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Chapter Text

 Prologue

It was winter, probably the coldest one in years, but the young gray wolf wandering around with his pack around their territory wouldn’t know.

This was his first winter. And like always, his pack was out showing his litter the territory, and how to hunt to survive later when they disperse.

Kaelen spotted a hare in the distance and his ears perked up. He waited for it to come a little closer, then sprinted. The hare started fleeing from him, snow spurting up following its big feet. Kaelen bent his head down and snapped the air where the hare once had been, realized he only got snowflakes on his tongue and sped up after the little animal.

His paws thundered against the soft ground, and he snapped downward again, this time tasting flesh and soft fur instead of snow. His jaw closed over the hare’s spine, and he shook his head aggressively to finish it. A high-pitched shriek of pain was heard from the tiny white animal, but it was quickly cut short as its body went limp in Kaelen’s mouth.

He trotted proudly over to where his pack had settled and ate the hare in a few short bites. Kaelen lay down on the outskirts of the small circle his pack had made and quickly fell asleep as the sun went down.

The next morning, birds had started singing, roars and howls were heard in the distance as Kaelen’s pack started waking up. Kaelen, being half-awake, felt teeth gently tug on his ear and jolted awake. His head swung to the side, and he bared his teeth, letting out a soft growl at the wolf that woke him up. He then saw that it was his brother, Silo. Kaelen grunted and rolled over, but Silo placed a paw on his chest and pushed him to lay on his back.

“Wake up, brother!” Silo said as his tail wagged softly. Kaelen growled again and got to his feet. Silo was his littermate, but he swore, the other wolf acted as if he was at least a year younger. Kaelen’s father, Stylus made a noise that meant they all had to get up and follow their parents.

“Are anyone hungry?” Stylus called out to his pups over 2 years, Kaelen and Silo being in the youngest litter. Silo immediately made a series of loud noises and Kaelen had to bite his tongue not to snap at his annoying brother. Some of the subordinates politely spoke up to confirm they were hungry, and Stylus decided they were going to hunt.

In tradition, the breeder pair started a rally with the rest of the pack to prepare for the hunt. The subordinates and pups pf the year- which were only Kaelen and Silo, since the rest of their littermates had died earlier that year- joined in with their howling, their voices carrying far over the forest and meadows miles away. Their heads moved backwards, their tails wagging, their eyes closed. When the rally ended, Kaelen noticed small snowflakes falling from the sky, melting almost instantly in his warm, thick winter coat.

Stylus and his mate- all the pup’s mother- Anya started sniffing the cool air, and after about thirty seconds of adjusting their positions and walking towards some weak scents, they found an elk track. They began trotting towards the scent, and the pack followed.

Kaelen’s ears shot up when he heard a screech above them, very quiet, but still there. He glanced around at his packmates, but it didn’t seem like anyone else heard the subtle sound. He followed his packmates, trying to ignore how the sound made him felt. Kaelen froze when he heard the sound again, but this time it was closer. Some of his subordinate older siblings seemed to notice it as well.

“Uhh... Father?” He spoke up, trying to get Stylus’s attention. But his father was too focused on tracking the elk herd through the snowstorm that was rapidly building. The screech sounded again, and Kaelen had to pin his ears to his head because it was too close. He slowly backed away, sensing that something was very wrong.

Something very suddenly dove through the air. Kaelen almost missed it because it was so quick, almost a blur in front of his eyes. The thing missed at first, and Kaelen looked up through the trees to get a glimpse of the creature before it strikes again. He squinted, then with horror realized it was a giant Pterosaur, most likely a Quetzalcoatlus, Kaelen guessed. He yelped, trying to signal Stylus before it strikes again. But his father did not notice, continuing to sniff the ground for the elk tracks. The Quetzalcoatlus swooped down again, this time catching Stylus in its claws. Kaelen froze.

He knew he should flee or something, but every muscle was frozen. Why would the big flying animal even need a wolf? It would be the same as a wolf eating a mouse. But then Kaelen realized something.

It must be for its children, Kaelen thought. That would make sense. Like sparrows feed their offspring with worms and wolf pups hunt toads and small rodents. But that didn’t change the fact that what this Pterosaur chose for baby food was his father. Kaelen wanted to jump up and snap and growl at the flying reptile, but he was sure we would just be picked up as well as Stylus.

So, without thinking, he turned around and fled.

He fled, as fast as his broad paws could take him, occasionally sinking into the snow with a yelp, but would jump out again. Kaelen didn’t look over his shoulder, he couldn’t. He wasn’t sure if any of his packmates survived, if his mother survived. He prayed that Silo was still alive, because even if his brother acted like a two-month-old pup sometimes, he was still Kaelen’s only surviving littermate, and, if he had to admit, he loved the dork dearly.

Kaelen sprinted at full speed until he was out of the forest, in a snowy meadow filled with all sorts of strange creatures. In the distance, he saw the small elk herd that they had tracked before Stylus died. Kaelen admitted that to himself.

My father is dead.

He wondered if he would ever see his packmates again, and trotted to a cave where he curled up and buried his face in his front legs. He was alone now. No parents. No packmates. No Silo. Good thing is that he already knew the basics of hunting, so he believed he could survive. But still. A-one-year old wolf alone in a world like this? He would just have to try his best to survive. To maybe see Silo again.

