack about this,” he grumbled, lightly, not looking forward to the journey. Amber’s head barely moved up and down in understanding. He knew of the main pack, they had his mother and father to explore potential territory ten years ago. His “pack,” consisted of Thor and Sapphire, his father and mother, and his brothers, Onyx and…Amber’s eyes started to tear up again, but he forced them away, he only had one older brother left, Onyx. Suddenly, Amber was snapped out of his reverie, his father was saying his name, “Amber!!” Thor barked again. “Y-yes sir?” Amber managed to stammer. Thor’s eyes looked up and down his youngest son. “Onyx and I will be leaving immediately. You and your mother will stay here. Alright?” Amber was still trying to get over the shock of what his father had told him. While they were gone, he would be the only male left, he would be in charge of defending pack lands. Finally, Amber managed a small nod, “Yes, Father. I promise to make you proud!” Thor snorted approvingly, “Very well.” Then he turned and padded over to Onyx. Amber could only hear small murmurings, before his father and brother turned as one, nodded curtly, and jumped down to the snow, vanishing into the distance.
Amber sighed, letting his tail droop. He padded over to his mother, her tears rolled down her face, darkening her blue, black fur. Amber pressed against his mother, and finally, he let himself grieve properly for his fallen brother. They stayed like that, Amber and his mother, pressed against each other crying over Topaz’s body, for the rest of the night, the moon shining a singular beam down on them, their shadows stretching into oblivion.
Many moons passed, and Amber hunted and fought to protect the pack lands as he’d sworn to his father. Sapphire watched her son grow, and she knew he would be a strong wolf, valuable to the pack.
Amber awoke one morning to a bright sun, and fingers of purple, orange, and yellow streaked across the sky, making the mountains glow. He breathed in deeply padding over to his mother, Sapphire. He bent down and gingerly licked her ear, waking her. “Good morning, Mother,” he smiled, “Would you like to go hunting with me this fine morning?” he asked her. Sapphire blinked, “Of course I would! I’ve felt very useless with all the prey you’ve been brining in!” she stated, smiling. Amber perked his ears at the happy note in his mother’s voice, “Great! Let’s go!” Amber sprinted into the forest, closely followed by Sapphire.
Amber pulled up after a few minutes of thundering through the no-longer snow covered forest floor. His nose shot up, and the smell of deer wafted into his nostrils. His eyes met his mother’s Her eyes were soft, and the color of the bluest sky, those were the first eyes he’d seen when he was born, and his little eyelids flickered open. Amber blinked and the blue eyes vanished momentarily, then they were there again, but now they showed concern. Sapphire took a step towards Amber, “Are you feeling alright, love?” she asked, taking another step. Amber smiled and nodded, “Yes, Mom, I’m fine. It’s just…I love you so much and I can’t even begin to express how glad I am that you’re my mother.” Sapphire’s worried gaze instantly switched to one filled with the brim with love. “I love you to,” Sapphire spoke softly, “but we should get hunting!” That said, the two wolves, mother and son, went in opposite directions in search of food. Amber tracked down the deer he had scented earlier, it was small, so he brought it down with ease. He looked at the deer, though it was small, it could feed him and his mother, he decided to go find her, save her the trouble of killing something. Amber stalked back through the forest, tracking his mother’s scent. The scent got stronger and so did Amber’s feeling of foreboding. Suddenly the source of his fear became known. Sapphire’s body lay on the ground, but she was not dead. She twisted and convulsed as tremors ran through her. Amber shook his head, unable to believe this was true. “Mother?” he asked, his voice shaky and unsure. Sapphire very lightly lifted her head, “Yes love, it’s me,” her voice was small and it seemed like she was fighting to keep the out of it. Amber took a few steps and he was standing beside her. “What happened? How could this happen?” he asked, his vision becoming blurry because of his tears. Sapphire pulled her paws under her with obvious effort. “Amber, my love, it was the humans. The rabbit I caught and ate was poisoned with their filth. I will not live much longer. So I have one last request of you. Will you protect our land until your father and brother return?” Sapphire looked up at him with hope in her eyes, even as they were beginning to cloud. Amber nodded his head. How could he not? This was his mother’s dying wish, he had to do it. “Mother, what about you?” he asked, his voice trembling again. Sapphire smiled weakly, “Don’t worry about me. Young one, life and love will go on…” with her last breath used, Sapphire slid back down onto the ground, her eyes closing. “I love you Mother!” Amber whispered emotionally. “I love you to Amber,” she croaked, and then her chest stopped moving as the poison took control. She was gone.
Amber cried in anguish, first Topaz, now his mother. Why was fate being so cruel to him?! He turned and ran for no place in particular, he just wanted to get away from this place where death hung like a cloud. Amber stopped after running for what seemed like hours, but was only a matter of minutes. He looked around, he recognized this place. He padded over to the large boulder he’d used as a platform many, many moons ago. It was from this place that he had howled and Topaz had returned his howl with one filled of desperation. Amber looked up into the sky that was now dark and star-speckled. He stared closer at a group of stars that were a golden color and his eyes were warm. Amber’s eyes scanned the “night blanket” and he saw another wolf, this one with a beautiful face and blue-tinted fur. Her eyes were the color of the blues sky. “Mother? Topaz?” Amber whispered. His mother and brother hadn’t lied, they would watch over him for all the moons he lived. Amber lifted his head and opened his mouth. A single, crisp howl pierced the night, a sound filled with the pain of losing a loved one, the warmth of a mother’s touch, and the understanding of what one is destined to do. Amber let the howl die out and he took a deep breath. He would protect this land until not one drop of blood remained in him. Until he joined his mother and Topaz among the stars…
