some new space wolf fiction

[lothbrok]

heres a short story i wrote up the other week. its only about halfway done but I figured i'd post what i have any way.

i'd love to know what you all think.

 

 

 

 

The Hunter’s Eyes

 

Haakon was dreaming. It was the same dream again. The same dream that had haunted his sleep since he first left the fang over a week ago. In the dream he was running, running faster than he ever had before, faster than he would have even thought possible. Yet it wasn’t fast enough. The beast was always still there, trailing him, chasing him, always just short of its goal. It was so close that he could feel its hot breath on the back of his neck. Yet he seemed to stay just out of the beast’s reach until, as always, he tripped. He fell forward landing with a solid thud in the snow.

 

He lay there struggling to rise until a shadow reared above him. Turning on to his back, Haakon got his first glimpse of the beast. It possessed the body of a man although far taller and more massive than any man Haakon had ever seen. It was covered in thick blood-red fur and each one of its fingers ended in a vicious bone colored talon. However, it was the face that was most horrifying. Massive fangs jutted from its jaw, thick ropes of saliva curled around them. Its eyes were golden yellow terrors, utterly devoid of pity or anything resembling humanity. More terrifying still was that Haakon recognized its face. It was the same face he had grown accustomed to seeing everyday for sixteen years…..it was his own. The last thing Haakon saw were those golden hunters’ eyes and then the claws slashed down.

 

Haakon awoke with a howl of rage and lashed out with his massively muscled arm. He felt the fledgling claws at the tips of his fingers bite deep into a tree and leave thick vicious scars across its trunk. He was sweating profusely despite the brutal chill of the Fenrisian winter that was enough to kill most men in mere hours. Panting heavily, Haakon welcomed the cold. It felt good against his exposed flesh, purifying and calming, something natural and incorruptible. Slowly, he lowered his pounding heart rate and raised himself onto one elbow staring loathsomely at the budding claws of his right hand. He thought again of how he hated the priests of Russ for putting this curse on him. They had told him that it was the final step to his initiation into their order. They had told him it would make him stronger, faster, and more cunning than any normal human just by unlocking the beast spirit within him. Although all that they had promised had come true, it had come at a price. He and all the other young aspirants were forced to fight for their very humanity against their own soul, lest they turn into wulfen. Many had failed twisting into beasts that were more than an animal yet less than a man. Of those who had survived, many had quickly come to realize what a boon the wolf spirit was and had quickly embraced its gifts. But for Haakon, it was torment. It was something that he could not control, could not bind, and he hated it for that. He hated to think that he wasn’t the master of his own spirit and he couldn’t bring himself to ally with the wulfen to share mastery of his own soul with the beast. As far as he could tell the beast felt the same. The priests had said the beast inside him was far stronger than was normal and it was a sign of his strength of will that he hadn’t fallen to it already. Despite that, none of them expected him to return from this final challenge. He felt the beast surge up as his rage mounted he would be damned if he was going to let them be proved right. He swore to himself there and then, that he would not only return triumphant but he would return first. Just the thought of the pity they had shown him filled him with a rage that quickly morphed into an incredible urge to rend and tear, to rip their arrogant throats out with his teeth to… Haakon shuddered with the effort of reining in the wolf spirit. It was getting stronger with every passing day. He was worried that soon he would be unable to control it and it would consume him entirely leaving him a bestial remnant of his former self. Knowing that anymore sleep would be impossible, Haakon rose from the bed of pine needles he had made in the shadow of one of the massive trees that loomed in the mountain valleys of Fenris. Collecting his makeshift spear, Haakon set off towards the massive rearing peak of the fang.

 

A week later it seemed to Haakon as if he was no closer to his goal than he had been to start with. He had trekked for the last seven days across seemingly endless tundra, stopping only when it had become so dark not even his enhanced eyesight could divine a clear path across the rocky ground. Haakon hated those times, for then he was forced to sleep and with sleep came the dream. It hadn’t changed. Each time it was as terrifying and vivid as the last and with each glimpse of those hunters’ eyes the beast grew stronger. Until now it had always been a shadow at the very back of his mind, waiting for a torrent of emotion that it could use to rise to the surface. Now it was his constant companion, hanging over him like a carrion bird, waiting for a moment of weakness when it could take dominion. The urge to rend and tear, to let go of all the trappings of society, and to run free and wild was now almost unbearable. It took all of his will power not to give in. He swore to himself he would master the beast and that he would bring it to heel. Although he knew that without the advantages of the wulfen he would have died a dozen times already, he still could not bear the thought of joining with it as the priests had advised. Back in the Fang he promised himself that he would be its master not its partner. Hakkon was broken from his reverie by the hungry growl of his stomach; he cursed aloud, his words echoing back at him from the looming mountains to either side. What in Hel’s name was he supposed to do for food? He’d forgotten to look for wild berries or small animals while in the more lively parts of the mountains (if anywhere in this Allfather forsaken place could be called lively). He paused for a moment. If he turned back now then he’d lose almost a whole days travel and that could severely hamper his chances of returning first. On the other hand, if he was unable to find food soon he’d die from hunger before he even got halfway. Just as he was about to turn back he heard a sound. Instantly he froze. The sound came again, a soft scratching, barely audible even to his newly heightened hearing and his features split into a wide grin emphasizing his growing fangs. It was elk, he was almost sure of it. As if to underline his theory, he caught the scent a deep musky odor that was unmistakable to any son of Fenris. Excellent! Soon he would be able to feed. He would bound through the snow and pounce upon the creature, tear away its throat in his powerful jaws, drink deeply of its blood, and feast upon its flesh. Hakkon sank to his knees. It was becoming physically painful for him to keep the beast at bay. He remembered who he was; his past and his humanity. He was able to fend of the Wulfen once more. He stayed there for a long time kneeling in the snow. It had been so close that time; another moment and he felt sure he would have fallen. Maybe he should make his peace with it. Maybe he should do as the wolf priest had said. No. Even as the thoughts formed Hakkon was repulsed by them. He was Hakkon Magnusson. He would be damned before he stooped to the will of an animal. With his resolve fortified, he stood and grasped his spear. Slowly he moved through the thick towering pines. Skills he had developed hunting in the woods of his home and that he had honed over his months at the Russvik training camp allowed him to move with almost total silence. At last he saw the elk. They were huge creatures, the smallest weighing almost four hundred pounds. They were covered in thick brown hide. Hakkon drew back his arm, his crude spear grasped in his fist. With and exhalation of breath he cast.

[Zynk Kaladin]

I like it! Not only do you explain what is happening on the outside in Haakon's trek to the Fang, but also you vividly portray his inner turmoil. Keep up the good work.

[Lone Scout]

Awesome sauce !!! Very descriptive, and very wolfish nice work. :lol: