text: . Silence invades the ancient forest, who is fresh in transition into winter. Fallen leaves have been crushed into the ground and snow begins to dot the landscape. The cold begins to bite at the flesh of the beasts that inhabit the elder ground. A herd of elk lie in a clearing, gifted with the bliss of ignorance, the reward of naivete. They graze upon what little grass is left with glee, oblivious to the danger that hides within the forest walls. A pack of wolves hide within the barren trees and evergreens, stalking the great herd. Unlike the fat bellies of the elk, the stomachs of the wolves remain empty and ready to feast. Unnoticed they step towards the elk, who are blinded with a false sense of security. *Step*. *Step*. *Step*. For days the pack has been hunting with no reward for their efforts. They starve, yet they push on with a thin hope of catching some food. Now, lo and behold, a plentiful bounty of meat awaits them. The wolves are desperate with their stomachs mimicking their growls, and their tongues wet with flavorful spit. But these wolves are nothing if not patient. They know their plan; they’ve done it a thousand times through the memory that lies within their blood. They creep on. *Step*. *Step*. *Step*. The aroma of the elk grows strong, invading the senses of the malnourished wolves. One of the younger, excited ones carelessly steps upon a patch of dry leaves. A loud crunch is heard around the clearing, and is echoed by the forest’s strange voice. The once carefree elk shoot their heads into the sky looking frantically in all directions. The pack sinks further back into the woods just in time. Their prey sees nothing, and go back to grazing more alert than before. The Alpha male looks over at one of his young sons with anger, but now is not the time for punishment so they creep on. *Step. Step. Step.* Once they have regained their position, they scan the entirety of the herd for potential targets. The wolves spot one who is elderly and moves slower than the others. Oh, but there is not enough meat on him to feed them all. Then they spot a group of calves big enough to feed the lot of them. Oh, but they are all protected by the whole herd, it will not be possible to take on the entire herd for one meal. Continuing to scan across the lot, they spot one great, big, mountain of a bull with antlers like branches of a mighty oak. The scars on his face say that he is experienced and ready for combat. Would it be worth it to take down this beast? Well fortune favors the bold, but so does death. They decide on their target, and continue on. *Step. Step. Step.* When they arrive at their vantage point, they stand still, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Their heart beats pound in their bodies, and anxiety is at a high. If they fail here, the fate of the pack is sealed. They wait for the herd to calm down, and when that same obliviousness from before is reached, the pack with power of lightning and twice the swiftness charge at the herd, barking and chomping their teeth. In a panic, the elk burst out with the wolves giving chase. That big bull is in the back running at full speed. Three wolves go between him and his herd, while the rest of the pack follow the bull at his heels. The herd separates themselves from the bull, and once he realizes what the wolves have done, he plants his hooves into the ground and swings his head with the might of an avalanche. *Woosh*. He barely misses the pack with his antlers. The bull stares at them to see whose will will break first, for this was not the first time he had met a pack like this, and would make sure that it would not be the last. However, he greatly underestimated the hunger that pilots these wolves minds. One of them tries to go behind the bull in some vain attempt at glory, and when he makes his move the bull predicts it and swings his head at the adolescent glory seeker. *Boom*. The antlers collide with young wolf, and goes flying behind the elk, unable to get up. He whimpers in pain, but the pack cannot give up their position, they can’t afford to quit even if it is for one of their own. Confidence fills the bulls head as he swings it around to assert to the wolves who is in charge here, when suddenly a sharp pain enters the back leg of the elk; he had forgotten about the other three wolves. As soon as the jaws around his leg let go, he gives a swift kick, only grazing a few hairs off the wolf, and runs off with the pack close behind. The bull is in panic having completely lost his herd, but he runs with a thin hope that he will escape. The pack is close behind, gnashing at his haunches. Pain seizes his mind, but all he can do is run. He grows weak with every stride, he begins to slow down, is there any hope here? He collapses to the ground, and looks to the sky with desperate eyes for something, anything to save him. Before the mighty bull can admit defeat, the alpha closes his jaws around the bull’s throat. He is gone. The ravenous wolves begin to tear him apart, ripping his tender flesh with the satisfaction of finally having landed a kill. In fact, they are so enthralled by this that they forgot about their fallen brother who lies dead on the ground. And so, with full bellies they leave the carcass with nothing for the crows to feast on. Silence invades the ancient forest.