Collaborative fan fiction - Read, enjoy and contribute!

[Catlover]

2 hours ago, upnorth said:

Well thank you kindly! I agree that we have something pretty cool going on here. It's been a slow progress from time to time and a few side-quests to keep track of, but I'm very impressed with how on point the writing have been from everyone so far tbh

Agreed, it's been a fun little project over the past year or two and I'm glad people like reading it

[Catlover]

Amy woke up early, the sun barely brushing the horizon and the fading stars still visible in the dawn sky. She had barely gotten an hour of sleep but any tiredness had been overwhelmed by the anxiety that had been brought on by the fact that her dog still wasn't back yet. 

Careful to not wake her now-housemates, she put on her boots and headed out into the snow, calling her dog's name every few minutes. She knew that the bear was around but she couldn't care less. All she wanted was her companion back. After the blizzard though, Amy began to think that the chances of that happening were slim. 

Still, she kept calling, and searching as the sun climbed up the pale blue and orange sky, her vision blurred by anxious tears as Mocha didn't appear. 

Her legs aching from walking around in circles, she dusted down a snow covered bench and sat down, covering her face with her hands as she cried. She had to accept that her dog was probably gone, frozen to death or torn to shreds by the massive bear. 

She didn't hear the footsteps coming closer until she heard a voice, gruff and slightly concerned. 

"What's up?" 

Mortified, Amy sat up, wiping her eyes as she spotted Erik, the last person she wanted to see. 

"It's my dog, she ran off after a bear came after us, and I doubt she survived the blizzard." Her voice wobbled slightly and she looked away. "It's stupid but I loved that dog." 

"I came to warn you about the bear but I guess you already know about him. I'll help search for your dog if you want." 

"Thank you!" Amy stood, and not quite thinking, wrapped her arms around him in a grateful embrace. Erik didn't do anything, just standing there awkwardly patting her on the back.

"It's nothing. I'm something of a dog person myself"

Amy pulled back, looking in his unusually kind eyes, for Erik standards anyway.

"I appreciate it."

What happened next she would blame on her emotional vulnerability and the relief of having him help, but for one brief moment, amongst the snow, they shared a single kiss. As they pulled apart, Amy"s eyes widened in surprise as she realised what she had done, backing away quickly. 

"Oh god I'm sorry, I don't know what happened. I have a boyfriend. I-" She cut herself off, though she didn't let Erik say anything, "You know what, I'll look for Mocha on my own. You go see Christine if you want, she should be up." 

Still mortified and disgusted with herself, she turned and hurried off into the snow, realising that really, she didn't regret what had happened. 

[piddy3825]

"It's gonna be dark soon, better start looking for shelter," a little voice whispers and echos inside his head as James finally begins to take stock of the situation unfolding before him.  Taking a few deep breathes, he pulls himself together and desperately tries to quell the panic that is slowly starting to build inside him.  He can taste the bitter bile at the back of his throat and the tightness in the small of his back as he attempts to reign in his sudden desire to start running again.

"Run? Run to where?" He says out loud for his own benefit.  
An old song that his mother used to play when he was a child suddenly pops into his head 
and he begins to quitely sing the lyrics he can barely remember from those days.

"Nowhere to run to baby, Nowhere to hide
Got Nowhere to run to baby, Nowhere to hide"

Realizing how parched he was, James unzips his jacket and reaches for the nearly empty water bottle in his inner pocket.  He pulls the bottle free and drains the last of the liquid, only drops remaining now in his empty container.  He stows the empty bottle in his ruck.  The little bit of water was enough for him to regain his composure, so he pauses momentarily to consider his next move.  

"Doesn't look very likely that I can climb up that crap." He thinks to himself as he begins to look around for a clue as to how to get around the the wreckage caused by the landslide.  But as luck would have it, he spies what looks like a well worn path in the snow leading into a dense copse of snow laden trees.  He decides to follow this game trail as it appears it could lead him around the debris and possibly back to the other side of the roadway.  A slight smile begins to appear on his face as he begins to follow the compacted snow marking the trail.  He follows the trail as it winds in and around the trees.  His boots crunched with every step he took, the sound seemed so loud in the stillness of the snow laden trees.  

It was dark under the canopy of trees and the light of day was slowly turning to dusk as James was wearily following the game trail when suddenly he stumbled out into an open glade.  The air seemed different, the light of the setting sun made the sky above his head shimmer with a radiance unlike any he had ever seen before.  Static electricty made the hair on the back of his head stand on end as he stood in the middle of the glade and marveled at the beauty of the light show beginning to dance upon the heavens.  Before long, he shook his head as if to clear the cobwebs from forming on his brain.  "Snap out of it, James!" he thought to himself.  "Focus or die."  And with that thought he continued forward with a fierce determination and strode towards the opposite side of the clearing with a frenetic pace brought on by his thoughts of self preservation.

As the clearing opened up and began to reveal the landscape before him was when he heard the first forlorn howl of a wolf off in the distance.
Then another, this time closer.  And another and another, each voice of the pack yowling with what sounded like anticipation to Jame's ears.
That's when he saw the first of timberwolves.

James noticed the colors beginning to dance across the sky as air began to hum in unison with dancing lights as  the wolves began to surround him very slowly.  The glow of their yellow eyes seemed to burn with a hunger that James knew was for his flesh.  He felt their lust for blood as the pack began to circle about him.  The alpha male weaving around and around studying James, smelling the fear rising from his prey!  Suddenly a wolf darts in from behind and body checks James knocking him to the ground before darting back to the safety of the pack.  James struggles to his feet, gasping for air as he begins to remove his backpack and starts swinging it like a club as the minor wolves from the pack begin to dart in nipping at his unprotected legs.  As a surge of adrenaline hits his bloodstream, James begins rushing the wolf pack!  Swinging his backpack like a war club he manages to connect with one of the young males in mid leap sending him flying and crashing into another.  Their yelp of surprise and pain was music to James's ears and with each yelp he heard if fueled James into further action as the pack suddenly realized their prey wasn't going to go down as easily as they thought.

