The Last Lone Wolf: Ruska’s Story

          Ruska crouched at the edge of the hunter’s camp with murder in her eye. She watched carefully as the hunter sat on the one bare patch of earth and brought his gun across his knees. Ruska suppressed a shudder, and the taste of metal coated her tongue. The hunter held a handful of prepared bullets in his gloved palm and prepared to reload his gun. Ruska’s golden eyes flashed. This was the ideal time, when she could be sure the gun held no ammunition. She had done this so many times, to so many hunters, that she thought it had almost become an art.

          Adrenaline rippled through her like electricity. She lowered her head and braced her legs against the cold ground, ready to spring.

          A four-legged tan blur shot through the camp and began tearing at the hunter’s food storage space beneath the snow with his claws.

          “Hey!” the hunter yelled in angry surprise, dropping the ammo. The bullets rolled like marbles.

          He jumped to his feet and brandished the butt of the gun like a club. He ran towards the dog, who looked up and then began dragging a hunk of dried meat away in his teeth. “You! Dirty! Little!” the hunter cried, narrowly missing the dog’s head with the gun with every word.

          Ruska took her chance and lunged into the campsite, knocking over everything and strewing ashes from the dead fire.

          The hunter slammed the gun into the dog’s side. The dog hit the snow with a high-pitched yelp, and the hunter picked up the meat. He turned around, only to drop it again at the sight of a wrecked campsite and a ferocious wolf.

          Ruska narrowed her eyes and bared her teeth. The hunter’s hand slipped against the gun, and the color of his skin matched the whites of his eyes. A strangled cry barely passed his lips: “Oh…my…”

          Ruska sprang at him and knocked him onto the snow, ripping and tearing at his clothes. He screamed, and pushed the gun against her teeth to hold her back. The metal ground against her canines. She backed up and spat, and then she saw the hunter fumble for something in the snow.

          He picked the bullet up and shoved it into the gun. Ruska’s heart flooded with cold fear, and suddenly she was staring down the barrel of a hunting rifle.

          She froze for a heartbeat, and then she bolted, her paws drumming against the hard earth. A gunshot made her flinch, and though the shot went high and wide, it triggered the memory of the first time she had heard a gun go off this close. The shot that had started this whole business.

          Ruska dropped down behind a snowdrift and lay still, panting. Her heart gradually stopped hammering against her chest and became slow, soft throb.

          “What’s the matter with you?”

          She looked up. Beside her sat the tan dog that had tried to steal the hunter’s food. He now sat there staring at her sideways while chewing the slice of red meat that hung out of his mouth. She stared back at him, nonplussed. “After all that, you still managed to get the food?”

          “That was the whole point, wasn’t it?” Suddenly his brown eyes widened, and he hastily backed up a few paces. The meat slid from his mouth to the snow. “You’re not going to attack me, too, are you? We can split it if you want. Or you can have it all, I’ve kind of lost my appetite. You weren’t hunting, were you?”

          Ruska sighed, and then thought about it. “Well…yeah, I guess so. But I wasn’t after his food. I was after him.”

          Now the dog’s eyes were almost popping out of his head. “You eat humans?”

          She shook her head irritably. “Oh, please. I attack hunters so they’ll either run out of supplies and go home, or give up hunting altogether. Most of them are after wolves. I have to protect myself and my kind.”

          The dog’s eyes lit up. “Hey, I’ve heard about you! You’re the one everyone’s calling The Last Lone Wolf, what with all the other wolves disappearing.” He tipped his head sideways. “So you didn’t kill four hunters at once, and you don’t have a craving for human flesh?”

          Ruska was dumbfounded. “Uh…no,” she said. Wow, bad news traveled fast. And now she had made a name for herself? The Last Lone Wolf. It was probably true, considering how all the wolves who were in packs had disappeared (Remus’ doing, no doubt), making lone wolves an even greater, more valuable target. “Where did you hear that?” she asked.

          “My owner, Jake, told me,” the dog said, “I used to be a hunting dog, but I ran away. I got sick of being under collar and leash and being bossed around for no reason. That was all a few weeks ago.” He pawed at the meat. “My name’s Teke. You sure you don’t want any?”

          “Ruska. And yes, I’m…” Her stomach chose that particular moment to growl loudly. She struggled to keep her face from going rubescent. “Well, maybe just a piece.” She hadn’t eaten for more than a few days. She hadn’t realized how hard it was to hunt without back-up. It was almost even more difficult to admit she needed help.

