Influence
She woke up feeling very well-rested after a long sleep. She got to her paws, stretched, yawned, and trotted out to the cave-mouth where she sat down to observe what she could of the range. Several light wings were visible in the distance, talking to each other or just flying somewhere. Everything was peaceful and calm.
Ready to start the waking-cycle, she flew up to Alpha's ledge, passed the guards, and landed in the clearing before the caves. Alpha, several of his mates, and three of his other kin were waiting there, talking to each other.
Alpha approached to greet her, "Welcome, Skadi. Sleep well?"
"I did. It was good to sleep in safety again."
"We were getting ready to come wake you. Spot, Swirl, and Speck can show you to more of our ranges."
"Good. I want to see more of these ranges. Who are these kin with us?" she asked.
"Here are three of my young: First-Healer, First-Far-Flier, and First-Fighter. I, First-Far-Flier, and First-Fighter have a flight we must fly, but I want to speak more with you after our flight."
"Alright, we will talk later."
He, First-Far-Flier, and First-Fighter took flight and joined a few guards as they departed.
She faced First-Healer, who was staring after them as they left, "What are they doing?"
"They are meeting Far-Fliers of another light wing pack we have peace with. Normal keeping the peace between packs. It was warming to meet you, Skadi. Let me know if you ever need any plants for… any reasons."
"I will."
Spot, Swirl, and Speck approached while First-Healer flew off.
Spot spoke up, "She has duties to tend certain plants for healing needs. You wanted to see more of the pack's territory, right?"
She stretched her wings, "I do. What will I see?"
Spot answered, "So you know this chamber here with the path to the ranges beyond and Alpha's special territory. No need to show you more of this one. There are four other ranges: the forest-range, the water-range, the warmth-range, and the living-range where other packmates sleep. Are you ready to fly?"
"Yes," she answered, stretching her wings.
Spot, Swirl, and Speck took flight, leading her along the same path she had flown last time. They left Alpha's ledge, flew around a corner, followed the streams, passed over the hungry water-hole, and entered the forest-range. The green trees, vines, and bushes were very thick and filled with small-life. Tiny-wing flower-drinkers, fur-four-legs, furless critters, and bugs buzzed, scuttled, or flew in the thick green below. The air was heavy with moisture, probably from all the waterfalls which led to the water-hole.
The pits for waste were surrounded by tall mushrooms growing from old pits that had been covered over. There were also tall mushrooms growing up all throughout the forest, though parts of the forest were lower and did not grow as high. The trees and bushes had many types of fruits which kin did not eat but which prey-animals did eat.
She realized what the pack likely did with old pits. The pack would clear part of the mushroom-forest, dig pits to use for waste, and then cover the pits over to feed the dirt and plants which would grow there.
Swirl winged closer, "Stay close! We are near the good part of this range!"
"What is it?" she asked.
"You will see!"
They passed over a ledge and dropped into a new part of the forest-range, only without much forest. There were no tall trees at all in the new part of the range. Instead, there were very long lines and rows of smaller mushrooms, most of which looked like ones for eating. A pawful of light wing females were visible walking through the lines and rows, probably checking on the food-mushrooms.
"What pack-role are they?"
Swirl faced her, "They are Plant-Growers: older females beyond egg-making, and a few males. They tend the mushrooms and other plants by bringing mouthfuls of water, taking out bad mushrooms and other plants, flaming away any rot, and choosing which ones to use for food."
That sounded like a lot of work, but it had to be done for the pack. The work also did not seem too difficult or complicated, so older packmates could manage it.
They continued deeper into the range where new rows and lines of plants were growing, also being tended to by a pawful of light wings.
"What are those?"
Spot, Swirl, and Speck chuckled and dove for a grassy patch between the rows of bushes and glowing flowers. They beckoned her over to a row of bushes with many white, large berries and tiny-wing flower-drinkers flying between the bushes.
Spot nosed at the berries on the nearest bush, "These are no-eggs berries. As you can guess, they stop us from making eggs for over three tens of waking-cycles. Most grown females use these."
