Belden's Beginning
#1 of Belden and Nova
Enjoy the story and I hope you return to read the whole series! Note that a line of ~~~~ denotes a time break!
- * * Darkness, all around him. It was hot, sweltering, even, and there was something squishing him, pushing him. Faint cries and screams could be heard; muffled as through coming through a wall. It was wet in there, slippery; almost vile in nature. He was suffocating; short, needy gasps of air barely kept his lungs from bursting due to the lack of oxygen. He heard the noise of a body falling limply against the ground and more cries. Choking.. dieing.. barely alive. He was coated in a layer of...something. He didn't know what, he didn't care anymore.. he was dieing. Then he was blind. White spewed into his vision, and he too joined the harsh cries of his siblings. Afterbirth split as his body unfolded, tears pouring from his eyes as shrill yells filled the air. He couldn't see; instead of pitch black there was violent white. The heat was gone, now he was freezing cold, the shrill breeze chilled right through his fur to the bone. Then, warmth...warmth along his body, every inch, over and over again, lapping and stroking his frame. He was starving. He didn't know what that feeling in his stomach was, but he knew he needed something, anything. As if by command, something warm and fuzzy pushed up against him. He blinked, desperate to see, and in the blinding white he could see a soft, pink dot amidst swollen flesh and fur. He bit it; he didn't care what it was. A warm, milky, delicious fluid spat into his mouth; he swallowed it, then closed his eyes into the black again. He bit again, and more of the wonderful liquid poured into his maw. Soon he was suckling, dragging whatever this delicious fluid was from the source and drinking. It calmed him, the pain in his gut was going away...the tears had long since stopped. He drifted. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Come on Bel!" the voice was high and squeaky, almost painful to listen to. "Don't call me Bel! That's a girl's name.." the young dhole sputtered, flicking his long ears in annoyance. "Bel Bel Bel Bel Bel Belle Bel!" the other taunted, giggling and hopping around in the grass. An excited yip spurt from his maw as his brother suddenly tore after him. Tail flicked noisily as he spun in place and darted the other way, laughing as the two ran in the open space. "Can't catch me Bel!" "I'll get you Laev!" came the reply, the tiny, sharp teeth snapping mere inches away from the flicking tail in front of his face. Snap...snap...snap...SNAP! The Dhole squeaked in pain as his tail was bitten "Bel!" he shrieked, toppling onto his side and rolling through the grass, brother pouncing atop him. The two laughed and growled as they toppled head over heels pawwing and biting at each other, wrestling as the two playful pups commonly did. "Belden! Laeven! Stop messing around and come over here! Alpha will be here soon!" the voice was almost musical, too friendly for the scarred face it accompanied. The she-dhole was skinny, bony from days without food. A lengthy scar trailed across the top of her muzzle, the first inch of her ear missing; teeth marks taking the place of where the ear once was. Regardless of her deformities, her tail swished and her smile never wavered. "Dad's coming!?" both boys shouted, forgetting their tussle and springing over to their mother. They ran around the lanky legs, thin orange fur coating their mother's body, the ends tipped with white; tail, ears, paws, muzzle. "He's not your father. He's the alpha and you will refer to him as Alpha. Understand?" she commanded. The boys folded their long ears back, wispy white ears lining the inside of their ears wavering in the wind "Yes mother..." Regardless of what they called the male, he still conceived them and watched over their birth months before. Soon, they forgot their scolding and pattered happily beside their mother, looking up to her and bombarding her with questions. She merely grinned and shook her head to each of their questions, or nodded and looked to them. Though no words came from her jaws for the lazy stroll until the end. "Where are your sisters?" she asked calmly, looking to Laeven. the by pulled his ears back against his skull, shaking his head. "I don't know mother. You know Bel and I don't play around them." he said, taking his gaze away from his mother's own. "What will I do with you boys.. you know one day you're going to be big, strong boys. Strong boys that have to protect their sisters and help them through their breeding periods." her paws were silent upon the dirt and random blades of grass. As she stopped, her head turned to each side, maw parting as she let out a barking calls "Girls! Jina! Fael! Come here!" she yelled, eyes scanning for signs of the girls. The only reply was the stirring of the winds through the tress, the dense canopy above scratching and shouting its protest noisily. The female's ears pinned down, she stepped lightly "Come on boys." she said quietly before sprinting ahead. The two young pups ran full speed, struggling to keep their mother's steady stride. They were panting, gasping for air, their mother slowly pulling away from them as she sped up, her head turning in each and every direction as though in panic. She disappeared through a crop of bushes, then screamed. The boys' eyes widened and they tore through the bushes after the female. She was on the ground, laughing and pawwing at the other two females that licked her muzzle all over. Both boys gave a sigh of relief, then quietly padded around the snapping, laughing fur to sit and watch. Belden was the first to notice the muscular, well fed Dhole sitting mere feet away. Pup's attention swung to eye the male, eyes brimming with awe and admiration. He got onto all fours, trotting to him "Alpha!" he yelped, hopping up to try and lick his face, paws resting on the male's chest as he sat. The taller Dhole leaned down with a smile, nuzzling the pup. "Hello Belden." his voice was deep and strong, violent in nature, but gentle and affectionate in delivery. Soon Laeven did the same, pounding onto the other's chest to claim his own affectionate nuzzle. The girls came next, pawwing at his flank to get him to turn around. "So you had the girls." the larger female said, padding over to him lightly. She tipped her head down in acknowledgment of her leader, then lifted her head and licked his muzzle to recognize her breeder. He smiles and licked her tongue in return, then touched his nose to hers. "They found me first, sneaky little devils." he commented, smiling weakly. "I have news Keila...joined me in private." he said quietly. Belden was always fond of his father. His eyes trailed the male's features as he walked away. He had always wished for more time with the larger male, though it seemed they only ever saw him so he could speak with mother alone. He watched as the two padded off away ways away from them, his ears perking intently as haunches sat flat on the ground. His brother and sister's took to their own, chattering and laughing happily. Though Belden was uninterested; he wished so badly to hear the two speak. The silhouette's cast by the fading sunlight remained motionless, save for a perk of the ears every now and then or a swish of the tail. Minutes felt like hours dragging by, painfully slow. The droning of his siblings' voice was nothing but jargon he couldn't understand. The male's head turned, jaws mouthing before closing shut and pressing to the other's cheek. He could read those words, he clearly played that sight in his head,listening to his own voice repeat it over and over. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "The birds are whispering things." Razul said quietly. "They talk of the Derdriel pack moving. Hundreds of them, like the entire clan grouped together from the north and south." Keila sighed, flitting an ear lightly. "Why would they move? Why would they regroup? They have plenty of game and shelter in their lands to last them billions of moons to come." "I don't like it. They say their heading in our direction. We've never had a quarrel with Kuza, but I won't welcome him and his group to our lands, especially with the party he's bringing." "Well don't go displaying your leadership and disapproval so quickly, a pack of that size is none to start a fight with." Teeth flicked over her lower lip, nibbling nervously. The birds were shifting north through the trees. So near winter, it was odd behavior. "I hear them at night. I listen, they talk constantly all night.. and I keep hearing the same thing over and over again." Razul turned his head to look at the she-Dhole. She was beautiful, nothing would stand between he and his mate. "Blood.. fresh blood."