Horizon's End: A Wolf Story based on RWTP

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Chapter 3

Senkah was awakened by the sounds of distant snarling. Instantly, she surged to her paws. That's by the border! She could barely distinguish one of them as Zero's, a packmate of Stonepack. She leaped over a fallen tree as she raced to the border. She arrived in time to see Zero get thrown against a tree, and Atra get knocked back by a kick from Zero.

"What's going on here?" Senkah demanded, snarling fiercely at Atra.

Atra growled, "I was on my territory, investigating a scent, when SHE," she pointed at Zero with her nose in accusation, "came over and attacked me."

"If I remember correctly, my mate said he smelled Darkpack over on our borders," Senkah growled. "I have a hard time believing your story." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Aki come running. Three wolves against one, Senkah thought. Even better. We'll drive Atra out of here easily, even if she has reinforcements.

"You have no right to accuse us," Atra barked. "What if the wolf you smelled was Pinepack who had been in our territory?"

"Because it would have had Pinepack scents in it as well," Senkah growled. "That scent didn't." I swear Atra, your stories and lies are getting worse and worse. Are you even trying?

"Then maybe you're lying," Atra growled, "or my pack has some hooligan in it, like a few I know."

Aki snapped. "And does that hooligan happen to be you?!" he snarled. "I saw you in our territory!"

Senkah gave Aki a warning look that clearly said, Stay out of this.She turned back to Atra, "I'll throw you right back into your own territory," she snarled, "so called sister!"

"You were never my sister, you rabbitbrain! I never would have come here if it weren't for your brainless follower!"

"Oh, yes you were!" Senkah snarled. "A sad turn of fate made sure of it!"

Atra curled her lip, "I don't care about our blood, unless it's yours being spilled!"

"I'm afraid it's going to be yours instead," Senkah growled.

Atra snarled, "back to puppy games, then, sister?" She spat the word out like poison.

Senkah pinned her ears back against her head as she lunged for Atra. "This is far from that, mutt!"

Atra tried to leap aside, but Senkah's teeth sank into her pelt. She felt blood flowing from the wound. Full of fury, she wheeled straight for her sister with her paws aiming for her neck. Senkah was surprisingly silent as Atra's claws sank into her neck. She jabbed her paw at the spot on Atra's chest where the heart was unprotected. Atra yelped as he blow tore down her chest, but didn't manage to kill her. She gritted her teeth and lunged again, this time going low and veering to the left. Senkah tried to kick at her with her hind leg, but she did it too early, and was knocked down again. She reached around and bit at her sister's throat.

From the background, Aki twitched. He wanted to step in and take Atra down, but he held back. Senkah wouldn't want him to interfere; besides, Senkah could hold her own.

Atra howled with anger and pain as teeth tore through the fur on her neck. She leapt back, her ears pinned and her tail curved under her with the tip twitching. "Next time I come back, I won't be alone!" she snarled, her lips writhing, then she stormed out, breaking into a run for the boundary.

"You're on thin ice, Atra!" Senkah howled. She snarled, watching her leave to make sure she did cross the border and didn't come back. The adrenaline had made the wound on Senkah's neck go mostly unnoticed, but at that moment it faded and Senkah felt it. "Ow," she muttered, and pawed at it.

Aki stepped towards her. "Are you okay?" he asked, furrowing his brow.

"I'm fine," Senkah replied through grit fangs.

"That wound looks bad," he protested worriedly. Zero nodded in agreement.

Senkah wiped it with a paw, feeling blood drip down her neck. Her eyes widened for a second when she saw how much blood was on her paw, before she growled. "Atra, if I find you again I'm going to tear you to pieces..." she mumbled under her breath. She looked up at the sky; it was becoming milky with the coming dawn.

"Come on," Zero said, "we need to get you back to the dens."

"No." Senkah shook her head. "The wound will clog faster in the river." She turned and began to walk towards the river, itching to run but refusing to since it would only increase the blood flow. Aki walked there with her to make sure she got there safely, while Zero went back to alert Hades of the fight.

