Fall of the Packs: Blood Ties

Chapter Three

Aaron stifled a yawn as he listened to Garland talk. Today the defender trainees were receiving basic hunter training, and the Dutch Shepherd was lecturing them on the finer parts of deer tracking. Leaning over to Seamus, Aaron whispered, "You'd think for being Kestrel's brother he'd be less boring."

"Shh," Mercy hissed behind him. "Pay attention!"

"Now, I'm going to split you up into groups of two, with an adult shadowing you," Garland continued. "The couple most effective at tracking and catching prey gets to eat first tonight."

Seamus smirked at Aaron. "Ready to lose your dinner again?"

"Yeah, right," Aaron scoffed.

"What if you're paired together?" Tara asked, an annoyed edge to her voice.

"Aaron and Seamus not competing? The world would end!" Sortita exclaimed in mock-horror.

Iliad gave them a silencing glare and the trainees faced forward again. "Right," Garland said. "Mercy and Seamus, you're together."

"That's not fair," Aaron interrupted. "What did Mercy do to deserve that?"

"Thank you for your opinion, Aaron," Garland said icily. "You're with Sortita. Tara, you're with Solar."

"Uh, I'm not a trainee," Solar objected.

"You basically are," Garland said dismissively. "I'll be shadowing you two. Iliad, you take Mercy and Seamus. Liana, you follow Aaron and Sortita. Any questions? Good. Get going!"

The groups dispersed in different directions, with Aaron and Sortita choosing to head east towards the far border of the territory. "So, where are deer usually found?" Aaron asked.

"I know a place up this way where they like to find food," Sortita replied. "I just hope Mercy doesn't get the same idea. That would be awkward."

"They'll be lucky if they catch anything," Aaron sniffed. "Seamus's chattering will scare everything away."

Sortita shook her head. "Okay, can you think about something other than how you hate Seamus for a second so we can find a deer?"

Aaron snickered and trotted ahead, sniffing leaves for the familiar, musky scent of Storm Pack's main staple. He could smell some lingering scents of his packmates, a marten that had passed by the night before, and a trace of bear scent that made his hackles stand up. He'd never seen a bear, but he'd heard his father talk about them. He said they were as big as three dogs and fiercer than a whole pack. Generally they chose to leave the packs alone, but if they wanted to cause trouble, then it could take all the defenders to drive one off.

Sortita had gone farther ahead and now she barked, "Aaron! I've got something!"

He bounded up beside her, looking at a path of crushed bracken and ferns that led ahead of them. "It looks fresh," he said excitedly. "Let's go!"

They moved along the deer trail, faster now that they had a scent to follow. The faint sound of the deer's bugles reached his ear and excitement thrummed in his paws. Even though he was certain he wanted to be a defender, the thrill of running through the forest on the trail of prey was certainly thrilling. And although he would never have admitted it, he was very happy he had been partnered with Sortita.

She had dropped into a crouch now as they drew closer to the herd, placing her paws down carefully so as not to alert their quarry. "Are you ready?" she whispered.

"Oh yeah," Aaron grinned. "Wait, can just the two of us bring down a deer?"

"We can get a little one," Sortita answered. She flicked her ear towards the right side of the herd. "Do you see that fawn over there?"