PARADOX

Interlude: Kovu Alone

A/N: Okay so I had a hard time deciding which chapter should go first. This one or chapter 18. So I finally decided to do this one first. This is in Kovu's P.O.V.

I watched as the angry male dragged my Alpha away to his floating transport that Alpha called a ship. Alpha had no choice but to let him drag her away. She was protecting the rest of the pack along with the new male cub. The male cub was bald, so he must've been really young. I don't remember ever being bald but it might've happened. The two legs, like my Alpha, were an odd species all together. They wore fur of their prey and had only short patches of fur on their head.

I growled lowly in my chest. I hated not being able to help my Alpha. She was practically my mother. She had fed me, she had taught me things the two legs knew, and she had hunted with me. She was my pack. She had let the little village into her pack without them even knowing it. My birth pack had sort of drifted away from us, Alpha had her own pack and my Sire felt an increasing urge to fight for land so he separated from their normal hunting grounds.

Soon the ship was out of sight. I whined softly. My Alpha. How was I to find my Alpha again? I needed her. And she needed me. We were pack. I paced restlessly. How could I find my Alpha?

Suddenly I noticed a disturbance. One of the female two legs was yelling at her den mate. I moved closer. They were getting on the prey-that-was-too-large-to-be-prey. I moved forward hoping to go with them. They were obviously going after my Alpha and the bald cub. I was only half way to the large creature when it jumped off the ice into the water. I ran to the edge but the creature was too far out already. It moved surprisingly fast in the water for a land creature.

I growled in irritation. Well, there went the easy way. The beta came up from behind me and I turned to her.

My head tilted to the side, an open invitation for a question or for whatever statement she was going to make.

"Ah, you're Kiara's companion, right?" Her voice was rough with age and yet she managed to sound strong and able bodied. Something that did not happen with any four legged creature.

Companion. Bah. I was pack. Family was what two legs called it. But I nodded anyway. It was close enough to the truth.

"You wanted to go with Sokka and Katara, didn't you?" The beta's question came again.

Sokka? Katara? They must've been the two den mates that had been arguing. Though the female was the more argumentative one.

I nodded again.

She looked troubled for a second.

"I'm sorry you missed them. If you want you can stay in the village with us. Hakkida, our polar bear dog, would welcome a pack mate." She offered. For a second I was tempted. I hadn't slept next to a creature close to my birth species in a long time. But I quickly shook the thought away. Alpha needed me more than I needed to sleep next to a brother in fur.

I shook my head negatively at the old woman and stared out at the sea. I would follow. I just needed to find a safe way to cross the sea without drowning. First I had to go warn Shining-Fur, my mate, that I had to find my Alpha, our Alpha.

I looked once more over my shoulder, at the ocean before running out of the village toward Shining-Fur's chosen whelping den. She was nearly half way toward her whelping time. She would have to move to the village. There was no other way. I would have to help her make another den closer to the village. She needed the meat, and I wouldn't be there to provide it. The cubs would probably be born before I returned. But I would return.

I howled out loud a call. "I am here. Where are you?"

Shining-Fur's gorgeous howl came back. "I am here. Are you coming?"

"I come." My answer was projected back.

I raced to her location. She was curled in here whelping den. She was doing that a lot lately. Trying to get a perfect spot hollowed out so it fit her body perfectly.

"We have trouble." I communicated to her. "You must stay in the two leg's village. I must retrieve Alpha and protect her. I won't be here for the birth of our cubs."

I could tell she was upset. But she understood. As all wolves understood. Alpha was the most important member of the pack. And our Alpha had been taken by another pack. A true sign of war. No wolf would dare take another pack's Alpha unless they had the strength to back up the declaration of war.

Of course the male probably didn't know what he did. He wasn't a wolf, nor had he been with wolves for long periods of time.

I shook the thoughts out of my head and led my mate back towards the village. I quickly found the beta and gestured for her to look at my mate.

My mate was gorgeous. In everything. Her fur was soft and looked like the fresh snow. Her ears were coated in a thin line of black, her ears tufted like all of our kind. Her tail was also tipped black and was about half as long as her body. Her nose was black as well and pointed sharply. Her eyes were one of her most striking features, they were as blue as the ocean. Where most of our kind's eyes dulled over the years turning gold, brown, grey, yellow, green or amber; her's stayed the same deep blue they had been when she was born.

I was a polar opposite to my mate, excuse the pun. My fur was pitch black. I had no distinguishing marks, like her ears or tails. My eyes were ocher, at least that's what Alpha described them as.

I was nearly the same size as my mate which was a little embarrassing because males were supposed to be bigger than females. I had been the runt of my litter though and I had never really regained the length that I should've had as a cub.

When I was sure the beta knew what was going on I headed over to find this "Hakkida". I found him lounging outside of the beta's shelter. Alpha called them tents. Though the ones she normally made she called igloos. I couldn't see much of a difference that required them to have such separate names but two legs were weird like that.

"You Hakkida?" I conveyed looking at him.

"That's me." He agreed standing up so he faced me. He kept his tail respectfully low indicating he knew I was of higher rank then him. Or maybe he just didn't care to fight over a title that meant almost nothing to him. I couldn't tell.

