The steady beat of my heart produced a loud sound in the still night. The soft symphony of crickets was a comforting companion as my bare feet waded through the forest.

It was as if nature was attuned to the situation as all nocturnal activities were hindered in silent assuage of the situation.

Underneath the moon's bask, with feet moving surreptitiously, furtive gaze roved around my surroundings. I scanned through for anything that could remotely pass off as a sign of danger.

Few paces behind me, from my peripheral, I could see South Paw mirroring my actions while he maintained his distance but still within earshot.

He was an admirable and formidable warrior, one who always put the concerns and affairs of others over himself.

Minutes after we silently canvassed every inch of the forest, we ventured into the Whispering Meadows. It was the boundary of my Clàns terrain towards the east side. Coincidentally, it happened to be the same direction that we all saw the strange light from.

South Paw drifted closer to me. ''Alpha,'' he began. ''There is no visible threat here.'' His yellow eyes shone with confusion.

I hummed in agreement while my eyes took in the meadow. There was nothing but grasses. The low lying vegetation, smoothed out to tall grasses which leveled against each other. The sharp blades of their edges, softly clashed with one another as they made ruffling sounds.

There was no way I could have possibly mistook the direction. This was the exact spot the strange light came from above our sacred boundary.

Unless..

The threat had already moved ahead before we could have gotten here. Though a strange idea, was a very strong possibility.

''South Paw,''

''Yes, Alpha,'' he rushed to my side.

''Search the ground for any scent markings or tracks left behind. There is no way traces of the intruder could have disappeared that quickly.''

Nodding his head in acquiescence, South Paw placed his spear behind his back. The moonlight glimmered over the sheen of sweat and dried blood that coated his dark skin.

As he moved forward, South Paw crouched lowly onto the soft earth. Eyes wide and ears alert. With hands moving methodically over the bare ground, he crawled silently and waded through the grasses- not leaving a single stone unturned.

As I watched him perform his task, I felt a familiar warmth tingle up my spine. I turned around and saw my Silverback Wolfé coming out of the forest line.

His silver-green orbs rested on my form as he slowly trotted to my side. His silver-white fur rubbed soothingly against my bare thigh, providing comfort through his own form of tactile communication.

I should have known that my Wolfé, Hadö, wouldn't have stayed behind. Much like me, he was an impatient Wolfé that valued the Clàn's safety above all.

I perked up the moment I heard South Paws footstep drawing closer. There, on his outstretched hand, laid a strange object on the surface of his palm.

''What is that?'' I asked, South Paw shook his head in confusion.

''I have no idea Alpha, I found this strange object laying on the centre of the field.''

Taking the object from his hand, I turned it around, only for it to make a soft jingling sound.

It was a unique kind of metallic object with strange designs and blunt carvings. It looked tiny and harmless in the palm of my hands but I wouldn't be too sure about that.

This object may belong to the intruder and as such, may have some traces of the intruder's scent. I brought palm forward and placed the object right under Hadö's snout.

''Did you catch a scent?'' I asked South Paw.

I got a grunt as a reply. Within few seconds, Hadö was already running forward in a brisk jog. We both followed behind him, curious to see where the source of the scent came from.

Hadö's tracks led us back into the forest.

We jumped through high branches, thick foliages and deep trenches made in the soft earth by burrowing animals.

Finally, when I already began to question where we were headed, Hadö's large paws trotted to a stop in front of a large clearing.

There underneath the large tree, laid curled up on the ground, was the intruder.

South Paw drifted forward but I pulled him back. I gestured for my Wolfé to wait behind but I would not bank too much on that.

He was a stubborn he-wolfè this one.

My feet moved almost unconsciously towards the curled form underneath the tree. The intruder seemed to have caught onto me as its head lifted up from the ground.

I took my time to assess the intruder. It does not seem to be some kind of dangerous creature that had ventured into my territory. It had the same skin, body parts and graces like we do. With a release of breath through my nostrils, I identified the intruder to be a female?

A raggedy clothing hung around the female's upper body, shielding it from what I could tell was a skinny body frame. Thin, bony fingers, curled into the soft earth-almost as if she were nervous.

My eyes trailed upwards to meet a disturbingly set of grey eyes that trailed over my skin. The feeling was akin to ants crawling over my flesh and I did not like the action one bit.

An unconscious growl released from my chest and that seemed to snap the female out of its blatant perusal of my body. I did not have the time nor patience so I went straight to the point.

''Who are you?''

The female's form suddenly tensed. Her eyes widened further, as if she just realized the danger in her midst. She looked like a wide-eyed doe caught in the midst of predators. Even as the thought seemed to settle in her mind, I could still see the telltale signs of fear she tried to conceal under a cool mask.

Hadö stepped forward. He was surprisingly calm about this. Putting one large paw in front of the other, he placed his body protectively in front of mine. His snout drew closer to the shaken up female who had only just noticed my Wolfé's presence.

With a show of power, Hadö flashed the female his right fang, bringing the precariously sharp point closer to her jugular vein. Her neck automatically tilted to the right in a show of submission, already sensing a large power in play.

The fear I noticed moments ago seemed to sprout out of her in full force. The intensity of her emotions made Hadö grumble out his approval.

Her whole body shook wildly as she desperately backed herself further into the bark of the tree.

Fearful eyes glanced to mine once more, portraying her plea through grey orbs before they rolled back into her head as she finally slumped down.

The female's actions confused me. Who was this strange person that ventured into my territory? How did she get pass our sacred boundary? I crouched down low and placed a finger on her wrist.

''Was that really necessary? Now she is passed out and I can not question her any further.'' I admonished Hadö. He only raised his snout proudly before flicking his tail in my face.

A flash of annoyance passed through me but I squelched it down.

Gritting my teeth in irritation, I struggled to make a decision on whether to kill this female or question her further.

She could be a potential threat to the Clàn if I brought her back. I was not going to underestimate the strength of this female. I could also kill her right now and avoid any hassle, bearing in mind that I would never know the valuable information she may be holding.

What to do?

''Alpha,'' South Paw's hesitant voice reached me. He had already moved to my side while I had been thinking. His gleaming eyes, which rested on the passed out female, asked the same question.

A slight irritation passed through me when South Paw looked at her.

Why did I suddenly feel that?

I threw caution to the wind and faced South Paw. He nodded his head in acquiescence and moved towards the body, already catching the drift to my answer.

My decision was made.

What are your thoughts?