          Teke nodded and ripped the meat in half. He took his half and flipped it up into the air with his tongue, then caught it and practically swallowed it whole. Ruska gaped at him, and then shook herself and ate her piece. She tried to eat slowly, but she ended up scarfing it down so fast she almost choked. Her stomach accepted the food and gurgled for more, but she would to be satisfied.

          Ruska’s head jerked up as her ears caught the faint rumble of helicopter blades. Then there was stillness, and her ears swiveled and turned as they strained to hear the harsh sound. But there was nothing.

          “So what’s your story?” Teke asked, licking his lips. “You just woke up one day and started terrorizing humans?”

          Ruska’s stiff smile was distracted as she listened hard for the whipping of helicopter blades against frigid air. “No. A hunter shot at my family, my pack. When I heard the gunshot, it was like instinct took over. I had to run from it. My family probably thought I was scared, but I wasn’t. I had been thinking about going out and ridding Alaska of hunters, because how else will we ever be safe? I guess I just needed the right jumpstart to get going.”

          “You know, not all hunters are bad,” Teke said quickly, “Some hunt for sport, but most are just trying to stay alive.”

          Ruska glared at him. “How does that help us?”

          He shrugged, avoiding her eyes. “I wasn’t sure you knew that. Everyone’s just trying to survive. Not everyone can win.”

          Ruska snorted, not really sure what to say. She found herself wondering if he knew she had felt terror chill her heart that day she had run away.

          The whir of copter blades sliced through their conversation. Ruska jumped to her feet and looked over the snowdrift at the paint palette of a sky, with mixed orange and pink and gold. A helicopter blocked the sky’s beauty, and Ruska could make out four red letters on its plain side: APAA.

          “What does that mean?” she muttered aloud.

          Teke slid next to her to watch, too. “I don’t know,” he said, “But I do know some hunters hunt from those things. They just stick their rifles out the window and shoot. It’s pretty pathetic.”

          “It’s sickening, is what it is,” Ruska spat, “We can’t even defend ourselves when they’re up there!”

          “I think that’s the whole point,” Teke said with a shrug.

          Ruska bared her teeth, and then watched the helicopter shrink into the distance. Where was it heading? “Eagle Pass,” she mumbled. The name sounded familiar…Then it hit her. “Remus!” Ruska cried. “Her vision’s coming true! She isn’t nuts!”

          “What? Visions? Remus? What?” Teke sputtered, “Who’s Remus?”

          “My sister,” Ruska murmured, scanning the sky frantically. Sure enough, there were two more helicopters, though they didn’t have the APAA emblem on them. “She’s a Seer, she had a vision that there would be a wolf massacre at Eagle Pass, and there is! That’s where those helicopter things are heading! And…and-!” She gasped. And that’s when her heart truly sank.

          A flock of ravens that seemed to cover the sun flew overhead. Their shrieks and squawks for fallen life rushed towards the ground and echoed inside Ruska’s head. She watched as the sunrise turned into night and the bright colors of the sun went mute and discolored. The ravens meant death, and she was the Last Lone Wolf.

          The last lone wolf.

          The scream started deep within, cutting through every thought and feeling until it shot out of her mouth: “I’ll be the last one! The very last wolf! We have to help them! Something to distract the hunters, something to take most of the bullets, something…Oh, Mom, Dad, Shade, don’t die, don’t die, don’t die-” She could barely feel the words on her lips, she was so distressed.

          Teke’s paw on her mouth was surprisingly gentle. He gazed at her seriously. “Okay, okay. Just calm down. Calm down. Please. No one’s going to die. Ruska.”

          She stepped away from him and shook herself, pain spinning through her like a spiked wheel. Teke watched her, and then touched her paw.

          “Follow me. I can fix this.”

          She watched his face. They had only met a few minutes ago. Could she trust him? He seemed to read her mind, and answered with raised eyebrows: what else could she do?

          Ruska nodded, and he took off at a run, leading away from the funnel of ravens. Ruska tried to follow, but her eyes wouldn’t leave the sky, and she found herself racing the ravens to Eagle Pass.

