[Thank you to everyone who has reviewed thus far. It is very encouraging and means a lot to me. :]
Niju
Alone once more
He didn't need Aleu, he would find his own way… Somehow. Reflecting on his time with her, he found it strange that she was only 1/4 wolf. She was a little small and delicately built, but she looked more wolf than he recalled her father looking. It was strange to him. She was strange to him. But what could have possessed her to speak to him that way? Who did that mutt think she was?!
It mattered not; he would be rid of her after he could find a way to get to his rightful place in the pack. He huffed and slumped onto his loose patch of dirt. She'd probably be back midafternoon. There's no way she could be foolish enough to take on a bull caribou during their peak season. He figured she'd get one look at that fellow up close and hightail it out of there. She would probably be back feeling apologetic and the plan would likely continue as it should. Unless he thought of something better that didn't involve her at all… He would… what did Nava call that… "Meditate" on that later.
He wanted sleep now. As he drifted into the world of a dream he felt he was looking through the eyes of a raven, soaring through the air with grace. He seemed to be following a familiar form as it worked its way through the tall grass. He recognized the tawny shape in the grass to be Aleu. As he looked just ahead of her he could see a caribou herd grazing in the morning light. He felt himself perch to watch the scene below him unfold.
-Aleu-
Alone on the Plains
If this was how she had to do it, then this was how she had to do it. There didn't seem to be any way around it, she would just have to bring that bull down. It was a challenge that she felt more than ready for. She remembered hearing some members of the clan talk about this particular bull during her short time as alpha. They called him Broken Horn and she'd heard he was vicious and fierce. He was one of the reasons they could never kill healthy cows and young; because he wouldn't hesitate to attack a wolf. Now she knew why this bull was a problem, he had the biggest herd in the clan's territory and no one could get a single cow or calf from his herd.
Aleu observed the herd from a slightly higher ground. She observed many healthy young caribou and their mothers nearby. As long as she stayed up wind of them, they looked like an easy catch for her. However, she needed to stay on target. She hadn't come all this way for them… She needed to find that bull. She didn't see him with the cows, but she remembered Niju telling her that bulls would often stay slightly away from the herd in order to keep an eye out for danger. She could only hope the bull hadn't seen her already.
Stalking her way among the brush, she suddenly spotted him. She saw him grazing at a relaxed pace mere yards away from her spot in the high grass. He was young, tall and proud.
"Sort of like Niju…"But Aleu had no time to poke fun at Niju, there was work to be done. Looking at the antlers that adorned his mighty head, she could understand why he had been dubbed "Broken Horn". One of his antlers had been snapped off and was now formed into some kind of razor sharp point jutting from his head. She wondered if it had been from a fight earlier in the season.
A raven cried out, but Aleu couldn't turn to look for fear of losing her mark. She began to close in on the unsuspecting bull. This was probably going to be easier than she thought, the bull didn't seem to have the faintest clue that she was preparing to ambush. The other members of the clan were probably just afraid of how he looked… He didn't seem like a vicious wolf-slayer. He was just a normal bull about to meet his end before he even knew what hit him. Aleu was ready to strike.
She bounded from the bushes with surprising speed, but the bull already seemed to have a leg up on her. It was as if he was waiting for her to make the first move. He sprinted with a speed she'd never seen. It was almost as if Aniu were giving him wings. She struggled in her effort to keep up. He was running towards the herd; a move which initially surprised her. Aleu could see the herd scatter and suddenly dozens of caribou were zigzagging across the plains. She was determined not to lose the bull in the crowd, but it had become very difficult.
After scattering the cows and young, she caught sight of him running up a rocky outcropping in the middle of a sea of grass. She gave immediate chase, even though he was quite a ways ahead of her. As she ran after him, he appeared to be slowing his pace up a bit. Was it possible that he was tiring already? The bull stopped to look back and Aleu was sure she had him as she leapt up from the ground and onto the rocks.
It was a massive shock to Aleu when the bull suddenly lunged towards her with his front legs. Aleu was struck in the side and tumbled back down into the grass. She was dazed but able to regain her footing quickly. The bull reared at her and she crouched defensively. What was this? She'd never seen anything like this before, the bull was about to fight her. She wasn't having it; Aleu knew she must finish this. This bull was her prey, and she was confident she could bring him down. This show he was putting on wasn't going to scare her.