Chapter Text

Rays of sunshine spilled into a small cave opening, barely enough for a full-grown wolf to get in.

Kaelen had chosen that specific cave as his den because bigger animals such as predators for a wolf couldn’t come in the tiny entrance.

The cave was way bigger on the inside, a nest of soft grass and moss that Kaelen had dragged in for him to sleep in, a spot in the dark corner where he drags his food into to eat and the rays of warm sunshine in most of the cave.

It was spring, over a year since the winter he lost his family.

He had chosen the big meadow the cave overlooked as his territory, and he was surviving alone just fine. The only problem was that other much bigger creatures occasionally came wandering into the meadow, but then he’d just stay inside until they had passed.

Kaelen groaned and turned in his nest. He was definitely not a morning type of wolf. But his stomach growled, and he finally got to his paws. Kaelen yawned, a soft whimper escaping his lips as he sleepily licked his lips and blinked.

He crawled out of the entrance of his cave, and stood on the ledge outside for a few seconds, feeling the sun in his fur, and observing his territory.

The meadow below him was big, with a river cutting through the middle, with what almost resembled an eye in the middle of it. The river ran through a small canyon to the right, and Kaelen had sometimes followed it to find prey. On the other side of the river, there was a forest, reaching down the slope and stopping a bit before the river. There were grassy hills everywhere on both sides, but on the side Kaelen was currently on, there was a big boulder, and when he had investigated, it had a big hole under it, perfect for a den.

But Kaelen hadn’t considered moving anytime soon. His little cave was perfect for him.

Kaelen slowly made his way down the rocky cliff leading down to the grass below, as his cave was pretty high up on the walls surrounding his territory. He stepped slowly and carefully so he wouldn’t fall down the cliff, and near the bottom, he jumped the little distance, landing safely and not hurting himself.

Kaelen trotted to the river, a hare spotting him, its head perking up and fleeing immediately.

When he reached the river, he bent down by the riverbank and lapped up some drops.

Kaelen’s ears shot up when he heard paw steps. He looked in the direction he heard the sound from, and to his surprise, he saw a dire wolf heading his way.

Great, he thought. Just what I need this morning. Fighting.

Dire wolves are way bigger than gray wolves, but this female looked a bit scrawny, so she was around Kaelen’s height.

Kaelen always thought dire wolves looked weird. Their blocky skulls and snouts, their color, it was all just too weird to gray wolves.

The dire wolf made her way over to Kaelen’s spot by the river, and he raised his tail and neck fur, trying to look big and intimidating. He snarled when she got close to him.

The stranger backed away, looking surprised, but also somewhat hostile.

“I was just passing by,” she said. “And I though I’d get some water.”

Kaelen took a step closer, his ears perked forward, and he kept eye contact with her.

“Pass by faster.” He growled at the newcomer. She took a step closer to the river, just trying to get some water.

“There’s loads of water,” he took a step closer. “Get out of my territory and drink somewhere else.”

Kaelen’s mouth opened further, his teeth bared completely, ready to strike.

He noticed the dire wolf’s body language, her tail close to her legs, but her neck fur was standing upright, seemingly a mix of fear and aggression.

He focused intensely at a spot on her neck, and when she bent down to drink, he snarled louder as a warning.

She straightened herself again, looking at Kaelen.

That’s it. That’s the perfect opportunity.

Kaelen swiftly moved forward, biting hard at the dire wolf’s throat. She let out a shriek of surprise and pain, her paws fighting to get him off.

But Kaelen didn’t let go.

He wrestled his paws back, trying to pin her to the ground. She staggered on her feet, and he took the opportunity.

Kaelen tightened his jaws around her neck, tasting blood. He let out a muffled growl against her neck as he fought hard to pin her.

He got kicked back for a moment, but after a second was back on her neck.

He kicked his front paws against hers, trying to disbalance her. He pressed his entire body weight against the dire wolf, and she finally fell. Kaelen moved to stand on top of her, his neck bent to grip at her neck. He let go of her but didn’t move anywhere.

“Will you leave now?” Kaelen snarled down at the wolf under his paws.

She frantically nodded and he stepped off her. Kaelen watched in satisfaction as she hurriedly got to her paws and sprinted northwest, up the slopes and disappeared into the forest.

He started a celebratory howl, his tail wagging with pride.

He stopped abruptly when the ground shook slightly under him. Kaelen looked over his shoulder and saw a herd of Brachiosaurus coming. They walked into his meadow, about 4-5 of them.

Kaelen scrambled to get over the river next to him, running to the mini-island where the river extended out to the sides.

The giant dinosaurs wouldn’t reach him in the forest; it was too dense for them.

He jumped to the protruding ground in the river, his paws splashing lightly in the water right at the edge. He jumped again, this time landing in the water, padding through it.

When he reached the riverbank, he looked briefly behind him.

The sauropods were closer now.

Kaelen let out a soft whimper and started sprinting towards the forest, his mouth open in soft pants.

When he reached the forest, he lay down in a bush, peaking out to look at the passing animals.

Kaelen felt an urge to run out and bite one of the giant’s feet, but he knew it was the silliest idea ever, and that we would most likely be trampled to death. He just stayed there, panting softly.

This was a chaotic day.

His stomach growled again and reminded him that he was hungry. He sighed, crawling out of the bush then started to track elk.