          She heard the crack of rifle shots and smelt gunpowder and blood even before she reached the forest in front of the mountains. She plunged into the brush, losing sight of the screaming birds momentarily, but she ran on straight as an arrow through the trees. Twigs and rocks flew up behind her in her haste, and damp moss felt slick beneath her paws. At last, the sounds of murder gaining volume with every step, Ruska crashed through the last trees to the battle ground.

          What greeted her made her heart turn cold and her soul shriek.

          The sky was black with ravens. Helicopter blades sliced the sky. Bullets spewed out of the copter guns, and the dying howl of wolves mixed with the squawking and shrill cawing of the ravens. The air was thick with blood. Brittle grass and black feathers whirled on the wind, and through it all came the sinking feeling of doom.

          Wild-eyed, Ruska searched the field for her family. Thankfully, no one she knew lay among the dead bodies in front of Eagle Pass, though the sight made her sick all the same. Her senses sharpened as she realized her vulnerability, and she ducked back into the trees and tried to figure out what she could do. The twenty or so hunters were advancing on the pack cave, recocking guns and loosening their hold on their dogs’ leashes. The hunting helicopters inched forward. With a fast chill like cold lightning, Ruska realized the hunters’ plan. The wolves were hiding in side the mountain. The hunters would let their dogs loose inside the tunnels to chase the wolves out, and once they were out –bang! Bang! Bang! – it would all be over.

          Ruska’s heart crumpled. In desperation she wondered if she could attack the hunters, but she knew it was foolish. She was only one wolf. One bullet –one tiny piece of metal– and she was gone.

          As the hopelessness rolled in, a sudden thought sparked at the edge of her brain. Where was the APAA helicopter?

          A white face appeared on one of the ridges on the mountain. Ruska looked up and examined it through narrowed eyes. Then she saw the red dot on its forehead, and her spirits rose and then plummeted. Shaila! Shaila, Shade, Remus, Aleu, Flint, Linder, Quicksilver– they were all in there. And they were all going to die.

          Shaila’s face disappeared as if she’d been yanked back by an unseen paw. Ruska kept peering upwards, wanting Shaila to stay out, to somehow escape the hounds. She hated this feeling, helpless and hopeless, a coward trembling in the brush. She closed her eyes. She couldn’t watch this.

          “Ready, boys?” a gruff voice cried, “Alright, lets-!” His words were cut off by a gasp. And the thrum of helicopter blades.

          Ruska opened one eye. A dark gray helicopter came swooping up the mountain range to the clearing. On its side were stamped proudly in red the letters APAA.

          All was quiet except for the whipping of copter blades as a rope ladder was thrown over the side, and a man in gray uniform descended from the passenger side. A few dogs started barking at this sight, and to Ruska’s surprise they were hushed by their owners.

          The man reached the end of the ladder, jumped the last couple feet, dusted himself off and faced the hunters while standing atop the Eagle Pass pack cave. In one hand he held a megaphone and on his head he wore a headpiece with giant earphones and tiny microphone by his mouth. The headpiece seemed to be connected to all the helicopters, because when he spoke his voice came over the copter radios. He spoke into the megaphone and microphone at the same time so his words reverberated around the clearing.

          “We are the APAA, the Animal Protection Association of Alaska. Now we all know you’ve heard of us, so shut up and pay attention. We are here on behalf of a crime you all have committed against our friend: the wolf. Do you have any idea that these are all the wolves left in Alaska?”

          There was some uncomfortable shuffling. One young hunter spoke up. “Well, sir, we’re just trying to get what we can!”

          “Well, you won’t be doing that anymore,” the APAA man snapped. He reached into his back pocket and brought out a rolled-up piece of paper. He glared at them all. “This association was formed a few years ago to protect the animals in Alaska whose numbers are dwindling. The wolf was one of the first on our list. Did you know, gentlemen, that when you shoot a wolf, you actually wreck your hunt? Sure, there might be more game, but you’re more likely to bring down a sick or crippled creature.”

          Ruska had opened her other eye in astonishment, and moreover couldn’t believe her ears. Was Remus’ plan actually working?

