The Strips

Little Wolf Lost, Part 1

March 2005   Introduction   Discovery on the Beach April 2005   Misplaced Wolfchild   My Name Is... Sandy   Help From the Ferrets   Human Artifact May 2005   What Does It Do?   Consulting Sakka   Not Quite the Answer He Wanted   Unexpected Suggestion   Rhene Vexed June 2005   Do You Have an Appointment?   A Difference of Opinion   Wandering the Rat Complex   Any Rat Except Scorry! July 2005   Answer These Riddles Three   Answers and Questions   Truths August 2005   Puzzle Box   Greasing the Wheels September 2005   And in the Box Is...   Crossroads   Awake and Feisty   Sandy Dunno October 2005   Cooling Off   Where's Rif?   The Road to Tycho   A Lightcatcher?

November 2005   No, a Sextant   An Exciting Lesson (for the Teacher)   Tycho's Affliction   Rif and Tycho Part   Not Here. Not There. December 2005   Better and Filling Out   But How Do You Wind It?   Dinner Interrupted January 2006   Counter-claim   Sakka's Question   Just Some Old Rags   Not Spitting It Out   Watched February 2006   Followed   A Message from Elara   Removed. Stolen. Lost.   Welcome, Friends March 2006   Elara's Request   Why Rhene?   Journey to the Dog Castle   Guest or Prisoner? April 2006   In Prince's Throne Room   Request Reaction   Maidens Go to the Tower   Ferret Militia May 2006   Separation

Little Wolf Lost, Part 2A

May 2006 (continued)   Hungry Like a Wolf June 2006   Mysterious Visitor   Hidden and Missing   *The Okk and Eeah Show, Part 1   *The Okk and Eeah Show, Part 2 July 2006   *The Okk and Eeah Show, Part 3   Who Is At the Door?   Annabelle   Salvage What? August 2006   The Poodle's Ethics   The Plan Is to Not Be Confused   Of Cats and Dogs and Foxes   Prelude to a Plan   Dress-up September 2006   Glitch in the Plan?   Loose Stone   You're Late   What Did You Do With My Stuff? October 2006   Rif in a Rush   Which Way Did He Go?   Good Morning?   Elara's Reward   I'd Really Like To Get Back Home November 2006   Journeys   This Cave Looks Warm and Dry   This Cave Now Looks Dangerous   Is That Really Necessary? December 2006   Prelude to a Battle of Wills   Your Style Is Clumsy   Let's Call It a Draw

January 2007   No One's Home   Rhene Butts In On Ram   Quizzing the Ram   An Otter? February 2007   This Bodes Ill   I Just Want to Know One Thing   So I'll Just Be Going Now   A Long Ponder March 2007   Do You Know How To Open That?   Eggs Always Hold Good Things   Hidden Scrap   Sandy Shows Rif? April 2007   Northward Bound   Here We Go Again   You Want To Fight Me Too   You Can't Just Play At This May 2007   Tickle, Tickle   Two Can Play That Game   Tell Mama Bear All About It   A Tale Over Tea   Starry Night June 2007   The Top   Book Learning   Fine! See if I care!   So says the Fox! July 2007   No Clock, No Sextant   One Giant Step For a Fox   *What's Sandy Thinking? Contest Winner

Little Wolf Lost, Part 2B

August 2007   You're Still Alive? September 2007   Out on a Limb   And He Saved the Clock...   I Found a Ledge   Going Opposite Directions October 2007   Sandy's Squirrely   Down Looks Good Now   Path Down   Down It Is   And It's a Long Way Down November 2007   No Place for the Timid   Mama Bear's Lesson   How Could They Go On From Here?   The Trail Is Cold December 2007   An Otter in the Bush   What's Your Problem?   A Very Poor Liar January 2008   The Measure of a Morph   A Bad Move   Ignoring the Rules   Ol' Rufi Is Dangerous   Another Rope Trick February 2008   Wild Lands   Powerful Companions   He Has Something I Want   I Wouldn't Tell You

March 2008   Delayed by Ferrets   Highjacking the Raft   That Trick Never Works April 2008   *It Began With a Solar Flare   One Rope Too Many   Taking Care of Some Riff-Raff   Particularly Un-Useful   Asked and Not Answered May 2008   The Short Answer   And About the Clock...   Thrice a Guest   Winning and Losing June 2008   Guest of the Boars   Snooping About July 2008   Finders Keepers   In the Closet   Rude Awakening   The Dungeon? Or Not!   Brief Reunion August 2008   Off the Hook   Advice and Clarification   Anxious to Get Home September 2008   Smoke!

