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Chapter One
~A Sign~
Drip, drop… Droplets of water fell into a circular pond resembling the Earth from a melting icicle hanging from a looming cliff. Shadows draped themselves over cave entrances, and leaves produced whispering murmurs on the swift wind. Two blue eyes glowed from the edge of the clearing, watching and waiting. Drip, drop…The droplets seemed to be flowing unsteadily from the icicle, as if they were alive and rushing to join their frozen friends in the pond. Drip, drop…Those blue eyes drew closer, and a white paw rose from the undergrowth. Drip, drop…The full moon shone down on the body that emerged from the dark foliage that encircled the moonlit clearing. The droplets now veered off from their usual course, dancing through the air and spiraling upwards, towards the sky, then taking a devastating drop towards the barren ground, rising up at the last second and then dancing around the furry body. Drip, drip, drip…drop.
A gray-and-white husky stared up at the full moon, a wistful look in his eyes. Flies buzzed angrily around him, while crickets leapt over and under his tail and paws. The toast-colored streaks separating the grays and whites on his clean pelt glistened with saliva from the recent cleaning his mother gave him. "Taiki!" a sweet, soft voice called from behind him. The husky whipped around, taking in a sharp breath. "Taiki!" the motherly voice repeated. "Yes, Mom?" Taiki, the young male husky, replied in annoyance. "Sachiko!" a rough, male voice interrupted the mother's sharp intake of breath. Sachiko, Taiki's mother, barked, "Come in for dinner! I know it's late, but I bet you're hungry!" "No, I'm fine!" Taiki slurred, then directed his icy blue eyes at the moon once more. He retreated to the random thoughts that swam around in his head, blocking out Sachiko's urgent, angry call, "Come in for dinner NOW!" Picking one thought, Taiki rolled it around in his head before thinking, Why am I alive anyway? It was a negative question, but Taiki knew he came from a line of wolves that lived in a region called NightPack. His great-grandfather was captured and put in a zoo, resulting in Taiki's place in the Caracas Zoo, in the center of Venezuela. It was cold some nights, hot some days, not too much for Taiki's pelt to handle. "TAIKI!!!" his father, named Psou, shouted from the cavern. Taiki was quickly pulled out of his thoughts as he tripped over his own paws on his way to the cavern, where his parents and sister (Kasey) awaited him.
An old, decrepit, gray, black, and white female wolf stared at the barrier of thorns and wilted roses from the center of a hay-covered clearing, narrowed eyes scanning the dark area. A white paw shone from the gloom, and the old wolf's face brightened. "Tundra, welcome back," she rasped. The white wolf named Tundra blinked her bright blue eyes, which were now warm with affection for the old wolf, "Thank you, Moonlight." "My daughter, how did it go?" Moonlight got up from her spot in the hay and strutted slowly towards her kin. Tundra grinned lovingly, "I met Fang, and he told me about Taiki." "Taiki. Just what I wanted to hear," Moonlight slurred evilly, "What did my father say?" "Fang said he would be one of NightPack, and thinks he is a NightPack descendant. Also, Taiki is a husky, like Gray," Tundra barked slowly, watching for Moonlight's expression. The old female wolf hung her head, "Huskies. Pah." Spitting on the ground, Moonlight paced, wise yet without words. "Why are huskies bad, Moonlight?" Tundra watched her mother with confusion, "You let Carlisle's sister marry a husky! Why can't a husky come to NightPack and fulfill their destiny?" "I never said anything about that," Moonlight averted her eyes. Tundra lowered her eyes as well, "Good night, Moonlight."
"Good night."