          “We set APAA members among you disguised as hunters to confirm these facts. These ‘hunters’ only hunted for necessity, not sport, but what they saw from the rest of you was enough. The disguises were necessary because we know some of you don’t think too highly of us at APAA.” With that he unrolled the piece of paper, and Ruska could see a lot of writing and a giant red seal at the bottom. “Through one member, who managed to trap a careless wolf and put a tracking collar on it, we were led to this cave. How you all found out, I don’t know. It probably had something to do with those helicopters and whatever tracking technology is in there. Well, I’m glad it brought you all here.” He snapped the paper open and read, “This document certifies that all wolves in Alaska are under the protection of the Animal Protection Association of Alaska. Anyone found harming a wolf in any way, will be subject to a fine of a minimum $15,000 and a possible six months in prison, given the severity of the case.” He paused for effect. “There’s more, but you get the gist of it. You can see it’s been signed and approved by our government.” He rolled up the document and slid it into his back pocket, and then looked around in a business-like manner. “Now that you know your position, it’s our job to get these wolves back where they belong. Safely. So no one is going anywhere.” He gestured toward the sky, where more APAA helicopters could be seen flying in from a distance. “The rest of the association is here, and since there isn’t enough room, we’ll need the hunting helicopters to land on the other side of the forest. All the rest of you– don’t move. One shot and you’ll be sitting on the inside of a jail cell with an empty wallet.”

          The hunting helicopters hesitated, and then slowly trundled away. Three APAA copters followed.

          The APAA man nodded with frank approval, and then turned to signal something to his pilot.

          A thundering roar filled the clearing like a beast freed from its cage. Ruska turned just in time to see Teke break through the trees with a full grown grizzly bear hot on his heels.

          Teke was wild-eyed and panting, running for his life, but his eyes found Ruska’s as he plunged into the crowd of hunters. “Something to take the bullets!” he yelled to her, and then he was lost in a sea of arms and legs and claws as the grizzly swiped and growled and the hunters scattered.

          The APAA man was going into a hysterical frenzy. “You want something to shoot at?” he screamed, “There it is! Shoot the poor beast, go on, shoot it! It’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”

          Ruska closed her eyes, building her resolve, and then shot blindly into the fray, clawing and thrashing and charging until she reached the Eagle Pass pack cave. She ducked inside, wheezing and watching black dots spin before her eyes. The chaos threatened to swallow her up.

          She leaned against the stone wall, feeling its coolness. Other gasping breaths covered her own. She slowly froze, and her ears swiveled towards the noise. Ruska turned and saw Teke sprawled on his side on the cave floor. His legs were splayed out beside him, and he lay like a limp tan rag that’s had everything wrung out of it.

          The word had to be forced up her dry throat. “Teke?” She dragged herself over to him. His eyes were closed, and his heaving sides were flecked with sweat and tiny beads of blood. Ruska saw with dismay that a thin jagged cut from his shoulder to his knee was trickling blood onto the floor, staining his fur dark brown.

          Tentatively she reached out a paw, and then pressed down on the wound. More blood spurted out, but she knew the pressure was good. She felt his pulse through her foot pads, and her heart immediately took up the same beat.

          Teke’s brown eyes snapped open, then shut, then fluttered open again. “Ruska?” He tried to sit up, but winced when he moved his shoulder. “Aaaah,” he groaned, and sank down again.

          For some reason Ruska felt tears spring to her eyes. ‘What’s the matter with me?’ she wondered. She shook herself, and forced a smile. Her face felt like it was cracking. “You’re crazy, you know that?”

          He grinned, his gaze distant. “Yeah. I know…but it was your idea.”

          “A grizzly bear?” she said, batting his leg softly. “C’mon!”

          His laugh was quiet and rough, but then his face folded into a grimace as he tried to get up. His front legs shook, and he clenched his jaw as they braced against the floor. His knees trembled, and he collapsed with a frustrated moan.

          “Here, let me help,” Ruska offered. To her befuddlement, he shook his head.

          “No.” He glared fixedly at the moss-covered stone walls as he once again shoved his paws against the cave floor and tried to bear his weight, focusing completely. He managed to pull himself up on his front legs, and they straightened, and shook only at random intervals.

          Ruska watched, holding her breath, when from outside came a short volley of shots and the deep, slow moans of a fallen grizzly. The shots sounded different from regular hunting rifles, though, and Ruska hoped this meant the APAA people had stepped in.

          With a splintered grunt Teke pushed himself to all four feet, and for a moment he stood straight and tall. But his eyes were still narrowed and distant, and soon his whole body was shaking.

