February/March Edition

Black Sheep

By: Rachel S. Brianna F.

Chapter 1

“Almost there,” I think to myself, the scent of deer heavy in the air. I trek over the dead, pointed grass, the trees beginning to thin as I reach the clearing. I sit down, panting heavily as I wait for the deer to arrive.

The grass is tall here, rustling in the harsh wind like a thousand elk hooves on dry ground. I catch a scent on the cold wind. The deer move closer and the ground begins to shake. “Now!” I think to myself as they come crashing out of the woods, keeping a consistent and reckless pace. I begin trotting, trying to find an opening in the parcel. The deer pay me no attention, keeping their blank eyes forward, set on running toward god knows what. The sun is set low, adding a ghostly effect on the mindless creatures. Finally, a deer falls to the ground, trampled by the others, giving me space to squeeze in.

Now, I’m running as fast as I can, barely succeeding to keep up with the mammals. We reach the end of the clearing quickly, the trees rising to meet us, as we take an overgrown path, one I’m all too familiar with.

It isn’t long before other deer begin to fall with exhaustion, the herd numbers dwindling. I feel my ears twitch in anticipation, my mind buzzing with adrenaline. My legs burn, and I can’t help but love it. We tear through the ground, hooves and claws, leaving our mark on this world. The blurs become trees and I feel the small herd of deer begin to slow, yet it does nothing to prevent the deer from dropping dead where they stand. I merely sit there, my tail moving on its own accords, as the final deer fall, a sickening scent lingering in the air. It smells like decay, something that’s been infected or dead for way too long. My nose twitches as my eyes water. It’s all I can do not to gag. “Back to the mission,” I tell myself sternly, listening carefully as the woods call out to me, rustling leaves and bird song melding together in harmony. Its peacefulness sets me on edge, whispering for me to be calm. It begs me to sleep, but I’ve heard of what happens to the wolves who give in. Wolves who fall asleep in visions and never wake up. The more useful a vision is, the harder it is to stay awake. I don’t even ask for these visions, so the need is easy to ignore.

Then it all falls silent, the world listening as the first cry, a girl, rings through my ears. My legs move on autopilot, drawn to the distressed human. Before I can process where I’m going, another cry, more like a shriek, echoes through the gathering cold, as night begins to settle in. My legs ache in protest as I begin running to the town, where the scene is one burned into my brain. Unforgettable.

I smell smoke before I see the fire. It’s a strong smell, with something else lingering around. Something charred, burning. Something distinctly human.. “No!” I tell myself furiously, skidding to a stop. My legs are like liquid, and the smoke is suffocating. I tell myself to breathe because if I don’t, I will wake up and I can’t wake up. Not until I’ve reached the end. I’m up on a hill, looking down upon a living nightmare. “It is a nightmare, Rose!” I think to myself. I know I can’t let this affect me. It’s not even real. But..

It feels real enough.

I rush down, fur and all, not bothering to change into human form. The wails and screams of desperation are carried by the wind, blown toward my ears. I wince at how loud it is. It rattles my bones, and my body does an involuntary shiver.

Then, I see him. He shows up every time, one way or another. His fur is ashen gray, but it’s his eyes that make him recognizable. An icy blue, so bright it’s impossible to ignore.

He sits down once he sees me, tail wagging lazily back and forth, the perfect picture of calm. A growl of frustration claws its way out of my throat. I silently had hoped he wouldn’t show up this time. After all, he usually comes sooner, in the clearing or while I run with the deer, but there is no mistaking him. I don’t remember making a conscious decision, but before I can stop myself, I ram into him, head first.

A yap of surprise escapes him as he lands on his back, hind legs in the air. I tower over him, front paws pushing on his chest, hind legs spread on either side of him. though he doesn’t seem very concerned. “What do you want this time!” I growl. His eyes seem almost playful as he tilts his head, looking me straight in the eyes. “Don’t know what you’re talking about,” his eyes seem to say. Even now I can’t help but think “Innocent!” as I look upon him. Still, he doesn’t speak. It always unnerves me, the way he speaks without words. The sound of surprise when I hit him is the loudest he’s ever been around me.