The hunt was successful. Kaelen was now standing by a dead elk, ravens surrounding the carcass. He had tracked up the slopes and into a stranger animal’s territory and had to get out fast.

He quickly tore into the soft fur, exposing the yummy flesh for him to eat. Kaelen filled up most of his stomach, then ripped a big chunk of meat from the lifeless elk.

He would take this back home to his cave and eat it there.

He made his way through the forest and down the hills to his meadow, then crossed the river at the shallowest part.

Kaelen trotted up the rough, rocky pack up to the tiny cave entrance, his jaws firmly around the chunk the entire time.

He crawled into his den and dropped the meat in the corner he had chosen for where he ate and stored food. Kaelen finished the food in a few short bites.

He wished he still had his pack. He hadn’t found any dispersals nearby and wasn’t exactly sure if he even wanted a mate. He was two years old; this was around the time the average wolf dispersed.

Maybe this fall, he thought to himself, curling up in his nest again.

Maybe he would get some friends, he just hoped he could meet someone soon. If only he didn’t flee when his father died. If only Silo was still here, with him. Kaelen wanted so desperately to not miss his stupidly immature brother, but he was his brother. He sighed and closed his eyes. He wasn’t exactly a productive wolf and would rather do midday naps.

He fell asleep, his dreams filled with his pack he missed so much.

Chapter Text

It was raining.

The type of rain where a den would flood. But not for Kaelen.

Floodwater couldn’t possibly reach up to his cave high up in a cliff wall.

Well, if it rained like this for a few days straight, it might’ve.

The tiny bit of land in the river would probably be completely covered in water in a few minutes. Maybe even seconds.

Kaelen jumped as he heard a loud rumble outside, followed shortly by lightning. The light was only there for a brief second, but it spilled into his cave entrance and momentarily blinded him.

He hated rain.

Sure, he would take swim in the river on a sunny day, but that was different.

He could cool off in the water, but still feel the warm sunrays in his fur, and later dry off in them.

There was nothing good about rain. Especially not this much rain.

This was also the only reason why he hated fall, too much rain constantly.

But it was spring. The season of blooming and sunshine, nice smells and perfect temperature, before it spiked so high in the summer he spent half of his time inside, in the shade, or the river.

Kaelen walked over to the cave opening and stuck his head out but immediately got soaked and pulled his head back with a growl.

He shook his head aggressively, splattering water drops all around his home. He guessed this would be one of those days where he stayed in his nest all day and being grumpy.

It was only morning.

He would have time later to go outside and hunt.

It was midday. The rain had stopped, leaving big puddles everywhere in his territory.

But on the bright side, there was a beautiful rainbow in the sky.

Kaelen slowly stood up and crawled out of his den.

The sky was still partially covered in white clouds, but now it was sunny and a big, colorful rainbow spread across the sky, landing at each side of the canyon where the river extended out of the meadow.

Kaelen wondered what lies at the end of a rainbow.

Maybe that’s something he could do today, instead of dying of boredom. He could go and find out, catch something on the way, then return home and relax for the rest of the day.

Kaelen started walking down the rocky path leading down to the softness of the grass below the cliff.

He jumped down where it cut off and immediately winced. There were small raindrops clinging to every grass blade he saw, shining slightly in the sun.

He trotted over to the big boulder with the space underneath, hopping on his paws every time they touched the ground, hating the wet feeling against his paw pads.

He huffed angrily when he reached the boulder, realizing it was wet and most likely slippery.

He carefully climbed up on it, his claws scraping against the wet rock, his tail spinning around to keep balance and not face plant on the hard material.

Kaelen reached the top, an oak tree standing next to the boulder, the tip of it barely taller than him with the extra height he gained.

He looked at the rainbow in the distance, starting to fade. He was going to have to be quick to reach it before it disappeared completely.

Kaelen raised his muzzle to the sky, along with his tail, and let out a slightly high-pitched howl.

His voice would strengthen his territory strength, carrying far away, miles outside his small territory, warning other creatures to stay away from him.

But on the bad side, they would most likely tell he was a lone wolf, and if they were a much bigger and stronger animal, or had a little group, they could easily invade his territory, kill him, and take it for themselves.

But he wouldn’t let that happen. He had thought many times how unstoppable he would be if he had friends of other species. Bigger, way stronger and more powerful species.

Kaelen hopped down from the rock and grimaced. He had landed right on a brown, fat slug.

He growled as he lifted his front paw and almost became sick. He had squished the disgusting creature, slime all over his paw pads. He aggressively rubbed his paw against the grass, trying to get the remnants of slug off it.

When it was finally clean, Kaelen trotted over to the river.

Right. It was overflooded, the island hidden under the rainwater.

A tiny, pink worm made its way over his paw, and he violently shook it into the water. He bared one of his canines at it and walked to the riverbank, trying to figure out what part he should cross.

He settled on a part where the water would reach up to his chest and waded into the water.

The shock of the water hit him instantly, the river was usually not that cold. But since half of it was filled with rainwater, it wouldn’t be the nice, refreshing temperature it usually was.

Kaelen reached the other bank, shaking the drops out of his fur.

He then calmly ran towards the slopes and up them, not sprinting, but not trotting.

He slowed to a trot when he reached the edge of the ravine, looking down at the river below.

Kaelen wondered what would happen if he fell. He assumed it would hurt pretty bad, but would he land in the water or ground below?