As she attempted to go for his belly he reared and Aleu took another powerful strike to the head this time. She recovered from her tumble and made another jump for his side. She tasted blood different from that which was ebbing from her own wound. She'd sunk her teeth deep into his flank but she knew she needed a better hold on him. Just as she was contemplating whether taking the risk of letting go would cause her to lose him, he did something unthinkable. Aleu hadn't realized how close she was to the rocks until the large bull smashed his entire side up against them. Aleu cried out in pain and she released him as her body was slammed into the large boulder. She wasn't going to give up, she couldn't. Now her adrenaline was so high that she didn't even feel pain as she rose up once more to chase him down. However, the bull wasn't running- instead he stared at her dead on.
She growled and made a go for the throat. Once again she failed to realize how much he had anticipated her next move. She felt a sharp cutting pain in her chest as she was sliced by a swipe of his powerful antlers. Before she could even comprehend how he'd managed to lower his head so quickly, she could feel Broken Horn slice her belly. What was this? He appeared to be on the offensive now. Aleu felt helpless as she was tossed about by his mighty head. She was like a ragdoll in the grass as he stomped her. His head lowered and Aleu prepared to be struck again. She couldn't hobble out of the way fast enough. With this blow he sent Aleu flying into darkness. Aleu didn't catch a glimpse of the raven circling overhead before her world went dark.
-Niju-
Afternoon in the Den
Niju awoke with a start. The sight of Aleu's broken body was a shock to him. He'd have to tell her about what happens when prey decides to stand its ground… That's probably what that dream was all about. He knows that prey should only be attacked while it is fleeing. Prey that fights back instead of running is too dangerous and too strong to attack head on. As a wolf, Niju gains power over his prey as he tires it out during the chase. He knows to wait for that inevitable bad step. It would be that fatal misstep that would spell the end for his fatigued prey. His job was to be prepared to rush in for the kill when his prey faltered. As long as his prey runs, Niju was in control of the situation. He knows that great skill is required to intimidate plucky prey into running. Aleu probably lacked the instincts to tell her any of that. Ugh. She was probably still asleep. She would probably sleep this late everyday if given a choice.
Niju rose to his feet and shook the dirt from his pelt. He glanced around wildly but could find no trace of her. Oh. He suddenly remembered her little emotional breakdown earlier, and how he'd sent her away. He figured she would be back by now... Stupid mutt, she probably ran away and got lost or something of that nature. He really should have left her at sea, that would be one less headache on his day to day consciousness…But alas he needed her to get this job done.
He set out to find her, she seemed to be nowhere in sight. He was almost expecting her to be lying in wait for him just outside the entrance of the den. Nope. Not today. Maybe she really had vanished. The sudden screech of an owl startled him. He looked up and was surprised to see a snowy owl soaring overhead. He was no less surprised when the owl swooped in closer, screeching incessantly.
"Silence! Can you not see I'm busy?" He roared at the annoying owl. "Be gone, you pest!"
The owl didn't stop there. It kept flying closer and screeching louder until Niju had enough. "What is it you want then?! Why can't you leave me in peace?" The owl then began to fly in the opposite direction.
"Oh, and I suppose you want me to follow you…" Niju turned and began to trudge towards the area in which the owl was circling.
"Silly bird, you had better have a good reason for this." He grumbled and followed nonetheless. He didn't see a damn thing of importance, but suddenly a small mouse scurried from the underbrush. Being a wolf with an especially high prey drive he lunged for it. The mouse seemed to disappear before his eyes but he saw a small print in the mud take its place. That small paw print which Niju had engulfed with his own was undoubtedly Aleu's. There was something strange at work here. And where'd that damn mouse go?
Before Niju could look for it the owl moved on. Niju ran after it, finding more of Aleu's prints as he ran. Without warning it occurred to him; it hit him like a rockslide. His dream played back in his mind and it became clear that it was possibly much more than a dream. It was a vision. Aleu. He needed to find Aleu.
The owl knocked him from his thoughts once more as it called from above. It moved towards the high plains and Niju chased after it. Tripping through the underbrush as he followed it. It was all becoming so familiar now, everything he'd seen from the sky in the dream was now surrounding him. The owl was leading him towards where the great caribou herd gathered. He'd also seen it before when he attempted to do some hunting here, but the bull was much too dangerous in this season. Niju ran as fast as his legs would carry him to keep up with the white owl. There was no sign of the herd; he figured they must have moved on into the low valley.