“Why did you hit me?” He silently asks, head still tilted.

“Why don’t you speak?!” I snap at him, making sure to dig my claws into his stomach when I jump off. His slight whimper is the only indication he gives as he gets to his feet in one motion, swift and elegant as always. “Showoff,” I silently think to myself, still glowering in his direction. The truth is I don’t know why I hit him, and I hate when I do things on impulse. My old mentor couldn’t stand it and handed me over to an elder wolf. He was a master of judgment and spycraft before he retired, deciding to volunteer for teaching. He is as boring as he sounds, falling asleep halfway through lessons most of the time.

“Well?” His blue eyes ask. “Go on. I would hate to be a distraction.”

I severely doubt that, but I have more important matters to attend to, so I reluctantly turn away. I need to remember we are not the only ones here.

Wolves hide all throughout the town, all glowing red eyes and razor sharp teeth. They’re Vallents, or so it seems from the chaos they’ve started. Vallents have a knack for destruction of life, earning the nickname “Execution wolves”.

I rush to the center of this town, passing houses burned or still burning. There are so many bodies, more humans than werewolves. The ground is covered in a thin layer of ash and I force myself to not think about what I might be standing on.

Relief floods through me as the sight of townsquare appears. An odd circle of water is at the very center, seemingly endless. Still running, I jump into the icy waters without hesitation, my body spasming slightly from the sudden shock. I swim down, quickly shifting to human form. I am already out of air, but if I break the surface of the water after diving, my vision always breaks. My thoughts begin to slow down to useless junk, only there to keep me moving. I’m swimming down. Down. Endless. Dark. Need air. Air. Breath. Please make it. Please. Please. Pl..

I’m suddenly falling through the air, instantly dry and cold. Before my mind can register what’s happening, my back collides with soft soil. I’m breathless for a minute, just staring up at the blue sky. Birds fly overhead and the scent of rabbits is residual. I close my eyes, forcing air into my burning lungs. Suddenly, a hand yanks me onto my feet, catching me before my weak legs collapse. Why do visions never seem to give you even a second to breathe?

“You have to save them! Otherwise your fates are tied together, and you will both burn to ash.” Startled, I open my eyes to find a young woman, urgent and maybe slightly unhinged, her hands clasped around my forearms. She’s taller than me, though I suppose that isn’t saying much. Her hair is long, down to her waist, black as midnight, but what really catches my eye is her silver and white eyes. I know I should be frightened, but a calm has settled over me and can’t help but feel merely curious.

In the past months, when this all started, the only other living creature to acknowledge me was the blue-eyed wolf. Not once have I broken through the well, if you could even call it such, though like all visions, I knew I needed to reach the bottom. This is not what I expected in the slightest.

“Snap out of it! Think, Rose! Do you understand what I’ve told you?” She was talking? The calm still hasn’t lifted, in fact, I think I’ve calmed down even more. “Shoot! Your mind knows I’m not supposed to be here. It must be shutting down your vision.” She looks distressed and I think she continues talking, but I can't understand anymore. I hear what she says, but it’s like I’ve forgotten what language I speak. I need to panic, I feel that I really do, but I feel at peace instead.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you’re saying.” I can’t even understand myself. Something is wrong, but that seems to be all I can understand. Finally, fear spurs in my heart, but it’s too late.

It’s already faded to black.

Chapter 2

The sun filters in through the cave opening, directly in my eyes. I try to swat it away with my paw before I realize it’s the sun, so that won’t work. With a sigh, I lift myself up on all four paws, yawning and stretching.

“Finally! I thought that you had fallen asleep in your vision and were never gonna wake up.” I turn around to find human Aja holding a metal plate, directing the sun into my eyes. I glare at her and she gives me an awkward smile, flushing a little as she attempts to hide the metal scrap behind her back. I roll my eyes, transforming into human form so we reach the same height. Almost. She’s still taller than me, though she’s my younger sister. She got our father’s genes and I got our mother's. Lucky me.

“So why exactly did I need to be awake?” Her expression hardens as she gestures for me to follow her as she switches to wolf form. I huff, exasperated, but proceed to switch into wolf form once more, following her out into the clearing.

