In The Hands Of The Gods (Jiiga’e)
Niiganii was running like she had never run before. A new alpha had usurped her from her status and now she knows there is no one else out there to help her, not even the gods.
Also fleeing and following right behind Niigani, were the four most loyal followers of Manji-Manidoo: Jeko, Bozalaw, Aamoo and Jiiga'e. Upon Manji-Manidoo's death, the four henchmen knew that their evil bidding were never going to be forgiven nor forgotten among the Ma'iingan. It was life or death, so who else better to follow than Niiganii? They ran north as far as the north would bring them.
"We need rest! We need rest!" Jiiga'e shouted, he was the most injured of their group. He was beginning to trail further behind the group, panting as he struggled to catch up to everyone else's speed. "Need rest!" Jiiga'e shouted again, but his painful pleading was completely ignored.
They continued to run for the rest of the day, eventually Niigani stopped at the bottom of a cliff with nowhere else to run to and nowhere to look but up. Snow and ice beneath their feet gave them an icy burn to their paws. They were now in the true north where winter never seems to leave.
"Niiganii, we should go around." Jeko said, " There is no ledge to help aid us in climbing."
"I am your alpha!" Niiganii shouts. "If I tell you to die right here right now, you better hold your breath and pray I don't find you breathing or I will kill you myself!" She demanded. "Stop trying to lead when all you scums have been doing is following."
"Yyyyess, alpha." Jeko replied.
"We will hunt for food. Tomorrow we will continue west along this cliff or mountain, whatever it is, until we find a way up or around it."
"What about Jiiga'e?" Aamoo asked. "He is far behind."
"He will be able to track us and he will find us. For now, we rest. The weak ones are always left behind because they only pose more threat to the pact." Bizikaw retorted, his big wolf form, bigger and broader than everyone else in the group. No one dares to challenge Bizikaw; no one except Niiganii.
"Enough talking!" Niiganii scolded the wolves, squinting her eyes in disgust at them. "We are wasting daylight. We need to hunt now!" Niigani's voice echoed up the snowy mountain so loudly that it shook everyone. Little rubble of pebbles and snow trickle down from above, creating spectacles of misty dust around them.
Niiganii's eyes widened at the wolves. Without saying another word, Niigani tucked her head down and began to walk south, away from the mountain. Slowly, the three wolves followed her, also keeping their heads down low.
From afar Niiganii sees something charging towards them, but after further examination, the silhouetted figure begins to form into a wolf. It was running right at them full speed.
"It's Jiiga'e." Aamoo whispered. Bizikaw waved his head, trying to gesture to Jiiga'e to stop and run back, but the injuries to Jiiga'e had rendered him handicapped. Jiiga'e sight were blurred.
"GUYS! I TOOK ME SO LONG TO FINALLY FIND YOU! AND NOW I"VE FOUND YOU GUYS! AT LAST!" Jiiga'e howled loudly towards them.
"SHIT!" Bizikaw shouted, "Fucking idiot!"
"RUN!" Jeko followed up.
Aamoo and Niiganii were smaller wolves than Bizikaw and Jeko, so keeping their heads down low, they sprint past the two bigger brute wolves.
Seeing them dart by and continuing to pass them, Jeko shouted, "Wait for us!"
"The weak ones are always left behind because they only pose more threat to the pact!" Aamoo roared back to Jeko and Bizikaw.
Bizikaw narrowed his eyes at Aamoo in anger and then growled "Better pray I won't catch up to you, or I will kill you!"
The mountain trembled and the earth beneath their feet quaked, stuttering their paws from hitting the right level of terrain. Jiiga'e stops in his tracks and realizes what he witnessed.
The serene snowy side of the mountain shook lightly then black birds flew off the tree tops from above in unison before a sheet of white began to slide off the mountain. Like a waterfall tumbling down and carving the bottom half of the mountain, it created a storm of white smoke in its path, heading right down towards them.
Jiiga'e turns around and starts running back, but his limp bottom ached with exhaustion and was beginning to give up on him. Not a moment longer, Aamoo dashes past him and then Niigani.