He spotted more of Aleu's tracks but they were lost in the chaos of broken brush and trampled grass. Something sure happened here. Niju couldn't pick up Aleu's scent because the air was too thick with the scent of caribou musk. The owl had perched itself on a rocky outcropping. The freckling of blood on the sides of the rocks was all Niju needed to send him into dread. If everything he saw in the vision was true, had he just witnessed Aleu's death? If so, where was her body? Niju desperately turned his head back towards where the owl was perched, but the owl had gone. He didn't remember hearing the owl take off.
He thought back to what Aleu had said to him on the ice floe… and about how he tried not to lose his grip on her in the storm. They almost froze to death, but they pulled through. She was more than a means to an end. She was a member of the clan he would do anything for; she was the future of the clan in her own way.
Oh! There was another mouse right under his paw! He lifted it to shoo the mouse away and as his eyes followed the mouse scampering off he noticed something in his line of sight. He saw her. In a patch of trampled tall grass, she lay on her side. Aleu was bloodied and covered with dirt. Once again he was taken back to finding her that night upon the icefloe, but this was different. She wasn't clinging to life; she didn't appear to be moving at all
Niju swallowed hard as he made his approach. It wasn't a dream; it was a cruel vision Aniu must have sent to him as a reminder of his cruelty towards her. His past was full of loss, but this felt like such a senseless death. She was destined for so much more, even if Niju didn't want to admit it.
"…Aniu…Why did you do this?" He muttered to himself as he struggled to come to terms with this. Nava had fallen but he had lived a good life full of meaning. His father was gone as well, but his death was the inevitable result of all his evil deeds catching up to him. Nanu had earned his death for all of the countless lives he took. He supposed Aleu's death was like that of his mother. Sedna's only crime was giving Nanu her trust, and she had paid dearly for it. A senseless and cruel death.
Niju trembled as he leaned over Aleu. He touched his muzzle to her dirtied cheeks. It was then he realized he'd been wrong. Aleu was not dead yet, she faintly whimpered at his touch. Niju couldn't believe it; he wondered how much time he'd wasted while being lost in his thoughts! He could see the most serious of Aleu's wounds seemed to be the one to her chest and side. Those were the ones where she'd lost the most blood. Ever so carefully he hoisted Aleu onto his back. He had to be careful that she didn't slip down. She groaned softly, but he was on his way.
He knew just where to take her. He could only hope he wasn't too late.
=-Aleu and Niju-=
Seaside Water Spring
Aleu was suddenly aware of a hint of salt in the air. She'd been visiting with Muru in a mountain valley when she smelled it. She turned towards her tiny companion. They had been singing together and talking about how her quest to find the pack went. She had made no mention of her uncertain future, and Muru was content to frolic and play with her among the wild flowers. He never brought it up. The smell of salt had become overpowering as she looked towards him for answers.
"Muru, do you smell that?" She stopped rolling in the warm grass for a moment. Her vision was starting to become hazy.
"I do… It means it is time for me to say goodbye, my sister." Muru spoke sagely as he began to fade away. "But I'll always be there should you need me. Your quest is not over yet."
Aleu tried to focus on him, but he was disappearing along with the sky and the green valley they were playing in. Her world was fading into nothing and she held her eyes closed in an attempt to keep the world intact. When she dared to open them again any sign of the valley and Muru were gone. She was faced with some rocks and moss on which her head was laying. It was only then she realized she was immersed in some sort of spring- with her head lying on a bed of moss. The sounds of waves breaking meant that she must be close to the ocean. The dull ache that started in her chest had become a loud roar of pain when she tried to shift positions. She groaned upon remembering the bull and how she had gotten to this sorry state. But how had she ended up in here?
She attempted to turn her body towards the sound of whatever was approaching.
"Lie still." She recognized the familiar voice. It was Niju.
She heard him set something down and move in closer. Her large blue jewels found him and she managed a weak smile, she then remembered her shame. "Niju! I'm sorry… I should have listened. I should have known better." She attempted to get out of the spring but the pain abruptly halted her movements. "Oh! Ou-ouch…" She sank back into the water.
"Stop moving. I came to take you out and bring you some food." His tone was warmer than usual but stern as well.
Aleu rest her head back on the rocks surrounding the pool. She decided to cure her thirst by drinking the clear water around her. Perhaps a dog would find that unsanitary after sitting in it, but Aleu was too thirsty to care. Besides, she was much more than a typical dog.
"So you're the reason I'm in here. Why'd you put me in here?" Aleu licked the water from her muzzle.
Niju was picking up a limp furry creature. "I didn't think I cleaned your wounds out enough the first day." Niju offered her the lifeless creature. "Here, I brought you a marmot."
