Life ~ Distant Promise

The wolf pup woke up to see his three brothers still asleep. No problem. He always was the adventurous one of the four brothers. Outside the sun had barely risen above the sandy beach bordering the small snowy plain that these wolves called home, painting the sky orange and red. He stretched and rolled around in the grass for a while. The morning's dew always helped eliminate the stench of the den.

Minutes later the wolf's brothers woke up and came out of the den. The sun was still low in the sky, but the brilliant blaze of colours had faded to blue. First to come out was the playful brother, Rivertail. He was followed by the naive Stonepaw and the intelligent Starface.

"How are you able to wake up so early Fireclaw?"

"You snooze, you loose! That's my line of thinking!"

"It still is pretty stupid to be out on your own in the early morning. The green monsters might get you!"

"Pfft! I bet I could handle any blast from them!"

"Less talking, more playing!"

"You're on Rivertail!"

Fireclaw and Rivertail bounded off to the sandy shore to play in the sand and water. Stonepaw and Starface stayed behind, waiting for breakfast. Their mother couldn't come soon enough for the two hungry pups! She had left in the night for some prey but while hunting she hurt her paw. She still managed to get back with food before the sun hits its highest point. Limping slightly, she returned with a lovely sheep shank.

"I'm home!"

"Mom!"

Four energetic pups rushed to their mother and dove into the meat. Breakfast was served at high noon. After his meal, Starface noticed his mother's bloodied paw.

"Mom! Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine Starface. I stepped on a twig the wrong way, nothing more than a scratch."

Stonepaw play-fought with Rivertail, Fireclaw went off exploring the tall grasses and Starface cleaned their mother's paw. Little would change as day turned to dusk. With the skies set ablaze once more, the four pups returned to the den with their mother. One wolf was missing.

"Mom, where's Dad?"

"Yeah, we haven't seen him all day!"

"He's just getting some space. He'll be back soon.

The mother wolf hated lying, but she knew that she had to. The pup's father wouldn't be returning tomorrow or the next day. He was gone forever. During the hunt, a bone two-leg had shot him and knocked him down into a ravine. He had flashed red for the last time.

The pups were now nine months old and still just the same. Aside from being bigger and stronger, nothing had changed, except that Fireclaw begun to develop unusual properties. His fur was turning from white to pale blue like the sky above. The other pup's eyes remained black as obsidian, but his eyes turned blue. He was one of the chosen wolves to be an Ice Wolf.

"Wake up Rivertail! It's time to go exploring!"

"Ugh… The sun is barely up…"

"Alright then, I'll wait at our special rock."

As the skies turned blue, Rivertail met up with Fireclaw. They ventured off to a nearby ravine that was said to have treasure in it. Descending into the caves showed something much grimmer than the pups expected.

"Is… Is that Dad…?"

"No… It can't be Dad! He would never fall down here with a gentle slope leading down just tail-lengths away…!"

"Look… It's… It's the stone we gave him…"

The pups would have little time to mourn, as a familiar hissing was heard from behind. They ran as fast as their stubby wolf legs could carry, but Rivertail couldn't keep up. Blocks and fur flew all around. Fireclaw had lost his playful, innocent brother, Rivertail. He returned home to his brothers with the awful news about their father and brother.

"But… How…?"

"I found an arrow in him… A white two-leg must've knocked him into the ravine."

"Oh Rivertail…! To go out with a bang so young…"

"I know Starface… That awful monster is completely silent until it's too late…"

"I liked playing with him…"

"Me too Stonepaw… Me too…"

When the pups reached the age they became wolves, Starface chose to stay with his mother. Stonepaw and Fireclaw set off to new lands with more food. This adventure would be Stonepaw's last.

"Let's go over there! I think we'll fine all sorts of good meat to eat."

"Lead the way Stony my friend!"

The brothers ventured on to a large mixed forest. Plenty of food and not a single pack in sight. They settled in and enjoyed life together for a year. They lived in peace until a female wolf passed through.

"Do you know if there's anyone living here?"

"Just us two, beautiful."

She would get close to Fireclaw, with his special icicles standing out. Stonepaw got jealous, since he had seen the wolf first and wanted to be her mate.

"You're always the special one and I for one am sick of it!"

"Hey, it's not my fault! She's the one coming onto me!"

"I'm sick of your lies too, brother!"

Stonepaw swiped at Fireclaw, leaving a nice scratch on his front leg. Fireclaw retaliated, only to subdue his brother. Being twice as tough as a regular wolf, Fireclaw didn't realize until too late that he inflicted the final blow on his brother.

"Stonepaw! Stop please!"

"You've proven your value… As is nature's way… The winner takes all…"

The next day, a two-leg came up with snow. Fireclaw loved snow, but he felt too awful to do anything. The two-leg gave him lots of snow, but he still didn't move.

"It's okay… I'm not going to hurt you… I want to give you a new home…"

The two-leg placed a red collar around Fireclaw's neck and sat with him for a while. Fireclaw eventually trusted the two-leg and walked away from the cursed forest with his new friend. Nobody could replace his fallen brothers and father, but someone was better than no one.