The sun still feels too bright as Aja leads me towards a gathering crowd. Alpha sits on an elevated rock, motionless as he watches us gather. I stare at him, trying to get him to look at me.

“What are you doing?” Aja is looking at me, concerned and confused. Finally, his eyes flit to mine and his tail twitches. It’s small, something I wouldn't have noticed unless I were looking for it. Alpha has never liked me, though he’s loath to admit it.

“Investigating,” I murmur. Aja just rolls her eyes, nudging me forward.

Alpha’s an old Honor wolf, born and raised. His fur is an unnatural silver, his eyes a deep green. In human form, he has wrinkles around his eyes and mouth from constant smiling and laughing. His eyes are serious now, taking in the hundreds of blank faces staring at him.

“I would like to begin by thanking you all for coming this afternoon.”

“Yikes, how long have I been asleep?” I mutter. Aja is quick to wack with her tail, a sign to “shut up and listen”.

“As many of you know, this morning, Dalin was missing. Earlier today, a hunting party came across his body. He was pierced by a knife, set up on top of our border. I believe it to be a threat from the Vallent wolves.” He paused, letting the information sink in, before continuing.

“Sadly, he was not the only body up there. A human boy, stabbed in the same place as Dalin, lay across from our fellow werewolf. Through further inspection, we have observed that the boy looked similar to Dalin’s human form.”

Suddenly, everyone seemed like they had something to say. Disorganized shouting and hollering, both forgiving and vengeful, rise from the crowd. “This means war!” Someone shouts, and it’s like a disease, spreading throughout the angry wolves. They began to shout the sentiment, and I wonder how Vallent wolves ever thought us too kind or peaceful.

“Enough!” Everyone immediately quiets, surprised to see the look of anger on Alpha’s face. “You wish to be like them, do you? To start a war? Kill one of them?”

Everyone is silent, and Alpha seems satisfied by the look of shame on their faces.

“No,” he says, sitting down, calm once more. “We should try to find a peaceful way before we resort to violence. The Committee and I believe we have found a way. The threat was not only pointed at us, but also at the humans. If we were to sway these humans onto our side, we could have a chance to stand up to the Vallents if they decide to attack.”

“What would humans do?” a voice snarls out. “The Vallent wolves would tear them to pieces!” I think of my vision and shiver, squeezing my eyes shut, forcing the images out of my head.

“That is what the Vallents wish for us to believe, but I’ve heard of a human hunter taking down a wolf. They have weapons and where they lack in strength they make up for in intelligence. It isn’t an ideal situation, we know, but it may be our only hope.”

Everyone is finally silent, looking at the people next to them, waiting to see who will react first. It seems like an eternity before the quiet is broken, torn by a howl of approval.

I turn to the sound to find it’s Aja. Surprise and a drop of pride swells in my heart and I begin to howl with her. It doesn’t take long before everyone else follows suit, a chorus of howling and yapping.

Alpha's smile is slight, but he stands to add on to our song all the same.

~

Afterwards, everyone disperses, leaving to continue their day. Aja seems especially alive, hopping from rock to rock. The trees are sparse here and the land by the Columns Rivers is marshy, overridden with plants such as ferns, moss, and vines.

“Do you think Alpha appreciated my help? Or was he annoyed by my outburst?” Aja is looking at me though I pretend to not hear her. She stays silent, stubbornly waiting on a rock until I respond. After a minute or so, she still hasn’t moved. Maybe she’s finally given up?

“Rose!” She’s suddenly on top of me, howling in my ear, claws breaking the first layer of my skin. “Seriously! You can be so annoying, you know that?”

“I’m the annoying one?” I snap, dropping and rolling in the dirt. She comes off easily, sneezing as the dust billows around her. When the cloud finally settles, her midnight black fur looks more like a chocolate brown, her nose wrinkled at her change in appearance. I can’t help but laugh at the sight and Aja just glares at me half-heartedly, trying to hide her smirk as she shakes the dust out of her fur.

“So, is that a ‘he appreciated it’ or a ‘he hates me now’?” Aja asks as she begins to lick herself, returning her fur to its natural shine. We both have the same color fur, yet mine is much more dull, filled with knots and burrs from hunting.