He continued trotting along the edge, watching the river below.

A big bird flew overhead, low enough to jump up and kill it. But he was way too close to the edge.

What if he slipped and fell?

He ran after the bird, and when he was close enough, he jumped up and caught it in his jaws.

Or, more accurately, he caught its tail feathers in his teeth and dragged it down, before getting it fully in his jaws and killing it with a squeeze of them.

Kaelen dropped it to the ground and ate it quickly, throwing its remains down the canyon.

After a few more minutes of walking, he reached a lake, surrounded by reed and cattail plants. The river ran into the lake, probably overflowing due to all the rainwater.

He walked down to the lake and stared at his reflection for a moment.

Tired, yellow eyes were staring back at him, the grays and tans of his face distorted slightly in the rippling water.

He straightened his back and sharpened his eyes, looking more awake and like a real wolf.

Kaelen squinted at the picture of him in the water, his eyes widening slightly when he thought he imagined his own face turning into Silo’s face.

His brother stared back at him, but after Kaelen blinked, he was gone. He sat down on his hind legs, growling out of frustration. He would never see his brother again, at least not in real life.

His old pack haunted his dreams whenever he slept, sometimes mad and blaming him for Stylus’s death, and sometimes they would be exactly like his life was two years ago.

Soft and warm, he missed it, so, so much.

But maybe if he made some friends, he could live like that again. Hunt with them, talk with them when he was bored and lonely, laugh, cuddle and have fun.

Suddenly, a strange creature flew down and landed a few feet away from him.

It looked like an owl, perhaps a barn owl, around half his size.

But something was strange about it. It had the head of a cat. Just a normal cat’s head.

Kaelen tilted his head at it and noticed it had a rift from the top of its left ear. He wondered how it had gotten it.

It must’ve not noticed Kaelen as it flew past him and landed.

He snuck up on it, his paw steps light, not making any sound. He was crouched low, trying to be as little as possible and not be noticed.

The creature turned its head, and Kaelen stroke.

He tried to bite it, but it flew jumped into the air, flapping its wings to stay in the air. He jumped up to snap at the creature, a growl coming from low in his throat.

The creature landed again and hissed at him.

“Don’t get closer,” it said. “Or I will bite you.”

Kaelen’s neck fur straightened, a new expression on his face, more curious now.

“What are you?” He asked the strange creature standing in front of him. He realized now from its voice that it was a female.

She straightened, taking a step closer to Kaelen.

“I am a meowl, a mix between a cat and an owl. Oh, and my name is Chivra.” she added.

Kaelen tilted his head. “Huh. I’ve never heard of that species.”

He noticed Chivra backing up slightly, obviously still slightly frightened of him.

“Don’t worry. I won’t eat you. For now,” he added the last part jokingly, and was relieved when Chivra’s body language relaxed.

“So, uhh… I was just exploring. Yeah.” He didn’t want to add the part where he was chasing the rainbow, feeling stupid and immature.

Kaelen had realized rainbows were just illusions and would only become farther away if he walked towards them.

He tilted his head in the direction of his territory behind him.

“I live just over there.” Chivra looked past him, trying to see what he mentioned, but couldn’t.

“Show me, then.” She flapped her wings into the air and landed on top of Kaelen’s head.

He growled and shook his head, mumbling something that sounded like “You have wings.”

Kaelen started trotting back towards his territory, while Chivra flew after him.

He wondered for a moment if he had found a new friend.

But the little animal was half his size and only had some teeth and some tiny claws on her feet. But she could fly.

Maybe she was useful for Kaelen after all.

Chapter Text

Chivra flew low over Kaelen’s head, the tips of her flapping wings hitting his upright ears.

He had met her two days ago, and he had already decided she was incredibly annoying.

She had been chattering away during the entire territory tour, and her stupid wings always whacked him in the face or ears.

Kaelen had wanted to snap at her multiple times, rip her wings off and eat her. But he wanted to give her some more time.

Maybe the strange little creature could prove she was useful as a friend to him.

What did she call her species again? A meowl? What a stupid name. Like the sound a cat makes and an owl? Genuinely one of the dumbest things Kaelen had ever heard.

He remembered how Chivra had acted when he showed her around the territory.

She had flown around and inspected every inch of the meadow and walked into his cave as if she was a professional designer. “Hmm, maybe you could have some lights here, move your nest here,” she had said, and so on and so on.

Kaelen had to grind his teeth to not kill her out of frustration.

Chivra had also decided the tree near the boulder would be her second nest, alternating between that one and her nest in the forest by the lake.

Kaelen had always thought his future friends would be useful in fighting or hunting, but Chivra wasn’t either. Her diet was purely mice and tiny animals, while Kaelen ate elk, moose, deer, and very rarely a weak western horse or bison.

She had claws and teeth, but they were so tiny they could never take down a bison. His dream friend would be maybe a Smilodon, or a carnivorous dinosaur.

Oh, that’s a good idea. Befriending a dinosaur, big enough to take down large animals with its big claws and teeth.

“Kaelen, are you alive?” Chivra’s voice yanked him out of his thoughts.

Kaelen shook his head, trying to clear his head from all the thoughts clawing at his brain.

“Yeah, just thinking,” he replied, his voice a bit absent-minded.

