Wolves of Chaos

This is an original story and plotline by me. There will be mentions of gore, death, and bl//d, so read at your own discretion.

PART 1

Prologue

A century earlier

A large, battle-scarred wolf stood on the edge of a cliff, calmly observing the slaughter beneath him. His solid black eyes matched his gleaming coat. A dark purple aura surrounded him. A troop of wolves with a struggling prisoner approached the warrior. His amused expression changed to a bloodthirsty grin as the group padded closer. “Well, well, well, look who it is. You may leave, men,” The wolf rumbled the command as an afterthought. The squad of wolves abruptly turned around and trotted back to join the fight once more, leaving their blue-eyed captive alone with their leader. Shaking his head, the dark wolf growled. “I thought I told you to surrender immediately. I daresay this looks like an odd way to do so.”

“I would never give in to the likes of you, Mindwarp.”

“Ah, but you don’t have a choice. I wanted you alive for personal reasons, Stormrider, but I will have to forgo my own desires for the good of the kingdom.” With that, Mindwarp ripped razor sharp claws across Stormrider’s throat, then kicked the body over the cliff. “For the good of my kingdom, that is,” He added softly.

Present

"What do you mean rejected?!" Shadowblaze snarled. "I'm as good as or better than that yellow-bellied coward! I defeated him in combat, strategy, and stealth! Why are you taking him?"

"He has better control over himself. He won't recklessly attack when angry, unlike you. And with some training he will far exceed you." The old wolf turned away. "Your battle skills are remarkable, but you are too unpredictable. We couldn't depend on you to carry out a mission correctly. You are unfit for the army."

The black furred, red eyed wolf felt like he was hit over the head with a boulder. All his life he had waited impatiently until he was of age to apply for the army, and now he was told that he was unfit. His blood boiled, and in a flurry of frustration slammed his tail into the wall. He then turned on his heel and stormed away. On his way out, he lit a trash basket on fire with a withering glance and had the satisfaction of seeing the panic on the desk clerk's face as she rushed to extinguish the seemingly spontaneous flames. He knew he had to keep his power secret, but he was angry enough in the moment to risk suspicion.

As he stepped into the blackened remains of the ancient forest, he reconsidered his reasons for desiring to enter the army. The Flaming War, which had raged for a hundred years, had been started by the devout followers of Calamity, a powerful wolf that was rumored to be composed of brilliant royal blue fire. He was a figure of legends, an awakened spirit of evil. Generations of powerful warriors had been killed resisting his power, and the recruiting stations were becoming desperate. However many requirements they dropped, though, the one rule that still stood was complete and unquestioning obedience to officers. Shadowblaze knew that he could never obey authority that was blatantly wrong, but his quick temper often led to him to react wrongly. Deep in thought, he trotted to a small cave at the edge of the forest. "Any luck?" Dawn asked, poking her muzzle into his thick fur in greeting.

"Nothing. They said I was too unpredictable." His eyes darkened as he curtly returned the gesture.

Dawn smiled encouragingly. "Well, don't let it get to you. You can find another job easily. You’re strong and a hard worker, and that will make you invaluable."

Shadowblaze growled, and a furious flame of fire exploded at the rock walls in response. He was born to fight, and she knew it. Dawn nuzzled him again, calming him down. “You know what? I think I have a surprise for you that might help.”

Shadowblaze’s ears flicked to attention. “Really? Like what?”

Dawn only smiled and loped towards the middle of the forest. Shadowblaze followed eagerly, his long, powerful strides smooth and swift. Soon, they came upon a large den with a slight blue glow emitting from it. A black wolf with blue glowing eyes stepped out. "Yes?" He rumbled.

"My son here would like to see what his future holds for him," Dawn responded.

