High above the swaying trees, a solitary owl soared, crying its hunting call into the evening sky. It suddenly dropped, wings spread wide open and talons pointed downwards. There was a muffled squeak then silence filled the clearing once more.

A half moon slowly rose to greet the twinkling stars that were emerging, their soft light piercing the darkening forest, causing long shadows to appear. All was still except for the crunching of bones in a nest up a tree.

A low growl emitted from beside a gnarled bush before a solid black shape burst into the open area. The sound of fleeing paws took off, zigzagging towards a hole not far off near a tree. The figure gave chase; it was over in moments, the rabbit firmly stuck in a mouth of teeth. Midnight trotted back to the bush she bounded from and laid down to eat. She smiled to herself as she at her meal. She could still smell fear in the air; her grin widened with delight. Must have friends, Midnight thought to herself. She quietly got up and crept out of her resting area, ears and nose alert.

A crash like thunder suddenly erupted, causing Midnight to pull up short. She hesitantly crept forward, the warren of rabbits forgotten. A long, thick branch was laying at an angle between two tall birches. Midnight looked up; splintered wood way the tree trunk revealed where the big limb used to be attached. Looking closer, she noticed cracks in the bark lower down near a knot. Midnight left the area quickly.

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Several days had passed since Zuma, Ranshu, and Kishi set off for the mountains in the north. It was a rather tense expedition from the start. Kishi had a worried look plastered to her face, spooking at everything; Ranshu kept an eye on things and stayed at the back, making sure their pace never faltered; and Zuma, appointed leader by his Alpha, tried his best to stay calm for the sake of his companions.

As usual the day started out normal with no distractions or problems, though Kishi was more nervous than ever. The lush valley right before the foothills was just half a day's journey; their quest coming close to an end.

"Kishi, for the last time, it was just a bird!" said Ranshu in exasperation, sighing heavily as the female wolf collided into him once again from fright.

Kishi untangled herself from the near white Ranshu and sped up some to give him room. "Sorry..." Her white ear flicked back and forth, still uneasy about the surroundings.

Zuma looked back at the light gray wolves with growing annoyance. Shaking his head, he called out to them. "Ranshu, Kishi, we're nearing the foothills so I suggest you two to behave, especially you, Ranshu."

The wolf in question laid his ears back, tail to the side. He started panting slightly with his tongue sticking out. "Yes, Zuma. I-"Ranshu was cut off by a strange clicking of metal from their right in the trees.

All three wolves froze in their stride and Ranshu carefully surveyed the birches and oaks, ears erect and jaws parted slightly. Both Zuma and Kishi were just as alert, trying to locate the source of the noise.

There was a very faint swish sound as if something parted the leaves of a bush or limb; only the enhanced hearing of the trio saved them. Just seconds after the mysterious click and the rustling, a loud bang filled the air and a large chunk of bark flew off an oak, not even a foot away from Zuma's face. He flinched with the other two then they fled in the opposite direction.

It wasn't until the wolves put several miles between them and the bang did they slow to a trot.

"What was that?" exclaimed Ranshu, his eyes wide as saucers, quivering all over.

Zuma's eyes were just as big as his pack mate's, fighting to control the panic and fright inside. "That wasn't a normal occurrence. Tree bark doesn't just come apart like that." He stopped and looked at the other two, who stopped as well."Whatever did that meant it."

"What do you mean?" asked Ranshu, who sat down timidly, fur still sticking straight up. Kishi sat close to him for protection, their fur almost touching.

"It means," the female answered solemnly,"Midnight isn't the only one we have to worry about now."

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Shrieks of terror and fear echoed off the cliff face and trees as the young wolf fell with the huge boulder that used to be connected to the rest of the ledge.

His older siblings, Maroco and Tasha, made a dash to were their brother fell just before the ground started to rumble slightly. They started whimpering in fright, throwing themselves flat on the warmed rocky floor, not daring to move. Their mother, Siri, had thrown herself flat as well when the tremors started again.

