The Legend of Shadowfang

Long ago, on the barren tundra of Alaska the haunting call of a lone wolf pierced the nightly silence. As the clouds shifted they revealed a ghostly shadow moving in the moonlight. The call was heard by Windcall, the Alpha* male of the Barren's Pack. The large wolf rose and trotted up a hill top look upon the surrounding tundra. He noted that the rest of his pack was fast asleep with no knowledge of the nightly call. Then out on the snowy plain he spotted a shape moving across the snow. AS he ran down to investigate, he realized that it was a wolf. He became cautious and wary, walking slowly and stiff-legged toward where he last saw it. Then a voice from behind, sweet and mysterious, stopped him.
"Hello, you're rather large for a wolf, aren't you?" Windcall wheeled around to find himself face to face with a dazzling silver- white female.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" he snarled.
"I could ask you the same question," replied the stranger calmly.
"I am Windcall, this is my territory and you are trespassing. That is something I do not take lightly." growled Windcall. "Even if the trespasser is as beautiful as you," he added in a more relaxed tone.
" So not all handsome males are fools, what a relief to find one with so eloquent a tongue. You may call me Silver. As to why I have come to your territory. I know that you have been searching for a mate, that is why I am here." Silver replied.
Windcall gallantly hid his surprise by telling her that he would be honored if she would be his mate. However on the inside his thoughts were quite different. Well, thought Windcall, I don't suppose I could find any as beautiful as she, but those yellow eyes are a bit unnerving, they're not normal for a wolf. But I like her anyhow, though I doubt that Silver is her real name.

Several months later, on midwinter's eve sometime near midnight, cries alerted Windcall that his puppies had arrived. The entire pack was anxiously gathered at the mouth of the den by the time Silver emerged. Most of the gathered wolves had begun to whisper excitedly by then for these were their Alpha's first puppies. Finally the beta**, Snowfur, asked,
"How many?"
"Three, two males and one female," replied the sleek white female in the den entrance.
The whispering started again though this time as much about Silver as the pups. How does she retain her figure? Asked the females in wonder for they remembered her heavy with pups only a day before.

" May I see them?" inquired Nightblack, a young female wolf.
"Yes," answered Silver, as she turned and disappeared down the tunnel. When Nightblack returned she ran to give Windcall the news.
"What are they like, Nightblack?" he asked when she reached him.
"They're beautiful, all three of them. There's a little white female that looks just like her mother, a steel-gray male, and a little black male who looks just like you." she answered.

Two weeks later when their eyes opened there a great fuss over them again.
"Such strange eyes," whispered the pack. "Poor little Nava's the only normal one, he inherited his father's ice blue eyes."

After Silver's strange disappearance after the pups had been weaned rumors began to circulate. Common conversation often went something like this, 'Well I think those weird eyes came from Silver.' ' No argument there but even yellow eyes can't compare to violet and emerald green!' The pups were always the topic of discussion especially Shadowfang, the black pup with emerald eyes, and his sister Sky. Nava was not usually thought of as weird since his eyes were more normal. But eventually the subject got old and talk turned to other matters.

As a young wolf, Shadowfang was often alone. None of the other young wolves would talk to him. Whenever he asked if he could play, they would look at his eyes and run away without a word. Since Silver's disappearance Nightblack had become the pups' caretaker since no other female wanted the job.
"Nightblack, why do the other pups run from me? Why do the elders look at me weird?" Shadowfang often asked.
But Nightblack could give no answer, so he began to amuse himself. He played games, went exploring, and completely ignored most other wolves. Until one day he was playing alone by the river when he heard someone coming down the trail behind him. He decided to hide and scare them and dashed up onto a large rock. Just then a beautiful silver female wolf, a little younger than Shadowfang came around the bent. As she walked toward the river humming to herself, Shadowfang became mesmerized. Her voice was like a bell, melodious and sweet. She was sleek and quick of mind and fleet of foot. Her name was Arrow and she was the daughter of Strongwind and Snowdancer. Eventually, Shadowfang decided to come down for a better look at this lovely creature. But when he reached the riverbank, she was gone.

"Hello," said a voice behind him. Shadowfang jumped and whipped around, almost running straight into Arrow.
".I'.Shadowfang," he said hesitantly. She's going to run away the minute she sees my eyes he thought sadly.
"I'm Arrow. It's nice to meet you. Want to play a game?" she asked.
"But don't you see my eyes? They're green!" he said in astonishment.
"Yes, but I like them, they're beautifully handsome, just like you." she said.
"You really think so?" he said in disbelief.
"Of course, with all my heart," she replied.
"'re really pretty.I ." he stuttered.
"Thank you, Shadow," Arrow laughed. "Come on let's play and be friends."

In all the time that Shadowfang lived with the pack, the only ones who would have anything to do with him were his family and Arrow. The rest of the wolves would give him sidelong glances and whisper as he passed. For it seemed he grew stranger and stranger as time passed. His color and eyes were striking to begin with, but it then became noticed that he had retractable claws like a cat's and was getting to rather unusually large in size. Eventually when he learned to hunt he could take down moose, deer, and caribou alone without help, while most other wolves had to hunt in groups of four or five to take large prey. He did not even want to hunt with other wolves, except Arrow. He was also extremely fast; he could outrun a deer and then keep the pace for miles at a time.
But soon he became tired of pack life for he was too independent and self-reliant in nature. So at age three, he left the pack to live on his own, a lone wolf.