For the next few minutes it was a standoff.  The wolves continued to circle around him, goaded by the alpha male as it studied James.  The wolf could sense that James was tiring from their continued onslaught.  At the same time, James knew that he was running out of strenght to continue the fight and if he didn't stop their attack, it wouldn't be much longer before he was doomed.  With his last reserves he sprang forward rushing into the midst of their ranks crashing and bashing his way towards their leader!  
With a bark of surprise to this challenge, the big Timberwolf sprang forward, baring his long yellow teeth and biting down hard on James's left hand.  The bite was deep and James screamed in pain as the wolf's jaws exerting over 1500 hundred pounds of pressure per square inch broke the small bones in his hand severing several fingers in the process.  In desperation fueled by excruciating pain, James jammed his right hand's index finger deep into the wolf's left eye and continued thrusting, pushing and thrusting and stabbing his finger over and over until he heard "pop." 

 The wolf howled in pain as the finger was withdrawn from the wolf''s ruined eye socket, the bloody jelly of the damaged eye dripping from James's gloved hand staining the snow at their feet.  The wolf pushed away ripping what was left of Jame's gloved left hand exposing the bleeding stumps of his severed fingers.  Bright red blood dripped steadily from his mangled hand and the smell of hot blood tainted the air as the pack now began to boldly close in from all sides.  First came a series of single feints which were followed up by pairs attacking from opposite sides.  Each wolf biting deeply into his arms and legs before rushing back to the saftey of the pack.  

The death of 1000 bites. The dance of death.  The pack knew this dance quite well.   Keep prey in circle.  Run in, bite victim, run out.   Bite until prey can no longer stand.  It wasnt long before James fell to his knees.  The pack's circle started drawing inward, slowly but deliberately.  It wouldn't be much longer now.  They all sensed it.  James knew it, the wolves knew it.  The circle of life was about to close for good on the last chapter of James's story.  
As his life blood ebbed into the snow, he rolled over in the snow and gazed up to the sky.

 The full moon had risen and the aurora danced across the star filled night sky, the celestial light show reflecting from his dying eyes as his sight dimmed and his eyes closed for the last time.

 

[upnorth]

Emma was not the only one in the group that had a shocking few days. Mocha was stressed out and tired from escaping and now trying to avoid their greatest threat so far. Luckily Amy seemed to have got inside Christine's house safely but navigating between a bear roaming the small town and wolfs in the surrounding forests was hard even with canine senses. Some parts was more familiar than others but beggars can't be choosers and to keep a safe distance from threats Mocha had to navigate through the night, getting back to Christine's didn't seem possible.

Having darted to the side to avoid the bear attacking, Mocha had continued away from the path the bear seemed to be on. The scent was fairly fresh. Being stuck between that and avoiding nearby wolf packs, the only way forward soon hinted of Amy's and Erik's scents. Tracking them down lead to the path back to Erik's cabin. Mocha followed the path and soon found a familiar sight.

The door was closed, Mocha tried scraping the door with her paws and making a few sounds, but nothing too loud to avoid attracting attackers. No answer. Erik's scent was very fresh so he must have just left recently. Mocha crawled up against the somewhat warmed up cabin wall heated from the new day's sunshine and rested, eating some snow to hydrate.

Edited February 9, 2022 by upnorth

[Catlover]

Erik, figuring his help wasn't wanted, turned and began heading back to the cabin. Christine would likely already know about the bear after Amy's close encounter. 

Amy, the girl that was always confusing him. Kissing and then running off, seeming to blame it on him. Refusing to dwell on it, Erik shrugged it off; there were more important things to think about. 

Such as the the fact that there was a timberwolf on his doorstep. 

Though, after remembering timberwolves were miles away, he had a more rational assumption. Somehow the dog had wound up at his cabin. 

"Dammit," He grumbled to himself. He was glad to see that Mocha was ok, but it meant he had to return her. Erik was already lacking in social skills, and that was before meeting Amy. At least before he had some idea on what to do. 

It was unlike him to dwell on subjects like this, but he found himself dreading but also somewhat looking forward to seeing her again. Maybe the kiss had changed more than he thought.

[piddy3825]

Emma woke up hungry.  She dressed quickly and bounded down the stairs and burst into the kitchen.  "Mom, I'm so hungry. What's for breakfast?" she asked.  

Christine had just put the kettle on the stove in preparation of their morning meal.  Looking thru the meager contents in her pantry, she looked at Emma and said "Oatmeal."  Emma frowned and pouted.  "I don't want oatmeal.  We've had oatmeal almost everyday this week."    She looked at her mother with a little grin on her face and said, "Pancakes, Mommy.  Blueberry pancakes, with lots of creamy butter and maple syrup!  That's what I want"

Christine thought to herself, "yeah, that does sound good doesn't it?"  She looked at Emma, then glanced over to the rifle propped up in the corner.    "Tell you what, kiddo." she said, "You go get dressed and we'll walk up to the store and get some fresh supplies.  It's been a couple of days and I really ought to check on the store anyway."   She turned away from Emma as the thought occurred to her that it just might not be all that safe going to the store alone with a child while that bear was still loose. 

Emma ran up the stairs and started getting dressed.  Excited about pancakes for breakfast, for lunch and for dinner.  
She hastily donned her winter coat and grabbed her boots before bouncing back down the stairs.  
"I'm ready!" she yelled to her mother.  "Let's go!"

