Olympic Event: Fan-Fic Results!

Stormfur’sOlympic Dream




Prologue



Theday is the 26th of July, one day before the special event, and thestaff of the Olympic Committee seems to be struggling with a structure issue inOlympic Stadium, where the opening ceremony is to be held. Then unexpectedly, anear-piercing screech fills the air, the unmistakable sound of metal grindingagainst metal and the workers can only watch with their mouths wide open as oneof the main pillars fell, followed by another, and another. The screams ofrealization hits the employees like a slap in the face, as they realize thatthey are in danger of being crushed by the debris, and all they can do is runin vain as the building slowly collapses around them…





Chapter 1:



“Wake up, Stormfur, wake up!” The dark-furredwolf felt a small nudge at his side, the shaking slowly pulling him away fromhis horrendous and vivid nightmare.

“You’re being sooo weird! Why can’tyou sleep like a regular wolf?” The unknown voice kept going on about beingpossessed or having sleep disorders, and Stormfur slowly blinked his eyes open,noticing that he had a cold sweat. “Thatdream...” he thought. Did it mean something? “I’ll have to go talk to the Dreamwhisperer when I have the chance…”

“Come on, Stormfur!! Get upalready,” the annoying voice called out again. Stormfur felt as if a bag ofrabbits had been dropped upon him, as something small yet heavy weighed downhis shoulders.

“Get off me already, Redfur,”Stormfur muttered, as the little wolf began prancing on top of his olderbrother’s sleek form. With a big heave, the older wolf rose to his paws, hislittle brother sliding off his back. “Is Ashfur awake yet?” Stormfurquestioned, though he doubted his older brother would be conscious this earlyin the morning.

“Not yet,” Redfur replied, amischievous grin on his snout. “We can wake him up together, how about that?”

The corners of Stormfur’s mouthturned upwards slightly in a smile, and it quickly grew into a smirk as headmired the little wolf’s audacity and courage. “It’s a bad idea, but let’s goahead and do it; it’s the day of the Olympic Ceremony anyways...”

“Yes!” Redfur yipped, as he boundedtowards Ashfur’s den, dragging Stormfur quite violently along with him.

“Slow down, brother…” Stormfurwinced. “I have four feet of my own to walk with, and we don’t want to wake himup with all this noise before we get to have some fun, right?”

“Ohhhh… good point!” Ashfur yelpedloudly, eliciting another sigh from his older brother. “Shhhhh!” the littlewolf whistled through his teeth. “We don’t wanna wake him up, not yet that is,”he whispered with a wicked glint in his eye.

Stormfur could only sigh as hefollowed his overly-energetic brother into his older brother’s sleeping den.The musty smell filled Stormfur’s keen nose as he saw his brother’s muscularform lying snout-down, sleeping.

“Ok, you take his back two legs,and I’ll grab the front two,” Stormfur instructed, and watched as the youngerwolf scurried behind his older brother, and grabbed the elder’s hind legs. GraspingAshfur’s front legs, Stormfur whispered, “Three, two, one, heave!” The twowolves flung their older brother centimeters off the ground and into the air,and he landed with a thud, letting out a slight snore as he rolled over, stillfast asleep.

“Awh…” Redfur sighed. “How did thatnot work?” he pouted in disappointment.

“Don’t ask me,” the older wolfreplied. “But I’ve got another idea…” Stormfur padded his way back to his den, andretrieved a watering jar beside his bed. Carrying it carefully in his mouth,making sure not to spill any of the precious liquid, he made his way back toAshfur’s den. Setting the jar down beside him, he looked to his brother, andgave him a “what in the name of Fenrirare you doing?” look. His little brother had managed to clamber on top ofthe burly wolf, and was shaking him left and right, but to no avail. “Get offof him already,” Stormfur told the little wolf, with a slight tone of annoyanceshowing in his low voice. Once his brother had scrambled off of the sleepingAshfur, Stormfur quickly grabbed the jug of water, and upturned it upon thelarge wolf’s head.

Like a machine rebooting, a shiverran through Ashfur’s body, and then his muscular form began to rise from thefloor. Blinking his narrow eyes, once, then twice, he glared at Stormfur, andtackled him violently. Both of them crashed against the walls of the den,tangled in fury, while Redfur watched with excitement and horror. The blows keptexchanging for a few minutes, until both wolves backed down, panting inexhaustion.

“Teach you not to mess around withme,” Ashfur threatened, and trotted out of his den and outside, making sure toswish Stormfur’s snout with his bushy tail on his way out.

“What a jerk,” Stormfur thought tohimself, “I swear, sometimes, I think he’s half rabbit… He’s as annoying asthem, anyways.”

Stormfur headed outside, followedby his brother. Blinking in the bright morning light, Stormfur saw his mother,Cypressfur along with Ashfur at her side. Walking over to them, Stormfurmuttered a ‘good morning’ to his mother, along with a deadly cold glare at hisbrother who was smirking.

“Good morning? Why it’s nearly afternoonalready! You should learn to sleep less, like your brother Ashfur. According tohim, he was up early in the morning, and recently had to pull you two out ofyour own dens!”

Stormfur glanced at his olderbrother, who was nearly doubled up in laughter, and gave him his very bestkiller glare. “Liar…” Stormfurthought to himself, and walked past them, Redfur still following.

“Where are you going Stormfur?” hismother called out. We’re going to the Olympic Village today, and it’s in theother direction!

“Just wait a second, mother, I needto pay the Dreamwhisperer a visit; I’ll catch up as soon as I’m done there.”

Stormfur headed off towards the denof the Dreamwhisperer, with Redfur still trailing him obediently, like a dogwith its master. Noticing his unwanted tag-along, Stormfur turned around, “Whycan’t you just leave me alone?! Go follow your brother or something.”