Tarot smiled. "Oh, I've been studying him closely. A fascinating story to unfold before him. But you know my rules. Only Shadowblaze must step within to hear his future." With that, he swept into the den. When Shadowblaze followed, he saw the den was a mess. Cards scattered all over the floor, a dusty crystal ball sitting on a shelf, and other knick-knacks were carelessly tossed about. Tarot swept a few cards off a chair with a single graceful swish of his tail and gestured with a paw for Shadowblaze to sit. "Well, now. So you're finally here. Very good. Many prophecies there are, but only a few are true. I have been watching you, and there is only one that matches your strange...abilities. You are at a crossroads, my friend. The prophecy showed this would happen..." Shadowblaze was a little frightened and suspicious. "What prophecy?" Tarot smiled. "The Fireheart Prophecy. Discovered at the beginning of the Flaming War, carved into a wall of the Catacombs of Time, I believe." Shadowblaze started nervously. The Catacombs of Time were sacred. The legends said that they were sealed by the Firehearts, the mighty protectors of Lupia, to keep an ancient evil from escaping. To hear that the Catacombs had been entered was disconcerting to even consider. “Are you sure that opening the Catacombs was wise? What if it angers the Firehearts? Or whatever they sealed inside?” Tarot said nothing, only smiled. He pulled a scroll from off of a chair, carefully blew the dust from the ancient document, and handed it to Shadowblaze, who breathlessly read it to himself.

"Hearts of Fire; five alone

Can oust Mindwarp from his deadly throne.

Heart of Red burns in wrath;

Gold Heart treads a dangerous path;

Heart of Violet hides the fire

White of Heart owns a power that’s higher

Wild and free is the Heart of Blue;

Five Wolves on Fire, to die or do."

Shadowblaze felt a shiver of excitement flash down his back. “That sounds like the Firehearts all right. Does this mean that they can be reawakened?” He asked Tarot.

“Reawakened…or reborn.” The older wolf turned and walked deeper into the cave, gesturing for Shadowblaze to follow. When he did, the small dim cave opened into a large, gaping cavern of darkness. Tarot pulled a glostalk, a luminescent moss that grew abundantly in dark caves, from the wall with his sharp teeth and continued in its bluish white light. As they continued to walk, Shadowblaze soon saw the back of the enormous cavern. Suddenly, the wall opened. Tarot had flipped a hidden lever with his tail. In the alcove were five glass containers on pedestals of an unknown black metal. Strange glowing symbols decorated the ominous pedestals. In the glass containers hovered glowing orbs of energy. One was violet, one was white, one was gold, one was blue, and the last was red. Shadowblaze realized with a start that the blue one was completely drained of both glow and power, as it was completely dark. The red one was glowing the most. The others were all full of glowing power, though not as much as the red orb. “What- what are these?”

“These are the only things we found inside the Catacombs of Time. I have reason to believe that these orbs hold some sort of power.”

“Why do you think that? Hold on, how do you even have them?!”

Tarot smiled, teeth gleaming in the glow of the orbs. “Because I was the one that opened the Catacombs.”

Shadowblaze exited the den. Dawn, seeing him, rose from her resting position. The two walked back to their den in silence, Shadowblaze pondering the things he had seen and heard. When they arrived, a small, slender white and gold cub peeked out. "Hi, Mom! Hi Shadowblaze! Where were you? Something really cool happened today! You wouldn't believe it!" Mystic was practically hysterical with excitement. "What happened today?" Dawn asked, amused. Shadowblaze grinned. His little sister was such a drama queen when it came to her advanced fighting technique class. She probably beat a second-circle cub again, which, he admitted, was pretty good for a fourth circle beginner. She was as good as he was at her age. Suddenly his mind snapped back to the present. "...and he said that tomorrow I am to report to the army recruiter! I'm gonna join the army, and three years early to boot! I don't have to wait until I'm sixteen! Isn't that amazing, Shadowblaze?"

Shadowblaze’s world erupted into a combined tumult of rage, sadness, happiness for his sister, and disbelief. "Oh yes. Wonderful," he choked out. "Uh, I'm a little tired, and it's getting late. Goodnight." He stumbled to his bed, tucked in the far back of a narrow passageway. His little sister would join the army and leave him behind. And what would he do? He could be a hunter, but there was no excitement whatsoever in catching small game that would never fight back. He was born to fight, not chase helpless prey. Suddenly, he was aware of someone padding into his room. It was Mystic. "Shadowblaze? You okay? What's the matter?"

Shadowblaze tried to look and act nonchalant. "Oh, nothing. Just a long day." That was a grave understatement.

