9. Indoctrination

Kala could not seem to get her mind off the pups. Of course, it shouldn't have surprised her; after all, that was the whole reason that they had traveled north away from the rest of the pack anyway-to find the pups. They all had different reason for trying to find them, but they all shared the same, common goal. Kala had named one of the pups, Scourge had befriended another, and her mother's spirit had melded with the third. There was no way she was going to let anything happen to those three pups, and she would see to it that they were all returned home safely. She regretted not telling Humphrey, Scourge, Kacey, or anyone else where she was going, but then again, neither Kacey nor Kerrigan had told anyone where they were going.

They had been traveling for hours, but they discovered within minutes of their departure that they were not alone, for three eyes were watching them from above: Marcel and Iris. Of course, Marcel was smart enough to try using the art of stealth to track them and figure out what they were doing. Iris, however, wasn't quite as intelligent as Marcel or any other species for that matter. She flew down in front of them and immediately proceeded to pestering them with questions. When Kala finally snarled at her and said they were looking for the pups, she squawked repeatedly, waving her wings and crying out to the rest of the wolves over two miles away that they were leaving for the pups. Kala slammed her to the ground and covered her beak, Iris' words muffled as she tried to warn the others.

"Iris, I know that you're my friend," Kala said sweetly until her tone took a more demonic, evil tone. "But I swear upon the breath of Lupus and Lupa themselves that I will eat you if you don't shut up. Now, do we have an understanding?" Iris looked at her with her one eye and blinked, slowly nodding her head and giving a muffled comply. Kala let her go and the pintail gasped for breath.

"You naughty-naughty-naughty bad missy miss –miss wolf, Kala!" Iris cried. "What if your big-serious-no-fun-ever big-bad-dad found out about this, hmm?"

"He won't," Kala growled, walking past her, Lily and Kerrigan following. "Because he'll be too busy thanking me when I come back with the pups."

"But mademoiselle!" Marcel cried, fluttering down in front of her, the old goose heaving from the exhaustion of so much flying. "You do not know where the Black Blood wolves took them, and even though you can fight, you still do not have the numbers that they have; you would be killed by them if you got anywhere near them!"

"You followed us Marcel," Kala growled, glaring at him. "So, you're part of this mission, too. I need you to go in the direction of the pups, find out where they were taken. Iris, you're going to stay in the vicinity of us and make sure we don't walk into any unexpected surprises. Do you two understand?"

"Ah, um," Marcel speculated, not very intent on doing as Kala wanted. She pressed her paw against his foot and poked him with her claws, his eyes looking up at her, bulging in fear. She bore her fangs and he gulped. "Will do mademoiselle Kala!" He cried. Kala took her paw from his foot and the two birds flew high above in the directions that Kala had instructed. Lily grunted, receiving a look from Kala.

"My mother was like that," she mused. "It was a trait that passed to my sister. Obviously, she seemed to have passed it on to you as well." Kala nodded, and the three she-wolves walked forward, continuing their journey.

Kala looked skyward at the sun, angling its trajectory and angle. They had less than three weeks before the Summer Solstice. If they were going to find the pups, there was a very good chance that they would be sacrificing the search for the Winter Mountains for their lives. Kala knew it was worth the risk to save her young siblings, but what of the wellbeing of the rest of the pack? Lily and Garth had not had the ability to live out full lives yet. Winston was old and deserved rest for once, not the constant travel and battles that they faced nowadays. Taylor and Kerrigan had lost everything; why not allow them to have some peace? Most of all, Humphrey and Kacey deserved the chance to settle down. Kala had only known her father to be the distanced leader of the Jasper survivors. She had never had the chance to have the life he and Kala's birth mother had originally dreamt about. Had he not earned a rightful rest?

They would not, however, have a decent rest, however. Not when they knew that their three pups were missing, taken by the cold-hearted clutches of the Black Blood pack. It was cruel that they were to have been faced with such a horrible fate to lose their pups; Kala couldn't even begin to imagine what it must have been like for them to experience such agonizing loss. That, she supposed, was one of the reasons that she chose to leave and find them. She was tired of seeing her family suffer and she wanted to be the hero that saved her family from the warm kindness of her heart.

"Kerrigan," Kala said, looking at the white-furred she-wolf. She inspected the red marks around her eyes, observing fading designs of what she supposed was red ochre. She had only seen the Jagged Ice wolves do this with their Spirit Markings, both of which Kala and Faolan bore on their fur pelts. The Jagged Ice Pack was corrupted, however; she had to be sure that Kerrigan and Taylor could be trusted. The she-wolf looked at her expectantly. "Those marks on your eyes-what are they for?"