Chapter Two
~An Idyllic Day Gone Wrong~
Taiki watched as the gatekeeper carefully crawled into the cage, eyes flickering back and forth mischievously. Closing the gate and locking it with his keys, the timid man tiptoed forward, approaching Taiki with meat in hand. The Venezuelan husky snarled and bared his teeth in a warning. His ears flat against his head, Taiki narrowed his eyes as the man took one step closer. "Here, Taiki, Taiki, Taiki," the gatekeeper whispered. Taiki barked loudly, causing the crowd behind to jump in fear. "Taiki," the man waved the slab of meat in the air. Taiki watched it with untrusting eyes. "T-t-t-taiki," the gatekeeper-named Bob-danced closer to the husky, teeth chattering in rising fear. Taiki stood up, which gained "Ooooh"s from the watching crowd that peered through the bars of the cage. "T-" was all Bob got out of his mouth before Taiki jumped forward and snarled viciously, drooling convulsively from his sharp-toothed, robust jaws. Bob shrieked and made a mad dash for the gate, which he amazingly leapt over. Then, the gatekeeper continued on through the zoo, zigzagging through the surprised crowds of families and friends. Taiki chuckled to himself, amused from yet another event of scaring the gatekeeper Bob, who was a big fan of the zookeeper, Charles, his older brother. Bob and Charles were from America, and they had worked in Newfoundland, Canadian, and English zoos. Unfortunately, they were now working in Venezuela. Sachiko and Psou watched angrily from the cavern entrance, while Kasey marched right up to her little brother. "What did you just do?" she snarled accusingly as the crowd started to disperse and go to other attractions. "It's fun, duh," Taiki smirked, "Try it sometime." "No! We only have one meal a day because of you!" Kasey took a fake swipe at him, then she stormed off towards her parents. Taiki shouted after her, "Spoiled brat!" and trotted angrily to a corner of the cage. Why did Kasey always have to shout at everything he did?! Suddenly, something rusty gray flashed above him, and Taiki jumped back to snarl at a gray wolf. He was twice his size, and had a timid air to him, but a loyal and defensive one. He would fight whether they liked it or not. Taiki narrowed his eyes, "Who are you?" He didn't expect a "civilized" answer from the wolf-after all, wolves don't know dog-language, and they're wild bums, right? Taiki found he was wrong as the wolf straightened his posture, now towering above the young dog, "You are coming with us." "What…?" Taiki's eyes went blank as he studied the frazzled wolf. With unkempt fur and wild eyes, he looked like he was just struck by lightning. His thought actually came true as a large lightning bolt struck Taiki's right forepaw, smashing the bones inside to smithereens and burning his fur. The gray wolf snatched Taiki up by the scruff faster than he could follow, and zigzagged around the clearing, also keeping a watch on the curious yet wary people who wandered outside the cage. Psou, Sachiko, and Kasey spilled out of the cave, eyes wide with shock. "Get inside!" the wolf shouted, his deep voice amazingly overpowering the crackle of the thunder as a lightning bolt just missed them. Taiki looked up at the sky instinctively, and saw a red-eyed, brown wolf with black streaks and a peppered muzzle, floating in the middle of the air and sneering at the wolf and Taiki. "Come back here, Natt!" the streaked wolf cackled, "You know I'll catch you!" "Never!" the gray wolf named Natt replied fiercely. He skidded to a stop and threw Taiki on his back, then shot a beam of ice at the streaked wolf. The wolf changed into a falcon and neatly dodged it, then dived at Taiki. Natt growled and whipped his thick tail at the falcon, and the bird dodged the feeble attack without a hit to his large, feathery body. As the falcon soared upwards faster than a bullet, he changed into a tawny lion and whipped around, barring his fangs and snarling viciously at Natt and Taiki. Natt stepped forward and snarled back. The lion pounced, and tossed Natt up like he was a ball of yarn. Natt ended up flipping in the air, uncontrollably, and careening back towards the earth. At this, the lion made a grab for Taiki, but Natt shot a lightning bolt at the lion's paw, and the big cat hissed in anger and recoiled. Natt dashed towards Taiki and scooped him up in his jaws, then leapt over the fence, sprinting away from Taiki's family and the lion with the singed paw. "But my family-" Taiki argued. "He's too interested in you to care about your family. Maybe he'll kill them," Natt said carelessly. "But-my mom! And my dad!" Taiki argued. "And your sister," Natt reminded him. "They need help!" Taiki tried to snap at Natt's neck, but the wolf's body was too far away for Taiki to reach. Plus, the ferns got stuck up his nose and whipped at his eyes if he moved. "We can come back at nightfall, with other wolves," Natt snarled, thinking this ended the conversation. "There are more of you dog-speaking freaks?!" Taiki's eyes widened with disbelief. "Dogs came from wolves. End of story, or you'll lead the way," the male wolf snapped. Taiki didn't take his chances with his shattered paw, so he kept quiet the rest of the way, trying to leave a piece of fur on every fern so he could find his way back. After all, his reputation wasn't going to be ruined by a bunch of light-spewing wolves. Then again, if he left, they might smash him with one bite! Nevermind, then, Taiki silently grumbled as they broke through a barrier of thorns and wilted roses, and back into the sunlight. Many wolves were eating right now, and they looked up at Taiki, as if they were used to Natt bringing in stray huskies. Bigger wolves lay in the shade in what seemed to be large, hollow caves made of hay, straw, and wilting roses. A gray-and-white