She chuckled, seeing the importance of such berries, "Good to know. My old pack had berries like these."
Swirl carefully picked several large berries and ate them, but Spot and Speck did not.
"Do you not need any?" she asked them.
Spot paused and glanced at Speck before answering, "No, I and Alpha are planning to get an egg soon, so I am avoiding these. Speck is a different situation."
"How so, if you do not mind the question," she asked Speck.
Speck huffed, "Simple. I cannot make eggs."
"Sorry about that."
Oddly, Speck snorted, "Do not be. It is not very bad. For one, I can help raising my sister-mates' young, and I and Alpha can always have fun whenever we want."
The three light wings chuckled and faced her, apparently curious about something.
"What is it?" she asked.
Spot smirked, "Do you not want any of these berries?"
She laughed at how twisted their suggestion was.
"There is no need. I doubt any male could want me."
Spot hummed, "Why do you doubt any male could want you?"
"Because I am only half light wing. No one wants a mixed-kin like me."
Spot grumbled, "Still, you could try the berries. They are not only for stopping egg-making. They also taste good."
She had never eaten any of them before, but having a good taste was enough of a reason to try them, so she ate a mouthful of the berries. They indeed tasted good and sweet at first, though there was a slightly sour aftertaste which was not pleasant.
"Not too bad. What other plants are there?" she asked.
"Follow us," Speck said.
She followed the three females on paw through the range to what looked like new plants and bushes.
Spot fell back to walk beside her, "Just between us, I heard Alpha speaking about you. He likes how strong and brave you are."
"Good to hear that of him. I have a question about you five. How did you become his mates, if you do not mind the question?"
Spot huffed, "Sure. I lived beyond with my sire and dam. They both died in fighting, leaving me alone as an older fledgling. Far-Fliers from this pack found me and brought me back to the pack so I could be safe. Alpha had Swirl and Speck already, but he saw how chilled I was. He offered to let me be his Third, so I accepted."
"What about the others?"
"Swirl was hurt much when she was a Helper in Alpha's group before he became Alpha. She and Speck were friends in the same group. They helped him stay Alpha by sharing information and getting his favor. Stripe was packless before she flew here. Sway is clever, but she looks plain, so no male wanted to give her the attention she wanted. We are all very lucky that we flew into his life."
She considered those stories. Alpha was apparently kind to females who were hurt or unwanted. That probably explained why they were loyal to him, though that also meant he focused his attention on those who were… more desperate or had nothing to lose. Was that warm-livered of him, or was he taking advantage of them?
"There are more plants you want to know about," Spot said.
She followed Spot, Swirl, and Speck to a grove of small trees with glowing flowers. Speck leaped up, grabbed a branch, tore it off, and dropped it at her paws.
"What is this for?"
Spot nudged the branch with a paw, "The light-flowers help with pain. You should try some."
She started in surprise, staring at the light-flowers. The lost spine was still discomforting, not painful but still noticeable whenever she thought about it or rolled her upper back.
She gladly ate a pawful of the flowers, "My thanks."
Speck purred, "We are glad to help our special guest. There are other plants we grow here for all needs: other pain, sickness, and strength. More important ones are over here."
She followed Speck and Spot over to a pair of similar-looking bushes, though their berries were pink and green.
"Can you guess what these do?" Speck chuckled.
She did not recognize pink and green berries as being important. Ice-Water-Pack did not have anything like these, or if it did they were not recognized as doing anything to kin.
"I have no idea. Help health somehow?"
Speck snorted, "Maybe, in a very twisted way. The green ones can fill thinking with mating-wanting, so much that even kin that felt nothing at all cannot resist themselves!"
Spot laughed freely, "Just think about how fun it is when both you and your male have these berries! Both you and he are very, very tired and satisfied after!"
She rolled her eyes, amused that the Alpha's mates thought like that. They were free to live how they wished and however made them happy, twisted though they were.
"What about the pink berries?" she asked.
Speck hummed, "They are different but almost as powerful. They fill thinking with forgetting. A mouthful of these will make a kin forget much from shortly after they eat. This can help if a packmate was hurt in fighting and needs to be tended. The forgetting can make the pain less or even nothing if the kin does not remember later."
