Way of the Wolf: Equilibrium

Chapter 26 ~ Opportunity

Standing by Orin, I couldn’t stop grinning. He rolled his eyes at me, a hand on my shoulder as he grumbled by my ear, “A little humility might be in order.”

“I’ve waited years to be given an opportunity like this, to lead a proper hunt. Let me soak it in.” Tipping my head up, I closed my eyes against the blinding light of the sun. Why shouldn’t I show how happy I was?

Orin chuckled, patting my arm. “Now you just need to prove you deserve it.”

Before I could huff in annoyance, he gave me a wink and a smile. He was proud, despite his playful scolding, and that meant the world to me. Though maybe he had a point, standing grinning like a maniac wasn’t very Alpha of me. But humility I could learn in time.

Turning my thoughts to the upcoming hunt, I smiled as I found Ebbe happily talking with Wulf and Dirk. At ease and smiling, he was nothing like the wolf I’d first met in the kitchen all those months ago. His head was always lifted up, he made eye contact more freely, and was no longer afraid to join in the playful scuffles that took place.

As the fifth most dominant wolf here, he would be Orin’s second, and part of a small group waiting in case I either needed help, or there was prey for them to bring down too. It would have been nice to be able to hunt side by side with Ebbe but I understood Jakkon’s decision. He needed to see how I worked alone, with no possible distraction.

We had to be so careful when hunting back home, always keeping an eye out for human interference. Out here, there were no such threats. Or at least, they were far fewer and far between.

Wolves started shifting to fur and I gave myself a quick shake to wake up. Thankfully, after a good night’s sleep, I was feeling as energetic as I did yesterday. Jakkon had pushed us but he seemed to know just where our limits were and just how long we needed to sleep to keep up today too.

“Boar are tricky and dangerous creatures,” Jakkon spoke up as he made his way towards me. Orin left to stand with the wolves under his control while I stood taller. “They’re faster than they look and their tusks are sharp.”

I nodded, and even with his warning I was no less excited. No less ready. This was my hunt to start.

Jakkon took a step back, allowing me to take the lead and I suddenly became aware of all the eyes locked on me, waiting for me. My gaze found Ebbe’s where he stood in fur, intense blue eyes boring into mine. I could almost hear him telling me good luck, that he knew I would make everyone proud.

Schooling my features, I closed my eyes and let the shift take hold, relishing in every stretch of muscle and twist of bones as my form changed. On four paws, my senses heightened, I settled into the primal side of my nature.

Jakkon bumped his bigger body against mine with one last chuff of encouragement before I set off in a flurry of raked up dirt. The sensation of wolves falling in line behind me was like nothing I’d ever felt before, so empowering that it filled me more energy than if ever felt. But I reminded myself to be humbled too; they were putting their trust in me as much as I was them to defend my back.

An array of scents assaulted my nose as I rummaged through the undergrowth. Jakkon trailed behind me, leaving it entirely up to me. Determined to show off my greatest skill, I kept moving swiftly, lifting my head every now and again to sniff the air until I found something that caught my attention. It was musky, earthy, something that spent time low to the ground.

Boar.

Jakkon caught the scent too but he didn’t alert the others, leaving it for me to do. A loud chuff would hopefully not be heard by our prey, and immediately my hunters trotted over. Excitement showed in each of their stances, dancing on paws, licking jaws in anticipation. The deer we had to bring back to camp, but some boar we could eat amongst ourselves tonight.