Challenging the Gods
Written by SonicBlu

	There are many places in the world that are left uninhabited by that of the animal kingdom. Places like 
Zueyala, for instance, are more likely to have undiscovered mysteries, without the threat of a living creature to ruin 
nature's ways. In this icy Arctic region, there lived a group consisting of six explorers, who thrived on setting out to 
explore areas that were too cold for even the most intelligent of creatures to reside. This hexad of adventurers gave 
themselves a name for their organization, and they were known throughout history as the Glacier Gurus.  Stan 
Drescher was considered the main leader of the group – an arctic wolf that was big on being a team player. Stan 
recently underwent a shaky encounter with an arrogant black-furred wolf named Rufus Maxwell, who insisted on 
becoming a part of the group, in exchange for helping him locate the Azulan Quartz.

	On the outskirts of Zueyala, a large rock formation stood, which also served as a purpose for the Glacier 
Gurus' practice grounds. The group of explorers was mostly found climbing and descending the rocks during the 
slow moments of their day. Leading the practicing group was an arctic vixen named Natalie Stonewell. Natalie and 
Stan were considered the fire and ice of the Glacier Gurus. Stan prided himself on leadership with a greater sense of 
understanding, whereas Natalie appeared stricter towards her leadership traits. Still, Natalie displayed a great deal of 
knowledge in geography and the dangers thereof. Standing at the foot of the formation, Grant VanZantheus 
observed the climbing gear used by the others in the group. Grant was the tallest canine and the only husky of the 
organization. His bushy black and white fur coat held the same consistency as Stan's, but he had more issues to 
worry about than hygiene. Grant made sure each member of the Glacier Gurus had safe equipment to work with, and 
was a survivalist by nature. His father started training him in survival techniques when he was just a young pup. The 
very day after his sixteenth birthday, his father took him for a trip to the desert region of Tesonea, and left him alone 
for a week with just a pocket utility knife as his only tool of survival. As it turned out, Grant was happy as a clam in 
the deep blue sea when John VanZantheus came to retrieve him. Surprisingly enough, the energetic, young pup 
managed to keep himself fed, and fulfilled his thirst from the natural resources around him. Now that Grant had 
grown into a wiser adult husky, his role as safety specialist was a true asset to the organization. Unbeknownst to 
anybody in the Glacier Gurus, Grant was also a closet homosexual. No matter how strong of a husky he was by 
heart, his sexuality was something he just couldn't open up about. Still, he fought his lonely nights thinking about 
the one being he's ever laid eyes on – a blue-furred ox by the name of Preston Waterson. Preston was a latecomer to 
the Glacier Gurus, and he never noticed the persuasive eyes of Grant VanZantheus checking out his bulging, 
muscular body up and down. Often, Grant would watch Preston from behind and gawked at the firm appearance of 
his buttocks. Needless to say, Grant's mind filled with images of Preston wearing nothing more than his fur, which 
was the same fantasy he's had to share with nobody but himself in the privacy of his lonesome home. He never let 
on to anybody of his sexual interest while he mingled with his fellow team members, which often boggled Grant's 
mind. Regardless of the inconspicuous looks that were given, Preston's heart was like gold, which was a true 
necessity of being a team player. Although the Glacier Gurus fancied themselves with an abundance of strength, 
intelligence was also an important virtue. Whenever something called for precocious measures, Ron Englewood 
would be the first in line to accept the challenge. Ron bore every aspect of a graceful deer, and although physical 
strength was not present in his scrawny body, he still held his own when it came to climbing. When Ron wasn't on 
excursions with the Glacier Gurus, he enjoyed sticking to his studies; the town library was often nicknamed his 
"home away from home." From atop the rock formation, Beverly Boytt leaned over the edge, admiring the swiftness 
of the climbers. Beverly, a gentle polar bear, was depicted as the shiest member of the group. As big on shyness as 
she was, her strength was equal in proportion. One of Beverly's favorite pastimes was to pit her lifting capabilities 
against Preston's. Together, all six members were considered less than an organization, but more like a family. 

