Kairi wasn't entirely satisfied with my explanation, but she at least seemed to accept it. It was enough to placate her enough that I wouldn't have to try to answer any more awkward questions.
I didn't have time to do any more, because at that point another vampire attack broke out. This time it was bigger than before. They'd surrounded the entire town.
The new Commander – new again, because Valgor's first replacement had also been slain – made his way in to negotiate. This time I was with Kieran when he met them.
"What do you want now?" he asked their Commander shortly.
"To negotiate terms of your surrender, of course."
"Give it up. Do you really expect us to do that?"
"No, but the Master insisted I try. I'm told you can either live subservient to us, or be wiped out. Personally, I have no problem with just killing you all, but I have to give you the choice."
"Then do your worst, Vampire. We will never surrender, and never give up."
"Oh good. I was rather hoping you'd say that." Then he turned to me. "I'm told the offer extends separately to you."
I snarled defiance. Rather uncharacteristically, Kieran had ordered me to remain a wolf during this meeting. He seldom gave direct orders like that. This one had good reason though. While I remained a wolf, I wouldn't do anything rash because it wasn't sensible.
"I was hoping you wouldn't say that," the Commander told me. "But I suppose it was too much to expect. If you should change your mind-"
"He won't," Kieran told him for me. "The pack is fiercely loyal to me. We will not go without a fight."
"Then a fight you shall have. In the interests of fairness, we will attack at dusk tonight."
"He's lying," I growled to Kieran as he left. I could tell he wasn't serious.
"I know. I expected that. They're up to something else, I'm sure."
"How do you know?"
"Vampires don't get along, yet something's mustered enough of them to completely surround us."
"Perhaps their Master ordered them to cooperate?"
"Not even he could achieve this much cooperation, otherwise we'd have been wiped out long ago. No, they've got some kind of a plan." He closed his eyes and thought for a few minutes, then nodded to himself and addressed his daughter, sat nearby. "Round up all the young here, and gather enough werewolves t guard them. I want you to lead them to the safety of our grounds as soon as there's a break in their ranks."
"How will you arrange that, pack-leader?" she asked him.
"Kulim, I want you to lead an assault on their forces blocking the path. Make a gap for them to get through."
She understood now, and departed to make the arrangements. Now I had a request to make.
"Pack-leader, there is something else I would ask."
"What is it?"
"I would ask that several members in their Hybrid from take my companions to our grounds for their protection."
"You'd have to explain to them what's going on."
"I will see to that."
"Then catch up with Katriana and tell her that she's to do that as well, then tell your companions."
I knew by his inflections that Katriana was his daughter. I made to go after her, but he called me back.
"Sora! Watch out for yourself out there. I don't need to remind you we need you."
The sentiment was nice, but I was hardly going to be too reckless.
It took me only a few moments to communicate the addition to Katriana, then I headed to the hotel. I almost forgot to change form as I went in, cutting it very close. For a moment I worried they'd seen me in an alternate form, but I was wrong.
"What's the hurry, Sora?" Goofy asked, looking up with faint surprise.
"There's another attack. Bigger than the last one. I've made arrangements to get you somewhere safer."
"You're going to join in the attack, aren't you?" I nodded, answering Donald's question. "Let us help then."
"You wouldn't be able to do anything to them. You couldn't do anything to that one who almost fed on you last time, these ones are no different."
Behind me, three members in hybrid form came in.
"Katriana let us know," one told me. "We're ready when they are."
"Go with them," I told my friends. "You can trust them."
"Are you sure, Sora? They look a bit..."
"I know, I know. But I trust them, and you should too."
"What about you? Will you be alright?" Trust Kairi to ask that, annoyed at me or not.
"I'll be fine. Trust me. I'll find you as soon as I can after we deal with the attack."
There was a howl from outside calling for me. Katriana was ready to go, and that meant the wolves I'd lead in my attack were as well.
I reassured them one last time, then headed back out again and shifted form as soon as I was out of their sight, headed westwards to the edge. I nodded in passing to Katriana, the young and their guard ready and waiting. My own wolves followed me as I passed them to keep up with me.
The vampires saw us coming and met our attack. Some of us changed form, some of us fought as we were. I changed form and carved through them easily, using the technique Kathann had taught me with deadly speed.
"Spread out," I ordered my wolves. "Split into two groups and start eliminating both wings of their force."
There was of course only one 'wing' – the ring they had around us. But our initial and unexpected assault had started to open a gap, allowing us to go both ways at once.
The vampires weren't stupid though, and began to send their forces from other areas to reinforce where we were attacking. Kieran had expected this, and send reserves from the town out to the north, east and south to attack the now weaker areas.
We finally made a hole big enough for Katriana to lead her group through and into the forest. As they passed, several of the guards joined us and a few went back into the town to see to it's defences. I saw the three hybrids carrying my friends to the safety of the sacred grounds. They'd be safe there – or so I thought.
As we progress through their ranks, I smelled fire. The wolves on the northern front had returned to the village after meeting too great a resistance, and the vampires had followed, setting fire to buildings as they went along.
I'd have gone to their aid, but I was methodically working my way through the southern wing.
Then we had some unexpected support – the wolf pack that Kadach had told me about swung in from the north, and though they lacked the power of our hybrid form, they joined the attack and began to savage the rear of the vampire attack.
