Animal Heart

Chapter 1



His hunger satiated, he sank down on the soft, moss covered ground he liked to retreat to, far up the hillside. He stretched out his long dark body fully and felt the creak of his bones as the strong muscles pulled hard on them. Panting lightly after his exertions, he rested under the tree in the dark, listening to the subtle sounds of the night forest. An owl hooted noisily above his head and flapped its wings. He growled at it for disturbing his peaceful tranquillity and it took off hastily in flight. He yawned and his jaw clicked pleasurably.

This was his favourite time of the day. The middle of the night. The air was fresh and cool around him, and he sucked it deep inside his aching lungs. Steam swirled up from his nostrils. He licked his paw, reliving the taste of his kill and breathing in its musky scent. Wild pig. That, and deer, and wild cats made his whole body heave with pure excitement when he was hot on their tail. The chase was worth it. They were fast but he was faster. Deadly fast and powerful.

Nothing could escape him. He was king of this domain. He was Aden…

He always tracked and hunted alone. Hunting with other members of the pack was not his style.

The whispering tread of approaching paws and familiar scents flowed though the air around him. He looked up as the large wolf-like bodies of Lucas and Shane appeared through the darkness in front of him, their brightly glowing orange eyes downcast, and their heads slightly bowed in their usual respectful greeting. He snarled amicably at them in return, and they sank to the ground joining him. They all lazed silently and peacefully for some minutes.

Shane nodded off and began to snore. The whistling sound annoyed Aden and he snapped at his ear to shut him up. His eyes opened quickly and he sat up with a jerk and a shake of his pale grey fur.

Suddenly Aden's ears pricked up. He could hear the deepest angry growling noise and he recognised it instantly. Grizzly. But more worrying than that was the other muffled and weak cry of one of his pack. Verity was down and hurt. He shot up and made off in the direction of her desperate plea for help. He flew along at top speed, uncaring of the bracken and low slung tree branches which were whipping at his face and body. Every second counted and he knew that. He could hear the others following, close on his tail.

They sprung into a small clearing where the grizzly was standing at full height, towering menacingly above the prone female wolf at its feet. She was lying deathly still and Aden was full of intense rage that he may already be too late. A surge of adrenaline boosted his strength further and he launched himself at the beast in a crazed attack and bit its massive neck as hard as he could. His long fangs sank deeply into its flesh and its blood rapidly filled his mouth. He ripped at it mercilessly as his two companions struck at its lower parts, biting and tearing at its fur ferociously. The powerful bear shook them all off in terrified panic and pain filled confusion. Aden was momentarily winded as he hit the ground on his side, but recovered quickly and struck again, clawing like a wild demon at the bear's face and ears as his fangs sank once more into its neck. The grizzly let out a massive roar of pain and turned, flinging his large wolfman attacker far across the clearing, and bounded off with a low scream into the darkness of the trees beyond.

Aden howled a long pitched cry of triumph, and then again, appealing for his pack to come forth. The other seven all emerged soon afterwards into the clearing. Lucas snarled the wolf sound for 'grizzly' at them, as Aden lay next to Verity, and nudged her in deep concern. He listened quietly. He could hear her heartbeat. She was alive. A trickle of blood was running down her little white nose and he licked it clean and nudged her again more forcibly. She was a very small wolf, as she was a small human. An eye opened and she snuffled shakily, and then took a long deep breath. Aden pushed her with his paw, encouraging her to stand. She stood up slowly, with trembling legs, took a few steps, and shook her dark fur, trying to pull herself together. After another few deep breaths and a full wobbly circuit around the clearing, he was satisfied she was unharmed, although still shocked. She lowered her head at him gratefully for coming to her rescue and padded off to be with the other females who huddled around her protectively, licking her face, and nuzzling her with their noses.

It was growing cool and the wind was whipping up. He took a long sniff of the air. A rain storm was brewing. They'd better get going. He growled out his intention to leave, closely followed by the pack as they began the trek back home. They moved along the barely discernible path, swishing through the undergrowth and trees, as they silently snaked their way back to the small dirt road a few miles away.

Mia sidled up to him at the head of the pack, subtly, and he nudged her away with his head, adding a pointed low pitched grumbling snarl to take her place near the rear with the other females. Only an alpha mate was entitled to walk at the head of the pack, at his side, and Mia was no such thing. She whimpered and dropped back behind, hurt, and full of humiliation at being so publicly rejected.