Mystic looked skeptical. "You didn't eat dinner. You didn’t even tell us how the day at the recruiters went! That's not normal. You're upset about something. What is it?"

Shadowblaze sighed. Her golden eyes seemed to see right through the lies he had constructed. "I was rejected from the army. Said I was too unpredictable and couldn't be depended on to follow orders." Mystic instantly looked sympathetic. She knew how much he wanted to join the army. She nuzzled him, and he felt a little better. Suddenly, she had an idea. "I know! What if I say I won't join the army without you? Then you could be with me!" Shadowblaze felt a tinge of excitement, but he didn’t want his hopes to be crushed for the second time, so he simply shrugged. "It might work, I guess." He glanced out of a small hole that served as a window. "It's dark, I'm going to go to sleep. Goodnight, Mystic."

"Goodnight." Mystic glided out of the room. Shadowblaze curled up and was soon asleep. He was chasing a rabbit through the forest. Soon, the panicked creature darted into a vast, open meadow.

"Shadowblaze."

Shadowblaze heard a deep, powerful voice that seemed to resonate from nowhere and everywhere at once. "Who are you?" he asked. There was no answer. Suddenly, the rabbit disappeared into thin air. At the same time, the bright meadow he had stopped in transformed into a creepy swamp. Gnarled tree roots curled out of the ground. A blue fog floated in front of him. As he watched in panic and fascination, it slowly transformed into a wolf made of solid blue fire. He was tall and muscular; very powerfully built. His seemingly emotionless black eyes had no pupils. It was a form right from the prophetic books: Calamity. Shadowblaze turned in panic and galloped back into the forest. He ran desperately. Calamity was gaining. Risking a glance behind him, the young wolf realized he had made a grave mistake. He faltered and stumbled over a gnarled root, momentarily slowing. That was all it took. With an enormous leap, Calamity pinned Shadowblaze to the ash-covered swamp floor. Shadowblaze was terrified. He could feel the heat radiating from the older wolf gazing down onto him. Then, Calamity moved off of him. "You didn't need to run, Shadowblaze. I am not going to hurt you. I simply wanted to see the awakener for myself."

Shadowblaze paused, collecting his thoughts. "What do you mean?"

“You are not an average wolf. You have an incredible battle sense and fire-related powers. Haven’t you ever felt...I don’t know, different?"

Shadowblaze realized that he had felt it. Calamity smiled. "I can tell by your expression that you have. All I can tell you is that you need to embrace it. Let it transform you into who you really are." Calamity glanced at the sky and backed away. "The dawn is approaching quickly. Remember what I told you. I will find you when you are ready. Goodbye, young warrior." And with that, Calamity disappeared into a swirl of mist.

Shadowblaze woke abruptly. Cold chills ran up and down his back. He thought about what Calamity had said. Then, Dawn padded in. "Morning. Mystic is heading to the army recruiter after breakfast and she asked if you could come." Shadowblaze didn't really feel like going, but he sighed and nodded. "Ok, I'll go." He stretched and reluctantly walked into the main room, where Mystic was waiting. He didn't want to face the recruiter after his rejection. Mystic's face lit up as he strolled in. He sighed. "Are you ready to go? Let's get this done and over with." Mystic was having one of her hyper-excited spells. She was practically bouncing off the walls. "YES!!! LET'S GO!!!" she howled. She ran out of the door. Shadowblaze followed, a little less enthusiastically. Mystic loped all the way to the army office. Shadowblaze easily matched her pace, but he could feel the growing dread and fury of seeing the recruiter. Too soon, they reached the recruiting grounds, the same place he had been rejected yesterday. Flames of fury were fueled by the memory.

