Darkfur - Chapter 6

Chapter Six</b>


     Storm looked silently at Whitefoot. Nothing made sense to him anymore, for had not this wolf said Whitefoot had died? Now, thought, he was claiming to be Whitefoot.
     “I don’t understand,” Storm said at last. “How are you not dead?”
     Whitefoot sighed. “It’s a long story…one I’m not proud of.” He sighed and shook his head. “I’ve lived too long, seen too much, and done things I wish I hadn’t.”
     “Why’d you kill Ritza, though?” Storm asked softly. “Why aren’t you dead?”
     Whitefoot sat down beside the rock Westwind had leapt off of earlier and studied Storm for a moment. He motioned for him to sit down as well, then looked up to Westwind.
     “Are you going to stay and hear it again, or will you leave us?” he asked calmly.
     “I have a few things to attend to,” Westwind replied. “I’ll be back later, though.” Then, without looking back, he turned and left the two alone.
     “Aren’t you worried I’ll try to run away?” Storm asked softly.
     “You’re too curious to leave,” Whitefoot replied. “I can see it in your eyes.”
     Storm nodded slowly.
     Whitefoot cleared his throat, then began. “I had no other choice but to…kill Ritza.” He closed his eyes. “We met in a small clearing one day, while I was out checking the borders for any signs of bears. One of her shoulder’s was swollen from a bite….” He shook his head sadly. “She had been infected by a rabid raccoon, and had contracted rabies. She begged me to kill her, but…I couldn’t do it. But I made a promise to her, and eventually I had to unless I wanted to kill off the entire pack.”
     “So…you didn’t do it on purpose?” Storm asked softly.
     “No, I would never have hurt her,” Whitefoot replied softly. “But if I hadn’t have killed her, she would surely have infected the rest of us. I couldn’t let her suffer from it anymore…so she made me do it.”
     “I’m sorry,” Storm whispered. “But…why didn’t you tell anyone?”
     “I wanted to,” Whitefoot replied, “but that would have made them fearful I had gotten it as well. So I said that a bear had killed her instead.”
     “But…Xyani said that Tarr had killed her.”
     “Xyani?” Whitefoot’s eyes opened wider. “Is she back, now? …I haven’t seen her in ages it seems….” He sighed. “Tarr was always different from Silvertip and Xyani, and I’m sure Xyani believed that he had done it. When I told the pack Ritza was dead, he became fidgety and I expect Xyani suspected something.”
     “Where is Tarr now, though?” Storm asked.
     “He’s dead,” Whitefoot replied softly.
     “What?” Storm asked, opening his eyes wider. “But…how did Silvertip get those scars, then?”
     Whitefoot shook his head. “I don’t know.”
     Storm closed his eyes, clearing his thoughts. “But if he’s dead, then how are you alive? I thought he killed you.”
     Whitefoot sighed. “I suppose you should know that truth, too.” He paused, collecting his thoughts, then took a deep breath. “Tarr and I looked so alike, pup.”
     “Storm,” Storm corrected. “Not pup.”
     “Right…Storm.” Whitefoot nodded. “Anyways…when he showed up to meet me, with Westwind, Darkblood, Blackheart, Zala and Kala, I suspected they were there just to talk. But then…Tarr leapt at me. He accused me of murder, and said that he would never forgive me. He didn’t even ask why I had to kill her.” He growled under his breath. “He was there to kill me, and though he was my own son I couldn’t let him do that…not yet, anyway. I overpowered him easily enough, though we were around the same size. But when he lay there unmoving….” Whitefoot shook his head sadly. “I murdered my own son…I couldn’t speak. And when Silvertip showed up, the two of us were so bloody from battle that he didn’t realize I was alive, not Tarr.
     “But he assumed I was Tarr, and that Tarr was I. I couldn’t speak, it felt like something was caught in my throat…. And when Silvertip saw this he immediately thought the Outrunners had helped kill me. It’s my fault they were banished…all my fault.”
     “No its not, Whitefoot,” Westwind said softly. Storm turned and saw him padding back toward them slowly. “I should’ve known Tarr was up to something like that…but I didn’t think he’d attack you.”
     “I got you banished from the pack, Westwind!” Whitefoot growled.
     “That wasn’t the end of the world,” Westwind replied softly. “We still had each other.”
     “But not those you loved.” Whitefoot looked down toward Storm.
     Westwind sat down and sighed. He looked at Storm, and was about to say something when they heard a howl from the main cave. Suddenly, a black and white she-wolf came bounding toward them. Storm stared at her in confusion. She had an odd-looking coat, and looked nothing like a true wolf. Her tail curled up slightly, but her fur was long and shaggy, like that of a wolf.