Senkah turned her head as Aki noticed something. It was a Pinepack wolf! "What do you want?!" Aki barked.

Senkah growled, her fur bristling as she walked over to Aki's side. How many intruders are we gonna have to deal with today?!

The Pinepack wolf, called Fox, immediately rolled over in submission. "I only want to talk!" she yelped, "I won't steal your prey, and I'm alone!"

"Okay, okay," Aki sighed, "Talk."

"Do you know who's been trespassing?" Fox asked as she straightened up, but didn't break her submissive position. "We know it's Darkpack, but we don't want to blame them if it's just one bad apple."

"It's Atra, the alpha, I'm positive. I saw her enter our territory and she just attacked Senkah," Aki replied grimly. "They are up to something."

"What?!" Fox yelped, "But the whole pack follows her and her mate Kodiak!"

"I know," Aki sighed, "this is why this is so troubling. They are trying to start something!"

Fox's eyes widened, "What about Emeraldpack?"

"They should be warned." Aki said, "I'll go and talk to them later. If Darkpack is coming after all of us, we need to work together."

"Like... joining," Fox blinked. "Is that even possible?"

"More like an alliance," Senkah said, stepping into the conversation for the first time. Up until now, she'd just been listening. "We have to try. Would you talk to your alphas about it?"

Fox shifted in discomfort as the Stonepack alpha spoke to her. "Yeah. They don't plan on attacking though, but maybe an alliance in war... I'll ask." She then turned and returned to her own territory.

Senkah went ahead and went to the river. "I'll go ahead and warn Emeraldpack," Aki told her. Senkah nodded, stepping into the cold water. She watched Aki race away into the north trees, by Emeraldpack's land.

Sighing, she let the wound on her neck clot as she began to ponder on what they would do about Darkpack. ...Are we facing a possible war?
 
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Chapter 4

Senkah went to the Stonepack-Darkpack border, checking to see if Atra came back. With a snort, she re-marked the scent lines. It had been a few days since the incident, and the Darkpack scent was fading, but it was still there. She eyed a fat, young doe that was inside Darkpack's territory. Senkah's mouth watered at the thought of devouring it.

She smirked, They think they can trespass on our territory... who's to say I shouldn't do it right back? she thought, stepping over the border and stalking towards it. She licked her chops as she prepared to leap. She pounced, wrapping her jaws around its neck and yanking upwards. After killing it she began ripping its fur off, before she began to eat. She took her sweet time, not caring at all about being on Darkpack territory. After Senkah decided she'd had enough, she sniffed around for a soft patch of dirt to bury the bones.

Unbeknownst to Senkah, Atra was nearby. As she caught a whiff of the offender, rage willed every bit of her adrenaline and hate-soaked heart. "Senkah," she growled under her breath. "So we're playing it reverse now, sister."

As Atra was downwind of her, Senkah didn't know that she was nearby. As she dug into the soft ground, she purposely flung dirt in every direction, making a larger hole that necessary in order to make a mess and to make it obvious that someone had been there. Let's see how you rabbitbrains like that, she thought, snickering as she put the bones inside and resumed burying it.

Atra bit back a snarl. She was still badly wounded from a battle that had happened earlier that night, but once she had healed... You shrewhearts better watch your backs.

Senkah marked her scent on a few trees, before heading back to the Stonepack dens, in no hurry. That's IT you piece of filthy scum unworthy of sharing my blood! Atra paused to try and smother Senkah's markings with hers, but the smell of Stonepack still mingled with hers. She stomped off to find the rest of her pack.

Senkah greeted Hades as he entered the den, returning from his hunt. She told him about what she had done on Darkpack's territory, and he snickered. "They didn't even notice me!" Senkah snickered, not knowing that Atra had been watching her the whole time.

Hades snickered, then yawned. "I'm exhausted."

Senkah suddenly realized how tired she was, as well. "Yeah. Well, g'night."

"Yeah, goodnight." Hades licked Senkah's ear, "I love you."

