Nereus smiled down at his exuberant daughter as she capered around his paws. Filled with the joys of living, Dappled Iris was the brightest spot in his life. She jumped up on him, standing on her hindlegs, propping herself against his chest with her paws. He was a powerfully-built bright rainbow male, with pale green ocelot markings and a kindly expression.
"Daddy, do you have to go?"
"It's not going to be for long, sweetheart. Only three days. The team's relying on me, you know I can't let them down."
Iris sighed heavily, but she looked up at her father earnestly. Her bright blue eyes were a shade darker than his own. "That's cause your the leader, isn't it?"
He ruffled the fur between her ears with his forepaw, nodding his head. "Yes Iris. As the leader, I have a responsibility to the team."
"Daddy, whats... spons-ity mean?"
"Responsibility - it means that you do what's right. Even when you have to do something hard to do the right thing, like saying goodbye for a little while. You'll understand when you're older."
Iris looked a little confused, but she nodded at his words, storing them away carefully in her memory. She always listened to her father, secretly thinking he must be the smartest waja in the whole world. Nereus pulled her in close for a hug, marvelling at his young daughter. Still clad in soft grey puppy-fur, she was as eager to learn and listen as many pups twice her age. She was going to go a long way in this world, he knew. He was proud to be her father. "I have to go get ready, sweetheart. I'll see you when I get back, okay? Be a good pup, Iris."
"Alpha Iris?"
Iris's blue eyes opened to the face of her Delta female, Crimson Breeze. The earth waja smiled and flicked her bushy tail in greeting. "Morning, Alpha. Sorry to wake you so early, but Hunt wants to check on the herd Shade spotted yesterday."
Iris uncurled and sat up, nodding to Breeze. "No problem. Hunt is right to want to start out early. Tell him I'll be out shortly."
Breeze nodded and flicked her tail once more before withdrawing from the Alpha's den. Iris took a moment to fully wake up, stretching and shaking off the last traces of sleep.
She had grown into a a lovely shadow of her father. Not quite as brilliant as her sire, she still bore his rainbow pelt beautifully, and her dapples were a soft grey-green that tended to blend just the right amount into her fur. She hadn't inherited his solid build but was easily as tall as he was, and her slender frame bore the well-defined muscle of an active lifestyle. She was, however, noticeably underweight, and her ribs showed as she stood up and headed for the den's entrance.
Emerging outside, she glanced at the dawn sky and judged it would not be long before the sun arrived. Despite the early hour several members of her small, as-yet unnamed pack had already assembled around the warm glowing coals of the den fire. Even in the low light, Iris could recognize every one of them.
Breeze was sitting quietly to one side, listening avidly to the conversation around the fire. Aptly named Lead hunter, Hunt, was speaking to the Gamma male Bright Heart, waving a forepaw to emphasize something he was saying. Hunt was a slightly paler rainbow than Iris herself, with tri-coloured bird wings arching neatly up over his shoulderblades. Heart reminded Iris of her father. Like him he was a bold-coloured rainbow with green ocelot, although his were a lighter shade than Nereus's.
White and dark green Ivy was sitting beside Mist, who's violet fur faded into the dim morning and made her easy to overlook. Shade, the rather gruff hunter, was pacing impatiently around the group, her birdwings flickering. She was the lightest rainbow of the pack, each shade blending into the last without the definition of the deeper-coloured members of the pack. Her wings, aqua, blue, crimson and purple, were actually brighter than she was.
Like their Alpha, all of the present pack members seemed thinner than they should, although active and alert.
Muzzled dipped and tails waved as Iris stepped into the faint light cast by the small fire. She nodded her greetings and sat down, curling her tail around her forepaws. "Hunt, what have you got?"
"Alpha Iris, there was a small herd of bison travelling towards the stream late yesterday evening. From Shade's report, bad as her eyesight may be-" Here he ducked a pine-cone Shade pegged at him, continuing as if nothing had happened. "-I judge that the herd would have arrived at the stream at around moon-high. As we're all aware there's not much water to be found elsewhere, so I believe they'll be nearby this morning, as there's a fair bit of growth for them the graze on the banks."