Aleu looked incredulous and didn't take the dead marmot upon his first offering. "First day?! How…How long have I been like this?" She couldn't have been out that long, could she?
"A couple days." He proceeded to offer her the dead marmot again. "I know they're not as plump as they would be during the fall… But they're not all that bad." He began to trail off before Aleu abruptly cut him off.
"A couple of days? How is that possible?" Aleu was confused, but undeniably hungry as she began to look at the furry lump in Niju's jaws and salivate.
"Eat it." Niju dropped his kill in front of her. Aleu didn't need to be told again. As much as she wanted answers, they could wait.
"I suppose you don't need me to tell you what a foolish plan that was. But I am glad to see you awake." Niju sat down by the edge while Aleu dug into her meal. "Although, I knew by the end of the first day that you were going to make it."
Aleu's face was covered in blood and tuffs of fur when she looked up from her meal. "How'd you know that?"
"I could just tell." Niju shrugged. In truth it was Nava who visited him and somehow calmed his nerves while he wished with everything he held dear that Aleu would pull through. Visions swirled around him of Aniu, Nava… and a strange mouse. It was during this vision he knew Aleu was under the watchful eyes of the guardians and they weren't going to let her drift into the abyss.
In a few moments, the marmot was all but devoured. Aleu couldn't help but notice a twinge in her side that seemed to appear every time she took a breath. "Niju…It hurts me to breath." She lamented.
"You broke a rib or two. That's why I'm telling you lie still." He said with a smidgen of annoyance in his tone.
"Oh. That figures." Aleu slumped back into the side of the spring. Her body was still in pain but she did her best to cope with it.
"Are you done with that?" Niju looked over to the remains of the marmot. She'd left the meat on the feet.
"Yep. I ate all I'm gonna eat. I'm still a bit hungry though." She looked around at her location. She wondered if she was well enough to catch clams.
"You left the feet." Niju scooted the remains towards her.
Aleu turned her nose up at the disgusting tidbits. "I don't like those parts… Not on a marmot."
Niju breathed a heavy sigh of irritation. "Typical." In a crunch of his mighty jaw, the scraps were no more.
"I had a vision while I was out cold. I think Muru told me that my quest is not over." She recalled her dream in bits and pieces.
"I suppose there's no chance of you just giving up now, huh?" Niju half joked with her. Of course he didn't really want her to give up, but for reasons he couldn't always explain- she just seemed to make his whole world difficult at times.
"Not on your life." Aleu was stern but she suspected he was probably just trying to ease her pain and lighten her mood.
He stepped closer to the edge. "I was afraid you'd say that." He hopped into the spring and made an effort to remove her from the water by hoisting her onto his back. Aleu was anything but cooperative.
"Niju! Hey! What're you doing?!" She sounded bewildered as she attempted to shuffle away from him.
Niju realized that perhaps he should have announced his intentions to carry her before making an attempt to do so. "Save your energy! I intended to carry you back just as I had before, I don't think your body will tolerate standing at this time." He forgot to apologize. He was just trying to help her, but why did she feel the need to make it difficult?
"I don't need more of your help... I've got this Niju…"She gritted out.
Aleu crawled her way out of the spring and onto the harsh rocks. "I'll be fine. Thanks anyway Niju." She felt it would be best to acknowledge his efforts to be helpful, however abrupt they may have been. Unfortunately her legs didn't seem to agree with her as she raised her frame slowly from the ground. When she attempted to take a step she could feel the pain in her chest spread like a wildfire across her body. The stony ground was about to be her next destination until something slipped underneath to support her.
Niju had caught her before she could hit the ground. He did not wish to see further damage come to the young she-wolf, she was exceptionally vulnerable now. He stayed under her to support her.
"Thank you… If I could just get steady I think I coul-" Her words were cut off as she almost fell for a second time after attempting to step away from Niju.
"No Aleu! Listen to me! You are in no condition to stand yet. You need more food, water and rest. You must heal yourself." Niju looked back at her as she supported herself against his shoulder. "Don't be a fool."
His words dug deep into Aleu. Her opposition to his assistance died down and she went limp. Niju moved to carry her on his back, between his shoulders. "Just don't move too much."
Aleu heaved a heavy sigh of pain and frustration in response. "I won't." She meant that as a reply to both of Niju's statements.
"Good." He carefully began the trek back to the den.
**Nanu and Sedna are Niju's mother and father.
They're going to start getting closer in the next chapter, just a heads up. But eh...If you're reading this story than "Clanshipping" shouldn't be an issue. ;)
