he stands not alone

The tang of blood was sharp on Akhlut's tongue, the tastes of the hog's blood and of his own mingling until they were indistinguishable. It did nothing to ease his appetite, only serving to make him hungry and irritated that his hunt had been unsuccessful. Even here, overlooking the Sea, prey was rather scarce and the deer herds had thinned and become so easily startled that they moved through the woods like ghosts, their presence fleeting and their movements nigh impossible to track, let along to stalk and hunt them. Akhlut eyed the thick boughs of Ravensblood Forest and he wondered if it was that near-impenetrable woodland that concealed them.

Another male wandered just then into the periphery of Akhlut's awareness, and his icy blue gaze shifted to fix upon the pale wolf. Specifically he narrowed his eyes to see the piglet dangling from the other's jaws and a flare of anger welled up inside the young Alpha. He stood up and lifted his tail to arch over his dark back, and he issued a sharp bark to catch the other wolf's attention. "Did you come to gloat? " His tone was quite frankly offended, and though Akhlut knew by scent that this wolf was one of his own, the Kesuk-Nereides did not feel very kindly towards him. The wolf had obviously watched him fail in his hunt, then managed to kill a piglet and bring it to the Alpha just to show off. It almost seemed a challenge.