Chapter 4: Disaster

Grey clouds filled the sky and a light drizzle had been falling all morning. Heather sat on the dry ground under the trees and shared stories with her two friends.

“Myles was my childhood friend. He was a moose like me and we grew up together. When I left the valley, I tried to get him to come with me.” She hung her head and said sadly, “He wouldn’t leave the valley.”

Blaze asked, puzzled as to why, “How come? You two were best friends. Why wouldn’t he come with you?”

Heather replied in a quiet voice, “He said the valley was his home. He could not bear to leave. I know that he loved the valley and I suppose he was afraid of the open plains. He never likes wide open spaces very much. He wished me luck before I left and that was the last I saw of him. I was hoping Myles would be my mate someday. I miss him very much.”

Blaze rolled over on his side and stretched out tiredly on the ground.

Rhen glanced at him briefly and asked, “What was the valley like?”

Heather answered, trying to remember everything she could, “Well, it was very pretty there. There were tall peaks on either side but it was flat in the middle. There was a river and a small lake at the northern part of the valley at the base of a mountain. And there were trees everywhere. Tall pines and cypress trees. They were much bigger than these trees.”

She paused for a moment and sadly realized just how much she truly missed her old home. She was a creature of the forests, not the open plains.

Heather continued on, “It was cold in the winter and warm in the summer, not like here where it is hot all the time. And there were little mountain streams every. The water was cold all the time.”

Rhen nodded and Heather then said, “I had another friend named Della. She was a doe who I had known since I was very young. She would play with me and Myles in the forests and meadows. She tried to talk me out of leaving but I couldn’t stay. I didn’t want Yazet for a mate.”

“Who in the world is Yazet?” Blaze asked.”

Heather turned to him and said, “At one time, he was another one of my friends. I don’t know exactly what happened to him but when he got older, he just became bitter. He always picked on Myles even when he was my friend. That is why I feel so bad for leaving Myles behind with him.”

Blaze then asked, “Why would your parents pick someone like him to be your mate? He sounds like a jerk to me.”

Heather nodded and answered, “They wanted someone who could protect me and they didn’t think Myles was strong enough for that.”

She then said, “I miss my old home though. Sometimes, I get the feeling that I shouldn’t have left.”

Rhen nuzzled her and said, “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll get use to things here.”

Heather rubbed her head against Rhen’s shoulder and said, “You are so sweet, Rhen. I’m just homesick. I’ll get over it.”

Around midday, the rain stopped and the sun emerged from the clouds. Rhen, Blaze, and Heather walked across the soggy prairies along the river bank. Overhead, gray patches of clouds rolled through the sky overhead, occasionally revealing patches of blue sky. The sun faded in and out of the broken clouds as they moved eastward. A warm breeze rustled the green grass. Blaze walked along lazily next to Rhen and Heather followed behind them. The three arrived at a bend in the river where the current was gentle.

James the bear greeted them at the river. He was devouring some kind of fish and by the pile of bones next to him, it was clear that it wasn’t the first fish.

Blaze glanced over to Heather, hoping she would not be too disgusted by the sight, but she seemed alright.

James seemed to have the same idea as Blaze and swept the fish skeletons off into the brush saying, “Sorry about that.”

Heather replied cheerfully, “It’s perfectly fine with me. I only eat plants but that I don’t expect you to do the same.”

Rhen spoke up, “So, who wants to swim? There is not much of a current here so we shouldn’t have to watch out for rapids.”

Heather shouted, “I’d love to go swimming! I used to do it all the time!”

Rhen leaped into the water with a huge splash, followed by Heather. The two immediately began to play in the cool water, laughing and splashing the whole time.

Blaze sat down next to James and scoffed, “Look at him goof off. You’d almost think he was a calf.”

James smiled and nodded, “Yeah. I miss those days. Did he ever play with you when you were little?”

Blaze nodded and said in a somewhat depressed tone, “Yeah, all the time. Of course, he was bigger than me so we couldn’t wrestle. We used to race a lot though.”

“What’s the matter, Blaze? Don’t tell me “nothing” because I can tell something is bothering you.”

Blaze remained silent for a few seconds and replied, “Ever since Heather came along, Rhen has been spending more time with her than me. He was just starting to spend time with me more often but not any more.”

The bison looked down at the ground and continued, “I have nothing against her. It’s just that Rhen has been spending so much time with her recently. Why can’t he spend time with both me and her?”

James shook his shaggy head and said, “I see what you are saying. Rhen loves her.”

Then the bear whispered, “Sometimes, Blaze, Rhen can get carried away with something. Remember how he use to be so overly protective?” Blaze nodded and James continued, “You talked to him about it, made him aware that it bothered you, and he changed. Maybe you should talk with him.”

