Uralian Legends Secrets # 1- Loyal- On Hold

The Revolution

  Cold wind whipped across the plain but Wingbeat hurtled down the slope with his hunting party as they chased the horifin. The horrible creature fled down the slope but the snowy wolves were faster. The horifin stumbled and fell, tumbling head over talons down the hill but regained its feet. It slid with its talons spayed out and a wild look in its eyes. Gathering its haunches beneath it the horifin launched itself into the sky flapping clumsily. 

  The snowy wolves followed swiftly and caught up to the creature. The horifin gave a snarl that was muffled by the egg in her jaws. She lurched forward but Nighthawk lashed out at her eyes to drive her back. Blackfire snapped at her snout and she reeled back slashing at his side with her sharp talons. Blackfire dodged her claws and sank his teeth into her scaly foreleg. She twisted away from him, hissing furiously. 

  "leave me alone you monsters!" She howled around the egg. Starpaws flew up in front of her, ready to defend himself if need be. "Give us your egg," He growled. She looked more than a little angry at the suggestion of giving her egg to mere snowy wolves. "Are you kidding me?" She spat. "We'll let you live if you give us your egg," Snowpelt replied. The horifin twitched her talons and gave the snowy wolves a scathing look. 

  "And what exactly do you want with my egg?" She growled clenching her talons. "We want a horifin to grow up in a snowy wolf community so we can understand more about your kind," Starpaws explained. "We are at war for the love of slizzer! You can't expect me to just hand over my hatchling!" She exclaimed. "I'm afraid that is what we expect from you," Starpaws murmured. The horifin surged forward her talons unsheathed- she looked desperate. 

  Starpaws twitched his ears back to signal the hunters and they all latched onto the horifin. Starpaws glanced at Wingbeat. "You do it son," He rumbled, "And get ready to fly," He finished. "We could always kill her," Nighthawk growled malevolently. Starpaws glanced at him and nodded. "That's a trade any creature would take very seriously," He murmured and turned to the horifin. 

  "If you fight to get your egg back we will kill you- I'm sorry but that is the way it has to be," Starpaws said giving her a warning look. He nodded at Wingbeat who flew a little closer and carefully took the egg from her grasp. He jumped back away from her but she just gazed at him sadly. "Take care of him," She murmured as the snowy wolves released her. "I will, I promise," Wingbeat said and ducked his head at her. 

  "Well... if that is all you want..." She murmured gazing at Wingbeat and her egg. Wingbeat felt as bad as the horifin but it was the new regime and he knew better than to question it. Starpaws signaled the snowy wolves and they backed away, leaving the horifin to fly away. She glanced at Wingbeat once more and flew away as fast as her wings could carry her. Wingbeat watched her leave, his heart heavy. 

  They had been tracking this horifin for several days- ever since they had seen her egg. It had been exciting at first but the journey had become rather exhausting after a while. Wingbeat knew he wasn't out of the Frost-doze yet but he tried to hide it from the other snowy wolves.  Starpaws flew over to him. 

  "I noticed you were lagging," He rumbled softly so the others wouldn't hear him. "I'm fine," Wingbeat growled. Starpaws gave him a disbelieving look but didn't say anything for a moment. "You made that horifin a promise," He reminded Wingbeat. "I did didn't I," Wingbeat mused. Starpaws nodded seriously. "And that's what your going to do," He growled firmly. 

  Starpaws flew away and began directing his hunters. On the way back to the base Wingbeat reflected on what his pack leader had told him. So I'm the new parent to this horifin. He realized. For some reason it didn't sound that bad- to be a parent. This hatchling has no one. Wingbeat thought fiercely. Except for me. He amended. 

  The hunting party had arrived back at the base two weeks ago and Wingbeat had found himself swarmed by curious snowy wolves who had learned to fear and even despise the horifin. They all wanted to see a real live horifin egg. "Hey give him some space!" Starpaws had barked. It was shortly after their return when Starpaws had given Wingbeat some important information...

  Sunlight awoke him and Wingbeat stretched with a wide yawn. Shaking dirt out of his pelt he got to his paws and wriggled out of his den- like sleeping spot. Glancing around to check no one was around he crept over to the hallow where his egg was hidden. Nudging aside some leaves he checked that the egg was still there- it was. 

  He picked it up in his jaws and hurried back to his den. Ducking his head to avoid the prickly branches he squirmed into the den on his belly. Once in the cool dirt of the den Wingbeat set the egg aside and watched it intently. Starpaws had said this was the day it hatched and that he should be alone when the horifin hatched.

  He had also said something about sight- bonding and to stay away from other snowy wolves while the horifin hatched. Wingbeat watched for signs of hatching and was rewarded by a small crack that chipped the shell. He watched as the pale blue egg began to shudder and crack more. His eyes traveled over the splits in the shell as he wondered if he should do anything to help- he had never hatched an egg. 

  An hour or so passed and still Wingbeat watched the horifin hatch from its egg. He unsheathed on of his duller claws, pressed it into the eggs shell and pulled back to open a small hole. A tiny snout reached out and began nipping off the jagged edges of the hole he had made. The hatchling's tiny claws teared at the eggs shell and soon the horifin flopped out, opening its unwieldy wings. 

  Its so small! Wingbeat thought amazed by the size of the creature in front of him. He settled down and the horifin flopped against his side. Wingbeat said nothing to the hatchling but he unfurled a wing and folded it over the horifin protectively. He rested with the horifin by his side for the rest of the day. After the horifin dried off Wingbeat got up and nudged the horifin out of the temporary shelter and into the moonlight. 

  In the full light of the moon Wingbeat could see the colored markings on the small animal. His body was a light shade of blue with darker flecks of blue on his back and his paws were a brilliant white while his wings were the color of ice at midnight. He was a blizzard in the form of a horifin Wingbeat decided. 

  And that'll be his name... Blizzard.