Chivra had landed in front of Kaelen on a rock, but her head snapped up suddenly. Kaelen sharpened his ears to hear what she had heard, and his ears picked up tiny squeaks and scuttering after food.

Kaelen realized a mouse must be running around, and his stomach growled.

Chivra took off, hovering in the air while she stared at a spot on the ground by the river. Kaelen’s eyes followed hers and saw the tiny creature.

She must be calculating when would be the perfect time to strike and kill the mouse.

Chivra suddenly dove down, so fast that if Kaelen blinked, he would have missed it.

Her legs straightened out, her claws outstretched and closed around the brown-gray animal.

But her grip wasn’t tight enough to kill it. Kaelen, with awe realized she wasn’t going to kill it, and eat it alive.

Maybe she is fierce, he thought. And not just stupid and annoying.

Chivra landed again, pinning the mouse to the ground under her feet.

She bent down, her foot lifting for a brief moment as the mouse squeaked. But it couldn’t escape, it didn’t have enough time.

Chivra’s head bent down and bit it, her jaws around the tiny creature. It wasn’t dead, though.

Kaelen could hear a shriek from her mouth as she started chewing, snapping the mouse’s spine and cutting it off.

Kaelen watched in… horror? Fascination? His jaw wide open like a fish on land.

Chivra swallowed the mouse, blood spilling down her chin. She licked it off, shaking her head and lifted her wing, ducking her head under it and plucking her feathers.

When her head emerged again, she stared at Kaelen’s gawking, and he snapped his mouth shut.

He did really not expect Chivra, the meowl, the tiny creature to be so violent and merciless.

Kaelen felt respect and admiration grow in his chest, a small smile spreading across his face.

“Is that the meowl hunting method?” he asked, laying down in the soft grass.

Chivra turned to him, pride glowing in her big eyes.

“Yes, that’s how we do it,” Chivra said. “We trap it under our claws and slip it into our mouth. Then we just… crush it.” She shook her wings out and licked her chest fur.

She had fur on her head down to her chest, and feathers on the rest of her body.

Her feathers covered most of her feet, and she had four claws on them. They looked pretty short, but Kaelen had seen how long they actually were when she stretched them out to catch the mouse.

Her feathers and fur were brown and tan and sandy-colored, with a white underbelly, feet, and chin and half of her muzzle.

She was quite pretty, with well-maintained feathers.

Kaelen looked like the most average wolf ever.

Brown-gray base fur, darker saddle and tail tip, tan underbelly and legs and brown on the top of his muzzle.

He had bright, sharp yellow eyes, most of the time very tired looking, but he tried to keep them looking like a proper wolf.

Chivra had amber eyes, her pupils looking like tiny slits in the sunshine.

Kaelen heard a growl behind him and spun around.

His eyes widened when he realized the dire wolf he had beaten a few days ago was back, but this time with company.

Two males, almost double his size.

He bared his teeth, a snarl sounding deep in his throat. It was time to show Chivra how good he was at fighting.

It was time to impress his new friend.

“Why have you returned?” He snapped. “Didn’t you get enough wounds last time?”

The female dire wolf that he had already met, let out a bitter chuckle, her neck fur standing upright.

Kaelen blinked at the two males standing on each side of her, looking like her bodyguards.

One of them looked past Kaelen at Chivra and huffed a laugh.

“What is that? A meowl?” He growled. “I’ll have fun tearing you apart.”

Kaelen moved to stand in front of her, his tail standing up and his legs slightly spread. He snarled at the three wolves in front of him.

“Don’t touch her!” The male dire wolf that spoken earlier laughed, the sound so annoying Kaelen wanted to rip his fur off.

“What is this, is someone in love?” All the dire wolves burst into laughter, nudging each other with their paws.

That really pissed Kaelen off, and he bared his front teeth completely, his gums exposed, and a loud warning growl was heard from him.

The dire wolf to the left of the female, the one that hadn’t been talking, took a step closer to Kaelen, shoving his face in his and growling.

Chivra suddenly came flying right into the stranger’s face, clawing at his eyes, trying to blind him.

It was on now.

The other male dire wolf snapped at Chivra, but she flew away just in time, and Kaelen jumped forward to bite down hard on his neck.

Kaelen felt teeth in his flank and realized the female was clinging to him.

Now the third dire wolf was free, his eyes bleeding. Chivra dove in again, her claws latched into his eye sockets and her wings flailing to keep balance, her head biting his neck.

The wolf screamed, trying to get away. Chivra flew off him and he sprinted away, completely blind now.

He ran a little wobblily but made his way out of Kaelen’s territory.

Kaelen was free by now, the two dire wolves remaining looking after their friend that had fled.

One of them growled softly, and the other one turned to Chivra and snarled. Kaelen turned to her and made a gesture that said “fly away so that you don’t get killed” and she did exactly that, her wings beating quickly to take her away.

The female dire wolf snarled loudly, jumping on top of Kaelen and pinned him down.

He grunted as he hit the ground with blunt force, his front paws fighting to get the female off him.

The male inched closer, his growling face filling Kaelen’s peripheral vision.

Kaelen’s eyes were wide, the whites in the visible, going back and forth to the dire wolves on top of him.

The male bent down to deliver the last bite, killing Kaelen. He kicked desperately at the dire wolves, but to no use.

Just as the male dire wolf was going to bite his throat, a figure crashed into both, making them fall over with small whimpers.