Iris nodded thoughtfully. She never liked to make hasty decisions that could affect her pack. "Bison don't often stray to these parts. Have you ever hunted them before?"
"Yes Alpha, with my father. But I was very young." Admitted Hunt. He had been one of the first to join the pack, and had followed in his father pawsteps by becoming a talented hunter. "They can be a dangerous animal to corner, and I'd need to take several of the pack with me if we were to try it."
Iris flicked her tail-tip. "Shade, give me your assessment of the herd."
Shade stopped pacing at once, nodding a quick affirmative. Gruff she may have been, but she had nothing but respect for the Alpha. "The herd comprised of five bison, all male. I would assume since they were behaving peacefully towards one another these are young animals, not yet mature."
"Thankyou. Heart, what do you think?"
Heart squared his powerful shoulders. He was a stout waja who's size may have been intimidating if it were not for his bright colours. He was headstrong, both a skilled warrior and hunter, but actually rather prone to worry. Particularly when it came to his beloved mate. "Iris, I don't think we're left with much choice. The pregnant females need fresh meat, and the small game in the woodlands is only getting more and more scarce. Kalea... she's worried about loosing the pup, Alpha."
Iris's ears flicked back in alarm. This was the first litter between Heart and Kalea, the Gamma pair. Not only they, but the entire pack, would be devastated if anything happened. Her closest friend and Beta, Emerald, was also expecting, although was not as far along as Kalea. Now the topic was on her mind, when she glanced at Ivy it seemed the huntress's sides were looking rather more rounded than the rest of them, too. Iris recalled a few weeks back a handsome light blue appa male had spent a few nights with the pack and that confirmed it. She added Ivy to the list of currently pregnant pack females.
Iris made up her mind.
"Hunt, take who you need. I'll be coming too. Let's get organized, pack, we're leaving before sun-up."
Through the small flurry of activity as Hunt started to organize the hunting party, Iris trotted over to Ivy. "I'm afraid you're going to have to sit this one out, Ivory." She spoke quietly, but firmly. Ivy smiled ruefully and flicked her Alpha with a friendly tail-tip. "Can't get anything past you, can I now?" Iris smiled in return and nudged the hunter's shoulder. "Indeed not. congratulations, by the way. When Azure wakes up, ask her to check you over, you can never been too careful with first pregnancies."
"Yes Alpha. Safe hunting." They touched noses and Ivy trotted over to Breeze, sitting down next to the earth Delta. She too was staying behind. With hooves in place of sharp claws and flexible toes, the earth breed weren't renowned for being awfully good hunters of large game.
"Okay, so that's Heart, Shade, Mist, me, and the Alpha. Breeze, could go see if Epi's awake and ask him to join us? His experience will be useful, and we're going to need the extra muscle."
In a matter of minutes the hunting party was assembled. The pack advisor Epimetheus had joined them. He was an elder waja, deep purple with faint stockings and green and khaki-coloured bird wings. Not as nimble as the younger pack members, Epi was still a skilled flyer.
They set out with Hunt in the lead. Iris had appointed him as Lead hunter because he was the most talented in the craft of any of the pack, herself included. She led the pack overall, but she knew when to pull back. Shade took off into the air to scout, as she was familiar with the position of the herd. The stream wasn't far off and the team would still be fresh after a night's sleep and the short journey.
The drought had lasted well into the summer, and it had been early spring since they saw any rainfall. Iris's pack was relatively new, having been formed just before winter, and they had moved into this litte stretch uninhabited territory because they needed somewhere to shelter from the colder months. With the lack of rainfall and the resulting prey shortage they'd experienced, Iris had started to think about moving the pack. With pups on the way, they couldn't stay in a territory that couldn't sustain them.
But at this point in time, what they needed was a successful hunt. Iris cleared her mind of the pack worries and focused on the task ahead. Everyone here would have to work together if they had any hope of bringing down a bison.
Shade swooped gracefully towards the ground, flaring her wings at the last second and stretching out her paws to land lightly. "They're sleeping. Close. Just beside the stream."
