Ashes of the Breeze

Part 1

(written from August 28th to August 30th, 2022)

Chapter 1: The Secluded Sanctuary

September 22nd, 2012

The Valley of Jasper Park sits safe and tucked away, partially hidden from the harshness of the brutal elements and cold. You'd be a pretty lucky wolf to be born and grow up within the packs of Jasper, but not all wolves can count themselves so fortunate. In the lands south of the Valley there existed miles upon miles of land foreign to the inhabitants of Jasper known as Banff. It was a place of mystery, a place of danger, and a home for a small pack hidden away in their own corner of the world. This pack was known by a few, and the number of those that had actually met a member was fewer still. They were considered nothing more than shadows coming to life or simply the wind. They never leave a scent, and they never leave a trail.

They were a tracker's worst nightmare, and even the best lookouts were never able to catch more than a blur, leaving those that manage a glimpse wondering if they actually saw something or if it was nothing more than a trick of the light. In these woods, this pack was considered the Rogues' boogieman. When wolves would disappear or kills go missing, it would be blamed on "the Breeze" as the name of this pack was the only thing anyone knew about them. They were the "Pack of the Breeze." They often terrified the Rogues so thoroughly that, for a time, there wasn't a single member that would dare to say something was "just the breeze," thinking that uttering the phrase was akin to taunting the Grim Reaper.

There were those among the Rogues that thought of the Breeze pack as nothing more than superstition and pranks by bored wolves, but others believed the Breeze was real, that they were both a major threat and the ultimate way to gain favor with King to become the next leader of the Rogues. To capture the wind and present its head to King would undoubtedly earn you honor and glory like nothing else, but to capture "the Wind," you must first find it.

And finding the Breeze was no easy task either. Unbeknownst to the Rogues, deep in the woods, there existed a secluded forest hidden away, surrounded entirely by sheer cliffs that were impossible to climb and a secret cave-like entrance leading into this hideout. From the outside, it looked like nothing more than an odd plateau, but for the Pack of the Breeze, it was a sanctuary from the frigid outside world, with their walls protecting them from both detection and the blistering cold. This was the corner that the Breeze called home, also known as the Sky Sanctuary, and where a wise leader named Cloud was currently training the wolves that would one day be the protectors of this precious safe haven.

He was a pure white wolf that did not hold a single spot of color. It was said that, after he was born, the previous leader remarked on how light and soft his pup was and how everything about his pup made him think of a cloud, hence the name. But while he was often kind and gentle like a cloud, don't let that calm demeanor fool you. He can bring on a storm of blood when it's needed.

"Alright, cadets, it's time for training. Into formation," Cloud spoke gently. The cadets fell into their positions without a moment's hesitation. "Today is your final training session before you graduate and become full members of the pack, and as such, we'll be testing your stealth skills to their fullest with our usual routine of Hide and Seek." Many of the pups let out a sigh of relief. It was a game they had been required to play every week, so most of the Betas were confident they would succeed. "However I can't let the final test be too easy for you all, so instead of your normal instructors, you'll be going against my second and third-in-command, they'll be the ones to decide if your stealth skills are up to par."

It was at this point that the cadets began worrying again as they thought about how the notorious commanders were going to be the ones giving the exam. They were considered the best Alphas in the pack aside from Cloud, but they weren't easy to get along with. The third-in-command by the name of Chad approached first, a red wolf with a couple of black stripes along his side.

"The boss says he wants us testing you guys personally to help pick out the cream of the crop, and what the boss says goes."

The cadets immediately looked around, confused. The two commanders of Cloud were inseparable, so if Chad was here, then the second-in-command had to be close by, but they couldn't spot him anywhere. Suddenly, the cadets heard something from behind them.

"That's right!" The second-in-command appeared out of nowhere. This commander went by the name of Cody and was totally brown except for some light gray on the tip of his tail. He snickered at the panicking young'uns and seemed to get a kick out of his little prank.

After giggling to himself for a moment and enjoying the cadets' peeved faces, he continued. "Our leader's own offspring are within this class as you know, so he wants to make sure that the next generation is in good paws. Basically, the royal pups over there are why you wolves are stuck with us. Bad luck for you guys I guess." The other cadets then began to glare at Cloud's litter who really weren't fans of Cody at the moment.

Among the three royal cadets stood a mountain of a wolf known as Thunder with brown fur, the same color as the nearby trees. He was often confused for one of the trees whenever he didn't move, and he was Cloud's oldest son. The next sibling was the only girl in the trio by the name of Drizzle. She was a pure black wolf and was a stealth prodigy, often referred to as a living shadow. Lastly was Cloud's youngest son known as Zephyr, he was the smallest of all the cadets but also the most nimble, able to climb trees with ease and maintain his balance anywhere, letting him hide in spots other wolves would never think to look.

This test was a major deal for these cadets. In fact, it determined your whole future, and yet Cody had just turned their whole class against the trio which was only going to make things that much harder. In this pack, there were no Alpha or Omega schools, and the two ranks were not given based on personality. Instead, there was only a Ranking School. It was so intensive that it required extra months for everything to be learned. Unlike most schools which lasted from the first day of winter to the first day of spring. The Ranking School lasted from the first day of winter to the first day of autumn in the following year.

How you do on this final exam determined if you would become an Alpha or an Omega. If your stealth skills were good enough, you attain the rank of Alpha—if not, you were relegated to Omega. And now the cadets had to deal with the commanders who were notorious for antagonizing other wolves. They could even fail every single cadet on a whim if they so choose.


Chapter 2: Seekers Hide and Hiders Seek

On Cloud's order, the game was on as the cadets bolted into the training grounds, giving them a head start of a few minutes before Cloud let loose his own dogs of war as all the cadets tried to find suitable spots to conceal any trace of their presence. When it came to the Breeze, Hide and Seek worked a little differently than just finding a good spot and not moving. It was closer to a battle of information warfare. You wanted to know where your enemy was without them discovering where you were, resulting in a conflict of deduction and stealth, and if you get physically tagged, then you were out. So as seekers searched for the cadets, the seekers kept themselves hidden because, if they were found first, they would become much easier to avoid.

The trio stuck together and relied on one another for this test, especially now that the rest of the class wasn't going to be eager to help. They searched for a good starting spot and remained vigilant. They communicated with one another in an incredibly soft whisper, so that they couldn't be found through sound as Thunder gave out orders.

"Zephyr, check if that cliff overhead can hide us for now."

"I'm on it."

"Drizzle, status report."

"We still have sixty seconds until Chad and Cody start their hunt and twenty-seven minutes until the test is over. At their max speed, we should have at least three minutes before they could get close enough to detect us."

Thunder knew that wouldn't be a lot of time. They needed an advantageous position as soon as possible to stand a chance against some of the best wolves in the pack. He wondered if this was a test that could be passed at all, but even if it wasn't, he was gonna make sure he and his siblings passed anyway. As he thought on this, he heard Zephyr from overhead.

"Thunder, this cliff can hide us completely and isn't easy to reach. I think it should work for the time being."

"Great work, Zephyr. If it's good enough for you, then it's good enough for me, so let's get up there ASAP."

Zephyr reached down and pulled Drizzle up the sheer cliff face, and with both wolves now on top of the cliff, they then worked together to pull up their very big brother. From this elevated position, it would be easier to see Cody and Chad coming, giving the royal trio a much-needed head start if the two seekers caught their trail somehow.

"Drizzle, scout ahead for another good position if we need to move. Zephyr, get a higher elevation in one of the nearby trees and keep a lookout for the commanders. If either of you spots the seekers, then return here immediately."

Without missing a beat, both siblings responded with "understood" in unison and ran off to their respective tasks with speed and efficiency, and thus, Thunder focused all his senses to watch out for any possible hint of the seekers' approach. Due to his large size, he had lower grades in stealth and speed than almost any other wolf on record, but this wouldn't stop Thunder. Instead, he focused on other areas of his training. His abilities to detect others and strategize were some of the best on record, and he would use these skills to their fullest with the help of his siblings. Drizzle and Zephyr respected his determination and leadership skills, to the point they would bet their futures on him by following him through this exam.

The weight of this burden pulled heavily on Thunder's mind, but he was committed to not failing his younger brother and sister. They were prodigies, and he refused to let the two fail just because they wanted to help him. Suddenly, Thunder picked up a very faint couple of taps from a nearby tree, so faint that no one but him would be able to hear them. This was a signal that Zephyr had spotted something. Thunder then heard three quick faint taps which meant that the seekers were getting closer. He knew that Zephyr would be back momentarily, and almost as if on cue, Drizzle suddenly appeared next to Thunder without making a sound. She had a tendency to accidentally sneak up on and scare others without meaning to, and normally, this would startle Thunder, but he kept it in to avoid making too much noise.

"Reporting in. As I scouted I passed multiple wolves already found walking out of the forest. It looks like the commanders are finding cadets at record speed."

"That doesn't bode well. How about hiding spots? Any good places we can move to?"

"I only found one option close by, and it's not the greatest spot, only we'd be able to climb it using Zephyrs skills, so the seekers could never reach us if we get to it. It would be an instant win." Thunder then hesitantly responded.

"I feel like there's a 'but' about to follow this good news."

Drizzle gave a look almost like she felt bad that she was about to prove him right before finishing her report.

"But the issue is there's very little cover getting to the new spot, so we'd risk being exposed, and it's a bit of a distance from us." Suddenly, Zephyr dropped from a nearby tree like a feather and seemed to have a worried expression on his face.

"I could only spot Chad but Cody would have to be nearby. It looked like Chad was heading roughly in our direction, but I'm not sure if they actually know our location. They could be heading towards us by coincidence." Thunder could feel in his gut that this decision was it. This was the big call that would decide if they passed or failed, and he had only a second to make a choice as every second wasted could back them further into a corner. Should they hunker down in position and hope the seekers just pass them by, or do they take the gamble and head for a new spot that would mean guaranteed victory? Thunder then made a call.

"The commanders are doing well finding cadets, so even if they aren't coming for us specifically... If they're moving towards our location, then they'll likely still notice us anyway, and then it's game over. If we want to stand a chance, then we need to stay one step ahead of them… Guys, we're taking the gamble. Drizzle, lead the way to the new position."

Drizzle and Zephyr nodded in agreement with Thunder's choice, and with fifteen minutes in the exam already passed, the three hopped down from their hiding spot without making a single sound. Drizzle pointed out the direction, and the brothers followed their sister's lead to this guaranteed victory. The siblings trusted each other without question. They had trained together since the very beginning and had been there for one another through thick and thin. So if Zephyr said there was a problem, then his siblings move. If Drizzle described a spot as a sure win, then her brothers believed her infallibly, and if Thunder made a call, then his little siblings followed his judgment. But now they had to deal with the biggest obstacle to their victory. Having just reached the area Drizzle described, the brothers could see what she meant.

They had reached a section of forest with little in the way of bushes or foliage, and the terrain was much flatter. The trees were spread much further apart, and they seemed thinner than the trees in the rest of the forest. There was little to move through or hide behind, but they needed to get to their destination as quickly as possible or risk being tagged, so their only choice was to move through the area. Thunder then made another call for the trio, hoping with all his heart it was the right one. "There's no point in trying to be stealthy in this area while moving together, you guys. Even if we try to hide, it will still be easy for them to spot us, so we shouldn't waste our time. Instead, we'll be focusing on running through here quickly but quietly while not leaving a trail. Let's move."

Drizzle could be able to sneak through this section of forest due to her genius-level stealth skills, but the brothers would have no way to copy her, so they stuck together and followed Thunder's command, trying to move toward their victory as quickly as possible.