"No. Not again. I will not be the weakest one, again." Jiiga'e runs but his traitorous legs limp with every few steps.
The rumbling avalanche bore down hard and fast as if a blizzard was obscuring their tracks. The wind was also catching up to them, bullying them by shoving them side to side like a ball.
Bizikaw catches up to Jiiga'e and they lock eyes. "If it catches you, do no struggle. Keep your paws up and stay in your wolf form. Your fur will keep you warm. I will find you!" Bizikaw yelled, Jiiga'e was barely hearing his voice through the turbulence of the avalanche. Birzakaw ran ahead and disappeared.
He wanted to catch up. He wanted to feel safe again, but the frost had caught up to his tail.
"I will not be the weak one!" Jiiga'e thought he heard himself speak, though he hadn't attempted to talk at all.
"I will not be the weak one!" Jiiga'e heard again, then it dawned on him. It wasn't his voice at all it was~
"I will not be the weak one because YOU ARE!" Jeko snaps at one of Jiiga'e's right leg wounding him even more. Jiiga'e's body finally betrayed him as his legs tucked inward into his body and just like that his body was consumed in the barrage.
Jeko continued to run, elated that he had sacrificed a soul for the mountain spirits. Grinning ear to ear, he felt stronger as he pummeled through the uneven snow beneath his paws.
Finally far enough from the deluging of the snowy peak Bizikaw, Jeko, Niigani and Aamoo watched for any movements in the blanket of snow that now laid spread out below the mountain.
"We have to go back and look for him." Bizikaw barked.
"He is weak. There is no time for weakness, remember?" Aamoo reminded Bizikaw, "that came out of your own mouth!" Bizikaw snapped at Aamoo, but was pushed away by Niigani.
"Fight later when it is the right time to fight. For now, we need to replenish our strength and energy."
Jeko watched the theatrical play the group was performing before saying, "Weakness ruins the pack. Atleast, Jiiga'e was smart enough to sacrifice himself to the spirit of this mountain for us. Look!" Jeko pointed with his nozzle, "The spirits of this sacred land has given us a path up the it's mound."
They all looked at the aftermath of the avalanche and Niigani smiled.
*
After a goodnight's rest with full bellies, the remaining four returned to the sight of the snowslide the following morning.
Bizikaw couldn't eat anything and barely had any sleep. He was the first to rise and the one to hype on all the other ones. "Hurry, if we don't hurry, Jiiga'e could be dead." Around the scuffle of his neck were two dead ferrets, joined together by their tails as it bounced up and down at Bizikaw's side. Bizikaw wanted to make sure Jiiga'e was fed once he was found.
"Jiiga'e!" Bizikaw called out over and over. "Jiiga'e! Where are you?" Make some noise so that I can find you!"
Each time Bizikaw called out, everyone followed with a still silence. The wolves' keen senses were working to their benefit.
By noon, everyone was basically done trying. "We need to move on. The sun will soon fall. The time we wasted on the week will only give our enemies more time to catch up to us." Niigani would say.
"Let's just go already!" Jeko would continue to complain and whine, hoping they won't find Jiiga'e body and the telltale signs for Jeko's bite-mark on he had left on Jiiga'e's leg.
"Jiiga'e! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I couldn't find you like I said I would. I've brought you food. I will bury it in the loose snow southeast of the slide by the Pine trees. If you do get out, the food is good for three days. Eat it. We will be going northeast. Come find me, brother." Bizikaw announced outloud into nothingness but a hillside of snow.
Disheartened and beaten, they buried the ferret in the snow then left with no success in finding Jiiga'e.
*
They finally reach a rocky wooded path as they descend around the other side of the mountain.
"Night befalls us. We must rest. The full moon will be upon us tonight and who knows who the moon goddess will choose to run rampant tonight." Niigani hollered. Stay far away from each other tonight! There is a death in the air" She sniffed the air and spit. Niigani glared at the three wolves, then silently backed up into the dark woods and disappeared.
The three wolves gazed upon each other, bewildered by Niigani's actions. The full moon, it's not always a good thing and for them, especially, with this much tension; something is bound to happen.