female with a black stripe running from her nose to her tailtip approached Natt and Taiki, while a white female followed close behind, blue eyes shining. "Who's this?" the first female grunted sourly, yellow eyes narrowed. Taiki thought they resembled the car lights that belonged to the impatient cars riding on the gray, littered highways and streets. "Taiki," Natt grumbled through the husky's fur, "Yes, Moonlight, this is Taiki! A brat, if I might say so myself. I don't think alpha males like me get these kind of jobs…" "Why am I so important?!" Taiki growled. Moonlight, the old female wolf, ignored him, "Natt, please, take him to Synkay." "Okay," Natt sighed, and carried Taiki into a large, dark den. The floor was littered with wilted rose petals and other green herbs Taiki didn't know. "What's with the roses?" Taiki snapped. Natt rolled his eyes, "We're the Pack of Eternal Night. We're dark and mysterious. What better effect is there than to add wilted roses? Plus, they smell nice. Happy now?" "And who's Moonlight?" Taiki added, eyes sparkling with curiousity. If he was going to be captured, he might as well know everything he could about his enemy. "The old alpha female. She's the current alpha female's mother," Natt sighed. He seemed happy at the sound of the words "alpha female". "Who's the alpha female?" the husky continued. Natt roughly set Taiki down on a large, comfortable patch of hay, "My mate, and right now she's a white wolf named Tundra…" Taiki noticed again that Natt sounded ecstatic about this wolf's name. Natt continued, a dreamy expression on his face, "The alpha female is the alpha male's companion-who is me-and they work together to keep the pack together. They're like the source of calm and peace in the pack. Even the Pack of Blinding Snow has some sense." "Blinding…snow?" Taiki frowned. There were too many packs to remember! "An evil pack. Don't go there," Natt growled. Taiki blinked innocently as a wolf's snort came from the shadows behind him. Taiki had half a mind to clutch onto Natt's leg like a pup and shiver in his pool of fear. The new wolf was a beautiful, black-furred female with brilliant blue eyes. Taiki was mesmerized by her appearance. And her voice was even better… She barked, "Natt, who is this?" Natt smirked, "You know, that husky Tundra and Moonlight always babble about. I thought you knew." The female wolf grinned back, "What's his name?" "Taiki," Natt sighed, "Are you going to heal him, Synkay?" "Where does it hurt?" Synkay kneeled down at Taiki's paws and looked up at him. "My paw is shattered," Taiki held up his broken paw. "Ah. Painful," Synkay dashed to a shelf full of different herbs and rummaged through them, and was back to Taiki in a flash. She held cobwebs, honey, chamomile, and other herbs Taiki couldn't differentiate from each other. Synkay settled Taiki's paw on a smooth stone and worked quickly, wrapping several layers of cobwebs between and around his toes. Then she moved to his paw, "Eat the chamomile, and the honey afterwards. Then count to thirty, then swallow that hairy, green leaf." "That?" Taiki frowned, pointing his nose at the herb Synkay had described. "Yes," she barked without even looking up from her objective. Taiki did as he was told, then watched Synkay as she moved with lightning speed. After what seemed like two lifetimes, the black wolf leaned back from Taiki's paw, "F-finished." She cracked her knuckles, then looked at Natt before padding off, "If it hurts again, tell me." "Sure," Natt rolled his eyes. "What is Synkay's job?" Taiki slurred, wanting to see the beautiful female again. "The healer," Natt barked before picking Taiki up again. The husky frowned. Synkay wouldn't have TIME for him if she was healer! "And she has an omega, named Kairii," Natt continued. Taiki thought, I'd like to meet Kairii. Maybe she's more friendly than Synkay. "Oh, there's Kairii and Pedro," Natt barked out loud. Taiki looked over Natt's large head to see a gray female wolf and a black male eating an eagle. "Talk about repulsive!" Taiki sniffed in disgust. "You eat a cow everyday, don't you?" Natt snorted. "Not a whole one! Just a slab of meat, once a day…" Taiki gulped. These wolves ate birds! Taiki continued, "So…who feeds you?" "Ourselves," Natt flicked the husky with his tailtip. "How?" Taiki was intrigued. "We hunt, you imbecile. How else?" Natt entered a cave narrower and larger than Synkay's and set Taiki down on a large nest made of hay. It smelled strongly of a female wolf around his age, and Taiki felt guilty that he was taking a female's nest. "Well…" Taiki frowned and shut his mouth. Natt may be a hulking mass of strength like most dummies in the zoo, but he was smart! Natt smirked and sat down in front of him, "Well, I hope you enjoy Rose's nest. I guess she won't mind making her own…again…" "Again?!" Taiki gasped, "I shouldn't!" "No, no. She makes a nest for Moonlight everyday. It's her job, along with Pedro, Aranck, and Azrael." "She must be lonely. I mean, with three males, doesn't she have anyone to play with? She's only my age, if not older," Taiki frowned in sorrow for Rose. "Nah. She has Ice Silk. And Kairii, remember?" Natt grinned, "Well, you do have manners. Good night." And with that, Natt padded out of the cave as other wolves filed past him. The first was a mirror image of Synkay, but she had a thinner jaw and a sleeker pelt. Her thin legs made her seem like she couldn't hold herself up, but the muscles on them made up for that. "Who are YOU?" she snapped rudely, narrowing her eyes. Taiki bit his lip, "My name is Taiki." "Where'd you come from? The zoo?" she smirked, settling down in an extremely warm nest. Taiki realized his was cold compared to the heat radiating from the female's. "Well, yes," the husky shrunk back and averted his eyes. "You're