Author's Note – Well, this took much longer than I hoped. I realized that this and subsequent chapters needed substantial revisions. That combined with holidays to cause a significant delay. The rest of the story is finished, so I'm aiming for updates every other week.
Conspiracy
Faded, she carefully crept toward the entrance to the Hunters' hidden range after swimming to that secret location. She had noticed a pawful of Hunters and their Helpers swimming together toward their secret range, which did not happen often, so she had to follow them to find out what was happening.
Inside, she slipped among the bushes and trees, slowly making her way toward where the light wings were gathered in a clearing. The youngest ones, surely the forbidden youth, were being entertained by a pair of females while most of the adults gathered closely together.
First-Hunter had a wing over one of the females at his side, and he was speaking.
"-what it means. Why would he care about two-legs now?"
"It probably involves the rumors," the female who had to be his mate proposed.
"Probably. But how did those start? Was it any of us?" First-Hunter asked.
They each answered that it was not them or anyone they knew about.
One of the Helpers spoke up, "Have any of you seen a two-leg before?"
"Only in descriptions and stories, but they are apparently very twisted and dangerous. Though how such small creatures could be dangerous is confusing," Third-Hunter answered.
First-Hunter chuckled, "Skadi does not like them. She talks about very little else. Maybe Alpha does not want anyone talking about them because he is worried how dangerous they might be."
Third-Hunter shrugged, "The first I heard in detail about the two-legs was also from Skadi. If the rumors did not start with us, maybe we could ask her who she heard them from."
First-Hunter yawned, "She probably knows. What do you think about her? Anyone the Alpha wants to silence could be an ally."
His mate grumbled, "Perhaps, or maybe it is a trick. He might have asked her to make it appear that he and she are working against each other. Anyone who would trust her would be proven disloyal, and she could report to him."
Third-Hunter clawed at the dirt, clearly upset about something, "There is no way to know if she is loyal to the Alpha or not. I heard he has made her certain offers."
"What offers?" one of the females asked.
Third-Hunter answered, "What do you think? He goes to meet her alone in her cave-den. We do not know what they talk about or what they do together, but he has done this before. Let lone packless females join the pack, give them special status and attention, and make them his own mates. It is either they be his or they have to be a Helper to whichever group they are assigned."
She stifled the chuckle at how correct his musing was. The Alpha did appear to have a pattern to how he secured the loyalty of his current mates, and he had already suggested that she become another of his mates.
First-Hunter spoke, "I will ask Skadi if she knows anything about how the rumors started, but she cannot know anything about us."
Everyone else grunted in agreement. One of the females snarled and stomped a paw on the ground.
"Why do we not just leave? There are enough of us that the Fighters could not stop us!" she protested.
First-Hunter sighed, "And go where? The other pack has no room for many of us at once. We do not know the ranges beyond, other than the little hunting we do nearby. None of us are proper Fighters. It is too dangerous in ranges where we know nothing."
Third-Hunter cheerfully spoke up, "We might convince the three Fighters we have been talking to. I need more time until I can trust them enough, but they are already sympathetic. They think more like us than the rest of them, at least."
"Good. We need Fighters on our side, but be careful with them," First-Hunter growled.
Were they planning to act against Alpha? It sounded like they were, but this was the first time she heard of it. Unsurprisingly, they would not speak openly about that when anyone else not already trusted was nearby.
This was an opportunity. She could show herself to them and explain much, but again that felt like a twisted choice. They would surely be afraid that she had found this hidden range with their forbidden young. They might even react immediately out of fear and threaten her to keep their secret.
No, far better would be to meet one of them, or maybe First-Hunter and his mate together, alone somewhere else.
It amused her how she had been correct that the Alpha prohibiting speaking about the two-legs did nothing at all to stop others from wondering. If anything, there was probably more talking now in secret than there had been before, from what she remembered of the conversations after her talks with others. None of these light wings had appeared very interested by her stories before.
She listened in a while longer to learn anything more, but nothing interesting was said. Everyone gathered in secret spoke freely about whatever they wanted, heedless of pack-rules and wrong-word customs. They did not reveal any details about a plan to replace the Alpha.
With nothing else to learn from listening in secret, she spun around, dashed out the range, and slipped into the water. Swimming quickly toward the waters where she could pretend to have been resting if anyone had noticed her absence, she wondered if anything had yet happened with the two Fighters who flew to the enemy pack. There was no news of them, and they should have been back. Maybe killing the prey-animals was taking longer than they planned, which was entirely possible if the range was closely guarded by the dark wings.
But this revelation that a portion of the Hunters were actively planning a rebellion, or something like one, could easily be useful. If the Alpha were to refuse to act and lead the pack to defend the hidden ranges, he could be replaced. Further, removing him and his life-water kin would allow for the more twisted customs to be eliminated.
The pack did not truly believe in the ideas of selflessness, namelessness, and pure obedience to the pack. Most of the obedience had to be out of mere fear and compliance with what everyone else was doing.
She could tell that something was happening. Alpha was gathering almost all his present Fighters and even a few Far-Fliers on his ledge. His mates and older kin were also present. There was fear and concern among almost everyone there.
Curious, she glided closer to them, landed, and listened in while pretending to drink at a stream. They were talking about a flight of dark wings and other kin that had flown from the two-leg range. The dark wing Alphas wanted to speak to him about pack-peace and apparently had a captive light wing.
There had been some kind of incident after all, and now Alpha would have no choice but to act.
Alpha, three tens of his Fighters and Far-Fliers, Spot, and Sway flew off together for the distant cave-mouth. She returned to her cave-den, flamed herself to fade, and followed in secret. There could be fighting, in which case she needed to be there to learn firstpaw what had happened.
She followed through the waterfall, dried herself off, and faded again. Hidden, she continued down the narrow cave, over the dark waters, and toward the much larger range in which she could hear the calls and cries of kin. She landed on a slight outcropping above the ledge where everyone else had landed, which let her see everything happening below.
The light wings of the pack were facing dark wings, light wings, and a few other kin from the fouled range, though there were no two-legs in sight. The other kin were either gliding, circling above, or perching against nearby spires and rock-columns. Alpha stood at the front of all the light wings from his pack.
But all her attention went to the two dark wings sitting in front of the others. Both of the Alpha males had numerous scars and hurt-marks. One of the males had a female dark wing at his side, and the other had a female light wing. That was curious, since she recalled dark wings and light wings not trusting each other or making pairs.
Alpha silently faced the dark wing Alphas and their kin. There was clearly a cold wind between the packs, which was not a surprise given how the dark wings had harassed hunters beyond the pack's territory.
One of the male dark wings spoke, breaking the silence, "Greetings to the Alpha of this pack. You did not expect to see us here, did you? This must be a warming surprise."
Alpha stepped toward them, "A very warming surprise. I must say that seeing so many kin outside my pack's ranges could be seen as a threat."
"Because it is one!"
The other male dark wing snarled and faintly glowed with blue light from his back, "You attacked us, more than once, as you know!"
She had not known that dark wings could burn with power-light, just as she could. These ones were Alphas, after all. Was that going to be a problem? Power-light could not make other kin obey, or could it? At the very least, power-light could encourage other kin to listen to pure will and desires. It was possible that the dark wings were controlling the other kin here. She had not thoroughly considered that before. Was there a way to break such control?
She tried to touch the glowing dark wing's life-fire and thoughts, but its anger was too bright and hot, blocking the ability to feel thoughts.
"Dawn-Singer! Show them!" one of the males barked.
A male dark wing pushed forward a light wing, which she now recognized as Sixth-Fighter, and pinned him in place with claws on his tailfins. Fourth-Fighter was nowhere in sight.
"What is this?" Alpha warily asked.
The glowing dark wing growled, "We know this light wing is one of your pack. Do not deny it. It and one other light wing attacked our range, killed four-leg prey, tried to kill one of my young, and killed one of our ground-kin!"
What? That was not part of the plan. Attacking fellow kin, even twisted ones like these dark wings, was not intended. The dead two-leg did not matter at all, merely being one less monster, but the two light-wings had done too much in trying to kill.
The other male dark wing spoke up, "You have broken the pack-peace. What do you say for yourself and your pack?"
This was the moment. The dark wings had directly accused Alpha of sending his packmates to attack their pack. Alpha had to react appropriately to keep his status within his own pack. He could not allow himself to appear weak.
While the dark wings were less angry, she cautiously tried to feel their life-fires to learn what was happening with them. It made a difference whether they were thought-twisted by two-legs or were freely helping them. Best would be to free them from being thought-thralled or confused. But if they were not thralled or confused, it might be necessary to do far more, all to protect the rest of the kin and all the ranges.
The dark wing Alphas were a mix of anger, disgust, and confidence. They were sure of themselves, unsurprisingly. However, she could not feel much more or hear any thoughts from them. Their being Alphas made it difficult to use her powers on them, which was frustrating.
From their females, on the other paw, were two different sensations. The female dark wing was angry, almost never looking away from Alpha and struggling to restrain herself. The female light wing similarly glared at Alpha, but she felt calmer and more considering, perhaps plotting, in addition to her anger. Both females had strong life-fires, though they were different, one wilder and the other more composed, one brighter and the other a little darker. It was twisted that the dark wing had the brighter life-fire while the light wing had a darker life-fire. Was there bad in that light wing's past? It would probably be possible to feel its thoughts if-
Alpha spoke, "You say there was another light wing that attacked. Where is the other one?"
"Dead. We killed it."
Alpha slowly paced while glaring at the dark wings.
What was he thinking? Was he considering the best way to attack? He was being calm, given that he just learned one of his Fighters was killed.
"You are correct, this light wing is one of my Fighters. But I did not order an attack on your pack," Alpha finally said.
"Why should we believe you?" one of the male dark wings asked, showing his claws.
"What do I gain from attacking your range? Your range does not matter to me at all," Alpha protested.
"We do not care about your twisted reasons. You did this."
"No, I did not command an attack on your pack. It would gain me nothing. I do not want the lost and corrupted Helper, as you know. Why are you here? What do you want, if not fighting to the death?"
Alpha was taking his time, not immediately striking. Maybe he was waiting to gain the dark wings' trust first before attacking, or maybe he had a different plan entirely. It was possible that he only wanted to get this meeting over with before starting to plan how to strike back.
That was probably a better idea. Let the dark wings think peace was assured again, and then strike at them from the shadows when they were not expecting an attack.
"We want assurance that this will not happen again!" one of the male dark wings growled.
"Fine! You have it! I will find out what happened and make sure it does not happen again."
He told the dark wings what they wanted to hear, but he had no intention of going through with it. Or maybe he did. That was a far more concerning option, since his questioning could lead him back to her.
Except there was a way to convince Sixth-Fighter to not reveal the truth. Even better, he would never know she had influenced him into doing what she wanted.
The plain light wing spoke up, "Not good enough! You must prove that you mean it!"
That outburst took her by surprise. The female light wing must be very brave to speak up to an Alpha like that. But she did have the dark wings willing to defend her.
Alpha glared at the light wing, "How could I possibly do that?"
"Not our problem. You figure it out!"
Many wingbeats passed until Alpha spoke, "How about… I give you a gift?"
The female light wing snarled, "Fine. Free one of your pack's Helpers. Find one who wants to be free and give her to us as a gift. We might consider that an apology."
It was normal for a male Alpha to threaten others or demand gifts. However, the female light wing had demanded Alpha give her pack another female to be a gift, perhaps another mate for one of the Alphas to use.
But was Alpha willing to go along with it instead of defend his own? Would he give away a female as a gift? Was he that afraid of conflict?
One of the Alpha dark wings went over to Sixth-Fighter and put a paw on his head, "That is the trade. Free one of your pack's females, one who wants to leave, and we will return your Fighter. Refuse, and he dies."
Alpha retreated and spoke to his packmates, eventually for Spot and one of the Fighters to fly back to the rest of the pack.
"It will take time before my kin find one," Alpha said.
The dark wing pinning Sixth-Fighter huffed, "We will wait, but not too long. It would be very bad for your status if you lost two of your Fighters this waking-cycle!"
"As it would also be for the pack-peace," Alpha calmly answered.
"As if you care about that."
Alpha and the other dark wing began pacing while glaring at each other. The gathered light wings were hissing to each other and talking about the dark wings across from them. Everyone was waiting, tense and ready to act.
But there was a whispering voice deep within her liver. That annoying whispering grew more insistent as she considered Alpha's willingness to give a random female as a gift to appease his enemy.
Alpha's kin holding power over the pack, controlling the power-places, making females into things males use for pleasure or as gifts, using males for fighting, the punishments for questioning or disobeying, the rotted thought-twisting of even the youngest fledglings, the pack-rules that make words not pack-correct and that forbid life-mates, and the fear most packmates felt, not knowing who they could trust, all of it was wrong. So many of the light wings were not living life as warmly and fully as they could.
