Yes, it's been a while since the last update. Sorry about that. See, I pretty much make this up as I go along, going off of the few ideas as to where I want this story to go. I just haven't known what to write.

Disclaimer: I do not own Neopets the Darkest Faerie.

Chapter 10

Tor checked his compass. Still heading east. These dense woods made it easy to get turned around, especially when traveling in the dark. He adjusted the pack on his back and glanced over at Roberta who seemed lost in thought. They'd been working their way through the forest for a week now, their food supply nearly gone. From what Tor could tell, there was still another two days until they would reach the ocean. Then they would just have to find the lair. Not once had they wondered aloud what they would do if Tor had been wrong in his conclusion that the assassin had moved the werelupes to the Golden Caves, but both had been thinking about it.

A stick broke in the bushes and the two travelers stopped in their tracks, glancing at one another. It was too big to be some petpet. Tor slowly went for his sword at his belt and Roberta grabbed her wand. A second later there was a flash of brown that burst out of the brush to their left. A werelupe! Tor drew his sword and blocked the attack from the beasts bone club. The werelupe had been hiding downwind, preventing Tor from picking up the scent.

Then, strangely enough, the werelupe backed off a few steps staring at Tor with wide eyes before they flicked over to Roberta who had her wand pointed at him, a spell on her lips. "It's you!" the werelupe rasped out in a gravelly voice. It dropped to all four paws and bowed its large head. Tor exchanged a confused glance with Roberta. What in the king's name was going on? "Thank you Sir Tormund, for freeing my family from the King of Werelupes."

Now Tor was beginning to understand. This werelupe and his family must have gone loner after he'd killed the Werelupe King. He looked over at Roberta and she nodded. They lowered their weapons slowly and Roberta came up to stand by Tor. "Stand," he ordered. The werelupe got back onto his feet, hooking the club onto his belt. "What is your name?"

"Alcasar."

"Alright, Alcasar, you left after the werelupe king was killed then?"

"Yes. We left before somebody else; some tyrant was able to take over."

"And you were right to," Roberta said. "Somebody worse has become their leader."

"His name has been lost for over a century," Tor added. "Now he is only known as the Assassin for the Dark Gelert. I imagine that all he had to do was show the pack the power he carries and they would follow him immediately. The same was done with the ixies. He moved the pack from the caves in Werelupe Woods. Right now we are on our way to find where the Assassin has taken them."

"You are on the right path. Many nights ago the entire pack came through here. I stayed out of the way; they don't take very well to traitors. I suggest that you do the same and head back home."

Tor shook his head. "I can't do that Alcasar. They've got my sister and I'm not leaving her. I promised my parents."

The loner nodded. "I understand. Come, rest at my cave for the night. I would like to hear more of this Assassin and what he's done."

Tor looked at Roberta and she nodded her assent. They wouldn't have gone much farther that night anyway, and now they knew for sure that they were heading in the right direction. "Lead the way Alcasar."

…..

The werelupe shook his head and Tor's tale while his wife, Bredda, covered her mouth in horror. "I am glad we were able to get out of there while we still could," Alcasar murmured, glancing over to where his two young daughters, Nym and Medea, were sleeping, curled up by the fire. Tor and Roberta sat cross-legged on the floor on the far side of the cave with the two werelupe adults as to not wake the girls. The fire cast a warm glow across the cave and it reminded Tor of being a child, camping with his friends and making shadow puppets.

"I'm sorry to hear of what happened to your sister," Bredda murmured in a surprisingly soft voice. It was strange for the travelers to be speaking civilly to two werelupes when in the past their only contact with the species had been through violence. "And I understand what you are trying to do."

Tor nodded in acknowledgement. "Thank you. And thank you for the food and shelter for the night."

"It is nothing," Alcasar said, showing his large teeth in a sort of smile. "It is a rare and strange thing to have travelers in this area."

"Unsurprising," Roberta remarked. "These woods are rather…"

"Secluded?" Bredda suggested, and Roberta nodded. "Well that is the point. It is safe here, no hunters and no discrimination for what we are. If others were to find us living here…" she looked over at her daughters. "I fear that we would not last very long."

Tor and Roberta nodded in understanding. What she said was true. The only words ever said or written of werelupes were that they were fearsome, bloodthirsty creatures who valued nothing other than their next kill. No value for any life. While that might be true for most, Alcasar and Bredda made it obvious that it was just the opinion of close-minded neopets who couldn't see past their fingertips. Just talking to these werelupes for a few minutes and watching their children play like any other child had changed both of their minds.

The knight stretched with a large yawn falling onto his back. This cave was too comforting; it reminded him of the barn on his farm, a place he tended to sleep in when Lucy was being annoying. Now he would give anything just to hear her threaten to tell Mom on him for accidentally letting the Whinnies out of their pen. A few moments later he felt something being pushed under his head. He opened his eyes to see that Roberta had folded a blanket for him to use as a pillow.

"Both of you ought to get some sleep," Alcasar said as he and Bredda got to their feet. "A long journey ahead of you, which will most likely end with violence. Gather your strength while you can."

….