Mystic darted to the recruiter's office. She burst through the door, panting with excitement. Shadowblaze followed, quite a bit less enthused. “Well Mystic. Glad to be in the army I see,” The older wolf grinned, but then saw Shadowblaze. “And what brings you here?” Before Shadowblaze could reply, Mystic jumped in. “I do want to join the army, sir, but on one condition. I wish only for you to give my brother a second chance. He’s been dreaming of this moment for years, and it hurts to see him so abruptly rejected. Please sir,” she implored, her golden eyes pleading. The recruiter silently eyed Mystic for a second, then turned to Shadowblaze. “Very well. But at the first sign of hostility or disrespect to authority he goes.” Mystic yelped with excitement, and even Shadowblaze grinned. The recruiter turned to Mystic. “Silence! You are now a part of the Dominion! You will not speak or act unless told to do so. Now follow me.” With that, he turned sharply on his hind paw and exited the small office, obviously expecting them to follow.

They were led to a camp deep within the charred forest. Turning to them, the old wolf explained, “My name is Sergeant Soulbreaker. Today, I will be your guide, but tomorrow I will be your drillmaster and elite trainer. Here,” he gestured with a paw, “is your barracks. This will be your home while you are in training with your squad. There will be five others with you. You will choose both a squad leader and a squad codename. Now, it's time to meet your warmates.” With that, he stepped into the dry but dark cave. Five young males were lounging in a circle, some sitting on their hind legs while others sprawled out on the floor. Pointing at a massive brown wolf with glowing light green eyes, he said “This is Earthshaker. He is a good, strong worker. I hope you can be like him, Shadowblaze, for he is calm and collected in all situations.” Next he pointed to a tall, commanding black wolf with piercing yellow eyes. “That’s Sparks. He is a born fighter, and channels his fury into pure power. He is the best warrior in this squad.” Next was an average height black wolf with violet eyes and a messy mop of fur on his head that flopped over one eye. “This is Truthless. Don’t mind him; he’s just here because it was his father’s last wish. We honor the last requests of good soldiers. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have half the spirit his father did when it comes to battle.” Truthless was sitting just outside the group of wolves, eyes down. Shadowblaze felt a pang of guilt at being a part of such harsh criticism. Two wolves were sprawled lazily side by side and looked identical with their small, slim builds, gray fur, and black eyes. “These are the twins, Nightshard and Demonslayer. They are talented in spying and undercover surveillance. Don’t bother trying to figure out who is who.” The twins were currently in a heated argument with the one called Sparks. A fight soon broke out between them, the twins expertly maneuvering around the larger, stronger wolf. Shadowblaze watched as Sparks suddenly pinned one of them to the ground and swept the second aside with his powerful tail. The brawl was over as quickly as it had begun.

“What do you think you're doing?”

The three wolves whirled around to see their sergeant, and quickly proceeded to apologize and assure him it wouldn’t happen again. Soulbreaker huffed and moved on. “Alright, your squad is full. Pick a leader, and then a codename.”

The seven wolves silently stared at each other, trying to determine who seemed best suited for the task.. After a long, almost hostile scrutiny, all eyes fell on Sparks. “We’ll take him,” said Earthshaker in a deep, rumbly voice. Nightshard and Demonslayer immediately objected. “Nah, Ol’ Yellow Eyes is too stuck up,” Nightshard said. “Yea, and he isn't any fun to pick on. How about Reddy over here? He looks like a good leader,” Demonslayer suggested, pointing a gray paw at Shadowblaze. Mystic quickly agreed with him. Truthless shrugged quietly. Earthshaker eyed Shadowblaze thoughtfully. Shadowblaze felt a rush of panic, and quickly responded, “I don’t think I’d make a great leader. You guys don’t know me, I don’t know you, and…”

“Come on guys, not much time left! Step up the pace!” Soulbreaker barked. Sparks moved into the center of the half-circle they sat in. His piercing gaze swept across each of them, hesitating slightly at Shadowblaze and Mystic. “Seeing as all of you are the leftover curs, I feel the privilege of squad leader should go to the best fighter. All I see is an overgrown oaf, a pair of yapping pups, a whimpering coward, a scrawny female, and a hostile stranger. Soulbreaker, I nominate myself as squad leader.”

Earthshaker obviously didn’t like being called an overgrown oaf, but he said nothing, as did Mystic and Truthless. A chorus of angry complaints arose from the twins, and Shadowblaze growled quietly. Soulbreaker ignored the retaliation. “Alright Sparks, you’re the boss now. But they’re your responsibility, so whip them into shape as fast as possible. Now, pick a squad name. Hurry up, we don’t have all night!”