This light wing pack was rotted to the liver, and the rot was worst in the Alpha and his kin. The pack-rules all came from him and his kin, and they were the ones who benefited from the rest of the pack being compliant. Whether they initially caused the problems or were merely hatched into benefiting from it did not matter at all.
Three light wings returned and landed with their kin. One was the Fighter, one was Spot, and the other was a Fighter-Helper she knew little about.
The Fighter and Fighter-Helper both made their submission displays to Alpha.
"Fighter-Helper, you are a gift to the dark wing Alphas. You will do whatever they want. Go," Alpha said.
"For the pack," the Helper meekly answered.
The Helper fearfully trotted to the dark wings and was immediately surrounded by the dark wings behind the Alphas. Sixth-Fighter was released and trotted to his packmates. He appeared outwardly relieved, but he was secretly afraid, maybe more than he had been when being threatened by the dark wings.
One of the dark wing Alphas growled, "We will kill any attackers next time with no warning. This is your last chance."
"As I said, I did not order an attack on your pack. I will find out what happened and make sure there are no more attacks from my packmates," Alpha answered.
"You better, or else."
Alpha turned for the passageway, most of his Fighters and packmates going with him. Only a couple Far-Fliers were staying behind, probably to make sure the enemy kin left, which they were. She softly growled as she watched the dark wings, light wings, and other kin leaving for the distant range with the two-legs.
Still faded, she followed the light wings as they flew toward their ranges. However, they all stopped on the shore around the dark pool, and she silently landed on an outcropping above them and out of range of any life-fire sight. Alpha angrily approached them and told Sixth-Fighter to step forward, which he did.
She gently touched Sixth-Fighter's life-fire so he could hear but not know it was her. He would know the importance of concealing where he heard about the plan. Revealing that Skadi told him anything would get him punished more severely than if he claimed to have heard from anywhere else.
Alpha growled, "Sixth-Fighter, what were you thinking? Why did you attack their pack and almost break pack-peace? Speak!"
Sixth-Fighter looked down to his paws, "This one heard that you wanted the two-legs gone. This one and Fourth-Fighter wanted to do this for the pack, and for status you were going to give."
"Where did you hear it? Who told you about a reward?" Alpha demanded.
This was the moment. Would he tell or not? She could easy flee if he told the truth and Alpha turned against her.
"This one heard the rumor from more than one packmate. You wanted us to strike back at that pack because… they have been flaming at our Hunters in the beyond. No one packmate told this one," Sixth-Fighter answered.
She smirked, pleased that he had fallen for the trick. He heard her thought-voice as if it was his own inside-voice telling him what to do.
"Is that so? What were you doing in their range? Explain!" Alpha ordered.
"We were trying to force the two-legs to leave by killing their prey-animals. We did not try to kill any two-legs. We are sorry a two-leg died."
Alpha hissed, pacing back and forth, "I do not care about the two-legs. I care that you did not obey orders. You were not told to fly beyond and attack another pack!"
Sixth-Fighter whined, "This one is sorry. He made a mistake. It will not happen again."
First-Fighter stepped forward and growled, glaring at Sixth-Fighter, "Alpha, what do you want done about him?"
Alpha spun on his son and stared at him for a while before answering, "He should be named Packless, but losing another Fighter would be too much. Sixth-Fighter is now the last of the Fighters! Because he was thinking for himself, he has lost all status until he earns it again, but he lives and remains a packmate."
Sixth-Fighter, or whatever his new name-number would be, sighed in evident relief, "This one understands and will obey."
Alpha growled, "Get back to your kin!"
Sixth-Fighter, now some other number and name, glumly but swiftly walked back to his packmates and found the rear of the group. Alpha glanced once more at First-Fighter before looking to everyone else gathered there. He appeared as though he had a very important message to give.
"This could have been much worse. I am not sure where the rumors came from, but I did not command an attack on the dark wings and the two-legs. They are dangerous, but we are to leave them alone and not threaten them in any way except outside of their territory. Do you all understand? None of you are to fly to that pack!" Alpha growled.
They all roared back the affirmative.
"None of you are to mention Fourth-Fighter or what he did! He was lost beyond our territory in a great fight against several enemies! That is all you can say! For your own good, we do not want you Fighters appearing weak."