[Catlover]

Amy was still searching when she heard the familiar wet crunch of a footprint on snow. Her thoughts instantly going towards a bear, or some dangerous carnivore, she whirled around, letting out a relieved breath when she noticed Erik. As awkward as their exchange had been, the loner was far better than a bear. 

"You scared me," She admitted, sounding slightly accusing. 

"I got your dog." Erik grunted, stepping aside. 

The brown and white dog barrelled out from behind him, whining as she noticed her owner. Amy, overjoyed beyond words, sank down into the snow and got licked near to death. After their brief reunion, she stood, still stroking Mocha. 

"Where did you find her?" She asked, not quite able to look Erik in the eye. 

"Outside my cabin. Guess that's where she ran to from the bear." He shrugged.

"Thank you." 

Silence drew out between them, words hanging unsaid. Amy had a sudden urge to apologise over what had happened, but figured that since Erik wasn't mentioning it either, it would be a moment best left forgotten. 

After a few moments that felt like an age, Erik spoke. "I'd best be off. Things need doing." 

He didn't elaborate, and Amy wondered if it was just an excuse. 

"I'm sorry," She called after him, as he began walking off through the snow.

"For what?" Pausing, Erik turned around. 

"For.." She hesitated, "You know." 

There was a hint of what looked like amusement in Erik's eyes and he shrugged, again. "No need to be sorry. It's your boyfriend you should be apologising to." 

Amy nodded, not sure if he was joking or not. "I think I'll keep that out of our conversations." 

Erik chuckled, "Probably for the best." And then he was off, walking through the snow, vanishing behind a tree.

Amy smiled to herself, surprised to know that Erik did indeed have a sense of humour. Maybe he wasn't quite the lone, antisocial outdoorsman he had seemed to be. 

"Come on Mocha," She crouched, speaking to her dog, "Let's go find Christine and Emma, let them know you're safe." 

[piddy3825]

His eyes were bloodshot and a red haze clouded his usually sharp and unobscured vision.  Pain radiated down his 
shoulder where the bullet from the rifle had struck him...

Tired, hungry and full of rage!  

Nothing more irritating than to be abruptly woken from a deep sleep, ravenously hungry, long before it was time to be awakened.  It must have been the lights in the sky?  And then to be shot again by those creatures who walked erect! 

The bear had learned early on in it's life to avoid the people.  Shot more than once by bow hunters, a few of their arrows still protruded from his massive frame.  Still feeling the pain those hunters had inflicted so many seasons ago, the bear had wandered high up the mountain deep into the high line forest and had stayed away from the town for a long time.  Ravenous now that it had been awakened and finding nothing to eat as snow covered the landscape in a deep cold  blanket of white.  It was only when the  bear was suddenly wakened from it's winter hibernation that it was forced to come down from the heights to seek food.    

The bear had done it's best to avoid contact with people while searching for food.  But then it accidently encountered the Mountie, who having been startled quickly had pulled his service revolver and fired but in his fright he missed, only for the bears natural instincts to take over and the man soon lay bleeding and writhing in agony.  

A face flashed into the mind of the bear. 
The face of the man who had shot him. 
The man who had robbed him of his prize.
Tthe man who had robbed him of his meal.  

Kill this man!  Rip him, rake him, bite him, bleed him!   

Using it's keen sense of smell, the bear reared up on its back legs and sniffed the air.  Turning the bear continued sniffing until it suddenly stopped.   The scent was on the wind, wafting from town...

[upnorth]

Meanwhile back at Christine's, she sighed as she was about to break the enthusiasm of a beloved child who had already had a rough few days.

- I'm sorry honey, but until we know that the bear has gone or been killed, I don't think it's safe for you to go outside. It's bad enough with wolves being unusually aggressive. Christine said as Emma was rushing back down the stairs.

Emma stopped immediately, looked up at her mother in chock, then started crying as she slowly made her way back upstairs.

- I wonder what it will take to bring that bear to its end. Between us and Erik we do have a few guns and rifles, but we probably need to fire them from safe positions... Christine thought for herself as she started to prepare a more mundane breakfast, hoping that Emma would get hungry and come back down. But she didn't want to make her.

- Oh well, I have to try to reach the authorities anyway, one thing at a time. She thought as she set the table, looking out of the window to the familiar and beautiful landscape outside that she knew and loved. It didn't look as dangerous as it was.

Edited February 17, 2022 by upnorth

[Catlover]

Amy started walking back, trying to push previous events out of her mind. Mocha was back with her and that should have been all that mattered. Approaching Christine's door, she knocked, not wanting to let herself in uninvited. The door opened after a few moments. Christine stood there, looking clearly stressed about something. 

Amy didn't want to pry, and she figured Christine would tell her if something important had happened. 

"I found her!" Amy announced the obvious though her voice sounded false even to her own ears. 

Christine gave a smile, "Emma will be happy." 

"Where is she?" Expecting the young child to be sitting somewhere downstairs, she was surprised to see she wasn't anywhere

"Upstairs. She's not very happy right now." 

"I could go see her if you want. She'll be happy to see Mocha."

"Good idea."

Calling her dog, Amy started making her way upstairs, hoping to help the young child. 

[piddy3825]

Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring... 

With all electronic devices having been incapcitated somehow, the absence of noise was profoundly deafing.  After many days of relative silence the sudden ringing of the old land line telephone startled the two women, who looked at each other in shock and surprise.  Amy looked at Christine with a look of concern furrowing her brow, "You gonna answer that?" she asked expectantly?