stupid, then," the female decided and turned over. Her snores soon filled the cave. It sounded as if the female had mental lists for everyone in the pack! "Don't mind her," a male's voice echoed. Taiki whipped around, only to twist his broken paw and shriek in pain. A few other pack wolves squeaked in terror and surprise. The male who had spoken was a gray wolf with white markings and blue, icy eyes. "Wh-" Taiki stared in amazement. This male was powerful and brave compared to the snappy female he had just met. "I'm Vamwere, and that's Ice Silk, my mate," Vamwere chuckled as a similar-shaped wolf rushed past him, drool spilling out of his mouth, "And that's my twin, Wind. We're Moonlight and Carlisle's adopted pups." "Adopted? Carlisle?" Taiki echoed blankly as Vamwere settled down beside him. "My father. We look exactly alike. And we're not his biological pups…" Vamwere closed his eyes, but then they snapped back open, "Why am I telling you my life's story?" "Are you the-" Taiki's eyes glittered with anxiety and anticipation at the information going to come out of Vamwere's mouth. "The top beta male? Yes," Vamwere chuckled. "What's that?" Taiki's claws drummed the ground. "I'm second in line to the alpha male!" Vamwere snorted and curled his tail around his paws, "And that means when Natt d-" "Don't talk about that," Taiki snapped, lowering his eyes shamefully. Vamwere eyed him carefully, but then chuckled again, "You're one weird husky." Taiki blushed, "Well…" The male wolf didn't reply. Instead, he turned around and curled up in his nest, and was soon fast asleep. Taiki found no decent way to wake him up without rousing his vexatious mate, so he followed suit and soon let himself be swallowed up by the warm shadows of sleep.
Chapter Three
~Omegaship~
Natt stared into the trees, his crystal blue eyes glittering like blue raindrop gems as a result of the sun blinding him. He heard the branches behind him snap spontaneously, and he whipped around to find the small Taiki at his paws, eyes narrowed and sparkling with determination. Natt was taken aback-his persistence and stubbornness was rolling off of the husky in cumbersome waves! "Let's go, then," Natt barked warily, turning warily around and picking Taiki up at the same time. Taiki wriggled out of Natt's grasp defiantly, "I'm walking." "Okay, then," Natt frowned and sprinted ahead, leaving Taiki to choke on his dust. The husky huffed and raced after him. Natt actually slowed down a bit to let the independent husky catch up, and Taiki did just as he suspected. The trees ahead soon broke apart, and the gases and fumes from the road smothered the two males. Natt coughed and slowed to a stop, "How can you handle this stench?!" Taiki blinked in confusion, "What stench?" Natt shook his head, "Whatever," and turned into an eagle, then soared up and over the road. Taiki watched with amazement as Natt neatly landed in his cage and stuck his tongue out at him, almost as if he were saying, How are you going to get across the road conspicuously without my help? Huh? Haha! Taiki snarled viciously and backed up, disappearing into the foliage and out of Natt's sight. The wolf-eagle grew even more confused as Taiki's scent completely vanished among the poisoned fumes. Suddenly, a light gray shape shot out of the greenery and flew over the road. Natt's eyes grew wider than dinner platters as Taiki soared towards him. Closer, closer…and then he landed right in the path of a red-and-silver petroleum truck. "No!" Natt shrieked. Taiki quickly woke up from his concussion and scrambled out of the way of the truck as the driver beeped his horn and swerved, bumping lightly into a dark silver mini-van. The mom in the van beeped the horn loudly as well and screeched to a stop. The cars behind her stopped hastily as well, and a bunch of drivers started piling out of their cars to argue with each other, starting with the truck and mini-van drivers. Taiki leapt out of the way of the commotion and padded to Natt's side. "See?" Natt scolded, eyes narrowed. Taiki snorted and turned his head away in defiance. "Your family," Natt reminded him, turning into a wolf and getting up. "Right," Taiki smiled and hopped to his paws as well. They started towards the cave, and Taiki was humming a tune until the unbearable silence reached his ears. "Hey, no one's here," Taiki looked around, then remembered it was a Monday. Natt rolled his eyes and snorted at him, secretly confused why Taiki even cared. Then he dashed for the cave entrance, and Taiki soon noticed and followed. The darkness swallowed the two males as they entered, and the husky shivered, "Psou? Sachiko? Kasey?" No answer except the echo from Taiki's calls. "Psou?" Natt tried, "Is that your grandfather?" "My father," Taiki snapped, a slight growl detected in his voice. Natt snorted and started to laugh uncontrollably, "That's such an old name!" "As is Carlisle," Taiki retorted. Natt stopped laughing immediately and continued forward without a sound. Both males finally reached the back wall after checking all of the rooms. "Where's my family?" Taiki wondered fearfully. Natt lowered his eyes in respect for Taiki's loss, but then he quickly raised his head again, "We'll just follow their scent trail. But, before that, we have to get back to camp." "Already?!" Taiki jumped back in surprise. "Yes. No matter how stubborn you are, even you'd succumb to hunger if we went on a journey right away. I'm not that stupid." "What about you?" the husky retorted. "I can fly back to camp and hunt for myself," Natt smirked, "You, well, maybe we'll have to train you first." "But my family'll be dead by then!" Taiki's eyes widened. Natt simply smirked and picked up Taiki, then disappeared into the ground. Taiki closed his eyes and waited for Natt to reappear aboveground in the NightPack camp.
