Red Fern Forest A Close Call from Heaven

"Why in the world I even dared to do such a thing... Is this... Is this really is...? Does today is finally the end of my future days...? I don't know why, I can only feel peace... But I also don't want to leave yet... There's... There's still so much things I want to do... Join a pack, find a mate... Have some pups... I cannot let my bloodline extints right now... Don't follow the light, Shinku... Don't even dare to follow it neither got hypnotize by this wickily peaceful feeling..."

Lots of thought passed by Shinku's mind as was laying on the ground. His breathing was heavy, he was whimpering slightly and some shiny scarlet blood was coming out from his right hind leg. It was a beautiiful midday in the Red Fern Forest. The crispy scent of the leaves of the nearby trees was trying to make Shinku slowl drift into a deep and eternal sleep. He was trying really hard to keep awake and crawl towards a safer zone where other wolves, if there were any, could see him and aid him out if they had a heart. But the pain was way too unbearable for the poor Shinku. Every time he tried to move a single muscle from his wounded hind leg, a wave of spiky needles hit him, making his whimper and flinch with pain. Maybe his thoughts were right... This day could be definitely his last one.

That nasty wound on his leg was made by a huge moose Shinku tried to hunt down a few minutes early, right on the borders of the forest. It was a majestic 6.5 tall male moose that was eating some fresh weed. Shinku was a few miles away from him, so he slowly began to walk towards him, careful to not crush any dry leave on the ground or to accidentally fell into a hidden hole. This forest has some "secrets" beneath the dirt and leaves after all. Every wolf knows that for hunt down a moose, it requieres at least 5 wolves and great hunting tactics. Shinku had that last thing, so his confidence was totally boosted up. Unluckily for him, the odds this ime were against his favor. As he got fairly close to the moose, a branch snapped under his right front paw, alerting his prey. The moose slowly turned around and faced him, staring at him with a straight stance and defensive position. Shinku froze where he was and looked back at him, his heartbeats higher than usual.

Both of them exchanged glances and body movements, waiting who wil make the first move. With a slight growl, Shinku quickly charged towards him, believing in himself. The moose did the same, lowering his head for a counterattack with his horns. Shinku ducked to his right, dodging the attack and pounced at the right side of his prey. He aimed a bite towards the neck, but that moose unexpectidely kicked him with his lower right foot, hitting Shinku on his back. With a whimper, Shinku fell on the ground with a painful expression. The moose didn't had mercy on him, because he quickly turned around and began to hit him with his horn. Shinku played dead, hoping that could trick the moose. Fortunely, it worked and the moose walked away with triumph and leaving the poor Loner Wolf with a gashed and almost broken right hind leg.

"I should had just let him go and keep on my way... But I really wanted some tasty meat... Now, here I am... Just talking with myself... It's so sad and pityful... Alone you born, alone you die, huh..?"

Shinku slowly smiled a bit, slowly letting his eyes shut down. He was panting heavily and shed some tears. He didn't knew if it was from sadness of happiness. He also began to feel cold and his heartbeats slowly decreasing. He was beginning to see a bright light and hear some ringing bells. Not really having anything to do, he slowly began to head towards the light and dance at the tune of the bells.

Careful paws were stubborn, but wary as she headed forward through the trees - weaving herself in and out, quiet as a mouse with the confidence that she was going to have to overcome the challenges that had been ringing in her mind. No, she hardly found herself about to be gentle with the reality that she was separated from her father, but the matter of what stole her heart was that not a second had gone by since they had parted ways... that she had not missed him. Hurting, it was not something the girl would have wished for herself at such an age of a yearling, but what choice did she have when the world seemed so intent on punishing her?

The wary nose, twitching, caught the reality of the scent. The Liers was quick to move, wanting to investigate with the curiosity. Blood was blood, and if there was something to scavenge from - well, her rumbling stomach proved it - she would take it. While she was adept enough at surviving on her own, it was clear; Taslima needed support that she had not yet found in almost two months. Yes, it seemed like almost a pity that she had gone so far ahead, running wide open from the darkness she could have swore was on her tail. And yet, it was always the same dream at night; in the beginning it was the male who would play with her, submitting on his back - and by the end it was that dark flash in his eyes, which he had tried to hide from her.

The strain in which took her was that she was determined to be polite, she was determined to hide the feelings that were all burrowing their way into her heart. It was why, despite her youth, she walked with a hint of a challenging swagger. Daring others to tell her what was right, and what was wrong. Today, with the scent of blood, ears were dropped back against her head and she found herself almost panicking as she came upon the male from behind; confused to see a wolf, and not a kill in which she could have picked at.

Clearly, the wolf was dying. It was not the first time Lima had seen death, nor would it have been the last. As she crept forward, she found herself unable to stop the pressure that filled up in her chest - to the point where her whimper was soft. Wide eyes seemed to make her almost tremble in the spot she stood, squeaking out a hopeless cry. "What in the world do you think you're doing?" The demand was brisk on her breath, although her voice was higher than she would have liked, "You are not allowed to just... bleed out on the ground!"

But what did she do? Without much of a second thought, she threw her head back and howled; summoning, praying someone was in the area. While she had some rudimentary healing skills... the fact of the matter was, this was beyond her control.

(This post was last modified: Aug 21, 2015, 05:18 PM by Taslima.)

Just when Shinku was about to reach the light, his ears caught the sound of a soft voice that boomed amoung the ringing bells. He stopped where he was and looked around, confused. Besides the mysterious light, darkness was the only thing that surrounded him. He thought he just imagined it, that maybe it was a secondary effect of the dying process. He scoffed and smiled a bit, slowly turning around to face again the light. "Let's just get this over..." he said, but his lips didn't moved. It was more like a thought than his voice. Then, as he lifted his right paw to head towards the light, a loud, yet sweet howl boomed around him. He perked up his ears and looked around once again. There was no way he could imagine hearing two different sounds one after another. Something was hiding in the darkness, trying to communicate with him. No, it was impossible that something or someone was there with him.

As he thought about it, the surroundings slowly turned blurry. The bright light slowly began to fade and the ringing bells seemed to sound low. Obviously, the whole place was disappearing without warning. "Wait, what's happening...? Will I going to disappear too...? I didn't even reached the light...!" Panicked, he began to run away from the light, heading into the darkness. There was no path that could be seen, but it's not that there was one in the first place. Once again, another howl boomed in the room. Shinku decided it was a good idea to follow it, but he wasn't sure from where it came from. With every step he took, the howling could be heard closer and closer. His breathing got heavy and his heartbeats were above the normal. Just when he thought he was heading nowhere, he spotted a small and faint light in the distance. He perked up his ears and widen his eyes, quickening his runnning. Gradually, the distance between them became short and the howl clearer and stronger. When he got fairly close, he leaped towards the light and everything just disappeared.

With a raspy cough, Shinku slowly opened his eyes. Letting go a long sigh, he looked around with a confused expression. A beautiful blue sky above some green and tall trees... The fresh and crispy smell of the forest... Once Shinku realized where he was, he sighed once again, but with relief. Everything happened just inside his head. There was no mysterious light to follow neither a pitch black room. "Just a close call, huh...? He scoffed by the thought and let go a soft whimper by the sudden pain on his leg. As he proceeded to take a look at it, he widen his eyes as he spotted a wolf besides him. His ears perked up and he sniffed the air, caughing the scent of female's pheromones. He finally found out the one behind the howl and his savior, because if it weren't for her howl, Shinku probably wouldn't be even listening his own thoughts.

"You... Who are you...?" he finally spoke, looking at her with a slight painful expression, but surprisingly, there was a small smile.