Suddenly, Thunder's ears perked up. "Everyone stop," he quietly commanded, and all three of them immediately become still and completely silent, not even breathing heavily from the running. Thunder listened to their surroundings for a moment. "I can hear something moving… It's too big to be a rodent… Wait… Now I hear another." A look of worry appeared on the giant wolf's face which started making his siblings nervous. "They seem to be moving towards us… and quickly." At this point, his suspicions had been confirmed, and he knew they had to move fast. "Guys, they're on our trail! We need to move NOW!"

And just like that, the three were off like rockets, running as if their very lives were on the line. They knew they only needed to get to their new spot. If they could just get to it before Chad and Cody got to them, then it was a win for the trio. "Drizzle, status!" Thunder asked in a somewhat panting voice as he worked to keep up with his siblings.

"At this pace, we'll be there in three minutes!"

Thunder could hear the sounds getting closer. The commanders were gaining on the trio, and at this pace, they were going to catch up before the siblings would be able to take refuge. At this rate, all three of them were going to fail! No, Thunder couldn't let that happen. There was too much on the line. He trained his heart out for too long, and he wasn't about to go down here. But no matter how much he racked his brain, there was nothing he could think of. There was nowhere to hide, no trick to exploit. His siblings were relying on him to think of something and lead them, but they were stuck in an unwinnable situation. He was running his heart out while searching for any possible solution, and finally, he decided there was only one card left he could play. His siblings trusted him, and he would make sure they passed, no matter what.


Chapter 3: Acceptable Casualties

While still running, Thunder gave his siblings the breakdown of their predicament and shared the only solution he was able to think of.

"Cody and Chad are right on our tail, and even if I weren't slowing you two down, they'd still be able to catch up before we get to our new spot. There's nowhere to hide, and no way to stop them, but there is a way to slow them down."

Immediately, Zephyr knew what Thunder had in mind and wanted no part of it.

"NO! We're not about to leave our big brother behind as bait!"

Drizzle then understood the situation because of Zephyr and also instantly rejected the idea.

"Thunder, we aren't about to let you become an Omega just because you were born a little big. You're a genius, and you deserve to pass with us. You've worked harder than any other wolf in this pack!" Thunder appreciated how much his siblings cared for him, but as the leader, he knew he had to be realistic.

"Guys, no matter if that's true or how we might feel, this is the situation at paw. If I don't slow them down, then all of us will fail anyway. You guys are my precious little brother and little sister, and it's my job to protect you."

The two could hear the determination in Thunder's voice, and neither could think of an alternative. They wished with all their hearts for there to be something else they could do, and they knew Thunder would never let them sacrifice themselves for him instead. With tears in the siblings' eyes, Thunder gave out his order. "You chose to follow me as your leader, so trust me when I say this is our best and only option. I don't know how long I can keep them busy, but I'll buy you two as much time as I can. I love you both. Now GO!" His final word boomed throughout the forest, fitting his name. He then stopped running.

He hid behind a nearby tree and awaited the arrival of the commanders. Not even a minute passed before the two appeared and stopped right where Thunder had stopped seconds prior and were sniffing around the area. Cody spoke first.

"Chad, keep your eyes and nose peeled. I think the royal mountain is still nearby" Cody knew Thunder was close and tried taunting him out of hiding. "He should be easy enough to find. He's closer in size to a bear than a wolf, after all. I guess he should lay off the honey a little bit." Chad laughed at Cody's joke before the two were interrupted.

"You know, Cody, if you were half as good at complimenting as you are at slinging insults, then you might have actually found a mate by now."

Thunder threw his voice, so the seekers struggled to tell where it was coming from. Thunder might have been poorly designed for stealth, but if there was one stealth skill he was good at, it was this.

Cody retorted as the two started looking around.

"Big talk coming from a wolf too scared to show his face.

"Yeah, if you're the boss's kid, then face us like a real wolf," Chad added. Thunder then gave a chuckle and fired back

"Oh, but I am facing you like a real wolf, exactly the way my father would, so if tweedle-dumb and tweedle-dumber think they can find me, then go ahead and try!"

The two loped around the tree. Thunder was hiding behind, but they didn't notice him. With his eyes closed, his fur allowed the large wolf to blend in with the color of the bark and make him almost invisible. That is until the two caught his scent on the wind and turned around.

"Ah, ha!" Cody exclaimed. "There you are, you one-trick pony!" Now that Thunder was spotted, he knew that it was only a matter of time until he was caught, and he was going to steal every extra second that he could.

The commanders pounced, but the royal wolf was able to just barely dodge being touched.

"You're surprisingly nimble for a tree with legs," Chad mentioned. Thunder put some space between them and retorted in kind.

"Yeah? Well, you guys are surprisingly slow for being the supposed best in the pack. Come on, you two, I'm yawning here." He managed to evade a couple more lunges until, finally, his luck and stamina ran out. The commanders managed to corner Thunder with a tree to his back, and with nowhere left to run, the prince was finally tagged, and his fate was sealed.

"That was a brave thing you tried to do for your siblings," said Chad. "I respect it, but it won't mean a thing. We're hot on their trail, and they can't escape us now" With that, the seekers ran off, looking for their next victims so sure of their victory. Thunder started walking in the opposite direction, towards the starting point as he chuckles to himself, mumbling:

"You idiots are so sure of yourselves. You might have caught me, but you have no idea what you're up against. My siblings will run circles around you without me holding them back."

As Thunder walked back towards the entrance, he didn't feel shame. Instead, he felt proud he could do his job as a good big brother when it mattered most, that his bravery didn't fail him in the end. The trio's mother died shortly after the three were born, and the only memory he had of her was being asked to watch over his siblings since she wouldn't be able to. His mother was counting on him, and he was going to honor her last request or die trying. He felt no regret in his choice, but he did worry for his siblings. By his math, he should have bought just enough time for the two to make it scot-free, but he still couldn't help but worry. Thunder's anxiety continued as he stood tall, walking out of the training forest with pride in his accomplishments. He saw his father, Cloud, overlooking the forest on a nearby hill and walked up to join him.

Cloud spoke first.

"So you weren't able to make it through the whole exam, after all. I know how hard you trained." He then looked over to his son who didn't respond and only looked into the forest below with his chest puffed out proudly. Cloud chuckled and continued. "And yet I get the impression it doesn't bother you that much." With this, Thunder finally responded.

"Of course, it bothers me. I wanted this so badly. I trained until my paws bled. I wanted it so desperately, but at the end of the day, there was something that was simply more important." Cloud knew that his offspring planned to work together in this exam, so by seeing Thunder here and not Thunder's brother and sister, he put together pretty quickly what happened.

"Your mother would be very proud of what you did. I hope you know that." And with a look of longing on Thunder's face, he softly responded.

"I really hope so."

After a moment of silence, Cloud attempted to cheer up his son.

"Hey, don't lose hope just yet. Chad and Cody might still say you pass. Being tagged doesn't automatically mean you fail, and while those two can be… difficult… at times, they aren't heartless, and I trust them to make a fair judgment." Just after saying this, a nearby wolf howled, signaling the end of the exam. Thunder immediately started making his way to the entrance to await his precious brother and sister's return and hear if his sacrifice was in vain or not. And as the large wolf started making his way back down the hill, he didn't turn his head, but he did stop to say:

"Look, Dad, I get why you had Chad and Cody run this exam. With your offspring involved, you knew you couldn't be unbiased in your decision. And if they decide I fail, then I guess that means I'm just not good enough to be an Alpha, and if that's what happens, then so be it. I've made my choice, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

Thunder sat at the entrance as he watched the wolves that survived until the end celebrate their guaranteed pass on the exam. They were now officially Alphas, but those that were tagged now awaited the return of Chad and Cody with bated breath to learn if their skills were good enough to pass. However, the commanders weren't who Thunder was waiting for. He watched the wolves leave the forest to try and spot his siblings. When the moment would come for him to see their faces, he'd know they passed and could breathe a sigh of relief. He would know his sacrifice was worth it.

After a couple of minutes, Thunder finally saw his little brother and little sister making their way out of the forest as they were laughing and celebrating. The weight on his chest was lifted, and he felt he could breathe again. Their celebration continued until they spotted their big brother waiting for them at the edge of the forest. They saw him wearing the best somber smile he could muster, and they were reminded of the guilt of being forced to leave their brother behind. "Looks like you two were able to make it, after all. I was so worried." Then Drizzle responded in an attempt to cheer her big brother up.

"Yeah! We got to a large cliff that we were able to climb thanks to Zephyr, and by the time the commanders got there, we were already up on the cliff, and they had no way to get us! You should have seen how angry they were as we taunted them. It has to be one of the funniest things I've ever witnessed." Thunder kept a soft smile on his face. He was happy for his sister, but the two could still see the pain and sadness behind their beloved brother's eyes as Zephyr chimed in next.

"Hey, don't give up just yet, Thunder! Chad and Cody were right behind us. I'm sure they'll come out and say you passed!"

And speaking of the devil, the two seekers appeared from the forest and moved to take their position on the hill to announce who passed and who failed. Thunder mumbled to himself.

"Welp, I guess we're about to find out." The commanders stood upon the hill and started speaking. Chad stepped up and started to announce the results to everyone.

"Alright, everybody. Great work today. There was a lot of excellent skill displayed, but some wolves weren't able to evade us till the end, so we will now announce their results, starting with the prince, Thunder!" Thunder's siblings and father all collectively gulped and hung on every word as Thunder himself watched calmly and sadly. "Thunder showed excellent skill in multiple categories. He made good calls in difficult situations. He used his squad's abilities to their fullest capacity. He showed great work at throwing his voice and surprisingly evading attacks. He even sacrificed himself to ensure that his siblings wouldn't be caught by us. He was barely able to hide from us, and he stalled us briefly but bought just enough time for his siblings to reach safety. And so in this final test of stealth, the prince, Thunder… fails."


Part 2

Chapter 4: Unacceptable Casualties

December 26th, 2012

Within a small den on the rugged outskirts of Banff sat the second-in-command of the Rogues or at least someone who was the second-in-command. He huffed and scowled as he looked over a scout's report, a report that listed the findings in yet another area that had been combed through by tooth and claw. The Rogues searched everywhere they could, trying to find even a single clue as to the whereabouts of the Breeze's safe haven. But unfortunately for the commander, the report was more bad news etched in bone like every other report he had received from his scouts, and each report angered him even more than the last.

The former second-in-command of the Rogues went by the name of Elgin, a large orange wolf with a crescent-shaped scar on his forehead, and he sat among King's top court for his immense brutality and hatred towards Omegas. However, Elgin had fallen out of favor with the Rogue leader, King. Elgin, who once bowed to none but King, had been stripped of his position and power, given only a single way for redemption. For Elgin's multitude of blunders, he was tasked by King to do the impossible, to remove a thorn that had been in King's side for far too long. He needed to find the Breeze, destroy it, and come back to King with the spoils of war. It would be then and only then that Elgin could return to the position he lost, to the power and recognition he felt was owed to him. Some considered this mission nothing more than a wild goose chase, that it was akin to Elgin being banished and cursed to hunt a ghost for the rest of his days.

But as Elgin saw the reports, he knew some of his resources would occasionally go missing, that squads of scouts would randomly disappear or would get wiped out with no good explanation. He knew they weren't the only wolves out there. It was hard to believe this small pack could hinder him, a small pack tainted by Omegas and too scared to fight face-to-face. This was an inexcusable sin. He swore that he would crush the Breeze under his paw and return to King a legend, becoming the wolf who killed the wind.

So for him to be getting report after report of dead or missing scouts instead of a report depicting their discovery of the Sanctuary drained what little patience he started with. He looked up from the latest batch of bad news over to his trusted aide, trusted being used loosely here of course. His assistant was an old wolf Elgin had come across who seemed pretty clever, clever enough that, instead of killing him for the fun of it, Elgin decided this wolf could be useful on his crusade. This intelligent wolf went by the name of Oliver. He was an older grayish-yellow wolf with a tall but feeble-looking body, appearing as if it would only take a slight draft to knock him over.

