smelled the cub, letting out a low growl of approval.

The mother looked up, reaching for her child. The father handed the cub delicately to its mother, who cradled it against her chest. The father slowly crawled to sit next to the mother, nuzzling her and the cub.

The gathered vampires leaned in closer to watch as the cub opened it's eyes. A brilliant, deep golden hue greeted the awed onlookers. A leader had been born at the perfect time. By the time it reached adulthood, their current clan leader will have passed. The cub let out one final howl, before settling into it's mother's arms, nuzzling the female hunter and falling into a deep sleep.
***
Three years had passed, and the cub had grown into a youngling, if you could call him that. He was stronger, faster, smarter, tougher, and more cunning than the other vampires of his age group. He led his birth-pack well, learning the lay of the land and assisting the adult hunters.

However, they were on their own now, and they had a goal. They prowled through the dense woodland that covered the foothills of the looming, snow-capped mountains. The vampires had found the tracks and scent of a moose, and they hoped to bring the large beast back to their clan.

They all paused as one when the scent suddenly grew. They quickened their pace, dropping to all fours, and following the scent. The found their goal waiting in a clearing, and they stopped in both awe and shock.

The best was massive. They could easily stand at their full height, and not bump their head on it's stomach. The beasts antlers could gut them likes fishes, and it's powerful legs could smash their bones like twigs. The beast snorted, and tore apart a bush that was unfortunate enough to sate the moose's appetite.

The leader was undeterred, and his eyes gleamed with a clever plan. He quickly scaled a tree, the pine needles digging into his fur. He prowled along a thick branch that swayed over the clearing. With murder in his eyes, he pounced upon his prey, digging his tusks and fore-claws into the moose's neck, and his back claws into its flanks. The beast panicked, and the predator's birth-pack took the initiative, pouncing on the moose's sides and legs, bringing it to the ground in a heap.

The leader dealt the kill blow, tearing the prey's jugular out with his gleaming claws.

When the group returned, very weary from dragging their massive bounty in, they received great praise. However, the hunters were slightly upset, for the younglings disobeyed orders not to hunt by themselves. Regardless of their disobedience, the hunters were impressed, especially with the golden-eyed leader, who proved himself more each day.
***
Two years had passed since the moose met a quick demise, and the golden-eyed youngling was now a leader. Despite only being the leader for three months, he had already managed to conquer an opposing clan, the vampires he and his clan attacked falling like cubs before the well organized onslaught. Along with the survivors joining the clan, many vampires had left their previous clans to join the one led by a ferocious warrior.

His clan strengthened with each passing month, and quickly asserted their dominance as the leader of the dense woodland they called home. They were satisfied with their conquest, for it had not been done in years.

The golden-eyed leader was praised, honored, and exalted for the rest of his life, and even years after he passed. Decades, and centuries, passed, and he was still remembered. However, he slowly faded, being slowly forgotten as time washed away his conquests like blood in the snow.

But that's not what the story is about. It's about a powerful leader who was known to some as hero, others as villain, many as conqueror, and still more as liberator.

But he was known to all as Ig'da. One of the most powerful vampires to walk the world.