Two groups down. Third group to go and then Rodyn could start hunting too. He gave a jovial smile to Njord as he met him. Glad the male could join them. There were not as many remaining now as two of the groups dispersed.

Hello Wolves! I hope you are all well. You are lucky enough to be led by a good hunter, Njord. The following wolves will follow him into a hunt. @Rusalka from Raventhorpe, @Anathema from Brecheliant, @Mae from Hearthwood, @Kivaluk from Moonglow, @Shikoba from Moonglow and @Ravin from Sapphique. Best of luck to all of you.

Rodyn looked out over and used his paw to point out some of the bison. There are some with limps, some old and some young. You may choose from which you wish to go for. I suggest most on the sides. Be wary of horns and hooves. @Kukutux will be at the healers den if you should get hurt. And please have fun, but be strong.

Then he smiled and moved away letting Njord find his way.

Rodyn expertly hand-picked wolves from each camp and divided the hunters into smaller groups. Njord had not expected to be selected as a lead hunter, though he was honored to be given the privilege by his friend. As a man in his fifth year, Njord felt the strength of his youth had begun to wane. However… years of experience would be of greater use during this harrowing expedition.

As Njord departed the Moonspear camp he heard a voice.

Aokatti! We will hunt another day! Kigipigak, now @Kaluktuk called.

“Aye!” Njord’s lilted voice responded. “Hunt well, my friend!”

To know Kaluktuk hunted in parallel bolstered Njord’s confidence, especially in the presence of the Sapphiquians. To see Mireille and her clan evoked terrible memories. Njord had buried that hatchet – and he had no interest in digging it back up.


The redtail gathered before his team. A curious glint in his sapphire eyes appraised them all. Already, he began to place them like pieces of a puzzle.

@Rusalka of Raventhorpe was a gigantic man in his prime.

@Anathema of Brecheliant was a young, stocky adolescent.

@Mae of Hearthwood appeared to be Seal’s age, but far more rugged and experienced.

Njord was more familiar with @Shikoba and @Kivaluk of Moonglow. Shikoba was Beta and Kivaluk, a braw lad, was the first hunter. Two able wolves, he trusted.

Then, Njord couldn’t help but find the irony that a young man from Sapphique had become his ward. @Ravin was an athletic-looking boy who was on his way to filling out.

“My name is Njord Sveijarn-Corten of Sun Mote Copse,” he said in his token Scottish brogue. “Ah will lead ye on this hunt, today. Though we havenae worked ta’gether before, Ah see strength an’ swiftness in you all. Ah ken we will fell a bison and feast tonight,” he cheered optimistically.

He swished his red tail like a flag with pride. “Now, tell us all your names an’ your strengths. Ah will give each of you a role, then we will select our prey from tha herd.” Njord's weight shifted as he looked to his left, prompting the others to speak.

Perhaps predictably, Mae was the first to speak up. Name's Mae. I'm quicker than I am strong, but I'll do whatever ya need, She said brusquely, glancing around at the others. Some weirdo girl, a boy who smelled of the sea, a couple dudes she'd never seen. The patchwork woman caught her eye, but Mae said nothing.

Instead she looked to the leader of their group, waiting for instruction. She wished that she'd been placed with one of the other Hearthwood wolves. But it was fine. She would be fine without them.

they are split into groups, and rusalka, sole liaison for raventhrope in this group, having been separated from tamar, shuffles off with the rest of his group; casting an analytical gaze to each. strangers all, except for perhaps the ebon furred woman of whom he thought he might recall.

but he casts it aside as the man that would lead them speaks. njord, he called himself.

i am rusalka cairn, of raventhorpe. and without much else to add, the seaking falls to silence; listening as the others introduced themselves. i am stronger than i am speedy.

loathe as he is to part with @Chickadee, of whom he offers a kiss to her cheek and a softly murmured good luck., they are split into different groups and kivaluk branches off with his own.

silvered champagne gaze touches each of them, lingering upon njord as their hunt leader speaks.

introductions are passed around and kivaluk claims the space for his own after the man, rusalka, makes his introduction. i am kivaluk, of moonglow.

he gives a small pause. i am first hunter, in moonglow. i favor speed over strength, but i will play whatever role you need me to play.

The man spoke like wolves of Sapphique, but Ravin didn't particularly recognize him. "I'm Ravin of Sapphique, I'm fast and strong basically all the same, but maybe slightly better with my speed as my size is still filling out." The boy commented.

she was older, perhaps the oldest of this branch! but she did not fear the youth she once had, and she did not fear the new gray hair that clung to her face and sides. she would come to offer a polite dip of the muzzle to others, realizing it was perhaps her turn to introduce herself.

normally, speed is what she favored, but with the deep snow and her older joints, shikoba would throw herself into a different role. "i am shikoba, star hunter of moonglow. i offer my strength and teeth." her agility remained, though grew less and less the days she found herself sleeping more.

she shakes away the thoughts, eyes wandering over the eyes of the others for a moment, waiting for when the cues will start and when they may finally move. perhaps she was smaller, yes, but that provided her chances to fit into spaces that others could not. where some saw disadvantage, she saw an opportunity.

Abruptly faced with the reality of this hunt, Anathema had drifted toward the outskirts of the group she'd been placed in. She eyed the others warily as they introduced themselves. She eyed the bison, huge beasts in tightly-knit circles.

They couldn't do this. She couldn't do this. One blow from a massive hoof would split a wolf skull like the soft shell of a newly molted crab. The eyes would bulge from their sockets and the blood would pour through fur, stark hints of white peering through the red. Convulsions, perhaps, before the final twitching of death. There would be pain. And then there would be nothing at all.

She couldn't do this.

Anathema backed away slowly, then finally turned and fled from the group, from the hunt, from Hoshor Plains entirely.