Christine, suddenly turned deathly pale and practically whispered, "Your closer, maybe you could answer it?"  her voice trailed off  as she glanced from the ringing phone to Amy with a questioning look?

Amy strode to the phone, snatched the handset from the cradle and placed the phone to her ear.  
She heard a series of beeps and clicks when suddenly a loud voice stated:

"This is the Emergency Notification System!  
Please do not hang up the phone.  The following message contains information regarding the state of this emergency!  
Please do not hang up the phone.  The following message contains information regarding the state of this emergency!"  

"Christine, come here!  You've got to hear this!" Amy shouted!
Christine strode across the room and took the reciever from Amy's outstretched hand and placed it against her ear.  Amy leaned in close to listen and the women awkwardly adjusted their postures so they could each hear the voice coming out of the handset's tiny speaker.

"The Area is in a State of Emergency following the recent unexplained celestial electromagnetic phenomena that has disrupted Power Distribution and Cellular Communications across the country.  Emergency Medical, Fire and Police services have been severly crippled nationwide as vehicles and communications equipement have all been rendered inoperative.   Scientists have been unable to determine the cause of this event and there is currently no timeframe in which these services may be restored."   

"The Emergency Management Authority has issued a mandatory shelter in-place for residents during this period of crisis. Take self-protective actions immediately: 
1. Go inside immediately and stay inside your house or building. 
2. Bring pets indoors only if you can do so quickly. 
3. Close all windows and doors. 
4. Gather food, water and medicines.
5. Prepare for an extended period of self reliance. 
6. Fire Stations and Police Stations have been designated as Emergency Evacuation Centers.  
7. Reports of agressive animal behaviour have been noted since the disruption, residents are advised to avoid contact with wildlife."

"You will be advised when this dangerous condition has passed and it is safe to go outside and resume normal activities.  This message will be repeated."

As the message began to run again, Christine listened for a few more moments and then abruptly turned and hung up the phone.  Amy looked at Christine expectantly.  "What should we do now?" she asked?  "I don't know." Christine answered.  

As if on que, Emma and Mocha came rushing down the stairs!   "I thought I heard the telephone ringing, Mom! she shouted with excitement.  Caught up in Emma's excitement, Mocha started furiously wagging her tail, but the wagging faded as the dog studied her owners face.   Emma noticed the glances and the frown on her mother's face too and suddenly her smile disappeared.    

Emma studied her mothers face.  She could see the fear and uncertainty begin to creep into her mothers eyes.  
"It's bad.  Real bad." she thought to herself.   Feeling afraid for the first time, a tear began to form in the corner of her eye.  As it slid down her check, Emma turned to her mom and asked,

"What are we gonna do, Mom?

Edited February 20, 2022 by piddy3825
spelling

[Catlover]

Amy's first thought was to tell Erik somehow, but she remembered that he had a radio so hopefully already knew. 

Christine looked more panicked that she had seen in a while, though it was clear she was trying to mask it for her child. 

"We had a call from the government-" Christine started, though she was quickly intercepted by Emma. 

"You mean we're going to be rescued?" The young child's gaze was clear with relief and Amy could tell that Christine felt awful for crushing her hopes.

"Not for a while. We need to go to the shop now, quickly." Her fear was replaced by a sudden urgency. Taking Emma's hand, she opened the door, practically running, Emma clearly struggling to keep up. She consistently asked a shower of questions, having no idea about what was happening, none of which got answered. 

The streets were busier than Amy had ever seen them, especially around Christine's shop. Her window had been smashed in, again, and from the looks of it, there was little else they could get. 

Amy wondered if they could ask people for supplies but after witnessing several fights over a small item, out of her corner of her eyes, that was out of the question. 

"We need more food." Amy heard Christine murmur to herself. And, finally, she had a good idea.

"I know what to do." She kept her voice low, "Erik  has stocked up loads of canned food and everything. Maybe he could share them." 

Christine looked doubtful "It's not a short walk, and I don't want to leave the house alone for long. You can see what people have been doing to empty places." 

"You go back, I can go see him." Though her stomach fluttered with anxious butterflies at the thought, but she refused to let it bother her. She had to get food for them. They had stashed up a bit, but nowhere near enough. And judging by the desperation of local citizens willing to fight for the most pitiful of items, they hadn't got enough too. And that made them dangerous. 

"I'll be back soon." She added. 

Christine glanced down at her child and then back up at Amy. "Be careful."

[piddy3825]

After a brief brisk walk over the frozen ground, Erik stopped and glanced back over this shoulder.  Amy had long since disappeared from his view as his mind was slowly replaying the recent events of their last encounter.  With a bit of grin on his face, Erik suddently was struck with the thought that he should go and bury the body of the Mountie that had been mauled and killed by the bear.  Getting his bearings, he strode off making his way with an agonzing slowness caused by him breaking thru the crust of the snow with every step.

"Maybe I should go back to the cabin and get my snowshoes?" He wondered to himself as he again broke thru the crisp yet weak crust of snow hindering his progress.   "Not to far now!" he said to himself out loud, his voice swept almost instantly away by the frigid bitting wind blowing across the clearcut area he found himself trodding thru.   

Although the wind was bitter and the going slow at least Erik could see if anything or anyone was coming.  
"That's about the only benefit you get from being out in the open," he thought to himself as he noticed a murder of crows circling a ways off in the distance.  He heard their raucous caws echoing on the wind as he got closer to their location.  

As Erik approached the scene,  he saw the crows fighting each other as they pecked at the exposed flesh of the corpse.  His stomach turned as he noticed the man's eyes were missing and the soft flesh of his mouth and nose had torn away with the remaining pieces leaving a grinning eyeless visage that he know would haunt him in his dreams.    "How do you tell a little girl her daddy is dead?" he wondered.    