~*~
"Your mentor will be Kane," Tundra announced from the top of a shadow-lined rock. The Pack cheered unwillingly, and a lean, white, male wolf with luminous blue eyes stepped forward to greet Taiki. A black leather collar holding a light blue crystal was strapped tightly around his neck. "You're a dog?" Taiki asked in surprise. "No-this is my element necklace," Kane beamed. Taiki was dumbfounded. Kane rolled his eyes, "It's what gives me a boost for my elemental powers and is part of my spirit. A wolf has not lived until he finds his necklace!" Taiki secretly wondered if he'd get a necklace, whether he was a wolf or not. He was now officially part of the pack now as an omega, whether or not NightPack accepted him emotionally. "Good luck with your apprentice," Natt smirked, "Or, omega, as I should call it." "Shouldn't you be training Azrael?" Kane retorted playfully, waving good-bye with his tail. "I have to teach you hunting first. Have you tasted a caribou before?" Kane asked Taiki. The husky blinked in confusion, "I eat cow." "Cow?! Wow, you should've been a beta by now!" Kane gasped, "Well-" "No, I get fed," Taiki blushed in shame, "I've never hunted for myself." Kane made a sound-tsk, tsk, tsk-and barked, "Well, let's go then. And maybe you have elements like Gray!" "Who's Gray?" Taiki asked innocently as they started up the side of the ravine. "He's a husky in DawnPack," Kane answered thoughtfully, "He has a mate and a pup full of energy! He's lucky, and he's a husky, too. Really, really lucky." "Huh," Taiki looked up at the trees in the dark forest. As they went farther from camp, it got foggier and darker. "Er, where are we going?" Taiki shivered and crouched down in fear as he walked beside his tall mentor. "The Fog-Trail," Kane answered lightly, humming a cheerful tune. The male husky couldn't see how Kane could be so happy in this gloomy part of the forest he hadn't even seen before, "Fog…Trail???" "Yea, other packs call it the Walkway of Death," Kane barked cheerfully, smiling. Taiki gasped and almost stopped in his tracks. If even SnowPack, the angry pack that Natt described, feared this trail, why should a young, small husky like him go to a place like that?! "Here we are," the white wolf barked happily. Ahead was a trail speckled by rays of foggy light that looked suitable to a ex-suicidal ghost. Blood trail in large blobs along the long walkway, and the trees lined up perfectly, their gnarled branches ready to tear apart any unsuspecting, foolish, young male who dared walk on their hidden roots. "Like me," Taiki gulped. "Hrm?" Kane looked over at him cheerfully, "Ever since the fog cleared up, this is the brightest spot on NightPack territory! And now its full of dark-furred prey." "Wh-why d-dark?" Taiki stuttered. "Eh, I don't know," Kane shrugged off his omega's question, "I guess the darkness attracts dark-furred prey, because it's good camouflage. It may be brighter here, but white-furred prey will still be spotted easily." "Like you and Tundra?" Taiki asked. Kane laughed, "Yup. Now, run along now. I want to see what you know." Taiki bit his lip and struggled to put one paw forward. But, before he knew it, he was trotting through the trail as if he were on a stroll with his mother, Sachiko. Hey, I'm not so bad, Taiki cheered for himself inside his head. Suddenly, a snap split the air, and Taiki shrieked. The two sounds didn't blend yet echoed together ominously. Kane barked wildly, "You can do it!" Taiki gulped and went forward, and he started to realize he stepped on a twig. He spotted a flash of black, and he pricked his ears and looked to the roots of a gnarled tree. A plump, jet black hare stared down the path, its large feet settled in the tangle of weeds and roots around the dead tree. The hare's gargantuan ears twitched fervently in result of its fear of being caught. Taiki licked his lips hungrily and leapt wildly at the hare, howling wildly and letting his tongue hang out of the side of his mouth, drool dripping off the tip of his tongue. The hare would have escaped easily from Taiki's small paws, but hence its tangled feet, it tripped as it tried to jump away. Taiki howled with pleasure as he landed on the rabbit. He growled with pleasure, but then drew a blank and looked back at Kane, "What do I do now?" The black rabbit scratched at the ground in its frenzy to get away. Kane smiled, then smirked and replied, "Bit its neck!" "But that will kill it!" Taiki frowned-he'd never kill, not even for the sake of his health! Kane rolled his eyes, "What, you're going to eat it alive? What a pain." Maybe I'll try it once, Taiki blinked in surprise and did as Kane instructed. The hare still struggled under his strong jaws, but the jerky movements soon ended, and Taiki raised his head. He tasted blood in his mouth, and he swallowed it with interest and curiousity. Kane leapt over and grinned, "Your first catch! A black hare. That's a rare one-one I've never seen before in all my travels." "You're allowed to travel?!" Taiki sat up immediately, eyes widening. "I wasn't born a NightPack wolf," Kane laughed, "I used to be a loner. I lived on my instincts. By myself! What a life…but I like being in a pack-with lots of wolves-better." "Oh," Taiki blinked and frowned. You didn't have to be pack-born to join a pack?
