Chapter 7: A Noble Sacrifice

Rogan and Sarah have been running for five minutes and pray that the Silver Fang's didn't see their son, RJ. They immediately stop as the ground ahead of them ends. They are standing on the top of a gorge with nowhere left to run.

Rogan: "Alright, let's climb down nice and easy."

Sarah: "We can't climb down while trying to carry RJ…! He's just a day old and wouldn't understand to hold tightly onto us!"

Rogan: "Shoot! Now I understand what my dad meant when he said parenthood's a pain!"

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Further back in the woods, the Silver Fangs had just "dealt" with the traitorous Blood Hound. He was not going to get up anytime soon. Not again for that matter. They look around to find that their pack leader is gone.

Ice Eyes: "Where's the boss?"

Night Vision: "Probably after da 'coons."

Moon Howler: "Let's go an' get 'em boys!"

The wolves head off. Once they have left, Blood Hound opens his eyes and starts to get up slowly. He's hurt badly, indeed, fatally, but he's not dead...Not yet.

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Back at the edge of the cliff, Rogan and Sarah have been trying to think of a way to escape.

Sarah: "How about we go around?"

Rogan: "It'll take too long!"

Sarah hears a noise behind them and quickly puts RJ on the ground. She turns to her mate who had also heard the noise. They stand side by side in order to keep RJ hidden behind them. Within moments Shark-Bite comes out of the foliage. He's bruised, and has fresh, jagged scares on his face where Blood Hound bit him.

Shark-Bite: "There you are ya 'lil thieves!"

Rogan: "Listen, it was an accident! You know it was! That crow…it's the one that—"

Shark-Bite Silver Fang: "Shut up! That crow wouldn'ta snatched da ring outta your lady's hand if you's didn't take it in da first place! You's two are MINE NOW!"

Ice Eyes: "You mean they's OURS now boss!"

The three other Silver Fangs come out and group beside their leader.

Shark-Bite Silver Fang: "Took ya's long 'nuff!"

Moon Howler: "Sorry for da wait boss. We's been dealin' with that rat Blood Hound."

Night Vision: "Rest assured; he's dead now."

Shark-Bite: "Good…Now let's get dis feedin' frenzy started!"

The wolves turn their attention to the helpless raccoon couple who start hugging each other tight and have their eyes closed.

Rogan (while crying softly): "I love you Sarah…And I'm so glad I met you."

Sarah (also crying softly): "I love you too Rogan…Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me."

The wolves approach the trapped raccoons slowly, savoring for the kill. Night Vision suddenly sees something moving behind the cringing raccoons…He sees RJ

Night Vision: "Hey boss! Check it out they's got a—!"

Blood Hound: "GET CLEAR NOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWSSS!"

The Silver Fangs turn around and are shocked to see Blood Hound charging right at them. He was going too fast to be avoided and for the first time in his life, Shark-Bite has a look of fear on his face.

Rogan and Sarah grab RJ and run. Blood Hound knocks into the four wolves like a bowling ball against pins in a bowling alley. All five of them fall into the gorge, screaming all the way down.

When the screaming has stopped, Rogan and Sarah look down into the gorge, then back into each other's eyes. They embrace in big hug and kiss RJ like crazy before talking to each other.

Rogan: "Oh Sarah!" (kisses her) "I-I thought it was all over!"

Sarah: "Rogan!" (kisses him back) "I've never been so scared in my life!"

Rogan: "Me too!" (looking and talking to his mate seriously) "But…why do you think one of them helped us out?"

Sarah: "It's like my mother always says: Just because some animals may do terrible things doesn't mean they don't have a heart."

Rogan: "Either way…It's over! We can raise RJ like a normal family!"

Sarah: "I know! It's just…I fell really bad for that one wolf…"

Rogan: "Yeah…Me too…"

There is a pause as the gravity of the situation kicks in.

Rogan: "But he gave his life so that we can live…Such a noble sacrifice…And we shouldn't let it be in vain. We owe him that much, and that's the only way to repay him."

Sarah: "You're right. Wanna go back home?"

Rogan: "Yeah, let's go."

The raccoons proceed to walk back the way they came.

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At the bottom of the gorge, there was a river that eventually led to a waterfall. At the water fall something comes up out of the water gasping for air. It's Shark-Bite Silver Fang.

He's hurt badly from the fall into the river, but he's still alive. The fall has claimed the lives of his loyal wolves and the back-stabbing Blood Hound, but he somehow survived. He doggie-paddles to the river bank and shakes himself dry.

He doesn't even celebrate his personal survival, he is already filled with primal rage and a thirst for revenge. But after catching his breath, he takes time to look at his reflection in the water.

What Shark-Bite sees causes him to groan. The groan turns into a growl, the growl into a snarl, and the snarl into a scream of rage. The scars are bad, but in all fairness they are not terrible. They could even pass for normal at first glance.

But this was Shark-Bite Silver Fang's face, even a scratch would be intolerable and could not go unpunished.

His face had been a miracle of evolution…The careful and meticulous work of generations upon generations of wolves who were selected for the sole purpose of bearing the best-looking wolf pups ever conceived. There were several occasions where tough sacrifices had to be made to achieve that goal; where true love had to be forfeited and arranged marriages planned. And that traitorous, do-gooder, oath-breaking, tramp-of-an-excuse for a wolf destroyed it all in a matter of seconds!

Revenge was no longer a goal for Shark-Bite. It was now vendetta.

But because Blood Hound was no longer alive to see the death of his mate and daughter, Shark-Bite has only one source to vent his outrage now; the source that started it all…The raccoons were going to pay for the death of his friends and ruining his face. And when he went after them again, he wasn't going to do it alone…The Grand Wolf Pack Gathering was at sundown. He was going to have an army when he found the raccoons again.

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You didn't it would end so soon did ya?! I'm not even half-way through the story yet! But I've got some bad news: Though while I intend to finish this story, that won't be happening anytime soon. College is a VERY busy atmosphere and I'm wasting a lot of precious assignment-working time even as I'm typing right now. So I apologize for the wait that will ensue, but Christmas break is right around the corner. I'll hopefully update the story around those times!