Chapter1

Midnight emerged from her hiding spot behind a tree, and stalked the rabbit carefully. She dropped to the ground, biting her tongue as the rabbit looked up. It continued to eat grass-to her relief- and she inched closer. She leapt into the air, and lashed out at the rabbit. All that was seen was a little flash of red, and it was over. She picked it up looked around, and stalked over to a place where she could eat it.

Midnight ate the rabbit quickly, for the desert wasn’t a friendly place. And other Jackals wouldn’t pay respect to her just because she was half wolf, they would take her meal in the blink of an eye. She stood, shook off and sniffed the air. Nothing.

Midnight sat down; just thinking. She had no problem being half Jackal and half Wolf, for it gave her a large size and greater running ability. She was quicker, more clever, stronger, and much more complex then most Jackals. Her mother was a Wolf named Silva, and her father was a Jackal named King. He had died long before Midnight was born, at war with the rest of the Family Pack. They had fought against a larger family pack that wanted their territory. After the news about King’s death got to Silva, she was determined to fight, too, to avenge King. But Silva’s mother would not hear of it, for Silva was carrying King’s pups, and Silva could not die. Silva’s mother demanded her to run. Run far away to a safe place to raise the pups alone, but the plan didn’t go well. One by one, the pups died after being born into the harsh, merciless world.

Silva had little to offer, after all, for there was barely enough food for her to live, and that meant that she couldn’t feed the pups well. So she chose the ones that looked like their father, and those she would give her all to. She tried to keep the rest alive, but they all died. All of them, even the male who looked exactly like his father, and Silva had favored him the most. But she had to let go of him to keep what she had left: Midnight.

But what Silva did not know is that Midnight was the only pup born with most of her father’s genes, she had more wolf in her than any of her siblings.

Midnight sighed. For it was not long after she was old enough to care for herself that her sick and now weak mother- Silva died. Silva had told Midnight to find the place where the river parted and find the Family Pack that belonged to her father. Silva had told Midnight that she was very proud that she had a daughter of great strength and courage, and that she had something worth dying for. But Midnight hadn’t understood her then, but now that she was older she had something to live up to.

Midnight finally looked up. She suddenly wanted to run. Run all the way to where the river parted, to her father’s Family Pack. So she bolted from her spot, feeling pride and energy rise from within her. And so she ran, for ten days straight, without rest nor food or drink. She knew where she was going and she knew why she was doing it.

Alas, she stopped and slept for one night. When the sun rose, barely above the horizon, she woke to the sound of many hooves beating on the ground. She jumped to her feet. It was a herd of wild horses!

They came trampling to a stop at the site of the oversized and strange colored Jackal. “Out of the way! We are being chased!” The biggest horse, a golden horse with a white mane and hooves, demanded.

“Chased? What kind of creature would dare chase a horse?” Midnight said, trying to befriend the creatures who could easily kill her.

The stallion laughed. “I thank you for your kindness, but they are called humans, and they will chase even the most magnificent creatures.”

Humans. Midnight had heard of them before, but only in stories and myths. They would kill anything in their path with their long extended third arms and sharp throwing tools. “I can help you. I will distract the humans while you run to safer ground.”

The stallion looked at the rest of his horses. “Do we trust her?”

The horses looked around at each other, uncertain of an answer. A smaller, pretty female walked forward. “Yes, Russ, we can trust him. What have we got to loose, anyway?”

Russ smiled at the female. “Okay, Jackal, do your stuff. We will be where the bushes grow thick. Come to us when you’ve made sure it is save, or I will find you myself.” And with that the horses trampled off, fast as they could toward the place where the bushes grew thick.

Midnight looked onward toward the place where the horses had come, and waited until the trampling of their hooves could no longer be heard; then she bolted toward the sound of humans screaming, whipping tamed horses. Midnight stopped in her tracks and hid behind a tree. She watched as the horses ran, their eyes clouded with pain as the whip lashed out at them. Midnight snarled. “Not when I’m around you don’t!” She leapt at a human, grasping his wrist in her jaws before he could lay the lash on the horse’s leg. She drove her fangs into his wrist, until he finally gave in and fell to the ground and the horse fled in glee. Midnight stood up, licking her chops and got ready to jump again. But the men had noticed the horse running off without a rider, and they turned around and headed back towards the bleeding man.

