Tikia Calling 

(started 6/4/07 - )

Summary: A story of a young she-wolf’s unseen destiny to lead her pack and family to a place where they can live in peace and harmony. 

Rating: PG for violence, blood, death, and a slightly graphic birthing scene. It’s nothing we haven’t seen or read about before.

Disclaimer: This is a tale of pure fiction with all original characters and names that are created especially for this story by the author. No characters are based on real people or characters, but is closely based on how wolves actually live. It may not be exactly accurate, but it is close. Of course, the author added some fantasy charm into it, so it’s realistic fantasy . . . but with talking animals. 

=======================================================

=======================================================

Tikia was nothing special, even though she was given the sacred name of her Clan’s ancestor . . . At birth, she was forgotten, left in the shadow of her twin brother . . . as a pup, she was scorned and shunned by her own Clan, receiving the title of Omega . . . and when she had the chance to prove her worth, she was exiled from her own family . . . from her own home . . . 

One she-wolf will go on the ultimate journey of a lifetime . . . not only to show her strength, but to also save her family from the unseen dangers of man and nature. Can Tikia go against all odds to save the Evergreen Clan and reach her destiny?

=======================================================

======================================================= 

Prologue

Have you ever heard of Destiny? Fate? The events that happen for a certain reason? 

I have, and I am a witness of these things.

What I am about to tell you is a story that will make you believe in the unknown deity known as Fate.  

This is a story of my family and the many trials and tribulations that we faced in order to survive. We witnessed many things that could have changed us for better or for worse, but our faith allowed us to live on.

My name is Tikia, and I was named after the ancestral spirit of our Clan. My brother is Tikio, my twin, who is also named for the spirit. Together with my parents, older siblings, and other relatives, we lived together in a wild world of lush, forest and majestic mountains. This was our home, the home of our Clan, the Evergreen.  

It’s been told that our guardian spirit, Tikia, fell from the heavenly realm of the sacred spirits onto this barren land . . . this land where the trees of evergreen kissed the rocky peaks and no creatures seemed to roam. Tikia’s single touch onto the land caused our kind to sprout from within the Earth’s nurturing soil and the newly-formed pack was named by Tikia itself after the trees that bordered the mountain valley.

It is also said that Tikia led the Evergreen Clan to its survival many, many years ago. The spirit soon vanished, returning once again to the land of the Auroras – the land where our ancestors Ever since then, our Clan has flourished on the land of our birth, hunting the many deer and forest creatures that shared the forest and mountains with us.  

However, there are many things in nature that cannot be controlled by our Clan . . . man’s fiery hands of destruction, rumbling thunder and lightning storms that brew, river overflows, and yes, even the arrival of a leader that is destined for greatness. All these events can be predicted, but alas, the accuracy of these things is quite rare.

Hmm, I can see from your faces that you cannot clearly understand what I mean by this. 

In order for you to understand this, let me tell you my story . . . and maybe then, you will understand the amazing power that Destiny controls over our lives.

======================================================= 

Part ONE – The Deal

In the Evergreen Clan, my parents are the Betas – the next-in-line for leadership of the Clan. Actually, at one point, they were the Alphas of the Clan, bearing two successful litters during their short-lived reign of two years. Now, as the seconds-in-command, they assist with the Alphas of the Clan by helping to hunt, babysitting the Alphas’ children, and protecting our territory from any intruders that would make their way into our land. 

In every community, every creature – whether Alpha or not – has the natural instincts to reproduce and bear young, not knowing how their arrival into the world would cause things to change the future.

It’s a rather strange and mysterious thing, it is. Although I have never understood it personally, I never thought I was worth anything special. 

Ever since Mother learned that she was to bare another litter, even now that she was a Beta Female, our Clan Elder sensed great power within her . . . the pulse of a leader’s heart . . . and that was something more special than anything.

- - - - - - - - 

The tan and gray Elder approached the male and female that lay inside their den. The she-wolf was beautiful – her coat was a stunning shade of brown with flickers of gray-white around her eyes, muzzle and chest. Her belly was beginning to grow larger and rounder, although she was only a few of weeks within her pregnancy. She was overshadowed by the figure of her mate, whose dark gray fur shone almost black; he stood protectively over the she-wolf until he noticed the presence of the Elder. Immediately, he leaped over her and trotted towards the older male, greeting him with a quick nuzzle of friendship.