     “Westwind, there’s a black she-wolf here,” she panted, stopping before her leader and bowing. “She says she wants to talk with you, and that she’s come for…him.” She motioned to Storm.
     “Thank you, Sitka,” Westwind replied softly. “Bring her to me, please.”
     Sitka, the strange she-wolf, nodded and spun around. She then dashed back to where I she had come from.
     “Why does she look like that?” Storm asked softly.
     “She’s part husky,” Westwind said.
     “What’s a husky?” Storm asked, cocking his head.
     “A husky is a type of dog,” Westwind replied. “Dogs are creatures like us, only they obey their human masters.”
     Storm was about to ask what humans were, when the strange she-wolf/husky returned. Darkblood was at her side, and behind them padded a black she-wolf with miss-matched eyes.
     “Mother!” Storm exclaimed, rushing past Darkblood and Sitka.
     Nightstar lifted her tail happily and rushed forward to meet her son. She licked his forehead and nuzzled him as if he were a pup, but Storm didn’t care.
     “Oh, Storm!” Nightstar murmured. “I was so worried!”
     “I’m alright, Mother,” Storm replied, stepping back. “See? Not a scratch on me.”
     Nightstar smiled. She then looked up and met Westwind’s eyes. She padded forward, followed by Storm, and stopped in front of them.
     “You may go, Sitka,” Westwind said softly, and she nodded and padded away from them.
     “I may as well go, too,” Whitefoot said, turning away from Nightstar so she didn’t see him.
     “I asked Darkblood to come,” Nightstar said softly. “I have to speak with both of you.”
     Westwind sat down on his haunches and looked at Nightstar with an expressionless face. He sighed, then nodded slowly. “Very well…. What is it you want to say to us?”
     Nightstar sat down slowly, and looked deep into Westwind’s eyes. “Why’d you send her to the pack, Westwind?” she asked coldly. “What did you want to prove?”
     “I didn’t want to prove anything,” Westwind replied. “I sent her to spy, that’s all.”
     “Well you got more than you bargained for,” Nightstar snarled. “She’s been excepted by everyone, and when you call her back they’ll all be devastated she betrayed them!”
     “Who are you talking about?” Storm asked. “What do you mean?”
     Nightstar fell silent. “Moon is apart of the Outsiders,” she replied softly. “She lied to all of us - her pack was never killed by bears.”
     “What!?” Storm took a step backward, hurt. He had become friends with her over the past few weeks, and had grown to like her as a pack member.
     “I’m sorry, Storm.”
     Strom turned around and saw Moon standing a few yards away from them. Her head was bent low, and she looked sadly from him to Nightstar.
     “But why, Moon?” Storm asked.
     “That’s not my real name,” Moon replied softly. “My name is Darkwind, and I’m Westwind’s daughter.”
     “Why have you returned so early?” Westwind asked. “Did something go wrong?”
     “Yes, and no,” Darkwind replied. “Thunder showed up there…I didn’t let him see me, though.”
     “Thunder?” Darkblood’s ears pricked up. “So that’s where he went to…but why?”
     “To see Blayze,” Nightstar replied. “He figured it out, no doubt. Blayze was too happy to speak,” she added, shaking her head.
     Darkblood bent his head sadly and turned away.
     “Why else did you leave, Darkwind?” Westwind asked. “Did Northwind spot you out?”
     “No,” Nightstar replied. “I did.”
     Westwind sighed. “And did you tell her, then?”
     “That she’s my mother?” Darkwind asked. “No, I figured that out by myself.”
     “What?” Storm looked from Darkwind to Nightstar, his eyes wide. “How’s that possible?”
     “You did say I looked like your mother,” Darkwind replied softly. “When you had been taken…I asked her about it, and it turns out I’m your sister.”
     “But that means….” Storm turned to face Westwind. “You’re my father?”
     Westwind nodded slowly.
     “You knew all along, and you didn’t tell me?”
     “I was going to, Storm,” Westwind replied softly. “I just needed to find the right time. I didn’t expect your mother to come here by herself.”
     “She didn’t, though,” Darkwind added. “I came with her.”
     “You came home,” Westwind retorted. He shook his head. “I cant let you leave here, Nightstar,” he added. “The bears are about to attack - I cant let you and Storm get hurt.”
     “You cant make me stay here!” Nightstar shot back. “I have to protect my pack!”
     “No,” Westwind replied, leaping to his feet.
     Nightstar growled under her breath. “And what about Blayze and her pups?” she asked, turning to Darkblood. “Are you going to let them stay there to be killed?”