"The War-Eye Clan," Kerrigan explained thoughtfully. "Believed in the ancient teachings and rituals of Fenrisúlfur and her great and powerful mate, Fenrir; they would christen the wolves that devoted their lives to following great Lupus and Lupa with the Spirit Markings that represented many things, such as their names, birth places, physical appearances, and so forth. My Spirit Markings represent my blind mother, and my perseverance to see. Taylor's represent how, as a pup, he had confronted a badger when his parents were out on a hunt. He has a…dark past." Kerrigan ended that with a somber note, Kala looking at her inquisitively. What was his dark past?

"He was raised with his younger brother, Caldor, in a different pack. His mother was a cold-hearted witch that wanted nothing to do with her pups, even driving her mate away after physically wounding him many times. He was said to have bled to death afterward. They were beaten and abused for years until one day, Taylor found that his mother had killed Caldor-she had snapped his neck in a fit of insatiable rage…"

"CALDOR!" Taylor cried. He rushed to his brother's side, nudging him. His mother stood several wolflengths away, glaring at the two young wolves. His head was bent at an unnatural angle, blood dripping from his lips. Taylor began to cry, knowing that, despite his brother's open eyes, he would never wake again. The deranged she-wolf began to snarl at Taylor and knocked him down, punching his muzzle until she heard a quite-audible crack.

Taylor sobbed and looked at his mother through his tears. She screamed at him, telling him how worthless he was. Foam flecked her muzzle and her eyes began to jitter. He looked down at her paws-they were splayed. All three pieces of evidence led to the fact that she was Mad Wolf. Her words began to sound less audible, less recognizable. They were now only incoherent, venomous, feral snarls. Her eyes darted about until she saw Caldor again. She did not hesitate a heartbeat, immediately tearing into his younger brother's flank, eating him. Taylor had always been the weaker of the two, but now was the time to fight back. Now was the time to reap vengeance upon what his mother had done to him.

He rushed forward with a scream and locked his jaws around her neck. She struggled, scratching and cutting him with her claws, but he bit down harder and harder, blood spurting as he tore away her Life Blood. Finally, her body slackened as the blood loss tore her life away, just as she tore away Caldor's. He let her lifeless corpse slump to the ground and Taylor wailed in eternal agony, the darkness crawling in around him.

"Then what happened?" Kala asked, petrified with what Kerrigan had told her.

"He wandered for many moons," she replied. "He eventually found War-Eye, though not many of the wolves trusted him after learning of what he'd done to his mother. One wolf, however, Robert, trained him and accepted him as a brother. It hit Taylor hard when he learned that he'd died in the attack as well."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Kala said sympathetically. "Taylor seems to be a good wolf."

"He is," Kerrigan said wistfully. Speaking of him brought a slight glimmer to her eye, though Kala could not fully understand why. Kerrigan laughed lightheartedly. "He denies it all the time, but I know he has feelings for me. I can see it in the way that he talks, the way he acts, the way he shows affection toward me."

"What will you do about it?"

"Nothing," she replied. "Not yet."

**Luna**

The small she-pup walked closely beside Kate, the two young sisters following Collette closely as she led the way to Saren's den near the peak of the mountain, close to the Blue Marker. Its demonic radiance was near blinding when looked at directly. It was dim yet bright, a concept that they found increasingly difficult to understand. Demon spirits whispered to them as they neared the horrible monster-creator, Kate and Luna's eyes darting frantically, expecting a necromorph to appear at any moment. They knew not why Collette was taking them to Saren, but they knew she was not happy. Her jaw was firmly set, her eyes hard and glaring as they neared Saren's dark abode. As they padded upward, Luna caught sight of John, the black-furred wolf glaring malevolently at her. Luna whimpered and hid underneath Collette's legs. The she-wolf looked at Luna's shaking form and saw what scared her so, Collette glaring coldly at John until he walked away. She looked at Luna softly and nuzzled the she-pup's face gently, trying to consolidate and reassure the pup.

"Don't worry, young pup," she whispered. "I won't let anything happen to you. Do you trust me?"

"No," she whimpered. "I mean, well, I don't know…" Collette looked at her kindly. How could she ever think that the pups would trust her fully? It was not as though she did not already bear the ochre-died black-fur and Spirit Markings that Saren had placed on her. It wasn't as though they could ignore the forcefully inflicted scars that ran down her eyes that identified her as part of the Black Blood allegiance to Saren. None of those facts could be ignored; she was condemned to a dark fate of being deemed a Black Blood, despite her hatred towards the organization and its purpose.

