I don't suggest those who did not read the first one to read the sequel for none of what you read will make any sense. I understand that For the Blood of the South is rated M and this story is currently rated T. I plan to change that, but for now, this story has no content that suggests its placement being moved from T to M. Enjoy the first chapter of the sequel to For the Blood of the South.
Chapter 1: The Sadist
"Kill them..." The darkness whispered.
Shadow stared into the cave of frightned children, protective mothers and the elderly. Their sons, and daughters blood glazed across his fur.
Shadow had let the Darkness guide him, running blindly into unknown woods, heading South.
It had only taken a day to reach the small pack of wolves with the benefits of his new body.
Shadow knew what he would have to do before the darkness spoke.
"But...they're innocent wolves...they have never harmed me or my people..."
"No...that they have not...and never will. Must I remind you that you swore yourself to us...do as you are commanded Reaper..."
Shadow nodded gravely before rushing into the wolves territory, dragging his left paws blade across the first throat he crossed.
What happened next shocked Shadow.
As the blood flew onto his fur, he felt alive and...happy. He felt power rush through his veins as he continued the onslaught with glee.
Some stood against him, and some ran, begging for mercey.
Shadow killed them all, cutting throats and snapping necks left and right.
He had never felt so alive.
His speed and strength outmatched the defending wolves, and soon, none remained.
None except the children, mothers, and elderly.
Shadow frowned as he stared into the cave.
The sun shined brightly outside, making the huge puddles of blood reflect its light.
"I can't kill them...them...they're children..."
"But you will..."
Shadow flinched, forgetting, even for a moment, that the darkness was always with him, even in his thoughts...
"Please...there has to be another way," Shadow pleaded.
"There is no other way...you must do as you promised...to reap the souls of the living, their age or physical condition is not a factor in that equation,"
Shadow stared at the two bloody sythes protruding from his left and right paw. At first it had been hard to walk, their length getting in the way of his every step. He had also nearly cut his head off a few times, trying to reach an itch on his back, he had quickly soaked his left paw in saliva and rubbed it across the wound to stop the bleeding.
Swallowing his disgust, Shadow gazed up at the crying children and pleading mothers, the elderly waiting quietly, their eyes cursing him.
"As you command...master,"
All joy ran from heart as he prepared to leap.
"I'm sorry..." he whispered, before leaping into the crowd with a snarl, splattering the cave floor in blood.
Kate lightly brushed Humphrey's forehead with the back of her paw.
They had run for miles, passing rivers and lakes.
They had just passed a very large tree when Faith collapsed.
"Damnit...Daren...we...can't...run...forever..." She had gasped, trying to catch her breath.
Daren frowned "You may have a moments reprive, but I will remind you that Humphrey's condition worsens and we are still more then a weeks trip away from my homelands and the Valley of Light."
Kate sat thankfully. She had refused to say something, but her bones ached and her heart slammed against her chest.
She could see similar effects being inflicted upon Flare, his body sweating badly.
"I will find us something to eat," Daren had said, before she swung Humphrey from her shoulder and placed him on the ground softley.
Faith nodded "Try to find something big, I'm starving,"
"I wouldn't mind a bite to eat either," Flare had agreed.
Kate had ran to Humphrey's side the second Daren dissapered into the woods, leaving the four wolves alone in unknown territory.
"How are you doing?" Kate asked, nudging Humphrey softley.
Humphrey coughed "I've felt better, my legs kind of hurt,"
"Yea because you've been doing ssoo much running," Faith barked at him, an aggitated look on her face.
"Hun...Daren said that he would start feeling achy..." Flare said with a small frown.
"Well you can tell 'Daren' that my stomach is feeling achy, and so are my feet, I think I stepped on a thorn a few miles back,"
"Count yourself lucky, I stepped in something awful a little while ago, and I can't get the smell out," Flare said with a frown.
"No wonder you smell like shi..."
Humphrey interrupted their conversation with a violent rack of coughing.
"Ow,"
Kate looked down at her mate in sadness.
The entire trip had been misery. Daren didn't seem to confident that they would reach this 'Valley of Light' before the poison reached Humphrey's heart. Although her body throbbed in pain, stopping for food was its own form of pain, the agony of knowing that, while they rested and ate, her mate suffered in pain.