Redfur backed off a few paces, eyesfilling with tears. Noticing thewide-eyed face of Redfur, Stormfur quickly apologized. “I’m still mad atAshfur, and I shouldn’t have scolded you like that.” Still feeling guilty, headded, “Oh alright, you can come with me, just make sure you don’t sayanything, touch anything, or make any noise, alright?”

Redfur’s face brightened, the tearsin his small eyes disappearing. He nodded his head with pure enthusiasm andbegan following Stormfur again, making sure to be as quiet as possible. “Like stalking a rabbit…” Redfur thoughtto himself, and laughed at the thought of his older brother being a rabbit.

Stormfur ignored the small burstsof laughter behind him, and kept walking, quickly reaching the den of theDreamwhisperer. The chilling draft of wind that blew past Stormfur sent shiversfrom snout to paw, but he kept on, reaching the den of the elder wolf. The lairwas quite comfortable, yet unnerving at the same time. Different coloredfabrics of all textures hung on the walls, and the glow of fireflies trapped inthe corners cast ominous shadows over every object, including theDreamwhisperer, who lay curled in the far corner of the den, not moving. Stormfurstood there, not sure what to do. “ShouldI just start talking, or wake him up…? I should’ve thought this through, ugh.” WhileStormfur was off scolding himself for acting rashly, Redfur padded around thesmall den, eyes wide, trying to take in all the foreign, yet remarkable thingsaround him.

“What…what is your name, young one?”a voice called out, low and slightly raspy.

Startled, Stormfur glanced around,assuming the spine-chilling voice belonged to a ghost or spirit. His fearsdiminished though, as he assumed it was just Redfur playing around with his ownvoice.

“He’ll have to grow up someday, andgive up trying to impersonate other wolves…” Stormfur mused to himself.

“Quit talking in weird voices,” thewolf scolded his brother. “Go outside and do it or something.”

Redfur cocked his head sideways, confused. “What voices? Ididn’t make any…” His innocence frightened Stormfur slightly, as realizationhit home. “If Redfur’s not talking inthat weird voice, then…”

“What is your name, youngling?” thevoice called out again, cutting through the silence.

Stormfur jumped in astonishment,and peered into the dim corner where the Dreamwhisperer slowly began to stir. Risingto his full height, the Dreamwhisperer came towards the two younger wolves, hispowerfully built form towering over them.

Stormfur backed up a few paces,intimidated and frightened. “I…I’m Stormfur, and this is my little brotherRedfur,” he told the elder wolf.

“Ah,” the Dreamwhisperermused. “So what ails you, my young friend?”

“Well Great Dreamwhisperer…”Stormfur began.

“Call me Oakblaze, little one;Dreamwhisperer is far too long and formal.”

“Oakblaze…” Stormfur saidtentatively, the word sounding foreign in his mouth. “Well, Oakblaze,” Stormfurbegan, “I had a dream…and was wondering if you could tell me a little moreabout it.”

“Ah, dreams…my favorite. So tellme more about this dream of yours.” Oakblaze sat back on his hind legs,awaiting the tale.

Stormfur went on to tell him aboutthe vivid dream he had the night before, of the screams, the fallingstructures, and the collapse of the Olympic Stadium, making sure not to leaveout any sort of detail. All the while, Oakblaze listened intently, his faceshowing no expression, except for small snarls now and then. Redfur, on theother hand, was nearly biting the claws off his paws, his eyes and mouth wideopen.

Once the recollection was over,Stormfur stepped back, and waited for some kind of response. A minute passed,two minutes; still no response. Stormfur glanced at Redfur, the little wolfbounding about in crazed excitement. More silence followed, and Stormfur hadhalf a mind to just walk out that instant. “It’sjust a stupid dream,” he thought. “Whywould it even mean anything…?”

“Interesting…” the elderwolf finally said, after what seemed like a great deal of thinking. “Well,it might come true, and it might not. Your fate is determined by actions. Bewise in your actions. Weave your life story and you might just save someoneelse’s in the process. Go, young one.”

Stormfur stood there, totallyconfused. “Be wise in your actions? Save someone’s life story? What’s that allsupposed to mean?!”

“He’s totally mental,” Stormfurmuttered to himself. “Come on, Redfur, let’s go. Everyone’s probably waitingfor the two of us.” Redfur joined his older brother, and headed out of theDreamwhisperer’s lair. “Thank you Oakblaze,” Stormfur added on his way out, butthere was not much sincerity behind his words. Redfur and his brother walkedoff, back into the fresh air.

“Wait!” a voice calledfrom the depths of the den. “I forgot to mention…” But the voicewas weak, and the words were lost in the blowing wind…





~-~-~-~-~-~



“You’reback, finally.” Ashfur announced in distaste. “Kept us all waiting, and there’syour friend over there, who’s dying to see you.” He nodded in the direction of a she-wolf,pacing around in circles, obviously waiting for something, or someone.

“Thanks, Captain Obvious,” Stormfur retorted,with poison in his voice. He turned away and walked over to Flowerpetal, whonow was rolling around in boredom. “Hi,” Stormfur greeted, but the she-wolfdidn’t seem to notice, too engrossed in her own world. Stormfur took a stepforward, and swished her with his fuzzy tail lightly on the snout.

“Hey! Whodo you think you…oh.” Flowerpetal was startled as Stormfur backed away, shockedat her animated response. “Hi Stormfur!” she exclaimed as she tackled thedark-furred wolf to the ground playfully.

“Urgh,Flowerpetal…I’m not a rabbit, you don’t need to tackle me every time we seeeach other,” Stormfur groaned, picking himself up from the ground.

