A young Kodiak Black sat sulking where his brother and sister had abandoned him, deep within the Lleingas Woods, where charred pines reached for the clouds. Once or twice Kodiak had pondered if the trees really did touch the sky, after all, hardly did one catch a glimpse of the tops. The forest was eternally cloaked in a thick fog that shrouded the view to the blue sky above, today being of no exception. The young wolf’s father had spoken of a time once, of before the fire ravaged the land, and how beautiful the woods were, rampant with life he had said. Kodi’s mind fancied the world of Acerbus his imagination created, but this was his home and he valued it for everything it had to offer. Although the earth-bound cloud cover of Lleingas varied from time to time, it was generally an invaluable tool when it came to hiding. This afternoon the bulk of the fog was at what Kodiak proposed as midway up the tree trunks, and a slight haze drifted down to the soft ground. It had been a few years since the fire and lush ferns had taken over the majority of the underbrush.
Kodiak and his siblings had been chasing one another around Lleingas in a game of tag when his sister Meridian became uninterested in playing with her brothers. This type of behavior was nothing new for Mari; matter of fact she wandered off quite often; becoming bored and chasing after the next intriguing thing that past. But if it was so familiar, why was it today Kodiak had become frustrated with her? Rovan and Kodi usually ignored their sister in return, accustomed to her apparently finding them a bore. This afternoon was suddenly different. Meridian strolled off as usual, but Kodiak was not going to stand for her deserting him, he wanted to play and she would if he had anything to say about it. The young male proceeded to yell after Mari and when she did not stop Kodi turned to name calling. Meridian’s ignorance struck a chord that had never been touched before within the growing wolf; it fueled an anger that seemed destined to never be tamed.
He spun around, facing away from his travelling sister. Clumsy paws took a few hasty steps before he turned back sneering towards the retreating white form. The burning sensation in his chest was overwhelming; he continued to pace as he frantically sought a release for the extreme building tension that seemed to threaten his very existence. Fiery eyes fell on his brother, just an innocent bystander but exactly what Kodiak needed. He launched himself onto Rovan, simultaneously grabbing a mouthful of extra skin and fur around his shoulder and tackling his grey hued brother to the ground. This rough play was a daily occurrence between the pair, building strength, gaining coordination, and developing useful fighting skills for the future. The siblings’ hearts were the beat of the Salen pack, they were their father’s pride and joy, and he encouraged this type of play. The brother’s were meant to fight side by side against their enemies, not against one another. But in fact, Exodus was promoting the foundation for each of his sons’ most formidable opponent; each knowing the other’s weaknesses, their strengths. How the other moved and how each assault could be counteracted to the best of circumstances.
For an instant Rovan responded appropriately, laughing and half-heartedly using his paws to push his equally sized brother off. It was the playfulness in Rovan that irritated Kodiak further. He was not playing a game, he was angered and he was using his brother as a living punching bag. Adolescent jaws with a myriad of adult, puppy, and missing teeth bit harder, until his brother stopped laughing and started whining. Kodi experienced a brief sense of accomplishment and relief for his anger until Rovan genuinely started to fight back and managed to toss his brother off of him. Regaining himself, Kodiak Black spun around in fury, growling as viciously as he could manage towards his brother, who no longer wanted to play this “game”. Both were fully aware of their sister’s wandering habit, their relative proximity to the pack’s border, and that they should have chased after Meridian when she first strayed. But Rovan probably being the only one with his head screwed on straight decided he was finished with Kodiak’s antics, and would not fall prey to his brother’s self-gratifying grasp. Rovan left without a word, his expression speaking volumes, in search of Mari, hoping to find her within Acerbus.
A crooked grin marked Kodi’s fawn muzzle, somehow delighted that his brother had walked away; it was as if Kodiak had won the war with only a single battle. A sharp release of air through pursed lips was his only rebuttal towards his brother. The pup reclined to his haunches as if saying he would wait right there until Rovan returned with Mari, which brings us to the beginning, Kodiak sitting amongst the ferns with only himself for company. He waited until he could no longer hear Rovan moving through the fern before he stood to all fours, black and fawn peppered tail tracing his hindquarters. The young wolf stood tall and proud, staying fully alert to his surrounding without being completely aware of the dangers that lurked outside of his father’s territory, the danger that lurked within his veins. An owl’s solemn song echoed through the forest, catching Kodiak Black’s attention. Sneering, fiery gaze shot upwards searching for the suspect only to be faced with a bleak haze. It may have barely been late afternoon, with the sun still well above the horizon but the forest always darkened first, and it was about time for the pups to start heading back to the den. Half of him wanted to head home by himself, allow Meridian and Rovan to get into trouble for not being back by a decent time, and the other half was curious as to where the two had gone and exactly what they were up to. One thing he knew for sure, he did not want to sit around here. He was starting to shiver, shaking out his pelt regularly to ease the intense tingling sensation that kept creeping up his spine.
He picked himself up in a bound, heading off in the direction his siblings had went; the better part of his judgment reminding him that, whether he was upset with them or not, if anything happened to either Rovan or Meridian while his parents were away, the fault would fall on his shoulders for he was the oldest. Moist leathery nares followed the trail of his siblings scent in his uneven gait. He knew he should slow down to track them efficiently, but his body willed him to move faster and faster. The pup followed the path until Meridian’s stepped outside of Acerbus and towards the claimed lands neighboring theirs. There was a quarter mile gap between the two pack’s territories, a buffer for wandering nomads. It wasn’t necessarily dangerous to cross outside of Salen’s land, but it wasn’t exactly a safe decision either, especially for a few young pups. Golden eyes scanned the extension of Lleingas Woods, only they were altered slightly. The land delicately sloped, and the fog did not seem nearly as dense. Around a hundred yards out the ferns of his forest ceased to exist and extreme fire damage was present by the amount of fallen trees littering the terrain. Although he saw all of this, he didn’t spot a fleeting image of what could be either of his siblings.