One week earlier. . .

December 19th, 2012

Elgin stumbled across Oliver during his rage-fueled search by complete accident. On one of the numerous scouting trips looking for the Sky Sanctuary, the squad came across a lone Oliver making his way through Banff. Capturing the wolf was easy. Oliver didn't put up a fight when he was taken, sharing not a complaint or whimper. It would be hard to tell that he was a prisoner at all. Oliver was questioned by Elgin himself who felt desperate to know if this mysterious wolf knew anything, if he held any sort of clue on the Breeze.

"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Elgin asked as he pierced with a menacing and inquisitive stare.

Oliver thought on that question for a moment before answering.

"Me? Just an observer wolves often call Oliver. As far as what I'm doing here..." Oliver looked around the cave "...I believe I'm being interrogated."

Elgin could tell why the others were unsure if this wolf was even sane, but Elgin needed to make sure it wasn't an act. On the off chance that this was a member of the Breeze in front of his very eyes, he needed to get every drop of information out of this Oliver.

"Don't play me for a fool, you walking fossil, or I'll start getting information out of you the fun way." Elgin gave a sinister grin and seemed to relish in the idea of causing great pain to the wolf before him.

"I'm assuming you mean torture? It appears I'm not being interrogated well. *sigh* Sure, if you hurt me, then you can get me to talk, but there'd be no way to know if what I'm saying is the truth. Eventually, I'll just say whatever you want me to say to get you to stop. Torture gets you a forced confession, not information, you rookie." Elgin thought for a moment. He really wanted to say why Oliver was wrong but couldn't think of anything to dispute what he said. This, of course, made Elgin want to hurt him all the more, but before he could get the chance, Oliver spoke again. "Besides, you don't care about who I am or why I'm here. You care about what I know, and what I know is a great many things. For example, sir, I know you've been relieved of your power and sent off to find the Breeze."

Elgin, now getting frustrated by the ramblings he had been listening to, responded.

"Yes, I'm already very aware of my name and why I'm here, and I doubt that information is hard to find—it's not exactly a secret. So how about you tell me some useful information I don't already know before I decide you're not worth my time."

Oliver gave a soft chuckle.

"Ah, now we're getting somewhere. Well, I believe you weren't aware that the Breeze's home is known as the Sky Sanctuary."

Immediately, Elgin's ears perked up.

"What? How do you know that? Where did you learn the name of their haven!? ANSWER ME!"

"To learn such a thing, you need but only listen." Oliver looked the Rogue dead in the eye and gave a smirk. He then continued. "Since you seem a little slow on the uptake, I'll be blunt. You're looking for the Breeze, and as it turns out, I'm doing the same thing. You certainly have the wolfpower, but if you don't know what I know, then even in a thousand generations, you'd never find the Breeze. But if I just told you everything I know, then you'd have no reason to keep me alive and probably just kill me for the fun of it."

Elgin nodded his head in agreement as that did sound like something he would do.

"It sounds like you have something in mind then," he replied.

Back to the present. . .

"Oliver, what is the meaning of this!?" Elgin snapped, throwing the bone across the cave which just barely missed Oliver who seemed unfazed. "I gave you a job: TO FIND THE BREEZE!" Oliver remained quiet and still for a moment before noticing a draft carrying a leaf through the cave. Oliver pointed at the leaf.

"Oh, Elgin, I found the Breeze for you! No need to thank me." Having already been fuming at this point, the sarcastic response from Oliver left Elgin visibly irate, looking ready to pop a blood vessel as his eye slightly twitched. Trying to process the insanity he had just heard, Elgin repeated back in an angry and questioning tone.

"Thank you?!"

"You're welcome," Oliver replied smugly.

Besides King, Oliver was the only wolf in Banff who would dare to talk to Elgin in such a way. Elgin demanded respect, and those who did not give respect suffered the consequences. But Oliver knew he was the best chance Elgin had to complete the objective of finding and destroying the Breeze, and he knew that Elgin would never call his bluff. Oliver sat as a smug old wolf as Elgin could be compared to the sheer embodiment of rage.

"You crazy decrepit wolf! You're lucky I need you or you'd already be the newest piece of decoration MOUNTED ON MY WALL!" Elgin snapped his jaws only inches away from Oliver's face who still remained unfazed.

"You're right, Elgin, I am lucky, but so are you 'cause if you tried to add me as decor in here, then it would throw off the feeling of the entire room. Seriously, it's a good thing you're a commander and not an interior decorator... or no... I'm sorry you were a commander. I can be so forgetful in my old age."

Elgin regained himself. He responded as concisely as he could while still appearing ready to kill the next thing that moved.

"Enjoy your fun, you old bag of bones, but my patience is reaching its end. If you don't start producing results and fast, then I'm finding someone else to do the job and feeding you to the bears piece by bloody piece. That sounds like just the thing to lift my spirits."

Oliver then pointed at the cave's entrance.

"Well, it's a good thing the results are here."

A Rogue rushed into the room, clearly excited and slightly out of breath.

"Sir Elgin! News to report!" Elgin stopped him, radiating anger and bloodlust. The Alpha wished with every strand of hair that he wouldn't be Elgin's latest chew toy.

"I'm sure you can see I'm a little busy with something here, so for your sake, this news had better be good. Otherwise, I can't promise your family will recognize you at your funeral."

Doing his best not to buckle under the fear, the Alpha gave his report.

"S-sir, it is good news! A scouting party Oliver sent out managed to slip past the Breeze's lookouts while they were busy with other scouts! The party found the entrance to the sanctuary and managed to make it back! Well, only a single member did. He was found half-dead and barely breathing. The healers were amazed he made it back at all with how banged up he was and—" The Alpha stopped as he saw the devilish grin that slowly crawled across Elgin's face. Elgin began to cackle to himself as if he'd just been told the funniest joke he'd ever heard. The sound of the laugh unsettled the reporting subordinate. It made him even more scared than when Elgin was angry. Oliver then took a bow.

"You asked for fast results and here they are. I aim to please."

For once, Elgin didn't respond to Oliver with anger.

"I don't know if that was the greatest timing in history or if you're just that good, but I get the feeling your confidence doesn't come from a place like dumb luck. I'm very pleased, so you may consider your head your own. Keep delivering results like this, and I can deal with the sarcasm. Just don't push it."

Oliver remained silent as Elgin returned his attention to the quivering subordinate who was now ready to pass out. "No need to be afraid anymore. This is a happy day!"

"If I may make a suggestion, sir," the old wolf interjected, "once you get the long-awaited answers you've been looking for, why not hold a feast to commemorate the wolves' hard work? It'll help with morale for the battle to come, and besides, could you ask for a better reason to celebrate?"

"That sounds like an excellent idea, Oliver! I'm ruthless, not heartless. I punish failure, but I'm also more than happy to reward success. A great achievement has been made today and such an achievement deserves a grand feast to honor it! Oliver, begin preparations for the festivities immediately! When I return with my prize, we'll eat till our bellies pop!"

Oliver bowed once more and gave a slight grin while Elgin wasn't looking. He side-eyed the subordinate with a menacing stare, one that gave a very different impression than the face he was making just moments ago. "And you, Alpha!" said Elgin, pointing at the subordinate. "You shall be a guard!" Elgin approached with an evil smile. "Take me to this sole survivor. I want to hear the answers to this elusive secret personally."


Chapter 5: What Comes Before the Storm

Oliver arrived at the medical cave and sat out front so as not to disturb Elgin's triumphant moment. He enjoyed the peacefulness in the air that he knew would soon be replaced by a hint of danger as Elgin left the cave not long after.

"So that's how they did it," Elgin muttered to himself as he left the cave. "A large plateau that's actually hollow and with no ceiling, tucked away right where we'd regularly search. No wonder it seemed like they'd just randomly disappear! They're clever. I'll give them that, but the Breeze was no match for me in the end!" Elgin gave a menacing cackle as he enjoyed the bliss of knowing the answer to the question that eluded him for so long.

Oliver then interjected.

"Sounds like a fitting hole for cowards to hide in. And, if I may, sir, what will you do with the surviving scout?" Elgin quickly responded after a lighthearted sigh.

"I couldn't have said it better myself, my intelligent friend! As for the scout, I want him tended to from snout to paw! He's my champion, a hero to Rogues everywhere! And holding such an amazing title should obviously come with perks. Whatever he wants, he gets!"

Oliver then grinned.

"I agree with you completely on this one. It'll be great for inspiring loyalty among the troops. I'll stop in with him now and see if there's anything he might want or need. The feast has already been prepared. Just summon the troops and enjoy. I'll be along to meet you there shortly."

Elgin started to walk away with a joyous grin on his face.

"Excellent! What would I ever do without you, Oliver?"

Watching Elgin leave allowed Oliver to make an equally joyous grin as he muttered under his breath.

"What indeed." He entered the cave. An injured wolf lay on a fine bear skin in the middle of the room. "Elgin is about to throw a feast," he told the medical staff, "and I'm not particularly hungry. Why don't you guys go while I watch over the patient? I'll send word if anything happens." The medical staff all excitedly thanked Oliver for his generosity and made their way to the feast while the old advisor looked over the injured wolf. The beaten and battered wolf was a blackish green that looked almost like natural camo. He was an average size and went by the name of Abel. "Looks like they made quite the mess of you," Oliver commented, looking over Abel and his injuries.

Abel laughed a bit before coughing up a little blood as he retorted.

"What? This? It's just a scratch. I'll be back on my feet in no time."

"I was worried something like this might happen. Are you sure you're still up for this?" Oliver said with a concerned but committed look on his face.

"I've already done the hard part. There's no way I'm backing out now that things are gonna get good. Just give me some time, and I'll be back in the game," Abel replied in a determined voice. Oliver sighed.

"I knew you were going to say that. but I'm afraid time isn't something we have much of right now. The pieces are already in motion. You're lucky I'm always prepared."

Abel looked confused as Oliver walked over into a dark corner of the cave, moved a stone, and revealed a faint white orb that he carried over to Abel. "This, my mangled friend, is an onion. They have rejuvenating and healing properties unlike anything else I've ever encountered. As I thought this might happen, I stashed it here ahead of time. When the time is right, eat it and join the battle. You know what to do from there."

Oliver then put the onion back in its hiding spot before he turned around to leave the cave, but before he could make it out of the entrance, Abel added.

"You really are prepared for anything, aren't you?"

And without turning around to look at Abel, Oliver looked down at the hard floor before replying in a stoic voice.

"Not when it mattered."

Abel looked to the onion's hiding spot and sat in silence for a moment as he pondered something.

"Don't worry, old wolf. We'll make it right."

Meanwhile. . .

Over three months had passed since the final exam of Ranking School. Many of the wolves that took the most recent exam ended up passing. Even several of those that were tagged were still deemed good enough to pass, but not all of them were so lucky. Cadets labeled unfit to become Alphas were instead given the rank of Omega and tasked with menial jobs around the pack.

Within the Breeze, even Omegas weren't able to frolic and play. A pack in Banff that was always hiding from the Rogues couldn't afford even a single wolf not pulling their weight. As such, if you couldn't be stealthy enough to be an Alpha and do work outside the Sanctuary, then you'd instead be an Omega and do work inside the Sanctuary.