That all had lift. An effect could be good or bad depending on how it was used.
Spot nudged her shoulder, "That is all for you to see here. Do you want to see the next range?"
"Sure. Which one is it?"
"The water-range. The Hunters are usually there for their work in our territory."
She stepped back to take flight, eager to see this range, "Yes! We should fly!"
They took flight and turned for what was the leftpaw side-chamber. The passage sloped higher and had several small streams flowing down the slope. They flew up and over the spikes of rock and then glided down into a new range.
The range quickly dropped away into an expanse of water with light-rocks and spires throughout. Small water-plants grew in the shallows. The water beyond the shallows dropped away and became dark, though it looked like there were light-rocks in the deeps. The range looked like it split in three directions, all probably leading to different waters as the large caverns were filled with water.
There were several male light wings either perched on rocks, in the water, or around a pile of fish on the shore.
"Are these the Fish-Hunters?" she eagerly asked.
"Hunters, yes. They hunt fish here and ground-prey beyond the pack's territory. We get most of our prey-food from fish in these water, especially with what is happening beyond," Swirl answered.
"Is there a First-Hunter? There must be one."
"Yes, but he is not our kin. Do you want to speak to him?" Swirl asked.
"I want to let him know I will help with catching fish as long as I am here."
Spot, Swirl, and Speck led her down onto the shore. A lone male trotted over to them, visibly surprised by her presence.
Swirl led her to the male, "First-Hunter, this is the half light wing Alpha told you about. Her name is Skadi."
First-Hunter faced her, "Skadi, First-Hunter is pleased to meet you."
She blinked in confusion before recalling the twisted name-rules this pack followed.
"Yes, I do. I want to help provide fish while I am-"
He started in surprise before Swirl huffed, "She is not under the name-rule. There is no rule-breaking."
He relaxed, "First-Hunter understands. Does Skadi have questions for First-Hunter?"
"Is there any problem with me helping you hunt?"
"No problem. You must only hunt where this one orders you to hunt though. Some of the waters can be more dangerous," he answered.
"Do these waters touch the deep waters with kin-hunters?"
"They do touch deep waters, but there are few kin-hunters. We have not seen any in many life-making cycles."
"Are there any other ranges you can swim to? Are there other land-ranges hidden by the water?"
"Yes, there are other small ranges with good air and trees. We stop at those places on breaks in the deeper swimming."
"Are there other kin in those other ranges?"
He shrugged, "No, why would there be? Those are small ranges. The most we see is small life that can live in water or on ground."
It depended on how big those small, isolated ranges were. He looked away first. His life-fire was wary and cautious, as if he was hiding something.
Swirl purred, breaking her concentration, "First-Hunter and Second-Hunter can show you where the best hunting is done."
First-Hunter huffed in acceptance, "We will. First-Hunter will return to his duties."
Satisfied, she left him and trotted down the shore to the water's edge. The water was cool to the touch. The range stretched out in several directions, all with columns and light-rocks growing in the shallows and walls. Mosses and water-grass waved in the shallows.
A Hunter returned with two large fish in his jaws and probably several more in his belly. Sure enough, the Hunter left multiple fish before trotting to his packmates to speak with them.
It would be fun to hunt more as she had before. Not only would hunting for fish be a pleasant activity, but it would also be a way to let her have more time with the Hunters. That would be a good way to let her learn what these light wings thought about two-legs, and also would give her time to teach them what two-legs truly were. But there was time for that later.
She spun away from the water and trotted back to Spot, Swirl, and Speck.
"What is the next range?"
"Follow and see!" Swirl smirked.
She followed the three females away from the water. A glance over her tail let her see that First-Hunter was staring at her. There was an odd feeling about that male. He was hiding something which made him a little afraid, though he did a good job of hiding that concern.
"Why-"
Swirl faced her while gliding, "What?"
She held back from asking. Keeping her wondering and suspicions a secret might help in some way, as there was much she did not know about how this pack lived.
"Nevermind. Lead me!"