“Oh…mybad!” Flowerpetal exclaimed, using one of her paws to brush dirt off Stormfur’sdark coat. “Come on, lighten up! It’s the day of the opening ceremony! You’vebeen ranting on about it all week; where’d your enthusiasm go!?”

“I’m notsure,” Stormfur replied. “Ever since that dr...” Stormfur paused, and decidednot to say any more. Knowing Flowerpetal, she would probably have the entireclan buzzing about his stupid dream that probably meant nothing.

“Ever sincewhat?! Ever since WHATT!? Spit it out, mister!” Flowerpetal demanded, obviouslyintent on getting an answer.

“Ever sincethat… dry piece of squirrel I had for lunch yesterday,” Stormfur made up, notwanting to draw any kind of attention. “It didn’t comply with my stomach toowell…”

“Squirrels…ew.”Flowerpetal shuddered. Stormfur knew he hit the right spot, as squirrels werethe she-wolf’s most feared creature. “Well, why did you go off and do somethingsilly like that?” she joked, trying to avoid the topic of squirrels.

“I don’tknow…” Stormfur muttered. “When do you think we’ll ever set off towards theOlympic Village? I’m dying to see what it’s like over there…”

“I’m notsure, because all of us were ready, but unfortunately,we had to wait for some wolvesthat wandered off to visit some old Dreamwhisperer that probably speaksnonsense,” she said in an accusing yet teasing voice.

“Sorry,”Stormfur stammered, slightly ashamed. “Shehas no idea how right she is…” he thought to himself. “Well, we’re backnow, so shouldn’t we get going? The longer we wait, the more crowded theVillage is going to get…”

“Good idea,those humans might start casting glances at us, and every wolf knows howawkward that can be…” I’ll go seewhat the wait is about!” Flowerpetal ran forth and squeezed through the crowd,making her way to the front.

And as ifby magic, (or Flowerpetal’s amazing persuasion skills) there was a briefannouncement that the clan was heading towards the Olympic Village. Cheers andhowls echoed around Stormfur as the clan of wolves pushed forward in thegeneral direction of the Village. Jostled and buffeted around a bit, Stormfurlooked around for his best friend, wishing he was taller than the majority ofthe wolves in his clan. “Flowerpetal, where are you?!” Stormfur said aloud,hoping that she could hear him over the noise of the moving pack.

“I’m righthere, silly,” Flowerpetal’s voice echoed cheerfully behind him. Stormfur turnedaround in surprise, wondering how the small wolf managed to sneak up on him.

“How didyou get all the way back there? I thought you went to the front to go figureout…” his voice trailed off in confusion.

“Gosh,don’t be so jealous. Everyone in the clan knows I’m in better shape than youare…” Flowerpetal teased, knowing she had hit a sensitive topic.

“I am not fat!” Stormfur exclaimed. “And youdon’t have to brag about your physical fitness,” he added, with a slight hintof jealousy in his voice.

“AlrightMr. Touchy…” Flowerpetal teased. “Let’s move already! Come on, or we’ll be leftbehind!” she exclaimed. She nudged her friend lightly, trying to get him tomove.

“Ok, ok,I’m going, I’m going.” Stormfur stumbled slightly, and then began movingforward along with the pack. Flowerpetal joined his side, muttering somethingabout being lazy and incompetent.





~-~-~-~-~-~







The wolf clan kept going throughthe woods they called their ‘temporary home’, as they were a bit of a migratoryclan. As the popular commercial would explain, “It all starts with a swipe of aVisa card…and you could win a trip to the Olympics, for life.” But howthat all happened is a different tale to tell. As they kept moving, theforestry thinned, and the Village started to come into view.

Stormfur could hear the ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ from the wolvesaround him, along with the enthusiastic yelps of joy from Redfur to his right.

“Wow,” Flowerpetal breathed. “It’sbeautiful, to say the least…”

Stormfur nodded his head inagreement, “This is awesome! I mean, China was great, but the Village issomething completely different.”

“Well, what are we standing herefor!?” Flowerpetal exclaimed. “Let’s go and take a look around!” She prancedforward gracefully, heading towards the center square.

“Flowerpetal, wait up!” “Goodness, she’s so rash…” Stormfurthought to himself as he bounded after her, trying to keep up, his breathsragged.

Finallycatching up to her, he bent over, snout almost touching the cobblestones.

“Tiredalready? The day’s just begun!” a mocking voice from above called out. “Come onStormfur, you were better in shape the last time we explored an amazing city!”

“But that was four years ago…” Stormfurmused, but it was time to face reality. He was surely out of shape. “After all this Olympic stuff, I’ll getfit,” he promised himself,though the chances of him living up to that commitment were pretty slim.

“Let’s goalready; the day will be over before we know it!” Flowerpetal urged again.“We’re supposed to meet the rest of the clan at the Olympic Stadium around 6,so we can all find our seats…Which mean that we don’t have much time toexplore!”

“Alright,alright…I’ve caught my breath, let’s go,” Stormfur managed to gasp.

“Yay!”Flowerpetal howled, and began to drag Stormfur to the nearest shop.







~-~-~-~-~-~



And so theyexplored the Olympic Village, ate until their stomachs could not fit anotherbit of fish and chips in them, and came closer to humans than they ever didbefore. As Flowerpetal had predicted, the day went by quicker than the twowolves would have liked, and before the two had time to fully enjoy themselves,it was 6:00 and the sun was retiring for the day.

Stormfurand Flowerpetal met the wolf clan in front of the Olympic Stadium, withchatters of excitement about the ceremony yet to come.

“It’s goingto be awesome! This is the best trip ever! I love London! I want to stay here forevvveerrr!”Redfur rambled. Stormfur managed ignore the voice of his little brother, andstepped forward. “Let’s go, or the show will start before we get inside.”

Stormfurheaded in, pleased that he was the leading the clan for once. He weaved in andout of the legs of the humans, somehow knowing where to go.

“It’s like I’ve been here before…” Stormfurthought, getting the feeling of déjà vu. The inner ornamentation, the flooring,and even some of the security guards seemed eerily familiar to Stormfur.

“Have webeen here before, by any chance?” he whispered to Flowerpetal, who was busylooking around in awe.

“Of coursenot! But I wish we had been…” she droned on with a dreamy look in her eyes.

The clanpushed forwards through the crowd and towards the seats in the Olympic Stadium.Drawing sideways glances from humans around them, they made their way past theguards, who stood still and emotionless. Finally making their way inside, theyfound places to sit, and almost immediately, the lights dimmed.

“Looks likewe made it just in time!” Redfur announced happily, nearly bouncing out of hischair.

“Shush…”Cypressfur scolded. “If you keep making so much noise, you’ll miss all theperformances, and you don’t want that, do you?”

The littlewolf shook his head from side to side, wide-eyed. “No! No, no! No…” He trailedoff as the wolves and people around him began to look at him with disapproval.Nevertheless, when the first performers appeared, he could not help but squealwith delight. “Don’t you think this is awesome?”he shrieked in a quiet but enthusiastic whisper.

“Yes, nowcalm down and watch quietly,” Stormfur chided. “Can’t you act like a regularlittle wolf for this one moment?”

Redfur,slightly disappointed, followed his older brother’s instructions. Throughoutthe performances, the corners of his mouth still twitched in anxiety.

“Isn’t thisamazing?” Flowerpetal’s voice managed to cut through the noise of thesurround-sound speakers. “I mean the lights, the choreography, the colors…” Shewent on, describing every detail, and commenting on how appealing or wondrousit was.

“Yes, yes…”Stormfur agreed absentmindedly, but his mind was elsewhere. “Why is it that Ifeel like I’ve been here before? And why do my thoughts somehow keep driftingback to that stupid conversation with the Dreamwhisperer…?”

He snapped out of his thoughtsthough, as shouts of joy filled the stadium, the noise almost unbearable forhis sensitive ears.

“It’s theOlympic torch carrier!” Flowerpetal and others howled. “Ahhhh! He’s actuallykinda cute for a human, don’t you think?” Flowerpetal went on. “And look atthose muscles, don’t you wish you had some like that too?” she teased.

Stormfur ignored the taunts, andlistened closely. “There it is again…thathigh-pitched screech… If I didn’t know any better myself, I’d reckon that I’veheard that before,” he thought fiercely to himself. He snarled, trying tofigure out what was bothering him.

Flowerpetallooked sideways at Stormfur, and saw his aggravated snarl. “You…you know I wasjoking right? You might not be the strongest wolf in the pack, but you’re stillmy best friend…” she reassured him, giving him a small nudge.

“Thanks,”Stormfur said, “but that’s not what’s bothering me… Have you heard any weirdsounds during the ceremony?”

“Weirdsounds?” Flowerpetal cocked her head slightly in confusion. “I’ve heard somewhimpering noises and squeals of delight, but I think all those are coming fromRedfur,” she joked.

“No…that’snot it,” Stormfur replied, eyes narrowed in concentration. “There it is again!”he exclaimed. “Did you hear it?”

“No…”Flowerpetal denied. “Are you sure you’re not hearing Redfur, or imaginingthings again?”

“I’ve madethe mistake of assuming it’s Redfur too many times already…” Stormfur thought.“This…it’s bigger than that...”







~-~-~-~-~-~





Then, as if fate read Stormfur’s mind, a sickening screechfilled the stadium, shocking all the spectators. Time seemed to freeze for aninstant, and the stadium was dead silent.

Then, everyone’sstomach seemed to drop as one of the supporting beams shuddered, andsickeningly crumbled, falling in what seemed like slow motion.

“My dream! It’s…coming true, just in adifferent situation!” Stormfur was frozen in astonishment, gaping at thefalling support beam. For some reason, Oakblaze’s words echoed in his head, “Bewise in your actions… save someone else’s in the process…” Without furtherhesitation, Stormfur bounded out of his chair.

“Ahhh!”Flowerpetal screamed out. “Look, the beam is going to fall on the Olympic Torchcarri…er.” The she-wolf looked to her side frantically, but only found an emptychair. “Stormfur?!” she called out, the worry building increasingly in herchest. She then noticed everyone gasping and pointing to something in themiddle of the stadium.

Stormfur, racingtowards the torch-bearer with all his might, had only one thought in his mind. “Save him.” The human carrying theOlympic torch glanced up, and froze with terror. All he needed to do was tododge left or right, but his feet refused to obey his brain’s commands.Stormfur kept bounding towards the helpless man, but it seemed as if hewouldn’t make it in time.

“I can’t fail…I’ve got to do this.” Buthis thoughts slowly turned negative as his pace began to slow, his pawsrefusing to take another step.

“I’m notmeant to do this… I should’ve stayed in shape and dieted more often,” he cried to himself, his breathstarting to come out in short pants. He started to slow down and hung his headlow, ashamed at his failure. He looked up in desperation, and saw the fallingbeam as it seemed to drop at an even slower pace, taunting him to attempt therescue.

Then, asStormfur was about to collapse with exhaustion and shame, he heard a shout.

“RUNSTORMFUR! RUN LIKE YOU MEAN IT!”

The shoutwas from none from none other than Flowerpetal, who managed to produce a howlloud enough to reach him. Spurred on by her encouraging shouts, (or were theythreats?) the entire wolf clan was howling at him to run, and soon, the wholestadium was hollering, cheering him on.

