Together
Women of the Otherworld Fanfiction
Singingfrogs
No copyright infringement intended
Time seemed lost on the forest. The bright light from the sky had all but diminished with the moonlight twinkling vaguely beneath the dense cloud cover. The mist that hung on the ground of the woodland prevented the moonbeams to illuminate the tracks that had been created earlier that evening.
Only a minute before, the eyes of a female wolf were able to detect the light. Tracking and searching for any signs of the prey she was searching for, her sensitive eyesight picking up the bent twigs or misplaced leaves as she continued to locate her prey.
She placed her paws judiciously to the soggy ground, lifting her dirtied russet paw from the squelching mud as she repositioned and angled her slender figure over the fallen tree that was resting in her way. She leapt over the trunk and landed elegantly on the other side. Her mind was ignoring the silhouettes of branches that seemed to reach towards her with emaciated arms and protuberances as she clambered deeper into the opaque forest.
The foreboding air was biting at her being; the temperature having dropped dramatically causing the wolf to shudder her fur, the thick course hair insulating her svelte form. There were no sounds of chirping insects, no sounds of falling leaves, just the wheeling of the wind against the tree branches and the continuous thumping of the wolf's paws on the wooden floor. She was conscious about how she had not identified any other animals. She knew of the creatures that would prove hard to take down on her own.
Muntjac and Fallow Deer were the largest animals that dominated this forest and were but a few of the individuals that she had focused her hunts. Her eyes continuously scanning for typically large figures that sauntered in the darkness, her ears twizzling on the top of her head as she listened for anything that could be stalking her.
The wolf removed herself from her troublesome thoughts and dropped her muzzle to the ground, ignoring the feeling of someone's eyes staring at her back as she took in the tracks that were unmistakably made by the creature she was hunting. The wolf sat back on her hunches, lifted her nose to the air and let out a large howl; the call reverberated up her figure, over her ears and vibrated through the forest as she called the wolves she was travelling with.
However, the animal did not wait for her companions; she continued with her journey, her nose pressed to the ground as her eyes recognized the tracks as well as the distinctive scent that was all too familiar to the wolf.
She was pulled from her tracking when she sensed the arrival of another wolf. The stockier and taller male wolf nuzzled closely to her side, a question shinning deeply within his wolfish eyes; the female simply lifted her muzzle, testing the air for a scent as she unconsciously answered his question. The golden wolf rubbed his snout underneath the females, his tinted brown fur etched to his back, ears and belly helped with his camouflage while his companion was unidentifiable to the naked eye.
As the male recognized the scent of their prey, he stood to attention, pointing his eyes and ears towards his target, noting how they were downwind. It seemed during their brief communication that the other wolf the female had called arrived, standing a little way behind them, recognizing the stiffness of his leader and visitor, mentally preparing himself for a chase.
The female twisted her neck, pointing her eyes to observe her companions and with a few yips and a growl commanded her confidants to conceal themselves within the undergrowth and prepare to stalk forward.
She and her male friend haunted forward, their paws placed delicately on the muddy ground as their belly brushed against the undergrowth, eyes fixed intently on the clearing that held their target. The wolves had fanned out; each member of the small pack tracking through the forest, their mind focused purely on the job at hand. The execution of the beast.
She forced her mind to focus, disregarding the thunderous wind of the approaching wintery storm, her ears swiveling from their position as she continued to localize the sound of footsteps. She quickened her pace, her tail flicking against her companion as she moved further into the forest, closer to the clearing as if she detailed to him just how close they were to their quarry.
She stopped mid step, her paw hovering in mid-air as her eyes fell on the figure that was standing in the moonlight of the clearing, noting how the other wolf she hunted with was lying with his jaw pressed to the ground and holding his allocated positions. How she wished her Pack could be hunting with her.
The female glared at the creature in front of her. The dragon horns rose and curled in the air and the large grotesque hands that had been disfigured into talons; the beastial claws were sputtered and crocked in sharp angles. The large, bat like wings tucked away as if broken. The wolf couldn't help but let the fur on her back shudder as if remembering a dark memory that she shared with this creature.