- With the introduction in place, the Glacier Gurus head straight for the location Rufus explained to Stan about, and 
he was not making any progress being on the receiving end of their friendship. After a treacherous hike up the 
gargantuan Barbarus Mountain, the group is now ready to descend into the cave, where their real nightmares will 
soon begin. Their descent down into the caverns went by swiftly, but the mysterious, new inductee of their 
organization somehow disappeared. As they venture down into the cavern, it wasn't long before Preston Waterson 
fell victim to another mysterious disappearance. -

  "Where is he?" Grant whispered; his tone employed anger, yet he knew he also had to keep his voice down at the 
same time.
  "I don't know, but wherever he is, we don't start the exploration any further until both Preston and Rufus are back 
in our group."
  "What? Why do we have to keep Rufus with us? He can rot for all I care!" Natalie whispered.
  "I know you don't fully mean that, hon, but think about this. If anything were to happen to him, we would become 
responsible."
  "You got that right," came a voice echoing out of the shadows. Rufus stepped slowly out of the dark shadows 
where the vocalization originated; his fur helped camouflage himself with his surroundings, yet his eyes still glowed 
bright enough to identify him.
  "Rufus, where is Preston?"
  "How should I know? Do I keep tabs on everything that goes on? I just know what I want, and that's why I've 
come here. That's it, nothing more. Your associate's locality is not on my mind."
  "That does it!" Grant shouted and lunged for Rufus's neck. "You show him some damn respect, you got that?" 
Grant grumbled and snarled his upper-lip as he bashed Rufus's head against the wall.
  "Hey come on, Grant. Ease off," Stan said as he reached for the agitated husky's arm. He jerked his arm from 
Stan's grasp and gave a short nip to his paw before facing Rufus again; his grip around the wolf's neck tightened. 
Rufus was unable to reply due to the tightness of Grant's grip around his neck, but gave a few weary coughs and 
gasps as he struggled to breathe.
  "Yeah, it doesn't feel so hot now being in this position, doesn't it? Now, I'm having it out with you right here, and 
right now. You either start acting like a civilized being, or I will kill you right here, do you get me?" Rufus nodded 
his reply the same way he did at the top of Barbarus Mountain when he was under Grant's aggressiveness. He 
immediately released his paws, and Rufus rubbed his throat deeply, almost dropping to the ground. When Grant 
joined up with his colleagues, he could tell that neither of them was happy with him. Still, he had to try and make up 
for his sudden change of attitude.
  "Come on, let's get a move on. Preston's still out there somewhere, and we have to find him." Grant grunted as he 
advanced to the front of the line. 

- Searching high and low, they attempted to locate their ox friend before setting out for the Azulan Quartz. They had 
already lost two members of their team to a supernatural encounter, but will they end up losing Preston too? 
According to a loud scream echoing nearby, it could very well happen. - 