Astounded,Stormfur stood still for a moment, amazed at the cheering crowd, and then tooka step forward. And another, and another, until he was running at speeds henever knew he could reach.

“If they believe in me, then I will believewith them.” Stormfur thought, his energy somehow renewed. He leaptforwards, 20 yards away from the victim, 15…10…5…

“I think I can, I think I can,” herepeated in his mind, remembering the childhood tale of ‘The Little Engine ThatCould.”

With onemore astounding hurdle, one worthy of an Olympic medal, he tackled thetorch-bearer, making sure to keep the blazing torch from injuring him. He wasjust in time as well, as the huge steel beam violently crashed to the floor,inches from them. Dust swirled up in the air, creating a veil around the twosurvivors. All of the spectators held their breath and hoped for the best, theworry in the stadium so thick you could almost cut it with a knife.

“I did it…” Stormfur breathed,relief showering over him. The dust around them was still thick, and he doubtedanyone in the stands could see what had happened. He padded over to the human,who was still lying face down in the grass. Stormfur panicked for a moment, butthen nudged the man, who was still breathing. He stirred, and slowly sat up.Wide-eyed at his rescuer, his expression of panic slowly transformed into asmile of gratitude.

“Yousaved my life buddy, thanks a million,” he told the wolf. Despite his muscularappearance, he managed to gently pat Stormfur on the head.

Asthe dust settled, the audience could see the two, alive and miraculouslyunharmed. Cheers of joy and congratulations echoed around the stadium andseemed to smack Stormfur straight in the snout. “So this is what it’s like to be an Olympian…” he thought jokinglyto himself.

“Hey, look,” the man said, pointingto the still-lit torch. “Come on,” he encouraged, and walked towards the ceremonialtorch, picking it up. He headed towards the giant replica of the small torch, thesymbol of the Olympics for centuries.

Stormfur saw the man head off tolight the ceremonial torch to kick off the Olympic Games. He headed in theopposite direction, towards his clan, glad that his actions had saved someone’s life. “That old buffoon of a wolf was right… I’llhave to see him more often,” Stormfur thought, lost in his own world. Hewas so deeply engrossed in his feelings that he didn’t notice the crowd yellingat him.

“Hey!”A voice called out, jarringStormfur from deep in his own world. The wolf turned slowly, and saw that theman he had recued was gesturing for him to join him at the ceremonial pedestal.

Stormfur slowly trotted his wayover to him, wondering what he could possibly want. He realized that thetorch-bearer had been joined by another man, dressed quite formally andadorning spectacles far too large for his beady eyes.

“Hey buddy,” the athlete said, bendingdown to Stormfur’s height. “I talked to the board director, and …here,” he heldout the torch, offering it to the astounded wolf.

Stormfur took a step forwards, andtook the torch in his mouth, feeling the heat that emitted from the flame. Hestood there for a moment, in pure amazement. “Me?! Lighting the Olympic Torch? What an honor… Is this the reward forsaving someone’s life? I should do this more often…” he joked to himself. Whathe didn’t notice was that the whole stadium was watching him stand there, deepin thought, and for the second time, another voice brought him back to reality.

“Hey, excuse me. Sir…Mister…wolf,”the man in the fancy suit called out. As Stormfur blinked back intorealization, the man hissed to the Torch-Bearer, “What is he doing? This is on national television! We can’t be humiliatedby some wolf who doesn’t know what he’s doing! Get him to light the torchalready!”

Hearing the man’s complaint,Stormfur shook his head, as if shaking all his thoughts away, and headedtowards the giant ceremonial torch. He noticed that his paws were shaking,calmed himself, and with a quick swipe, lit the Olympic torch, tumultuous applausefollowing his action.

With aslightly bashful look on his face, Stormfur slowly padded his way back to hisseat, where the entire wolf clan was popping with congratulations andexcitement.

“STORMFURTHAT WAS AMAZING!” Redfur called out, jumping on top of his brother, blabberingon about his heroic actions.

Shaking thelittle wolf off of him and after thanking everyone modestly for the praises,Stormfur returned to his seat, letting out a deep sigh.

“Not bad,not bad at all,” a voice called out, slightly sinister. Stormfur looked up, andsaw Ashfur standing in front of him, a strange look on his face. “Was it pride?” Stormfur thought tohimself with a smile as Ashfur padded away, looking slightly jealous.

Stormfur closed his eyes as thefestivities resumed in the stadium, the attention of the crowd once again capturedby the performers.

“Quite abit of running you did there,” another voice called out. If it was anyone else,Stormfur would have been annoyed, but without question, the voice belonged toFlowerpetal.

“Yes,” hereplied in a low voice. “Who’s the one out of shape now?”

“You stillare,” she teased, matching his low tone. “I could’ve saved the guy in half thetime.”

“Sure…”Stormfur agreed, his voice already laden with fatigue.

“Still…I’m reallyproud of you,” the she-wolf said. “I would’ve been frozen in terror, and youwere so brave…” she went on.