~*~
Taiki dug into an eagle's belly, smelling the tender, fresh meat and becoming intoxicated by the delicious muscles of the fresh-kill. He glanced across the camp clearing, and caught sight of Kairii's silver-gray fur. He raised his head and blinked. She was talking to a wolf he hadn't seen before and thought he would never see in his life. But the wolf's white fur and dark blue eyes weren't the most intriguing. She had a lean, thin figure, unlike Kairii's slender and bulky one. The new she-wolf's muscles were rounded and smoother than Kairii's stocky ones, and the unfamiliar female also had a strange scent-unlike NightPack's floral, watery scent, she had more of a forest scent, as if she had rubbed against a pine tree, or a maple tree. It was a scent that reminded you of sunshiny days. As the scent pervaded Taiki's nose, he could also smell maple syrup and pollen on the she-wolf. Immediately growing protective over Kairii, Taiki quickly finished his snack and stood up, narrowing his eyes and storming over to Kairii and the wolf she was talking to. When the husky approached them, he could see that the new wolf's necklace was gold with a ruby on it, and an elemental fire swirled around it. Taiki was impressed-the female's fur wasn't scorched at all. It actually looked healthy from his point of view. The she-wolf noticed the husky-Kairii was still bigger than him, even though Taiki was almost grown-and looked his way, "Why, hello. You-you remind me of Gray." Taiki growled, "Who are YOU to be talking to Kairii? You aren't a NightPack wolf-I haven't seen you before." "She's the DawnPack alpha, Dawn," Kairii barked softly. Taiki was about to rudely open his mouth again, when he processed Kairii's words in his brain, and he quickly dipped his head in embarrassment. Dawn laughed brightly, "No worries! No worries! I like your spunk!" Taiki raised his head, "Do you know a husky named Gray?" "Yes, he's my packmate," Dawn beamed. "He's the alpha male?!" Taiki spat in disbelief. "No, my packmate," Dawn smirked, "That mean's he's in the same pack as me. And the alpha male is named Blade. Oh, and I was talking to Kairii because we have no Healer. We need herbs, and even the alphas and top betas need to know some herbs to help out their pack. So I was asking Kairii for herbs." "Why not Synkay?" Taiki frowned. Dawn was giving him answers, but it just gave him more confusing things to ask about. The alpha female laughed, "Because-Synkay's growing old, as much as I don't like it. She'll be joining her mother in the storytellers' den soon. Storytellers are like…erm, well, old wolves." "Her mother?!" Taiki howled, "B-but, h-how is she Tundra's sister?!" "Tundra is an only pup," Dawn explained. Kairii nodded, "Yea-and so is Nanook-I mean, related to Tundra. He's more of a loner than a NightPack wolf, so you won't see him often. Just be careful around him, okay? Even Synkay doesn't know a lot about him because he's been gone so long." Kairii paused, then her eyes widened, and she turned hastily to Dawn, "Oh, those herbs! I agree-you will need them! Ask Synkay-I'm sure she'll comply. We have tons, and you came at just the right time. Winter's coming, so this might be your last chance to ask NightPack." Dawn smiled warmly and dipped her head, "Thank you, Kairii. You're just wonderful!" Dawn then pushed past Kairii and headed for Synkay's dark, mysterious den. "Will she be able to find her way around?" Kairii wondered out loud, "She's an alpha, but she isn't a dark type, and can't use fire to light her way. She'll burn the cave down." "How do you know Dawn?" Taiki asked, blue eyes glittering. Kairii blinked, "Huh? Oh, I see her at every Wolf-Circle Meeting." "What?!" Taiki spat, "I've been missing out on these things, too?" Kairii giggled, "I guess Moonlight doesn't have faith in you. She is controlling, even though she willingly gave up her position to Tundra. Anyway, I'm sure you'll go to one before you become a beta." "Yea," Taiki sighed, lowering his eyes, "I bet my family's dead by now. If they aren't, well, Kane says by now I should have my elements if I were destined to have them. How can I fare against Rosengun if I don't even have elements?" Kairii stayed silent and averted her eyes. Taiki sighed and looked up at the fog-covered sun. Natt promised he'd take him to find his parents after a good night's sleep and a hefty breakfast. It had been four months, or moons, as the wolves call it, since he had seen his family and started his training. Taiki had lost faith in Natt, NightPack, and himself. Would he even have the courage to go on a journey to save his family after he finished his training?