Hunt smiled cheerful, keeping his voice low. "Nice to see you've some use around here, Shade. Right, Heart, you're with me. Mist and Iris, approach from the north. Shade, from above. Epi, you're in the air too - back up if we need you, but don't take any risks. Mist, make sure our Alpha is protected. Wait for my signal, everyone. Safe hunting."
"Aye-aye!" Whispered back Mist cheerfully, waving her tail. She looked nothing at all like a warrior, her title in the pack. Deep purple with lighter SSE markings, darker mane and an eternal good nature, she was nevertheless a powerful fighter. She also had some skill when it came to hunting, and was often called upon to round out the numbers with the hunters.
Shade and Epimetheus both took to the skies, the former with a mild scowl at Hunt. Shade and the Lead Hunter had squabbled and insulted one another since they'd met, everyone was used to them.
Iris and Mist dropped into hunting crouches and stealthily made their way through the undergrowth towards the strong scent of bison. Hunt and Heart separated from them and approached from a tangent direction.
Slowly the hunters advanced upon the small herd of bison. Shade circled silently overhead, Epimetheus gliding in her wake.
Hunt's tail lifted, then gave a sure flick to one side. Action immediately ensued. Shade folded her wings and dropped straight down, precise and deadly. Hunt, Heart, Mist and Iris leaped up and charged. The bison awoke with snorts and bellows of alarm and the canines responded with howls. Hunt was heading for a medium-sized bison with the tip of one horn missing and a deep scar down his flank. The rest of the herd stampeded in every direction. Iris and Mist swerved to one side to avoid one of the panicked beasts and were a fraction behind in reaching the target.
Hunt pulled alongside the bison, which was easily twice his height and must have weighed more than six times what he did. He snapped at his heels, trying to trip him up. Heart slowed just a tiny bit to let Hunt pull ahead, then made a bold flying leap and landed upon the bison's rump, clinging grimly with all fours paws and trying to get a grip on the thick hide with his teeth. A second later Shade hit like a thunderbolt from the skies, and the bison bellowed his panic as her weight slammed him and sharp teeth found their mark in his neck. Shade remained flying, her wings beating frantically to keep up with the charging animal, refusing to let go of the hold she had on the bison. She grunted as her shoulder and wing muscles strained; the bison wasn't so much faster than she was, just so much more powerful. She hung on grimly.
Incredibly, with two adult wajas all but riding him and three more pounding along snapping at his hooves, the bison was still charging along, panic flooding him with adrenaline. Iris, running level with their prey's forelegs, risked a quick glance ahead. There was a tangled collection of undergrowth ahead of them. It was predominantly dry, but still thick enough to slow them down. The mighty bison would plough straight through the brittle flora, and they stood a very real chance at loosing him.
Her ears flattened determinedly against her neck as Iris drew reserves of strength and charged ahead. Her intention was to tackle the bisons' head, hopefully distracting it enough for the others to pull it down. However, things didn't always go as planned on any hunt, let alone when attempting to challenge such an unpredictable opponent. Pained by the clinging and biting creatures who continued to chase him no matter how hard he tried to outrun them, the bison's unpredictable temper flared when he noticed Iris enter his field of vision. Snorting, he drew his head in the opposite direction in preparation to swipe his formidable horns at the Alpha.
Mist was running just behind Iris and saw the bison's head pulling away to one side. Iris was pouring her concentration into running hard, and was at the wrong angle to see what Mist so clearly could. Like the entire pack, Mist was utterly devoted to her Alpha. With a cry of alarm, she gathered all her strength and leaped.
Mist crashed into Iris's rump, knocking the rainbow fae out of harm's way, rolling her head over heels. The bison swung. Mist yelped in pain as that powerful head connected with her chest. The force behind the blow lifted her off her paws entirely, and the violet waja was thrown well over three body-lengths to land with a hefty thump, crumpled motionless on her side.
Nereus's character is (c) to PrairieWolf (#3415)
All other waja characters (c) to RebelWolfChris (#9773)
Waja breeds (c) to for the Wajas Fansite Secret Dream.