The two wolves shared another uneasy glance, the female obviously displaying a plan of attack as she sat back with her forepaws supporting her torso before she raised her neck, her ears pressed firmly to the back of her head and emitted another loud howl that remained constant and smooth; she emanated a sound similar to that of a cry from the horned owl.
Her howl seemed to bite into the very energy of the forest. The rustling of the leaves thundered to the ears of her wolf companions. The ground vibrated with the powerful call from the Pack wolf. The forest seemed to bend to her will, the fog rising from the air, encasing the wolf and keeping her from view. The movement of the leaves and the undergrowth covered the sounds of the wolves' movements as they answered to their colleague's orders and moved closer to their target.
She could see the monster standing directly in front of her. It's nostrils flared, sensing the air in ways much like the wolves, the piercing black eyes searching the darkness; its hearing was of little use due to the rumbling of the approaching weather. The wolf was able to give more barks and wines, howling orders, unafraid of the consequences as she responded to her male companion's narrow eyes with a growl.
She placed one paw in front of the other, her back paws landing in the prints created by her front paws as she strolled slowly into the clearing, making sure to swirl her tail in the males face as she moved forward, symbolizing to them of her plan.
Her hackles were raised as she moved, her tail swaying high in the air and her lips rising to exhibit her teeth as she moved. Her prey unconsciously took a few steps back, afraid of the impending attack as she took in the revenge that shone darkly within the wolf's eyes, a growl rumbling from within her chest as she continued forward with confident and well-placed steps.
The male wolf watched the face off noticing the gallantry of the creature that had remained hidden from view for the majority of their hunt. He yowled his own orders, preparing the two of them to drop to their stomachs, awaiting the signal to bolt. The female wolf gained on her prey, understanding the barks of her friend, knowing that her target was frantically searching for the location of the concealed wolves.
She was so preoccupied with the barking of her family she was unable to identify the very obvious signs that her target was about to bolt. Before she could even growl out of frustration her feet propelled her forward as she tore after the figure she had just come face to face with. Her male friend howled his orders; vibrations created by two other wolves feet lifted to her ears as she tore through the large tree trunks and the surrounding foliage of the forest.
She knew this was the most critical stage of her hunt. She may never catch up with her prey, even running at her top speed could become a problem due to the twisting roots that littered the ground and she did not want to become lame. However, she had the stamina that most animals did not possess; maybe she could run her prey to exhaustion. These thoughts could be very little use to her; this creature had large strong wings and easily had the chance to take off, to fly from their chase. But the wolf knew why he was running. The canopy of trees was thick and un-impenetrable, the creature was waiting for a clearing, a clearing she hoped would never come.
She could feel the mud oozing between her pads as she struggled to gain the traction she needed to keep running. She slipped and stumbled causing the beast to laugh which only resulted in the wolf's own anger to rise through her body, encouraging the wolf onwards that called upon the strength in her muscles, allowing her speed to increase as the forest moved passed her in a blur.
The pounding of the wolves feet against the ground moved over her body, the rumbling vibrations shoved to her ears as she felt the branches of neighboring bushes and trees snag at her dense fur, the leaves dropping the dew on to her coat as she tore after the figure that had suddenly grown very close to her running figure.
She was so focused and wrapped up in her hunt that she was unable to distinguish the rapid blur of motion that seemed to be trailing the creature. The pathway that they were suddenly running on was placed deep within the cover of the trees that loomed over them, encasing the group of wolves but also providing substantial problems for whatever it was they were chasing to navigate through the twists and turns of the tree trunks.
But suddenly, as the wolf looked ahead of her, recognition flooded into her eyes as she acknowledged her location. She knew she needed to slow down otherwise the speed that was carrying her would cause her to go barreling over the mountainside.
She shoved her paws to the muddy ground, scrambling for a footing, as her paws seemed to fall from underneath her. She skidded for a few meters, her paws entangling and tripping her over which caused her rather ungraceful and embarrassing attempt to stop herself from tumbling; a grunt was released from her mouth when her jaw landed rather painfully to the ground.
As she slowly lifted her paws, heaving herself back onto her feet she could hear the growling and aggressive barks of the wolves behind her. She felt one of them brushing against her thick course hairs, his eyes shining brightly in the moonlight as the three of them stood at the cusp of the hill, their eyes taking in the trees and the flying figure of their quarry.