They flew back up the slope and down into the forest-range before turning for the far end of the range where a cloud of mist hovered almost like a cloud in the air.
The end of the range sloped down through the mist. More trees, vines, and small mushrooms grew here, probably because of the greater moisture in the air. This flight took more time than the one to the water-range.
Large pools which steamed and filled the air with warmth appeared below. There were a few light wings relaxing in the waters or on rocks by the waters. The heavy mist made this range darker because the light-rocks could not fly their light far through the mist.
Spot, Swirl, and Speck led her onward through the mists to a flat area near the rear of the warm range. The flat area was covered in glowing mosses and vines and had several light-rocks nearby burning with light. Two females were resting close together in the mosses.
She landed on of the larger light-rocks.
Spot landed with her and brushed her wing, "This is where the Dams sit with eggs. Those two are sitting the four eggs allowed this life-making cycle."
"Did they have two eggs each?" she asked.
"No. There are two other Dams. They must be away on other work."
So this pack shared the egg-sitting duty between dedicated females. Sharing responsibility helped everyone involved. The Sires were likely away on work.
"How often are there new eggs?" she asked.
"Every two life-making cycles is normal. Sometimes more are allowed if there is need," Spot answered.
"Is there more to see in this range?"
"Not much more. We use this range and the warm waters for relaxing. You must be curious about the last range to see: the living-range," Spot asked.
"What is special about it?"
"It is where the rest of the pack lives and rests. They have their own cave-dens by groups."
That answered one of the lingering questions she had. The living-range must be a very big one if most of the packmates slept there.
Swirl, Speck, and Spot winged away as if to fly back to the forest-range. Instead, they dove for one of the unoccupied steaming pools of water, so she followed them down there. Speck and Spot claimed warm rocks near the water and curled up on them while Swirl stepped beside her and stretched.
"We thought you would like to rest here after all the flying we have done. We certainly want to rest!" Swirl purred.
Now that Swirl mentioned it, she had done a lot of flying this waking-cycle. Being in this warm, heavy air made much sleep-wanting. A long rest here by the water was a very appealing use of time.
"Good idea. First, a swim."
She slipped alone into the warm, good, and bubbling water. A short swim later and she was sure that the bubble-water might become her favorite place in all the ranges of the pack's territory.
She woke up later when Swirl nudged her awake.
"Ready to fly?" Swirl asked.
She got to her paws and briefly noticed far more light wings nearby. There was a mix of males and females, many of whom were gazing at her out of curiosity.
"What is that?" "Twisted-kin?" "Never seen that before." "A new kin?"
She partly wanted to go meet them, but there were more important things to do.
They took flight, passing into the thicker mist and then rising into the cooler air. Finally up in the clear air of the forest-range, they turned for the final passage filled with the most light-rocks. She flew directly over a falling-branch light-making tree which looked very similar to the one outside of Ice-Water-Pack and which she had liked resting under.
The path was very bright, wide, and long. A stream flowed from ahead and appeared to guide the flight. There were more light wings in this passage than there were in others, as if this was a path which was commonly flown.
The path widened into the largest chamber she had ever seen. Part of the range was very flat and had been cleared of trees and green.
The far greater part of the range fell away and dropped almost straight down. The round drop narrowed the deeper it went, and a gentle wind felt like it blew from below. A waterfall above the flat formed a stream which split in two: one half falling off the slope into the dark below, and the other half flowing into the path which led to the forest-range.
Light-rocks stuck out from the walls all along the drop. There were many caves visible in the walls. Small trees and long vines hung down the drop, growing from small ledges and places with dirt.
The chamber also rose up. More caves, ledges, and light-rocks were up there, but there were no plants she could see higher.
Several tens of light wings were visible all throughout. They were resting on ledges, peacefully gliding, talking in groups, or carrying prey. The chamber was filled with the constant drone of echoing voices, the crashing waterfall, distant roars, and the whisper of the faint wind.
She, Swirl, Speck, and Spot dove and landed on the edge of the drop. Speck and Spot must have spotted packmates they knew well since they glided over to them and began speaking.
