(THE NAMES IN THIS STORY ARE ITALIAN, EVEN IF THEY ARE WORDS IN ENGLISH.)
Chapter One - Crazy Birds
A crow's call echoed through the somber hills, muffled by the thick fog. Aside from that, everything was perfectly silent, undisturbed in the early morning light. A doe slept soundly in a cozy clearing. But in the surrounding bushes lurked something sinister. A gleaming pair of amber eyes circled the deer, silent as everything else.
SNAP! Luce cursed himself immediately upon stepping on a twig. The doe lifted its head, ears perked, scanning for any movement. Just to be safe, it stood and bounded away. Luce's sister, who had been watching, cackled with laughter. "Oh, shut up, Nebbia! I bet you couldn't do better. You're a runt." Luce snapped bitterly, slapping his smaller sister with a paw. Her laughter instantly faded, She growled at her brother. "Mo-m!" she howled, bounding away.
Luce rolled his eyes. She had the maturity of a two month old. He and his sister were of the same litter, but she had been born a runt. Even so, she was the best hunter of her squad. The yearling kept muttering to himself unhappily as he treaded through the dense wood.
A murder of crows launched into the air squawking.
"Crazy birds." Luce murmured.
Chapter Two - Missing
Luce stomped into the camp, head down low and ears flat. His pack was in a frenzy. In the midst of the commotion, he could still spot his mother and headed for her. "Mom, what's going on?" he inquired, blinking. His mother turned to him, her crystalline green eyes glazed. "Where is your sister?" she demanded. "I... I thought she came back here to get you." he whimpered, crouching down. She gasped and nearly started hyperventilating. "Mom, Mom! Calm down! Why is it so awful that she's not here yet?" She paused and looked straight at him. "They saw two leggeds in the wood today." she whispered softly.
The wolf gasped and bounded out of camp. Search parties of two to three wolves surrounded the area around the camp, but he knew they wouldn't find her here. He bolted to the clearing where they had last been together and began to follow her scent. Suddenly, very suddenly, it stopped. But it was replaced by something else. Something unfamiliar.
Thwap.
Luce fell to the ground, out cold.
TO BE CONTINUED