Kodiak lowered his head searching for Rovan’s trail which veered off from his sisters a few meters back. His nose led him to a scent marker on the territory line, its placement originally belonging to his father, but the prominent stench of Rovan’s urine emanated from the spot. “How dare he?” questioned a voice inside his head that was not his own. Never before had Kodiak heard such a voice, and if he was in a healthier state of mind, he might have questioned such a thing, but today things were different, today things began to change. The four and a half month old positioned himself over the scent mark and released a stream of his own. Whosever voice that was, they were right. How dare Rovan try to pull a move like that, try to claim Kodi’s rightful place as heir to the Salen throne and ruler of Acerbus and all else he claimed.
Kodi had never contemplated much about his future, and what his papa had in store for him. He didn’t bother to worry; when the time came he would accept his duties. We’ll see what Papa has to think of him after this! With a smug grin, Kodiak headed back towards the den where either Mama or Papa would surely be found. Secretly, he hoped he ran into his father first. Mama would try to make excuses for his two irresponsible siblings. She was always trying to cover their tracks. Not like she hadn’t paid him the favor more than once, but for now he was seeking vengeance against Meridian and Rovanfáer for leaving him. Disproportionate paws carried him quickly through the dense ferns as he howled for his parents’ aide. His lungs weren’t strong enough to belt out a howl like a grown wolf, but he hoped the forest would echo his call, or one of them would be within the area.
The sounds of a weak howl reverberated in the immediate area, drawing the attention of a floppy-eared femme. Her head turned slightly, tall ear pinpointing the sound's source. It was a familiar voice, one she knew better than she would have liked. One of her sons wanted the attention of his parents.
Though she didn't like the idea, Denali felt obligated to check on the pup. He was her son, after all, and if Kodiak Black was actually calling for help then something had to be up. He was the eldest of the young trio and the most dominant. Generally, if he thought something was wrong then something must have been wrong. Unfortunately, Denali never liked to openly admit that something was wrong with any of her children. If she could have, she wouldn't even admit that they were her children. She had never been fond of the idea of having someone so dependent upon her; being tied down by three very fragile lives scared her more than anything.
Heaving a sigh, she changed her course and headed in the direction of her son. Much of her day had been spent lounging at the lake. Originally the children had been with her, but that was hours ago. At some point she'd fallen asleep, and after that they'd all wandered off to play on their own. They were old enough to do so now, so the fact that none of them where present when she'd awoken not long ago hadn't really caused her worry. Of course, she rarely ever worried about the whereabouts of her pups. Usually she was more worried about what harm she herself could do to them than what sort of trouble they could get into around the territory.
"Kodiak?" she called out softly, relying mostly on scent to guide her. Rovan and Meridian's scents lingered lightly in the surrounding foliage, but neither had the intensity of her first born. He was by himself, sister and brother off somewhere else. Was that what he was calling about? Denali didn't think on it much.
When finally she spotted him, the Tundra female's head tilted to one side questioningly. She was in a surprisingly sane state of mind, her body calm and mind quiet. Her pace slowed until she stopped before the little male, amber eyes inquisitive. "What's wrong?" She didn't ask about his siblings or why he was by himself. All that mattered was finding out why he had howled. Clearly, she was not the better parent.
All was still and quite in the Lleingas Woods as it always was. Perhaps that was why Exodus constantly found himself traveling out to this part of the territory. Since the arrival of the pups, the dens were a total chaotic mess. They were no longer quite. On several occasions, the Alpha had been afraid that the pups’ shrill voices would cause a cave-in. Exodus sighed heavily, his head and front paws hanging off the end of a large boulder in the middle of the forest. This was his boulder. This was the boulder that Exodus had once stood upon and told the world that this was his land. Now, this boulder was an excellent place to come and relax. It was like the rock had a protective force field around it that kept out worries and negative thoughts. Instead, all Exodus was left with was peace and relaxation.
Smiling to himself, the brute’s eyes closed shut. Black nostrils took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly enjoying the moment thoroughly. He had all the time in the world on this rock. Allllll the time in th—a shrill, puppy sounding howl sliced through the air. Silver optics sprang open and slowly turned to peer in the direction that the howl had come from. When he found the right direction, the eyes narrowed down to slits. Suddenly, Exodus heaved a heavy sigh and bowed his head in exasperation. “So much for that,” he muttered almost sadly and pushed himself to his paws. As he stood, the black wolf’s joints creaked and popped with old age and lack of recent use. Exodus had been lying in the sun for some time now. Happy time was over.
Before jumping to the ground, Exodus went into a play bow stance to stretch his back and front legs, and then pulled forward to give the same treatment to his back legs. Once he was all stretched and limber, Exodus gracefully touched the ground with a thud and started off in a trot toward Kodiak Black, his first born son and future heir. What in Tor’s name could be wrong? Exodus asked himself with a sigh.
It took him a good while, but he finally reached Kodiak only to run into Denali as well. When he chanced upon the white female, Exodus gave her an adoring smile and licked her ear. He had arrived just in time to hear Denali ask what was wrong. Facing his oldest pup, Exodus sat back on his haunches and peered down at the young four month old. “Yes, Kodiak, what have you called for?” Sniffing at the air, Exodus caught the scents of Rovan and Meriden. “Where are your brother and sister?”
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