Chapter Four
~Moon's Greetings~
In favor of Taiki's sudden grief for his family, Tundra allowed Taiki to go to the next Wolf-Circle meeting. When he heard this, he was overexcited with joy. "Yes! I'm going on to Wolf-Circle Meeting!" Taiki hopped around his den. "So are Pedro and Azrael," Rose pointed out. Rose and Taiki were now the only beta-trained omegas, ever since the other two males became betas-which is a status for a grown-up wolf who can care for its own self-and moved into the betas' den. Kane was no longer the newest wolf to the betas' den, so he and his omega Taiki started to receive more respect. But, now Rose was starting to lose her friendly bond with Azrael, and the black-furred male grew more arrogant everyday. Taiki assured her that it was a stage, since his sister did the same thing, but Rose pretty much ignored the husky and his useful advice. "Really? But they just moved up a rank," Taiki stopped jumping and leapt into his newly-made nest. "And? 'They've been doing so well'," Rose snorted, repeating the words she heard Shade-a dark brown female wolf-say while she eavesdropped on Shade and Nyx's conversation a few hours ago. "Don't listen to her. You know good and well everyone's friends with Azrael. Even I am," Taiki shrugged. Rose averted her eyes and hastily padded out of the den, "You don't understand!" Taiki reached out to her with a paw, but then quickly drew back. Nobody liked Rose when she was angry.
~*~
Tundra stood at the entrance to the camp and waited as her packmates gathered around her. She blinked her icy blue eyes, then howled, "I will now list the wolves coming with me to the Wolf-Circle Gathering!" Taiki turned to Rose and grinned, but the female simply toyed with a blade of grass as if she were bored. Taiki looked back to Tundra to listen to the list of wolves, but then he heard someone shout, "But, everyone gets to go! That's how Moonlight always did it!" Tundra snarled, "Why don't you open your eyes for once, Namine'?! I'm the alpha female now!" Taiki stood on his hind paws and looked over the crowd of heads to where Tundra was looking. A white female with silvery-purple paws and muzzle narrowed her eyes at Tundra, her dull pelt almost gray in contrast with her bright green eyes. "Namine'?" Taiki sat back down. Rose growled quietly, "She's my mentor, my beta. You don't know that by now? It's been a long time." "Oh, uh, sorry," Taiki dipped his head in respect and turned back to Tundra. The alpha female cleared her throat and howled, "With me I will take: Moonlight, Carlisle, Synkay, Kairii, Ice Silk, Sora, Wind and Vamwere, Patch, Bella, Shade, Demon, Pedro, Azrael, and Taiki." "That means Namine', Nyx, Kane, and Rose are staying," Natt confirmed. Rose's eyes widened, "Why can't I go?" Taiki frowned-Tundra changed the rules by saying not all NightPack wolves may go to the Wolf-Circle Meeting. The husky had the feeling that since he got to go, Rose had to stay. Rose wasn't an expert on Meetings, and she had only been to two, but she had been in NightPack longer than Taiki. He suddenly felt guilty. He'd try to get Tundra's attention tomorrow or after the Meeting, if he got the chance to.