They readily agreed.
He continued, "If anyone asks, you are to say that the flight to that range was ordered. That pack… offended us by threatening our Hunters, and you had to defend the pack by showing the dark wings how strong we are. Further-"
She had heard enough. He was not going to act against the dark wings or the two-leg range.
She took flight and raced over the lake and along the narrow passage until she came to the waterfall. She quickly checked that no one was immediately on the other side, slipped through, vanished again, and flew back to her cave-den in which she landed and curled up.
How could he be so weak and blind? No, he was content to stay here in his pack's territory and wait, feeling secure in his power and status.
Maybe the plan had not been the best in the first place. It was unlikely that a pair of light wings could kill enough of the prey-animals to force the two-legs to leave. Further, it was far too risky, since it allowed too many opportunities for someone to learn she was behind the plan. Perhaps it would have been better to act on her own so she could ensure that nothing went wrong.
But this idleness was unacceptable! The pack had to act for their own good and the good of all the ranges! This pack needed an Alpha who understood the danger and would act to defend the pack, not only his own status and power!
She took a deep breath to steady herself as the truth, the only option, the necessary course of action became clear. The pack needed a new Alpha.
As the Alpha of this pack, she could command them to take action, keep them safe from the eventual danger, and change this pack's rotted rules for the better.
Those rules about not having names, prohibiting words deemed not pack-correct, not allowing mate-pairs, and forcing females to be primarily things males use, all those rules were meant to let Alpha and his kin stay in power. That is all they were for: power and control by keeping all others compliant. In addition to protecting all kin, there was a new goal which would only benefit the regular packmates in this pack, not to mention herself.
She got to her paws and started pacing, her tail swishing on the smooth ground as she considered how to bring about this change. There was no good option which would let this end without fighting. Alpha would not willingly give up the Alpha status. Further, this pack was almost certain to think a female could not be Alpha. Not a normal one anyway.
There was also the problem that everyone in this pack was forced to keep their thoughts to themselves and to not trust others. That habit of not trusting was taught from when all were mere hatchlings. How could a change be brought about in the pack if no one could trust anyone else to help?
On the other paw, there was at least one group which she could trust far more than anyone else, as they were already considering action of their own and were actively defying the pack's ways.
She found First-Hunter speaking with a Far-Flier near the steaming pools. No one else was immediately nearby. This was as good an opportunity as any to gain his trust by speaking in confidence with him.
"Warm waking-cycle, First-Hunter," she purred in greeting.
"And to you, Skadi. Do you need anything?" he answered.
"Yes, may we speak on our own?"
The Far-Flier trotted away after First-Hunter dismissed him, leaving them alone.
"What do you want to talk about?" he asked, clearly relaxed and at ease.
"The pack and its leadership," she whispered.
He blinked and faced her, "What do you mean by the pack's leadership?"
"We are alone and what we say will stay between us. I know that you and some of your packmates are breaking the pack's rules."
He softly growled, "How dare you accuse this one of being disloyal?"
His apparent indignation was very convincing, but his fear was very bright. He was not afraid only for himself.
"Because I know it is true. How I know is unimportant."
He stared at her, his ears swept back and eyes narrowed, though he did not move at all. He was both afraid and shocked at the same time.
"Is this a test? Why are you saying this?" he whispered, not admitting or denying what she said.
"Because we are on the same side. I hate how the Alpha and his kin are controlling this pack and forcing twisted life-rules on you all!"
He chuckled, "You hate the Alpha? That is not what this one has heard."
He evidently did not trust her yet, since he was still pretending to be an obedient packmate, using the non-personal words. That was fair of him, but hopefully this would change soon.
She glanced around to make sure they were still alone, "I thought he was just a strong Alpha who enforced the pack-rules the entire pack agreed on, but now I know that he is the problem. He and his kin are the problem, actually. They will not allow change. Why would they when they benefit from all staying as it is?"
"You should not talk like this. Do you know what would happen if anyone tells Alpha what you are saying?" he asked.
"It would be bad for me, but I trust you. You will not tell him."
He shrugged, "How can this one know you are not trying to trick me? Alpha could have told you to say this as a test of loyalty."
"Yes, he would do that, but I am not here for him. How can I prove what I am saying? I have been to the secret range where you and your mates have hidden young ones and live as you want. I would have already told him if I were loyal to him. Do not fear. I will not tell Alpha or anyone about it."