Sparks immediately took charge. “I think we should go with Blood Howlers. It sounds menacing, which is what we are going for. Any other suggestions?” Silence met his comment. Turning to the sergeant, Sparks said with confidence, “We are the Blood Howlers.” Nightshard, always argumentative, rolled his eyes. “Silence does not mean agreement, Yellow Boy. And Blood Howlers? Come on, Mr. Dramatic, we’re not play writers.” Sparks growled and fell into an aggressive stance. Soulbreaker stopped him from acting further, snarling a warning. “Back to your barracks, soldiers! Meet on the field at dawn!”

Shadowblaze very much liked the heated atmosphere and fast pace of the squad. He couldn’t wait to see what the next day, which was the first day of training, would bring.

Early the next morning, Sergeant Soulbreaker stormed into the cave, pulling the covers off of Earthshaker, who blinked in surprise, and off of Mystic, who yelped in protest. “Up and at ‘em, you lazy cubs! Get going! It’s late!” He deliberately stomped on Sparks’ tail as he left as abruptly as he came, earning a growl of pain. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, Shadowblaze forced himself from his warm pile of blankets before any mishap could occur. Sparks, nursing his tail sullenly, barked, “Ok, front and center, double-time! Last one gets bitten.” The other six wolves quickly formed a line. Shadowblaze was quite pleased that he was the second wolf to make it. Unfortunately, Mystic had tripped in her haste, was last, and was promptly bitten. Satisfied that the young wolves were ready, Sparks ordered them to exit the cave in an orderly fashion. Sleepily, they straggled out of the cave, eventually reaching the training grounds where several other squads and Sergeant Soulbreaker were waiting. “Well well well, I’m so happy you chose to grace us with your presence. Perhaps the Blood Howlers could show us how to do the drill I just demonstrated.”

Heads hanging, the Blood Howlers mumbled an apology to him. Sparks growled a lame explanation which was quickly silenced with a withering glare from the sarge. Sergeant Soulbreaker explained the drill, which was a speed and agility test. The huge obstacle course was brutal to those who weren't quite up to par. For example, missing a jump could mean falling in a pit of stinking mud and trash. As a result of their tardiness, the Blood Howlers were forced to run the course five extra times and miss breakfast. Nightshard and Demonslayer aced the course, finishing before anybody else. Sparks and Shadowblaze finished next, Shadowblaze just barely beating Sparks, who turned to him in annoyance. “Watch it, playboy. I was told to keep my eye on you. And I think it's about time you remembered that I’m the leader.

“All I did was finish before you.”

Sparks said nothing more, but looked up as Mystic came barreling in as fast as she could. Right on her tail was Earthshaker. His massive bulk deceived one into thinking he wasn’t fast, but he would have done better had he not been subject to foul play by Sparks, who had shoved him off of a precarious perch on a thin, rotting rope. Truthless came in dead last, dripping putrid mud and looking absolutely miserable. As he passed by them, Sparks bit his tail. “Speed it up next time, wimp.” Shadowblaze started forward to intervene, but Mystic placed a paw on his. “Don’t, Shadowblaze. You don’t want to be kicked out on the second day, do you?”

Shadowblaze sighed, but listened to his sister. Heading to breakfast, he realized that the other squads had almost completely finished the food, leaving virtually nothing for the stragglers. Adding this to Sparks’s actions almost heated his temper to a boiling point. He snatched the last hunk of meat and settled at a table, pinning it between his front paws and gnawing on it hungrily. Suddenly feeling like he was being watched, he turned around only to see Sparks looming over him. “Now now, that was mine. Stealing food from the officers is likely to get you discharged, bud.” With that accusation, he reached over Shadowblaze and grabbed the meat for himself. Fairly smoking with fury, Shadowblaze rose to meet him, locking Sparks in his hostile glare. They faced off for a while until Soulbreaker noticed them. “Alright alright, back off, Shadowblaze! No hostility to authority, remember?” he barked, shoving them away from each other. Reluctantly, Shadowblaze sat back on his haunches, and Sparks smugly stalked off. “Told ya,” he smiled maliciously. Mystic darted over to her big brother. “Shadowblaze! Please don’t do anything stupid,” she pleaded, her large golden eyes meeting his red, still angry ones. He looked away and sighed again. This was going to be harder than he thought.

