The Winter Tiger Read online

‘The whole galaxy is a game,’ the March Hare lifted a paw and extended one claw, ‘and it’s run on scores.’ He extended a second claw. ‘Everyone is keeping score,’ he added a third claw before standing up, atop the pile of Tiger heads, ‘and if you’re not playing, you’re dead.’ He scratched the three claws gently across his throat. The action brought about numerous growls from the Wolves, some dropping to all fours ready to pounce.

  Star Wolf put out his paws, palms to the ground and the mood calmed, a fraction. ‘Very well.’ He strode into the blood, trying his best to ignore the unpleasant squelching under his boots. ‘But remember this.’ He drew his sword and pointed it directly at the March Hare who didn’t move a muscle. ‘It is a team game we play now.’ Star spun around swirling his sword overhead. ‘And who is in charge?’

  ‘Star Wolf!’ came the reply from near four hundred Wolves, a booming call in unison that steeled Star Wolf.

  The March Hare grinned, a horrible sinuous smile that spread his cracked lips way across his weathered face.

  ‘When it comes to matters of war you are not to act again without my permission, do you understand?’

  ‘Perfectly, your eminence.’ The March Hare’s wicked visage never faltered as he bent into a theatrical bow, which he shuffled around to offer to every Wolf in sight.

  Star Wolf reciprocated the aggressive smile with one of his own as he stepped forward and kicked away one of the bottom Tiger heads, causing the pile to tumble and nearly send the March Hare flying before he rebalanced onto his hind legs down in the snow. ‘Still, excellent work, March. Five more down.’ Star Wolf patted him on the back, turning him around and walking away from the pile of heads. ‘Perhaps we should keep count.’

  The March Hare’s high-pitched nasally laugh continued long after Star’s suggestion.

  THE SCOUT’S REPORTS detailed a lake at the bottom of the hill, behind the Tiger fort, with no boats in sight. Still the Tiger fires burned from within the brick walls. ‘What are they waiting for?’ Star looked through a telescope. The digital display was hazy at best, the smoke wafting all around the fort made it near impossible to see. Plus, more fire pits had been dug around the hill, which made the entire run up to the fort a potential minefield.

  ‘They want us to attack,’ said Ash, he was bundled up in a lot of layers. The veteran warrior’s eyes were bloodshot and surrounded by puffy bags but credit to the senior Wolf he hid the fatigue as best he could. ‘If we go running up blind they can pick us off with ease.’

  ‘So, we wait them out?’

  ‘Yes, we could do that but that also has benefits for the Tigers.’

  ‘Indeed, the longer we dwell in one spot the longer it gives them to call reinforcements.’

  ‘Correct.’ Ash coughed into his paw, wiping a fleck of blood onto his overcoat, Star pretended not to notice. ‘But think bigger.’

  Star turned to regard Ash and then glanced to Bloodhound hovering nearby plus another thirty or so Wolves, all armed and awaiting an order. ‘Or this could simply be a tactic to leave us waiting around while they go off elsewhere.’

  Ash nodded. ‘Seems likely, there’s a fraction of the Tiger forces up there and down here we’ve got five hun—’ Ash glanced to the ground before correcting, ‘four hundred Wolves down here.’

  ‘Those Tigers up there are,’ he grimaced knowing the Winter Tiger as he did, ‘the sacrificial Lambs.’

  ‘Hmm.’ Ash gave it some thought. ‘I suppose they are.’

  ‘Poetic, the Winter Tiger personified.’

  ‘Don’t give him too much adulation,’ said River, coughing violently this time and turning away.

  Star acted as if nothing had happened, ‘not adulation. Understanding and respect, I must keep the Winter Tiger closer to my heart than anyone else if we’re going to win this war.’

  ‘Very good, Star.’ Ash patted him on the back before stalking away, hacking and spluttering as he went.

  ‘Let’s get this over and done with.’ Star weaved his way through the camp. ‘We attack at first light. Get some rest and be ready.’

  DAWN HAD ONLY BECOME a notion on the horizon when the shrill howls rattled through the woods, dozens of anguished Wolf cries sullied the peaceful morning. Star was up and out of his tent fully expecting to see the March Hare at the centre of the commotion. He was wrong. The March Hare lazily climbed out of his tent, next to Star’s, and stretched his limbs. Bloodhound was out and already waiting for Star.