     “Of course not!” Darkblood growled. “That’s why I’m leaving for there tonight.”
     “You cant!” Nightstar exclaimed. “Blayze wont leave the pack - she’d rather fight the bears that leave.”
     “She wont be able to fight anyway,” Darkblood said softly. “Or have you forgotten the pups?”
     Nightstar lowered her head. “I still doubt she’d come here with you.”
     They were all silent for a moment, when suddenly they heard a terrified yelp. Westwind leapt to his feet and looked around with his ears laid back and his eyes narrowed.
     “How dare they come here!” he growled.
     “Who?” Storm asked.
     “The bears.” Westwind growled, and leapt toward the main den. The others followed close behind, afraid of what they may find. When they got there, though, the other Outsiders stood around a single bear that easily oversized even Westwind. The bear glared at them with its piercing red eyes, and growled under its breath.
     “What do you want, Shesh?” Westwind growled.
     “I have come to tell you we no longer need your services,” Shesh replied, an evil grin on his face.
     “Is that all, then?” Westwind asked. “If it is, then go.”
     “Oh, I don’t think so, Westwind.” Shesh raised up onto his hind legs, towering over them. He let out a loud bellow and leapt at Westwind. Westwind dodged out of the way and spun around to land on the bear’s large back. He grasped onto Shesh’s neck fur and held on for his life as the Kodiak swung his head from side to side.
     More bears burst from the trees, and rushed at the wolves surrounding their leader. Darkblood leapt atop Shesh and latched on beside Westwind. Shesh lifted to his full height again and shook himself so savagely that both wolves flew off of his back. He let out a vicious roar and launched himself after them. Westwind spun around to land on his feet and dodged out of Shesh’s way as the bear thundered past. Darkblood rolled over onto his feet and sprung away at the last second, his heart beating quickly inside of his chest.
     “We cant win this battle, Westwind!” Darkblood called, nearly out of breath. “There are too many of them!”
     Westwind growled. “And what are we supposed to do, Darkblood? If we leave the others will surely die!”
     Darkblood looked down at the ground for a moment.
     “No,” Westwind said, turning to face Shesh. “We stay and fight!”
     The other wolves howled their approval, and more leapt from the shadows of their dens. Nightstar rushed forward and leapt atop Shesh’s back, digging her teeth into his thick neck just as the other two had done. She scrabbled with her claws at his back, but they couldn’t find any hold. They weren’t nearly as sharp as the cougars claws, but still dug into the bear’s skin and brought out blood.
     “Be careful, Mother!” Storm exclaimed. He was about to rush forward and leap up beside her when he heard a startled yelp from Darkwind. He spun around and saw a she-bear standing over her, its fangs dripping with saliva. Storm rushed toward the bear and leapt atop its back, just as Nightstar had done to Shesh. Darkwind may have lied to him, but she was still his sister.
     “Get off of me, you whelp!” the she-bear growled, lifting to her hind feet and shacking herself. Darkwind rolled onto her feet and leapt up and the bear’s neck. She stretched out her front legs and her teeth grabbed the bear’s neck.
     The she-bear clawed at Darkwind, scratching her along the side, but barely hurting the growing young she-wolf. Without thinking, Storm leapt off of the creatures back and bit down hard on its leg, splitting the tendons apart.
     The bear let out a roar of pain, and at that moment Darkwind moved her jaws upward and bit into the vital vein on its neck. The bear swung her head from side to side, making Darkwind’s fangs etch deeper and deeper into her vital neck.
     Storm leapt atop the bear’s back once more, and scratched at its head. The bear snapped its jaws at him, giving Darkwind and advantage over the bear’s neck once more.
     The bear let out a pitiful growl, coughing up blood as it went. Then its eyes rolled back into its head and Storm leapt off as it crashed down to the earth. Darkwind held on the whole while, making sure the bear was truly dead.
     “It’s over, Darkwind,” Storm panted. “That bear wont get up ever again.”
     At last, Darkwind let go and leapt backward. The she-bear lay still, though, motionless and silent. Its brown eyes stared up at them, though there was a blank light in them as if she had been blind.
     Storm turned away from the fallen bear and gasped at what he saw behind him. Darkwind did the same, though nearly falling over instead of gasping. Ten bears had come to fight the twenty-odd wolves of the Outsiders, plus Nightstar and Storm. Only one other bear lay dead, though that one was much larger than the one Storm and Darkwind had killed. Another few were wounded with large scars all along their backs and faces.