Blaze looked at th bear and said, “Thank you, James. I’ll talk to him alone tonight if I can.”

James asked, “So, what do you say we join them instead of moping around over here?”

Blaze nodded, stood up, and charged into the water, straight into Rhen. Rhen cried out and fell with a splash.

Blaze chuckled and Rhen yelled playfully, “Oh yeah?”

He swept one of his front legs under Blaze’s front legs, knocking them out from underneath him. Blaze fell forward and landed in the water. The two began to wrestle in the river and James joined in. He scooped up mud from the riverbank and threw it at Rhen, hitting him just behind the left ear. Heather ran up behind James and pushed him into the water with her nose. She stood on the riverbank, laughing happily. This continued for several more hours until Blaze and Rhen both had enough.

As they climbed from the river, James laughed jokingly, “Ahh, nothing like the smell of a wet buffalo.”

“Shut up.” Rhen replied as he shook the water from his fur, although he was obviously joking around too.

Blaze shook the water from his fur but was still dripping wet. He suggested, “Let’s go home so we can dry off before dark. I don’t like to sleep wet.”

Three weeks passed and it was now early September. In a few months, things would become cold. Heather followed Rhen and Blaze as usual, pausing briefly to glance at the mountains. She really wanted to go home. As much as she liked Rhen and Blaze, she just had to go home. Things had not turned out like she planned. The moose was not built for the plains, having almost broken her leg a few days earlier by stepping in a prairie dog hole. In addition, she felt that she was not getting a lot of nutrition from the food. The oak leaves and grass were not what she was used to. Being a moose, Heather enjoyed aquatic plants and pine leaves, both of which were scarce in the open prairies. She had brought the subject up the previous day, and though Rhen was upset by the decision, he did not openly show it. Heather had even invited Blaze and Rhen to come along with her, but Rhen refused saying, “Our kind aren’t meant for the mountains. We need the wide open spaces.”

Heather had resolved to leave the next day, so she wanted to make this last day with her friends memorable. Little did she know just how memorable it would be. She ran and played with Rhen and Blaze in the meadow, and Blaze was actually sad to see her go. Blaze was just beginning to get use to her. He had never spoken with Rhen about spending more time with him, but the issue seemed to have resolved itself. Recently, Rhen had been including Blaze and James in his activities. Blaze decided that it would be best to leave Rhen and Heather alone for the moment. He figured that Rhen would want to say his goodbys in private. He found a nice quiet spot by a lone oak tree and began to eat. It was a quiet day and Blaze stood there, enjoying the silence.

“Do you really have to go?” asked Rhen.

Heather replied nodded and answered sadly, “Yes, Rhen. I... miss my family. I miss Myles.”

“What about that jerk your parents wanted to be your mate?”

Heather replied, “They can’t force me to mate with him. Not now. I’m grown up. They can’t tell me how to live my life anymore.”

Rhen nodded and said, “I’ll miss you.”

Heather nuzzled him and said softly, “I’ll miss you too, Rhen. And Blaze...”

Rhen was about to say something else but he caught a scent he did not like. Heather seemed to notice it too.

“What is it, Rhen?”

“Hunters!” Rhen said in a shaky voice. “We need to go! Where is Blaze?”

“He was over there last time I saw him.” answered the moose, gesturing toward the oak tree with her head.

Two men appeared at the top of the hill overlooking the meadow, their guns in hand.

Rhen bolted toward the tree where Blaze was grazing and shouted, ‘Blaze, run!”

“What?” his brother replied, bewildered.

“Hunters! Run!” Rhen repeated.

Blaze bolted off as fast as he could. Having never encountered humans before, he didn’t know what to expect. Rhen began to follow, but he could see the barrel of one of the men’s rifles following Blaze as he ran. Rhen snorted angrily and changed direction, charging directly at the hunter. Nobody was going to hurt his brother!

“Rhen! Be careful!” Heather shouted and ran after him.

Neither of the humans saw Rhen coming until it was too late. He lowered his large head and knocked the first hunter into the air, sending the man flying over his back and landing with a thud behind him. The second man turned just in time for Rhen to trample over him. The bison slid to a stop, sending up a cloud of dust as he did do. He pawed at the ground, bellowed in rage, and charged at the first hunter, who had gotten back up. Rhen thrust his head to the side, knocking the hunter to the ground again and turned to the second hunter, trying to buy Blaze enough time to escape. However, as he charged at the second man again, the hunter grabbed his rifle and fired. It was a desperate, inaccurate shot, but Rhen suddenly felt a burning sting in his left side. With a gasp of pain, the buffalo stumbled and hit the ground with a loud thump, sliding to a stop at the human’s feet. The pain became worse and he could feel warm blood oozing down his left side. The bison rolled onto his stomach and attempted to stand, but the hunter raised his gun again and aimed at the buffalo’s head.