Spurred on by his resolve, quickly set about crafting a makeshift travois out of a couple neary by cedar limbs and the spool of paracord that he always kept in his ruck.  Before long he had the man's remains loaded onto the travois and he began his burdensome trek back towards town. 

As he walked back across the clear cut, he though to himself,  "At least this time I got the wind to my back!"  

 

 

[Piotross]

Erik arrived at his cabin with no further complications. With the wind to his back, he could move quite quickly. However, to his surprise the doors were busted open. He reached for the Mountie's revolver, he held behind a belt. He gripped the revolver tightly, pointed it in front of him and he carefully walked into his cabin.

As his eyes got used to the darkness, he glanced around his cabin. It was in an awful state, his canned food spilled around the floor, bed with long scratch marks on it, the stove somehow was de-attached from the pipe that lead to a chimney.

He knew what creature had done this. He instinctively turned around to see the main cause of him losing this many supplies.

The bear's dark eyes stared right into his soul, blood and rest of the canned tomato soup dripping down his snout. His mouth twisted in what seemed to be a not logical way for bears.

Without hesitation, Erik aimed his revolver at beast's head, as it was charging at him.

 

Edited March 1, 2022 by Piotross

[piddy3825]

As Erik braced himself for the charge of the bear while shakily aiming his revolver at the bear, his mind racing as to 
where he should aim as he knew he was only going to get one shot before the bear would get to him.

BOOM!!! A shot rang out, suddenly and without warning from the doorway of the cabin narrowly passing by Erik's right ear as the rifle slug trajectory speed towards the bear's grinning visage.  The bullet struck the bear just above it's left eye gouging a deep furrow as it glanced off it's hardened skull obliterating the bear's left ear in the process.  The glancing impact of the bullet was enough to momentarily stun the bear allowing Erik to turn and run for the door.

As he turned he saw Amy in the doorway struggling with a rifle desperately trying to work the bolt but struggling as she was shaking as the adrenaline was building up in her system.  

"Run!  Run for the truck!"  he yelled as he recognized Amy thru the gunsmoke wafting thru the open door of his cabin.  Amy looked up and saw Erik quickly making his way to the door.  Turning as ordered, she quickly started moving towards the parked vehicle just a few meters away from the porch of the cabin.

Erik quickly exited the cabin, grabbing Amy's arm pulling her along in his flight towards the safety of his old pickup.
He opened the passenger side door and roughly pushed Amy inside, quickly climbing in behind her and pulling the door closed.  Just as the door was latching, the bear burst from the cabin and made a beeline towards the couple, the rage on it's face so palpable it would be etched into Erik and Amy's memories forever.  

The bear slammed into the door with such an impact that the entire truck moved from the impact, denting the door and breaking the side view mirror right off the mount.   The wing window cracked from the stress and showered the interior of the truck's cab with tiny pieces of glass.  With a slow and deliberate motion, Erik stuck the barrel of his revolver out of the broken window and started pulling the trigger as the bear continued thrasing and bashing about outside. 

Pow, Pow, Pow!!!  The sound of the gunfire inside the cab of the truck was deafening.  Amy's mouth moved as if she
were screaming in terror, but Erik's ears were ringing so badly he couldn't hear her.  They both looked out the window and watched in shock and amazement as the bear suddenly turned in his tracks and began to run back towards the tree line leaving a blood trail in it's wake.   Upon reaching the tree line, the bear turned, reared up on it's hind legs and let out a bellow of rage and pain, it's glare of hatred contorting the bloody face into a demonic grin.   It turned and swiftly entered the treeline and quickly vanished from sight.

 

[Catlover]

Amy clenched her fists, trying to steady her shaky breathing. They were safe, Erik had saved them. Saved her. 

"Are you ok?" She asked, her voice quavering slightly from the shock. How Erik looked so casual after nearly being mauled, she would never know. 

Giving a shrug, Erik turned to face her. "I'll live, thanks to your rifle. What are you doing here anyway, we're not meant to be leaving our houses." 

"We didn't have any supplies, so I thought maybe-" 

Erik cut her off, his voice holding faint amusement, "You could take mine." 

"I mean I did just save your life." Amy pointed out, with a grin. 

Erik watched her for a moment, thinking, looking more amused than annoyed. Amy tried not to think about how good he looked when he actually smiled. Which then lead her to trying not to think about the time they'd kissed, and how right now she'd gladly do it again. 

Finally, he sighed, intercepting her disloyal thoughts. "Guess I have no choice. Come on." 

[Piotross]

- Three bullets. What is three bullets! - A Man could be heard yelling inside of his cabin in the middle of the forest. - I've been stuck here for how long now? Since that radio event?! I haven't heard from him since! - He smashed his hand against the table, accidentally cutting in in the process, however he didn't pay any attention to that.

- I'm running out of canned food and fire starting supplies - He kept on talking to himself, being isolated took a toll on his mental health. - If I don't head out now, I'll either starve, freeze to death or both. 
He swept his slightly injured arm against a desk, moving some papers and cans out of his way. He then laid his map down on the table.

- I should either go to the Blackrock, or to town. The guy on the radio is probably in town. I'm going for town. - He concluded. Right after that he got to preparing for the journey. Only one 1 liter bottle of water, one can of canned soup and a packet of dried beef plus his rifle loaded with three bullets.

The man glanced at the cabin one final time, most likely saying farewell, pushed the door open headed out for the town.

Edited March 5, 2022 by Piotross

[piddy3825]

Back in town, pandemonium was running rampant.   The recent governmental notification of the severity of the crisis had the remaining townsfolk scouring and scavaging everything they could find that wasn't secured and stealing it for their own purposes.   