Nevertheless, she ushered the pups forward into the dark den, leading the way forward. The cool rock walls were coated in subterranean water that traveled through the recesses of the mountain until it reached the core. The den led to a series of tunnel networks that led to the main Marker chamber. They circled around the chamber, surprised by how similar it was to the Red Marker chamber in the Jagged Ice Mountain. Luna looked around fearfully, Kate pressing her body to hers in comfort. The first Marker was already enough; now they had to face another? The monsters had even killed poor Sweets for Lupus' sake! Thinking of Sweets made Luna think of Salty. She'd seen him fall, but was he going to be okay? She hoped so; she didn't like to see wolves die.

They circled the chamber until they reached the main level where the Marker pedestal was located. Black Bloods were working on a wall that had caved in on itself, Saren looking at the Marker. Collette cleared her throat and bowed down to Saren, gesturing for the pups to follow suite. They did as they were told until Saren was finished examining the Marker. When he turned, Luna was shocked and horrified to see that his eyes were a dark blue, no longer the green that they used to be. Was this what the Marker did to a wolf?

"Indoctrination," Saren rasped, his voice no longer that of the Leader Wolf that had, at a time, looked up to and called a friend to the Jasper wolves. "There is nothing truly as remarkable as its effect on life. The Marker has made me see; opened my eyes to new possibilities, a new world where transcendence by will of the holy necromorphs shall unfold before us! Do you wish to commit your lives to its power, young pups?"

Collette's head shot up in terror and she stood between Saren and the pups, Luna and Kate shuddering in horror. They didn't want anything to do with that horrible Marker!

"That is not why we're here, Saren!" Collette protested. "I have come to discuss John's atrocious actions!"

"What actions?" Saren asked her, suddenly curious as to what Collette had to say.

"He raped Luna Small Fangs," she growled. Luna looked at Kate questioningly. 'Small Fangs?' "I have no doubts that he would have done the same with Kate Small Fangs as well." Saren looked at her, considering Collette's words.

"I shall speak with John," he replied. "The ravaging of a pup is not what we stand for."

"Yet the murder of another innocent pup is?" Collette spat. "John should be exiled for following that order! He should be killed for what he did to Luna Small Fangs!"

"I do sincerely regret using their brother as an example," Saren said truthfully. Luna and Kate looked at each other, shocked to hear the truth and sincere regret in his tone of voice and his eyes. "We do not stand for the murder of innocents. If I could take back what I did, I would in a heartbeat." He walked past Collette and looked at the pups kindly. "I am sorry for your pain and distress, young pups." He murmured. He pressed his nose to their foreheads and whispered something in the language of the Ancients, something that sounded familiar yet completely alien to them despite the unfamiliarity with the words he spoke. He nodded to Collette. "I will speak with him; I give you my word."

Collette nodded and beckoned to the pups to follow her out of the Marker Chamber. The Black Bloods continued their work at clearing out the rubble to allow the Marker to rise again, though it would be many weeks before they could do it, possibly another moon.

Collette looked back at the pups sympathetically as they walked back.

"I do not necessarily agree with what he believes," she told them. "Nor do I wish to be part of the Black Bloods. But Saren has his moments of kindness, when the real him shows through. He isn't evil; at least, not fully. I have hope that perhaps one day, he will turn, that he will see reason and regret his former acts." With that, they continued until they reached the fern den, the three wolves lying down for the night. Luna, however, could not sleep, her paranoia peaking, as she feared that John would come back for her.

Shaking her head vigorously, she walked out of the fern den and sat on the ledge overlooking the land before the dark mountain. The cool air blew against her, Luna relishing in the feeling. Her thoughts wandered back to what Collette had told her: He isn't evil; at least, not fully. Was it true that Saren wasn't all that bad? In truth, all he wanted was safety and glory for wolf-kind. Was it so terrible that he wanted what was best for his species, even if it wasn't the best thing to do?

Then she began to think hard about the necromorphs and the Markers themselves. What if they weren't a bad idea? What if turning wolves into necromorphs really was the next stage in the evolutionary cycle for wolves? What if, by killing the necromorphs, they had only succeeded in killing their own friends? They had been terrified by the look of the necromorphs; what if all they were doing was helping them transcend, trying to make them become the best that they could be? Was it all that bad to be a necromorph? For all that Luna knew, the necromorphs could have simply changed in appearance. The blade-arms protruding from the shoulders certainly looked lethal; could it simply be that evolution deemed them a less-appealing appearance in the sake of becoming better?

