CODE OF THE WOLF

CHAPTER 1: BLOOD BOUND

“Sir?” said a recruit slowly walking towards Timber, who was sitting and staring into the crackling fire, as the wind rushed and stirred up the flames.

“What do you want pup?” Timber looked up at the now trembling recruit.

“They told us to come to you for the blood bond, Sir”. “Blood bond, huh? You want to hear a little story about this blood bond pup?”. The recruit nodded, “Well then, let's start at the beginning.”

As the wind went silent and the flames died down, Timber sighed.  “I wasn’t always a wolf; I was once a human in a village now known as the Western Front. Yes, it was not always a fortification, but a simple and small farming village. Simple folk that kept to themselves and traded our goods with the neighboring villages when and if needed. I had a home and I even had a love once; that is before they came. Nobody in any of the five kingdoms ever thought that this day would come. Once the first village fell, the Lords of the realms quickly started recruiting soldiers to defend the borders; hoping we still stood a chance to fend of the invaders and save the remaining villages. The blood thirsty bastards, known as the Red Army, attacked the Northern realm first. It has the best vantage point so, in hindsight, it makes sense that they would attack them first.”

Timber sighed heavily and clenched his fists; “They never saw it coming, because of the peace treaty agreed to, so many lunar centuries ago - as you all should know by now. Entire villages burned to the ground and their people either bled dry or turned to increase their damned armies and then forcing their family members to face their now blood driven and crazed mothers, fathers, sons and daughters. Forced to have to kill them and watch them die as they still try to claw at your throat… a fate that nobody should have to endure.” He looked up to see that he is was surrounded by a group of new recruits listening intently, as if it were orders being given by a parent to their children.

Looking up at the woods in front of him he threw another log into the flames. “It all started, and ended, in woods like these. I was busy hunting deer for the village with my brother Arctic when we heard a scream from behind us. There was a scream that sent a chill down our spines. As we ran to help our fellow hunter, we came upon a horrific sight of him being torn apart by three vampires. Keep in mind, young pups, we had never seen a vampire before, only heard of them in stories. We immediately fired on them, my arrow striking one in the head; which he pulled out with little effort. My brother's shot hit the other in the heart and dropped him like a log”.

Timber got up and walked to the edge of the woods. As the wind rustled through the trees; he took a big sniff, taking in the smells of the forest. He breathed out and stared into the forest; his eyes glowing yellow; “that’s when we first learned how to kill these pale bastards.”

Timber’s speech became more feverish and deliberate; “The other two charged at us, with a speed we did not expect, hitting us back on our arses faster than we could blink. I managed to take one out as he leaned in to take a bite out of my neck; I pulled out my hunting knife and stuck him in his heart - got a face full of blood in return.” Timber smirked at the memory.

“The other held my brother against the tree and boasted about how he was going to rip out his heart, giving me enough time to put an arrow in his back and give my brother the chance to stab him in the heart. My brother, of course, never lets me live it down that he has more vampire kills than me”.

“Yeah, and don't you forget it” a voice echoed from the forest. A white wolf approached them from the dark dense bushes. Timber smiled at his brother and gave a smug laugh. “Oh, come on Timber, I earned those two kills fair and square! Telling the old tale again, are we?” Arctic teased. He observed the recruits; “Are they ready yet?”

“Not just yet, brother” Timber replied, then returned to his tale; “We rushed back to the village fearing the worst, and what we saw could not even match that”.

Timber and Arctic thought back on the scene of their burning village, looking for any signs of survivors while hearing the clashing of metal and screams in the distance. They ran with all their might into the village, their feet were drenched in blood as the entered smoke-filled village square making it impossible to see, let alone breathe. The heat of the flames was jarring.

“Timber! Arctic!” Their father's voice called out to them as he came out of a cloud of smoke, his clothes full of blood. “We need to get the woman and children out of here! They are turning our people!” As their father approached them, was taken down by one of the turned town folk. Timber charged at the demon and pulled it off of his father, who then stabbed it in its heart. As his father removed his spear from the creature's heart, Arctic dropped his bow and fell to his knees. “No.. no no no no!” he cried out. Timber moved out from under the vampire and, upon looking at the creature's face; his body turned ice cold sending a chill down his spine, as if a blizzard had hit him. Their father grabbed the body and held it close, screaming in pain and anger. Timber looked at the body and fell to his knees.

“Mom” he whispered in a tearful voice.

The fire fell silent and the recruits looked on at their two commanders. Arctic gripped his brother's shoulder, “We couldn't have known, brother”. Timber nodded solemnly.

“Okay pups, let's move” he commanded, leading them into the forest.

As they marched through the forest, a recruit neared Timber; “But sir? What happened next?” Timber stared at the recruit confused “What are you on about, pup?”, not realizing that the recruits were actually paying attention to the story. “The story, Sir. What happened after they attacked your village?” Timber grinned at the recruit; impressed that they were listening and actually wanted to hear the rest. As they headed toward an embankment in the forest close to a road, Timber ordered the unit to a halt. “Well, you better continue with the story while we wait, brother” Arctic said, while leaning against a tree and nodding in the direction of the eager recruits.