A flight of several females flew overhead and dove down the massive chamber. She watched their flight until they landed on a ledge and vanished into caves.
Swirl stepped alongside her and nudged her shoulder, "So, what do you think of this range?"
"It is the biggest range I have ever seen down here. Does the pack arrange itself in caves by pack-roles or something like that?"
Swirl answered, "Yes, but first do you remember how each male pack-role has female Helpers who help them in their roles?"
That was a detail she was still unclear on. What did the Helper pack-role mean? The prior explanation was rather lacking in detail. Was that lack of detail intentionally meant to keep the truth from her?
"I do."
"Good. There are three separate levels below the waterfall: the bottom group is the Fighters. There are two tens of Fighters and three tens of Fighter-Helpers. The middle group is ten male Far-Fliers and ten Far-Flier-Helpers. The top group is ten male Hunters and ten Hunter-Helpers. The exact numbers can change a little, but they are usually around those."
"What about the caves above?"
They all looked up to those visible caves.
"The Plant-Growers live up there. They are older, so we do not want them to need to fly as far. The Firsts of each pack-role also have caves up there since they need peace away from being own pack-role for some time," Swirl explained.
"What is all the way down? The water must go somewhere."
Swirl sighed and grumbled, "It does. The very bottom is a cave-path to the deeper and darker ranges."
"What is deeper and darker?" she whispered.
"Danger. There are more ranges down there. Those ranges grow out in many directions, but the ranges are darker, have fewer light-rocks, and have kin-hunters in them."
She considered a kin-hunter she had met once. Reflection, the hunter-kin who was not a hunter-kin at liver, could very well have come from that dark range.
Swirl continued, "There are spiders bigger than kin. Some of the dark kin seem like they can move from place to place without flight, though we are not sure about that. Most important are what we call the Cleansers."
"What are the Cleansers?"
"They are kin-eaters who are not kin-hunters."
That was twisted. How could something be a kin-eater but not a kin-hunter? It sounded like the same thing.
"What do they look like?"
"They are smaller than a light wing. They have no words, but we have always had an understanding with them. We carry our dead into the darker and deeper ranges so the Cleansers can eat."
She barked and stepped back in shock, "What? Why?"
"What else can we do with the dead? We cannot always dig holes for them like we do with waste. We do not want to be eaters of our own kind. So we take the dead for the Cleansers to eat."
That practice was liver-chilling but apparently necessary.
"You must do what is necessary," she huffed.
Swirl grumbled and looked away from her, "There is more you should know. One of our pack-rules is that when a packmate is very old and cannot work anymore, it must go down there to die in peace."
She growled, hating everything about that pack-rule. Requiring the old to die just because they were old was terrible.
"How can you do that to your own kin? Your sires and dams? You make them go and get hunted?"
Swirl barked, "Wrong. They go to sleep without knowing any pain or fear. Them leaving a place in the pack for the younger kin is good and respectful. What is better: to die in peace when they have some control, or to linger in the pack even after they cannot fly, cannot control when they relieve themselves, and become a burden to others long after they can provide at all?"
She grumbled, "Maybe... you could find a new range where they could live the rest of their lives in peace instead."
Swirl looked away from her, staring down at the darkness far below, and spoke slowly and cautiously.
"We have tried. Groups of Fighters sometimes fly into the darker and deeper beyond to explore and find more territory we might take. Volunteering for those flights is a way for a Fighter to gain status or correct a wrong. Only the braver males or those trying to act rightly after doing wrong will fly those flights. However, males can die in fighting down there, so we do not fly many of those flights anymore."
She sighed and stared at her paws. All that Swirl said had lift. The pack had limited territory and could not support kin who were burdens on the pack.
"Learn to live in the world that is, not the one we wish was," she muttered.
"What?" Swirl asked.
"Nothing. Just a life-lesson an Old-Knower taught me long ago. The part about males dying in fighting for the pack is not surprising."
Swirl shrugged, "No, it is not. They take too many risks. Some anyway. Are you ready to go back to our range?"
Returning to Alpha's range had much appeal. Being anywhere other than this deep range with the path to the dark would be a relief.