“Mhmmm…”Stormfur growled; his mind wandering. He could hear Flowerpetal as she kept on talking,but he couldn’t make out what she was saying. Then, the voices stopped, and therewas the unmistakable feeling of Flowerpetal leaning on him. He didn’t have theenergy to push her away and slowly drifted off into a deep sleep, the lastfeeling he had was Flowerpetal taking his paw in hers…









~-~-~-~-~-~

The Tale of Swift
There was a rumor that something great and proud lived in the forest just beyond the Great Lake. They were hunters; masters of stealth. They were the wolves.
"Ace, we have a new wolf who really wants to prove himself."
The alpha wolf turned his back. "Keep him where he is. I'd like to see what he can do with those blunt claws."
Outside the main cave, the rogue growled. The betas surrounded him, though they looked scared themselves. This wolf was unusually big, with long, curving claws. Deadly.
"So, what makes you think you can join the Shadow Hunters?" Ace said, his tone smooth.
The rogue growled. "I am known as Swift. I killed my pack so I could be here."
"I don't believe that. I want you to prove it."
Ace motioned for a beta to bring forth his prisoner, a rare female from another pack. She'd had her pups a few days ago and now she was useless.
"Kill her," he instructed.
Swift got into a low crouch, his eyes full of hunger for the she-wolf's blood. He didn't hesitate at all, pouncing at her and gliding his claws over her with ease. She was dead in one blow. The betas all shifted a bit. They'd better not be next.
"I like your style," Ace chuckled. "Very well, you can stay. You've proven yourself worthy of our elite Clan."
The betas immediately bounded away, finishing their duties. Swift wiped his claws on the ground, creating red stripes in the hard, gravel soil. It would be his mark.
***
"Hey! Hey newbie!"
Swift opened his eyes. He did not like getting up at dawn.
"What is it?" he growled, his claws unsheathed.
"Whoa there! Just saying, prey's almost gone. It's first come first serve you know? Here, saved you a magpie."
A generous bird was thrown at his front paws.
"You should be afraid of me," Swift told the other wolf.
"Well, I'm pretty skilled at fighting, too. Try me."
"You'll regret it, you miserable ingrate!"
Swift pounced, but the other wolf slid under him, using Swift's large size against him. He came out on top, sheathed claws at Swift's throat.
"Truce?" the wolf offered.
"Fine. I won't kill you," Swift muttered.
"Thanks. Well, I'm Acorn."
"That's the worst name I've ever heard for a wolf."
Acorn shrugged. "They told me my mother named me. I never knew her, though. She was killed like the one you killed yesterday."
"Huh. What about your litter mates?"
"I was the only male. They dumped my sisters by the stream."
Swift felt a pang of sympathy, like his cold heart was melting.
"Well, at least they didn't kill them."
"They probably died from hunger or something. Thy didn't learn how to hunt yet."
They walked in silence to the main cave. Acorn was a beta, after all. Ace stepped out of the dark cave.
"Ah, Acorn. We've got two she-kits who we need to get rid of. I see you brought Swift! Good. He can do it."
Swift lowered his gaze to look at his paws. It looked like he was bowing,
but he simply didn't want to make eye contact. When the chat was over, Acorn pulled him to the side.
"Hey, don't let them die, okay? Drop them near the barn. It's a little further off, but they've got a better chance of surviving because there's so many mice."
"Is that what you do?" Swift asked.
"Shh. No ones supposed to know or I'd be killed. Just go."
Swift snorted, walking out the thorny entrance and into the forest. He felt so powerful. The wolves were the biggest predators in the forest. He'd heard that the Shadow Hunters had eliminated all the other packs who had populated the area before. He held the two pups in his jaw, deciding their fate. He didn't want to go all the way to the barn. So, he simply left them at the stream. They leave them here so thy can catch the fish, right? So it should be fine, he thought. On his way back to camp, he stopped to kill a rabbit. When he walked through entrance, he noticed Ace talking to a large black wolf.
Acorn caught him staring. "That's Marrow. He's Ace's favourite. He'll probably be the new leader when Ace dies, because he's the only one Ace trusts."
Swift glared at Marrow. The next leader? That's what he was.
" How did he gain Ace's trust?" he asked, an envying ring in his voice.
"He was the model wolf. Brought back lots of kill, followed duties and reported any wolves who disobeyed the Great Laws."
Swift nodded slowly. He could definitely gain that position. He wouldn't even have to kill.
***
Over the next few moons, Swift hunted lots and didn't complain about his jobs. Ace didn't seem to notice, though. Swift was turning bitter again. How long would it take?
Then, on one strange day, he and Acorn were given the same task at the same time. There were three she-kits that needed to be disposed of. So, they left camp together.
They walked for only a little while, before Swift stopped at the stream.
"Why'd you stop?" Acorn asked. "Aren't we going to the barn?"
"The stream had lots of fish. They'll be fine," Swift replied, annoyed.
"What?!" Acorn's voice turned shrill. "Do you have dung in your head? They can't catch fish! The bank's too steep for them. Don't tell me you've been dumping them here the whole time?!"
"Well why not? I've got to be loyal to Ace and follow orders."
"Whatever. I'm going to the barn."
Swift snorted, bounding back to camp. If anyone ever ticked him off like that again, he would just kill them.
***
When he got back to camp, he was still angry at Acorn. He remembered the third way to gain Ace's trust. Acorn had disobeyed Ace. So, if he let him know that, he would...
Ace was gnawing on the bone of a deer when Swift walked in.
"Ah, Swift. Why have you come?"
"I need to report someone. They've disobeyed your orders countless times."
"Well, this is interesting. Who is it?"
"Acorn. He's been bringing she-kits all the way to the barn so they'll live."
Ace cursed under his breath. "No wonder Marrow found the scent of another pack! They must be the discarded kits!"
Swift nodded, looking proud.
"Thank you, Swift," Ace said. "I'll remember this."
Swift bowed, exiting the main cave just as Acorn walked into camp.
"Hey Swift!" Acorn exclaimed excitedly. "I think I just met my sister near the barn!"
"That's nice Acorn. Now, I have to go. I'm hunting."
Acorn looked amused. "Again? Well, I'm glad you're working hard."
"Yeah. See you."
Swift left camp. He could hear the other betas getting into the same position they were in when he had arrived. They were going to kill Acorn. Well, he wasn't going to be a part of it.
***
Acorn's body was not seen when Swift came back. Ace was talking to Marrow again. Was that for nothing? Was he still just a newbie? He snarled. He would wait for the right moment. Then he would eliminate his competition.
***
There was a full moon. The other wolves howled as part of their ritual. Swift snuck around, dragging Marrow out to the forest.
"Did you want to talk or something?" Marrow asked.
"Not at all," Swift growled, before he pounced on Marrow and clawed at his throat. Marrow choked.
"W-what?!"
"Sorry. Was I not clear?"
Swift lashed out again, and Marrow's limp body fell to the ground. He stared at it, before burying it deep in the gravel.
***
Ace looked confused for once, when Swift came back.
"Where have you been? Was Marrow with you?"
"Oh, just took a wash," Swift lied. He'd dipped himself in the Great Lake itself to get rid of the smell of blood.
"Well, Marrow should come back by dawn. He's hunted at night before."
"Yeah. So have I."
***
Of course, Marrow didn't come back. Ace took it that he'd run away to find a mate. Swift stuck by him, knowing that his dream position was now open.
And so, Swift really did replace Marrow. The other wolves glared at him for being the new recruit before, but those were cold eyes. Now, they were just jealous of him.
He was allowed to stay at the main cave, and he could give orders from Ace to the other wolves. He loved it, but he still wanted more.
Ace was a hard one to kill though. He'd had the most experience with fighting in the pack. So, Swift used a different method.
The next time he brought back a nice big piece of prey, he shoved death berries inside its fleshiest part. He gave it to Ace and left the cave.
***
When their leader was found dead in his den, the hunters decided the rabbit he'd eaten must've been diseased. Swift was appointed as the new alpha wolf.
He loved the feeling of giving orders. He loved how the other wolves bowed down to him. He was drunk with power now.
Meanwhile, the other wolves plotted his death. They didn't like being under his command. they tried everything that was discreet: putting sharp rocks or twigs in his nest, feeding him poison, even pushing him off the Great Rock when he was speaking. The wolves who had done these things were immediately killed when the clever Swift found out.
Soon, wolves started attempt escape. Many were killed before they got past the entrance.
After some time, there were only a few wolves left. These few decided to gang up on him and kill him. He seemed so invincible, but they believed their combined strength could beat him.
They were wrong. Even though he was cornered in the cave, he fought back viciously, killing every last wolf in the pack.
***
That night, something strange happened. Swift had a dream. Acorn padded up to him, his wispy grey fur glowing. His voice was cold.
"Are you satisfied yet? Have you had enough?"
"I am the Shadow Hunter of this forest," Swift replied proudly. "No one is bigger or stronger than me."
Acorn shook his head. "I thought my death was enough, Swift."
Swift snarled. "Well, you're dead so you can't do anything about it!"
Acorn met his gaze. "That's where you're wrong," he said sternly.
"Swift, as punishment, the stars will take away your power: your strength, your size, and your claws ."
Swift felt himself changing.
"What is this?!" he cried angrily. His body shrank. His arms and legs grew shorter and thinner, his claws growing shorter and his fur falling off in clumps.
When it all stopped, he was much smaller than he used to be. He must've lost half his weight!
"You will never be a wild again," Acorn said. "Other packs will continue to thrive, but you must work on your own."
***
When he woke up, he inspected himself. It really happened. He was the size of a tree stump, with whiskers and a long, skinny tail. He began to walk out of camp, stopping by the clearing in front of the entrance before he left. He saw his claw mark from his first day. Swift put his paw on it. He was nowhere near who he used to be.
And so, that is how cats came to be. They learned that they were not the strongest thing in the forest. They made their own groups and had their own rules. The wolves that once populated the area moved away. Cats would rule the forest for years to come.