     What had really astonished and frightened Storm and Darkwind, though, were the wolves that lay dead all around them. One of the she-wolves that had been beside Kala that morning when Storm had passed by lay beside the other dead bear, as did three other wolves Storm had not seen before. Four more were scattered about the area, and Storm sighed when he saw the pale wolf, Parl, dead as well. The others were wounded, yet kept fighting nonetheless. Westwind, Darkblood, and Nightstar still fought Shesh, who didn’t seem phased at all by the wounds he had sustained in the battle.
     “We’ve got to do something!” Storm gasped.
     “What can we do, though?” Darkwind asked softly.
     Suddenly, a bear broke from the fighting wolves and barreled toward the two of them. They stood their guard, waiting to spring away at any moment, when suddenly a large gray shape shot out of nowhere and landed on top of the bear. It was with so much force, that the bear flew sideways and landed on its side. The wolf leapt over it, snarling as it went, then shot in and bit the bear’s neck. The bear scrabbled to get up, but the wolf was somehow overpowering it.
     “Whitefoot!” Storm exclaimed.
     Whitefoot tore at the bear’s head, clawing deep into the skin. His eyes flared with rage, and then it was over.
     Storm stared at the old wolf in horror. The bear that lay dead was larger than two Whitefoots, and would easily have needed five or six wolves in order to kill it. Yet Whitefoot had taken it down all by himself.
     Shesh let out a low growl, then stood up on his hind legs. His breath was ragged, and he looked past Whitefoot at his fallen companion. Then he looked straight into Whitefoot’s eyes and growled.
     “You didn’t tell me he was with you, Westwind,” Shesh chuckled, shacking his head. “Well…isn’t that a shame.” He looked at the other two bears that lay dead and gasped as he saw the she-bear.
     “Fang!” he gasped. He snarled, crashing to his feet. “Who killed her!?” he bellowed. “Who killed my daughter!”
     Storm and Darkwind stood perfectly still, not moving a muscle as the large Kodiak bear walked toward them. Shesh stopped and smelt the blood on Darkwind’s mouth and chest, and growled.
     “You!” he shouted. “You two are dead!”
     Whitefoot leapt forward at that  moment and stood between Shesh, and Storm and Darkwind.
     “If you put one paw on them I’ll kill you myself,” Whitefoot snarled. “Now get out of here.”
     Shesh glared at Whitefoot, then turned away. “You’ll pay for this, Westwind. You and your Outsiders shall die at the claws of my bears the very day the pack will fall.” Then, he and the bears melted into the forest surround the den and disappeared from view.

     Westwind looked around the remainder of the Outsiders, his breathing shallow and ragged. They had gathered on the far side of the clearing where the attack had begun, and stared sadly at those fallen. The wolves had left the bodies where they lay, and soon Westwind would announce the names of those fallen. At the moment, though, they sat a silent vigil to remember them.
     Finally, Westwind let out a howl that erupted from his chest, and sadness filled the air where the wolves sat. Westwind walked up to the closest wolf, followed by the family members of that wolf.
     “Parl was an honorable wolf,” Westwind said softly, looking down at the pale body. “May he rest in peace with the wolf guardians above.”
     So it went on, until every wolf that had died at the claws of the bears had been called to. Westwind then turned, and the Outsiders followed him back toward their den for a meeting. Nightstar and Storm followed them, and soon they all sat in the main den.
     “I have come to a decision of what we will do,” Westwind said softly. He looked down at the wolves around him and sighed. “Estra, you and Kala take the hunters and flee to the west of here - go as far as you can all day until it gets dark. Then find a place to rest, and wait there for the night.”
     “What?” A gray she-wolf got to her feet and padded closer to Westwind. “We wont abandon the pack!” she exclaimed. “We cant leave the rest of you!”
     “It will only be temporary, Estra,” Westwind replied softly. Then he turned away from her. “Blackheart, you will bring all cubs one year and younger, along with their mothers - and fathers, if you wish - toward the west as well, but make sure to split up from the other group around midday. Go as far as you can to the northwest from there and stay there until it is time.”
     Blackheart, a white she-wolf with black markings along her belly, nodded slowly. A cub tumbled beside her, its eyes opened wide as if frightened.
     “And what about the inner Guard?” Darkblood asked.
     Westwind sighed. “Aipalovic, you will take Venom, Sitka, Tallok, Urah, Genn, and Zeeke to the north of here. Travel all day, and stop at night just like the others.”
     “What about me, Westwind?” Darkblood asked.
     “I want you to take Nightstar, Darkwind, and Storm back to the pack. Tell them to go northward, anything. Just get them away from here.”
     “But what about you, Westwind?” Nightstar asked, stepping forward. “Where will you go?”
     “To fight Shesh,” Westwind replied. “To the death.”