"Yes, we should go."
"Good. Alpha will probably be back before too long. You could also meet Pounce and Char again. They would like someone new to play with."
"Do they not play with their packmates?"
Swirl grumbled, "No. They must be raised to think well and know more than others in the pack. We of Alpha's kin-group look out for ourselves, as you can understand is important."
That was true. Each family-group should protect itself; however, the young should also have opportunity to know others of their own age. Playing and bonding with others was probably important if Ice-Water-Pack was any example.
"I understand."
Swirl purred in agreement, trotted to Speck and Spot, spoke to them, and returned to her. Together, she and Swirl took flight for Alpha's range. The flight back there would take the time to pass through two ranges, so there was more than enough time to think on all she had learned.
Her thoughts were more confused about the pack now than they had been before. The pack had rules and life-ways she did not like at all. On the other paw, most of the rules were probably needed. All of the life-ways had lift, except for the rule against mate-pairs. That one was too strange and different.
Swirl flew with her back to Alpha's ledge and then departed on her duties. Alpha was still away, which left only her, Sway, and the two young light wings.
Char was too young to be interesting. He just wanted to pounce on tails, flee into the trees to chase after a small ground-prey, or fly short distances just to show he could.
Pounce was different. She was four life-making-cycles of age and was curious, asking many questions about the ranges beyond. So she told Pounce stories about Ice-Water-Pack and her former friends. Maybe it was twisted that Pounce seemed to like hearing about Red the most, but it was also the simple truth that she had the most to say about Red, having been closest to her once.
"What pack-role do you want to have the most?" she asked Pounce.
Pounce grumbled, "I am not sure yet. Dam wants me to be another Knower to help lead the pack. I could learn from great-dam."
Knower was a new pack-role she did not know about for certain, though she could guess what it included if it was anything like what Oldest-Knower did for Ice-Water-Pack.
She faced Sway, "What is the Knower pack-role?"
Sway answered while Char fought with her tail, "There are only two Knowers right now. First-Knower is Alpha's dam. She tells stories with life-lessons to the young. She is responsible for helping all learn the correct thinking early in life."
There was probably more to the teaching than that. The Oldest-Knower she knew had not been very involved early in a packmate's life; rather, she had been a giver of advice when sought out, usually by adults or fledglings who were trying to learn about life.
She faced Pounce, "So you want to help the pack learn good thinking and life-ways?"
"I do! Telling others what they must think is-" Pounce began answering.
Sway interrupted, "Pounce, remember what we said. The Knowers tell others what they should think because it is right and best. Knowers know what is true."
"Oh, yes, I remember," Pounce hastily said.
"Good. You must have more questions for Skadi," Sway huffed.
Pounce kept asking more questions which she answered, but she could not escape the gnawing feeling that something was not good. Pounce did not have the same attitude which fledglings of her age had in Ice-Water-Pack. Perhaps Pounce might not be well enough bonded with her similar-age packmates. On the other paw, friends would only prove false in the end anyway, so maybe there was no great need to bond with them at all.
She drank her fill from the drinking-water and returned to her cave-den to rest and wait for Alpha. A bark woke her from her sleep what felt like wingbeats later. She hopped to her paws and strolled over to Alpha, waiting on the outer ledge for her.
"Alpha, how was your flight?"
"Well enough. The other light wings had no great news concerning us, but that is not much of a surprise for them. I have time for you now with no other distractions. There are a pawful of fish down by a pool we can be alone at."
She raised an eyeridge, "Be alone? What will your mates think?"
He laughed at the teasing, "That I am meeting a very special kin and talking to her about important matters."
She followed him down off his ledge along the waterfall. A small pool formed to the side of the larger pool and was isolated because of large plants growing by the water's edge. There were also several fish waiting for them there.
He ate a couple fish, leaving the rest for her.. The only sounds were the songs of bugs and the constant waterfall.
"How was your waking-cycle?" he asked.
"Pleasant enough. Swirl, Speck, and Spot showed me the other ranges. We rested in the warm-waters."
"Those are liked by many packmates. What do you think about the ranges now that you have seen them?"