The figure then used its claws and teeth to rip apart the strangers, killing them in a minute.

Kaelen had to look away to not throw up at the scene. He stood up, trying to examine the animal in front of him.

It was big, had big, feathered arms, a long tail, and when he looked down, one big killing claw on each foot.

Kaelen realized what this was when it turned around, looking at him. Kaelen stared into yellow eyes, his snout gray and scaly, bare from the feathers that covered him.

This was an Utahraptor.

Chapter Text

The Utahraptor looked at Kaelen with curious eyes, and Kaelen backed up a few steps.

He just witnessed this animal brutally rip apart two dire wolves, and now he was looking at Kaelen with what almost seemed like kindness in them.

His feathers were brown, with some darker and lighter tones along his body. He had a tan underbelly, and gray feathered arms, almost seeming like wings.

The exposed scales on his legs and snout were gray, and he had three big claws on his arms and four on each foot.

And, obviously, one claw on each foot was standing upright, big, and thin, and incredibly sharp.

Kaelen inched forward to bend his head down and examine the raptor’s claws.

He flinched back when the claw moved towards him, and he looked up at the raptor.

He was roughly double his size, and there was a glint of amusement in his yellow eyes.

He had two round, clear objects sitting in front of his eyes, connected by some kind of material.

“What is that on your face?” he asked the big creature.

“They’re called glassed,” the Utahraptor explained, “some cities in parts of Mythica Terra are really complex and you can buy objects from various animals.”

Kaelen took a few steps back and sat down, tilting his head back to look at the raptor.

“What is your name?”

“Therosis,” he replied, ruffling the feathers on his arms. Kaelen tilted his head to the side and called over his shoulder to Chivra.

She came flying and landed on top of his head. He let out a soft growl but allowed it this time.

Therosis looked down at them curiously.

“Damn, now it’s that owl cat thing, then you, then I’m tallest.” He chuckled, nodding at Chivra when he talked about them.

Kaelen cleared his throat and spoke up importantly.

“She’s a meowl, her name is Chivra,” he tilted his head back and held back a laugh as Chivra struggled to balance on top of his head.

“Now, I am Kaelen, gray wolf.”

Therosis spread his arms dramatically.

“Nice to meet you, O Great One Kaelen.” He bowed majestically and Chivra laughed from the top of Kaelen’s head.

He growled, baring his teeth bitterly.

Therosis winced, taking a short step back.

“Sheesh, is your main personality trait being grumpy all the time?” He flashed Kaelen a charming smile, smiling with all teeth.

Kaelen took a moment to admire his sharp teeth, wondering what he could do with teeth like that.

“You should show us the city you got your glasses from sometime,” Chivra sounded from Kaelen’s head.

Therosis thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

Chivra flew down from Kaelen’s head, landing on the ground next to them.

Kaelen shyly looked up at Therosis, feeling small next to him.

“Hey, thank you for saving me. Saving us,” he added.

Therosis smiled down at him, gently nudging him with his arm.

“Anything for friends.”

Kaelen’s eyes widened. Friends? Did Therosis really consider them as friends yet?

They met just a minute ago. Kaelen usually took some time to consider himself as friends with someone else.

But if Therosis already considered them as friends, maybe they could be friends.

Kaelen was lying on his back on the island and the river. Chivra was standing nearby, cleaning her feathers and Therosis was laying down next to Kaelen.

He was laying like a big chicken, looking like he was nesting eggs.

Kaelen rolled over to his side, groaning.

“Why is it so hot?” He complained loudly. “And I’m hungry. I’m hungry! I’m hungry!” Chivra laughed from beside him.

“Just hop in the river!” Kaelen paused.

Why didn’t I think of that? God, he was so stupid.

He stood up and moved towards the river on every side of the island and bent down to lap up some drops.

He straightened up again and licked his lips, before wading into the river, letting out a sigh at the cool feeling surrounding him.

He swam with the current, letting himself be carried with the water. Kaelen turned around and fought against the current to climb onto the island again, and shook his fur aggressively when he reached it.

Chivra jumped back, flaring her wings when water droplets splattered over her, and Therosis hissed.

Kaelen sat back down on his hind legs but shortly started complaining again.

“Still doesn’t change the fact that I’m hungry.” Therosis sighed loudly and stood up.

“Fine! We’ll hunt,” he said, “so, Chivra flies ahead, searching for prey. When she finds it, she’ll fly back to us, telling us its location. Then Kaelen will chase it and tire it out, biting it occasionally to weaken it. Then I will come in and kill it. Sounds good?”

Kaelen and Chivra nodded almost at the same time. Chivra took off, flapping away into the distance.

Kaelen looked at her disappearing figure, and his stomach growled suddenly.

He looked at Therosis with embarrassment, but it didn’t seem like he noticed. He sat there and waited patiently for Chivra to come back, and when she did, he stood up abruptly.

“I found some western horses. Follow me.” She flew the other way again without warning and Kaelen scrambled to run after her, Therosis following shortly.

They both hurried to follow Chivra on the ground, Kaelen sprinting but Therosis almost trotting.

When they reached the small herd of horses, Kaelen picked out one that was falling behind, looking old and weak.

He trotted to the western horse, his eyes locked on them. He snarled and raised his tail to look intimidating, looking at the weak one.