Christine's family store had been completed looted, the front window  lay shattered and broken as the looters had smashed their way in by throwing an old cinder block thru the big plate glass window.   A foot of snow had blown into the interior and a light dusting of ice was beginning to form on the countertops.  But that didn't dissuade the looters from continuing their search for whatever treasures remained in the store.   The only thing that remained  intact was the store's old cast iron safe which Christine's great great grandfather had purchased from The Bank of Montreal approximately 150 years ago when he had first opened the store.   

It was a massive hunk of metal with a huge brass combination knob in the center and an enourmous latch on the right side.   The dial was covered by bloody fingerprints, long since frosted over due to the extreme cold and the fact that without a window the wind could reach all the way to the small back office.   From the looks of things, the looter had injured himself on a sharp shard of glass before finding the safe but that didn't stop him from trying his luck opening the safe.  

It would have been evident to even a casual observer, had there been one, as to what had spooked and chased the looter away.   

Wolves...

[Catlover]

Amy followed Erik into his cabin, relieved that he was willing to share supplies, though as they left the vehicle, she constantly glanced behind her on the small trek back into the cabin, just in case the bear was still there. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching her and tried to shrug it off. 

"Thanks again." She added, as Erik began tossing a bunch of what canned food was left into a bag that she hoped was scent proof. He glanced behind, their eyes meeting for a brief second. 

"Like you said, I ought to pay you back." 

Amy gave a smile, suddenly hit with a burst of confidence. "I'm afraid this isn't enough."

"You need more food?" Erik didn't seem to catch on, looking annoyed. "This stuff will last you weeks if you ration correctly." 

"No, I don't mean that. Come here a second." 

Erik got up, a trace of confusion clear in his gaze. 

"This is what I meant." Then in the heat of the moment, she stood on her toes and kissed him briefly on the lips. Her inner voice was screaming that it was a mistake, that she should be faithful, but who was to say that her boyfriend wasn't doing the same thing down at her oil rig. 

Aftsr a few seconds, she moved away. This time she felt no regret for what she did and hoped Erik was the same. 

Masking the fact that she wanted to do it all over again, she took the bag and turned to leave. 

"Thanks for the food." She added, as if the whole thing hadn't just happened. 

"Wait," Erik called her back as she walked out of the trashed cabin. 

Amy paused and Erik walked over, his gaze surprisingly warm. 

And before she knew it, they were kissing again, harder, as if there was more to it than just a goodbye kiss. Erik was the one to pull away this time. 

"You ought to go now. Christine and Emma need that food. Just," He hesitated slightly, "Stay safe." 

Amy smiled, touched, "You too. And let me know if any other bears come knocking." 

Erik nodded, "Will do, you're dangerous with that rifle."

Chuckling to herself, Amy turned and walked out, realising too late that she probably should have gone back in Erik's truck, hoping that the bear was off terrorising somebody else. 

 

[piddy3825]

A collective shudder ran down the backs of the last few looters scavaging about in town as they heard the lone
long cry of a wolf off in the distance.     

The remaining townsfolk scurried towards their homes, desperate for the safety their shuttered doors and windows offered.   The onset of night was coming quickly and the moon was already beginning to rise, a meer sliver of light reflecting the sun's dying light.  The strange lights in the sky were returning and the air was filled with the static electricity that made their hair stand on end.

At first it was just a single voice calling, "Arrrwooooooooo."  Then across town another howl could be heard in reply, this time closer and much longer in duration...   "Arrrwooooooooooooo!"     Then another wolf began it's own song followed by another and another and another.  The echos of their cries filled the air as dozens of voices lifted their song of bloodlust into the evening skies.

She emerged from the shadows, with the moon at her back, the setting sun now just a glimmer on the horizon.  
The rarified gases of the aurora danced across the sky in a shimmering display of light.   
With golden glowing eyes, the Luna Wolf threw back her head and howled!    "Ooooowwwwoooooooooo!"

Local folklore told the story of The Luna Wolf, the alpha female.  Most folk tended to dismiss the stories.  
Many people just thought it was stories to scare the children.  But they were wrong.  Very wrong.
With bodies glinting and glowing energized by the aurora lights, the wolf pack descended upon the town 
with a furious bloodlust.   With snapping teeth and strong jaws the pack quickly brought down anyone and
everyone who hadn't been able to get safely inside.  

The howls continued throughout the night as the pack continued its attack fueled by their insatiable bloodlust
spurred on by the commands of the alpha female, Luna, the Queen of Wolves.  

 

[Catlover]

Christine closed the shutters quickly, not wanting Emma to witness the chaos. She was safe, tucked away in bed, but she expected the sound of screaming and snarling to be a bit of a wake up call. 

She knew that they were safe, the door had been bolted and was sturdy enough to withstand any wolf attack, but Christine was still a little worried. Amy still hadn't returned. 

It may have seemed selfish but though the thought had crossed her mind, Christine didn't want to head out in the massacre to look for her. It was Amy's idea to go visit Erik, and stay for so long. Plus Christine had a child to take care of, and wasn't about to risk her life when she had Emma. Amy could take care of herself. Hopefully. 

It wasn't long before she heard the sound of crying coming from upstairs, and her thoughts switched like the pleasant valley weather. She couldn't let herself get distracted, and had one priority in life, one that she valued far above her own wellbeing. Emma. 

[piddy3825]

Erik turned from Amy as she swung the heavy bag of canned goods onto her back and whistfully glanced back seeing her struggle under the heavy load.  She took a few steps and broke thru the icy crust in the snow  up to her knees under the staggering weight of the food supplies she was carrying.  Erik returned his gaze into his now ruined cabin quickly assessing the damage and mentally calculating how long it will take him to repair the damages.

