The New Wolf

Chapter Fourteen

After a few long moments of standing with my eyes closed, the huffing and low voices of my friends had surrounded me. Their sounds were muffled, as if they tapped my ears without entering them. I took a breath of my own, and opened my eyes. And once I did, I immediately wished I never looked. 

I felt like I had been hit in the chest, like all the oxygen in the world had been taken from me. I looked to Shadow, then to Riptide, Icy, Ember, then back to my Pack's territory. It was obliterated and deserted, minus a few remaining wolves that were badly injured. Any word that may have been on my tongue was forbidden to come out. But my mind was anything but quiet. 

What happened? And when? Who could have landed such an attack? Not even Scar, who is now dead, could have done this.

As I collected my thoughts finally, I heard the terrified howls of my companions as they took in their surroundings. Even Ember, who was new to this pack life, added his own barks of horror. 

A bloodied figure approached me, and as she got closer, I realized the wolf was limping. I squinted into the distance, but the harder I looked, the blurrier my vision got. Tears forced me to fight gravity as two familiar, radiant yellow eyes caught my attention. 

Shadow, my wolf, my best friend, and the Pack's leader, fell to the ground in front of me. I froze, my face emotionless except for my eyes, which had already given me away. Her coat was slick with blood, and her ear was bent out of shape. But she dragged her broken rear leg behind. 

Shadow spoke in a raspy voice, "Alex," she used my human name. 

I leaned over her. "Yes, I'm here."

"The Pack has been raided by--" a coughing fit overtook her for a few moments. 

"Wh-who did this to you?" Another tear fell from my eye. 

"He is a large male wolf with skin like stone and fur like barbed wire. His eyes are red lasers that seem to burn right through you. His claws are the longest and sharpest I have ever seen. And his voice...is that of a demon. Demon...that is his name," Shadow's entire body shook as she spoke. Her fear made me nervous.

What had she witnessed while I was gone? I shivered at the thought. 

"Demon leads a pack of ruthless wolves born to do one thing. Kill," Shadow's eyes shifted to the broken earth around her. "And I fear that what those wolves are fully capable of is far worse than this."

Icy and I exchanged a glance that sent a shiver down my spine. I was at a loss for words. What was I to say? 

"Then we must do what we can to recover from this attack as quickly as possible," Icy spoke. "Raven and Riptide, go find two sticks strong and light enough for a splint for Shadow's leg. Ember, find a tree with large, thick leaves to wrap around the sticks."

"Like a cast," Riptide recognized the structure. 

Icy seemed to have forgotten Riptide's original form at first. Then she remembered seeing him turn into a human at some point during the bear fight. 

"Yes, like a cast. It's a human thing," I explained. 

"I figured," Icy laughed, then she stopped, remembering  the urgency of the situation. 

Riptide and I bounded off, looking over every branch, stick, and twig in sight while Ember went somewhere else to transform into a phoenix. He'd probably decided not to share his secret with the Alpha for now. 

I had decided I did not want to carry a stick in my mouth and took my human form. Instinctively, Riptide did the same. 

I emerged in white that matched the shade of my wolf coat. I wore white jeans, a white t-shirt, black and white Converse, and my half of the Yin Yang necklace, which had been a new beginning for me. 

As I searched, Riptide, who was now Zack, stared at me. Did he want me to lose focus? 

No, Shadow needs help ASAP. I told myself as I leaned down to find a branch too bumpy to be useful. I attempted to busy myself when I felt his gaze still on me. 

Familiar feelings coarsed through me as I remembered the first time we had met. I had rushed through the hallway to my next class, books held into my chest, staring at the ground most of the way. Until I bumped into him, which had made me drop my books. Apologetically he had helped me collect them again as my heart beat quickened. Sure, it was cliché, but the memory played over and over in my head like a video clip. 

I found myself staring back at him just in time to see his lips curl in a smile. Bridging the gap between us, he wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me softly on the lips. I leaned into him and returned his embrace. 

Too quickly he pulled away. "Come on, Alex, we have to focus!" He playfully hit my shoulder. 

"Well you aren't making it very easy!" I copied his tone. I shook my head, "But really, we do have a job to do." 

He nodded and we quickly found two suitable branches and hurried back to Icy, who had stayed to keep Shadow company. 

Icy took the branches from us and the thick leaves from Ember, who had just arrived. 

"Here, let me help you. My human hands will have an easier time," I offered and wrapped the leaves around the two splints on either side, with the finishing touch being part of a plant that resembled a very long piece of grass tied around it all. "Try to stand, Alpha."

Despite her bloody coat, her injured leg, and her damaged ear, she rose above the pain. Shakily, she stood up, avoiding putting weight on her broken hind leg. 

I stood close to her, preparing to catch her if she began to fall. Though she must have been in immense pain, the black wolf never faltered. To me, she was the definition of strong. 

"How does that feel?" Icy asked softly. 

"Better with the...splint," Shadow had forgotten the new word for a moment. "Thank you all for helping me."

Changing from a human, I dipped my head respectively to the Pack's Alpha. Copying my movements, my friends did the same. 

"But," Shadow started, addressing the older wolf, Icy, "Aren't you the rightful leader of this pack now? I only took your place, but now that you're here..." her gaze went to the ground.

"My time as the leader of this pack has passed. Now it is your time to lead these wolves, Shadow. They are loyal to you now, as am I, my Alpha," Icy showed her teeth in a smile, nuzzling her old friend's fur.  

"Thank you, Icy, that means a lot to me," Shadow matched her smile sincerely. 

"I'm not an expert on wolf packs, but shouldn't there be more of you?" Ember questioned. 

Shadow's smile disappeared as she remembered the attack that had taken place not long before. "We are missing most of the Pack, yes. They were captured."