“Damn beast!” the man muttered as he prepared to fire the fatal shot.

All of a sudden, Heather appeared, reared, and struck the hunter with her front hooves, rendering him unconscious. The other one reached for his gun but the moose kicked him in the face with one of her rear hooves, knocking him out as well.

“Come on, Rhen, get up.” she panted as she helped him to his feet.

Rhen stood there with his head down and panting heavily, blood dripping from his fur. The throbbing from his wound had become excruciating.

Heather asked, concerned, “Are you alright?”

“I don’t... I don’t know.” Rhen gasped in agony.

He was having difficulty breathing and felt liquid gathering in his throat. The wounded buffalo took a few steps, and then began to cough. A coppery taste filled Rhen’s mouth and scarlet blood dripped from his tongue. He coughed again and more blood came out. The bullet had pierced his left lung, causing it to fill with blood. Rhen gasped for breath and staggered along. Heather let him lean on her for support as they fled the meadow to where Blaze was waiting by the large boulders.

“What happened?” asked Blaze when he saw that Rhen was hurt.

Heather answered, “They shot him.”

Blaze quickly ran over and helped Rhen along as they made their way back to the trees where they lived. Both Blaze and Heather were exhausted from hauling Rhen all the back. Rhen probably weighed at least 2000 pounds. Blaze said to Rhen, “It’s alright. We’re almost there, Rhen.

Rhen staggered inside and stood there, wheezing, his legs wobbled beneath him. Suddenly, his legs gave way and the bison hit the ground with a thud. He let out a groan of pain and coughed up more blood.

Blaze nudged Rhen with his nose and pushed him into a upright position. Rhen just lied there limply.

Then Rhen said quietly, “Get James.”

Heather nodded and said, “I’ll go. Blaze, stay with your brother.”

She darted out of the grove, off in the direction of James’s cave.

Blaze lay down next to Rhen and said, “It’s alright, Rhen. You’re going to be alright.”

The wounded buffalo gasped fro air again and replied, “I don’t know... if I’ll make it.”

Blaze could not stand bear the thought of losing Rhen. His brother was all he had .

Blaze said tearfully, “Don’t say things like that. You’re going to be alright.”

He began to lick the wound on Rhen’s side, trying to stop the bleeding, but he knew that Rhen was getting worse.

It seemed like forever before Heather finally returned with James.

“How is he doing?” the moose asked worriedly.

Blaze did not answer. Instead, he just nuzzled Rhen. His eyes were red and the hair around them was moist with tears.

James sat down next to Rhen and examined the wound. He shook his head and stroked Rhen’s back. Then the bear place a paw on top of Rhen’s head.

Heather asked, James, will he be okey?”

The bear replied solemnly, “I can’t say. He is hurt pretty bad.”

Rhen coughed again, spitting out more bloody saliva. He gasped again and dug his hooves into the ground.

Rhen spoke, “Heather, if I don’t make it, I want you to look after of Blaze. Take him home with you.”

The moose nodded and tears began to appear in her eyes.

“I will take care of him, Rhen.”

“Blaze, promise me you will go with her.”

Blaze remained silent and Ren said, “Please, Blaze, go with her.”

The young bison nodded and sobbed, “Yes, Rhen.”

Heather whispered to Rhen, “Don’t do this to Blaze. Don’t leave him. You are his only family.”

Rhen’s reply was, “I want to be along with Blaze for a bit.”

Heather backed up and walked out of the grove with James following.

“He isn’t going to make it is he?” she muttered to James.

The black bear answered sadly, “I really don’t know. Poor Blaze.”

Blaze lied silently next to Rhen, a tear trickling down his face every now and then. It was almost completely quiet except for Rhen’s raspy breathing.

Rhen broke the silence, “I’m sorry, Blaze. In... in I don’t make it...” he coughed again and panted a couple of times, “I want you to know I love you. I couldn’t let those hunters hurt you.”

He cold barely keep his eyes open and his strength was fading fast.

Blaze sobbed, “Rhen, please don’t leave me.”

Rhen gasped again and rested his head on the ground. He closed his eyes and lost consciousness. He lay there, completely motionless, and the only sign that he was even still alive was his raspy breathing.

Blaze sniffled and lied his head on Rhen’s shoulder, tears streaming down his face.

To be continued...