"Don't worry Kate...we're going to reach the valley and get the cure, I'll be fine," Humphrey said with a weak smile.
"You're right," She said with a smile, before giving him a quick kiss on the lips. There was no point in being negative at a time like this.
Kate snapped out of her worrying haze and stared over at Flare, who was trying extremely hard to pull a thorn out of Faith's paw without being slashed at.
"You have to pull it out!" Flare shouted.
"Yea and you have to take a bath smelly ass!" She rebounded, trying to wrench her paw away from Flare.
"Aw would you just sit still, it's just a thorn, stop being such a baby," Flare said.
Faith stopped moving and looked at Flare with fire in her eyes. "You're right," she said, before reaching over with her free paw, and tearing the eight inched spike of wood from her paw.
Flare's eyes widened.
Faith smiled sweetly, "Now...we compare how I acted, to how your going to act,"
Flare jolted away from Faith in horror as she place the long spike in her mouth and charged after him.
"GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU'RE CRAZY!" He screamed.
"O WHAT'S WRONG, IT'S JUST A THORN BABE, JUST A FREAKING THORN!"
"OK I WAS WRONG, THAT'S NOT A THORN, IT'S NOT A THORN!" Flare screamed, darting through trees in a frantic haste.
Kate swung her head down to her mate, surprised to see him laughing.
"RUN FLARE!" Humphrey said, in the loudest voice he could muster.
Kate laughed with him "GET HIM FAITH!"
Flare stopped suddenly, staring at Daren's cool and frustrated face.
Faith jumped out from behind a tree to Flare's left, sinking the long stick of wood through his paw "AHA!" She shouted in triumph.
"AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH," Flare screamed in pain, holding his paw gingerly.
"Darkness give me strength," Daren muttered to herself before dragging the large dear in front of Humphrey.
Faith's jaw dropped at the sight of the deer "Thank god, thank you Daren, I'm starving!"
"I'M IN PAIN!" Flare screamed from the background, still holding his impaled paw.
"Shut up, no one cares," Faith said, before walking over to the deer and taking a hungry bite.
Daren rolled her eyes, "Eat Humphrey, you will need your strength, Kate, I want you to eat as well. You look like you're about to pass out. Faith, I would tell you to eat as well, but it seems you have beaten me to that,"
"Mmhmm," Faith nodded, a large chunk of meat in her mouth, her lips glazed in blood.
"PPPPAAAIINNN!" Flare shouted once again from the background.
Humphrey snickered before weakly standing up, and taking a small bite out of the deer.
"Come here Flare..." Daren said with a bored tone.
Flare limped over to Daren "Don't pull it out, it hurts to much,"
"Of course not," Daren said with a smile..."QUICK, FLARE LOOK, A SOUTHERN WOLF TO YOUR LEFT!"
Flare jumped, turning his head to the left and scanning the woods for an enemy while Daren quickly pulled the long thorn from Flare's paw, placing her paw quickly to his chest and taking a deep breath, the small puncture wound evaporated from Flare's paw, and appeared on Daren's.
Flare yelped, but then noticed the thorn and its wound were gone and sighed thankfully.
Daren shook her paw gently "Ow..." She said, before giving it a quick lick, smiling as the wound healed itself.
Kate eyed her suspicously "How do you do that Daren,"
Daren smiled, and took a seat across from her as Flare, Faith and Humphrey ate the deer.
"I was taught how, many, many years ago,"
"How old are you Daren?"
Daren flashed her white teeth "I don't think I should tell you that,"
"Why not?"
"It tends to...disturb...some people,"
"I won't freak out Daren, I promse," Kate said with a giggle.
Daren sighed before leaning in close and whispering to her "I could have known your great, great, grandmother's mother as a child,"
Kate flinched, she had known Daren was older then she looked, but never expected her to be that old.
Kate stared at Daren in shock. Her beautiful, shining black and silver coat, her amazingly white teeth, her slender body and her curved hips.
She looks as if she's my age, Kate thought.
"No Kate...I look younger," Daren said with a smile, before getting up and lying down in the shade of a tree.