"Love you too...." Senkah's voice trailed off as she began to doze off in her nest. Hades curled around her lovingly, and she laid her head on his shoulder as they gave way to sleep.

***

Zero raced to the entrance of the alpha's den at dawn, tapping her claws on a stone quickly to signal the alphas that there was a message. Senkah lifted her head sleepily, cracking her eyes open. "What is it, Zero?"

"There's a strange wolf on the borders," Zero replied, panting.

Senkah grumbled under her breath. "Hades!" She nudged him awake. He parted his jaws in a yawn as he awoke. Senkah parroted to him what Zero had told her, and he cursed under his breath. He walked out of the den after Senkah, following Zero to the border. Right there, a red and white wolf bumped into them with a yelp. She tucked her tail beneath her legs and sunk to the ground in front of Senkah.

Senkah swiveled an ear behind her as Aki padded up, his fur matted with blood. She'd heard the sounds of a battle earlier in the loner lands. He must have gotten caught up in it, Senkah thought, I'll ask him about it later.

"I hate my pack and they're trying to kill me," the strange wolf whimpered. Aki lapped at the drying blood on his paw.

"Who are you?" Senkah demanded, narrowing her deep blue eyes in submission. The wolf reeked of Darkpack.

"C-Cedar," she stuttered, "Atra keeps talking about killing Emeraldpack but I don't know anything, honest!"

"And how do we know you aren't just some spy?" Hades growled, his strong muscles rippling under his pelt. Senkah nodded in agreement, her lips curling inwardly ever so slightly.

Aki looked at Cedar, and then to the alphas. "It's true, 'bout Atra," he offered quietly. Hades flicked an ear to let him know that he heard him.

Cedar trembled, "They're trying to find me!" she yelped, "I heard Atra talking about her plan to target Emeraldpack and she said that I couldn't live after hearing it." Genuine fear was evident in her eyes.

Hades opened his mouth to bark something, but Senkah angled her tail in front of him to stop him. Her stone cold blue eyes bore into Cedar's, and the red wolf trembled even more. Senkah had a bad feeling about this wolf... but she wouldn't cast her out yet. "Come back with me to our dens," she said finally. "I have some questions to ask you, but not out in the open like this."

Cedar nodded. She rose a bit, but kept low to the ground, not wanting to anger the alphas. Senkah turned around and padded through the forest, with Hades, Aki, and Zero falling behind. Once they reached the dens, Senkah padded into the alpha's den and went inside. Hades stood at the entrance, eyeing Cedar suspiciously. "Come inside," Senkah called to Cedar. Cedar hesitated for less than a second, before she went in. She swallowed uncomfortably as Hades sat outside, trapping her in. Senkah disregarded this, and thanked Hades with her eyes.

Cedar looked around at Senkah's den. Senkah motioned for Cedar to sit down, and she obeyed. "Now Cedar," Senkah said, her voice serious, "I need you to tell me everything that you heard." Senkah wasn't about to trust this wolf, but she did want to hear this wolf's story.

"Atra... she said they were going to target Emeraldpack first, that they were slowly going to lure in the packmates who are loyal to them now. Then she was going to attack with-with Darkpack, kill Pinepack, and take their land. She said... she said she was going to kill you herself."

Senkah's eyes were grave as she listened. "Thank you for telling me this, Cedar." She motioned for Hades to come in, and she whispered to him what Cedar had just told her. "We must warn the other packs."

Cedar nodded, "Atra said she was going to... to make sure you saw all your friends die first. If she's going to attack you last, that means you'll have time to prepare."

Inside, Senkah felt a wave of rage at her sister, but it was unnoticable outside. "You're welcome to stay here with us." Cedar looked up in surprise. Senkah forced a reassuring smile, fighting back rage towards Atra. "Zero will show you where the dens are," Senkah said, not wanting to lose her temper in front of Cedar.

Cedar nodded, glancing around to see where Zero was, "Who... who's Zero?"

"One of the packmates," Senkah replied. "She's outside." Cedar nodded again and padded out of the den. After she left, Senkah furrowed her brow.