After breakfast, Sergeant Soulbreaker tested their fighting ability by fighting them one on one for a short period of time. Failure to meet his requirements meant the obstacle course again and extra fight training. When he reached the Blood Howlers, he fought Earthshaker first. Shadowblaze watched with interest as the massive, muscular wolf moved with the same unbelievable swiftness that he showed in the agility test. Soulbreaker nodded approval and moved on to the next wolf, Mystic. With pride, Shadowblaze saw his sister pull a complicated maneuver that scored a hit on the sarge, which was hard to do. Demonslayer and Nightshard fought exactly the same way, carefully circling their opponent and darting in when they found a weak point.. Shadowblaze felt pity as Truthless was easily mauled by Sergeant Soulbreaker. Shaking his head in disappointment, he motioned for Shadowblaze to step into the sandy arena. The observers faded as the sarge became his only focus. Soulbreaker charged immediately; Shadowblaze sidestepped easily and tackled the now off-balance soldier. The sergeant, being stronger than Shadowblaze, threw him off and regained his feet. Circling each other for a minute, Shadowblaze could feel the fire building, the thrill of the fight resonating in his heart. He fought with passion, with cunning, with aggression. When the sergeant signaled the test was over, Shadowblaze realized the other squads as well as his own were gaping with disbelief. Mystic had a grin so broad it stretched across her whole face. Sparks tried to hide his shock, but it still showed. Soulbreaker nodded curtly with approval and moved on to Sparks. He fought well, but not half as good as Shadowblaze. When the sarge moved on to the next squad, everyone was suddenly much more friendly and sociable. They all wanted to know him. At dinner, his squad was the most popular, especially him. Sparks only glared at him. Back in their cave, the Blood Howlers fell asleep in their beds almost immediately.

“Get up! Get up! We’re being attacked! Everybody up and out! Defend the camp!” Soulbreaker roared, erupting into the cave. Shadowblaze awoke with a start. Attacked? By whom? Yawning, he stumbled out of the cave with the rest of the squad close behind. When he reached the mouth of the cave, he realized that this was no drill. Some trees in the clearing were burning with blue flame. That was unusual. He stared at the strange flames, trying to find out why it seemed so familiar…

“Shadowblaze! What in the world are you doing?! We need to move!” Sparks bounded over to Shadowblaze, snapping at his tail in admonition. “Get going!”

Shadowblaze started, then charged headlong into the first enemy wolf. Even without training he easily overpowered the inexperienced youngster. The Blood Howlers were at the front line of the fight. The other squads were confused, terrified, and inexperienced. Shadowblaze’s squad was the boldest and the most aggressive, fighting furiously. However, the Blood Howlers were soon outnumbered and started to pull back as well. Shadowblaze, fighting savagely and completely overtaken by his battle spirit, retreated much later and a bit more slowly than the others. He justified it in his mind as giving his squad time to reach safety.

He soon regretted his decision.

A huge warrior lunged at him out of nowhere, pinning Shadowblaze to the ground. With a growl and a twist, Shadowblaze jerked out of the crushing hold. He quickly regained his balance. He swiftly jumped in, thinking this warrior was like the rest; new, uncertain, and easily routed or slaughtered. He was very wrong.

With almost contemptuous ease, the gigantic wolf raked his claws across Shadowblaze’s face. Shadowblaze yelped, then darted in low, going for the stomach. The unmovable soldier flipped him on his back, then raked both sets of front claws down his stomach. Blood spurted and pain surged through Shadowblaze like a raging forest fire. His vision blurred. The last thing he saw was Mystic, charging into the monster with a rage and lethal protectiveness he had never seen in her. Truthless, of all wolves, was right behind her. A brilliant flash of violet energy exploded out of nowhere, and then everything went black.

Epilogue

A century earlier

A lone wolf silently slipped into a cave near the field where the slaughter had occurred. A few had survived, thanks to the cleverly hidden entrance, so the soldiers felt they were safe for the time being. “So Lord Stormrider is dead, huh?” one soldier inquired of the newcomer.