"Keep still, my dears," Siri called to Maroco and Tasha, her voice laced with forced calm."I want you to crawl towards me slowly. You're going to be fine," she added, noticing the horrified looks on their faces."Come to me nice and steady, that's it. Don't rush, take your time."

Slowly but surely the pair made their way to more solid ground. Siri had already backed up to the tree line where the ground was still. After gentle coaxing, mother and pups were reunited once more. Siri check them over to make sure they didn't get hurt in the ordeal.

Maroco and Tasha continued to whimper, this time not for fear but for Conin. With the rumbling ledge none of them could get close to see the outcome of his fall. Questions floated around their minds, causing the young ones to become panicky once more.

"Is he...is he..." Maroco couldn't bear to say the words. He refused to believe his only brother, the youngest and smallest at that, was gone forever. Tasha pressed harder against him; he could feel her shaking with fear and grief for Conin.

Tasha lifted her head high in the air, still against her older brother, and belted out the most sorrow-filled howl a young wolf could summon. Siri and Maroco joined one by one in the mourning of little Conin.

It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky before the wolves ended their sorrowful howl. Heads and ears down, the remaining pups slumped back to their den. Siri followed her distraught litter, keeping her head raised to detect any danger.

They reached the tree and Maroco and Tasha headed inside; Siri looked back once more towards the cliff side then pursued her pups. She entered the hollow that led down to a shallow cave where the four of them slept. Siri found Maroco and Tasha at the very back in a huddled heap.

Raising her head, Tasha looked at her mother with sad eyes before she lowered it back down. Her brother, Maroco, whimpered and hid his dark furred head in his sister's lighter furred body, curling in a tight back ball. "It's true, isn't it? He really is gone..." Tasha asked her mother.

Siri looked at her small litter with empathy. It hit her remaining pups hard perhaps because of being just the three of them, making their usual closeness even more so. She crawled to her young ones and wrapped her body around theirs, laying her head next to Maroco's body.

The wolves stayed underground until the sun started dropping out of the sky. Day birds flew back to their nests and the evening and twilight birds emerged for their songs before the sun sunk below the horizon.

Siri rose quietly and left the den to find late romping prey. Leaving the area and traveling away from the cliff side, she came across a warren after an hour's search. Her hunt was a success; two young rabbits were out munching away on a patch of clovers and thistles, not paying attention to the stalking female. Siri came back to two hungry young wolves who were pacing the den. They had worked up an appetite with their long, restless nap.

Tasha and Maroco dug right into one of the rabbits, their mother taking the other. She could sense her pups were still broken up but trying to be strong.

After their small dinner, the trio laid down to rest until day break. Siri planned to check the ledge in the morning, and to find a way down below.

The new dawn brought brilliant hues of purple, red, and orange as the sun peeked over the horizon, the sky lightening from inky black to light blue.

As the pups practiced their stalking near the den, Siri trotted over to the cliff face. The ground seemed more sturdier than the previous day where a large chunk of rock broke away, causing everything to shake and shudder violently. She saw that new cracks made their way through the stone towards the solid ground of the tree line. Siri heard two pairs of small pitter patter and turned an ear to the sound.

"Ma?" It was Maroco who spoke up first. "What are you doing over here?" Something caught his attention, making him look down. A gasp escaped his lips and his eyes bulged in fear, backing up to the tree line.

Tasha saw her brother speedily backing up and joined him after seeing the creeping cracks. She didn't stop until she reached the trees, way ahead of Maroco. Only then did Tasha cease her sprinting to a more sheltered place."What is Ma thinking, being that close to the rumbling ground," she exclaimed in horror, turning to Maroco. "We can't lose her too!" Tasha was close to panic, shaking in terror.

"Tasha, calm down. The ground wasn't moving; those cracks just spooked me. I hadn't realized how far they traveled-" A hammering sound in the tree above interrupted his thought.

They looked up and saw a woodpecker searching for grubs and insects. Even though he was used to the sounds of the woods, the sudden noise startled Maroco into silence. The two of them slumped down together under a leafy bush to wait on their mother.

Meanwhile, Siri searched the area for an easy way down the cliff face to see what became of her youngest pup.