Photography by Glenn Plumb


The troupe gathered and the dark, scarred girl was the first to speak up. Njord smirked and appreciated Mae’s gumption. She said she was fast, and the huntlead believed it. Her lean body type and sharp angles meant she was a creature born for the chase. The scars on her body showed she could endure pain and discomfort; a young woman full of tenacity.

Rusalka’s quiet and calculative mein matched his massive size. A boulder of a man – like he had been carved from the mountainside. Njord felt he was very tactical and would not take unnecessary risks out of ego or pride. In many ways, Rusalaka reminded Njord of the late Kaertok.

Kivaluk, as Njord had learned, was Kaluktuk’s son. However, something Chalkiux had once said about his own son, Ray, echoed in his mind: ‘a boy becoming man needs other men to recognize what he has become but not to be a father who he might fail.’ Though Njord was unaware of their troubled relationship, he would look upon Kivaluk as his own man; his own hunter.

The young man was a well-made young wolf. Stocky and muscled; a creature who grew into its prime. He too, like Mae, relied on speed over strength.

Then, Ravin spoke confidently. He was a dark boy with a piercing stare, and Njord was pleased to hear he considered himself an all-arounder with an aptitude for speed. This was good for their hunting party, and Njord knew Ravin’s presence would balance their entourage.

Shikoba, Njord felt, was the wisest and most experienced hunter of the group. Not only because of her age but because of the prominent rank she held within Moonglow. As a keen hunter, the man knew she would be an important piece of their puzzle: Njord trusted that Shikoba would know exactly where to strike.

And then, as Njord’s head turned to regard the youngest member of their group, Anathema suddenly lost her nerve and ran. “Let ‘er go,” he said in a flat tone, “s’better she leave now than later.” His blue eyes turned to the rest of his hunters as if to ask: anybody else? Now was the final boarding call. If more wolves defected during the hunt, it would mean danger for the rest.

Then, Njord continued.

“Rodyn ‘as told me bison are no like other beasts. We dinnae have much ground cover for a surprise, an’ if we choose wrong tha Bison will form a protective circle ‘round one another. It’ll be imperative tae approach it strategically.”

“Mae, Kivaluk,” he called their names. “You will run in tandem as our vanguards an’ spearhead tha hunt. First, we must panic tha herd tae scatter it, an’ then you both will drive tha bison from its kin. Be fierce. Be dangerous.”

“Ravin, Shikoba,” he said next. “Once tha bison has been separated, take opposite sides tae keep it corralled. We must run it straight tae fatigue it. Aim your fangs well tae weaken it, make it bleed."

“Rusalka,” Njord regarded the man for the most harrowing job, “you an’ Ah will be tha anchors. When tha bison cannae run anymore, we will weigh it down with our strength. Take Shikoba’s side, if ye have tha choice. Ah will take Ravin’s.”

It was a good plan, Njord felt, that would optimize their assets. The young, strong wolves had plenty of energy to run the bison to the point of collapse. From there, they would leverage their strength to bring it down.

“Are ye ready?” Njord asked as his tail waved stiffly like a red flag. Then, he let out a loud whoop and led his hunters to where the bison grazed. There he spied an old bull on the precipice... larger and more dangerous than a cow, but... perhaps he would be easily separated from the rest -- no other bison would turn back to defend him.

When everyone was in place their hunt would begin. Njord looked to Mae and Kivaluk... a lull of silence came over the plains. A quick flick of his good ear; a subtle signal to run. The hunt was on!



Photography by Jeff Turner © River Road Films, Ltd.

Ravin assumes his position at the flank and as the chase starts, he sees an opening as the bison turns. He lunges and grabs hold of the animal by the haunch, gripping on hard to slow the animal down. He seems to cause a lot of damage because after he releases, the animal is noticeably limping on that side.

kivaluk and rusalka nod when they are given their roles. kivaluk would chase and rusalka would assist njord in anchoring the beast.

the fleeing of the young girl catches both the cairn and moonman's attention but neither think poorly of her nor judge her for her decision. the bison were large, imposing beasts and capable of dishing out plenty of damage of their own. at any rate, njord asks those gathered to let her be.

the hunt begins!

kivaluk focuses on nothing but their quarry, gaze afixed as he gives chase with the dark furred woman, mae. bolstered by the adrenaline coursing strong and steady thru his veins, when he notices an opening, he lunges for the beasts' elbow closest to him: finding purchase in the attack.

he does not press his luck again, falling back to the role of chaser once more as rusalka surges forth.

a small diversion of kivaluk's gaze to rusalka, watching that small moment of hesitation that could've cost him. but rusalka remembers himself in the next moment and takes a bite out of the fatigued beast.

Njord’s hunting party ran in tandem as their pursuit began. The footfalls of their paws against the cold prairie drummed a hunting song and the bison responded with fear. They panicked, unexpectedly accosted by such a tactical advance, and turned to flee from the predators.

The youngsters, Mae and Kivaluk, made a valiant pair as they separated one animal from the masses.

Ravin and Shikoba drew first blood.

Then, Njord and Rusalka brang up the rear.

The Bison’s eyes flashed as it saw death.

Njord felt his chest tighten. His lungs ached. His joints complained. For the first time, the red-tailed man felt his middle ages and began to fall behind.

Rusalka was upon the beast before him. Soon after, Njord caught up and joined the rest to help bring the animal down. It was not without great effort, but soon their fur was painted the color red.

Victory! Njord threw back his head to howl and sing to the camps of their victory.

But in the back of his mind, a new sense of mortality had awakened.

As the beast fell Ravin smiled. He was panting from the run but the taste of blood in his mouth from the beast fueled his adrenaline and kept his energy up. This was his first big hunt and he was really happy with it.