A Cry for Vengeance

Prologue
Phantom lay mute and motionless in the snow, his gray nose between his forepaws, his eyes half-closed. Every nerve and fiber of his muscles, however, was as tense as steel-wire, as he gazed out his master. Quarter-strain dog, and three-quarters wolf, he had lived the first three years of his life in the wild. His throat and sides were scarred by battle, and his eyes were red with the blister of snow. Phantom was a large one, even among his kind, and as fearless as the men who drove him through the frozen world.
He had never known fear until now. He had never felt the desire to run, not even when he fought the Battle to the Death with a giant lynx. Phantom didn’t know what frightened him, but it was in the air, as his old wolf instincts told him.
His master coughed, his body shuddering, and he often clutched at his throat. Flecks of crimson often came to his lips when he coughed, yet Phantom’s master still gathered the firewood, until his breath came in shuddering gasps, and the man finally sat down hard on a frost-encrusted log.
The rest of the dogs that his master owned were grouped closer to the fire, secluding Phantom, as they shunned him since they could smell wolf on him, even though he had worked in the traces, pulling the sled as a sled-dog with them for many a-month.
He snarled, his lip curling back as he bared his white fangs menacingly when a dog wandered too close for his comfort. He did not mind the solitary seclusion he was thrown into—he was used to it, and shunned company of the dogs himself. He snarled when they got too close, even deigned to tear their shoulder to the bone if they aggravated him too much.
His master waved the dogs away from Phantom, in fear that the half-wild wolf dog would kill another one of his sled-dogs. He had already lost his strongest dog the last time they had stopped in Dawson to Phantom’s fury. Another cough racked his body and his master retreated into the tent, as the dogs settled down for the night.
Phantom could not sleep. As tired as he was from the day’s run, the sickness in the air polluted his mind, drove him to uneasy restlessness as he waited. He lay with, his head erect, and his body rigid, save for a low whine building in his throat. Out on the plain, a wailing note of a wolf howl rose above the trees, and at the sound, Phantom rose from out of his silence and his fear, and with his head turned straight up to the sky, he howled as the wild dogs of the North howl before the tepees of masters who are newly dead.
Pierre du Lac was dead.



