Ruins of Wildwood 2013 – 2014 Yearbook

Cut Rock River

After a great storm swept across the Eastern side of Relic Lore, the wolves of Darkwater Rapids found themselves without a home as the torrential rains flooded the waters of Secret Falls. Maksim Baranski – the current leader, gathered the wolves of the pack and lead them to safer ground. Ava Attaya, the lead female and her mate, Kade Attaya, an original founder of the pack, could not be found. Also missing were two of the pups born to the couple – Mace and Rowan.

With the other two pups of the litter, Cinder and Quil, in tow, Maksim lead the wolves to higher ground before taking rest. Left from the Darkwater Rapids pack were Astra, a soft spoken she-wolf, Hati “Taras”, a grizzled mute wolf, Anastasia, an elegant beauty who was often found at the side of Lachesis, her nervous friend. Also traveling from the pack lands were two wolves that had previously been loyal to the recently disbanded Poison Path pack – Ash and Namara. Tensions lifted when Namara attempted to take claim of the band of wolves, and forcefully removed from the group by Maksim in a display of dominance, Ash was quick to join her side.

The wayward group travelled across the Mountain of Dire, and after days, laid claim to a haven within the Cedarwood Forest. Fitfully calling their home Cut Rock River, it was the silent Astra that took lead beside Maksim and from there, the wolves began to build their empire.

While the ranks quickly flourished as winter approached, there was quiet disrupt among the ranks. Anastasia, previously having led the wolves of Pitch Pine Trail for a time, was quick to set her eye on Maksim and hoped to rise to the rank beside him – not for sole dominance alone, but for the upcoming breeding season. Before her desire could come to fruition, she and Lachesis left on a quick mission to seek the whereabouts of old friends, resulting in separation of the pair, and the disappearance of Anastasia. Distressed at losing his best friend, Lachesis returns to the River, seemingly a changed wolf.

As winter fell across Relic Lore with a harsh hand, Maksim came across a fallen figure at the base of the mountain. Kisla Tainn – the daughter of the original Swift River wolves, left on a scouting mission from the eastern end of the mountain in hopes of finding prey. Injured from the fall and dazed, she was lead back to the River lands to stay until healed. Mother nature had other plans – within weeks, the Mountain of Dire became impassable, and Kisla was unable to return to her family.

Distress settled upon the pack as winter continued – starving and disgruntled, the disappearance of both Quil and Cinder left Maksim fearing for the girls safety. There was little time to dwell on this as two wolves from Hollowheart Keep stole across the lands of Cut Rock River, attempting to raid the pack’s caches when interrupted by Naia, a loyal she-wolf who had joined the ranks before the winter months, and Maksim. A fight ensued and Cut Rock River remained victorious after chasing the two from their territory. Since then, underlying tension has risen between the packs.

This was only spurned further when Cut Rock River held the opportunity for a hunt – both times interrupted by not only Hollowheart Keep, but other neighboring packs. Both attempts had failed in the end with the prey escaping and the packs bickering amongst one another.

As winter continued, Astra’s rank was challenged by Kisla – the previously injured she-wolf who had grown closer to the lead male. Ousting the gentle female form her rank, it was shortly after this Maksim and the new lead female became mates.

The lands warmed beneath the spring’s touch, and once more, the prey returned to Relic Lore. Heartened, the pack would flourish beneath their new leaders and the pregnancy of the lead female – Cut Rock River would bear its first litter of pups. The news would spread further than the pack within the forest, however, and the moment the Mountain of Dire was passable, Maksim and Kisla made plans to travel its treacherous slopes to deliver the happy news to her family – as well as her goodbye. Naia was left in charge of the pack until their return.

The exciting news was quickly shadowed however, when the pair reached Oak Tree Bend’s lands and learned of Corinna’s (Kisla’s mother) death and the disappearance of her brother. It was with a heavy ache the she-wolf returned to her new home, leaving behind her two younger brothers and her uncle. During the leader's journey to visit Kisla's home, two young yearlings who are all but strangers to most of the pack found their way to the borders. Adsila and Karpos, the adoptive niece and nephew of Capella, Lachesis and Naia, sought membership to try and reunite their broken family. They were not truly accepted until Kisla and Maksim returned from the other side of the mountain to hear the stories of the former Hollowheart Keep guardian-in-training and the former Magnolia Glen huntress-in-training.

Despite the devastating news received by the lead pair, life within the Creek continued on. After a tumultuous reuniting, Datura Aquila and Taima Lyall sought refuge within the borders of Cut Rock River, hoping to find a place to stay while they looked for the old territory of the Lyall's. Under the guise of young, innocent wanderers looking for a home, they were accepted into the pack. Once Maksim discovered that Taima was pregnant and that Datura was not her bodyguard but the father of her unborn children, the pair were skating on thin ice, but were allowed to stay until their children were old enough to migrate. Datura and Taima kept to themselves after that, lying low until their son Octavius was born in late May.

Within weeks of the leaders return, the River wolves welcomed their first pups to the world – Aleksei, Orren and Karina.