Little Wolf Lost, Part 3

September 2008 (continued)   *From the Mouths of Babes   Scary Sounds   Wildland Refugees   Tale of the Black Ship October 2008   Escalating Demands   Sticks That Hurt   Sending Them On Their Way   Making Connections November 2008   Righteous Wrath   The Reckoning   Confessions   Burned Down December 2008   Parting of Ways   Tea and Talk   Telling It Straight   *Homesick January 2009   Passing the Sextant   Stormy Weather   This Complicates Things   Truce February 2009   Wandering Stars   Are You Awake?   Heading West   Arrival March 2009   Helpful Directions   Knocking On Doors   She Wolf's Humble Abode   A Mother's Story   The Moment of Truth -- Almost April 2009   The Black Ship   Lessons Learned   Strategies   Boarding Plans May 2009   Near Miss   A Good Plan   Small Talk June 2009   Unwanted Attention   Elrik's Hospitality   Second Thoughts   Elrik's Report   Torch Song and Dance July 2009   Regrets   A Chance Sighting   Cold Pursuit   Nice Digs August 2009   A Powerful Moment   Talk About Zap Sticks

September 2009   Another Distraction   The Mastermind Revealed   About Chota   The Jig Is Up   Panic Reaction October 2009   What's Behind the Door   Decisions   Caught   Fellow Prisoners November 2009   Everyone Has Questions   Crossed Examination   Back to the Matter at Hand   We Know Nothing December 2009   Clearing the Deck   *A Letter   *A Follow-Up Card   Shipboard Dragnet January 2010   Something's Missing   Of Teeth and Claws   A Shocking Development   One That Came In Handy February 2010   Change of Command   In The Drink   Rufi Ascendant   Oar Trumps a Sword March 2010   Girl Talk   Friend or Foe?   Surrender   We Have Company April 2010   Righteous Anger   Mob Rule   Crowd Control   Who's in Charge? May 2010   Captain Rif..er, No.   Willis Steps Up   Spreading the Blame   Aye Aye, Captain Willis June 2010   Excuses   Assurances and Recriminations   Threats   Promises   More Promises July 2010   A Child's Call   Sweet Reunion   *When It Reigns...   A Name To Respect

Little Wolf Lost, Epilogue

August 2010   Almost There   Invitation Declined   Promise of Sanctuary   Prospect of a Boring Life   An Alternative * Out-of-continuity Strips

The Game

The following is a spoiler-free summary of Inherit the Earth: Quest for the Orb, the prequel to the comic strip.

Rif the Fox has traveled far from his tribe's home to compete in the Puzzle Contest. Right after being awarded his second-place medallion, Rif is accused of stealing the Orb of Storms, an ancient relic of the legendary humans that the Morph use to predict the weather.

Rif is able to convince his accusers that as a verified puzzle-solver, he is the best person to seek the true thief. To insure he completes his mission, the Elk Captain sends Lieutenant Eeah to guard/help Rif. Not to be outdone, the Boar Captain sends Sergeant Okk along; plus, the boars hold Rif's girlfriend Rhene as a hostage.

Rif spends many days finding clues, seeking advice, outwitting foes, helping others and solving puzzles (sometimes with the help of Eeah and Okk). He eventually locates the true culprit and is able to prove his innocence, winning the freedom of Rhene.

And they lived happily ever after. Well, not really.

Prologue to the Game
Written by Robert Leh

The campfire painted a warm, yellow glow on the surrounding trees, replacing the soft silver of the full moon. Rif slowly rotated a freshly-caught trout over the fire as Rhene combed the burrs and briars from her long, bushy tail. They were but three days journey out of the camp of the Fox Tribe, but already Rhene was beginning to show signs of fatigue. Rif, on the other hand, seemed to gather strength with each step, fueled by the excitement of the coming day.

"When do you think we shall arrive at the Faire, Rif?" asked Rhene.

"If we leave at daybreak, we should arrive by mid-morning." replied Rif.

"Then perhaps you should get some sleep." said Rhene.

"I'm too excited to sleep. I've waited all year for the Puzzle Faire, and tomorrow we will be there." Rif’s eyes watched their dinner, but his mind was already into the next day.

Although Rhene did not share her friend's excitement, she understood it. After all, Rif was the best puzzle-solver in the Fox Tribe. He had defeated all of his tribe's challengers at many types of games, and was now ready to take on the best of the other tribes. Rhene knew her friend better than anyone, though, and she knew that in order for him to be at his best, he needed to be well rested. Perhaps if she got his mind off of the Faire...

"Isn't the sky beautiful tonight?" asked Rhene, moving closer to the fire.

"Er, yes. Quite nice." replied Rif, absent-mindedly.

"Do you ever wonder if the Humans are actually out there somewhere, watching us?" wondered Rhene , dreamily.

"Humans! Humph!" scoffed Rif. "You don't really believe those old stories, do you?"

"But what about the cave paintings? The artifacts?"

"Perhaps some strange, hairless beings did walk the earth long ago, but I don't believe the part about flying machines, and the Humans ascending into the clouds, and all that nonsense."

Rhene pulled her blanket around her. "What about the Book of Hands?"

"Just stories to lull the kits to sleep." replied Rif. He had heard all of the stories when he was a kit about how the Humans were here long before the Morph, that the Humans had taught the Morph how to use their hands, gave them voices, showed them how to walk upright, rode in great skyplanes, and went to live in the clouds, someday to return for the Morph. He didn't really believe the stories when he was a kit, and he certainly didn't believe them now. The Morph had always been here, thought Rif, like the trees, the rocks, or the sky. He would not be fooled by some silly myth.

"Besides," continued Rif, "if these Humans had the ability to travel back and forth to the clouds, don't you think they would have come back by now? Why did they leave? Why did a whole race just vanish?"