His mind racing, he quickly deliberates on what he has to do first.   Rebuild the entire front door and reinforce the broken frame or repair the damaged wood stoves chimney pipe.  Either job would take the better part of a day to complete.  Fix the door and freeze that night, or fix the chimney and leave the cabin open all night.  "An open invitation to the wolf pack or that damned bear, which ever comes first," he thought to himself.

"Damn it!" He exclaimed out loud.  Loud enough for Amy to hear him over the sounds her boots were making crunching thru the icy snow.   She stopped and looked back,  a puzzled look on her face. 
"What?"  she yelled back to him.  
"Are you talking to me?"  she asked?  
"Wait!" he replied.  "I need to ask you a question." he said
Amy looked at him quizzically and said, "What is it?"
"ummm," he stammered...  "Do you think I could stay with you and Christine for a couple of days?  My cabin's a mess
and it looks like it'll take me a couple of days to get things fixed.   It's just more work than I can get done today before it gets too dark and I just don't want to take any chances...." his voice trailed off as his eyes gauged Amy's reaction.

Amy's pulse quickend as she immediately blurted out an enthusiastic "YES!"  "No, I mean yes!" she stammered 
"That didn't come out right," she giggled.  "I mean, yes, it shouldn't be a problem.  There's more than enough room in the house and you are giving us all this food." she said ending on a high note.   "I'm pretty sure she wouldn't say "No" at least not under these circumstances, right?" she continued.   

Erik smiled and replied, "Well if we're gonna do this, we may as well load up the truck with what's left in my larder.  No sense of leaving any of this food behind for either the looters or the animals to get into, am I right? 

Amy grinned from ear to ear as she strode towards the truck and dumped her heavy load in the back of truck bed.
"Let's go grab the grub and scadaddle!"  she shouted as she made her way back towards cabin.

Erik quickly grabbed a couple of rucksacks and his favorite moose hide bag and rapidly began stuffing the remaining food supplies into the rucks and Amy joined in.  They made quick work of it and within minutes the shelves were empty.   It was a lot of food.  enough to keep them well fed.  Staying well fed was always a bonus in a cold clime especially like this one.  This was definitely one of the worst winter seasons the area had seen in decades. 
"So much for global warming." Erik said in a whisper, chuckling to himself at his little joke. 

Amy didn't respond as she was too busy trying to shoulder the heavy can ladden rucksack.  Together they carried the heavy packs to the truck.  Amy opened the door and started sweeping the broken glass from the damaged wing window out onto the ground.  The small glass pieces dropped onto the snow and immediately disappeared where they fell.  Once she had the seat and floor cleared, she climbed inside and closed the door.  

Erik seeing that she was in the cab of the truck already motioned that he was gonna run back in the cabin real quick.  With a quick spring in his step he purposely strode inside and made his way to his makeshift gun cabinet. 
He grabbed his hunting rifle, an old .308 that his grandfather had left him.  It had been in the family for years.  Still shot as straight as the day it had come off the production line.  "A good gun, indeed." he thought to himself as images of the enraged bear tumbled thru his mind.   

"Gonna need more than just bullets..." a little voice in his head whispered to him. 

Erik smiled as he reached for his flare gun.

[piddy3825]

Amy waited patiently outside in the truck.  Starting to shiver because of the cold air seeping in from the broken wing window of the truck, she began rummaging thru the glove box of the vehicle looking for something that she could use to block the hole.   The glove box didn't have much in it other than some old ketchup packages and crumpled up paper napkins from a popular drive thru hamburger restaurant located over on the mainland. 

"hmmm" she said to herself, "Some fresh hot french fried potatos sure sound good right about now!"  
Just at that moment, she found the answer to her problem.  A half used roll of silver duct tape.  She pulled the roll 
from the confines of the glove box pulling off tufts of napkin that clung stickily to the sides.  Within moments she had located the seam and pulled a  length from the roll, ripping the piece off using her teeth.  With an economy of motion she quickly pressed the tape against what was left of the broken frame and a few minutes later had the opening completely covered.   

"That's not gonna hold long if I don't do the otherside," she thought to herself as she examined her handiwork.  Looking up and glancing around outside she quickly scanned the area and seeing no sign of danger, slowly opened the door and stepped outside.  She grabbed the duct tape and hurried about taping over the outside making sure she had covered every bit of the exposed sticky surface with a another layer of tape.  She finished just as Erik stepped out from the cabin and onto the porch.  She could see him grinning like a chesire cat as he help up his rifle with one hand and gave her a "Thumbs up" salute with the other.   

Walking up to her, Erik notices the patch job on the wing window and says,
Nice job!  I couldn't have done any better myself."  

Amy blushed at the compliment and replied, "I used up most of what was left of the tape."  
Erik chuckled and said, "Remind me to tell you the story about how my cousin and I made a fan belt outta duct tape."   The memory came flooding back with an odd feeling of nostalgia.   
Erik shook his head and continued, "Yeah we ended up driving on a duct tape fan belt for another 6 weeks.  Those were the days..."  his voice trailed off as his gaze slowly came to rest on the travois still sitting where he had left it.

Following his gaze, Amy looked over to the travios, noticing it for the first time.   "Is that a dead body?  she asked?
"Um, yeah.  It is." he replied.  "It's the towns constable.  The bear got him.  I was just retrieving his remains before all this happened," he continued.  "I had plans to take his body back to town.  There was no way I was going to leave him for the animals to pick over." he said.     Amy nodded in agreement.  Gesturing for him to hand her the rifle, she said, "Give me your gun.  I'll stand watch while you put the body back in the truck."

