Moonlight Magic

Blizzard woke in a flurry of excitement. Today was her coming of age! She was so excited that she almost bounced through the roof of her den. She had been preparing for this day for weeks and she was ready for all possible powers the full moon would give her. On a young wolf's coming of age they would get a special power from the full moon which is used to aid their family and tribe. Blizzard was especially nervous because her mother was the leader of their tribe, therefore a big burden to get the right power was on her shoulders. Unable to contain her excitement she bounded out of her den, leaped onto the leader's rock in a single jump and nuzzled her mother, Fearless. The leader was suddenly taken aback. She flinched but then embraced her daughter, they were ready for the day.

Blizzard stretched and lay down, prepared to eat a nice juicy rabbit that she had caught for herself. Evening was dawning on the forest and Blizzard could hardly wait anymore. She gazed eagerly as the elders prepared for her ceremony, scattering flower petals in a circle. 

"Are you ready?" asked Shadow-moon, one of her childhood friends.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Blizzard replied, and the two cubs watched the purple sky whilst the moon slowly rose.

The moon was at its highest point in the sky when Blizzard had finished her rabbit and was ready at last for her ceremony. She trotted out of her den with a pretty chrysanthemum tucked into her fur. Fearless beckoned at her from the centre of camp where everything was arranged. Since Blizzard was the leader's daughter, it was important that everything must be perfect. The oldest wolf in the tribe, known as 'Lalito' conducts all the coming of age ceremonies and Blizzard's being no exception. Lalito stood near the ring of flower petals and held in her hands some white, ground powder which she would sprinkle on Blizzard. 

Blizzard was instructed by Lalito to stand in the centre of the flower petals with the full moon directly above her head. Fearless sat, twitching in excitement. The whole pack gathered around Blizzard and howled in harmony at the same time. Lalito threw the powder into the air and it fluttered onto Blizzard slowly. Suddenly the moon shone, brighter than ever and sent a beam of light down onto her. She was blinded by the sparkles dancing in the air and closed her eyes. Blizzard sensed a red flash and she could open her eyes again. The once white powder around her had turned a bright shade of red and so had the moon. 

The tribe gasped in unison. Unsettled mutters passed around.

"THE DESTROYER!"

"... hasn't happened in years?"

"What a disgrace… "

Blizzard ran off towards her den in a blur, not looking back at the crowd. Her paws landed hard against the soft springy grass. It felt good to be mad.

"Blizzard WAIT!" Lalito yelled back at her. "We haven't finished the ceremony yet!"

She hid in her den and lay into her bed of moss

Fearless peeked her head over the bramble of leaves that formed the entrance to Blizzard's den. "Hi Blizzard…"

"Go away mom." she replied and tucked her head into her leg.

"Don't worry, it's okay!"

"NO IT'S NOT! I let everyone down and now they all hate me."

"Lizzie, you don't understand, they still love you no matter what. And you'll always have me."

"No I won't, you're always doing some royal work or the other and it's always for 'grown-ups only'. When I finally come of age do I absolutely have to get the worst power possible and everyone has to fear me."

Fearless sighed. Unable to settle matters with her daughter she turned around and walked out of the den, disappearing into the fog. 

The next morning, Blizzard woke up to bustling chatter and a very energetic pack. As soon as she walked out of her den all eyes turned towards her.  Blizzard huffed loudly and turned back inside. What was the point of going out when all everyone would do would be to stare and gawk at her all day. What was even her purpose? How was she supposed to destroy things to help the tribe? Blizzard sat in her cushy moss nest and fell back asleep.

When Blizzard woke up, she was running through the Shikagoya woods, faster than ever before. She felt a burning feeling in her chest that she had to get somewhere. She turned her head back and saw the whole family behind her with wide eyes and open mouths. It was just like them to just stand and watch her. She looked forward again and noticed she was heading straight into a boulder. She rammed into it and fell backwards with a thud. Her pack continued to watch. She looked up at the boulder and saw a message inscribed in blood - DESTROYER.

