Bearclaw Valley They grow into adults, and become dangerous things

Aventus woke with a start at dawn, wincing at the ache that slowly blossomed across his flank. By now, he no longer needed to wear the stabilizing brace Evien had fashioned for him. His broken ribs had fused properly, and now it was just a matter of building the bone back up and not disrupting the process. He'd been allowed to return to his home at the rendezvous with strict instruction that he limit his activity to slow walks and the stretching exercises the medic described to him.

Which was easier said than done. He was bored out of his mind most days and wanted nothing more than to return to his usual routine of skulking around the valley, testing his ability to sneak around and gather information. Not that there was much information worth gathering these days. The alliance with the Saints was over. Ursus once more stood alone and, in his youthful opinion, was mightier for it. There were new faces in the pack, but none he particularly cared to meet.

He slowly shook the remnants of a bad dream from his mind, yawned, and pulled himself carefully to his feet. He wanted to give his entire body a rough shake, but he knew it would hurt, so he swallowed the impulse. He forced his feet to move instead, his gait stiff at first, and made a beeline for the closest stream so he could wet his dry mouth.