Alpha of the Pack

The Fear

"Mom?" Flame whimpered in the darkness. "Mom, are you there?" Flame began to crawl forward into the vast, empty blackness. The land beneath him began to ripple. Like water. He was walking on water. Flame looked into it, seeing his reflection. But it was not just him in that reflection. An almost transparent form stood behind him with its eerie blue eyes boring deep into his. It was dizzying to look at and a weight began to push down on him. Flame yelped and whipped around. Nothing was there.

Suddenly, whispering could be heard from all sides of him.

"No! Don't make me do that! Please!"

"It hurts! Help me, it hurts!"

"I'm scared. Where are you? Come here! I'm scared! Help! It's going to get me! It's going to get me!"

"Where am I? I want to go back! Take me back! Take me back! Take, me, BACK!"

Flame jolted awake. His eyes scanned the den. The sleeping forms of his siblings scattered the floor. Flame breathed a sigh of relief.

Flame began to wash his sweaty pads, dragging his tongue along them. They were rough and cracked, not like they used to be when he was just a little pup.

Flame attempted to fall back to sleep, but the nightmare had wiped out any chance. He crawled out into the moonlit clearing.

The remains of a bull elk lay in the middle. He padded up to it, swiping his tongue over his chops. Being the omega of the pack, he wasn't able to eat last night. The other wolves had finished before he could get any.

Flame bent his head down and opened his mouth, revealing sharp, white teeth. He closed his mouth and tore away the flesh. It was cold, but it was food.

Flame finished off the remains of the kill and licked his lips. His thirst for water brought him down to the river. It flowed past him. The dark, swirling waters rushed passed and, suddenly, Flame was back into the emptiness of his nightmare. The whispers closed in on him and the air stirred beside him. The figure bore his eyes down on Flame and the weight was back, pushing him down, down into the water. Flame tried to howl for help, but the water filled his mouth before he could utter a sound. Terrified, Flame flailed his paws, trying to swim up to the surface, but he just sank faster. Down into the empty darkness.