He looked away from her without saying anything else, though he appeared weak all of a sudden. He had to be concerned that he and his kin had been discovered at all, so she continued.
She sought to reassure him, "What you are doing is good. I approve of you having families, breaking the pack-correct word-rules, and keeping your kin safe in that range. How long have you and those like you had secret families there?"
He whined, "Long enough that most of us have raised young to being adults. I found that range when I swam further than others. The path opened after the ground and waters shook, breaking open the path. No one outside of my special group knows about it, until you. We keep it a close secret and limit who is allowed to swim that way on duties."
"If you have known of that place and had forbidden families there, where are the oldest ones?" she asked, curious how he and those like him lived in secret.
"We helped them escape and fly to another pack which lets them join. The Alpha in that other pack has pack-peace with this one, but he thinks as we do about the pack-rules. He lets anyone who escapes join his pack. For us, he lets our kin be Far-Fliers who occasionally fly here to meet with the pack, share news, and secretly meet their kin."
She chuckled, pleased that he and those like him had found a way to keep their kin somewhat in their lives despite all the obstacles.
"Why did you tell me you know about us?" he asked.
"Because I want you to trust me, and I want to know if you are planning to act against Alpha and his kin."
He shrugged, "We talk about it, but it is not easy to convince other packmates to join our side. There are not enough of us to act."
She grumbled, "I understand why. You do not know who to trust."
"There are some who are more like us than not, but there is too much fear, both of Alpha and of each other. No one acts, not anymore."
"Not anymore?"
He looked away and slightly slumped, "There was a fight to change the pack-rules. Alpha and his Fighters stopped the rebellion, killed the leaders, and named everyone else who was involved Packless. Our lost kin were forced out into the darker and deeper ranges. We never saw them again."
She growled, hating Alpha even more now that she heard this terrible news. He had turned on his own pack and killed, all to keep his own power. How had she heard nothing of this before? Actually, the news that some had resisted had to be covered up or dismissed as false-news meant to spread division in the pack.
"When was that?" she whispered.
"Long ago, before I found the range we use in secret. Enough new packmates have been hatched without hearing about the attempt to resist that almost all have forgotten. Those who remember never speak about it."
"I want him gone. He and his kin cannot be allowed to have power over the pack! No more!" she growled.
He grumbled, "If only words could change anything on their own. No, it must-"
Another light wing arrived through the mist, briefly spoke to First-Hunter, and slipped away through the mist, leaving them alone again after the short interruption.
"How could that happen? How would you get rid of Alpha and his supporters? The pack is too weak and timid to act. We all fear each other," he whispered.
"Not all of you. You and your kin trust each other to keep the secret."
"Only because we all have something to lose if one of us tells. Most of us remember the failed rebellion, which is one way we were always more able to trust. We are careful to protect ourselves and only let ones who share our thoughts in on the secret. You are the second who found us. We… arrange our pack-role contests to let us always stay at the top."
He was certainly correct that having an interest, such as the safety or life of their own family, in keeping the secret would help keep everyone loyal.
"What about the other who learned about you?"
He shrugged, "That one was loyal to Alpha. He… drowned before he could reveal anything."
"What a terrible accident. How do you think would be best to get rid of Alpha and his supporters?" she asked.
From what she could tell, Alpha had strong support among the Fighters, less strong support among the Far-Fliers, and clear weakness among the Hunters. But most packmates were either too weak of will to think for themselves or were concerned with being accepted, which might be one and the same. Complying with the established rules was a way to not be noticed or singled-out.
He grumbled, "The way in the past was that a First from the Fighters, Hunters, or Far-Fliers challenged the Alpha, fought him to death or submission, and then became the new Alpha. That will not happen anymore."
"Because Alpha made his own kin the Firsts of the pack-roles, most of them anyway," she said, understanding his point.
By putting his own kin into the power-places in the pack, he changed how succession would happen. Maybe he would name his oldest or strongest the new Alpha after he became older. Regardless, having that family-bond would make them trust each other more reliably than they would if they were not life-water-kin, even if that bond of trust was not absolute. But this also essentially prevented anyone outside his kin from ever becoming Alpha or having significant influence.
She continued, "You are not his kin. Why does he not have one of his own as the First-Hunter?"