  ‘What now?’ Star couldn’t hide the tiredness from his complaint.

  ‘Dead Wolves,’ said Bloodhound, head hung low. ‘Lots.’

  ‘How?’ Star’s entire body shivered.

  ‘The damn Leopard,’ snarled the March Hare. Star spun on the Hare with such venom he was surprised to see the Hare step backward.

  ‘Let’s not judge others, shall we, Marchy?’ said Bloodhound, a Dog always looking to keep things menial.

  The March Hare grunted.

  Star was already bounding, on all fours, to the sounds of the howling. They emanated from the same opening where everyone gathered yesterday and today Wolves were there again, in abundance. Only many of them were smashed to pieces, bent at horrible angles or missing limbs, unmoving and dead. The occasional one writhed around in agony, howling for help. Star lost count of the dead, fifty Wolves at a guess.

  ‘What the hell has happened?’ Star roared at everyone.

  Three hundred odd pairs of Wolf eyes spun to him, at the centre River and Shadowfang each of them with guilt, and an odd defiance, sprawled all over their bloody features.

  ‘A great victory,’ Shadowfang spoke low and clear. ‘Half the Tiger forces are dead and the other half scattered to the wind. They have fled this place; Agnus is yours once more.’

  Star tensed every fibre in his body, stood upright he was more rigid than the mightiest oak, he closed his eyes for fear what he witnessed would send him into murderous action. Yet more insubordination lay at his feet, and this time it had cost the lives of fifty Wolves.

  ‘Who ordered this attack?’ Star asked through gritted teeth, paw on the hilt of his laser gun. His claw itched to let loose.

  ‘I did what needed to be done.’ River’s stupid proud features looked more like an adolescent trying to convince a senior they were worthy. He puffed his chest out. ‘We killed twenty Tigers and forced another twenty to retreat like the cowards they are.’

  ‘How many Wolves did we lose?’ Star’s head swam, the sheer stupidity of it all was too much to take, and he marched right up in front of River.

  ‘Fifty-three dead.’ River did at least sound embarrassed, and refused to meet Star’s gaze, even though they stood inches apart.

  ‘And you think that’s a great victory?’ Star pointed at Shadowfang who was stood just a metre away.

  ‘I did not ask the Wolves to come with me.’ Shadowfang didn’t avert his wild eyes from Star’s. ‘I merely told River here I intended to make another raid tonight and that he was welcome to join me.’

  River went to open his mouth but kept quiet when Star shoved him to the ground before squaring up to Shadowfang. ‘And you didn’t think to stop them?’

  ‘And how do you propose I stop fifty Wolves from following me?’

  ‘Well, you’re good at evading me.’ Star shoved Shadowfang in the chest, the Leopard’s stone-like chest barely budged. ‘Why not scale it up in future?’

  River jumped to his feet. ‘Why are you complaining? We won!’

  Star smashed the butt of his laser gun into River’s muzzle, aware every pair of Wolves’ eyes was on him. He could not falter or show mercy here. ‘Yes, but we lost more Wolves than they lost Tigers and we need our animals more than they do!’ He was shouting again and stood in another eerily quiet, unnatural setting.

  ‘Put him in chains!’ Star demanded and three Wolves stepped forward and apprehended River, who cursed and scrambled in protest. Star didn’t hear the insults, he was done with River, the black Wolf, his oldest friend, had let him down y
et again.

  ‘And you.’ This time Star Wolf pushed Shadowfang harder. Not once but repeatedly until the Leopard had to take a few steps back to stop himself from falling. ‘Are you going to obey my orders?’ Star shoved again, pressing forward, anger consuming him.

  The Leopard grabbed both of Star’s wrists on the next attempted shove and found a hundred lasers pointed at him. Shadowfang snarled before chuckling and releasing Star Wolf from his vice-like grip. ‘Remember you need me and the Leopard’s.’

  ‘We need loyal supporters, not ego-tripping show-offs.’

  Shadowfang snarled at the insult.

  ‘Fall in line, Shadow,’ said the Night Badger, who had entered the conversation from nowhere. ‘You know he’s right. And that goes for everyone here, especially us from the band. It’s Star’s way or no way, too many factions and leaders doesn’t work. Shadow you know that better than anyone. Don’t be a fool.’ The Badger had moved beside the Leopard and placed a black paw on the larger animal’s arm. The touch seemed to quell the rising anger in Shadowfang.