It didn't seem so bad that all Saren wanted was to make wolves better than before, and if necromorphs were the way to become better, would that not be a preferable way to do just as he wanted? Curious now, she walked silently to Saren's den deep in the mountain, following the path that they had gone to originally to find Saren. The blue light of the Marker no longer seemed so bright and forbidding; now, it seemed so welcoming, so…so free. The chamber seemed completely vacant of life, Luna walking forward until she could see the pedestal that the Marker rested on. She padded onward to its surface. Cautiously, she placed a paw on the Marker, letting its power flow through her. She sensed a presence from within it and pressed her nose to its surface.

"Incredible, isn't it?" A voice said. She leapt away, startled, and saw Saren approaching her. He smiled and nuzzled her gently. Luna was surprised by his initial affection and looked at him curiously. "Tell me, Luna Small Fangs; do you know what indoctrination is?" She shook her head and he laughed lightheartedly. This was supposed to be their evil enemy? Luna surely could not see what was wrong with him. "Indoctrination is the possessing of a mind, something that the Marker does to its followers. It spreads glorious light into the minds of those that are indoctrinated, and it appears that you have seen this light. Is that true?"

"Well," she said thoughtfully. "I used to think the Marker was bad, and that it made evil monsters. Now I'm not so sure it's a bad thing."

"Splendid!" Saren exclaimed. "I am most pleased that you see it from my eyes. Necromorph form is our next stage in evolution! With the help of the Marker, we shall retake our lost lands! Overthrow the humans and reign supreme as the dominant species in the world once more!"

"So, we could go back to Jasper Park again?" Luna asked him. Saren smiled and licked her forehead.

"Of course, you could," he told her gently. "As a necromorph, nothing would stop you from doing as you pleased. Returning to the home of your blood would be one of many things that you would be able to do, Luna Small Fangs. Now, I don't think I received an answer from you earlier: do you, Luna Small Fangs, wish to commit your life to the power and divinity of our Marker?" Luna considered for a long time. Did she want to go against her family, her friends, and her allies? Then, she realized that she could turn them to her side, to see the Marker as being good as well. Oh, it would be great! They could all be happy again!

"Yes," she said, bowing to Saren. "I commit my life to the Markers."

"Then I now proclaim you as Black Blood," Saren said. He led her to the Marker and pressed her nose to its surface. After several minutes, he spoke to her once more. "Rise, Luna Black Blood." She did so and turned to him, opening her eyes. They were now a dark blue.

**Kate**

Kate was a rambunctious she-pup and was-to her parents' distress-quite a rule-breaker. She was told that she had to be a 'good young Alpha' all the time, but never took head to those words. She didn't even know what an Alpha was! Her father was out with a hunting group and her mother was too busy tending to a small cut that Lily received on her paw to notice Kate sneak out of the den.

Pups were strictly forbidden to exit their parents' den until they were one moon of age, and they were only allowed to do so with a parent to watch over them. It was when they reached the age of three moons that they were permitted outside. Kate, however, wanted to be the first pup to explore the forest alone, despite the Laws of the Pack.

She bounded through the forest, adventuring through the undergrowth and chasing butterflies and other small bugs. The scents of the forest overwhelmed her. He had never thought that so many smells could exist at once; then again, she didn't know what existed beyond her own den. She was, after all, only thirty days old. She ran into a small clearing and found a lone grey pup looking around. There was something different about the pup; it seemed to be more sturdily built, its face more angular like her father's.

This is one odd pup, she thought, watching it. She saw it looking around, scenting the air. She tilted her head to the side, wondering what it was doing. She'd never seen a wolf scent the air before, so the action was foreign to her. She padded quietly towards the pup. It saw her and became frightened. It darted into a bush and stared at her from within. Its eyes were a blue hue, like the sky above. The pup was confused to see her amber eyes and tawny pelt.

"Hi!" Kate greeted. The pup hid further, causing Kate to frown. She smiled and perked up her ears. "I'm Kate! What's your name?" It crawled forward a bit, allowing her to see the pup's face.

"I-I," the pup stuttered. "I'm H-Humphrey."

"Hi, Hahumphrey!" She exclaimed.

"No, it's just Humphrey," it corrected her. She was surprised to hear that she got its name wrong. She could have sworn that it said Hahumphrey!

"Oh, sorry!" She apologized. "Hi, Just Humphrey!" It gave her a quizzical look and slowly came out.

"Where am I?" It asked.

"Oh, I know that one!" Kate said joyfully. "You're in Jasper Park, Canada! But you can also call it Canada, Jasper Park! Or you can call it Jasper Canada Park, or Park Canada Jasper, or Park Jasper Canada, or you can have a lot of fun a say it backwards! Do you know what it is backwards?" It shook his head. "I do! It's Krap Adanac Repsaj!"