          Ruska finally sighed in frustration. “This is ridiculous,” she muttered, and padded over and caught Teke against her before he fell. “C’mon, Hop-along, we have to find the others.” She leaned over him and licked the blood from his shoulder. She felt him tense and then relax against her, and their eyes met. Just for one moment, the air between them changed.

        Teke drew away from her and cleared his throat. “The others? As in other wolves?”

          Ruska rolled her eyes. “I promise they won’t eat you. Now come on.” She led him through the first tunnel, and he followed, walking gingerly. “Mom? Dad?” she called. Her words echoed in such a way that she got the strange feeling of being deserted. They walked through the next tunnel, and the next. The caverns were empty. She bit her lip in frustration, and tried the next one, but it was empty, too. How long did these caves go on?

          Panic was beginning to eat away at her, when a familiar voice rang through the tunnel and gave her hope.

          “Ruska?” A black and white wolf padded into the tunnel.

          Ruska’s heart swelled. “Dad!”

          Flint began running towards her.

          For the first time Ruska didn’t worry about looking weak and dependent. She let Flint catch her in an embrace that left her breathless but happy.

          He hugged her tightly, and then stepped back. “Ruska, where have you been? Why did you run away? You could have gotten killed!”

          She felt her heart grow cold towards him. She was home for five seconds and already she was being lectured? But she struggled to stop it. He was only concerned, she told herself. But there were more important things to think about now. “Dad, where’s Mom? And Shade? Did you hear what the APAA guy said? We’re protected! We’re free!”

          Flint looked at her in perplexity at not having answered his questions, but then he nodded. “Yes. We heard it all. It’s how the tunnels are set up; we could hear every word.”

          “Where is everyone?” Ruska asked.

          “Windsong Valley,” Flint said, “We all ran there when we heard the helicopters. It’s entirely surrounded by mountains, so it’s safe. We’ve been keeping the packs here, to protect them from hunters. A few of the braver ones went out the cave entrance to see if they could stop the hunters, but judging by what we heard…” He shook his head sorrowfully.

          Ruska suddenly was spinning into the vacant eyes of the dead wolves. Ravens pecked at their flesh, causing more wounds to spurt red blood, until everything was torn away except the glassy eyes. Their death stare seized her, and then she was spiraling back to the present, where she was choking on a sudden lump in her throat.

          “Ruska! Are you okay?” Teke said in alarm. Both he and Flint were staring at her.

          She coughed, and took a shaky breath. “I’m…fine.” What had just happened? She had remembered what she had seen, and then her imagination had done the rest. She shivered. The fight was over. Why was she freaking out now?

          Flint’s skeptical stare at the hunting dog brought her out of her thoughts. “Dad this is Teke. He’s my friend. He helped to get rid of the hunters.”

          Teke laughed a little. “Yeah. Nothing like an angry grizzly bear to get people moving.”

          Flint’s eyebrows went up. “You…?” He gaped at Teke for a few seconds, and then shook himself. “Well…the others are waiting in the valley for me to come back with whoever was in our tunnels. Are they in for a surprise!” He shot a wondering glance at Teke, and then turned. “C’mon.”

          They raced through the caverns, the mottled brown walls dragging into a blur in the corner of Ruska’s eyes. She followed Flint’s zigzag trail, and she heard the panting of Teke just behind her and the footfalls of his jerky run. Finally they reached the last, tight tunnel, and burst out into the freshness and openness of Windsong Valley.

          A huge cluster of wolves was huddled around something in the grass a few feet away, but when a few acknowledged Flint’s return, Ruska was suddenly thrown backward by the force of their greeting.

          “Ruska!” Aleu cried, holding her youngest daughter as close as she could. “I can’t believe this! Are you all right? You weren’t shot at, were you? I never understood why–”

          “Ruska?” Shaila’s soft voice cut in.

          Ruska pulled away and backed up a few steps, feeling the heat rise to her face. Even she could admit she had missed them, but that didn’t mean she was ready to drown in sentiment. “Hey, Shaila,” she said.

          Shaila smiled. “I’m glad you’re all right…You are okay, right?”

          “Yep,” Ruska said, “Especially now that I’m back.”

          Remus suddenly stepped out of the crowd, and the packs became quiet. Ruska caught and held her gaze, and there seemed to be a mental energy rift between them as they continued staring each other down. They both had strong personalities, and they had never been the closest of sisters, so anything could happen in a conversation between them.