Thunder, one of the unlucky ones, had been working on getting used to his new responsibilities, using his immense size and intellect to organize and keep track of the pack's supplies in the storage caves, patrolling around the Sanctuary grounds, and using his position as royalty the best he could to make sure things within the Sanctuary ran like clockwork, all the while keeping up the same somber smile he had been holding since the announcement of his results. Thunder lacked his usual charisma and acted as if he was working in a fog, and this, of course, left his family worried. Cloud, Drizzle, and Zephyr spied on Thunder from a distance for some time as they fretted about his well-being and hoped he would feel better.

Thunder was always impossible to sneak up on. Growing up, the royal trio would play what they called "Shadow Tag," a game that blurred the line between hiders and seekers. All players had to tag each other, but they had to do it without their targets noticing until a tap of the paw was delivered. Not only would you be out if you were tagged but if your target saw you before you tagged them, you were out, and the winner was the last wolf untagged. It was a game their father had taught them that, apparently, their mother had invented. When he first played, Thunder was untouchable at this game, able to spot anyone, even Cloud, a mile away without even trying, but now Thunder felt like a bear could be right next to him, and he wouldn't even notice.

"He's like a zombie! Food in the cave, but nobody's home. I can barely get a conversation out of him anymore," Drizzle said with pure worry in her voice.

"I know, right?! I even brought the weirdo berries the other day since it's his favorite food, and he said he wasn't hungry! Since when have you seen that mountain of fur not hungry!?" Zephyr chimed in with a combination of confusion and concern.

Cloud said nothing as he watched over his eldest from a distance, but while he didn't speak, the look on his face made it clear his other son and daughter weren't the only ones concerned.

Drizzle then responded to Zephyr.

"He's not even eating!? We can't let this continue! He'll starve himself to death! Dad, we need to—" As Drizzle turned around to face and talk to her father, the two siblings realized he had disappeared.

"What? He's doing that already?" said Zephyr, a bit surprised. "I know it's winter, but there's not even any snow!" They both then looked back to Thunder as Cloud was standing right beside him, but he did not respond to Cloud's presence at all.

Cloud observed the brown wolf working on the supplies. He cleared his throat but it garnered no response from Thunder.

"Thunder?" The sound of his name woke the big wolf from his trance.

"Oh, hey, Dad. I'm almost done organizing and recording the latest haul of food. Seems like you guys brought in a good amount this time." Thunder spoke softly, uncharacteristic of his name, and he wouldn't look his father in the eyes as he talked. He kept his gaze fixated on the work in front of him. Cloud paused for a moment as he looked to the sky, wondering what his beloved mate would say at a time like this.

"You know, Thunder, if there's anything on your mind, you can always talk to me." Immediately after saying that, the other royal siblings appeared before Thunder.

"You can talk to us too!" Zephyr added, followed by Drizzle.

"Of course, you can! We're worried about our big brother, you know?"

Thunder looked up at them with welling tears and the smile on his face cracking as if he was ready to break down at any moment.

Suddenly, the family heard a familiar voice.

"Sorry to cut the touching moment short, but there's urgent news for the pack leader." The family looked over to Cody and Chad who had just returned from a mission. They had serious looks on their faces which were different from their usual demeanors. Chad then immediately followed.

"It's urgent, boss."

Cloud, who seemed crestfallen from having to walk away from his son who was ready to finally talk, asked the rest of his offspring to wait just a moment as he walked over to the duo.

"With what you just interrupted, for your sake, it better be urgent."

Cody remained silent, seemingly slightly frozen with fear as Chad spoke.

"Boss, we couldn't spot any Rogues."

"You interrupted this just because you couldn't find your target?!" Cloud snapped.

"No, boss, we interrupted you because we couldn't find any target at all. There wasn't a single Rogue patrol for miles. Since the start of the occupation, we've never seen anything like it. The Rogues aren't the type to take a holiday, so we felt it necessary to inform you immediately," Chad said in the calmest and most collected voice he was able to manage. Cody then chimed in as he stepped forward.

"I-I've got a bad feeling about this, sir. We need to look into this without a moment to lose! We should assemble an emergency squad and figure out what the Rogues are up to right away!"

Cloud thought for a moment and returned to his calm demeanor while giving the two a glare.

"Unfortunately, I agree with you. This is too peculiar to ignore, but I'll make this clear: watch yourselves around my pups, understand?" The two immediately shook their heads in fear and understanding as Cloud turned back to Zephyr and Drizzle to include them in the conversation. "Alright, there seems to be some kind of development with the Rogues, and we need to investigate immediately. There's no time to assemble any other squad, so those of us here will go."

"Not to argue, boss," said Chad, "but this could be a very dangerous mission. Are you sure about bringing your kin?"

Cloud looked over to Chad and Cody and saw the genuine worry on both of their faces. The two had seemed to take the leader's words to heart.

"This is strictly an intelligence-gathering mission, and when it comes to intel-gathering, my family is the best in the pack. We need them on this mission."

Cloud then realized what he had just said and looked over to Thunder who, by this point, had already returned to his work on the supplies, the light in his eyes even more faded than they were before. Every fiber of Cloud's being wanted to stay and be there for his son, but he knew he needed to ensure the pack's safety. "Thunder, we'll continue the conversation as soon as we get back. I promise." Cloud ran off, gesturing for everyone else to follow. Thunder's siblings looked equally distraught as Thunder turned to them.

"Don't you worry about me. I'll be alright. Go get the job done. and come back to me in one piece, okay, you two?" The siblings nodded to Thunder and then chased after their father as Thunder realized that Chad and Cody were still standing there.

"Hold down the fort for us, will you?"

"We're counting on our last line of defense, little boss." The two then shot off to catch up to the rest as some light returned to Thunder's empty eyes. He quietly parroted two of the words while looking over to the Sanctuary's gate, the only exit and entrance to their home

"Last… line?"

After his family made it through the gate and could no longer be seen, Thunder returned to his menial job as another wolf approached him from outside the cave.

"Looks like they really left in a hurry." The wolf that spoke was another Omega that had failed the exam the same year as Thunder, a female who was as small as she was clumsy. She had a pure silver coat and had the name Echo. She was the runt in her litter. Her siblings were born healthy and strong, but when she was born last, so small and weak, her parents remarked that she was nothing more than the echo of her siblings, hence her name.

Echo's comment didn't stop Thunder from working. He intended to keep to himself.

"There was an emergency mission they needed to go on. It's fine. That's just how it is sometimes."

She looked at Thunder unconvinced. She swore she could even see some tears filling up Thunder's eyes as he worked, but she wasn't too sure as he kept his head down and hidden.

"Is that right? I would hope it's alright, but you already know my deal with families. I'm not sure what a healthy one is supposed to look like." Echo tried to push a pile of meat to another area of the cave. "My parents never once believed I could be an Alpha. They basically called me an Omega from the day I was born. They could never be bothered to care when my star siblings were there, lined up to be great Alphas."

Grunting and struggling, she fought to push the meat as she talked when suddenly Thunder started moving the meat for her. "Oh, thank you." She moved on to organizing the berries. "We're on the same raft here, but you actually have a loving family who cares so deeply about you. I know it's hard, but you still have so much you can be thankful for. You're even skilled at so many things unlike me."

Echo started getting sad too and sighed, thinking Thunder wasn't even listening, that, of course, no one cared about little Echo.

"Says the wolf who organized the berries faster than I've ever seen," Thunder replied.

Having looked behind herself, Echo saw Thunder towering over her, examining her work with a grin on his face and a look of pride in his eyes.

"Oh! Uh, thanks, Thunder! I'm sure it was just a coincidence though."

He gave a deep exhale.

"Coincidence, my butt," he retorted. "It takes more than luck to organize this the way you did. I always end up squashing the berries, so they take me forever. Thank you."

Echo looked away, embarrassed without Thunder noticing. "What are you doing here anyway, Echo? You're not on supply duty today."

Snapping back to reality, Echo answered, walking over to another pile of berries.

"I had already finished my work at the medical cave for the day, and I know how much you've been pushing yourself, so I figured I'd give the big crybaby some company."

He chuckled at being called a crybaby when the pile of berries in front of Echo collapsed and covered her. After taking a second to process what just happened, Thunder broke into a truly joyous laugh, the first time Thunder had laughed since he got the soul-crushing news at the exam. "I'm glad you find this funny, but can you help me out here?" Echo said, slightly embarrassed. Thunder managed to collect himself and walk over to the talking pile of berries. He wiped the berries aside with ease and revealed the wolf hidden underneath.

"You're berry fun, you know that?"

Echo winced.

"Ugh, that pun was terrible."

"Yeah, I might be a little out of practice," Thunder agreed. The two then paused before they giggled together. Soon, Thunder looked back to the Sanctuary gate and mumbled to himself. "A last line of defense, huh?"


Chapter 6: Embers of War Catch the Wind

It was early afternoon when an elite team of wolves moved swiftly and silently through the dense forests of Banff. These masters in the art of stealth were seemingly impossible to spot. Even owls would struggle to notice them as they darted through the forest with speed and precision. This group of five wolves led by Cloud, the leader of the Breeze, were in the midst of undertaking a mission much more dire than they first realized. As they moved through the trees and quickly covered ground, they just as quickly realized that something was off. By now, they normally would have come across at least two or three recon squads of Rogues scouring to find the Breeze's beloved home, but instead, the forest was deathly still. Cloud's team had yet to spot even a single Rouge, and as they made their way to the Rogues' base of operations to investigate, this fact made Cloud more and more nervous.

The entire team could hear crowd-like sounds emanating from the Rogue base which progressively got louder. Once they had arrived, they stayed just along the outskirts to avoid detection and, with now a mountain of curiosity, sought to understand what could possibly cause the Rogues of all wolves to take a day off. As they peered into the base, it seemed as though every single Rogue was all piled into one spot. When separated into squads, the Rogues were enemies the Breeze had fought a million times before and, by now, were all too familiar with. But for the first time ever, Cloud could see just how many enemies they were dealing with, and when all in one spot, the Rogues' vast numbers suddenly made them a lot more intimidating than how they had come to be known before. It seemed as though these invaders were throwing a party of some kind. They could be heard laughing and having fun as an entire feast could be seen lined up for them to enjoy.

From their hiding place, it was difficult for the team to make out much more information than that. Cloud then silently directed the team to split up and investigate. Chad and Cody would scan the outskirts of the base for any straggling Rogues they might be able to interrogate. Drizzle, as the stealth prodigy, was the only one skilled enough to infiltrate the base and collect information from the inside. Meanwhile, Cloud would stay put as their rendezvous point and had Zephyr take position overhead in a nearby tree to keep an overwatch of Drizzle, Chad, and Cody. Zephyr would report to Cloud just below him on anything happening or details of note that he might see. Immediately, Zephyr could make out several mounds of food scattered around the base that the Rogues were feasting on. Zephyr couldn't help getting hungry while looking at all the food and decided to shift his attention elsewhere before his stomach would want to rumble.

The base's defenses were clearly weak at the moment as Zephyr could see wolves that should have been on guard trying to hide how drunk they were and not doing a very good job. Zephyr couldn't help noticing just how poorly trained and poorly managed these Rogues were, but with these kinds of numbers, they still would be tough to beat. Seeing nothing particularly noteworthy, Zephyr turned his attention to his comrades and hoped they would remain safe.

As Cody and Chad encircled the base, they put their renowned skills as second and third-in-command to good use. The duo maintained enough distance to avoid detection but were able to remain close enough that they could grab the first suitable wolf at a moment's notice. The Rogues were not the most intelligent adversary, which can make intel gathering more difficult than you would think. Chances are that if the two just grabbed any old Rogue, then the Breeze wouldn't learn much of anything at all. But with every Rogue in the region all conveniently amassed in one spot, the duo was confident they could pick out a good apple from the spoiled bunch and gather some desperately needed information.