Blizzard sat up. She blinked her eyes multiple times to make sure she wasn't still dreaming and absorbed her surroundings. Same old den. What did that dream even mean? How would it feel to run away from a place she had lived her whole life. Maybe that’s what she had to do. It would be better for her tribe this way, she wouldn’t have to ‘protect’ her tribe by destroying it.

That was the answer, she would run, run anywhere better than this dump.

Fearless went into the den. It was morning, why hadn't Blizzard woken up? She looked around and dug through the moss but Blizzard was nowhere to be seen.

Fearless was worried sick but she had more important business to attend to, she needed to check on her assistant, Darkstar who had been acting up lately. She needed to check that he was doing his assigned work. She exited the den and walked up to the pale grey wolf.

Meanwhile Blizzard scampered through the forest, her light blue-grey pelt becoming a blur. She pondered what she would do next. Maybe settle into life as a rogue, build a home. But then what about her family at the camp? Blizzard found a small clearing to rest and sat there. She nestled under a bed of branches and fallen boulders. This would be a useful place for the night.

Back at camp, Fearless and Darkstar were having a good chat.

"Yes Fearless, how may I be of your assistance?"

"Have you been doing your daily duties?"

"Of course my leader I was about to patrol the borders of our camp."

"Last time I checked, that was my job…"

"You looked busy so I decided to take over."

Fearless sighed : "I'll do that now, you need to hunt for the elders."

"That's child's play and besides, don't you have to look for Blizzard?" Darkstar retorted.

"How do you know about her? You mustn't mention her absence to anyone! Fine go patrol just- just get out of my sight!" Fearless whispered hoarsely, the anger in her voice extremely evident.

Darkstar left the camp area and trotted towards a clearing that he knew of. Finally he arrived, the lush grass tingling his paws. He gave a low bark and 5 other wolves, all of different pelts  emerged from the bushes around him.

He raised his paw and they instantly stopped, huddled in a circle around him. 

Darkstar whispered to them and snippets of the message floated into the trees.

In a quick minute, the meeting was over and the wolves disappeared instantaneously. Only Darkstar was left, staring at the clearing in front of him. 

His eyes followed a quick mouse and as soon as it made the foolish move of running towards him, he pounced on it. He ran back to camp and dropped the mouse in the pile of fresh kill.

"Is that really all you could catch? I expected more from a deputy leader." Fearless teased.

"I buried the rest back there, I couldn't carry anymore back." Darkstar replied.

"I see, alright! Continue your duties."

Darkstar sighed. What should he do until the next new moon?

Blizzard was in her cave and thinking about her family back home when she noticed someone walk into the clearing. She sniffed the air. Wasn't… that was Darkstar, mother's deputy! He must be looking for her. Oh no, everyone must be so worried. Should she return? While Blizzard surrounded herself in annoying thoughts, Darkstar barked. It wasn't very loud or commanding. Was he doing secret work? 5 wolves entered from the bushes. They leaned in to talk. Blizzard longed to know what they were saying but she couldn't give away her hiding spot. As if by magic the cave somehow whispered a bit of their conversation to her. She flapped her ears, trying to catch every word.

The camp is at…weakness…attack…soon…next new moon.

Was Darkstar planning an attack because Blizzard had left. Was she the weakness?

In the camp, Fearless sat in her den. She was so tired of ruling this camp and now, her throne was left with Darkstar. How was she to leave her throne with someone she didn't even trust? What was she even thinking when she appointed Darkstar as leader? Anyway, today was The New Moon. Tonight would be a night of complete darkness, and many things can happen under the cover of the night. As the sunset neared, her heart beat faster and her chest felt light, yet heavy at the same time.