          Finally Remus spoke. “So…The Last Lone Wolf?”

          Ruska managed a small nod.

          “Is that why you ran away? To chase away those hunters?”

          Another nod. Ruska gritted her teeth in anticipation of disapproval.

          A wry smile crept across Remus’ face. “Well, it’s not my style…but I guess it kind of worked out in the end.”

          For some reason Ruska felt her spirits fall. “So…you didn’t miss me?” The silence made it sound childish and whining, but she was surprised to find she was truly disappointed.

          Remus lifted her head. “Are you kidding?…Of course I did. I’ve been starved for sarcasm this whole time!” She grinned, and Ruska found herself grinning back.

          A black and brown streak shot in from the other side of the valley. Shade skidded to a halt at his mother’s side. “You wouldn’t believe–” He stopped mid-sentence, frozen at the sight of his prodigal sister. She almost laughed at the surprise unfolding inside his eyes, and then the complete joy. “Ruska? Holy…” He started padding towards her, his eyes shining. “It’s you. Oh, my–” He stopped short, his gaze locking on Teke.

          Ruska spun around, confused. Teke’s eyes widened in fear as Shade shot him a glare of pure hatred. He started backing up fast, and Shade advanced on him, fire in his eye.

          “You saw it,” Shade said softly, “You saw it all…” His pace quickened, and still retreating, Teke stammered, “Listen, I– this wasn’t–”

          “Did you enjoy it?” Shade whispered harshly, “Did you watch her blood spill? You bastard, idiot, soulless, gutless MURDERER!” With that last word Shade backed Teke right up against the mountain with a crash.

          “Shade!” Ruska was shocked. She swiped at his shoulder to get him to back off, but he brushed her off. Angrily she bared her teeth. “What are you doing? What’s Teke done to you?”

          “He watched her die,” Shade muttered hoarsely, “And I bet anything he enjoyed it, the dirty mutt–”

          “Who?” Ruska cried impatiently.

          “KESTRA!” Shade burst out. His eyes were filled with agonized fire.

          Ruska blinked. “Who?” she repeated.

          There was an awkward silence, filled only by Shade’s heavy breathing.

          “Shade’s…girlfriend,” Shaila said slowly.

          Ruska’s surprised gaze jumped from face to somber face. “What?”

          “His girlfriend!” Remus cried out bitterly, “His crush, his heart’s blood, the love of his life! She was killed by a hunter and his pack of dogs a few weeks ago. Apparently, Teke was one of them.”

          Ruska turned back to Teke just in time to see Shade’s claws creep up to Teke’s throat. Teke struggled to get away, stammering, “It’s not what it looked like! It wasn’t, I swear! Just let me explain–”

        Shade slammed him against the mountain again. “Then you better do it darn quick,” he growled in a low voice.

          Teke’s brown eyes were wide with fear. He swallowed nervously, and his eyes rolled towards Ruska, then flicked back to Shade. He swallowed again, and started in a shaky voice. “The gun misfired. That was all. My owner, Jake, he’s a member of the APAA. He had been looking for wolves for weeks, to try and figure out where they were all hiding. When he saw you two, he completely forgot about his gun. He was disguised as a hunter, so he had to have a gun. Well, he must have leaned on it or pulled on it or something, because the gun fired. And he was so surprised he jumped up and ended up firing it again. And then he swore, remember?” Teke stared hopefully at Shade’s fierce expression. “Remember?” he repeated, sounding a little desperate.

          Shade’s reply was cut, clipped, but he eventually he shot back, “Yes.”

          Teke had the courage to look slightly relieved. “He swore because he almost hit you, not because he missed you. You know what I’m saying? He was afraid of hitting you. The last thing he wanted was to hurt anything, especially wolves.” Teke shifted uncomfortably under Shade’s grip and coughed dryly. “Whatever happened back there was an accident. Just a stupid mistake. And…I’m sorry.”

          Shade’s head fell to his chest. “A stupid mistake,” he mumbled softly, his eyes burning. His claws tightened around Teke’s throat, and Teke started choking. But then his paw loosened and dropped to the ground, and Shade looked away. “A stupid mistake.” His voice was as distant as his eyes.

          Teke heaved in a huge breath and leaned against the mountain, gasping.

          Ruska unfroze and ran to him. “Are you all right?”