As they watched the festivities, the two saw multiple Rogues that could easily have been grabbed coming and going, either to take a leak or walk aimlessly as they were simply too drunk to tell where they were going, but as of yet, not a one seemed actually worth grabbing. That is until, as the duo continued circling, they eventually spotted a single wolf eating by himself near the edge of the base and who seemed to be talking to himself.

"These wolves are freaking morons. Why the hell are we even celebrating? We haven't even done anything yet! That idiot Elgin doing whatever he wants and that Oliver whispering who knows what into Elgin's ear. They're both crazy, and I nearly got killed in the crossfire for just doing my job! *sigh* How the heck did I wind up in this crazy place? Was I some horrible wolf in my past life? I wish I could be anywhere else than here right now."

However, this wolf should have been more careful of what he wished for because the duo was interested in this bizarre Rogue who seemed different than the rest and was happy to grant that wish for him. This Rogue was sitting close to the edge but was still visible to several wolves around the area. This would normally make him impossible to capture, but the two already knew exactly what to do. They were able to tell exactly when everyone in the area would be looking away from their target. They grabbed him in that instant while striking a quick blow to the back of the head to keep him quiet and moving back into the surrounding forest.

Zephyr watched over the duo and couldn't help but be impressed at their skills. They were recognized as second and third-in-command for a reason. And as they now had acquired their target, Zephyr's attention shifted solely to Drizzle. He did his best to keep track of her as she moved through the base. Drizzle moved through it like a shadow in the night. Not a single Rogue had any idea she was there, and she was gone just as covertly. With the sheer number of wolves nearby, anyone else would have been caught long ago, but Drizzle's skill had no parallel.

However, just because she was able to, doesn't mean it was easy. It took much of her concentration to avoid detection which left little room for gathering much information. She noticed many of the Rogues were drunk on fermented berries and were eating food to their hearts' content as many of them laughed and played. She noticed the Rogues seemed to stick to smaller groups within their hierarchy. Instead of a structure of respect, the wolves seemed to bully their way to the food. She thought it was a system very fitting for the Rogues but not really all that noteworthy.

The investigation proceeded without a hitch. As Drizzle made her way through the Rogue base, Zephyr continued watching over her and was amazed at how she was able to weave through all the wolves and all the peering eyes everywhere. To the wolf sitting atop the tree, it was like watching his sister dodge raindrops. Zephyr saw Drizzle making her way through, then suddenly grinned and contained his laugh. He noticed Drizzle grab a piece of food when a Rogue wasn't looking. The Rogue looked for his meal and became clearly confused about how it ended up missing before it somehow reappeared moments later as nothing more than a bone. Zephyr then saw the Rogue toss away the fermented berries he was eating, convinced that they had made him hallucinate, which just made Zephyr want to laugh all the more.

The team made their way back to Cloud after the signal was given, but before Zephyr descended, he gave the base one more good scan to make sure the team wasn't detected. He noticed a Rogue sitting before the huge feast in the center with other wolves bringing him food and fermented berries. Zephyr assumed this was the Rogue leader, Elgin, that he had heard about. Next to Elgin was an older wolf that Zephyr didn't recognize. As he focused on the older wolf to memorize the Rogue's appearance, it looked to Zephyr as if this old Rogue realized his presence in the tree. That was impossible, Zephyr thought, but it did seem as if the wolf was looking directly at him; however, since the Rogue didn't sound any alarms or do anything aside from continuing to look in his direction, Zephyr couldn't say for certain. The somewhat creepy exchange lit a fire under Zephyr and caused him to rejoin the rest of the team as quickly as he could.

As Zephyr reached the rendezvous point, he saw everyone else waiting for him and noticed an unconscious wolf on Chad's back. Zephyr was obviously curious but knew this wasn't the place to ask questions. He let everyone know that the coast was clear, and the team made their way to the nearest safeden to regroup and decide what to do next. The Breeze had constructed safedens across the forest to be used as temporary bases of operations during missions. They were designed to be findable only by members of the Breeze and were a crucial part of the Breeze's success; it was the secret behind their ability to suddenly disappear without a trace.

The five entered the safeden as Chad placed the unconscious wolf on the floor. Zephyr was unable to hold back his curiosity anymore, but before he can even ask, Drizzle beat him to the punch.

"Alright, I need to ask about the bear in the room, what's up with the dead guy?"

Chad watched over their guest as Cody answered.

"He's not dead, just knocked out. We wanted to interrogate him, but we felt it was too risky doing it right next to a base filled to the brim with Rogues. So we gave him a light bump on the head and brought him with us to interrogate instead."

"And what are you hoping to learn from this guy exactly?" Drizzle replied. "Didn't we stop trying to interrogate the Rogues since they ended up never knowing anything useful?"

"In a situation as bizarre and unprecedented as this," said Chad, "if there's even a slim chance this wolf knows anything at all, then it's at least worth a shot."

Cloud joined the conversation and proceeded to give out orders.

"I agree with you, Chad. We need to know everything we can right now, so first thing's first: Drizzle, Zephyr, share what you've learned, and afterward, we'll wake up our surprise guest."

The brother and sister looked at each other. Zephyr gestured for Drizzle to go first, using playful gestures as if he was a monarch giving permission. Drizzle played along in kind to thank him and proceeded to give her report.

"As I moved through the base, I was only able to pick up bits and pieces of information. There were so many wolves around and eyes everywhere that I mostly had to focus on making sure I wasn't caught. Information gathering was always Thunder's specialty, but from what I could gather, they were celebrating some kind of victory and Elgin had summoned every Rogue under his command to join the celebration."

After listening to the report, Cloud then shifted his focus to Zephyr to hear any information his son might have spotted from above. After a moment, Zephyr gave his report.

"From up above, it really makes it easy to tell how giant their army is now that we could see them all in one spot. Aside from that, the only thing of note was an older wolf that was staying close to Elgin. He looked too frail to be a fighter, and yet when I was on overwatch, I could have sworn he was looking right at me."

"That's probably Oliver." Suddenly, a new voice joined the conversation. Drizzle and Zephyr turned around to see the Rogue waking up, groaning from the pain in his head. "That wolf creeps me out like crazy. I went to go give my report to Elgin, and that Oliver gave me the most off-setting side-eye that it still sends shivers down my spine."

Cody turned to the Rogue who was of standard height and standard build with grayish-white fur. The second-in-command responded, slightly baffled.

"You know, I don't think I've ever come across such a chatty prisoner before. Now, why would a Rogue so openly share information like this?"

The wolf looked slightly offended as he scanned the room he'd woken up in.

"Hey, I have no loyalty to those monsters," he replied. "Many of them joined freely, maybe out of greed or some misguided moral code, but not all of us are like that. My pack was one of many that were conquered by the Rogues, and they gave us a choice: either provide them with some fighters or be wiped out. I'm forced to fight for them for the sake of my pack, but I have no issue telling you what I know if it means getting me out of this alive. And I'd appreciate it if you didn't call me a Rogue. The name's Benny."

As Benny finished speaking, he noticed how surprised all of these mysterious members of the Breeze were. He was terrified to be surrounded by the wolves he'd heard countless ghost stories of and deeply hoped that showing his genuine distaste for the Rogues would be enough to keep his life. At this point, Cloud approached Benny calmly, but even Benny could tell that this was not a wolf to be messed with. Benny got the same feeling of danger from Cloud as he did from Elgin, that either could kill him in an instant if they so choose, but unlike Elgin who was akin to a raging inferno, Cloud felt more like a fog that hid something powerful and deadly. Cloud looked to Benny, and in his usual soft tone, politely spoke to him.

"Alright, Benny, it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Cloud, and I'm the leader of the Breeze. If you tell us what you know, then you have my word that you will remain alive and unharmed."

Benny looked Cloud in the eyes for a moment and felt he could believe the promise that was offered.

"Well, I guess your word is the best I'm gonna be able to get. I'll tell you what I know, but you might not like what you learn." After a moment of silence, Cloud did not waver in his resolution, and so Benny continued. "Well, alright, the old wolf you were talking about was probably Oliver, and I can tell you right now he's about as clever and two-faced as they come. We found him wandering the woods by himself not long ago and brought him back to base for questioning. Suddenly, next thing we all know, he's Elgin's advisor and starts bossing everyone around. Also, he's the reason we're celebrating tonight from what I've heard."

"What do mean by he's the reason you're celebrating?" Cody asked, filled with a worried curiosity.

Benny looked at the wolves before him and gave a sad sigh. After his own pack was attacked, he felt bad for what was about to befall another.

"What I mean is that they found your hidey-hole. What was it you guys called it? The Sky Sanctuary? Anyway, Oliver apparently managed to find it, and that's what all the celebrating is for. They're getting all their troops together to prepare a raid on your home."

This was any member of the Breeze's worst nightmare. It was the ultimate worst-case scenario that they had been trying to avoid all this time. Cloud was now facing down an army of bloodthirsty warmongers who wanted nothing more than to destroy his home and tear apart his family, his pack. The rest of the team was equally horrified as Chad suddenly asked calmly and concisely.

"How long until they plan to attack?"

"I don't know the exact day," Benny quickly answered, "but I know it'll take time to prepare that many wolves for a fight. From what I've heard, you've probably got about a couple of weeks."

Cody then frantically spoke to Cloud, trying to come up with a solution to save their pack.

"Sir, what if we grab what supplies we can carry and take our chances passing through bear territory to seek asylum in Jasper?"

"And abandon our home?!" Drizzle interjected. "We can't just turn tail and run!"

"I agree that we can't run but not out of pride," Cloud added. "Even if we were fortunate enough to be granted passage by the bears, winter is already upon us. We would never be able to carry enough supplies to make it to Jasper now, and chances are most of us would freeze to death on the way there anyway. The Sanctuary is our only defensible position and our home. The one option available to us is to fight for it."

The other wolves continued to talk over their options and details on the situation as Zephyr couldn't help but think to his brother and wonder what Thunder would do in a situation like this. It seemed as though his brother always knew what to do. He would surely know a way to save their home. And as he thought of his brother, Zephyr noticed something pale hidden away in the back of the safeden. Approaching to investigate, he discovered a bone that had been written on and left there, hidden away. Everyone was still captivated by the seriousness of their conversation as Zephyr called out to get their attention.

"Uhhhhh, guys? You're gonna want to see this."

The team stopped their conversation, confused. They walked over to Zephyr while Chad kept watching over their prisoner. They walked over and noticed the bone that had caught Zephyr's eye.

"Yes, Zephyr, it's a bone. Congratulations. We're kind of in the middle of an important conversation here. Maybe you should be a part of it," Cody said, annoyed.

As Cloud took a closer look at the bone, he too noticed the writing that had been etched and immediately knew this was important.

"Cody this isn't some random bone. This is a note. And it says it's from Oliver."

Cody, surprised beyond belief, sprinted to the bone to look for himself as if he had to see it to believe it.

"That's impossible! For that to be here, it would have to mean he was able to find this safeden! How would he have been able to do that!?"

Benny then chuckled to himself.

"Yep, that definitely sounds like Oliver. The guy is either a genius or a madman. My bet is on both."

Cody, now infuriated, pounced on Benny in anger.

"YOU! HOW DID HE DO IT!? ANSWER ME!"

In a fit of rage, Cody demanded answers and was now choking Benny. Benny tried to answer but was unable to speak when, suddenly, Cody was body slammed into the wall by Cloud. Cody looked back to see Cloud standing over him who had approached without making a sound. Cloud then put his face close to Cody and spoke softly once again.

"I don't know what it is you think you're doing, Cody, but I gave my word that this wolf would not be harmed. Your anger is understandable, but disobey me or pull another stupid stunt like that again, and I'll write Oliver a reply using one of your bones. Understand?" Cody, absolutely terrified and now being the one unable to say a word, quickly nodded his head as Cloud now turned his attention back to Benny and talked in an apologetic tone. Benny coughed and tried to catch his breath. "I'm very sorry for my friend's behavior. I assure you it won't happen again."