“Well, he’s either gonna bleed to death or die on the way back home, boys. We best get rid of that Jackal before the rest of us end up like him!” The man pointed at the dying man.

The other men nodded in agreement and they all slowly took off, not whipping the horses anymore.

They’re not looking for the horses anymore. They’re looking for me! But they can just dream on if they think they’ll kill me!

One man returned to the dying man. He got off his horse and knelt beside the man. “Travel well, friend. Soon we’ll all be with you. That Jackal won’t hold back much longer.”

And with that the man stood yelling into nowhere, “Jackal! Come out of your hiding! We’ll find you! And you’ll be sorry for what you did!”

Midnight could have laughed. It was a pity that humans were brought into existence just to put themselves in danger. Midnight leapt at the man, he hadn’t gotten on his horse yet. She lashed out at his leg, and sunk her fangs into it. She felt the lash on her backside and let go, whimpering in pain.

Rage formed a cloud over her, and she jumped at the man, aiming for his throat. The man fell to the ground, stunned as Midnight lashed at his throat in no more than a split second. She landed on the ground, and didn’t hesitate to be sure the man died. She bolted to the other men. She spotted them, slowly moving toward the horses’ hiding spot.

“No…” She muttered. “I can’t let them down!”

She ran, yet again, as fast as she could at the first man she saw. She didn’t even think about her attack. She just lashed out at the first thing she saw, and managed to bring the man to the ground and let his horse run away. She didn’t even care if he rose to his feet again and shot her, she grabbed another man’s leg an pulled him off of his horse. Snarling, she used all her strength to throw him against a tree, then bolted for the last two men who had whipped their horses to run. She ran, howling in a strange way trying to tell the horses to slow down. One was brave and jolted to a stop and reared up, and Midnight leapt at the man before he whipped the horse.

“Run!” Midnight barked at the horse as she struggled to keep the outraged man where he was. The horse ran in the direction of the herd that had been hiding all this time. Midnight ignored the fact that the last man was escaping.

She finally abandon the man that she was dealing with, and bolted at the one escaping. She ran as fast as she could, and managed to grab onto the man’s leg. But the man had already seen too much, and he kicked Midnight off of him. Midnight wanted to laugh. That man thought he knew her every trick! He thought he could kick her around! Midnight ran faster and jolted to a stop and fell to the ground. She twitched and finally was still. I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve, human! She waited until the man, feeling he’d won, came over to her.

“Foolish animal! You thought you could take me?” He laughed, as if he’d gone mad.

Midnight was so tempted to lash out at him now, but it wasn’t time.

The man, still gently laughing to himself, knelt down beside her, and grabbed her by the scruff, holding her to where her snout was even with his face. “You’d make a fine throw rug!”

Now. Midnight told herself. She was quick to attack his face, her jaws clenched around his throat, and she leapt off when she heard the snap of his throat.

The bleeding and dying man looked at her in the eye, and Midnight stared right back, hey eyes dark with cunningness, and her mouth curved in a slight smile. “It’s as if she’s laughing at me…” The man croaked to himself. “You’re smart, mutt. But the others will find you one day. And there will be millions of them. You won’t be able to pick us away one by one anymore.” And with that said, the man took in his last breath, and fell silent.

Midnight bared her teeth. “You think they’ll kill me one day?” She went up to the dead and lay her paw on his neck. “Dream on, human.” Her claws raked across his throat, and she whipped around and trotted away.

Midnight was almost to where the horses had made their hiding spot, when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned her head. “Impossible…” She muttered to herself. It was the man! “I should have finished you off while I had the chance…!” She snarled to herself. It was the second to last man, the one she’d left to finish the men off.

“Come here, mutt! Come here so I can see you!” The man walked lopsidedly forward.

Midnight walked over to him. She sat down. He would be easy to handle.

The man laughed. “You truly are the devil, huh?” He wiped his forehead. “You may be an animal, but you know how to torture people! How’s it possible? No clue. But it’s your time to go.” He pulled out a gun.

Midnight curved her mouth in a