Noctis Lupus

One down...

The wind had died down, and the snow had stopped falling from the sky. Everything become quiet as Yuri crouched next to a tree, smelling for a scent. Anything.

It was a whole week after Dimitri’s little encounter with Abraham, but the memories had not died yet. He still rememberd hearing Abrahams spine cracking and splitting in half, and the muscle tearing under the stress that was put up by the transformation.

He also remembered Abraham’s taunts. Filthy mutts was what he called them. Cowards. The man had turned completely from the pack; Yuri could hear the hate in Abraham’s voice. They had left him there to die; everyone could feel his weakening palpitations as they waited for his death.

And then they lost his scent, gone from the face of the earth. Not even T’Argho, who had the best nose of them all, could find Abraham’s scent. They all knew he was alive, because even the dead create a distinct scent. But they did not know where or how he had managed to live. Yuvin had suggested that the hunters probably got him, but not even the most skilled hunter could mask his movements and stay hidden for so long. Something else had happened to Abraham, they just did not know what.

Yuri took in one final sniff at the air. Nothing. His face showed a distraught emotion as he got up and moved to the next scout area. His movements were quick, he wanted to get back to their hideout and get ready for the hunt. The packs food supplies had run out and they needed something to eat. Yuvin had found a small hut roughly five miles from their hideout, so they were now going in and hunting for the humans.

In five minutes, he got to the next scout point, and began to sniff the air for any scents; anything that could be of importance to them. Nothing again. Yuri sat next to the tree, and he removed his knife from its sheath that was strapped to his pants. Nothing was special about it; he did not even use it that much. But for some reason he had always kept it close to him. It belonged to his first kill, and Yuri had decided to keep it for himself as a reminder of one of the greatest days of his life. He rested his head against the tree trunk and closed his eyes.

Ahh, never a dull moment for the life of a shifter. Humph, what am I saying? This is the most fun that I’ve had all week. Just me, myself, and I searching for the last remnants of the mysterious scent that vanished when it was not supposed to.

Yuri placed his hands on his face, and screamed at the top of his lungs.

“I’M SO BORED! THIS IS THE WORST SCOUTING EVER!!!”

The snow began to pick up, and the wind began to speed up as well. Yuri looked up as he picked up a distant howl that came from the south; it was Dimitri calling him to get back to their hideout.

Finally, took him long enough.

As Yuri got up from the tree, he could not help but get the feeling that something was watching him, following him. He turned around to see if anyone was there, but the darkness had already settled in and his visibility had been reduced to just a couple of meters because of the snow.  Yuri looked on for a couple more seconds, scanning the area with his eyes, before reluctantly turning around and walking towards their hideout. He walked for about an hour before he felt the presence again, this time closer.

Bastards think they can follow me to the hideout, they have another thing coming.

Yuri turned left and began to walk away farther from the hideout, towards their old cave. He continued to feel the presence following him, keeping its distance, but following. Yuri increased his pace, and was now jogging at a brisk pace. He could hear footsteps behind him, getting faster and faster. He began to sprint; he could see the cave now. It was dark, the perfect place for an ambush.

The footsteps had stopped behind him, but he heard what sounded like an animalistic growl come from behind him.

What the hell was that, no human can make such a noise. This is getting stranger by the minute.

Yuri reached the cave, and was now exhausted. He was breathing heavily, panting for a couple of breaths. Then he heard the footsteps again, they were moving slowly, but the sound became more distant. Soon he was unable to hear it, but Yuri was not going to let his guard down.

He turned into his wolf, and slowly began to walk towards the outside of the cave. He could not pick up a scent, so he had assumed that it was safe to go outside. As Yuri walked out, he saw from the shadows a color that was out of place. Yuri focused more on the colors; he did not expect what he saw.

A pair of eyes, crimson red in color stared down on him without blinking. They seemed ferocious to him, as if whatever was behind those eyes was about to jump out and attack him. Yuri was scared; he did not know what to do. All he knew was that he had to get out of there, even his wolf was telling him so.

Oh shit, I’ve got to get out of here. This thing is going to kill me.

Yuri began to turn around as he heard the same footsteps jump out of the bushes behind him. But this time, there were more noises all around him. Yuri began to sprint faster than he ever had.

Aw man, they are coming from the trees!

There was now eight different footfall s coming towards him. They slowly became fainter, until at last he could not hear them. Yuri looked to his left, and his hopes were shattered as he saw the same pair of crimson red eyes running alongside him. He looked to his right, and there was a pair of dark green eyes also staring at him. Yuri was surrounded, so he did what first came to mind. He stopped completely and sat up straight, panting for air as he looked around him for the pair of eyes. As he looked, he saw three more pairs all around him.

No way, this can’t be happening. What the hell is going on? Get me out of this mess!

Then he got tackled from the left side and a stinging pain came from his lower left leg. He looked down and saw his leg twisted at an impossible shape, it was broken on three different areas. The pain was intolerable, and he let out a howl of pain as he felt his neck grabbed with two hands and felt as they clenched around him. His air supply was cut off, and all he could do is watch as one of the hands reached up and stabbed him in the neck with a dart.

The world around him slowly darkened until there was nothing else to see.