Timber indulged the recruits further; “We fought back. There were five of them that attacked our village - a scouting party that decided to stop for a bite. After that, we left with the remaining survivors of the village and went to the western border where the western armies had made a small stronghold to try and fend off any attacks. My father assisted Arctic and I in enlisting the survivors as soldiers to help defend our land.” Timber turned around and sat on a rock, facing the recruits. “We lost our father three months later.” He looked at Arctic, who beat his fist to his heart, as a sign of respect to their fallen father.

“We were doing well, for a bunch of humans. We held the border, but we were losing men faster than we could recruit reinforcements”.

Timber's memory took him back to the battles on the Western borders. They were heavily outnumbered and the invaders were coming in wave after wave.

“We won't be able to hold on much longer! Where in the bloody hell are the reinforcements!?” a commander shouted, while kneeling down behind the wooden palisades. “IN COMING!” a soldier roared, as a barrage of arrows and flaming rocks came flying over the wall. One of the rocks knocked down the left - side barricade, exposing their flank. “Timber! Take your brother and defend that hole!” Timber and Arctic rushed to the flank and were instantly met with invaders. Thanks to the experience in battle over the last year, they had learned how to read their enemy and fend them off with ease. Even so, that didn't make them a match for an enemy that had supernatural levels of energy and perseverance.

“We need to try and cover this bloody hole!” Arctic shouted. Timber drew his sword from the heart of one of his kills, frowned at his brother and pointed with his sword, now dripping with blood. “It took us a fucking month to build the bloody thing! How the fuck do you suppose we do that, huh!?” As they tried to assess the situation, and find a way to make a makeshift barricade to give them some advantage, an arrow came from out of the smoke and hit Arctic in the leg, making him stagger to the ground. Timber rushed to him, grabbed a shield and held it up to protect them from further projectiles.

“I don't think we are going to make it this time, brother” Arctic said, looking up at Timber's concerned face. In the distance they could hear another attack coming as the marching drums edged closer and closer. Timber pulled his brother to his feet.

“Well then.. Let's go out fighting, brother”. He handed him a sword and shield and grabbed himself a sword and buckle from a fallen soldier next to him. They stood their ground, ready to die; ready to take as many of the pale bastards with them before they fell.

Suddenly, they heard a sound, like rumbling thunder, pacing rapidly toward them. As they turned around, they saw a large wolf charging at them. They fell back. The wolf - along with other members of his pack - jumped over them, breaking through the destroyed wall, and started attacking the invaders. Decimating the attacking force with the greatest of ease.

“Yeah wolves!” a recruit shouted from the back. They all laughed and cheered as Timber and Arctic grinned at each other. “Yeah, go wolves” Timber said. “The wolves came to our aid that day and many days after that. But, as our numbers waned… We became desperate.”

After two years of fighting on the western border, the human numbers were dwindling and the other realms had no men to spare. With no help coming, the lord of the western realm made a pact with the wolves. Any human that was willing, would be given the opportunity to be turned and give the western realm a chance to survive this war and turn the tide.

“So that's how it happened? That's how you both became wolves?”, a recruit asked while leaning in and cutting himself with his blade: “Ah, bastard”. The rest of the recruits laughed, as did Timber and Arctic. Arctic continued, while handing the recruit a rag to bandage his wound; “Yeah many of us made that choice. Many of us chose to become wolves in order to defend our land.”

“And that’s when we first learned about the blood bond, pup” Timber said, while standing up and looking out at the furthest part of the dirt road, still covered by darkness. “Once you have been turned you are a wolf, yes, but to have the full strength, speed and abilities you must first hunt and kill with the pack. That is why they call it a blood bond. It's a bond and a pact you make to run with the pack ‘til the day you die in battle.” A recruit stood up in the distance; “And what if you don't do the blood bond, Sir?” Arctic glared at the recruit; “Then you become a lone wolf:  still stronger and faster, but not as much as you would be in a pack. Not many lone wolves survive on their own and those that do become some nasty fuckers.”

The recruits mumbled and shuffled around. “Like the black wolf, Sir?”
The woods were eerily quiet.
Timber turned around; looked at the recruits and barked; “Exactly like the black wolf”.

Arctic let out a growl while looking toward the dark part of the road. “They’re coming”.

Timber moved the unit into position along the ridge. Vampires marched down the road, unaware of the waiting patrol, hidden by the darkness. Timber turned to the recruits “Right pups, this is it. Stay strong, trust the pack and for the love of the moon, try not to die before you can make the bond!”

Arctic let out a quiet laugh; “Well that was subtle”. Timber leaned in for a better view “Yeah well, you never know”. The vampire patrol marched past them, oblivious to the watching Timber, waiting for the chance to attack them dead in the middle. The enemy unit's middle flank came nearer. Timber released a menacing growl and, in a deep voice, gave the order… “ATTACK!”.