As the days wore on, the Nakuum pack finally reached the Great Water, and the entire pack was relieved. The trip was almost over. Nuka liftd his head to smell for any threats, and found it was safe. Kai still murmured, complaining on how he thought the entire thing was foolishness.
When Kiana saw the Great Water, she tried to fight the urge to howl in joy. Beowulf and Sly joined in her happiness, but contained themselves whenever Kai looked at them. It was evident that he did not like this.
Nuka stood on a nearby rock by the shore, making sure he was seen and heard. "Nakuum! We have reached the midpoint of our journey! If the Ancient Ones do not fail me, the floating stones that that form a bridge shall do so tonight! For now, we will rest." The Alpha proclaimed to his pack, who now seemed happier about the whole thing. Kai still disagreed. He wandered away from the pack, not wanting to hear more of this old one's foolishness.
"The Ancient Ones speaking to Nuka. Feh. What a foolish thought! If the Ancient Ones would speak to anyone it would be me!" Kai thought out loud as he wandered from the rest of the pack. Beowulf watched him carefully, observing his every move.
Kiana snickered as Kai left, thinking her own thoughts about the shadow Lupe. Sly and Beowulf were still too young to understand how pack leadership worked, but they were well aware of Nuka and Vitani's power.
After a while, Vitani wandered over to Kiana and nudged her gently. "Are you alright, dear?" She asked the young Lupess with concern. She knew how easily she tired.
"I'm alright, thank you Vitani." She bowed her head in respect as she replied. The two pups were asleep at that time. Kiana watched as they slept peacefully, just as unaware as she was of the coming events.
The Great Water
The next morning, Nuka and Vitani woke the pack with a short howl, causing some to jump into conciousness while others dragged their feet. Sly was one who dragged, while Beowulf was up in an instant. He was ready to cross the Great Water.
Kiana awakened shortly after Sly, shaking the sleep feeling from her legs. She watched as Beowulf pestered the still sleeping Sly, who's eyes were still half shut. She laughed silently as she watched. Surely there will be no greater moment than this. She thought.
Once the entire pack was awake enough to travel, Kai wandered back, still complaining. He watched with awe, however, when the ice floating on the Great Water formed a large bridge. He still believed it was coincidence, nothing of the Ancient Ones' doing.
The journey was perilous, some falling into the icy waters and nearly freezing to death, while some came close to slipping off into the mouths of hungry Jetsams. Sly had little difficulty, as did Beowulf. Kiana was surprisingly agile on the ice, sliding as far and as fast as she pleased.
They were near the end of the ice bridge when part of it began to crack. Startled, Nuka had Vitani howl to signal the emergency. His howling was weaker than in previous years. The other Lupes hearkened to the call and began to talk among themselves, fearful of the large body of water. Nuka assured them that if they continued, they would safely reach the end and cross on dry land. The pack relaxed, all except for Kai. More foolishness, is all this is. He thought.
The last Lupe of the pack had crossed over the bridge, and the ice suddenly cracked and sunk into the ocean depths. According to Nuka, it was a sign never to return.
Sly and Beowulf watched as their mother regained her land legs, while having difficulty themselves. Beowulf tumbled this way and that, while Sly was nearly sea-sick. Kiana was relieved that the entire pack had survived thus far.
It was time to explore the land around them. From what they could see, the entire place was covered with thick foilage, and tall grass was everywhere around them. Kai sneezed once or twice, but other than that, not a soul complained. It was truly beautiful. But what Nuka hadn't realized was that another pack currently ruled this land...
Troubles in the Yaxham
Zekai, the Alpha of another pack that lived here, snarled at the news one of the lurking spies had told him. "How can there be others? The Great Water is impassable! Unless the ice bridge formed, they never would've made it here!" Zekai growled, the large brown brute paced back and forth. "Yaxham shall not stand for this!" He snarled as he spoke his pack name. Yaxham..
Kai smelled around, his auds perking when he noticed a most hated scent. Lupes...
Kai returned to Nuka with the discovery. "Call the pack together! I should be in charge now! You have brought us into the lair of the beast! Savages are here on this land! And if we die, it is because of you!" Kai accused the calm Alpha.
Nuka said nothing to accusations of Kai. He just gathered the pack around to tell them what the Lupe had found. "My friends, another pack has already claimed this land! I am leaving the decision to you. Will you accept living here adjacent to these others, or do you wish to move on?" He told them, waiting for their response. Some Lupes who agreed with Kai when the journey first began started to murmur amongst themselves once again. Those who sided with Nuka were starting to question him now.
Finally someone spoke up. "The other pack should have to deal with us!" The voice spoke. "We will not move on!"
"No, we must move! Think of it, the other packs never crossed our land!" Another voice objected to the other's cry.
This time Kiana spoke. "We must stay here!" She shouted, Beowulf and Sly agreeing with her. "Where else can we go? We should make peace with this other pack, and make sure they understand that we mean no harm!" The normally cowardly Lupe threw in her two cents.
Sly was amazed at his mother's courage. "Wow.. Mom's in the zone!" he whispered to Beowulf, who snickered a little. Vitani glanced at Nuka, who nodded.
"It is settled. We shall remain here and try and meet this other pack." Nuka proclaimed. "After all, we might need each other some day."
Soon after, the entire pack tried to meet with Zekai, the other Alpha. Vitani prayed it wouldn't turn into a fight. When Nuka reached the inner depths of the forest they were travelling in, a large female Lupe leaped out in front of him, a red one with a large scar on her leg.
"Intruders! What business do you have here with the Yaxham?" The Lupess questioned.
Nuka lowered his head and tail in respect for this other Lupe, since she appeared to be the other Alphess. "I am Nuka, leader of the Nakuum pack. We have travelled a great distance, over the Great Water itself, to find a new land. We wish to speak with your Alpha to see if we may stay here until we find a new place to live." He explained.
The Alphess Lupe scoffed. "Please! Like Zekai would allow you lot to stay on our land!" She growled, not backing down. She wasn't happy about visitors, not at all.
"And how do you know that?" Vitani asked her boldly. "Why would one such as yourself assume that your Alpha wouldn't allow us to stay for a limited time?" She questioned. She almost seemed to not know she was the Alphess.
She snarled. "I, Tacuma, know very well that he wouldn't even consider letting outsiders come in!" Tacuma told them. Her golden optics twinkled with fury at them.
"Tacuma!" A voice boomed at the female, who jumped when she heard it. A large brown male Lupe stepped out of the foilage, the fury in his eyes calmer than that in Tacuma's.
The female gasped and ran to him, acting as if Nuka had harmed her. "These intruders cause me great discomfort, Zekai." She lied. "What will you do with them?" She gave Vitani a threatening glare, insinuating that she did not enjoy their company.
Zekai examined the old Lupe, making sure the Alpha wasn't in a fighting position. He grunted and stepped toward Vitani, cautiously watching. He noticed the unbridled spirit in the Alphess's eyes.
"I will do nothing." He told the now surprised Tacuma. "Not until they prove themselves troublemakers." He stated, making sure the entire Nakuum pack heard. "But one slip up, and I'll make sure you never return to this place."
All the pack, excluding the rebellious Kai, nodded in agreement to the other Alpha's warning. The shadow Lupe spat as they began to journey back to the place where they had chosen to sleep for the night. That old Lupe has no idea what he's done by letting us stay here. He thought as the sun set on the land.
Meanwhile, Tacuma paced around their sleeping place, thinking about the other Lupe pack. They'll leave here soon, She thought, I'll make sure of it...