          He shrugged. “Once I get my breath back,” he panted.

          Ruska stared at him with so much concern flashing through her. Without thinking, she threw herself around him in an embrace. A stifled gasp magnified his surprise, but after taking a step back in dismay he didn’t pull away. For a breath something changed between them again, and then Ruska pushed away.

          “Sorry,” she said, aware of the hundreds of stares digging into her back. Heat swept into her cheeks, and she hoped her red fur hid it. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

          He looked at her. “…Never better.” A hint of a smile teetered on the edge of his mouth.

          A golden glow whipped up inside Ruska that left her as breathless as Teke had been moments before.

          “Hey, I’m the one who’s just given birth, I should be getting all the attention,” a female voice called out with what could only be described as cheerful sarcasm.

          A path parted wide enough to let Ruska see what everyone had been gathered around when she had entered. A brown-gray female wolf-dog with white paws and white across her back lay in the tender grass, nursing six newborn puppies. The gray and brown father stood over them protectively, his startling blue eyes shining with pride and happiness.

          A lump rose in Ruska’s throat. Unconsciously she padded over to the mother and her litter, and stood there gazing down in rapture.

          Flint padded up beside her. “Ruska, this is your great aunt, Destiny,” he explained, “And this is Cyan, leader of the Midnight Sun pack.” Now he chuckled, a bit more at ease. “You’ve got six fine new members, Cyan.”

          Cyan smiled. “Thank you. At first we didn’t know if they were going to make it, but…well, everything seems all right now.”

          Ruska was still absorbed with watching the pups. They were so tiny, so small and perfect. A mix of white and brown-gray on each one, they mirrored their parents and yet achieved a mark of their own. “Beautiful,” she breathed, and immediately felt embarrassed. It sounded corny, but it was the truth. She couldn’t think of any other word that would better suit them.

          “Thanks,” Destiny said, “After all that work there better be something good about them!” She laughed quietly, and her eyes softened. “Hey…would you like to name one?”

          Ruska was caught completely unawares. “Really?” She looked to Cyan, and he seemed uncertain, but after a moment he nodded.

          Ruska thought hard, her heart pounding. What was the most radiant name in the whole universe? What name would mean so much to them, to everyone? She turned, searching for ideas, and her eyes landed on Shade. Something clicked.

          She whirled back around and said the one name that would follow one of Destiny’s pups the rest of her days: “Kestra.”

          There was a sharp intake of breath from Shade. Everyone else was too shocked to do much but stand open-mouthed. Ruska stared fiercely at Destiny, certain that her choice was right.

          It took awhile, but eventually Destiny was nodding, and Cyan did, too.

          “All right.” Destiny placed her paw next to a female pup with brown-gray fur with just the slightest ripple of red. “Her name will be Kestra.”

          “She’ll continue the legacy of the one who was lost,” Quicksilver murmured gently.

          “The pups will all replace the wolves whose lives were lost in this great struggle,” Everest proclaimed, emerging from the crowd with the rest of the pack leaders. Though Ruska had never before seen them face to face, she knew their names and the extent of their power: Swift; Jaydor; Iceberg; and Silver Arrow. “The humans have proclaimed and proved their protection of us,” Everest announced grandly, “There’s no more need for hiding. Starting tonight, each pack will return to its original territory, with the exception of the Midnight Sun pack, which will need to stay until their pups are grown enough to travel. But the rest of you may return home.”

          Ruska couldn’t have imagined the collective sigh of relief that rustled through the valley from the wolves. Remus and Flint exchanged glances, and Ruska knew Remus was silently handing back the responsibility for the Northern Lights pack to him. Ruska wasn’t sure how she felt, but it was Shade who quietly proclaimed, “It’s time.”

          Stars hung like dewdrops from an indigo night sky. Under them, APAA men in their dark gray uniform and the few APAA “hunters” who had remained stood waiting expectantly at the edge of the trees. There was an anticipating silence, and then a gray wolf glided out from the shadows of the cave.

          His golden, glowing eyes traveled over each human’s face, and then he raised his head and howled. The song that had been missing from the Arctic tundra for weeks on end, the sound that was the frozen North, echoed around the clearing and across the wasteland. Wolfsong chorused back from inside the cave, the strength and power of the calls causing the mountain to tremble.

