ONE

Prolouge

The small pup coughed weakly, sighing and gasping for air, her tiny lungs struggling. GreenFur's heart filled with terror, like the fear was a menacing black liquid pooling inside her, filling her up, drowning her... Her pup gasped another time and she leapt into action, snuggling the slowly-growing-cold ball of fur to her chest, picking her up by her thin scruff, and racing out into the moonlight.

The pup bounced like a demonic children's ball against her mother's chest, as she ran for the shelter of the also sick and dying pines surrounding the lake, the human trash and debris filling up the rocks, suffocating the roots that clawed their way down the banks for water. She passed a torn-apart body of a squirrel, its organs black and sick, ants scrambling over it in the late night. She bit back a loud scream and kept running, determined not to let her pup meet the same fate.

They leapt over a dry river bed. GreenFur skidded to a halt and ran inside the small den, dark except for the tiny fire lit in the center of the room.

"LakeTail!" She called frantically into the dark tunnel branching out into the dark earth. A disgruntled-looking wolf crawled out of it. GreenFur set her pup onto the dirt, where she coughed some more.

"LakeTail I need your help... SandBlossom, actually, needs your help." She nudged the tiny, sick thing with her nose lovingly. Stay awake, stay awake. She thought desperately.

LakeTail stepped over to the pup and roughly scooted her forward with a paw. GreenFur winced but stayed silent. After a long, breathless moment, LakeTail rose up and sighed.

"So... Why do you need my help?" LakeTail asked sardonically. GreenFur controlled and angry scream. "My pup! She's dying!" Wasn't it so obvious? As if she had understood her mother's words and wanted to add emphasis, SandBlossom coughed weakly.

LakeTail rolled her old eyes and said carelessly; "My pup died moons ago. The sickness from the lake is all around us." GreenFur struggled to remain calm. Every minute that passed was a minute Sand's lungs wilted like a flower in the night.

"I know, LakeTail. But you've got to help her." LakeTail flicked her ear in annoyance. "I don't HAVE to do anything. One less mouth to feed." And then she swung off back to her sleeping room.

GreenFur stared after her, open-mouthed. Her pack, well, the pack medicine wolf, had just broken the largest wolf code. Maybe it was forgotten now, but it still should thrive strong in everyone's hearts. That was it. Refusal to heal an injured pup from ANY pack was treason. THE highest treason. She grabbed her pup and tore away from the wretched forest. She'd rather have a ten-year-old performing treatment on her pup than a careless once-been in a dying forest.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

GreenFur paced the tiny room, watching, waiting. Finally, the clean-looking elf in a smooth and surgical dress emerged from the door to her left and nodded, smiling. GreenFur leapt up and ran inside the room, almost barreling over another healer.

SandBlossom was lying in a bed with crisply thrown-about white sheets, fast asleep with glowing silver bubble over her mouth, that expanded and contracted whenever she inhaled and exhaled.

"Thank you." She said breathlessly to the four exhausted doctors leaning against the wall. They automatically beamed at her, and then patted her furry shoulder and left the room.

      "There is..." The friendly female nurse stopped and turned to face her. GreenFur nodded for her to go on. "Something you should know. We're evacuating the hospital soon. There's been a lockdown and everyone's heading to the bunkers." She said in a rush.
     "Why?" GreenFur spluttered. "What's happened?" The nurse pursed her lips.
     "A threat has emerged. She calls herself... Queen SkyFire."

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