"How did you do that..." Kate asked in shock. "How do you do all of it, heal yourself, take other's injuries, remain young when you could be more then one hundred!"
Flare nearly choked on his food "One hundred? She's more then one hundred?"
Faith gazed at Flare cooley "Why do you care how old she is?"
Flare blushed "No reason dear,"
"Keep it that way," She said before turning, and with a flick of her tail, walked into the shade near Daren, laid down, and closed her eyes.
Daren grinned "I'll tell you everthing, I promise. But not now. Now, I want you all to rest, we leave at dawn.
Kate looked up, surprised to see the sky a dull orange.
Meaning to say more, Kate frowned as she looked at Daren, who appeared to be sleeping.
Flare had taken a seat next to Faith and was licking her gently.
Kate and Humphrey smiled at one another, before locking in a long, hungry kiss, their tongues colliding in eachothers mouth.
"Have sweet dreams Humphrey," Kate said, cuddling close to him.
"You kidding me? After that kiss, how could I not,"
Kate smiled as he lied down next to her, maybe everything would be ok...
Lily leaned up against Garth's side with a frown.
They were in Winston's den, sitting in silence.
Winston cleared his throat "You will be missed, old friend,"
Eve nodded in agreement, a tear sliding down her cheek.
Tony had died in battle, fighting bravely, when a stray claw had caught him in the throat.
The funeral had been a sad little thing, most not being able to attend due to their wounds.
They had buried him at dawn, the sun acting like a beacon, drawing his soul away from his body, and into the fading light.
Few words had been said. Not even Garth had spoken, being to struck by grief to find the words.
"What do we do now..." Lily asked, breaking the silence like a bullet through glass.
"Now...we prepare," Winston said quietly.
"Prepare for what?" Lily asked.
"For the next attack...Lily my dear, this war has just begun." Her mother said in a sad voice.
"The girl Daren was right, they won't stop until we're all dead..." Winston said with sadness. "That's why...we need allies..."
Lily tilted her head "Who can we gain as allies dad? Who would want to get involved in all the chaos?"
"There is only one pack that has the power to make a difference in this war," Winston sighed.
"The North," Garth said, before Lily could ask.
"The North?" The answer struck her as crazy. The North and the Eastern and Western packs had barely communicated at all. It was said they were cold heartless wolves who sacraficed their young to the savage winter storms. Yet again...Snow didn't seem cruel, and she hadn't sacraficed any of her children yet.
As If speaking her name summoned her, Snow stepped into the cave and took a seat next to Winston.
"The trail that leads North is dangerous, there are things other then the cold that can kill you along the way," Snow said in a small voice.
"That's why were sending you Snow, you know the trails well, and will be able to get Garth there in one peice." Winston insisted.
Lily's heart stopped...They were sending Garth...
Garth nodded in agreement to Winston's statement before looking at Lily.
The sky was darkening outside, night would soon be upon them.
"Lily...I have agreed to be our ambassador, the North has to know that we need help, and someone has to convince them to send us men... As the new leader of the pack, it's my responsibility."
Lily nodded, "Thats fine, you can explain the rest to me on our way their. I understand that you have to do this, but you have to understand that I have to come with you, It's my responsibility as your mate, so don't bother telling me no."
Garth looked at her sadly, before pulling her close. "I understand Lily, I'm happy that you'll be with me."
Eve looked outraged "Lily you can't go North! The road is to dangerous, I forbid it. Winston dear, back me up on this,"
Eve looked at Winston hopefully.
Winston looked at Eve and frowned "Dear...it is her choice to make."
Eve gaped before swallowing her fear and turning to look at Garth "You bring her back to me Garth, or I'll turn you inside out."
Garth nodded, standing up with Lily at his side.
Snow stood as well and walked to the entrance of the den "Watch my kids carefully Eve, especially Stormy...she likes to get into trouble."
Eve shook her head "They are safe with me my dear."
Snow smiled "Then we should get going, the North waits for no one, and truly is, in every sense of the word, the sadist."
Well, there it is, the first chapter of the sequel to "For the Blood of the South". I hope you all enjoyed it, have a good night.
~Bravobravo