"They are much bigger than the ranges I lived in when I was in my first pack. But I am more interested in the kin than the ranges."
He huffed, "They are not as interesting as you think. Not much happens. We like stability and order. Still, there is always something that goes wrong."
There was probably much he was not saying.
"I have not met with the rest of the pack yet, but I wonder what they are truly like. Why does the pack have rules about self? You mentioned that before."
He yawned and stretched, "That is one of the oldest pack-rules we have always lived with. Each kin wants to think about themselves first. So we teach the young to only think about the pack as a whole group. Not allowing some words is needed to stop packmates from falling into the wrong thinking. Words shape thoughts."
"But you and your kin are not included," she pointed out.
"No, we cannot be. The leaders are not limited by the rules, though we must appear to think as everyone else does in front of others. Doing that helps to keep peace."
Was that all truly necessary? This Alpha considered himself and his kin to be not limited by pack-rules. That was very different from the Alpha of Ice-Water-Pack, as he had followed the rules. Maybe this Alpha needed to have more control over the pack because of challenges in the past.
She grumbled, "And is the self-rule the same reason why there are no mate-pairs?"
"Correct. Pairs are loyal to each other first, which means they are a challenge to pack-unity."
She blinked, recognizing something. The males in each pack-role had females assigned to help them. Helping with work, occasionally bringing food, or being there to talk with was all fine and good. But the help probably included giving pleasure. Was that forced? Were there rules about that too?
Maybe these were questions best not asked of him, as he would have a different perspective and might even answer falsely. She could ask the normal light wings in person when she had a chance to meet with them and get to know them better. They were far more likely to be honest about such a topic.
"I understand. Not that I agree with it, but your pack can have your own life-ways. They could change them if they wanted, right?"
He purred, staring into the distance, "If one of them had a good idea for a change and found enough packmates to be supporters, maybe a change could happen. However, there is no need for change. We know how to live in the territory we have. We are content."
As she expected, there was a flaw in his answer. If others were expected to never question or speak up, and since Alpha had admitted to him and his kin being above the pack-rules, how could any changes actually happen or be proposed? Yet another question which was not for him.
He spoke up, "I recalled something you might want to know about your sire. Do you remember how I said he flew to this pack long ago?"
"Yes."
"He flew here, asked me to gather all the unmated females, and made them an offer."
She knew what he was going to say even before he said it.
"Whichever one of them accepted would leave with him to live in a far away range, make an egg with him, and raise the hatchling until it was grown. Several offered to accept, but he only picked one: she had a blue and purple shine just like you have. Your Dam was one of us, so our pack is like your pack too."
So much of her dam-mother's life-story fit with what she knew about the pack. The no-pairs life-rule was a big part of why her dam-mother left with sire-father. That made her dislike the no-pairs rule even more, though it was not her place to openly challenge their customs before the Alpha.
She grumbled, "My pack? Maybe only in a very distant way. I care about more than only this pack."
He looked away, "You have said that before. You want to protect all the ranges kin fly in, and you were an Alpha for a pack of other kin-kinds."
"All true."
"Most impressive. Few females could accomplish what you have. Would you want to join this pack and rise in it?" he asked.
Joining his pack was unnecessary for her purpose. All that was necessary was to help him see the danger of two-legs. But that might need her to make him and his pack aware of the danger. Further, there were this pack's twisted ceremonies and rules which should probably be changed. Change needed someone to make the change happen.
She shrugged, "Joining the pack is not needed. I might need to fly to other ranges eventually. Being weighed down here by duties would be a problem. What are you truly asking?"
He laughed freely, which was rather surprising, "You see well! There is a reason I asked. Did you give any thought to being one of my mates?"
She blinked, certain she had misheard him, "What?"
"I guessed that you have no mate since you are packless and were flying alone in the above. Am I wrong?" he asked.
"No, you are not wrong. I am alone, but I am only half light wing," she pointed out, still surprised he had brought up such a topic.
"So? Why is that a problem?" he asked.
This was very surprising. He did not think she was fouled by being a mixed-kin?