“I think Alpha loves you as he would his own kin,” I say, trying to keep the bite of jealousy out of my voice. I fail terribly, but Aja decides to politely ignore it.

“Thank you,” she says, nodding her head at me. Alpha has always loved her and has always hated me, though no one truly knows why. Most of the pack believes I messed up when he came to choose a pup from the Adoption Den, but Aja wouldn’t go with him unless he took me. I think Aja is in denial about what truly happened, so Alpha and I are really the only ones who face the truth.

I shiver, pushing it out of my mind like I always do.

“Rose?” I sigh as I look into my sister’s shy, yellow eyes.

“Yes?”

“Alpha said that we need to form an alliance with the humans,” she says, lowering her gaze. “How will we do it?”

“Aja..” I trail off, sniffing the air. There’s a distinct smell here, one that I can't possibly smell. Could it be..?

“Look I know I shouldn’t question Alpha,” Aja continues, her words coming faster and faster. “But I can’t help but wonder what he has planned. What if he gives protection to them, taking away our friends to protect them? What if he sends us as a sign of trust? What if he sends you? You are a prophet in a way, a-a-and humans love knowing what comes next and..”

“Aja! Shhh!” My sister stops, mouth still open, prepared to continue. “Do you smell that?” I ask her, hoping I didn’t hurt her when I shouted. Her expression is confused as she sniffs the air, and I almost let myself hope that I was wrong and that it’s nothing. Then, her ears flatten against her head as her eyes open in understanding.

“Vallent wolf,” She whispers. There's a sudden snap of branches, a distant sound of something heavy running through a nearby forest. We look at each other for a moment, shocked. Before she can tell me to stay, I sprint after it, dirt and rocks flying up in the air.

My head pounds, my heart racing, my lungs burning. I’ve always hated being small, but there are advantages to it, such as how fast I can run while keeping quiet.

Birds squawk in protest up ahead, flying away. I can’t help but smirk. This guy isn’t for stealth, is he? Assuming it’s a he, that is.

“It’s because Vallent wolves live in open areas.” I startle slightly, turning to see Aja. She’s having trouble, just barely managing to keep pace with me. “They aren’t used to being in the woods.”

A nod to her to let her know I understand. I would never admit this, but I feel better with Aja by my side. Even if she sounds like an elephant in these woods.

My heart rate somehow increases when I finally catch sight of the wolf, glimpses of gray fur visible through the trees. “Almost there,” I tell Aja. “Almost there.” I whisper it to myself over and over, like a chant, willing my legs to keep moving.

I need to catch him. I know it’s stupid, but what if Alpha decides to love me? What if I catch this guy and Alpha has no choice but to love me. Not that Rose wants his love. These aren’t her thoughts, they can’t be because Rose hates Alpha. But I’m not fully Rose. I’m also still a lonely, thirteen year old orphan, secretly dreaming of Alpha choosing her. She’s the one who needs this. She’s the reason I think we can catch him.

Then I hear Aja fall to the ground.

...To be continued

Continue the Journey

By: Hudson .K And Daniel .D

“We are taking a walk into a mysterious forest. Yes and it is very spooky”.I said ``Wait a minute, do you see that big shadow!?!” Dan said,

“It’s a dragon! It's in that cave over there,'' I said.

“Let's go! Look, there is a whole pack of them!” Dan said.

“Cool and they're all in different colors! Look at the blue one!” I said.

“Yeah that one is pretty cool but I like the red one!” said Dan. “Wait, be quiet, they are asleep! Let's try to tame them.” I said.

“Yeah but what do they eat?” Dan said.

“I don’t know?”

“WE EAT RATS!! “ said a dragon

“AAAAAAHHHHHH! You eat rats!?!”

“RATS TASTE GOOD!! “ said the dragon

“I have some rats.”

“WHY DO YOU HAVE RATS!!!??!???!”

“For the dragons they love rats.”

“Ok but give the rat to him and look away quickly.”

“I LOVE RATS!!! “

“ I have a pet rat whose name is jaxson.”