  The Leopard’s eyes darted everywhere, eventually settling on Star. ‘Very well. I apologise. I am at your command and won’t act without your say so but understand this I cannot control your Wolves,’ a steely grin spread over his spotted features, ‘that is for you to do.’

  9. The Hexadome

  With the business of procreation completed, Winter was able to turn his attentions back to the Band of Breeds. Back to Star Wolf. Back aboard Darkchurch, his one true love, he had plotted a course involving a few stops that’d get his Tigers primed and ready for war. The reports from his ambush of Tigers on Agnus had stopped a few days prior, which meant they were dead, but no mind they were runts of his army anyways. A distraction to slow the Wolves down, Star Wolf was disappointingly predictable at times. Fortify Lupus, seek out allies and secure more food supplies all sensible steps but all incredibly obvious.

  ‘He should repeat his efforts on Ranae and Leo,’ Winter found himself talking aloud as he strolled the tube-shaped corridors of Darkchurch. The trio of Tigers he passed grunted their acknowledgement, all of them older than Winter’s forty-odd years and bitter for their experience of years. That didn’t mean they weren’t useful; the spaceship wouldn’t allow wet behind the ears Tigers to fly her. The very essence of the Tiger had been poured into this ship through black magic and a lot of blood.

  Darkchurch was the embodiment of the Tiger — incredibly strong, stealth personified and deadly.

  The Winter Tiger stopped by a bay window, he snarled at the planet staring back at him, Cameli another planet he wished he could destroy but without Atomic World Bombs it’d take too long and would involve breaching the surface. ‘A waste of time.’ He cursed the builders on Tigris for not completing their work, but soon enough he’d have another batch of AWB’s.

  And then the war really would be over.

  ‘Savour what comes before that then,’ he said, scratching his paw through the air across the window down the line of Cameli, the Camels homeworld.

  ‘General Winter,’ Hitback stood a few paces behind, ‘we are ready to jump to Catus.’

  The Winter Tiger didn’t bother turning around. ‘Get on with it then.’

  ‘Understood.’ Hitback, Winter’s obedient right-hand Tiger, tapped a button on his comms device. The tiny metal box, dwarfed by his enormous orange and black paw, flashed red. ‘Make the jump to Catus. Crew ready to jump in one minute.’ Rather than leaving Hitback’s hulking frame stood. His wide face tightened before a non-too subtle cough escaped.

  Winter rolled his eyes, still gazing out into the vastness of space, and then turned, ‘Yes Hitback, what is it?’

  ‘Uh.’ Hitback fidgeted. ‘Nothing important, sir.’ He coughed again ‘A few of the crew and I were wondering if you would be taking part in training this time around.’

  Winter narrowed his eyes; he didn’t like the crafty tone Hitback’s sentence ended with. The ferocious Tiger was just that and nothing more, he thought he was being clever, but Winter understood the insinuation. ‘You mean because I’ve not the last three times we’ve visited?’ Winter stepped forward, a few inches shorter than Hitback, not that that would matter in a fight. ‘Perhaps I’ve gone soft?’

  ‘Perhaps,’ said Hitback, his gaze met Winter’s. Good for him! It seemed Winter’s second-in-command was finally plucking up the courage to challenge him. The Winter Tiger’s mind raced, he’d not had a challenger in years.

  The boredom and restraint of Tigris were being lifted.

  ‘You know I think I will train.’ Winter walked away without looking back. ‘Maybe we should arrange a duel between you and me?’ He turned to glare at Hitback and took immeasurable delight in witnessing Hitback gulp.

  DOWN ON CATUS THE HUMIDITY was way up, which wasn’t a problem for the Tigers they were used to the oppressive heat not only on Tigris but because of their numerous visits to Catus. The Gorillas were a proud and barbaric race and what they had done since the Universal Beacon was abhorrent at best. They despised all other Monkeys and as such had spent millennia hunting and destroying Monkey planets across the galaxy. So many worlds were barren wastelands, not a soul alive amongst them. For a time the Gorillas looked to be heading to the top of the Apex chain, even above Tiger and Lion but the moment they turned their attentions from crushing other Monkey civilisations to bigger things the Winter Tiger had stepped in and ended their reign of terror.