“My son,” the Elder spoke with a slight sign of his age. He placed one of his forepaws around the dark wolf’s shoulder, hugging him. “My first-born son, Harrow, it is an honor to congratulate you. You should be proud to be having another litter of pups with Flicker.” 

“Yes, indeed I am,” The other male returned the hugging gesture with a modest grin. “It’s a shame that the Alphas have been unsuccessful at breeding, but I am glad that they allowed us to mate in their place just this once. I loved it when our other children were pups, and Flicker took such good care of them as newborns. They were such vibrant wolves, each filled with life and love for our Clan.”

The Elder nodded. “Yes, I remember christening them well.” He closed his eyes, reminiscing about the male’s other children. “Tawny . . . she was the runt of the first litter . . . such a beautiful huntress she has become . . .” The male nodded in agreement to the Elder’s words. “Then, your first son, Noble . . .” The Elder sighed deeply. “Quite noble indeed!” The two males let out a quick chuckle, then the tan wolf continued. “Glenda and Dapple, the twin daughters . . . oh, such well-mannered she-wolves they have become.” The dark male followed with a chuckle, but began to hush himself once noticing the sad gaze and sigh of the Elder. “Unfortunately, your last son gave his life for the Evergreen during the Battle against the Fir Clan only a couple moons ago . . . Oh, he had such promise to become a beta like his father . . .” 

The two males lowered their ears, mourning over the young wolf that was once a part of the Clan. “Gallant is still deeply missed,” the dark wolf responded. “especially by his young mate, Mina.” A tear fell from his eye as he struggled to continue his words. “I . . . I had hoped he . . . he would rise to Alpha rank one day . . .”

“Shh . . . hush now, my son,” the Elder calmed him. “The Auroras have given him everlasting rest now. He is under the watchful care of Tikia and the spirits, so you needn’t worry about him now, Harrow.” 

Harrow nodded and sniffed away a remaining tear from his eye; suddenly, the slight gasp of Flicker caused the Beta Male to rush to his beloved’s side.

“Oh!” 

“Flicker, what is it?” he asked her. “Is something wrong?”
 
The brown and gray-white she-wolf only shook her head with a light smile. “Nothing’s wrong . . . I just felt him, dear. He’s strong and swift with his movements, even though there’s only weeks to go before his birth.”

The two Betas nuzzled happily as the Elder approached them; his eyes were wide as a sudden gasp was released from his widely-opened jaws. 

“The Leader . . .”

The proud parents looked in confusion at the Elder Wolf’s actions as he bowed low to the ground with his head laying between his forelegs.  

“I can feel the next leader’s presence . . .” The tan wolf lifted his head from the ground and approached the female. “Although he may be only weeks from birth, his aura is strong within your womb. I can even feel his heart pounding within his newly-formed chest.” He nodded hopefully at the couple as he began to walk away, exiting the den. “Your next child will be the one we have hoped to save us . . . the one chosen by Tikia itself.”

- - - - - - - -  

Mother and Father were quite shocked by the Elder’s prediction, and the rest of the Evergreen joined in celebration for the upcoming birth of the Alpha Male.

Our Clan had been suffering from several hardships ever since my parents were overtaken by a stronger male and his beautiful mate. The Elder, being a shaman for our Clan, had always had predictions and fortunes that would either be omens or good fortunes for us. His latest prophecy of the Destined Alpha growing within my mother’s womb quickly made its rounds as the talk of the Clan. 

As the days passed and the day of Mother’s delivery came closer and closer, the Clan prepared for the arrival of the next Alpha. The current Alphas, Riko and his mate, Sherry, had heard the prediction from the Elder himself and had decided to make a deal with Mother and Father . . .

- - - - - - - - 

The two Alphas had entered the den where Flicker and Harrow lay next to each other, possibly for the last time before Flicker would abandon him and the rest of the Clan to