~*~
The seventeen wolves stood at the edge of the clearing, waiting for the right chance to enter. Taiki could hear the rush of a river nearby, and the trickle of a soft stream, along with the soft rustling of leaves in the trees. The husky shivered-this place was colder than all of NightPack territory! For a moment he wished Dawn had accepted him into sunny, fruitful DawnPack instead of Natt and cold, dreary NightPack. Well, at least it's not SnowPack, Taiki thought sourly. "Let's go," Tundra called back to her packmates, and the attending wolves filed into the clearing. As soon as Taiki rushed forward, he tripped on a rock and sent himself tumbling into a cold, icy stream. "Aghhhh!" Taiki howled, jumping out of the water. All eight alphas of the four packs had already jumped onto the rocks jutting out of the lake, and they stared at him in surprise. "Who's that?" a brown, streaked wolf whispered to Dawn. "Idiot," a white wolf with amber eyes sneered, her smirk alone making Taiki want to cry out in fear and attempt to hide under a rock. A gray male with a similar figure nudged the white wolf and snickered along with her. Taiki then turned to look at a pure black female wolf and a small gray male with a darker stripe going down his back. The male looked almost like Patch and Carlisle, but female next to him had a similar scent. He started to wonder who those two were when someone dragged him out of the water. He coughed and landed on his back, only to look up at the savior he feared it would be-Tundra. "What are you doing in the water?!" she shrieked, her eyes pools of rage. Taiki hid his eyes under his paws. "Don't go in," Tundra snarled, "Again." Then, the white she-wolf leapt over him and landed on a rock next to Natt, who immediately started whispering to her. Natt leapt forward and howled, "Let this moon's Wolf-Circle meeting begin!" Taiki hid his muzzle in the snow as the wolves around him howled. He went and hid behind all the others as Natt's deep voice echoed throughout the clearing, talking about the different things that went on since the last Wolf-Circle Meeting. Taiki suddenly heard his name, and figured the alpha male was talking about his appearance in the pack. After Natt stopped talking, her heard a cheery yet deep voice go after him. He looked up and saw the brown wolf speaking. He turned to the wolf nearest to him and asked, "Who's that?" "Oh, you must be Taiki," the wolf next to him grinned. He had an orange pelt-yes, ORANGE-and chocolate brown eyes. "I'm Kyo," the wolf continued, "Oh, and about your question…that's the alpha male of DawnPack, Blade." "Oh," Taiki blinked, "Thank you, er, Kyo." "No problem!" Kyo grinned, "I just wish Jasper were up there, speaking for DawnPack." "Wait, Jasper?" Taiki's shoulders sagged. How could there be these many wolves in four packs?! "Yea. He's my idol! Ever since birth I've looked up to him," Kyo sighed. "Birth, huh?" Taiki frowned, "Wait, who's pup are you, anyway? You're not big enough to be a beta." "I'm an omega, and I'm Gray and Shiny's pup," Kyo hopped to his paws, "The one and only, Kyo!" "Yea, I heard your name already," Taiki smirked. A ginger-brown female that smelled strongly of herbs whipped around and sneered, "Shhh! There's a Meeting going on here, if you HAVEN'T noticed!" Kyo stuck his tongue out at her, but Taiki blinked and concentrated on how she smelled and looked. The female smelled of fog and miles of grass, and her figure was tall and lean, more like DawnPack's than NightPack's. "You're a WindPack wolf, aren't you?" Taiki assumed. The female grinned, "Yup! I'm the WindPack healer…well, I help out…And you're that new husky! Like Gray." "Gray must be a top beta or something," Taiki wondered out loud. "Nah. He's just a beta. I bet a lot of wolves have been comparing you to him, huh?" the female asked, smirking. "You're right," Taiki blushed and looked up at the dark clouds dotting the midnight sky, "Is he special?" "Other than being a husky and having a wolf-mate and wolf-pup, no," the female sighed, then her eyes brightened, "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself! I'm Sahuri. And…what's your name again? I didn't quite catch it." "I'm Taiki," the husky blushed again, "I'm from NightPack. I'm Kane's omega." "Ah, Kane," Sahuri's eyes darkened, and a growl escaped her pursed lips. Taiki and Kyo looked at each other with worry and shrugged with confusion at this sudden change of attitude. By the time they looked back to the WindPack female again, she was smiling, "Well, I think Axel and Xhincha are speaking now. I wonder who will go first?" To Taiki's surprise, Axel-the large, gray male-stepped forward and howled. Wolves had started to talk over Axel because of their hatred of the SnowPack wolves, but it stopped as soon as Axel started to growl. A blue-tined, white wolf with bright yellow eyes sat near Axel, but not in the river or on a rock. "That's Fallen," Kyo pointed to the blue-white female with his tail, "No one knows how to pronounce her name, so we just say it as if we were saying…hm, something like 'A fallen alpha'." "Fallen alpha?" Taiki smirked. Kyo huffed, "I'm not exactly a studier of languages." "You should come up with a better example by the next Meeting," Taiki suggested, flicking his tailtip in the pup's direction. Kyo stepped back and sneered, "You're making a bet?" "You better count on it," Taiki grinned. The orange omega stood up and crouched down like he was hunting, "Fine! I accept!" Axel had just finished speaking, and he looked over to where Kyo and Taiki were loudly talking. He sent a gust of wind their way, knocking Kyo over and into a tree. Blade snarled and stepped forward, while Dawn put a paw to her muzzle in surprise. A few DawnPack wolves snarled, and ears were twitching angrily within seconds. Tundra snarled and leapt forward, "Stop this nonsense! Dawn, Blade, may I see Kyo after the Meeting?" Both alphas nodded. Blade whispered to Tundra, "Give him something to think about." Tundra smirked and replied, "Don't worry. You know me." Axel leapt down from the rock and padded through the crowd of wolves, gathering the other wolves in his pack together. Xhincha leapt over the wolves and landed beside Axel as they left the clearing. Kyo turned to Taiki and gulped, "Tundra is known to be merciless!" Taiki didn't have a bet for that.
Part One-End