"He did once, but his son wanted to become a Fighter instead. I always did the best in the contests of Hunters, and I have been loyal to Alpha on the outside, ensuring that he and his kin get the best fish, so he is not worried about letting me have this place. Providing food, meat and fish, is not as favored a role as is combat. We are overlooked, for which we are fortunate."
"Could the pack gather and choose a new Alpha by group decision?" she asked.
He laughed, "Could most packmates agree together to name a new Alpha? Only if the Fighters, guards, and others who know fighting agree to it. And that is assuming that everyone else can think for themselves or be brave enough to speak up. Why do you care about who is Alpha here? I doubt you say this because you care about how wrong all of our customs are."
She hesitated, unsure if she ought to reveal everything. He certainly would not tell anything she revealed.
"I care about this pack and who is its leader because this pack is the closest to the range fouled by two-legs. They are a danger to all kin, and I want to protect everyone from the monsters. Your pack's customs also need to change."
He started in surprise, "Wait, are you saying you would try to become the Alpha?"
"Why not? No other kin has as strong a claim as I do."
"Many in the pack would object to bowing to a female. I have no problem with it, but many would. The Fighters especially would object. Your place is… beneath them, so many of them would say."
"I can convince them to follow my lead, or get rid of ones who would resist. Keep this a secret, but I have some of my sire's life-will-powers. No other has his powers. No one is better to lead and protect all the ranges. Your Alpha does not see the danger, even after I have told him about it."
He grumbled, "Many of us are afraid of the two-legs. What you said about how two-legs trap and hunt kin in the hidden above, is all of that true?"
"All true. They trap us, hunt us, and kill us! Worse, they thrall us and twist our thinking. I saw kin carrying two-legs on their backs and doing work for them, all because the two-legs had tricked them into thinking of two-legs as Alphas! The same is happening in the dark wing range, as your own Far-Fliers have seen."
He glanced around, probably to check that no one else was nearby, "Are they taking more ranges in the beyond? We have heard whispers from Far-Fliers but only few details."
"I am sure the two-legs are using dark wings to carry them to new ranges. They flew to a pack near my first pack, very far from here."
"They do sound like a problem, though we have other problems to pounce on first."
She hummed, glad he agreed, "Will you tell those you trust that I am on your side?"
"Yes. You should only speak freely with me, and do not tell anyone about us. Our lives and our young ones depend on you keeping the secret," he said, calmly glaring at her.
"I understand. We cannot know too much about each other. My plan is to find others in different pack-roles who might be on our side and want Alpha and his kin gone. I can find out who might be sympathetic. Do not fear, I will not mention any of you, but I will suggest that others might agree with me. May I meet all of your group?"
"We can make that happen. It is only fair since you know our secret."
Between her ability to touch life-fire, what she knew about the pack, and her experience from Ice-Water-Pack, she was confident she could learn who might be sympathetic to her cause and also want change in this pack. Find enough supporters who could be turned against Alpha, and she could become the new Alpha, either peacefully or through rebellion. Everyone would be better off. This pack's twisted rules could be shed as should have happened long ago, and the pack would be led against the monsters now threatening all the ranges.
She used far more time being around the Far-Fliers and their Helpers, all to learn which among them were secretly fond of each other and who might have reasons to dislike the Alpha. There were a pawful whose life-fires glowed with warmth whenever she casually brought up the topic of mates or when they were close to each other, or with spite and faint fear at the mention of Alpha and his kin. However, none of these Far-Fliers or their Helpers openly lay a claw across the pack's rules. None of them confided in her or expressed any wants of their own or a greater sense of having self. They must believe that she was working to help Alpha, or maybe they had learned long ago to never say what they truly thought.
However, the Far-Fliers, simply because their pack-role required them to fly beyond the pack's territory, knew more about what was happening out there. They expressed more concern about the beyond, though none of them mentioned two-legs. They were careful to not break any of the pack-correct word-rules, but she understood what they were not saying. There was opportunity with them, excluding First-Far-Flier since he was one of the Alpha's own.
The Fighters were more of a problem. First-Fighter obviously would be loyal to his sire. The former Sixth-Fighter was pointless to speak to, since he hated her and was the last of the Fighters. Worse than those two Fighters was how all of them were more violent, more aggressive, and less interested in treating their Helpers well. The Helpers in their lives were, as far as she could tell, more there just for pleasure or comfort, not truly as equals with whom to share life-flights.
