We have to keep moving forward - Folician Chronicles 4

Chapter 9 - Hands talks to the Pack Lord

~~~ The first trip to the past

He slowly woke up and shifted slightly so he was closer to one of the pack. As the pack moved around while they slept some would be moved away from. It usually caused some chill depending on the season. Sleeping in a group kept the pack bonds fresh, since it was the cold season he was chilled and shifted until he was tucked back into the pack and started drowsing again.

When light started streaming into the cave the pack started to wake up, sit up and shift around. He looked around the cave and did a quick look and everyone was there. He took a moment to scratch at his ear with one of his rear paws before settling back on his bottom. He reached up to a rock shelf and pulled left over kill from two days before. There wasn't much left and they were going to need to hunt again.

He slowly stood up so his front paws were free and carefully walked over to the chief and gave him the food. The pack leader would divide it and hand it out. Not all the pack would get the same amount. It was one of the first punishments tried when a member screwed up. A few days of being hungry usually worked reasonably well. Once he had delivered the food he dropped down to all fours. It was handy to be able to walk on his back paws but awkward and he couldn't do it for a long distance.

Once he was done he went outside and took care of business. As he was heading out he rubbed cheeks with one of the females he was attracted to. He also sniffed the pups she was escorting and gave one or two a quick lick before continuing out. Before he went in he ran his claws through the fur he could get to. This was to keep it tidy as well as to find any pests that needed to be removed.

As he was grooming he looked over their territory. The cave was on a small rocky hill with limited access. That kept other packs from easily gaining access to steal food and kidnap females or if they were very lucky a male pup. In front of the cave was the forest they hunted in and claimed. It was a very good territory since there was plenty of game and some plants they could eat. Water was easy to get to and lasted year around. In the winter, they would have to break the ice but the water always flowed. As he was looking out over the forest his eyes caught something in the forest that didn't make sense. It was a steady light which was of a different color than the fire in the sky.

With a curl of his lips and a slight show of fangs he trotted back into the cave and over to the pack leader, "Leader. Light. Forrest. Strange." He shifted back onto his haunches and pointed out the cave entrance.

The leader narrowed his eyes and shifted his ears back in consideration. He looked at the male, "Show. Light." When the other male trotted out the leader followed and looked where the male pointed. He saw the light as well and lifted his nose and sniffed. The only time they saw light in the forest is if something was being eaten by the red and yellow spirits. The only time they showed was when they were eating and otherwise never seen. He didn't smell the odor from the spirits eating so he wasn't sure.

The leader howled for the pack to come to him. Using the limited language, they had mixed with body language and the mental bonds, he sent out commands. The nursing females would remain with the pups and a few of the pack to provide protection. The rest of the pack followed the leader into the forest.

The spread out into three groups, a center group and one to each side, the central group had the leader and best fighters. The other two groups had the scouts and trackers with a few warriors. There were only three adult males in the pack and the rest were females. As they moved through the forest there was an odor which nobody could identify. It did smell good and made many of them salivate.

Since it was such an odd scent they were still very careful as they approached the light. As they moved closer they could see something shining through the thick forest. The pack spread out just in case it was a trap of some sort. Once they moved close enough to really see the light it flashed and the pack dropped where they were at.