  "What was that?" Beverly asked as she rose her head into the direction from whence the scream came.
  "That sounded like Preston! Let's go find him!" Grant shouted and immediately rose to his foot paws. He didn't 
even allow the others to rise from the dusty floor, for Grant was already making a straight beeline for the cavern 
ahead. Deep inside, Grant wondered why Rufus didn't try to stop him, but at that point he didn't care. He ran as fast 
as his foot paws could carry him, until he stood right in the middle of a cavern with blood-stained walls, which 
oozed in several streams onto the floor. The cavern smelled of rotting meat and singed fur. Grant had to cover his 
muzzle to shroud the pungent odor. Standing in the middle of the floor and tied to a large stake was the very ox they 
searched the entire cave over for.
  "Preston! What happened to you?" Grant asked through an eyeful of teardrops. He immediately reached into his 
pocket for his utility knife, and began to cut through the thick rope that bound him. As he was working on Preston's 
restraint, the sound of an evil whisper rang out. The whispering sounded as if it were being vocalized by not one, but 
five different voices. The mysterious chanting grew louder, and before Grant could break through the first rope, the 
floor around them began to burn in a large ring of fire. Grant wasted no time in cutting through the rest of the ropes. 
Preston's eyes slowly opened to find Grant coming to his aid. The room grew warmer with each second that passed, 
for the fire's radius seemed to close in on the two explorers.
  "Hurry, Grant! Get me out of here!" Preston shouted. Sweat started to flow continuously from both of their 
foreheads as Grant continued struggling with the ropes. Three more restraints awaited Grant's small knife, and the 
fire grew higher. Through the billowing smoke, the appearance of a large, muscular demon was seen; his eyes 
glowed bright red as he hid behind the wall of smoke and fire.
  "Not a third time! You're not taking any more of us!" Grant shouted as he caught a quick glimpse of the horrid 
apparition.
  "Almost there, bud! Hang on!" the rescuing husky shouted as he broke through another of Preston's restraints.
  "Hurry!" Grant applied a greater pressure in his paws as he sliced through the ropes, hoping that the extra strength 
would allow a faster cut.
  "Got it!" Grant shouted, not even taking notice of the laceration he placed on the ox's leg. He wrapped his arms 
around Preston's upper-body as both of them began racing towards the flames. Grant closed his eyes tightly as he 
leapt into the air, taking Preston with him. Grant's luck with taking a leap of faith was with him once again, and they 
both managed to leap through the blazing flames. Once they were through the fire, the pair immediately fell to the 
floor and scrambled for the entrance to the cavern. After they were free from the evil entity's clutches, Grant and 
Preston tried frantically to catch their breath. Their heart rate was still beating wildly within their chests, and Grant's 
paws were shaking madly. 
  "Are you both alright?" Beverly asked as she stood before the pair of Glacier Gurus. 
  "We...we'll be fine. Just...just fine," Grant stuttered through his harsh breathing pattern. He leaned his back against 
a nearby rock formation facing the horrid cavern, and placed his arm around Preston's shoulder.
  "How about you, pal? You going to be alright?" Preston was still in a loss for words, but silently nodded his reply. 
The look on his face was enough of an indication that he had seen more than enough terror on his own. 

- Now with the missing party member back among the group, and Rufus's reputation slowly starting to build, they 
near the end of their exploration. While standing watch, Rufus monitored the rest of the sleeping group within a 
small cavern, but the God of Brutality has eyes of his own. After entrapping the Glacier Gurus, Rufus is left on the 
outside to either stay behind and help his newly acquired friends, or go after the crystal. Being one of selfish nature, 
Rufus decided on the latter, which brought about a collective amount of anger from the rest of the group. -

	The party of explorers quickly acquired the instincts of an angry lynch mob as they searched for Rufus's 
locality.
  "When I find him, I'm really going to kill him," Grant grunted. For the first time, Stan was in favor of his vulgar 
notion.
  "This way!" Preston shouted as he caught a glimpse of a light blue-colored shimmering coming from a larger 
cavern to his right. The others stopped dead in their tracks and retreated back to where Preston stood. Upon entry to 
the mystifying cavern, the group of explorers stood in awe at the sheer beauty of the room. In the center of a large, 
marble pedestal, a humongous slab of blue quartz rested. Next to the pedestal was the very figure the mob was in 
hot pursuit of. 

- How does the story end? Is Rufus standing there just for his health, or did the effects of the haunted cavern do 
something to him as well? Find out when you read the full version of "Challenging the Gods." Order your copy 
while supplies last. – 

If you liked this tale, you might also want to read other written work of SonicBlu –author of the horror novel "The 
Outer Realm," the forthcoming novel "Brandish Mountain," and several furry short stories.
Email: sonicblu@yahoo.com
URL: http://sonicblu.wereanimal.net (SonicBlu's Realm)
URL: http://www.horrorseek.com/horror/bblumfield (The Eerie Mind of Brett Blumfield)