"I need you to do something for me. I have to go find my Alpha. My mate is with cubs. I need someone I can trust to provide for her until I return." I conveyed.

He tilted his head to the side in almost confusion.

"Alright. I'll make sure she eats and she has a den built. The two legged pups would be glad to help make a den for her if we can convey it to them." He finally responded.

"Thank you." I sighed in relief.

Shining-Fur would be taken care of. That was the best I could hope for. Especially because I was leaving her.

I moved back over to tell Shining-Fur that Hakkida would watch over her for me. He would protect her while I was gone. She simply nodded in understanding. I was lucky to find a mate that was so understanding. I had heard horror stories of she-wolves that fought their mates tooth and nail about everything and only complied when they were forced into submission. I was happy to have a mate that listened and was able to be treated as an equal without wanting to be more than an equal.

I looked out over the ocean. It was getting dark. I would start my journey tomorrow. I looked at the miniature ship the one male two legs had prepared. Well, he wasn't going to use it. I looked around for a rope thing. There was one on Alpha's sled thing. I quickly found it. She had left it just outside of town. After she had brought all the supplies down to the village she hadn't had time to take it back to the ship-den.

I moved the sled over to the beta and pulled on the rope irritatedly. She seemed to realize what I wanted and untied the knots keeping the rope attached to the sled.

I moved the rope over to the mini-ship and gestured to her. She also seemed to get that too.

"You're going after them?" She asked worriedly.

I nodded. I needed to go after them. My Alpha.

"Very well." She sighed as she tied the rope to the ship. Now I could tow it through the water after me and when I needed to sleep it would be there to let me rest on.

I sighed looking out at the darkened sea. Moping wouldn't get me anywhere. If I wanted something done I would have to make it happen.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I slept restlessly that night and woke early. I was eager to leave but before I could I must eat. I would need the energy and who knew how long the trip would take? I could go almost a week without food if I ate a good meal the day before I started going without. I would have to find a way to carry water though. Maybe chunks of ice I could keep on the ship.

Yeah that could work. I began digging, large chunks of snow coming out with each scoop of my paws. I picked up the bigger pieces and carried them delicately to the ship. I piled a large amount of snow in the boat. About the size of the male two legs that had left on the large creature-that-was-too-big-to-hunt.

Beta came to see me off along with half of the pack, and my mate and Hakkida. I howled a farewell to them and eagerly jumped into the water grabbing hold of the rope as I went. The rope was plenty long enough for my whole body plus some to be between the boat and the end.

I had a hard time starting because it had been so long since I had been swimming but I pushed on. My fur had a layer of oil on the top coat to make it mostly water proof. So I wasn't as cold as I should've been.

From then on the passing of time meant nothing to me. I slept when I grew tired and ate snow when I was thirsty.

I didn't know how long it was until I reached land but I finally did.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

The land I had landed on was called Whale Tail Island. It was in the bottom part of the continent called the Earth Kingdom. I was worried. How was I supposed to find my Alpha in such a large area such as the Earth Kingdom.

I didn't know why put there was a pull on me to go North. So I followed the pull. It was the only hint I had of my Alpha's presence and I was going to take it.

Many moons passed before I caught my Alpha's scent. It was on the outskirts of a large two leg settlement. She had gone in then come back out two days afterwards. I sniffed the air desperate for a scent but none came. But the pull was still there. Leading ever North. I would follow it again. Maybe I would find another scent trail.

More moons passed before I found another trace of her scent. This one was in a forest. I smelled my Alpha's disgust of someone so I avoided that person's scent as much as possible. I found the last trace of her scent on a ledge.

It was almost as if the damn beast they traveled on could fly or something.

I turned to the pull to lead me once more.

When I next found her scent it was in a small two leg settlement. It took me longer to pick up the trail this time but it finally led me to the ruins of a two legs' building. I sniffed around some found a trail that led to an enemy pack's fortress and retreated back to the ruins.

Damn this was getting annoying. I sighed deciding to take a break. I had been following the pull and the scent relentlessly sleeping few hours and always pushing my body harder. I would catch up on lost sleep, take the time to hunt properly and then try to pick up the trail again.

I spent a whole day at the ruins. Catching up on sleep and catching several rabbit-voles which tasted like the fox-hens back in the pole.

I then started out again. My pace was ground eating, and even though I wasn't traveling at full speed I wasn't wearing myself out as much either.

I found my Alpha's scent nearly buried in the smell of sulfur and ash in the next village even though the village itself hadn't been destroyed. I stopped for a drink at the local pond and got several stares from the village. Apparently they had never seen a lynx wolf.

I turned to face the pull once more and followed as quickly as I could I felt a strange urgency press down on me. I took a breath on a hill and tilted my head up to howl my loneliness. My missing Alpha, my mate I left at home, and the hopelessness I felt. I didn't allow myself to rest for long before I was running again back to the pull which was getting stronger and more urgent the closer I got.

I finally found her. Only to see her being attacked by a large creature with no eyes and a odd nose. My snarl rumbled in my chest. Not my Alpha. He wouldn't attack my Alpha.

A/N: So what do you guys think? Please review.