However, most of the Fighters were loyal to their First, not directly to Alpha. Striking at the trust between those two might help. There was also the possibility that she and her supporters could wait to make their move when many of the Fighters were away. The Far-Fliers could bring news of a dangerous flight of kin the Fighters could need to chase away, and the pack could have a new Alpha by the time the Fighters returned.
There was no removing Alpha as long as he, through his son, controlled the Fighters and his personal guards. But, if there was a way to force Alpha and First-Fighter apart, then that strength would weaken and leave opportunity.
"Alpha, may we speak?" she asked after seeing that he returned.
He yawned, got to his paws, and approached outside his main cave, "I can make the time for you. What is this about?"
She gestured at the thicker trees up on his ledge, "We should speak on our own."
He purred, following her on paw, "Fine. Let it be a surprise."
Alone with him, she sat down and faced him, "I am not certain about this, but I heard from a pawful of packmates that they first heard the rumor from First-Fighter."
He stiffened, "Anything else I should know?"
She shrugged, "Nothing I am sure about. I do not know why he would say such things if he did. He never listened carefully to my stories, before those were not allowed."
"You understand why I had to stop those?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Truthfully, no. I do not think that banning the words helps you. If anything, it makes others ask why those words are not allowed. But this is your pack, so you can make the pack-rules."
"Yes, it is."
"Do you plan to ask him what happened? I can help you find out if he is being truthful. Ask him and he might become suspicious."
He grumbled while pacing, "See if you can learn anything else. I need to know for certain if he is being disloyal or planning against me."
"Easy enough, and I can also ask the surviving Fighter what he was thinking. Maybe I can learn something from him too," she answered, pleased that he was at least somewhat suspicious of First-Fighter.
He gestured for her to follow, so she did. He walked to a secluded pool surrounding by moss-covered ground and glowing flowers.
"Did you hear what happened with two of my Fighters?" he asked.
"Something about reminding another pack not to threaten this one?" she muttered, feigning ignorance of what she was not supposed to know.
"They flew to New-Haven-Pack and started killing prey-animals the two-legs use for food. If I did not know better, I would suspect that they did what you wanted," he calmly said.
She yawned, "Honestly, I do not disagree with what they did, but they could not have gotten your approval to leave. If not, then they did wrong."
"They did not have permission. One of them was killed, and the other has lost status as a Fighter. It worked out in the end. But there is a chance they did what they did because of the stories you were telling."
"Perhaps, but that is their fault if they flew when they were not allowed."
"True, and I am not blaming you. Even if you did have an unintentional paw in what happened, I can forgive it since nothing bad happened."
She slightly bent her head, "That would be generous, but unnecessary."
He sighed and lay down beside her, "I keep asking myself why you are staying here. You could go to any pack you want. Why mine?"
"Because it is the closest to the two-legs, and because you let me stay here. Do you want me to leave?"
"Not at all. Are you sure there is no other reason why you are staying?" he purred, swaying his tail against hers.
With him being relaxed, nothing blocking her powers, a faint brush of his thoughts was enough to see what he meant. His liver was filled with desire and vivid images of what he wanted to do with her. Did he actually believe she had any interest in him? Even ignoring the rotted pack-rules he and his kin imposed on the pack, he thought far too much of himself to be respectable. Further, for him to have five mates and not be content with that many was a sign of weakness. Weaknesses could be used.
She softly purred and looked away from him, "Maybe there is. The longer I stay here the more I see this pack as the one I could live in for a long time. If so, I would want someone to be with."
"Who might that be?"
She chuckled, "Let us say that I might have my way with you eventually."
"Why not here and now?" he rumbled, now stroking her flanks.
Despite the desire to pull away and strike him, she remained still and hummed as if enjoying the attention. A stray thought struck her that being with him would do more to ensure his trust than anything else she could do. It might even be pleasurable in addition to gaining more time without him suspecting her. But the knowledge of what he had done to his own pack made pleasuring him unacceptable.
She got up and faced him, "Because it is not the right time for me. I have not forgotten your offers, which I am considering and find tempting."
He grumbled and stepped away from her, "Do not take too long. You know where to find me when you finally want to act on what we both desire."
He departed, leaving her alone. Once he was gone, she softly snarled in his general direction. Males who were obsessed by that one part of life were easy to mislead and trick with their own desires, even if only to gain a little more time when he did not suspect her of having any plans against him.