Chapter1
Phantom leaped away from the circle of dying flame and vanished into the shadows long before the dogs leaped up. They howled, yapping and yelping as they scuffled among each other. He curled his lip in disgust and turned northward, heading into the thick spruce. He lifted his head again, and once more howled the death-cry. It was Phantom’s farewell to his old master.
After that cry, Phantom sat a long time on his haunches, sniffing the air, and watching his surroundings. Then, as dawn broke, he got up, growled at the new sense of freedom in the air, and trotted deeper into the forest. He spent a night close to the camp of his old master, hunting and getting used to the new wilderness, and when it was still dark, he picked up the pace and travelled northward, swinging away from the Mackenzie River.
He came to the edge of a swamp as the sun rose over the mountains. Phantom sniffed the air; he could smell companionship, somewhere, over between the ridges of two mountains. A low wolf howl soared over the trees, echoing, calling to him, as wild brother to wild brother. He circled twice, head pointed toward the ridges, and as before his throat trembled, and involuntarily, in his own voice raised an answering cry.
He came upon many trails in the snow that day, and sniffed the scents left by the hoofs of moose and caribou, and the fur-padded paws of a lynx. Food came easily, as he hunted the rabbits. The warm flesh and blood was better than the frozen fish he was usually given, and he hunted many rabbits that day.
Toward evening he came upon tracks in the snow that were very much like his own. They were quite fresh, and made by a multitude of paws. Phantom raised his head and howled, and traveled in the face of the wind, as a bull moose crashed through the timber ahead of him, putting some distance before him and that cry.
Far off in the plain there came a cry. It was the wolf-howl. His jaws snapped, fangs gleaming, and he growled deep in his throat. The pack was hunting a doe caribou south of the big frozen lake.
The night was almost as clear as day, and from the edge of the forest Phantom first saw the caribou run out beside the lake. The pack was about a dozen strong, and had already split into the fatal horseshoe formation, with the two leaders running beside the doe.
With a yelp, Phantom streaked out into the open. He was directly in the path of the fleeing caribou, and bore down upon her with lightning speed. A hundred yards away, the doe saw him and swerved to the left, but the wolf on that side met her with snapping jaws. Phantom was in with the second leader, and leaped at the caribou’s white throat. In a snarling mass the pack closed in from behind, and the doe collapsed, with Phantom half-under her body, his sunk deep in her jugular.
Not into the last twitch was gone from the doe’s body did he pull himself out from under the kill. Phantom had eaten a rabbit that day, so he was not hungry. So he sat back and waited, while the ravenous pack tore into the caribou. After a while, he came nearer, nosed in between two of them, and was nipped for his intrusion.
As Phantom jerked back, still hesitating to mix with his wild brothers, a big gray from leaped out of the group and lunged straight for his throat. Phantom only had enough time to throw his shoulder to the leap and for a moment, they rolled over and over in the snow. They were up on their paws before the excitement of the sudden battle had drawn the attention of the pack from their feast. Slowly, they circled about each other, fangs bared, their thick fur bristling. The fatal ring of wolves drew around the fighters.
This was not new to Phantom. It was sledge-dog way of fighting. More than once he had fought for his life within the circle, and a dozen times he had waited in rings like this for the final moment. Unless a man interrupted the fight with a club or a whip, it always ended with death. Only one fighter could come out alive, although sometimes both died. But there were no men here to disrupt the battle; only the fatal cordon of white-fanged demons ready to leap and tear to pieces the first of the fighters who was thrown upon his side or back.
He kept his eyes riveted on the big gray leader who had challenged him. Shoulder to shoulder, they continued to circle. It was silence. Soft-throated Southern mongrel dogs would have snarled and growled, but Phantom and the wolf were silent, their ears laid forward instead of back, their tails free and bushy.
Suddenly, the wolf struck and his fangs came together with the sharpness of steel striking steel. They missed by an inch, and at the same time, Phantom swerved to one side and like knives, his teeth gnashed on the wolf’s flank.
The circled again, their eyes growing redder. And Phantom leaped for the death-grip at the throat… and missed. It was only by an inch again, and as the he done before, the wolf laid open Phantom’s flank with a clip of his jaws.
Phantom crouched low, his head straight out and his throat close to the snow. He must shield his throat—and wait.
Twice the wolf circled him, and Phantom pivoted slowly, his eyes never leaving the gray leader. Again, the wolf leaped, and Phantom threw up his jaws, certain he could get hold of the fatal grip of his forelegs. His teeth clipped together on empty air. The wolf had gone over his back with nimbleness of the lynx.
Growling at the failure of the trick, Phantom charged the wolf in a single bound, struck for the throat-hold. It was another miss, and before he could recover, the wolf’s teeth were buried in the back of his neck.
Panic-stricken, Phantom twisted and his powerful jaws closed on the wolf’s foreleg. There was a crunching of bone and flesh, and the circle of wolves tensed. Only the thickness of hair and skin on Phantom’s neck had saved from the death-hold. The wolf’s fangs had sunk deep, but not enough to reach the vital spot.
Phantom twisted and tore himself free, forcing the wolf to relax his hold on his neck. As swift as lightning, he whirled on the broken-legged leader and with the full rush and weight of his shoulders, struck him fairly in the side. The big gray wolf lost his feet, rolled up on his back for an instant, and the pack rushed in, eager to rend the life from the leader whose power had ceased to exist.
Phantom had won.