When the herd started to move, he ran after them, staying close on their tails the entire time.

His tongue was sticking out of his mouth as he panted.

Kaelen followed the horse for many minutes until it slowed down in exhaustion. He sprinted after it, growling and mashing his teeth to seem threatening.

He bit down on the horse’s leg, keeping a firm grip, almost so firm he dislocated his jaw.

The horse kicked him off and he let go with a soft whimper.

Kaelen looked to his left, examining the bushes, until he saw a brown and gray face and piercing yellow eyes staring at him behind glasses.

He gestured with his tail that his friend was going to come and finish the horse, chasing after it and delivering small bites every now and then.

Therosis crashed into the western horse right in front of Kaelen, holding it with his claws and pinning it to the ground.

Kaelen looked up at the sky and spotted Chivra flying overhead. She came down and landed next to Kaelen and they both watched Therosis rip the horse to shreds.

He had it pinned under his big, feathered body, his front claws holding it down. He leaned down and gripped its neck with his jaws lightly.

The horse shrieked and Therosis lifted one of his feet. He held the horse tighter, trying to stop its desperate kicking.

He placed his foot lightly against the horse’s chest, before quickly stabbing it with his raised killing claw and dragging it along the horse’s body, slitting the length of its belly.

Kaelen watched as blood and organs rushed out, staining the grass around the dead body red.

Ravens and vultures and all sorts of flying scavengers immediately flocked the corpse, picking at it.

Kaelen looked at Chivra, then at Therosis with awe and admiration. He stepped up to his friend and nudged him with his paw.

“We make a great team!” Kaelen turned back to look at Chivra with a smile, watching her walk up to the carcass and start to eat. “All three of us!”

Therosis looked down at him with a small smile, and started eating, ripping the fur off the horse and getting to the soft meat.

Kaelen ripped a big chunk off and carried it to eat a bit away from his friends, wolfing it down.

He padded back to the horse and ate until he physically couldn’t take it anymore.

Chivra was full first, because of her tiny body, and Therosis was finished last, around three times bigger than Chivra and twice Kaelen’s size.

He looked at his friends gratefully and sat down in the soft grass.

Chapter Text

Therosis led the way up a grassy hill, his friends following him.

Chivra was sitting on top of Kaelen’s head instead of flying like usual, but Kaelen had gotten used to it by then.

They had been walking for what seemed like hours now, and Kaelen had to fight the urge to stop and complain about how sore his paws were getting every 5 minutes.

He could swear on his left front paw that he felt Chivra’s claws digging into his skull, but he didn’t want to snap at his smaller, winged friend.

“Ugh, when are we arriving there?” Kaelen whined to Therosis, trotting to catch up with him.

“In about 1 minute,” Therosis said. “It’s on the other side of this big hill. Up the hill, down it, then we’re there.” He shot a charming grin at Kaelen, which was all sharp teeth.

Kaelen groaned. Why did it have to take so long? He suspected Therosis forgot he had way longer legs than his friends, and Chivra was just resting instead of flying.

He also thought the city had to be so awesome and exciting if it took so long to get to it.

Therosis had told them what the name of the city was, but Kaelen hadn’t really been paying attention.

Kora? Koritha? Korith? Oh, yeah that’s right. Korith was the name of the supposedly complex city open to all species.

He fought the urge to complain again.

There had to be a place to sleep in Korith, or Kaelen thought he would have to throw himself off the nearest cliff.

They neared the top of the hill now, and Kaelen’s tail rose slightly in excitement.

He shook his head hard to clear all the thoughts forming in his head.

They reached the top of the hill and Kaelen’s eyes lit up. Down there, in the shadows of the giant hill, was Korith.

It was huge compared to what the small gray wolf was used to.

There was a cobblestone path connecting all the shops and stands, and he could see creatures of all sizes walking around and in it. Flying creatures flew in and out, their wings flapping.

Kaelen ran down the hill, his tail wagging excitedly. Chivra struggled to keep her balance on the top of his head, her wings spreading while she blinked sleepily.

But Kaelen couldn’t care less about the pain of her little claws right now. He stepped up to one of the many entrances to the city, his mouth open in a small grin.

He heard chuckling behind him and realized it was Therosis when he turned around.

“You really like this place, don’t you, huh?” Therosis said with a grin. Kaelen nodded excitedly and started trotting into Korith.

There were stores and booths and stands dotting the sides of the street in every direction.

Big signs were plastered over the entrances of buildings, over stands and booths, animals standing behind them.

Some had big, enthusiastic smiles on their faces, someone looked bored, and some straight up looked angry, as if they were feeling the urge to snap at any potential customers.

Kaelen could read the signs; it was tradition for any wolf to teach their young how to read in winter.

Each year when the first snow fell, the dominant breeding pair would show the pups of the year how to read, taking a stick between their teeth, writing letters in the snow.

It always took at least one full day, and if the litter was big, or the pups were slow learners, they would dedicate more days just for education.

Kaelen looked at one of the stands and read overhead; “Food! Food for carnivores here!” and as he looked at the small table attached to the stand, meat was laid out, ranging from mice to bison.

When his gaze drifted up to the creature running it, he met the eyes of a fellow gray wolf.

The stand runner was an older female, with kind-looking eyes.

Therosis followed behind Kaelen, standing beside him.