"You really do keep to your word, don't you? Don't worry about it. I was satisfied just watching him piss himself."

Cloud thanked Benny for his understanding as Drizzle suddenly interrupted.

"This is all well and good, but can we please get back to the mind-blowing bone now!? If Oliver was able to find this safeden and decided to leave us a note instead of leaving us an ambush, then I'd really like to know what that note says."

Looking back to the bone in agreement, Zephyr scanned it and began to read the writing aloud.

Hello, members of the Breeze. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Oliver, and I have been searching for you for some time. I am currently in the employment of a deranged lunatic prone to temper tantrums and was left little choice but to give him what he sought. I send this message both as a warning and as advice. A battle is coming, and it is one you will not be able to escape. Even if you flee, I have little doubt Elgin would waste no time following you and starting the fight all over again. He is a blight I would not wish on any pack, but simply killing him would do you little good. The leader of the Rogues wants you gone, so even if Elgin were killed, King would just send someone else to continue the hunt. If you wish to be free and live in peace again, you must break Elgin and send him back to King as a message that the Breeze cannot be beaten. Then you must slip away to somewhere the Rogues will never find. I will provide what help I can from the inside, and one day, I look forward to finally meeting you face-to-face. Until then, do us both a favor and stay alive.

Sincerely, your ally, Oliver

None of the team who listened to the note knew what to make of it. They were concerned and unsure if it was genuine. Drizzle finally broke the silence.

"It sounds like he wants to help us."

"How do we know that for sure?" Chad asked.

Benny happily answered that question for Chad and gave a warning of his own.

"You don't. Like I said before, Oliver is as smart and devious as they come. I've seen it firstpaw. If you ask me, you shouldn't trust a word that guy says."

"I'm not sure if this Oliver is being sincere or if this is some elaborate trick," said Cloud, "but what I do know is that there is about to be an army knocking at our den walls, and as of now, we only have so much time to prepare as much as we can. Chad, Cody, bring our guest. He'll be staying with us until this conflict with the Rogues is settled. Now let's do some more recon before we get back to the Sanctuary. There's a lot of planning to do."


Chapter 7: Setting Fog and Rising Smoke

December 29th, 2012

Since the moment Thunder had been deemed an Omega, he took his work extra seriously for the sake of his pack, but some worried he took it too seriously. He began to work tirelessly day in and day out without rest or thought for his health. He acted like a zombie, and this caused his family to worry deeply for the big wolf, but they were unsure of how to help him. It was this tireless work that caught Echo's attention starting out. She noticed all Thunder would do and simply thought he was dedicated, but as time marched on, and she realized just how hard Thunder was actually pushing himself, she eventually started to worry. For a time, she would follow him around, trying to use what little stealth skills she had to see what his daily routine was like. What she discovered worried her deeply.

She saw the big wolf throw himself into job after job without a moment to rest and barely even taking time to eat. His eyes looked empty, and she felt he was trying to do something, anything, to distract him from the pain he was enduring. She had her own woes and plights, but she couldn't just let this wolf work himself to death, so she decided she would do what she could to help Thunder. Often, he wouldn't notice her presence, so it was easy for her to tag along on occasion, especially with no words exchanged. In time though, Thunder grew aware of her presence, and it became soothing to the big beast.

Echo waited patiently for Thunder to finally give her a chance and let her bandage the wounds to Thunder's heart and pride. As the days flew, he began to speak to her. She watched Thunder's soul return, the fire in his eyes return. She even got the wolf who would do nothing but work to slow down and work at a pace better for his health. In the beginning, napping in the storage den sounded like a funny joke, but eventually, Echo convinced Thunder a nap would help him, and he chose to believe in her word as she hadn't steered him wrong yet. All the while, Echo would stare at the lumbering giant and see Thunder at his core, bereft of his stress, his very soul laid bare as he put it back together.

Echo was astounded by what she saw. She then realized Thunder wasn't the only one changing. She felt her curiosity turn to astonishment, then worry, and then she was simply impressed at the strength of will Thunder possessed. His loving nature and caring soul began to captivate Echo as she could only watch in amazement at how this wolf could pull himself together after being in such a dark place. Finally, that captivation turned into something Echo could have never guessed, something primal, something pure.

She wanted to be the one that love and care were directed towards. She wanted to be one of the wolves Thunder treasured, and she wondered if, maybe, Thunder felt the same. She hoped he felt the same, and so she continued to stay by his side, hoping for what she considered to be a miracle. To be close to someone that didn't despise her, to learn of proper love, not the broken kind her family taught her.

Thunder's family ran off for some urgent assignment which seemed to be especially tough on Thunder, and she finally managed to get Thunder to take the nap she felt he needed for a long time. The two awoke from their nap after several hours had passed. Thunder looked over to his small friend and yawned.

"Okay, I'll admit you were right. That nap was pretty nice."

Looking up at Thunder, Echo's face plainly showed her thinking, "I told you so" as she grinned and replied.

"Of course I was right. Everybody needs a good nap, including you, Mr. Perfect."

Thunder gave a grin back before he looked to the sky. It had been two and a half days now, so his family would be back from their mission at any moment. He then looked back to Echo.

"They should be returning soon, so I think I'll head for the entrance and meet them."

Echo's ears dropped and the smile disappeared from her face.

"Okay, I'll head out then. My family doesn't exactly want me around, so I'll try to find something to do."

As she turned around to leave, Thunder could clearly tell she was sad to go. He wasn't blind or dumb.

"Well, if you're looking for something to do. You could always come along and meet my family."

Her ears immediately perked up as Echo quickly turned around and looked at Thunder with a giant smile on her face. She was so thrilled by his offer that all she could do was quickly nod her head which gave Thunder a chuckle. He then gestured for her to follow, and the two made their way to the Sanctuary entrance and waited for the team to return. Of course, as if on cue, shortly after the two arrived, the team returned through the entrance and noticed Thunder waiting there which surprised them. Only Cloud, Drizzle, and Zephyr had arrived so far as Cody and Chad had to move with the much slower Benny, but what surprised the family, even more, was the feminine little wolf waiting next to Thunder. Cloud was simply happy to see his son as Drizzle and Zephyr noticed Echo and looked at each other with grins on their faces.

Running over to his son, Cloud could see the bit of light in Thunder's eyes once more, and this brought him a wave of relief.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here, son. I was worried you'd still be working yourself too hard somewhere."

His son then smiled which was the first time he'd seen Thunder smile since the exam. It made Cloud want to cry tears of joy and relief. Thunder then gestured to the little wolf next to him.

"I probably would have been if Echo over here hadn't been so kind to me."

The sudden acknowledgment caught Echo by surprise and left her embarrassed. She looked to Cloud, the famed pack leader, and noticed the warm look of pure appreciation in his eyes. She had never received such positive reinforcement before and was unsure how to respond before Zephyr suddenly chimed in.

"What's this, big bro? You go and finally get yourself a girlfriend, you big heartbreaker?"

Zephyr saying this took Echo from embarrassed to full-on flustered as her cheeks grew red. She tried to say something in retaliation but couldn't get any words out. After a second, Drizzle suddenly chimed in too.

"Oh, come on, Zephyr. You know it's impolite to tease the love birds, especially when they're so obviously good for each other."

After growing up together, Thunder was all too familiar with his siblings' antics and games. He enjoyed their humor but could tell it was starting to fry Echo's brain, so he decided he would come in to save the day.

"Alright, you two, be nice. She's not used to your kind of games, so I'd appreciate it if you'd go easy on her."

The two conceded and agreed to stop teasing Echo. She gave a look of thanks as Thunder winked back at her as a way of saying, "You're welcome." This, of course, got Echo embarrassed all over again as she turned her head away once more. Cloud, watching the whole exchange, felt so happy for his son as he then turned to Echo.

"It seems you've been taking good care of my son while I have not been able to. You being Alpha or Omega makes no difference to me, and your act was a kind one. You are welcome in our family any time."

The scene almost moved Echo to tears as she felt like she was finally learning what a family was supposed to be. Chad, Cody, and Benny finally made their way through the entrance with Benny clearly very out of breath. Their arrival cut the warm moment short since Cloud was unfortunately reminded of the impending crisis the pack had to prepare for. Thunder noticed the team had returned with an extra member which confused him when Zephyr walked over.

"About time you guys finally caught up. You get lost on the way or something?"

Cody grinned at the young wolf's smart aleck remarks and gestured to Benny.

"Very funny, you little squirrel. If you couldn't tell, it's 'cause the plus-one over here couldn't keep up the pace to save his life. And I mean that literally. We threatened to kill him a couple times if he didn't run faster, and he still couldn't do it."

After saying that, Benny dropped to the ground, exhausted as he continued trying to catch his breath and spoke the best he could between breaths.

"You… guys… are… monsters."

After the exchange, Cody and Chad laughed with their struggling companion. Chad then gave orders to the siblings.

"Alright, you two, I've got a special assignment for you."

"Is this mission going to be exciting? Or maybe dangerous? I'm hoping for both," said Zephyr.

Continuing with a stoic demeanor, Chad responded.

"You'll get plenty of excitement and danger in the war to come, more than you could ever ask for and more. But what I need you two to do now is watch over the Rogue. Make sure he doesn't try anything funny and see what information you can get out of him. He seems pretty open already to sharing, so having someone get close to him would likely work best as it would make him feel more comfortable to talk."

The siblings agreed to their mission as Chad collected Cody. The two ran off to begin preparations for the battle to come. By this point, being unable to contain his curiosity anymore, Thunder leaned over to his father.

"Hey, what's up with the zombie? Chad and Cody make a friend while you guys were out there?" Zephyr overheard this line and chuckled at the zombie nickname. It felt fitting.

Cloud did not look back at Thunder but continued watching Benny and responded.

"Something like that. Listen, Thunder, something has happened… something big." The iconic soft voice of Cloud turned serious which immediately caught Thunder's and Echo's attention. They looked at one another and then back to Cloud with worry and anticipation as the pack leader continued. "I won't sugarcoat it. We're currently dealing with the worst-case scenario. The Rogues have discovered our home and plan to attack with an invasion force in a couple of weeks."

The news startled Thunder and horrified Echo. It scared Echo to the point where Thunder noticed her shaking as he pulled her in close, comforting her with his embrace. Without saying a word, he told her not to worry which soothed Echo and stopped her shaking. He turned his attention back to Cloud.

"If it's a fight they want, then it's a fight they'll get. Those Rogues are about to get more than they bargained for, and I want to help in any way I can."

Cloud nodded in agreement.

"Well, then I'm glad we're on the same level. Thunder, you're the smartest wolf I know, and if we're gonna have any luck winning this, then I need your help to plan our defenses."

Cloud updated Thunder on everything they'd learned on their reconnaissance, telling of the large army they faced and this mysterious Oliver who could just as easily be an enemy as an ally. Learning of this Oliver wolf seemed to make Thunder as uncomfortable as everyone else.

The two continued their conversation while Drizzle made her way over to the others, noticing Benny had finally managed to catch his breath. Drizzle looked to Zephyr.

"It's good to finally see our big bro starting to act like his normal self again. That girl must be good for him.

"Let's hope he can make a full recovery," Zephyr replied. "I want to play Shadow Tag again like we always used to do. Also, you think you could ask if that Echo girl has any sisters for me?"

Rolling her eyes at her brother, Drizzle noticed Benny walking up to them with a look of astonishment.

"That giant wolf over there is your brother? He must be one heck of an Alpha."

"He's not an Alpha," said Drizzle. "He's an Omega."