While he was away, he learned another that he possessed another strange talent, talking. He could talk to other animals and could even understand human speech. He also learned a great deal about man, how he lived, hunted, traveled, and thought. He learned all of man's habits and behaviors and learned how to deal with his weapons. He learned to evade hunters by seemingly disappearing into the background.

Back in the territory of Windcall the pack fell on hard times. Prey became scarce, the caribou moved, the deer and moose were hard to find, and the musk oxen were only found in human pens, well guarded. Windcall then made the difficult choice, the pack must move. If they were to survive they must follow the caribou herds out across the open tundra. And so they came before long to the Caribou Mountains. There was a valley on the Moose River that was full of prey and prime den sites, a perfect place for wolves. The problem was men also hunted the valley. Many trappers and trophy hunters had lines along the river. And wolves were valued above all else, both for fur as well as trophies. Conflict between man and beast began to occur more often. And that spelled big trouble for the wolves, for they had lost five adults on the journey and now they had new pups and old ones to feed.

Miles away south on the tundra, a full moon was rising. A lone wolf, blacker than the blackest night, lay sleeping by his kill. Now six years old he was almost as large as his prey with a shoulder height of four feet and a length of five and a half feet.

" Shadowfang, listen my son," said a mysterious white wolf beside him. "Your pack and Arrow need you, it is time to go back to them."
"Who are you? How do you know my name?" cried Shadowfang.
"I am Aynia, the white wolf spirit, I know everything about every wolf," answered the stranger. "The pack has moved to Moose Valley in the Caribou Mountains. There they have found plenty of food and prime dens."
"Well that sounds like a wolf paradise to me." said Shadowfang.
"Yes, but there are men in the valley as well, hunters and trappers. You know what will happen, don't you?" replied Aynia.
"I know. And it's not good. All the time I've been away I've thought of Arrow, Nightblack, my father, Sky, and Nava, mostly Arrow." Said Shadowfang softly.
"You must go, my son, Dash and Dart the twin were shot two days ago, and Shunoch broke his paw in a trap, the others are in danger. Go, my son, you will know what to do." called the white wolf with yellow eyes as she faded away.
There was a rush of air and then Shadowfang woke with a start. What a weird dream. Or was it a dream? Thought Shadowfang. One thing I do know is that I have to go back. And with that the wolf rose from his bed inn the snow and began to trot northwards.

Shadowfang ran without stopping towards the Caribou Mountains, towards Moose Valley, the pack, and Arrow. The animals that saw him as he passed often would whisper of the white wolf running at his side. or was it just the snowy wind? When Shadowfang reached the Valley it was just after moonrise three days since his dream. He came upon a felled doe and began to eat. A few minutes later a she-wolf came up beside him, it was Arrow. They rejoiced at their meeting for after three years apart neither had lost their fondness for the other. Sometime later Sky found them and with her was her other brother, Nava. Later, Shadowfang returned with the others to the pack's new den site. When they arrived, Nigu, the elder, had just begun the story of "Aynia and the Bear". In this story Aynia the white wolf vanquished a grizzly bear to save her new pups from it ravenous appetite. A story Shadowfang had not heard since his puppyhood days with Nightblack.

The next day Windcall called for a great hunt as a celebration for his son's return. It was a fun day for the wolves because they did not have to catch anything and therefore it lacked the seriousness of a real hunt. Later after the hunt, Arrow was discovered to be missing. Shadowfang had a queer feeling that she was in danger and began a frantic search. Just as he came to the river crossing he heard human voices up ahead. As he peered through the undergrowth he saw Arrow caught in a trap with a dozen men circled around her, a few with guns. Sudden burning anger awoke in his breast and overwhelmed his mind. Careless of his own safety he sprang into the clearing just as on man pointed his gun at Arrow. With lightning speed he leapt upon the man, tearing at his flesh. Down the man went as he tried to keep the black fury from his throat. The other man ran to help and like a blur of teeth and claws Shadowfang turned his anger upon them. Screaming and yelling the frightened humans scattered before the Grizzly-like fury of Shadowfang. As the men ran they dropped their useless weapons. For what power had guns against such strength and fury, a demon from hell? In their wake they left the bodies of eight of their comrades, their throats torn by the fiend's jaws. Finally the clearing was silent with no living creature but a frightened, bewildered female wolf. After a while Shadowfang returned from his pursuit and set the petrified Arrow free. Then he began to clean and nurse her injured paw. Neither spoke of the event to rest of the pack, but many wondered what had happened.

Shadowfang became the Alpha of the pack after his father was too old to hold the position. Arrow became his mate and bore him fine children in later years. The valley became a paradise for wolves from that day on. For no man would ever set foot in the valley between Fang Mountain and Wolf Peak as they were now called. For it is ruled by a devil wolf, black as pitch with eyes of emerald fire. The Inuit call him Shadowfang, son of Aynia the white wolf spirit. He is stronger than a bear, large as a puma, faster than lightning, more cunning than a fox, and swifter than a deer. His howl sends chills down the spines of all that hear it. He has claws of steel and razors for teeth. He forever runs the slopes of the Caribou Mountains, around the Moose River, ruling his pack of mysterious wolves in the valley renamed Fang.

* Alpha- the leader of the pack
** beta- the second in command