Page 1 of Gentle Giant

Chapter 1

BRUTUS

A light breezeruffled my fur as I stood on the cliff, surveying my domain. Sunlight glittered across the lake in the valley below, where a small herd of elk had paused at the shore. Other creatures caught my notice—two young foxes playing in the bushes, a fat rabbit munching on clover, an eagle soaring toward its nest, and several white goats scaling a distant snow-capped mountain.

Closing my eyes, I lifted my face to the sky, inviting the sun’s warm rays to caress my cheeks. Such a rare clear day was a gift from the Great Spirit.

I spread my arms with my tingling palms facing the valley as I bestowed healing energy upon the land and the creatures therein. The North Cascades. That was what the humans called these lands. My people had inhabited the area for thousands of years, yet we’d gone largely unnoticed by the humans.

The vast forests and secret caverns helped keep us hidden, as well as our ability to alter the memories of most trespassers we encountered.

But for how long?

My eyes shot open when I sensed a shift in the wind and a faint vibration. I growled at the sight of a metallic air vessel zipping across the blue sky. How many humans did it contain, and where were they going? A short while later, three more vessels followed in its wake, one with smoke billowing from it, as though it had sustained damage in a battle.

War. The humans were slaughtering one another, different groups vying for land, resources, and power. Sometimes when I pressed a hand to the earth, I could hear the anguished cries of suffering souls.

More and more humans were venturing into our lands, desperate humans who seemed reluctant to return to where they’d come from. It was as though they were trying to escape some great horror. The nearest human town, a small settlement that had once housed less than a thousand souls, was also growing. I’d charged my cousin, Axxon, with surveying the town every third moon cycle, and his reports on the steadily increasing population were unsettling.

A crash in the distance sent me running north through the trees. The scent of smoke reached me, and I knew others in my tribe would detect the trespassers soon. It wouldn’t be the first time one of the metallic air vessels had crashed in our territory. As I ran, I released a warning howl that echoed off the mountainside. Several familiar howls returned to me on the wind. Axxon, as well as my two brothers, Gorran and Mastorr, and five other males who were among the strongest in our tribe.

I crossed multiple streams, rushed between lichen and moss-covered trees, and jumped from boulder to boulder as I took a shortcut over the mountain. The smoke grew thicker in theair, so thick my throat began to burn. The temperature in the forest also rose, and two fleeing deer bolted past me, along with squirrels, rabbits, and other small animals.

A fire. The crash had ignited a fire in our beloved forest. Our home was burning. I ran faster and gave another bellowing howl. Eight howls in varying tones carried to me over the pounding of my heart in my ears. Relief rushed through me because they sounded close. Putting out the fire would require great effort on all our parts, but we’d done it before, and I was confident we would succeed this time as well.

We had no choice. We couldn’t lose our home.

Relocating wasn’t an option.

To the north and south, and to the east and west, the lands were occupied by other tribes of Montikaans. Each territory was clearly defined, and trespassers were dealt with harshly. My tribe was no different—we killed any Montikaan males from neighboring tribes who dared to venture into our lands.

We must protect our territory, keep our lands fruitful and safe.

Worry gripped me as I continued following the smoke. The crash site was alarmingly close to the cavern my tribe inhabited. Most of my people resided in the cavern, though some preferred living in the open forest, sleeping under the stars.

More animals scampered by me, and I soon reached a wall of fire. Within the flames, I could detect the scent of burning bodies.

Axxon was the first to arrive, and he came to a halt beside me and spread his arms, turning his palms toward the fire. I took up the same stance as Gorran and Mastorr and the others who joined us. No words passed between us as we spread out and focused our combined healing energies into the burning area of the forest.

Sorrow clutched me, the deepest sadness I’d ever known, as I watched the flames go down.

How many of our people had died?

Forty souls had lived in this clearing near the cavern, most of them females, sisters and cousins from the same extended family.

I breathed deep of the smoke, even though the scent of burning bodies made me sick to my stomach, as I tried to count how many of the deceased I could smell. I stopped counting after I reached twenty, and when I glanced at Gorran, who was standing closest to me, he had tears in his eyes. He’d been courting a female named Sashona who’d lived in this clearing. My heart ached for his loss, though I prayed to the Great Spirit that Sashona had been spared.

At last, the flames died down and there was nothing but smoke, charred earth, and scorched trees. The crashed vessel sat at the center of the devastation, and murderous impulses rushed through me when the hatch of the vessel opened and two human males crawled out, looking dazed. One of them was bleeding, and the scent of his blood filled my lungs and called up savage impulses. The desire to kill. The need for revenge.

I led the way into the blackened clearing, ignoring the pain of walking over embers. Gorran rushed ahead and bolted from body to body. Counting. He was counting the dead. And looking for his female, no doubt. Suddenly, once he reached a charred form curled up on the ground, he lifted his face to the sky and released an anguished cry that wrenched at my heart.

I approached him, and Mastorr and Axxon joined me, as we sought to comfort him. Females were precious to us. To lose one was unimaginable. Devastating.

“There are twenty-five dead Montikaans,” Gorran said through a growl. “Twenty-one females and four males. Including my Sashona.” A tear trickled down his face and he wiped it awayangrily before setting his sights on the two human males who were trying to limp out of the clearing. The men kept peering over their shoulders at us with pale faces and wide eyes. One of them waved a gun and shouted obscenities at us, threatening to kill us all.

Growls of sorrow and outrage resounded on the mountainside as more of our people from the cavern reached the shocking scene. As I watched the human men trying to escape, the armed man still issuing threats, I felt the collective bloodlust humming through my tribe.

I knew what must be done. What must happen.

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