          The gray wolf padded purposefully forward, his head still tipped back in a howl, and behind him marched his pack, spreading out beyond the cave until the next pack leader howled for his clan. The wolves slid past the humans and dogs with silent majesty except for the pack leaders’ triumphant song.

          One of the APAA associates pressed his earpiece hard against his head and murmured into the tiny mic, “They’re out.”

          The procession continued this way as the packs marched by and then broke into a run as they exited the clearing and headed back to their own territories. Four packs passed by: the Red Aurora, the Pacific, the White Storm, and the Anvil Creek. And last of all came the Northern Lights pack.

          Flint sent up their clan’s song and steadily led them out into the clearing. After Flint there was a line of three made up of Aleu, Linder, and Quicksilver. Behind them was another line of three made up of Remus, Shade, and Shaila. Ruska and Teke hung towards the back in their own line of two.

          Teke halted when he saw the would-be hunters on the sidelines. Ruska stopped, too, and glanced at Flint. He threw her a look over his shoulder and nodded, but then he faced front again and continued leading the pack towards the tundra. They had offered Teke the option of staying with the pack, since he didn’t seem to have much place else to go, and Shade had finally said that he didn’t blame Teke for Kestra’s death.

          Ruska felt a tugging inside her that hoped he would stay, but ultimately it had to be his choice.

         Teke’s brown eyes searched until they found a dark-skinned hunter and three dogs. His tail rose in recognition, but he stiffened as if he wasn’t sure he was glad to see them or not.

          “Hey, is that Teke?” the dark gray and white dog cried.

          “I think it is,” the white female whispered.

          “Hey, Teke!” the gray and white male cried, “It’s me, Bullet! With Angel and Moody Blue! Come on back with us, Teke! You don’t belong with those wolves!”

          “We won’t boss you or hurt you anymore,” Angel called, “We promise! We’re not even hunting anymore, Jake’s taking us home!”

          “Stop dragging a dead dog into the ground and get over here!” Moody Blue bellowed, “If you don’t come back to Jake, the fan’s gonna hit the roof!”

          “…What?” Angel sputtered.

          “He knows what I mean,” Moody Blue growled.

          Teke’s head lowered until he was staring at the ground. “Do they honestly think…?” He stopped and shook his head in disbelief.

          “Think what?” Ruska blurted out, taking a step closer to him.

          He looked at her through wide eyes. “With our special breeding…with this company’s goal…our work is never done.” He raised his head, and to Ruska’s surprise and disappointment he took two steps toward the dogs. He left pawprints in the dirt, and his decision weighed on Ruska as heavily as his paws on the crushed mud. But then he stopped and raised his voice: “Well, Moody Blue, it’s like you always say: Just because you lead a horse to water doesn’t make it right.”

          Ruska’s head shot up, her heart confused but daring to hope.

          Teke whirled around and grabbed Ruska and kissed her softly on the mouth. She sucked in her breath in astonishment, but the world wasn’t spinning because of that.

          Teke gazed fiercely into her face. “You mean more to me than any of them a thousand times over.”

          She stared at him, star-struck, but then she smiled.

          He grinned back, and ran a few steps forward. “Now let’s go, before they start chasing me or we get left behind!”

          Ruska looked back at them, then gazed at Teke and nodded and smiled.

          “What the heck was that?” Bullet yelled, “Where are you going?”

          “Teke!” Angel cried angrily, “Get back here!”

          “Never has my logic been so used against me,” Moody Blue mused gravely. He sighed. “Well, at least we have all our ducks on the same page.”

          Angel groaned, and Bullet nearly clobbered him. “Just shut up, okay?”

          Listening to them, Ruska and Teke looked at each other and burst out laughing. Ruska nudged Teke under the chin, and he licked her ears.

          “Ready?” he asked.

          “As I’ll ever be,” she declared.

          Teke and Ruska shot off at the same time, racing towards the Northern Lights pack and their new life together.

          Up above, red auroras shimmered and twisted against the night sky in a dance of the wild North.

The End

Remus, Shade, Shaila, Ruska, Flint, Linder, Quicksilver, Jaydor, Swift, Iceberg, Everest, Silver Arrow, Cyan, Destiny, Kestra, Bullet, Angel, Teke, Moody Blue, and Jake © redwolf03

Aleu © Universal Studios

The Animal Protection Association of Alaska (APAA) is purely fictional. Any similarity to existing corporations is coincidental.