"Why did you let her in that easily?" Hades hissed, but not unkindly, "She could be a spy! We don't know if she's telling the truth or not!"

"Yes, she could be a spy. But she could just as easily be telling the truth, as well," Senkah murmured. "I don't want an innocent wolf to die."

"Would you rather let a random loner die, or a Stonepack wolf die?" Hades countered.

"Neither, Hades." Senkah brushed her muzzle into Hades' brown fur. "I don't trust her either. But let's just give her a chance, alright?"

Hades sighed, "okay."

Senkah furrowed her brow as she watched Zero show the new wolf around from the mouth of the alpha's den.

Have I made a big mistake?
 
Chapter 5

Cedar gnawed on a rabbit's leg, chewing and wolfing down the last few scraps of meat. The Darkpack dens were very active today. There was news of Senkah, the Stonepack alpha female, attacking Atra a few nights ago at the border. Atra had been wounded, and Luna, her daughter, was out stirring up trouble and collecting bits of information.

Atra had formed a plan last night and had shared it with her mate, Kodiak. There was much speculation, although no one but the alphas knew for sure what it was. Cedar herself was curious, but she didn't let it occupy her mind too much. I'll find out at some point.

"Hey, Cedar." Akira greeted her a bit gruffly. She settled down to eat a squirrel that she held in her jaws beside her packmate. Akira, too, was a daughter of the alphas. Cedar wouldn't call Akira her friend, necessarily... nobody was really Akira's friend. She didn't like pretty much anyone. But, they did hunt together, so Cedar figured she was ahead of the game there. Cedar murmured a greeting back, but she didn't really talk. She took the bones of the rabbit out of the densite, and buried them, before coming back in.

"Cedar!"

Cedar started, whirling around as she heard Atra bark her name. "Yes, Atra?" she murmured a bit tentatively, and lowered her head in submission. Atra's temper was unpredictable, and after the fight with Senkah, she was especially irritable.

"In my den." Atra's voice was cold enough to make an arctic gale seem warm.

Biting her lip, Cedar followed the alpha into her den with anxiety tingling in her paws. Did I do something wrong? There was a slight scent of wolf blood in here; Cedar guessed it was from her wounds this morning. There had been a battle in the loner lands last night; it had started out with the alpha male of Emeraldpack and a rogue, who also happened to be the brother of Ameroq's alpha male, fighting over an elk. However, it had quickly escalated into a full-scale battle, and Atra had gotten caught up in it.

Atra took a seat on her mossy nest, curling her tail around her paws. The alpha's den was much nicer than the other dens; it was a small cave, made out of small boulders on the inside walls. Moss grew on the walls and boulders, and the floor's soil was softened by all the times it had been walked on. Atra and Kodiak's nests were made out of tender moss, feathers, and dried grass. It was very different than the regular dens; they were like large holes in the ground, with rocks and logs around the entrance.

"Cedar." Atra's tack-sharp voice broke Cedar out of her thoughts on the alpha's den and the battle from the night before. "I'm sure you've heard all kinds of rumors around the dens about my plan."

"Yes..." Cedar listened.

"It is time to execute the first part of it," Atra said. "You've proved your loyalty to me. And now, I have a job for you."

"What is it?" Cedar felt a spark of excitement ignite in her belly.

"I want you to go to Stonepack," Atra began, "and act like you are being chased and fearing for your life. Then, when Senkah and Hades question you, tell them that you overheard my plan, and that I said you couldn't live after hearing it. When they ask what it was, tell them that first, we would start by targeting Emeraldpack first, luring away their packmates that are loyal to them now. Then, I would attack with Darkpack, drive out Pinepack, and take their land. After that, I would kill Senkah myself."

Cedar nodded, listening to each detail closely. "Is this the real plan?" she asked tentatively.