Hearing those words absolutely baffled Benny. The mere idea of an Omega clearly that strong went against everything the Rogues preached and stood for.

"Wait, you're telling me that behemoth over there is an Omega!? How in the world is that possible!?"

Drizzle sighed and felt the need to explain that things worked differently in their pack.

"Your name was Benny, right? Look, Benny, here in the Breeze, things work differently. We've only been able to survive this long thanks to our stealth and only those stealthy enough can become Alphas. Anywhere else, I'd have no doubt he'd be the finest Alpha around, but here, he apparently just isn't stealthy enough to be an Alpha."

In sheer disbelief, Benny turned back to watch Thunder. He had all the attributes of a fine wolf. He would be the pride of any pack, and yet, because of the social circumstances, he was an Omega.

The social circumstances? he thought to himself. "Huh, you don't say," he finally responded.

Zephyr looked at Benny with suspicion.

"Why do you want to know anyway? Trying to hatch some evil Rogue plan?"

A visibly irritated Benny looked at the siblings.

"I already asked you not to call me a Rogue, alright? I figure if I'm gonna be stuck here, I might as well make friends. Not like I could do that with the gang of thugs and psychopaths, and the packmates I came with were already used as meat shields, so I might as well take the chance now."

Zephyr was skeptical.

"I get you want to make friends, but you do understand you're a prisoner, right?" Drizzle felt like she could understand. She could sympathize with the wolf that was forced to fight for his enemy surrounded by wolves he couldn't stand.

Laughing to himself for a moment, Benny then said back.

"I was a prisoner over there, and I'm a prisoner here. Hell, I was basically a prisoner in my original pack, so this isn't exactly anything new. It's called making the most out of the situation, little lady."

Impressed by his philosophy, Drizzle had a good impression of Benny while, on the other paw, Zephyr was curious what Benny meant by "a prisoner in my original pack." He was about to ask when suddenly the conversation between the siblings and Benny was cut short, and they overheard the conversation between father and son. Thunder was clearly now agitated about something. He yelled at his father.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WON'T LET ME FIGHT!?"

Cloud stood firm.

"I'm sorry, son, but you know the rules. I appreciate you being willing to plan for the fight, but you're still an Omega and that means you can't fight on the front lines, plus I want you to be around for Zephyr. Since he passed the exam, he'll be my successor. I can't risk losing you in the battle."

"Yet you can risk Zephyr?!"

"The heir needs to be seen fighting alongside his troops. In a fight that may seem impossible to win, we need all the morale we can get."

Before Cloud's oldest could rage more, Echo attempted to calm him down. Her presence soothed him and helped him to think clearly.

"Thunder, getting angry won't help anything. Please take a deep breath."

Listening to his companion, Thunder took a breath. He thanked Echo for her kind support and continued speaking with Cloud with a leveled head which just impressed Cloud all the more.

"Listen, pops, our whole family is about to go to war for the survival of our entire pack. What's the point of these rules when so much is at stake? Our entire family is about to risk their lives, and I need to be there to help."

Hearing the passion in his son's voice, Cloud gave a proud sigh. The light had returned to his son, and now he was as stubborn as he always was. Cloud needed his son to understand.

"My boy, I'm proud of your passion for our family and our pack, but this will be a battle of guerilla warfare, combat of speed and stealth. You must acknowledge that speed and stealth are the two things you lack, and when you inevitably fall behind, we won't be able to save you. I'm sorry, kid, but I can't risk that."

With that, a proud but sad father walked away from Thunder, leaving to start other preparations for the battle to come. The others had all heard the conversation and the siblings both wanted to say something to comfort their brother and were about to run up together.

"Thunder—" They were cut short by Benny.

"Hold up you two."

"What's the deal, zombie?!" yelled Zephyr. "Why are you stopping us? We need to be there for our brother!"

Benny felt he needed to stop the two and give them a needed piece of advice.

"Zombie? Wait, no, you both need to understand that your brother feels the need to fight and protect you but was just told he wasn't good enough. His pride has been hurt, and if his little siblings go to comfort him right now, that'll just hurt his pride even more." Benny looked at Thunder who was clearly struggling and being comforted by Echo. "He wants nothing more than to help, but there's nothing he can do. I know that frustrating feeling all too well. So if you want to make him feel better, then don't baby the guy. Rely on him and count on him to get the job done. I'm sure that's all he wants for his siblings."

Seeing an opportunity to get some more information out of Benny, Zephyr decides to see what he can squeeze out.

"And why are you such an expert, huh? Why should we believe this advice you're telling us?"

Looking back to Zephyr with a grin as if he could see right through the wolf, Benny responded.

"Well, what was it Cody called you? Squirrel? Well, Squirrel, that would be because I've been in a situation similar to this one, and I can empathize with your brother. I might have never even spoken to the guy, but I'm smart enough to know pain. When I see it, you can consider me an expert of sorts, and I know the pain he's feeling can't be healed by his dear siblings no matter how badly they might want to help." The two looked over to Thunder and wanted so badly to be there for him, but they had a feeling Benny was right. The three turned around, hoping that Echo would do what they could not. "By the way guys," Benny added, "I know I'm not the brightest star in the sky, but I am also smart enough to know when someone is trying to get information out of me."

The two looked at each other, caught off guard and unsure of what to say before Benny continued. "I'm naked bonescript! No need to be sneaky. If you want to know something, just ask." Zephyr appreciated Benny's kind offer as the two began joking with each other, calling one another "zombie" and "squirrel"; however, Drizzle had only become more and more curious about this Rogue who seemed unlike any other she'd encountered. She liked how he thought and found him fun but couldn't help but think back to that mysterious Oliver. He was clearly a tricky one not to be underestimated, and for this Benny character to be so willing to share information, Drizzle couldn't help but wonder if there was more at play here and decided there was a need to keep a very close eye on Benny.

Meanwhile, Thunder struggled with what he was told.

"How can he expect me to do nothing while my family is fighting for their lives?"

Echo tried to be the voice of reason and ease Thunder's pain.

"He's your father, and he loves you dearly. If you died in a way he could have avoided, he would never be able to forgive himself. You know that."

Thunder knew Echo was right. Of course, she was right. Thunder knew all too well how much his father cared about his offspring. Cloud always did his best to trust them, but there was always a part of the leader that wanted to protect them. But the fact still remained that Thunder couldn't simply sit still.

"I know you're right, Echo, but I need to help them."

Echo looked at the big struggling wolf. She was impressed by how much he cared for his loved ones, and her desire to be one of those loved ones grew so desperately, but the desire to help her beloved Thunder was even stronger.

"Alright, you big knucklehead, then how about, instead of complaining, you figure out a way to help? Your dad just said you're not allowed to go out and join the fighting, right?"

Then suddenly, like a light bulb switching on—if wolves knew what light bulbs were that is—an idea came to Thunder that immediately put a smile on his face.

"Echo, you are a genius!"

She gave a smirk. "You know I am, and don't you forget it. Now, why don't you fill me in on the idea that put that look in your eye, and I'll help you every step of the way."

Suddenly, Thunder swooped in and gave Echo a passionate kiss, catching her totally by surprise. After a moment of shock, she returned the kiss as if by instinct. The feelings that had been growing over the time they'd gotten to know one another were now undeniable and unavoidable. And at the moment Thunder realized this, he decided there wasn't any time to waste. There was a chance that soon they'd all be dead, and if they only have a couple of weeks left to live, then Thunder wanted to do it in love. Deciding it was now or never, Thunder felt it best to not beat around the bush and make clear what the two of them felt now that there was not much time left.

"Echo, you've been there for me in ways that I can't even begin to describe, and I'm unable to even put into words how much I appreciate all you've done. I was nothing but pieces broken by a failed dream, but you... you took those pieces and slowly put me back together. I feel something powerful for you, and to be honest, I'm not even sure what it is yet, but if we only have a couple of weeks left, then I can't wait to find out. I love you and all you've done for me, and I can only hope you feel the same way."

After a couple of minutes of Thunder standing there beyond nervous for the answer Echo would give, Echo finally spoke.

"I guess I should have known Thunder would come with lightning."

"Lightning?"

"Yes, lightning," Echo responded with a giggle, "because that just now was electric. You gave me goosebumps."

"You're adorable…. So does that mean—?"

Before Thunder could even finish the pointless question, Echo gave Thunder another kiss which made him feel the electricity too. She pulled away and looked straight into the eyes of the big, dumbfounded wolf.

"You aren't the only one who was made whole here. I'm finally getting a glimpse of what proper love is supposed to look like! Oh, by the way, when we have pups I'm definitely naming one Lightning."

The idea of pups with Echo caught Thunder completely by surprise, but it also sounded like music to his ears, like absolute bliss.

"I like the sound of that. They'll be lucky to have such a wonderful mother and loving family."

Echo got caught on the idea of being a mother and felt butterflies in her stomach. It sounded magical, and the idea of being a father encouraged Thunder even more. "Come on, I've got an idea for how we can help."

With that, he ran off to prepare something with a smile on his face. The scene gave Echo the biggest grin as she watched Thunder so full of life.

"That's more like it." She then chased after him to see what crazy plan she'd inspired.


Part 3

Chapter 8: Behind the Scenes, a Demon Sleeps

January 12th, 2013

The time for battle drew near. The Rogues continued their many preparations for what would, no doubt, be a tough battle for everyone involved. Oliver had made it clear to Elgin that, with the Breeze effectively trapped, they will fight with all their might, noting that even a mouse would fight back with all its strength when backed into a corner. For the Breeze, this was a matter of survival, and Elgin would be a fool to think they would go down easy. Oliver oversaw the preparations for the battle and gave Elgin key strategic insight for the fight to come. They talked of the countless battle plans available to them when the two were informed that the messenger that was sent to King to report the discovery of the Breeze's hiding place had unexpectedly returned with another wolf.

When they heard the word of who just arrived, Elgin and Oliver dropped everything they were doing to meet their esteemed guest. The wolf who entered the Rogues' base was none other than Princess, the lone female of the Rogues and daughter of King. When Elgin spotted Princess, he couldn't help but crack a grin, and Oliver could swear he could even see Elgin salivating at the sight of her which just creeped the old wolf out. As Princess walked into the base, Elgin approached to welcome her.

"Ah, if it isn't the lady of the Rogues herself! To what do we owe the pleasure? You hear about my soon-to-be success to destroy the Breeze and decide to finally take up my offer?"

Princess scanned Elgin and was seemingly unimpressed as she replied sternly.

"I advise you to watch your words, Elgin. I'm only here to review your advances against the Breeze, not your advances against me. Have caution should you answer to my father. I don't have time for your usual antics. This is strictly a business trip."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll come around," Elgin replied with a lecherous gaze. He then whispered, "After all, a princess can never escape the dragon."

None of the other wolves could hear Elgin, but Oliver was close enough to catch it. Oliver looked over to Princess and studied her as he noticed she was doing the same to him. Princess's arrival was an unexpected development, but Oliver knew that, to be a good tactician, you had to prepare for any eventuality; thus, he already knew a way to possibly keep Princess out of his hair. He approached her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess. I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever have the chance to look upon your legendary beauty before I'd pass on from this world."

Princess was not impressed by the old wolf either.

"Elgin, may I ask who your silver-tongued friend is?"

Hearing his name tore him from his lust-filled daydream.

"Oh, of course! Where are my manners? This here is Oliver, a smart thorn in my side that was helpful in my finding of the Breeze. He can be a bit difficult to handle, but he gets the job done. I can attest to that."

"Very well then. Oliver, thank you for your work. Now let me inform you two that King is particularly invested in this front of the campaign. I was excused from the forces in Kootenay and given the royal directive to observe and report. My father especially emphasizes to you Elgin that failure will not be met with mercy from him."

