Artic was in a fire. It flickered around her, raining hot ashes onto her, burning her pelt. Artic was trapped, surrounded by the deadly flames who crept closer and closer. Where can I go? Artic panicked. Wh-what do I do? She turned, over and over, trying to find a way to escape the fire. But there was none. Artic yelped as the fire finally reached her pelt, grabbing at her legs. As the fire overcame her, Artic saw her sister's golden eyes shine out of the smoke, and Luna's last words rang in her ear. You are the last descendent of Forest Pack. You must continue our story. Then, as her vision was engulfed with flames, Artic woke up.

Wh-what? She thought, slightly frightened. Oh. It was a dream, wasn't it? But what does it mean? She asked herself. There was no time to answer that question, because just then Catori came up to her.

"Are you okay? Artic?" He asked, his head tipped to one side.

Artic yawned. "I'm fine, Catori, just a bad dream." She looked at him and the other pups with affection. They had been living together for a couple of months now, and Artic was teaching the pups how to hunt. "Awake, little ones, it's time for hunting." She nudged the other pups.

"But it's so early!" Leaf complained as she stretched. "The sun's barely up!"

Artic looked up. Leaf was right, the sun is just beginning to rise, but she had reasons for waking so early. "The early bird gets the worm, Leaf, and dawn gives us an advantage. Can you guess it?" She addressed the other pups.

"Maybe, it's still a bit dim, and the shadows can hide us?" Kiyiya suggested.

"True, but it's only a bit of time before the sun rises completely." Artic argued. "And if we want the shadows to hide us, we can hunt in the night."

The pups fell silent, unable to come up with anything else. Artic smiled and hinted, "If we're barely awake, then..."

"So will our prey!" Catori exclaimed, wagging his tail in excitement. "If it's early, the prey will be sleepy, and we can catch them off guard!"

"That's right, Catori, now shall we go and find our breakfast?" Artic confirmed. The pups shouted yes and they were off.

It wasn't long before Artic scented their first piece of prey. But she stayed silent, waiting to confirm one of her many suspicions about the pups. Is Kiyiya's nose better than the others? She thought, curious.

"Artic!" Kiyiya whispered to her. "I smell something! What is it?"

Looks like I'm right. Artic concludes, then turns to Kiyiya to answer her question. "It's deer, Kiyiya. Take in the scent, so you can remember it always." She pauses, to let Kiyiya breath, and then continues. "This is a deer herd. After we get one, I'll tell you about the migration of them, so you know where to always find them."

"We're not going for the big one, are we?" Dust asked. "He looks scary with the big horns."

"Those aren't horns, Dust. They're antlers." Artic informed. "And the 'big one' is called the stag. He is the leader of the deer pack. The antlers are fatal if he strikes you hard, so only the most experienced, along with lots of help, dare to hunt the stag. Today we are going for the baby, also known as the fawn."

"Should we surround it?" Leaf asked.

"I'll chase it towards you, and your jobs are to catch it." Artic said. "Okay?"

The four pups nodded, and Artic settled them into position. She herself then began to stalk towards the deer pack. Once Artic was in position, she swished her tail back and forth a few times, telling the pups she was ready. Then, she leaped forwards, barking and driving her target, the fawn, towards where she knew the pups were hiding.

The fawn screeched, and ran straight towards the ambush circle. At once, the pups burst out of the bushes and surrounded the prey. The frightened fawn turned and Artic saw, in the dim light, the fawn's eyes flash gold. The dream of the fire flashed again in her mind, and she froze, memories rushing back to her. When Artic came back, she found Kiyiya on top of the fawn, her teeth sunk in the back. Catori is hanging from the fawn's neck, while Dust and Leaf each have their mouth wrapped around one leg of the prey.

"Bite the neck!" Artic called, preparing to block the fawn if it escaped. Kiyiya moves, and Artic can tell she made a mistake. The fawn bolts from the pup's grasp, free from the weight of Kiyiya, who was holding it down. Artic runs beside the fawn, knowing that she can out run it, and orders the pups to cut off it's path. "Do you see where it's running?" She asked the panting pups. "Run to its destination!" The pups follow her order, and it isn't long before Kiyiya manages to bite the fatal spot, killing the fawn. "Good job, pups." Artic congratulates. "Your first prey. Go on and eat."

"Aren't you going to eat?" Catori asks, bringing a large piece of meat towards her. "You helped a lot. And you taught us."

"Sure, I'll eat." Artic said, but barely takes a bite out of the food Catori brought her. Artic was thinking about the dream.

And Artic continued to think about it for the next few months. The dream of the fire came back again and again to haunt her, and one day, Artic knew what she must do.