All of the camp was eating their dinner meal. Pretty much all of them had learned about Blizzard's disappearance by now but they couldn't do anything unless ordered by their leader and Fearless was too blind to see that. She watched the main entrance and all other easy access to the camp. The New Moon was something that always scared Fearless. On almost every single New Moon a disaster had occurred for Fearless and this night would probably not be any exception. She slunk outside, all senses on high alert. The first wolf she ran into was a young warrior. "Go and fetch Darkstar for me, will you?" she asked kindly. The warrior scrambled off to search for him while Fearless sat down and stretched her paws. If something bad was coming she would have to talk to Darkstar about it. She trusted him well but had her doubts about how he would rule the tribe.

Darkstar was outside a hidden entrance to the camp that only he knew of. Each of his fellow wolves stood at another entrance. When they were all ready he would howl to signal the start of the attack. He locked eyes with the wolf nearest to him and howled with all his might. The rest of them howled in unison behind him. They all charged into the camp and attacked the first thing they saw. It was utter chaos. Fearless fell into extreme panic, unable to control herself and her tribe. She watched in horror as her clan fought and some fell.How could Darkstar do this?

Blizzard was still puzzled about what she should do. The message told her that an attack would be placed on her tribe tonight on The New Moon. 2 weeks ago she would have gladly saved her tribe but now she wasn't sure if that even was her tribe. She might be hated for going back but then again she could redeem herself by helping them.

Blizzard heard a faint scream, then another one louder this time. The camp had been attacked and she needed to help.

She needed to take action this instant. Not thinking about anything else, Blizzard took off running faster than ever before to save her clan. This was her chance to redeem herself. As she reached her home she stopped in her tracks. Blood was splattered everywhere and wolves were groaning on the floor. Several of her clan were fighting vigorously against the enemy. Now was no time for fear, she needed to put feelings aside and fight for what she loved and was loyal to - her tribe. Determined, she locked eyes with her target. She was the destroyer. And she would destroy.

Her fangs glinted and sharpened, she flashed her claws and her strength was more than ever. Blizzard hurtled towards one of Darkstar's wolves. In the dead of night his pelt was barely visible but she darted and dodged with the speed of a cheetah and swiped at his snout mercilessly. He fell back and flinched while Blizzard lowered her stance and growled with all the power that she had and pounced. The unsuspecting wolf landed on the ground with a thud and Blizzard finished him off by biting at his arm, causing him to bleed in great amounts. She smiled in victory.

Suddenly inspired by this newfound courage that Blizzard had brought to her pack, other wolves too found their opponents begging for mercy. The tribe was going this way and that, dodging heartless blows and protecting their family. Cries of pain and power were heard in all directions. Soon there was only Darkstar left. Silence echoed through the forest. No one moved an inch. Darkstar had cornered their brave leader Fearless and she now whined in fear. All others were hurt or had fallen. Blizzard was their only hope.

Darkstar lifted a paw, ready to strike. Blizzard saw that his back was turned and was on her way to attack. She scampered towards him, the shaking of the earth pricking Darkstar's ears. He halted and turned around, still offering a threatening demeanour towards Fearless. Darkstar didn't even have time to see what was coming before Blizzard ambushed the cruel traitor. 

"You have no one to support you now." Blizzard hissed and swiped his ear off. He yowled in anger, wanting to fight back as much as he could. Power surged through her body causing her to deliver unbeatable blows. Even as Darkstar bit her, she felt as though she was covered in armour. Finally she sank her pointed fangs into his shoulder and brought him to his end.

Darkstar flopped to the ground and Fearless let out a sigh of relief. His motionless body lay there, still with his paw up to attack. The battle was over. Fearless nuzzled Blizzard.

"You saved our clan, our victory is thanks to you."

The tribe encircled the mother and daughter and as the dawn broke, painting the sky a many beautiful colours, the tribe howled in unison. They had declared triumph over Darkstar and his brutal gang. Blizzard looked down at her tribe. "I am the destroyer, and I destroyed them."