Light filtered in through the cave entrance, bringing Tor into wakefulness. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, looking around him. Roberta was still asleep beside, as were Nym and Medea. Bredda was cooking something over the fire, though Alcasar was nowhere to be seen. "Good morning Bredda," Tor whispered across the cave to the werelupe matriarch. She looked up from what she was cooking, it looked like a wild snorkle that Tor guessed Alcasar had caught earlier in the morning.

"Good morning to you as well, Tormund. This won't be ready for a little while yet so I would let Roberta sleep a while longer."

Tor nodded in agreement, glancing warily at the sleeping sorceress. One of the main reasons he always took first watch was that Roberta was rather… scary when she was woken up. More than once he'd been hit or been at the receiving end of a spell. "I'm not sure I'm ready to wake her up just yet. It takes mental and physical preparations which I have yet to get around to."

Bredda chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind."

To stood at the cave entrance looking out in the distance where he could just see a small part of the ocean. The cave was located on a large hill which overlooked the forest for miles. Surrounding him was a boulder field that went on in every direction from the cave, making it slightly dangerous in heavy rain. He stepped out of the cave and looked around. Alcasar was standing on top of one of the largest boulders, the wind ruffling through his long fur. Tor climbed up next to the werelupe and followed his gaze to the ocean.

"I'd say it would probably be about a two day trip from here," Alcasar informed him.

Tor nodded. "That was my estimate." He glanced up at Alcasar before turning back to the direction of the ocean. "I would never say this in front of Roberta, but I'm nervous about what is going to happen, especially now that you've confirmed that we are going the right way."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, even from the knight who took down the Darkest Faerie and her followers. The Assassin will be a fearsome opponent."

"He already came close to killing me just weeks ago, during the celebration on the anniversary of the Darkest Faerie's defeat."

Alcasar dipped his head. "Yes, you said so last night. And yet you still think that you will be able to defeat him while surrounded by the pack, just as you did with the previous king?"

"Had King Skarl and King Hagan given us more fighting power, then I believe it would have been possible. However, with just Roberta and me, the possibility is very small. The Assassin doesn't have the same pride that the old King did. The Gelert Assassin fights dirty, calling upon his dark magic and any others to do his dirty work. I told you how he is now leading the Ixi tribe near Cogham. He didn't show himself once after me and the other knights arrived. He knows that I do have the power to beat him, as I nearly did once before he teleported away. I doubt that he has any intentions of fighting me one on one and Roberta won't be able to keep all of the other werelupes back on her own. They aren't the same fighters that they were when you were still a part of the pack."

"So what is your plan?"

Tor sighed. "I don't have much of one to be honest. I get into the lair and find where they have my sister. For all I know she is a part of the pack at this point. If she's been turned I have a potion, made by a friend of mine that might turn her back."

"So a cure has finally been discovered?"

"Possibly. It isn't exactly easy to test it out. Lucy is practically a test subject if I can get to her."

Alcasar grunted and for a few moments they were silent, staring straight ahead. Then the werelupe asked, "And what if you are bitten?"

He and Roberta had discussed the possibility more than once. It was always Roberta who brought it up and Tor would always give her the same answer. "If I'm bitten then Roberta will have to kill me. She'll take the potion and give it to Lucy."

"Which isn't going to happen because you aren't going to get bitten." Tor and Alcasar looked over their shoulders at Roberta who was standing with Bredda at the mouth of the cave. She had a determined expression on her face and Tor wondered exactly how long the two women had been there and how much of the conversation had been heard. He exchanged a sheepish glance with Alcasar. They should have been aware of the two listening in. "Anyway," Roberta went on. "The food is done so both of you come in and eat."

"A bit demanding ain't she?" Alcasar muttered. Tor smirked.

"Always has been that way. Well, she did grow up in a castle so I would expect no less from her."

Tor shut his mouth when Roberta turned and sent him a glare that said, 'I will hit you if you don't shut your mouth.' Tor chuckled along with Alcasar. "Feisty too. You had better watch out with that one."

…..

"Make sure that you two stop in again on your way back through," Bredda told the two travelers. Once again they had their gear on their backs, their weapons at their sides.

"Do you really have to leave already?" Nym whined and Medea nodded her head in agreement with her sister. Roberta kneeled on the ground in front of the girls and smiled. "We'll be back through, I promise. And we'll have someone else for you to meet with us." Their eyes brightened immediately and they squealed with delight, running in circles around everyone's feet. Roberta stood back on her feet and dipped her head to the adult werelupes. "Thank you again for letting us spend the night and feeding us."

"It was nothing, really," Alcasar told them. His eyes fell on Tor. "The two of you have a hard few days in front of you and strength will be needed. Hopefully it will go as planned and if so, I expect to see the two of you again soon along with your sister, Tor."

"Of course," Tor nodded with a small smile. "Stay well, Alcasar, and you Bredda. Expect to see us in around five days."

"Will do. We wish you both luck."

Roberta and Tor picked their way down the hill, doing their best not to slide down on their bottoms due to a loose rock underfoot. Once they reached the bottom and began to head deeper in the woods Roberta turned to look at Tor. "Well that is a story to tell. Who would have thought that werelupes could actually be regular, civil neopets?"

…

A/N: Yeah, it's been a while, I know. I just couldn't figure out where to go from where I left off in the last chapter. Sorry for the wait though.