“I found his body at the bottom of that small cliff. Yeah, he’s dead.”

“Are there any family members that could be possible heirs?” piped up another wolf.

A fourth soldier shrugged. “Not that we know of. Besides, Mindwarp will probably declare himself the ruler, and no one will object. He has pumped so many rumors into Lupia, he will most likely be welcomed warmly. Until he gains all the power he wants.”

An older wolf sat in the back of the cave, not joining in the conversation, but listening thoughtfully. Finally he spoke up. “There was one heir, I believe, that Old Stormrider hid away. I think his name wa-”

At that moment, hordes of Mindwarp’s cronies flooded the cave, killing all of the refugees. Mindwarp himself strode into the mix after the chaos had somewhat settled. “Well done! Now, what was the name of this heir?” he asked the scout he had posted near the cave entrance several days earlier. The scout shifted from paw to paw uncomfortably in response. Mindwarp stepped closer, his appearance of casual bloodthirst only slightly darkening. His voice lowered in volume but not in intensity, setting the young scout even more on edge. “Tell me the name of the heir. Now.”

“I...I don’t know, my lord. I guess I must have signaled too early, I’m so sorry, my lord, I won’t do it again, just give me a second chance and I will please you, my lord,” he babbled nervously, watching the fury in his master’s eyes grow. Without another word, Mindwarp slashed his claws across the scout’s throat, killing him instantly. He slowly turned around as the body sank to the floor of the cave. “Come on men. We have an heir to find.”

\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

PART 2

Prologue

A tall, muscular wolf made of solid blue flame inspected the prone figures his best warrior had brought him. One was white and gold, and one was black and violet. The one he was interested in was jet black and red.

“Please tell me you didn’t hurt them too badly.”

His shaggy companion shifted from paw to paw uncomfortably. “Well, not the golden-eyed one. A solid hit to the head took her down. And the violet-eyed one was pretty easy too. But the red one…”

“Well? What about him?”

“He...proved to be a formidable warrior. I couldn’t take him down easily...so I, uh, had to use more...violent methods. I’m sorry, Calamity, but there was no other way.”

Calamity groaned inwardly. It was nice that the gold and violet-eyed ones were here too, but the black wolf was the one he truly wanted to see. How unfortunate that he was so savagely stubborn. If he was honest with himself, however, he knew that skill should come in handy someday. With that last thought, the two soldiers waited for the three young wolves to awaken.

Shadowblaze woke up with a jolt. The first thing he saw was his sister’s worried face. The second thing he saw was his earlier opponent casually sitting behind her. With a growl of surprise and pain, he lurched to his feet, ready to attack again. Sharp knives of pain stabbed into his stomach and he sank back to the ground with a moan. A third wolf appeared in his still slightly blurred vision. It took a minute for the flaming blue wolf to register in his memory.

“Calamity?” He asked, confusion and suspiciousness flickering across his face.

Mystic’s face poked into the forefront of his vision again. “Are you okay? Wait, you know him? When? Where? How? Huh?! BY THE THREE MOONS OF LUPIA, WHAT'S GOING ON?!” She was practically hysterical.

“It’s a long story.” Shadowblaze felt too tired to tell her all of the details. He searched for something to distract his sister with. Seeing Truthless stir next to him as his vision slowly improved, he suddenly had a question. “Wait, why did you come with Mystic, Truthless?” The small wolf shrugged sheepishly. “Well, uh, the others wouldn’t help. Your sister was too young to rush off  by herself, and no one else would have come, so , uh…” he awkwardly ducked his head. Mystic took off with the story. “He’s not actually bad at fighting! You should have seen-” A surprisingly sharp glance from the smaller wolf cut her off mid sentence. She recovered a second later. “...the way he attacked the big guy from behind! It was fantastic!” Truthless sighed.

“If it was so wonderful and all, why are we here then?” Shadowblaze asked dryly. Mystic and Truthless looked at each other, then shrugged wordlessly. Sensing the awkwardness of the situation, Calamity spoke up. “Well, Shadowblaze, how are you feeling? Rock gave you quite the jab, I hear.”