“YUMMY HAND IT OVER!!”

“NO LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

“Ok ok will find some other rats.”

“Fun Fact, my rat can eat cats. Kkkkkkkk.

“We will be right back.”

“Run before the others wake up. I hope it doesnt eat my rat.”

“It WILL NOT EAT YOUR RAT.”

“Sorry I'm just so surprised you have a rat.”

“I know, it's the rarest animal in the world.”

“IT IS NOT THE RAREST ANIMAL IN THE WORLD!!”

“THE RAT IS THE MOST RARE ANIMAL IN THE WORLD!!!!”

“Ok whatever lets leave. Let’s ride that minecart over there into the cavern. The cart has bombs in it!”

“Then take the bombs out!”

“Oh, my mistake. All right let's go.”

“MAKE SURE TO BRING ME RATS!! Got it creepo?”

“Alright hop in.”

“WATCH OUT FOR THE BEARS!!”

“Hey Dan, where did you put those bombs??

“In my backpack. Ok put some in. Ok let's go.”

“OH SHOOT! A BEAR! Quick hand me a bomb.”

“Grabs bomb”

BOOM!!

“Aw man this is like baseball. THERE’S ANOTHER ONE! Let me do this one!”

BOOM!. The bear is dead.

“Let’s take the bear's meat.”

Why?

“So we can eat!”

“Are we going to cook it?”

“Yes. oh ok. BEAR!

On IT! BOOM! The thing is dead.alright there doesn't

Look like there's any more bears.

“Hey Dan you got a sack.”

“Yes I do.”

“Hand it over.”

Dan gives a sack to me.

”GOT ONE!!”

“What did you get?”

“A rat. Wait no that’s Jaxson!

“Alright I'll let it out, here's your rat. DON’T LET HIM GO!”

“WHY???”

“HE IS MY PET.

“YEAH I KNOW THAT!! But why do you want to let him go?”

“I'm giving him to you silly!”

“HEY DON’T SAY THAT I HAVE FEELINGS!”

“HERE HAVE HIM.”

”He takes the rat.

”Happy now?”

“Yes I am.”

“Ok, we are almost there. I see light!”

“That's because there are torches.”

“Oh ok that’s good.”

5 minutes later:

“Alright we have all the rats we need to go back to the dragons.”

7 minutes later.

Dan, “We got the rats. The dragons are going to have a great dinner, Hudson, and then we capture them”

“They are going to love the rats. Here you go. PLOP, YUMMY. “Eats''mmm so good!”

“HEY THAT’S JAXSON, NO!!!!!!!.”

Too late “crunch”.:

“Silly dragon! Eh,That was going to happen sometime soon.You were right. Also it is just a rat.”

“I know I hate rats.”

“THEN WHY DID YOU HAVE ONE!!”

“I was going to kill him soon.mmmmmmmmm… anyway are you our pet now?”

“YES NOW YOU JUST NEED 500 MORE RATS TO FEED THE OTHER DRAGONS BEFORE THEY EAT YOU..”

Dan, “Ok let's go find more rats, Hudson.

“No, we need to run. They're awake! Let's ride the dragon! HOP ON!! “

“Should we hop on? Do we have another choice??”

“We don’t have a choice. Yep.

They get on. Swoosh!

“I can’t believe we are actually flying! WEEEEEE! PLOP!! HERE WE ARE THE MYTHICAL FOREST. um thanks. Yay we are here! I'm going to write about dragons in my notepad.``scribble”Ok what do you want to eat? Do we need food? Hey Dan, you still got that bear meat?”

“Yes I do.”

“Ok you start making a fire I’ll get sticks. Got it?”

“Yes sir.”

5 minutes later:

“Alright put the meat on the stick above the fire.”

He puts meat above fire.

”Ok now we will wait. Hey hudson I'm going to grab a chair. Do you want a chair?”

“Ok, but where will you get a chair?”

“In my bag.Ok? I know it sounds weird but it is true.”

“Ok so the meat is all cooked. Do you have plates?”

“Yes sir I do.”

“Alright let's eat.”

They eat

Stay Tuned for more in the next issue.