With the rifle in hand, Amy quickly climbed up in the back of the truck bed so she had a better view of the area.  
Erik strode over to the travois, dragged it over to the rear of the vehicle and lifted the frozen corpse into the back of the bed.  Amy noticed how gently Erik handled the body and a sudden sadness overwhelmed her.  Hot tears began sliding down her cheeks, the droplets instantly freezing to the fingertips of her gloves as she brushed them away.

Amy jumped down from the back of the truck as Erik began pulling a tarp over the body and secured the load.
"It looks like it's gonna be dark soon," she said.   "Yeah, we probably should get going," Erik replied.  
The pair exchanged glances and climbed into the vehicle.  Apprehension was thick as Erik thrust the key into the ignition.  The motor labored as it turned over, Erik stomping on the accelerator pedal coaxing the old engine to life.  But as luck would have it, the engine started on the first try and within minutes they were heading back to town.

[upnorth]

Christine quickly went up the stairs towards Emma's room and the faint sounds of crying. She found her on her bed facing away from the door.

- How are you doing kiddo? She asked as she gently sat down on her bed.

Emma didn't answer. Christine laid down by her and began to stroke her to comfort her a bit.

- Did I ever tell you when your father took me to his base to show me around? Christine suddenly asked, trying to come up with something lighthearted to distract Emma with, but also felt a sting of nostalgia and sadness herself.

- We were so young, and he wanted to impress me. He had just got his post and since it was a fairly small and low security facility they could take visitors. She continued.

Emma suddenly stopped crying.

- I miss daddy. Emma replied.

- Me too honey, me too. But we still have each other, I'm so thankful for that. You have been so brave these past few days with all the craziness. Christine continued, happy to have a normal conversation again.

- What did he show you? Emma asked.

- Haha, well. He was working in military intelligence, which is a fancy way of saying he helped build really good radios so that people could speak to each other safely while protecting our country. For that they needed antennas as high up as possible, so it works really well here in the mountains. He wanted to show me the view from a station he helped build. It was really quite amazing! Christine explained suddenly smiling of good memories.

- I want to see it too! Can we go there? Emma asked again.

- I would love that, but it's a bit long to walk and not safe anyway, and we don't have a car. Christine answered afraid to disappoint.

- Erik's got a truck, perhaps we can borrow it? Emma persisted.

Christine was stunned. That kid was smart. They did have access to transportation. She had even considered it herself not too many days ago before the latest craziness had happened. Come to think if it, with the store looted and the whole town going mad, paying a visit to the base might not be such a bad idea at all... there might be supplies!

- That's true! Erik does have a truck! Good thinking Emma! Christine suddenly didn't have to pretend enthusiastic.

- We have to ask Erik and Amy first of course, I would imagine that they also want to leave town now. But I'll tell you what. I think they will like it, so start packing a few things in case we have to be there for a few days, and remember your drawing things so that you can paint the views! Christine said as Emma jumped from the bed with a smile, dried her tears off on her arm and started packing.

Thinking to herself, Christine tried to remember what she could of the military base. It was so long ago but it was indeed fairly low security being such a remote and small facility. There should be a fairly accessible window or something they could break into in case everything was locked...

[Catlover]

After taking a stop at the police station, Erik and Amy began driving towards Christine's. The drive into the town had not been a particularly picturesque one, blood stained the snow, caused by the corpses they saw, occasionally. Fortunately they had been covered by a light layer of snow, masking the gruesome injuries. 

"What do you think happened?" Amy questioned Erik, like he had a clue. 

"Wolves, by the looks of the pawprints. Lots of them, it seems." He responded, glancing out of the window.

"I didn't think they came into the town often."

"They didn't." 

The rest of the short journey was done so in silence, both deep in their own thoughts. For once, Amy's mind wasn't on Erik. She was looking forward to getting back, as nice it had been to spend time with Erik. Mocha had been left with Christine and without her dog, Amy felt a little lost. Mocha was the last tie that she had to her boyfriend, though the thought of him made her cheeks redden from guilt, and the fact that it was freezing out. 

They arrived at Christine's uneventfully, and Amy knocked on the door whilst Erik got the food. 

There was a moments pause before Christine opened the door slightly, clearly wary, though she opened it fully once she recognised who it was. 

"Sorry for taking so long. Looks like we've missed a lot." Amy apologised and the two exchanged a brief embrace. 

Mocha, unsurprisingly, was overjoyed to see her owner again. 

"I have a small favour to ask of you," Christine started, once they had all gotten in, looking at Erik. 

"What is it?" Erik looked a little intreagued and the trio sat down around the table. 

"I've been thinking, it's time to get out of here." Christine started. Amy already had dozens of questions but kept quiet, letting her friend continue. "My husband has, had, this military base down in the mountains near Black Rock. If you let us use your truck, we could perhaps head there. It's safer than here, that's for sure." 

Erik didn't immediately say no, which was a start. "What will we do about fuel, then? My truck won't run forever." 

Christine looked a little unsure, "It isn't that far, we'll be able to make it."

"But what if we don't? A stationary truck in the middle of the wilderness would be a prime target for anything!" Erik raised his voice, slightly. "This is my truck that we're talking about."

"We either stay here and die, or we take a risk and go somewhere safe." Christine responded, sharply. 

Not wanting it to turn into an argument, Amy hastily intervened, laying her hand on Erik's arm in a reassuring manner. "Christine has a point. I think we don't have much choice."

Erik sighed, looking thoroughly displeased. "Fine." 

Christine watched the two, slightly bemused by how quickly Amy had changed his mind. Not thinking anything of it, she headed off to tell Emma the good news