~ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ~

A tremendous rumble of excitement grew quietly upon my fortress home of Shaw'Con.

It was like a living rhythm that nobody could hear, only sensed — from the r spaces between their toe-claws to the ripples beneath their inky tails. It lingered in the air like smoke, its taste warm and fresh against the wolfish tongue. And like the drum roll of a heartbeat, it pulsed inside with the purest energy.

Although every single day in Asmara is mostly repetitive - - the early rising sun from the east, the sinking of its glory in the west, the travels of the Moon in the blackened skies - - a few moments during the year were treated as unique. It wasn't uncommon for creatures to frown upon our sudden joys and happiness before nightfall. In a word, some would instead consider our prowess meaningless.

Nevertheless, there was a reason we pressured this newfound day.

Allow me to explain.

When the first blood moon of the coming spring rises into the heavens, the Day of the Moonstar begins. Set in the evening, it was a celebration meant to mark the sacrifice of Lunar, the goddess of the Moon whose mere actions birthed an entire race of wolves.

In other words, to you petty humans, it's our religious— and quite festive — version of New Year's Day.

The youth would gather with their mentors playing aorund in the meadows below the fortress's shadow and practicing their hearts on small birds and rodents. Elders would regroup in small bands, enjoying the good old times of play and laughter, and share small stories about their lives with the young. Finally, the evening before the foremost ceremony, hunters would collect their kills the day, laying them across the bright stone path for the alpha and luna to examine as a contest. The winner chosen by a blessing from my father would be allowed the first bite of the evening, which boasted massive competition.

I felt as if I could win one of those competitions. But then again, I wasn't into those sorts of activities. Nor did I have the time.

As the princess of Shaw'Con, the same responsibilities applied as any ordinary day: join mother and father as they travel about or (when accessible) traverse through the fortress's corridors and tunnels to ensure that all are safe and sound.

☾

Then again, perhaps my father wanted us to bond under this ti d and enjoyed one another's company.

We were silent for most of the stroll wandering side by side through the glorious fortress. Though it wasn't always, this was. At times little wolves would race aorund our furry legs yelping and cackling as they sought to tackle one another. Sometimes we'd pass by elders offering us a piece of warm flesh from their meals to sustain our travels. Black wolves of young and old would dip their heads to us in respect calling out our names as if we were heroes under the moonlight. It was fulfilling to say at least that he respected and honored and loved more than you could imagine.

That was home to me. To us. We both knew that.

But as we traveled on to the empty pockets of this shadowed fortress, the silence involved gripping our hearts into a tight squeeze. The comfortable felt uncomfortable, and our pacing with one another grew uneven and sloppy.

This uneasiness stirred deep into our gizzards as if we were straining to hold back from embracing one another. Eventually, after we rounded the fifth corner, Gray paused, stepped to the side, and flipped to his stomach with a relieved sigh. His armor rang out with a metallic clink vibrating the stilled air that engulfed this shroud of emptiness.

"Tired?" I asked him.

"Very..." he whispered back. Then, blinking back into moved to his side while he sat and began nuzzling his neck, feeling him murmur in reply; this was only an act of friendship. I stepped a little closer, brushing my snout against his throat with murmurs of my own, all you, til he squirmed away with laughter.

"Mrrw... Shadowfire!"

"What?"

"For Lunar's sake, what's gotten into you? Chuckled the male wolf licking my snout playfully. "Silly wolf, I'm still on duty! I was only resting!"

"I know, I know," I cooed apologetically, stepping away and slumping beside him, "but you looked so stressed! So I figured I'd help make you smile a bit."

"Smile? Hmph..." he snorted, looking over my body for a moment. "Do I have to?"

"I think it's quite favorable to show some excitement for today, wouldn't you agree? Even as a guard? You did say this was your favorite day..."

"Well..." Gray rolled his eyes and puffed out his chest "does a smiling wolf look that imposing to an enemy?"