"No, stupid! It wouldn't work anyway!" Atra barked, making Cedar flinch, before she quickly simmered down. "The idea is to make them believe false information, so that they won't be prepared when we attack. You'll stay there until we attack when we're strong enough." Cedar nodded. "Remember!" Atra went on, "you're not really joining Stonepack. Don't get attached to anyone. We're going to be destroying them within the next couple moons or so."

"Yes, Atra." Cedar nodded vigorously. "When do I go?"

"Now."

Cedar nodded, and rose to her paws. They were quivering; not from fear, but from excitement. She turned and pelted out of the den, dashing through Darkpack territory and towards the mountains. Excitement tingled in her belly, and adrenaline surged through her veins.

***

It took a while, but eventually she reached the Darkpack-Stonepack border. Remembering what Atra told her, she bristled her fur and tilted her head back, sending out an urgent howl for help. She waited for a wolf to come by, glancing into the trees every now and then. She was excited, but... doubt was beginning to latch onto her. What if I should just run? she thought, This is very dangerous... What if they see through the lies and I get caught? Will they kill me? There was an ominous feeling plaguing her mind that she was getting into something that she would probably regret later.

She was jolted out of her thoughts as the sound of thrumming pawsteps echoed through the trees. A gray furred she-wolf with steel blue eyes was coming. "What are you doing?" she barked, as her hackles began to prickle.

Cedar instantly lowered herself to the ground, tucking her tail and acting submissive. "Please don't hurt me!" she cried. She must've sounded genuine, as the she-wolf's gaze softened just a tad. "My pack hates me and they're trying to kill me!"

The she-wolf bit her lip. She glanced into the trees, and back to Cedar again, before she finally murmured, "I'll-I'll go get my alphas." She turned and sprinted back into the woods.

Once she was gone, Cedar stood back up with a bit of curiosity. Perfect, she thought. Her heart was still hammering in her chest, and every instinct was screaming to her, Don't do this mission, but she did her best to block it out. She couldn't go back; Atra would just send her right back here, and would probably even chase her out if she refused to listen. She continued waiting, watching her breath billow out of her nose in small puffs of fog. The air was filled with sound as birds sang their morning songs. It was a cold morning; Cedar hoped that the she-wolf would return with Senkah and Hades soon, as she was longing to be in a warm den. She took a tentative step over the border, when she felt a wolf crash into her. She yelped, tucking her tail between her legs and crouching on the ground in front of it.

She looked up and saw four wolves; the one she had crashed into was a large black she-wolf, with sapphire blue eyes. Beside her was a large, hard muscled brown he-wolf, with brown eyes, brown fur, and a white underside. The third one was another large gray he-wolf with a white underside, and highlights of red along his pelt, and on the tips of his ears and tail. Blood was matted in his pelt; he'd obviously been in a recent battle. Most likely, the one that had happened in the loner lands last night. Cedar recognized the last one as the she-wolf who had found her. "I hate my pack and they're trying to kill me," Cedar whimpered. The gray and red he-wolf lapped at some dried blood on his paw.

"Who are you?" the black she-wolf demanded. Cedar couldn't help but flinch.

It didn't take long for Cedar to recognize that this was Senkah. She wondered which of the two males was Hades. "C-Cedar," she stuttered, hoping to high heaven that she sounded genuine, "Atra keeps talking about killing Emeraldpack but I don't know anything, honest!"

"And how do we know you aren't just some spy?" the brown he-wolf growled, his muscles rippling under his thick pelt. Senkah nodded in agreement, her lips curling in ever so slightly.

The gray he-wolf looked at Cedar, then to the two wolves who appeared to be the alphas. "It's true, 'bout Atra," he offered quietly. The brown he-wolf twitched an ear at him.

Cedar trembled, I knew coming here was a bad idea! What if they kill me? Then running won't even matter! "They're trying to find me!" she yelped, "I heard Atra talking about her plan to target Emeraldpack and she said that I couldn't live after hearing it." Quite frankly, she was terrified; not about what they thought she was scared about, but that this would fail and she would be caught.

