Xena Scene

Darkness.

That was all she knew. 

Then suddenly, she grew colder. Once warm, safe, protected. Now cold, exposed to the elements.

Wait, no.

What was this sensation?

Unknown to Xena, her mum had just given birth to her and all of her littermates and she was currently grooming them, cleaning off all the… Undesirables. She had been born, not in a pack, but by a lone she-wolf, her father long gone. It was a danger to be a she-wolf with pups all alone, and Xena’s mum did her best to provide for her and her littermates. However, as fate would have it, a dreadful day befell her and the others.

It was currently raining outside, thunder rolling across amongst the clouds as the lightning cracked across the sky, threatening to split the entirety in two. As Xena lay shivering in the den, she watched as the blinding light flashed against their den. A large crack, followed by several more cracks, then a rush of air followed by a rumbling noise and sensation within the Earth caused Xena and the other pups to begin whining, desperately calling out for their mother. Their desperate pleas fell on deaf ears as they could not be heard over the storm, and the now rushing water that had broken free from a dam built long ago by some odd looking two-legged creatures.

The rumbling only grew more and more demanding, like it were a fog horn warning a ship of upcoming land. Xena began to claw at the dirt, occasionally her claws would rip at the pups around her. However, she didn’t care. Her heart began to beat more and more rapidly, every single survival instinct within her was screaming at her to escape, that it wasn’t safe. Every time she tried to claw her way up, one of her back legs would slip and right back down she’d go. 

Once more, she raised herself up, her head poking out of the den. She had almost made it! As she pushed herself up further, she was nearly able to see around her, but was soon sent crashing back down by a sudden surge of water. Her nose and mouth were immediately filled with water, her lungs beginning to burn. She clawed at the water, splashing viciously. Darkness began to creep in her vision as her body movements began to slow. Her hearing and sight was lost to her as her body began to rapidly grow cold, and then numb.

Xena didn’t recall her mother rushing back last minute and grabbing her by the scruff, ripping her from the greedy grasp of Death. Her eyelids slowly fluttered open as she heard faint whines and raspy breathing from around her. Slowly sitting up, her vision was blurred, her hearing muffled. It took several moments, but eventually Xena was able to regain her composure. Looking around her, she saw nothing, until her sapphire blue eyes landed on her mother. She was laying several feet from Xena, panting as she desperately fought for her life. Amidst this sight, Xena hadn’t even processed that her littermates were nowhere to be found.

Xena stumbled over to her mum, her eyes growing ever softer. She sniffed her mum before nudging her. Xena’s eyes tilted to the side as she noticed her mum had been bleeding from a wound in her stomach and chest area. Her mum slowly looked at her, letting out a soft whine. Recognizing that Xena was safe, her mum finally let go. Her head laid gently on the ground, her whines and raspy breaths were now just a memory that plagued Xena’s mind.

After the death of her mum and littermates, and the disappearance of her father, Xena managed to come along a pack that took her in. As she stayed in the pack for a couple of years, she learned how to hunt successfully, along with how to scout and how to mix and apply medicines. She became self-sufficient, the best Hunter, and the most revered Fighter amongst all the members. After the years, she eventually left, deciding to go her own way.

Xena didn’t exactly expect or anticipate making a pack, but now, at six years old, she had successfully created and led a pack; the Crystal Blood Clan. She had implemented several laws that the members had to follow in order to remain. She had gathered all the wolves around, standing in the center, demanding all of their attention.

“I have found all of you or you came to me seeking refuge. I have not been stingy with my offerings, and I have happily taken all of you in without immediately expecting anything of you. However, there are expectations and rules I expect each and everyone of you to follow. They are;

1. No wolf is to retire before the age of five years old. Each wolf is expected to pull their own weight within their role, no matter what that role may be.
2. Scouts must be training their apprentices by the age of four. One of the apprentices may be their own heir.
3. The new leader of the pack will always be a direct descendant of the prior.
4. If you have a mate, you are expected to reproduce within that pairbond, never outside it.
5. If a pairbond is formed, the female wolf will be moved to the male’s den. However, you are able to form best friend bonds. If this is created, the wolf with the lower ranked abilities will be moved.
6. Every wolf is expected to listen to the PeaceMakers. They are not a suggestion, they are enforcement.
7. If a pup were to ever pass away whilst under the watch of a Pupsitter, that Pupsitter will be reprimanded.
8. If a hunt were to fail due to the incompetence of another wolf, the wolf at fault will be reprimanded.

Please keep in mind that these are the rules, the laws, and the way of life within this pack. If you do not agree with them, you are able to leave. If any wolf fails to follow these rules, you will be reprimanded by the King. The punishments range from loss of food, loss of amusement, loss of mate or friend bond, lowering of your rank, or banishment.”

Xena was reminiscing, it was as if yesterday she had made those rules. Becoming the Queen of her pack had humbled her in more ways than one. She became a well revered leader, wolves coming far and wide to join her pack. Word of her being a stern, yet friendly and mighty ruler spread like wildfire. It wasn’t before long that she had 111 wolves in her pack, 67 of them being adults and 44 of them being pups. Xena herself had 19 pups, securing the future of her pack. Exhaling softly, she looked longingly down at her pack members, letting out a yawn. Resting her head on her paws, she closed her eyes as the warm sunlight basked down on her coat, causing it to glitter. The effect was painfully similar to the first snowfall on a crisp winter morning. 

The safety and future of her pack was guaranteed. She had done it, she had survived against all of the odds that were stacked against her. She endured something that has silenced hundreds, if not thousands of others. She still had frequent nightmares, but she was always reassured by the King, no, by Her King, Paul. 

And with this, she knew that finally, everything was going to be okay.