"I think so!" I reasoned with a flicker of my fluffy tail, "I consider it a way to show an enemy how confident you truly are. Trust me; they will hesitate to attack when they see your lovely little fangs glistening in the heat of a fight."

Gray raised a brow "my lovely little fangs?"

I flicked my ears, trying to hide an impending smile. "I've seen you do it before whenever we spar. If I'm even allowed. Anyway, you smile, of course! So either you're excited to strike me down or simply trying to make me laugh."

"Or maybe it is because of that weird tongue flicker you make."

"I flick my tongue?" I frowned, pushing the pink muscle through my lips to stare at "is it often?"

"Too often than enough for a wolf!" He growled playfully, "Miss dragon!"

The conversation between us suddenly subsided, promoting the return of the only wave of silence. We stayed together due upon fur heads resting upon each other's soft shoulders and deep in thoughts no less. I felt his breath, the warmth of it all warming my fur and churning my heart. I embraced it even as he had for me. But it wasn't long before curiosity got the better of him.

☾

"I.. don't know. Let me have time."

Gray murmured back, raising her paw to flush against mine, then bowed his head. "I worry, Shadowfire."

"Worry?" I frowned "about what?"

"I..." he lowered his paw for a moment and turned his head away, "I have always wanted you for so long. I wanted to know what it is like... to have someone by my side through and through. To see my pups grow with our future without the world's weight on their shoulders. To see them run off..."

He smiled, taking a step away from me to pester his imagination. I watched him eying his swaying and tail, his rippling black fur and sparkling eyes as he dreamed. But his fun lasted so long before all that energy dissipated into sorrow. Into grief.

And fear.

"The one thing I dread the most is losing it all," he whispered shakily. "S-so many elders have told me stories... when wars would rage outside Shaw'Con and families would be lost. And they blame themselves... all because they weren't strong enough. That... scares me now more than ever. I don't want to lose anyone so soon, especially not you."

"You won't lose me, Gray, " I said quickly, sliding his trembling frame and nuzzling it. "I promise you you won't."

"H-how?" He stepped away quickly, looking me dead in the eye "how can you be so sure?"

My tail dropped. The worst part about this was having nothing heartfelt to say. Lying would assure him of something that may very well happen. Telling the truth would do no better. It scared me seeing him so scared. And as my mind fought over the words, I lowered my head to sigh and gave him my insight.

☾

Gray offered a brief smile "right."

"Now," I stood up again, "let us not be late for the ceremony. It begins soon, and my father will get our tails if we fall behind the line."

"Yes," he blinked back into focus, "I almost forgot-"

"And then," I tickled his cheek, watching my best friend lift his chin and murmur shyly, "after your guard duty and my princess responsibilities are over, we can enjoy ourselves for once. Down by the little place we both love. You and me. What do you say?"

Brushing my snout away with his fluffy tail, he locked eyes with me and cooed, "I cannot wait, Shadow."

☾

"Four millennia, three dynasties, and a lifetime of true peace," my father began softly into the dark open air, "so much time had passed, and so little has been made wrong. This sacred fortress has been used in ages of heroism and power and has fallen in times of war and blight. Yet we stand here today, all of us. Strong, noble creatures in contact with nature can touch the deepest secrets of the forest, a species that Lunar herself has honored under her rightful name! Still, many in Asmara have forgotten her sacrifices, legacy, and love. But today and forever, we strive to remember what she had done for us and what we have done for her for thousands of years. We're alive and well, Shaw'Con. You should be proud of yourselves. I... am proud."

My father felt silent, bobbing his skull to the glittering crowds beneath his feet. Desultory let his tail hang limp over his edge and have both ears — in a relaxed state that is — rip downward; the male wolf's head was held tall, and his voice became a booming crackle into the night. Even at old age, the wolf was keen on letting his voice rattle the very fortress and yet remain firm about it altogether.

Once the whispers settled and his echo faded to dust, the alpha took a breath and spoke:

"I know many of you fear what has happened these past years. So many rivers run dark—our forests. Smoke plumes rise in the distance. Even now, we are being threatened by an enemy we know nothing of. And darkness wanes in Asmara, Shaw'Con, bloodthirsty for wolf blood. Already we have lost five of our own in these conflicts... five young souls that didn't deserve death..."