The brown he-wolf, whom Cedar was now pretty sure was Hades, opened his mouth to bark something, but Senkah angled her tail in front of him to stop him. Her stone cold blue eyes bore into Cedar's, and Cedar trembled even more. Please don't kill me..!

"Come back with me to our dens," she said finally. "I have some questions to ask you, but not out in the open like this."

Cedar nodded, inwardly sighing in relief. She rose a bit, but kept low to the ground, not wanting to anger the alphas. She could already tell by the tension crackling in the air between the wolves that she was on thin ice as it was, and one wrong move could spell disaster for the mission... and for her life. If she got out of here alive, she'd have to face Atra and Kodiak's wrath, and that was the one thing that all of Darkpack's wolves feared the most.

Senkah turned around and padded through the forest, with Hades, Aki, and Zero flanking her. Once they reached the dens, Senkah padded into the alpha's den and went inside. Hades stood at the entrance, eyeing Cedar distrustfully. "Come inside," Senkah called to Cedar.

Cedar hesitated for less than a second before she went in. She swallowed uncomfortably as Hades sat outside, trapping her in. If she wanted to run, she would be stuck.

Cedar looked around at Senkah's den carefully, searching for any escape routes in the event that things went south. Senkah motioned for Cedar to sit down, and reluctantly, she obeyed. "Now Cedar," Senkah said, her voice serious, "I need you to tell me everything that you heard."

"Atra..." Cedar recalled what Atra had told her to say that morning, "she said they were going to target Emeraldpack first, that they were slowly going to lure in the packmates who are loyal to them now. Then she was going to attack with-with Darkpack, kill Pinepack, and take their land. She said...she said she was going to kill you herself."

Senkah's eyes were grave as she listened, "thank you for telling me this, Cedar." She motioned for Hades to come in, and she whispered to him what Cedar had just told her. "We must warn the other packs."

Cedar nodded, inwardly grateful that they'd fallen for it. Thank goodness. "Atra said she was going to...to make sure you saw all your friends die first. If she's going to attack you last, that means you'll have time to prepare."

"You're welcome to stay here with us." Cedar looked up in surprise. She hadn't expected Stonepack to be this friendly with her so quickly. Senkah offered a reassuring smile when Cedar looked up. "Zero will show you where the dens are."

Cedar nodded, glancing around to see where Zero was, "Who... who's Zero?"

"One of the packmates," Senkah replied. "She's outside." Cedar nodded again, feeling a bit sheepish, and padded out of the den. A slow breath of relief escaped from her chest, and she realized that she'd been holding her breath for a while without even realizing it.

Zero happened to be the gray she-wolf who had found her earlier. She dipped her head in greeting when Cedar came out. "This way," she said, padding towards the dens. "There's a vacant den over there."

Cedar followed her. Senkah's nice for letting me stay here, she thought. She turned her head as she saw a brown and white, golden eyed she-wolf padding over to them.

"Who's this?" she asked Zero curiously, but looked at Cedar with a bit of wariness. Cedar instinctively started to curl her lips at her, but before the she-wolf or Zero could notice, Zero spoke up.

"Her name's Cedar," Zero explained, "Senkah accepted her in."

"Oh," she nodded. Her suspicious gaze faded, and she smiled warmly at Cedar. "My name's Quartz. Welcome to Stonepack."

"Thank you," Cedar smiled back. She felt her guard start to slip, and when she realized that, she strengthened it again. Remember what Atra said: I cannot make friends with anyone.

"There are a few vacant dens over there too," Zero said, pointing at a group of empty dens with her nose.

"Okay," Cedar nodded, and padded over to one.

"Let me know if you need anything." Zero smiled at Cedar kindly.

Cedar nodded, watching as Zero said her goodbyes and went to go hunting with Quartz. She felt a small twinge of guilt within her; Stonepack was being so kind and welcoming to her, and her job was to help find a way to kill them all. But she wouldn't be sympathetic. No, she had a job to do, and she would complete it. She was Darkpack, and she was strong.
 
Looks splendid! Keep it up.
thumbsup.gif
P.S. finish it. :p
 

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