  To date it was one of the Winter Tiger’s most famed achievements, not only stopping the powerful Gorilla forces but also taming their leader, General Modela, and his death squad. Many a creature at the Council of Worlds the past two decades had questioned how such a young Tiger, as Winter was at the forming of the council, had managed to end the Gorillas without killing their leader. It was a beautiful mystery and one that only Winter and Modela knew the answer to.

  The gorgeous tropical climate always put Winter’s ambush in high spirits. He watched as hundreds of Tigers departed Darkchurch, which currently sat on a landing bay at the edge of the rainforest. Winter himself always preferred the cold but had trained his body to savour the heat, tricks he learned many years ago on Ranae. A trip to the Frog planet would be in order after the exertions on Catus; and thus, he kept his elite killers happy. Hard training followed by relaxation and freedom before embarking to battles anew.

  ‘Why is General Modela not here to meet us?’ enquired Hitback. Winter had instructed his second-in-command, without word, to ask for the Gorilla leader’s whereabouts. Winter gave Modela that much courtesy, he could rule on Catus but must abide every single command he received and that was how it had gone the last twenty odd years. When you have an animal’s family locked away in captivity it’s easy to control them for a time but deep down Modela was a selfish Gorilla and valued his own life over anything else. Therefore, before the point the Gorilla snapped, the Winter Tiger had ordered the Gorilla’s all have one of their eyes removed and replaced with a robotic eye.

  Eyes which the Winter Tiger controlled.

  Eyes loaded with explosives, more than enough to explode a Gorilla’s skull. To date it was one of the simplest yet most brilliant plans Winter had ever executed. Modela’s pride alone would stop him revealing the scale and majesty of Winter’s defeat over him but the added reminder that if he told anyone the truth Winter would have his family tortured, slowly, and killed, years later kept the gruesome Gorilla in check.

  General Modela was the epitome of a useful prisoner, active and able to wreak havoc at Winter’s command. Not like half of the near-dead runts the Elder Three stockpiled back on Tigris.

  ‘He’s preparing the Hexadome for your arrival, he’s making a few tweaks.’ The towering Gorilla scratched at his woollen tunic. ‘He thinks you’ll like them.’

  Hitback turned to Winter, a bloody-minded Tiger incapable of thinking for

  himself. Winter stepped forward, right up close to the Gorilla who was a head taller than him. Despite the height diffe
rence, the Gorilla cowered back, his neon green eye flashed on account of his blinking. ‘Excellent news, let’s get to it shall we.’

  The Gorilla nodded and led them to the Hexadome.

  After a short walk into the jungle they came upon the Hexadome. As you would expect it was a dome shape, a metal frame full of huge hexagon chunks of bulletproof glass. From inside the crashing of hammers and chattering of angle grinders could be heard. Much to Winter’s annoyance the racket inside had caused any natural wildlife outside to scarper from the area. Though truth told he knew his ambush was probably just as likely for evacuating the area.

  ‘My, my General Modela has been busy.’ Winter was pleased at the prospect of a new training arena. ‘Have him sent to my chambers at once. I will speak with him before we begin the battles.’

  ‘Of course, General Winter.’ Hitback’s gravelly voice betrayed a hint of annoyance, a Tiger who hated to be bossed around but didn’t have the mental fortitude to lead.

  ‘Prepare yourself, you’ll be fighting tonight,’ Winter called after Hitback as the larger Tiger stalked off to the side of the Hexadome, toward the living quarters. ‘I need you sharp for some upcoming tasks I have for you and the twins.’

  Hitback stopped in his tracks, as did the diminutive twins Steelclaw and Oakenclaw who were amongst the Tigers heading to the living quarters. Hitback’s face betrayed concern, a grave look across his long, scarred features. The twins however, grinned and rolled their necks in unison. Their braided hair swished behind them as they sprinted off into the entrance, a metal door leading into the barracks that housed the Tigers when on training.

  ‘It’s going to be an interesting evening,’ Winter told his reflection in the glass at the base of the Hexadome. It was a beautiful Gorilla-made structure in the heart of even more natural splendour outside. He stood watching his Tigers flock into the barracks, they would all spend the next few hours preparing for battle and then the entertainment would start. Any that died tonight were not worthy of Winter’s army and he wouldn’t mourn their loss. ‘Time to thin the ambush, for Darkchurch.’