Ƭħє ŞąЬяє'ƨ Şħąmє

Chapter Two: The Pack

A pack of sabre's warily roamed around the herd's hollow, eyes widening as they realized just how long they could feed them for… Weeks, if not months…

Without a visible cue, they turned tail and loped away from the herd, heading for a clearing about forty metres away. In some aspects, it was a typical sabre pack; in other aspects, it was totally unique. Made up of four males and three females, each sabre had a valuable role, and each knew exactly how the other's around it would react, fight, think, and talk. They were invaluable to each other, but that wasn't to say that they usually got on well…

The current leader of the pack was a tawny female, named Akira. She was the one that kept the pack together through thick and thin. If it hadn't been for her, they would have split long ago. Her haunted-looking emerald eyes were softly glowing in the dark, raking over the other members of the pack, studying and keeping watch on them. Even though her body was covered in painful-looking scars, she was still a ferocious fighter, and commanded the total respect of the other members of the pack – if any one of them disobeyed her, she'd attack them, and until the day that one of them could fight back and win, she'd rule the pack.

The greatest threat to her reign was her brother, Shi. Not that he had any interest in becoming pack leader –he hated the idea of being in charge– but he was only other sabre that held the ultimate respect from the rest of the pack. Lean and powerful, he was the oldest member of the pack by a month, but nothing in his appearance gave away any sign of age, only signs of a recent fight. One of his fangs, the right one, had snapped two inches down from his mouth, and a long scratch extended across his left side. He was the strategist of the pack, the one who staked out kills and came up with ideas to kill their prey. He was almost a role model to the younger tigers, and there was only one person who would dare argue with him – Silver.

Silver, in total contrast to her aforementioned siblings, was actually quite gentle, usually letting other people take the kill and waiting until they'd finished with it before having her share. She acted as rear-guard, quicksilver eyes scanning the night, and grey coat slipping through the darkness with ease. She was more nimble than some of the other sabres, and a faster runner, so she often teamed up with the twins to scout.

The twins… Damian and Lars. Identical in almost every aspect, the only difference in their physical appearance was Lars' twisted forepaw. He'd been born with it, and he'd learnt to live with it, but it still affected his fighting and running abilities. The two acted as scouts for the rest of the pack, so they were often away, but whenever a hunt or a fight was happening, they'd be defending the pack to within an inch of their lives. Totally loyal to Akira, and in absolute awe of Shi, the only things that could shock them out of their casual arrogance was a threat to the pack, or an internal disturbance – disturbances that usually came from either Alexia or Ray.

Ray was the youngest member of the pack, as well as the smallest. However, he was easily the most brutal and savage – in fact, before he'd joined the pack, he'd killed his own family. He was the fighter of the pack; the one who killed first and ate later. Akira used him as a 'shock trooper', so to speak, letting him run ahead of the pack and take out any possible threats, before linking up with them later. He was invaluable in a tight situation, but on a day-to-day basis, he could be a pain. Especially when it came down to questions of rivalry with Damian…

The last member of the pack, Alexia, was the 'pack beauty'. When they were planning big kills, like trying to take down a mammoth, they'd send her in a couple of days beforehand. She could entrance any sentient animal with her luminous eyes and sweet voice, but her beauty hid an unexpected savagery to rival Ray's. She was the only sabre totally in control of her instincts, able to go without food for weeks on end, and still be sitting next to an easy kill, waiting for the pack.

The seven of them were currently scattered around a clearing. Damian and Lars were slowly pacing around the edges, keeping lookout for any threats, and Shi had his eyes closed, thinking through a plan. Ray and Alexia were talking in low tones, while Silver sat alone upon a rock. Akira was watching the rest of the pack, exchanging ideas with Shi.

"Alright, everyone," she said in a low tone. The rest of the pack turned to her, and she continued "We've got a plan. It's going to take a while, but I think it's worth it. Agreed?"

There were murmurs of assent from everyone, and Shi took up the thread of leadership for a moment. "This idea rests entirely upon Alexia. If she can get the entire herd sedated before we attack, we'll have an easier fight. And given all that's happened, I think that's exactly what we need at the moment. Easy meat. We've been through hell and back, I think it's time we can try and rest for a while. We need to check out our turf, make sure it's still ours, get some food, and then just rest."

Akira started talking again. "While Alexia's busy, Damian, Silver and Lars, you guys need to go and check out the land. Look for any new underground entries. Shi and I are going to be tracking down any other prey we can. And Ray, you're going to be watching over Alexia, alright?"

Ray bared his teeth in a grin.

"Time to move out. Damian, Silver, Lars, take alternate routes and see if you can pick up any scents. Ray, you're with us. Alexia… Take care." Her eyes met the other female's for a moment, and Alexia winked.

"Now go!" Shi cried, and moving together, the pack stood and split into five different directions; Alexia disappearing back to the herd, Shi, Ray and Akira running together; and Damian, Lars and Silver vanishing into different areas, noses to the ground, checking for scents and mentally memorizing them as they were found. Despite everything, Akira grinned to herself in the night, inwardly proud of her pack – the only sabre pack that never gave up on their prey.