The Elk Hunt

The young wolf's paws ached as he trotted across the rough Yellowstone terrain. He had just dispersed from the pack that he was born to and was eager to establish his own territory. His nose nearly brushed the ground as he traveled. Suddenly, Citron skidded to an abrupt halt. His tail rapidly swished back and fourth as he realized that he'd found it.

The sweet scent was strong and fresh. Drool slowly began to trickle out of his mouth. It was the glorious, sweet scent of elk. Citron broke into a full run as he continued to follow the elk scent. He followed the sent tirelessly for multiple miles.

Eventually the sun, which was brutally burning onto his bright golden coat, suddenly became to much to bear. Panting heavily, he plopped down under the shade of a nearby tree. The small gust of breeze offered not only comfort, but also the overwhelmingly powerful scent of elk. Citron rose to his paws with a grunt and narrowed his startling, bright yellow eyes as he searched for the source of the scent. He spotted them grazing in a clearing just past the cluster of trees that he was currently in. Carefully, he began to stalk towards the elk herd.

Just as he was preparing to bite into the back of an elk, she spun around and kicked her front hooves out at him. Thankfully, Citron was able to escape it by flattening his belly low to the ground. The rest of the elk quickly decided to flee. Citron sunk his teeth into the neck of the one that had attempted to attack him before it could flee along with the others. The female elk's eyes were wide with terror. The beast struggled causing Citron to loose his grip. Frantically, the elk made a run for it kicking up dust in his eyes as she galloped away. Citron took off after it completely forgetting the sharp aches in his paws. Once he caught up, he firmly grabbed her gangly back leg causing her trip and stumble onto the ground. He decisively ended it with a fatal bite to the neck. Around him was an open field with sagebrush plants scattered around. Citron eagerly devoured as much as his stomach could hold.

However, he couldn't resist when he noticed that the herd hadn't fled very far and was still in view. As he cautiously stalked forward, he decided on targeting a young elk that was off grazing separately from the rest of the herd. Immediately, he charged and latched onto the young elk's neck. Predictably, the herd fled leaving Citron with the lone elk. Due to the lesser size and lack of strength of his prey, it didn't take long complete the hunt. Suddenly feeling sleepy, Citron curled up with a full stomach and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Citron awoke well before sunrise. He started to stretch out, but whimpered and instantly regretted the action. Every muscle in his body ached. Especially his paws, which were now screaming at him to lay back down. Citron ignored those pains and reminded himself that they were simply reminders of a successful hunt.

With that, Citron made his way over to the first elk that he'd hunted, which was a few miles away, to stretch out the stiffness. Around him, Yellowstone's creatures were wide awake. High-pitched yips and barks of near-by coyotes pierced his sensitive ears. A whole flock of ravens swooped past him making their strange gurgling and croaking sounds. Curiously, Citron chased after them.

The chase abruptly ended when the ravens landed on a pile of elk bones. Citron gazed around at his surroundings. He stood in an empty, grassy space that contained a few sagebrush plants. Recognition flashed in Citron's eyes. That elk, was the same one that he had hunted the day before. He furiously stalked over and snarled at the ravens. They seemed unnerved by his threat and continued pecking at the carcass. Citron's ears were filled with the same shrill yips and barks from earlier.

Up ahead, three coyotes were loping away with blood stained muzzles. His suspicions were confirmed when he looked even closer. One of the coyotes had his mouth stuffed with elk meat. Those lesser canine had been helping themselves to his prey! With a menacing snarl, Citron sped after them. He gave a hard nip to the one closest to him, which also so happened to be the one with the evidence stuffed right in his mouth. He was able to wriggle his leg free and darted away from Citron along with the other two coyotes.

Begrudgingly, Citron headed back to the location of the second elk that he'd taken down. Unfortunately, a gigantic boar grizzly had beaten him to it. Although Citron was eager to eat before he continued his travels, he knew better then to mess with a boar grizzly. With a droopy tail, Citron carried on.