"The problem is my being a mixed-kin. No light wings in my old pack wanted me. They did not want to mix with any other kin."
He snorted, "I have heard of those packs. Not all think as they do. Light wings, dark wings, and your sire's kind, though he was the only one we knew about, are enough like the others that we can mix and make life. We and a pack of dark wings were close and mixed with them, but that was long ago."
She considered how to answer his offer. Directly rejecting it might be too offensive or cause complications in persuading him.
She grumbled, "Your offer is most generous. I will keep it in mind, though I am not looking for anyone. There are more important flights for me to fly."
He huffed, "Just remember that offer, and let me know if you change your mind. I told First-Hunter that you will be helping with catching fish. He will tell you where to hunt. Do not forget the rules others in the pack must obey. You are outside that name-rule because you are a guest. I or my mates might have small tasks you can help with to keep the peace while you are with us."
"That will not be a problem. How many other light wing packs are nearby? I ask because I want to learn if they know anything about the two-legs."
"Them? Oh, yes. There are two. One range has many small family-groups who do not see themselves as one pack. The other pack is much further away and is a normal pack, though they have different pack-rules than we do. Probably more what you prefer. They are who I was meeting with earlier."
She hummed in thought, "How close are those two ranges?"
"The normal pack is very far, several waking-cycles of flying, but the range with many family-groups is not even half a waking-cycle from here."
The range with many family-groups looking out for themselves would probably not be useful to fly to. Having distinct families was a potential problem since their first loyalty would be to their own kin instead of to a pack or an Alpha. It would be more difficult to convince any of them to take action against two-legs if those two-legs had never invaded their territory. Still, it might be possible to persuade some of them if need be.
"Are there any other important packs I should know about?"
He grumbled, his tail tapping on the sand underpaw, "The only other important one I know about is the pack of dark wings."
She almost growled at the mention of that fouled range, but she realized something might not be as she thought. He did not mention two-legs, so maybe this was a different pack.
"Is that a pack of only dark wings, no two-legs?"
"Dark wings and dark-lights: Shadow-Spark-Pack. They are past the range of family-group light wings. The light wings and dark wings do not mix or share ranges. There might be bad life-water between them."
"Do you know why?"
He shrugged, "Nothing beyond doubt. I know only that the bad life-water might involve the darker and deeper beyond or past pains."
She had experience in helping packs learn to trust each other. Ice-Water-Pack and Lone-Tree-Pack had a cold not-trusting for many life-making-cycles, all because of echoes of the past. All that was needed to help them learn was to talk fairly to both Alphas. Maybe she could do the same by learning what happened to the dark wings. Her being what she was would certainly help them respect and trust her.
He stepped back, "Well, Skadi. This has been very pleasant. I will let you be, but first let me tell you how much I appreciate strong females like you."
His interest could be helpful by ensuring that he would want to be around her. That would give her more time to speak to him and eventually change his thoughts about the threat of the two-legs.
"Until next time, Alpha," she purred.
He flew off, swiftly soaring up the waterfall to his special range. She took flight to return to her cave-den up above. After the brief flight, she landed in the cave-mouth and trotted inside to her preferred place to curl up.
She relaxed and chuckled, amused at his interest. It was about time that a strong, confident male noticed her and appreciated her for what she was! Not that she had any interest at all toward him. There was no place for such interest or desires in her life. But it was at least a little warming to have someone express interest.
What was the next step toward achieving the goal? Settle into a regular routine for a few waking-cycles, meet more of the Firsts of the pack-roles, learn what they thought about two-legs, learn more of the pack's life-ways, and keep speaking to Alpha about the dangers beyond. It would not be too difficult to convince him of the threats out there beyond, even if for no other reason than his own self-preservation.
The pack had several life-ways and ceremonies which were not so desirable, though they were apparently necessary for the pack to endure. She had helped Ice-Water-Pack give females more power through their own pack-role and an egg-making right. Something similar could happen here.
She could learn how this pack truly lived within the pack-roles, and help nudge the pack toward having better life-ways. This pack might be more difficult to help, but she could do whatever she put her thoughts to.