Scabhta

Scabhta is an Irish word meaning “scout.” It is pronounced much like the English word, but with an “uh” sound at the end.

Inspired by the Reedsy Prompt Write a story from the point of view of a canine character or a mythological creature.

This story is part of the Heart of Darkness book universe by Madeline and Chloe Walz. You can also read it on my Reedsy Prompts profile.

Scabhta takes place 50,000 years ago, during a glacial period near the end of the Middle Paleolithic, in what is now Eastern Europe. While this short story is related to Anathema, it can be read either before or after the book.

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A single wolf pup followed his mother across the steppe. It had been just two weeks since his weaning, but he had already begun learning to hunt. He enjoyed hunting, even if all of his siblings were better at it—it wasn’t his fault they were all bigger and stronger than him. Now, though, he was on this journey with his mother, struggling to keep up with her quick trot. No siblings, no father, no aunts and uncles. Just him and his mother.

A few days ago, a lone wolf had visited his pack. While the pack hadn’t allowed the other wolf to stay long, the wanderer had told them a little about the things he’d seen. Far to the north was a land covered in ice, cold enough to make the steppe’s cool temperatures feel warm. On the steppe between the frozen lands and their pack’s territory, there was a large group of creatures who looked like humans but didn’t smell like them. These creatures called themselves Uiscogeni. The wanderer had told the pup’s pack that these Uiscogeni sometimes adopted other creatures, making them smarter, giving them powers when they became adults, and overall making their lives better.

The next morning, the pup’s mother had told him to come with her, and they’d been traveling ever since. She was determined to find the Uiscogeni, so they could give her smallest pup a better chance at life. The pup wasn’t sure if he wanted that chance. He kind of liked being small. Yes, it was harder, and his siblings were sometimes a little mean, but being small meant he could explore more. He could squeeze into places they couldn’t fit. Just last week he had poked his head into a hole none of his siblings fit into and caught a rodent. He’d been proud of himself for catching his first prey, even after getting a scolding from his father for not being more careful.

Up ahead, the pup’s mother dropped to her belly and snuck up to the top of a hill. The pup dropped lower and crept up behind her, trying to copy her. When he reached the top, he wagged his tail, looking at his mother to see if she’d noticed how good he’d done. She gave him a quick lick on the cheek, then turned to look at the land on the other side of the hill.

It was covered with trees.

Trees! The pup had heard of trees, but he’d never seen them before. He sniffed the air, curious about what sort of animals could live in a place so crowded with giant plants. Some scents were new, others kind of familiar. Then he caught a scent that made his ears perk up: almost like humans, but mixed with the smells of water and trees. Wasn’t that how the wanderer wolf had described the Uiscogeni?

His mother sniffed the air, then stood and slunk into the trees. The pup followed nervously, staying close to his mother’s side and sniffing for danger.

Just a few yards into the trees, his mother stopped and cocked her head. The pup stopped walking and cocked his head too, then he heard it. It was some sort of creature sound, but it was more complicated than anything he’d heard before. Somehow, the pup knew the sound was an invitation. This was an Uiscogeni, calling for another creature to come join them. This was what his mother wanted for him.

The pup’s mother headed towards the Uiscogeni call, but the pup didn’t move. He had liked this plan at first, but that was back when he was at home, with his pack. This place was strange. His mother came back and gave him a reassuring lick, then nudged him forward, farther into the trees.

All around them in the trees were stone hills with holes in them. Were those Uiscogeni dens?

His curiosity about the Uiscogeni dens disappeared as he and his mother reached a clearing. In the middle of the clearing was a ring of trees with no branches or leaves. Inside that was a ring of stones, and in between the two rings were Uiscogeni.

They looked a lot like humans. The Uiscogeni stood on two legs, letting their other two limbs dangle at their sides. They had fur only on top of their heads, and the females’ fur was so long the pup thought it was impractical. Didn’t it get in the way? Since they had no fur on their bodies, they covered themselves with fake skins like humans did. The pup remembered how surprised he’d been when he’d learned those loose, colorful skins could come off.

Among the Uiscogeni were all kinds of animals: small ones like rodents and birds, big ones like elk, and others he didn’t recognize.

A female Uiscogeni in the center of the stone ring was making the strange, complicated call. A male stood next to her. In front of them was a stone with a big hole in the middle. Somehow, the pup knew the Uiscogeni woman wanted him to go through that hole. He glanced at his mother, and she nudged him forward again.

The pup took a few steps towards the clearing, then stopped and ran back to his mother for one last cuddle. Then he turned and walked towards the Uiscogeni.

The crowd of Uiscogeni parted to let him through. As the pup reached the middle of the ring, where the male and female stood, the female stopped her call. The pup dropped to his belly, suddenly nervous as every Uiscogeni and all the animals looked at him.

The female waved one of those dangly upper limbs towards the stone with the big hole. The pup glanced back to where he’d left his mother. He could just see her past the Uiscogeni’s legs. She lay on her belly, watching him.

The pup stood up and approached the big stone. The hole was kind of high, but he was sure he could reach it. He crouched, gauging the distance, and jumped.

He caught the edge of the hole with his front legs and pulled himself through, dropping to the ground on the other side, and almost fell over as a strange feeling came over him.

It felt like his mind was bigger. He almost felt like he could understand the complicated calls of the Uiscogeni around him. No, not calls. Language. Where had that word come from?

The male and female crouched in front of him, smiling. Only then did the pup notice that the female was holding an Uiscogeni pup. Somehow, the wolf pup could tell the Uiscogeni pup was tired and a little hungry. How did he know that?

A large bird hopped off the male’s shoulder, landing in front of the wolf pup.

What is your name?

The wolf pup gaped at the bird. How had he known what the bird said?

What is your name? the bird asked again.

He thought about that. Name. He’d never had one of those before, but as he thought about it, a word came to him. The pup didn’t know where the word had come from, but it felt right. He told the bird, My name is Scabhta.

The bird turned to the male and told him, His name is Scabhta. The male then told the female Scabhta’s name. Why did they need to repeat it to each other? Maybe some Uiscogeni couldn’t understand wolves.

The female smiled at Scabhta. “Hello, Scabhta.” She held out the Uiscogeni pup. “This is our son Aldric, your companion. Welcome to the Uiscogeni.”