Descendant...

I felt a noise hiss into my right ear like a whisper of a bug that had come from the dead to torture me. Twitching myself, I bobbed my head to ease away my tensions and refocused myself back on my father's riveting speech.

"... while we honor Lunar today and celebrate her life... we honor the fallen as well. And we mustn't let their lives age to the bends of our time-"

Descendant...

The raspy voice hissed again, echoing deep into my skull and killing any thought that once resided in me. It was a sound unlike any other - - dark and mischievous, and where it lingered from, no one knew. My eyes dilated once it spoke a third time.

I see you...

I seemed to be the only wolf suffering this unusual circumstance, which bothered me more than I expected. Writhing again, a slight chill rushes from the base of my chin to the tip of my tail, setting me on edge.

I smell your worthless breaths...

"Hey," Gray turned to me, notching a tremor in my eyes, "are you alright?"

I growled in reply, nodded my head to the male, and pressed a paw to the base of my temple. Then, closing my eyes, my mind refocused on my father's speech taking in his rumbles and murmurs with a flicker of my ear. My best friend, trinkets for my sake, looked out into the glimmering crowd below and then back at me.

"Fire, what is it?"

Your fear...

"Shadowfire?"

It is delicious...

"Rrr..."

Gray growled a little louder, nudging my shoulder, "talk to me."

"S-Something... speaks in my head..." I growled quietly to him beneath the alpha's broken whispers, "I-I cannot tell what it is, but these thoughts are not my thoughts!"

Gray tilted his head. "I don't understand. What thoughts?"

You shall fall tonight... the voice hissed on, forcing a growl out of me—a shadow wolf by our hand.

"Shadowfire?" Gray murmured, alerting the other guards by his worried voice and my father, who paused his speech in surprise. "Gray, what is it? What is wrong with my daughter?"

Your blood will paint the walls...

"Stop, stop..." I growled even louder, tightening my jaws in pain.

Once the deed is done, all of Shaw'Con will belong to our god.

To us...

I locked my eyes upon the curios crowd, curling my obsidian talons into the rocks below as an ominous silence engulfed the very room. The splitting head side of voices had passed, but my fear hadn't. And once I noticed the strangeness of the intense silence in the room, all eyes suddenly turned to me.

All I could do was stare. And tremble.

Something was in here.

Something alive.

Both eyes narrowed under the waning shadows, teeth flashing and snout raised. In both worry for the alpha and under my slight confusion, I stumbled down from the crooked ledge and laced forth toward the others. My tail lowered slightly, and my ears twitched upward in preparation for a duel. A deep rumbling snake escaped my furry throat, enough of a message to warn any ordinary wolf of my incoming presence and push them aside.

But had I been able to listen to my voice of reason, perhaps I could've known what was at stake. Maybe I could've waited, watched, and smelled the wretched odors that stood out over the others; perhaps I instigated the situation a bit too much by leaving my spot.

My curiosity and fear drew me out toward the unknown toward an answer which stood directly in front of me.

Instinct ordered me to look toward the crusted ceiling above the wolves. After noticing a pile of tiny pebbles falling from the sky, I swallowed and obeyed.

Only to find several shadowed bear- like Desmond smiling down at me. Their beady eyes locked o to my body, yellowed and empty like that of death. And when they spoke, their drool rippled beneath their jaws and glistened with wolf blood.

"Hello... shadow wolf..."

I didn't react in time for myself. The second they moved, the ceiling caved right above me, crumbling into oblivion. All I remember was pushing away a male wolf to my right, just far enough from harm's way. The weight soon slammed onto my furry body, sending any jewelry I bore flying off my body immediately.

I heard a scream—a cry into the night.

My bones struck the earth.

And I blacked out.

~ ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ~

Now that was an eventful chap

I hope you're going to like it :3

- Saph