The pup's face contorted, rolling on the ground laughing. Kate joined in and laughed along with it. After its convulsing laughter subsided, it stood up and looked at her.

"You're funny!" It said.

"You are, too!" She countered. "What are you anyway? You're a weird looking pup!"

"I'm a wolf!" The pup exclaimed. She shook her head.

"No! I know that part! I'm a she-wolf! But what are you? You don't look like my mom or sister; you look more like my dad!"

"Oh, I'm a boy," he explained. Now she understood. When he said that, she became very wary of him. Her mother always told her, 'Stay away from boys! They're nothing but trouble!' Was she going to get in trouble for being around him? He didn't seem bad!

"Where are your parents?" She asked. "Pups can't be out unless they're three moons old!"

"I'm almost three moons," Humphrey told her. "I'm two and a half!" Kate was astounded to hear that he was older than her. He was almost allowed to leave his parents' den without their supervision! She wasn't even allowed to with her parents!

The two heard a crack behind Humphrey. He turned around and Kate caught a brief glimpse of a large wolf standing over them.

Where did that memory come from? Kate sat up, perplexed. What was even stranger was the fact that her consciousness referred to the dream as a 'memory.' She certainly didn't recognize that as anything she'd seen before, so how could it have possibly been a memory? She blinked her eyes and walked outside to get a drink from a nearby crick that ran along the mountain and into the planes beyond. When she investigated the water, however, she gasped in shock.

She was not as she remembered. Her eyes were now amber like Kala's, her fur tawny with a white chest and underbelly. She wasn't even a pup anymore; she was a full-grown she-wolf. When she looked back at herself, however, she was just as she'd always been. What was going on? She raised a paw to the water's surface. The reflection did not mimic her movements like it should have. It wasn't her!

"Hello, Kate," a voice spoke. She looked around, unable to see anyone around her. Who said that? She heard giggling and looked back at the crick to see that it was the reflection. It was speaking to her in her mind.

"Who are you?" Kate whispered fearfully.

"I am you," the reflection replied. This didn't make sense; how could she be Kate? I am who you were named after.

"You were my daddy's first mate?" She asked inquisitively. The reflection nodded and smiled.

"We are one, you and I. Our minds are conjoined together-I am you, you are me. Until death seizes you-and I hope that is not for many long years-we will be together in mind and spirit."

"Why?"

"Lupus and Lupa have given me a second chance to live within you. I will share my knowledge, experience, strength, and courage with you, and we may speak at any time."

"How?"

"Just reach out your mind, she replied with a smug smile. I will be here whenever you need me, daughter of my lover."

"Does daddy know?" Kate asked the reflection.

"Yes, he does, as does your elder sister, my daughter. A storm is coming, Kate. You must be prepared."

"How do I do that?" She asked fearfully. "How do I prepare? How do we get out of here?"

"You will find a way. Be safe, young pup. With that, Kate disappeared into oblivion."

"You know, mademoiselle," a familiar voice said behind her. Kate whipped around to look at him, Marcel standing behind her with a large grin on his face. "I never took you to be one to talk to things that cannot speak back!"

"Mar-!" She began, but he covered here muzzle with his wing, silencing her.

"We must be silent!" He hissed. "Now, where is your sister and your brother?" At the mention of Ryker, she hung her head in sadness, tears falling down her face.

"Ryker's dead," she choked. "Saren killed him." Marcel cursed and embraced the she-pup tightly. He asked about Luna, but she said that she didn't know where she was.

"I must report to your sister," he told her. "She, Lily, and Kerrigan are trying to find you. I will tell them about where you are and come back as soon as I can."

"Please don't leave me here!" She pleaded with him. The old goose looked at her sorrowfully.

"I don't know how to get you free," he admitted sadly. "But we will not leave you, I promise. Stay safe, young'un." With that, he took flight, leaving Kate alone. She sighed, her heart heavy, and saw Luna standing in front of her. Kate leapt back in shock, surprised to see her sister standing there.

"Luna!" Kate breathed a sigh of relief. "We're going to be saved!"

"We don't need saving, Kate," Luna said with a growl, advancing upon her. Kate backed away fearfully; unable to understand why her eyes were suddenly a dark blue and why she was acting so hostile toward her. "We need to help Saren activate the Marker." Kate's eyes widened in fear. What had happened to her sister?

**A/N: Thanks to Dawn Walker Wolf, imjustlikehumphrey, Crowwolf, LilyAndMe, The-crazy-lone-wolf77, Alexander, the dark shadow, wizz713, and FunLovingKate for reviewing. Until next time.**

**-The Dishonored Wolf**