"Man..."
Renaissance had never felt so small before. Slough Creeks horizon spanned for miles, and the mountains she had known for years loomed over her more now than they did when she was a pup. She felt helpless, herself now realizing how puny she really was.
Ren grew up in Amethyst Mountain but would occasionally travel to Slough Creek from time to time when she was a juvenile. She fell in love with the place, so when she met her mate Smog at the age of 2 years old, she knew exactly where she wanted to start her family.
She gave birth to six pups. This was her first time being a mother, and the size of her litter scared her. She didn't think anything could be scarier than a big litter, but then the runt of the litter succumbed to illness only a couple months after being born. Nothing could have prepared her and Smog from the feeling of losing a child.
Then, at four months old, two of her other pups died due to an enemy wolf pack attack. Still, Ren lived on. She cherished Pompeii, Ashes, and Ren Jr. She promised them that nothing bad would happen from now on.
It was a beautiful late-summer morning. The elk's bugle in the distance rang throughout the meadow, and Renaissance and Smog were feeling more and more confident in their ability to be parents. They successfully kept their three rambunctious pups alive throughout the summer, and it was soon time that they began to be more independent. This was Ren and Smog's first time being a parent, so though they blame themselves for what would soon transpire, it is the way of learning and not repeating your mistakes.
The elk herd was close to their rendezvous site, so Ren and Smog alerted their pups that they'd be gone for the afternoon. However, being that the three were much bigger and more mature than they were only a few months ago, Ren and Smog assumed the pups would be fine to wander the rendezvous' premises.
The alpha pair only got a few hundred feet away from the rendezvous site before they heard the howling of Pompeii. They quickly rushed back to the site and saw only Ren Jr. Looking around, they noticed Ashes was gone, too!
"Where are your sisters?!" Smog bellowed.
Ren Jr's tail was tucked between her legs. She averted her father's gaze and remained silent.
Ren quickly leapt away from the tall grass and rushed to where she heard Pompeii's initial howl. Smog howled for Ashes, but no answer. For two hours the alpha's searched for their lost, scared pups. For two hours fear ran through their veins. For two hours they searched for a foot trail, a blood trail, anything that'd lead them to their daughters.
A cry came from up the hill. Ren ran toward it and found Pompeii. She was badly injured. Her dark gray coat was tattered, and her left forepaw hovered over the ground. She yelped every time she placed her paw on the grass, and Ren instructed her to keep it in the air.
"I found Pompeii!" Ren howled.
"I have Ashes!" Smog's howl came soon after.
Smog and Ashes made it to the site before Ren and Pompeii. Pompeii could barely walk, and Ren felt helpless because her daughter was no longer small enough to fit in her maw. Memories of her daughter suckling at her stomach, safe in the warm den she gave birth in, all came rushing back as she saw her soon-to-be-but-never-will-be juvenile daughter with a blood-stained pelt and mentally scarred eyes.
Pompeii refused to tell her mother what happened. Even after she told her daughter she wouldn't be mad (which was the utter truth, how could she be mad at a time like this?) Pompeii remained mute.
After what felt like hours, the mother and daughter made it back to the site. Ren Jr. looked at her sister in horror. Smog instructed Pompeii to lay in the tall grass. He lay beside her, licking her wounds. Ren nudged up against Ashes, who had a bad wound on her flank. The poor thing looked shell-shocked. What did these babies go through? Neither would say.
The pack was hungry. Very hungry. The sun would be setting soon, but neither parent wanted to leave their children. They huddled up in the long grass, concealing them from the outside world. For a moment, everything felt safe.
Pompeii died in her sleep in the early evening. Ashes passed in the afternoon the next day.
Mother, father, and daughter. It was them against the raging packs that surrounded them.
And yet, Ren Jr. keeps a smile on her face.
It was now them against Slough Creek. Renaissance WON'T let her only daughter die. She's determined to make her the best fighter and hunter!
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the saga is BRUTAL. this is exactly what happened on my first playthrough of it!! i thought the pups were perfectly capable of being left alone outside of the tall grass once they age up, but i thought wrong!! pompeii and ashes immediately got lost and it took me forever to find them! i almost gave up lol i was like whatever it's your fault for leaving the den. but i had fun writing this!! i hope i can keep ren jr alive :') im now at the part of the gameplay where the pups can hunt. i hope she doesnt take a hoof to the knee.