With their aid, the part of the pack remaining in the town managed to break back out again to join the rest of us in the main attack, but the damage had already been done. The town was on fire, and an unlucky wind was blowing cinders and sparks into other buildings, setting them alight.
Kathann had warned me about fire. It looked like my moving the others to our grounds had been a good move.
Kieran led the wolves and the other wing of our attack round the vampires until we met up with the last of these vampires and cornered the Commander.
"Go ahead – kill me. The Master has his way already," he taunted us.
"What do you mean by that?" Kieran demanded of him.
"Kieran," one of the true wolves caught his attention. "The forest!"
We all looked. A plume of smoke rose from it. Fire. The attack had been a distraction.
Without stopping to think, I left them and bolted for the grounds. The others could deal with the vampire Commander. My friends safety came first. I had to ensure this fire wouldn't claim them.
The rest of the pack and the wolves followed, but I was faster than the lot, quickly outdistancing them and tracing the now-familiar route into the forest toward our grounds.
There were vampires here too. They still couldn't enter our sacred grounds, but they didn't need to with them all on fire.
The grounds were surrounded, meaning there was no escape for the wolves trapped there. My loyalties were divided in that instant – pack instinct told me to get them out, but Kathann had told me not to fear for the pack, but my friends.
I decided to try and do both, locating the three hybrids that had brought my friends here. I assumed my own hybrid from and directed them to follow me, still carrying Kairi, Donald and Goofy.
I tore through the vampires at the northern edge of the grounds until there was a gap again, then we set off again. There was only one place left I could be certain of their safety.
When we drew close, I went on ahead and changed back to myself. The others deposited my friends, then returned to the grounds.
"Come with me – quickly!"
"What's going on?"
"The attack was a trap, and I'm getting you to safety again," I answered.
"But what about the wolves and everyone from the town?"
"I'll be back to help them as soon as you're safe. Come on! We have to hurry, before they find us."
I led them to the crag. The one used for the ritual.
"Stay here. It's protected against them, and I don't think they know this even exists."
"But Sora-" Kairi began to object.
"Just stay here – please. I don't want to have to worry about you."
"I will look after them," the familiar voice of Kathann announced. He stood nearby as wolf, though he spoke in the human tongue. "Your friends will be safe with me."
I nodded, then headed back for the pack. I trusted him.
I didn't have to worry about them anymore, but I did have to worry about the pack. They'd all headed to the grounds, and the grounds and surrounds were alight, and full of vampires.
As I drew closer the smell of burning woodland, ashes and vampires grew stronger until I could smell nothing else and was forced to return once more to the hybrid form just to hold them at bay.
There were too many of them to fight, but I had to try. I lost count of how many I killed just trying to break through. Some laughed, some taunted me, but all of them fell before me.
Then without apparent reason, they broke off and left. The forest still burned, but there were no more vampires.
The grounds were gone, scorched earth and burning branches all that was left. Werewolves in all three forms lay unmoving. Some had suffered because of the fire, some had been beaten by vampires. I didn't want to think what else they might have done.
I could smell one still living though, and tracked them down. It was Kieran. He was in his own hybrid form, an impressive beast, but defeated all the same. One leg was clearly broken, the other trapped under a tree. He looked barely alive.
A stray surviving twig snapped underfoot, and with surprising agility, he whipped around using his arms to peer at me, and I almost swore because of what I saw. They'd taken out his eyes.
"Who's that? Who's there?"
"It's me, Kieran."
"Kulim? No. It's a trick. You can't fool me!"
"It's really me, Kieran. You know my scent. Let me come close and you can tell."
"What if you're lying?"
"Then you'll be in prime position to kill me."
He considered it, then nodded. I made sure he could smell me clearly, and he sniffed.
"It is you... I'm sorry I doubted you."
"What happened here?"
"The vampires. They set light to logs and sticks, threw them in. Everything went up in flames."
"Did anyone get out?"
"No one. All gone. Some of the wolves got clear, but not many. You and me left now, and I'm not long left."
"I'm sorry, Kieran. I should have been here."
"Why weren't you here?"
"Kathann told me that I had to see to my friends safety if fire threatened them. I didn't want to abandon the pack."
"You did what was right, Kulim. Do two things for me."
"What do you need done?"
"First... avenge all those who perished here today."
"I will, Kieran. I'll avenge them all."
He nodded with a weak smile, then continued, "Then accept my final gift. You alone survived all this. You are truly the last, but you can be much more than that. I hereby name you Kamaz, champion of all werewolves."
"Wha- Champion? Me?"
"May the wolf-god be with you, Kamaz," he breathed. I sat with him for a long time after he'd passed away, then stood tall and made an oath of vengeance.
"Of those who killed all my pack, those who killed my friends, I, Kamaz, the werewolf champion, swear to bring to an end!"
The force of my conviction and the strength behind that oath were so great that the air around me rippled with a great wind, causing the fires around to flicker and some even to go out. It created a snowstorm of ashes and cinders around me, which in turn were blown away.
Then with great rumbles, the skies opened and it rained a torrent down with crashes of lightning. That oath was the most powerful one ever spoken by any werewolf, and the power behind it... well, the effects were far reaching, to say the least.
The oath made, I had other things on my mind. I still had to return to Kathann and meet up with my friends again.