“Eh, I’m ok. I think,” he added hastily, his sister’s glare cutting through the flimsy lie.

“Uh huh. Like you TOTALLY don’t need those gashes bandaged cuz they TOTALLY won’t get infected and you TOTALLY didn’t pass out or anything like that…”

“I said I’m fine. I know myself better than you know me.”

“Yea, but you just ignore-”

“Ok, ok already,” Calamity interrupted. “No need to bicker about it. Rock, take Shadowblaze here to see Opal. And make sure he actually gets there,” Calamity added, catching a gleam of rebellion in Shadowblaze’s eyes. “Even if it means you have to carry him.”

“Yes, yes, yes, carry him PLEASE I need to see this,” Mystic squealed. Even Truthless grinned. Rock chuckled, but only stepped towards the exit, beckoning for Shadowblaze to follow. Shadowblaze realized they must be in a cave, as the walls were made of rock and the only light source was glostalks, a type of glowing moss. It was growing freely across the ceiling. Following Rock, he saw that the cave was bigger than he thought. Passageways were heading in every direction. Rock obviously knew where he was going, and after a short walk they padded into another well-lit cave.

An older female with white fur and light blue eyes grinned at them. “Ok, Rock, what innocent little cub did you maul this time?” she inquired, her eyes amused. Rock sheepishly pointed at Shadowblaze. She padded over to him and inspected his wounds. “Ouch, that has to hurt. Alright, I’ll be right back. Rock, you come with me. I wouldn’t want you antagonizing him while I was in the back.” With that the two wolves left the room, leaving Shadowblaze by himself. He soon began to feel drowsy, so he closed his eyes for a second. When he next opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a light blue mist quickly vanishing, and Opal and Rock watching him. He yelped and sat up in a hurry. “Why do you have to stare at me like that?!” He muttered crossly. Opal chuckled. “I don’t know, maybe I was just fixing up your face.” Shadowblaze instantly felt bad. “Sorry. I s’pose I should say thanks before getting all worked up like that.”

“No need to apologize. I can understand that your soldier’s training would kick in. Anyways, I daresay you’re much better, and I think Calamity wants to see you.”

“Oh, alright. Guess we head back now?” Shadowblaze turned the question toward Rock, who was still looming over Opal. He nodded, and disappeared from the doorway. Shadowblaze managed to thank and apologize to Opal one more time before loping after Rock’s vanishing tail. He didn’t even question that he was moving without any pain at all. Moving at his easy, but powerful lope, he quickly caught up with Rock, who was merely trotting. In no time at all, they had entered a spacious cavern. Calamity, Mystic, and Truthless were all relaxing by a central fire. Calamity, seeing Shadowblaze, excused himself and, shaking himself as he stood, took Shadowblaze down yet another maze of corridors, ending at a well-hidden exit. Blinking in the bright noonday sun, Shadowblaze turned to Calamity in confusion. “What’s going on? Where are you taking me?”

“I’m taking you to where it all began.” Beckoning for Shadowblaze to follow, he loped into the forest.

After about an hour or two of a strong pace, Shadowblaze was feeling quite out of breath, but he kept going. Calamity didn’t even seem winded, and Shadowblaze wearily wished he had that sort of stamina. Suddenly, the landscape changed, the forest ending abruptly at a wide field. Shadowblaze had never left the forest, so he was awestruck by the sight. No twisted, burnt trees, ash covered ground, or smoke filled air. The meadow seemed virtually untouched at a distance.

Then they moved in closer, and Shadowblaze jerked back in horror. The ground was colored red with blood, and decaying bones strewn the ground. Calamity led him to a small cliff around the middle of the field and stopped there. “Wh-what happened here?” Shadowblaze stammered, shaken by the gruesome sight.

“This is where the war started. Here you can see my army, who fought well. Unfortunately, the enemy had a power far beyond anything we had ever seen, and it demolished us with almost contemptuous ease.”

Shadowblaze was dumbfounded. Thousands of warriors had died here.

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Part 2 is currently unfinished, and the entire story is a massive WIP. Stay tuned for future updates!