The other wolf looked a bit startled at the Utahraptor, but Therosis put an arm around Kaelen, showing they were friends. Chivra was still on top of Kaelen’s head, resting comfortably, almost dozing off.

“Hello, ma’am,” said Kaelen politely. “Could we all get one piece each, please?”

He smiled charmingly, his teeth showing. The older wolf nodded at the meat.

“What would each of you like?” She asked, her voice warm.

“One mouse, one elk and one… uhh,” Kaelen paused, looking up at Therosis. “One bison…”

He squinted at Therosis and was relieved when his friend nodded.

The stand runner put her front paws un the table and gathered the food, setting it aside.

Kaelen was about to open his mouth and pick the elk meat up, when Therosis bent his head down to pull out some coins from a black bag Kaelen had barely realized he was wearing.

“That will be 18 coins,” the older wolf said. Kaelen growled softly, feeling like the biggest idiot in Mythica Terra. Of course they had to pay for the food. It wasn’t like they could just take the food.

That would be stealing, wouldn’t it?

Therosis pulled out 18 coins from the leather pouch tied out around his chest, although it was pretty messy, since Utahraptors didn’t have hands to pick things up, he had to use his mouth.

He spit out the coins on the table and took the bison meat in his mouth with a polite smile.

Chivra jumped down from Kaelen’s head just as he bent down to pick up the elk meat. Chivra picked up the mouse and jumped back on Kaelen’s head, eating it in one chomp.

Kaelen took some steps away from the stand and set the food down before bending down and eating it in a few hungry bites.

Therosis ate his food a bit slower, due to the chunk’s bigger size, but they were back on their feet a couple minutes later.

They walked through streets of Korith, stopping at the stands and stores they found interesting, the signs catching their attention.

In a corner, there was a phoenix and a jackalope sitting together, leaning on each other.

It was socially acceptable to fall in love with any species in Mythica Terra, but Kaelen could never really understand why.

But it made everything way easier, to be able to fall in love with whoever you want, regardless of species.

But Kaelen also wondered what it would be like to date a phoenix. Your partner dies and goes up in flames every few years?

What were you supposed to do with the rebirthed phoenix? Is the relationship over then?

He hoped he would never be able to feel that, your partner just poof, a pile of ashes.

A particular sign caught his gaze, “The finest jewelry in Korith!” just as he started to steer towards it, he overheard a gruff voice talking, with a heavy accent.

“Bevare of him Ferizo,” the voice said. “You d’not vanna come across him, that’s fo’sure.”

That made Kaelen start thinking again. Who was this Ferizo? Why was voice telling the other creature to beware him?

He stepped closer to Therosis.

“Hey, Thero,” he whispered. Therosis looked mildly surprised that Kaelen had a nickname for him already.

“Do you know of Ferizo?”

“No, why are you asking?” His friend responded.

“No reason. Just, uhh… heard of him.” Kaelen said back. He nodded at the stand, silently signaling they should go ask the stand runner.

He walked to the stand, a creature sitting behind, with scales and thumbs, which it way easier to hand out gems and accept coins.

He smiled politely when Kaelen and his friends walked up to the stand.

“Can I get you anything this fine day?” said the stand runner, gesturing towards the gemstones.

Here was an opal, there was an emerald, a few amethysts, even a couple diamonds.

“Yeah, sure,” Kaelen said, smiling at the sparkling gems. “But we would like to ask you a question. Do you know who Ferizo is?”

The stand runner was immediately taken aback. He came closer to Kaelen and whispered to him, as if he was sharing a secret.

“Ferizo is a monster. Only one of his kind. He roams Mythica Terra freely, which, according to me, should be locked up. Rumors say he resides mostly across the ocean, but he has also been seen on Dragon Island.”

“He’s almost solid black, but witnesses say he’s more of a dark brown.” He continued explaining.

“He has a skull for a head, with sharp canines like a wolf. Almost like you, my dear,” he added and nodded towards Kaelen.

Kaelen suddenly felt unease gather in his stomach.

“But the skull is not from a wolf. It has antlers, long ones, turning back towards his big ears, almost the same as a mule deer. He has long fur hanging from his cheeks, and long fur standing on the tip of his tail.

He has sharp, long claws, visible even when sheathed, but long and thin when unsheathed. He has something close to thumbs, but not exactly. He is thin and elegant, his hind legs are so long they always curl up slightly, and he sands on his long hind legs to gain extra height and to search for prey.

He is tall, maybe even taller than your raptor friend here,” he nodded towards Therosis.

“And maybe worst of all,” he leaned even closer, “his skull has two eye holes, y’know? Well, they’re not completely empty. He has glowing, light blue pupils, able to close and move and dilate as if he has real eyes.”

“Witnesses say he will act cute and innocent with big eyes to lure prey, then rip them apart. If you hear a whistle, run. That’s his main vocalization.”

The stand runner finally leaned back, done explaining.

“So what do ya wanna buy?” He asked casually, as if that had been the topic the entire time.

Therosis cleared his throat and threw some coins on the table.

“We will take two opals and an amethyst, please.” He said, his voice a little shaky.

The stand runner nodded and gathered the gems, picking them up and putting them in Therosis’s bag. Kaelen started walking away, his tail inching towards his legs.

The stand runner shouted after them:

“Beware of Ferizo! Don’t let him get to ya, my good customers!”