Like flipping a switch, Elgin was instantly sent into a rage but held himself together best he could in front of Princess.

"Oh...? Is that right? Do you plan to take over the fight and gain the glory for yourself?!"

Finding the clear outburst of rage to be nothing more than a tantrum, Princess gave a small roll of her eyes and decided to clear up the misunderstanding.

"No, I'm not taking over anything. Like I just said, I'm here specifically to observe, and if things don't go as King wants, then I'll be sure to succeed where you fail."

The revelation of King's lack of faith annoyed Elgin and was an unexpected issue that Oliver now faced. Oliver knew Elgin was easy to handle, but if he was going to get Princess out of the equation, then he would need to move quickly.

"Sir Elgin, if I may. I'd recommend returning to drafting up our plans for battle. In the meantime, I'll get Princess accommodated somewhere comfortable and ensure you won't be disturbed in your important work."

The suggestion seemed to somewhat relieve Elgin. The last thing he wanted was for Princess to have access to premature battle plans if she meant to potentially upstage him.

"Wonderful thinking as always Oliver! I'm sure Princess is tired from the journey and could use some rest. See to it she is provided with whatever she needs."

With that, Oliver agreed, and Elgin returned to his cave. Oliver now began to escort Princess to a nearby den where she would be able to use to rest. Princess went along with the idea and neither said a word until they neared the cave.

"Not to bother you," said Oliver, "but would you be alright with the two of us sharing a quick chat?"

Princess gave a quick sigh and replied coldly.

"No, I won't be your mate, so drop it now."

Princess sat down while Oliver gave a small laugh.

"While that's a shame to hear, that's not the conversation I had in mind."

Having caught a scintilla of interest, she looked back to the old wolf.

"No?" Princess examined the old wolf more closely. "You're a wolf of different colors, aren't you? I know your type... I've always despised you schemers. Enlighten me, please. What did you have in mind? A plan to take over the Rogues? Some complicated revenge plot? Maybe you want to fake a kidnapping. You schemers are a dime a dozen, so please tell me what you want to talk about. I bet, whatever your grand plan is, I've heard it a million times before."

Princess had dealt with similar situations many times with countless wolves thinking themselves to be clever with some convoluted plan that would end up benefiting them at the expense of the Rogues. She had seen it play out so many times that she had learned confronting a schemer openly would always have them running with their tail between their legs. She felt Oliver would be no different and so felt it best to nip it in the bud before moving on to her mission. However, after a moment of silence, instead of the pathetic running for the hills Princess had come to expect, Oliver simply responded in a blunt tone.

"Why do you choose not to be yourself?"

The question had caught Princess completely off guard, but she maintained her calm disposition, now more cautious of Oliver.

"I'm not sure what you mean."

Oliver walked further into the den before sitting next to Princess. He scanned her once again, but this time Princess felt like Oliver was looking through her, and she wasn't a fan of that feeling. Oliver knew her weakness just like he'd theorized. He wasn't certain before, but he was now based on Princess's reaction. And now that he knew of the weakness, he promptly went on the attack and spoke again.

"You are a creature of loyalty and intelligence. You are capable of great things. You do those great things regularly, and yet I wonder if you've ever stopped to ask why."

Princess felt a swirling of confusion and dread in the back of her mind as she processed what she just heard. A small crack had formed on the mighty dam that was her mind, but even though she couldn't see it so easily, Oliver could see the crack plain as day, and he was now certain he could handle Princess so long as he was careful and played his cards right. Oliver was a walking encyclopedia. He knew a great many things. He knew some of the darkest of secrets and the answers to a great many mysteries. This also meant he knew to keep tabs on wolves that might be difficult for him to handle; Princess was one such wolf.

He respected her intelligence and the efficiency of her work. He'd hoped to maybe work alongside Princess one day. He knew she might even be smarter than him, but she still lacked the skill and experience that Oliver possessed, so he played with the idea of taking her as a protégé, but in reality, he was aware the odds were that they'd likely be enemies one day. Oliver then concluded that was the most likely future which meant that Princess was now the biggest obstacle to his plan, and as such, he now had to make use of his prepared countermeasures. He was even lucky enough to have the perfect assistant to keep Princess out of the way.

The statement Oliver had made lingered in the air for only a couple of minutes, but it felt like an eternity. Oliver silently waited for Princess to respond. When she finally did, her voice was still toneless but with a hint of something more.

"I know plenty well why I do the things I do. It's for the sake and betterment of my pack as any good wolf should."

Oliver did not look back at her and only gave a small chuckle and then a sigh.

"You do what any good wolf should, even for a pack that is not good?"

For the first time, Princess showed a slight hint of agitation in her otherwise featureless voice and demeanor.

"You're walking a dangerous path. Tread lightly, or you may see me at the end of it," she warned.

Oliver now knew he had pried something loose. The Princess that was famous for her apathy and bluntness was showing emotion if only the tiniest amounts, but to Oliver, that was all he needed. Upon discovering the seed deep in her head, it was time for his assistant to help nurture its growth.

"You know, I'm a bit of a fan of your work. You're always precise and that's something I can genuinely respect. And I know respect is something you are not often given, even sometimes by your father when you're obviously a she-wolf who deserves much more than that."

Princess remained very skeptical of this old wolf but couldn't help appreciating his kind words, words Princess wished she could hear more often. Before she could reply, Oliver continued. "It's a shame that someone as capable as you is reduced to such a state. Someone as smart as you must have plans or desires that go beyond this role of yours. Surely, you want more out of life?"

This conversation was the last one Princess thought she would be having right now. It was a conversation a part of her wished would never happen and another part desperately wanted. She was always loyal to the Rogues. It was the only thing she knew how to be, but did she want more than that? She wasn't sure what else she could want besides simply being the Princess she'd always been. Oliver could see these thoughts swimming through Princess' mind. He had wanted to go slow to do this all properly, but with so little time and so much to do, he knew that he either needed to handle Princess now or not at all. "I mean there are all sorts of things you could do with talents like yours. Sure, you could topple pack after pack, but you could travel the world! Go where you want to go. Meet whoever you wanted to meet. Maybe... you could even just have a beautiful family with pups of your very own."

The crack that had formed on the dam that was Princess's mind had now become a leak, a hole in the unyielding armor. Oliver had completed all the necessary preparations but still needed to handle things very delicately. If he failed in his attempt to distract Princess here, then Princess would surely ruin his carefully laid plans. He had done his job, and now it was time to pass the torch. "You know, Princess, there's a wolf in the nearby healer's den pretty similar to yourself. Obviously, there's no pressure, but I think you might get a hint towards what you want from a conversation with him."

With the moment of truth now at hand, Princess looked to the ground and didn't say a word as she shifted through her thoughts. After a few minutes, Oliver could see her mind begin to clear when Princess then looked at Oliver.

"I'll entertain your suggestion." She turned to leave the den. When she made it to the entrance, she looked back at Oliver. "Your words are kind... but insult the Rogues again, and I'll have you gutted. Understand?"

Oliver then brought a warm smile to his face and waved as she left.

"I thank you for the warning, Princess. I'll be sure not to make the same mistake again."

Princess made her way to the nearby healer that apparently had a wolf of interest to her. She told herself that questioning this wolf was vital to her mission as she would need information before the battle. But deep down, she knew this was an excuse. The conversation with the old wolf she just had piqued her curiosity, and now she wanted to know more. But she wasn't sure whether that was more about the wolf she sought out or more about herself. Thinking of these matters was the last thing she expected to do today, but she was down the rabbit hole, and little did she know there was no going back. As she entered the den, she noticed no healers inside and a single wolf with his back to the entrance lying deep within. She heard the wolf speak out.

"I told you all that I don't want to be disturbed. Get out."

Ignoring what the wolf said, Princess replied.

"I am Princess of the Rogues. I've been told you have information I am in need of."

The mysterious wolf lifted his head and looked at Princess before putting his head back down.

"Congratulations. Now get out."

The behavior of this wolf baffled Princess. Wherever she went, wolves would always either try to woo her to gain status or favor from King. Wolves always wanted something from Princess, but this particular wolf was telling her to leave.

"I was told by the wolf, Oliver, that you were someone I needed to talk to, and I'd like to know why."

After a moment, the wolf gave a sigh along with a grunt of pain as he stood up and turned to his unwanted visitor. Princess thought of him as good-looking, but his manners were terrible.

"That damn Oliver always roping me into stuff. So you're Princess, huh?"

"Yes, that's right."

She looked deep into his eyes, and there existed a familiarity that she didn't expect. She definitely didn't know this wolf, but something about him reminded her of herself.

"I feel sorry for you," he replied.

She retained her composure but was dumbfounded. How could a wolf say such a thing to her? She replied in her usual leveled tone.

"And what exactly would spark this pity?"

The wolf looked upon Princess and sighed once again as if he knew something that she did not.

"That damn Oliver is gonna make me talk about this, huh. Look, my name is Abel, and once, I was a lot like you. I didn't consider anything outside of the mission and my pack. The ends always justified the means, and I did a lot of terrible things in the name of what I thought was right." Abel looked down at his paw and continued. "There's a lot of blood on these paws, and I lie awake at night wondering just how much of that blood even needed to be spilled, to begin with. I lived in a trance and simply did as I was told, and it was only when those I oppressed saved my life did I realize what I'd done, what I'd been doing."

He looked back to Princess and stared her dead in the eye as if their souls were communicating through their eyes. "I feel sorry for you because you remind me of how I was back then. It makes me sick to my stomach, and the last thing I need is another reminder when I already deal with it every waking second. Now if that suffices for an answer, please leave me alone. Someone like me doesn't deserve the company."

As Abel spoke, Princess could see the tears in his eyes and the pain in his voice. She was confident this wasn't an act or a trick but a genuine wolf who was hurting. While she was often considered emotionless, that didn't mean she was heartless. She especially felt bad for this wolf since she felt an odd kinship with him, like two lost souls stuck in similar boats. His was just further along than hers. She wanted to console his pain, but it seemed like his scars ran deep, and helping wolves wasn't exactly Princess's specialty.

"It seems like you've been through a lot of pain. So what woke you up from your 'trance' and caused you to be in so much pain?"

Although wanting nothing more than to kick out the annoying wolf, Abel could feel the nervous curiosity behind Princess' question as if she was cautiously asking about her own future. Abel forced himself to remember the reason he still allowed himself to remain walking among the living so that he could make up for his sins. Otherwise, he would commit suicide to atone for them. And in remembering this, he decided to take pity on Princess and point her in the right direction, hoping maybe she could avoid his fate.

"Know this, Princess. What woke me from my trance and what caused my pain are two different things. I woke from my trance because I was saved, then I realized I wanted more from life. I wanted a family of my own with the girl I loved. And my pain came from my own actions when I realized long after the fact I had just killed her with my own paws. What a fool I had been. If this story sounds haunting, then let it serve as a warning. If you blindly follow orders, then when you eventually wake up, you'll have to deal with all the pain you uncaringly caused crashing down on you."

He took a minute to think before he seemed to decide on something and continued. "Look I can't assume you're like me, and frankly, for your sake, I hope not. But if you are like me and your conscious does ever sneak up on you as it did for me, then remember these words and seek me out if you wish. Now I can answer any other questions you may have, but I don't want to talk about this topic any longer."

Princess nodded in understanding, and the two then started talking about various topics, including the battle to come and various things in life, be it their past, their opinions, or their skills. It seemed as if their similarities allowed them to naturally speak freely as they both had the first truly open conversation either had experienced in a long time. They talked into the night without even noticing, and just like the time, they hadn't noticed Oliver who had been sitting just outside of the healer's den and listening in on the whole conversation.

Oliver looked up to the night sky that sparkled once again and spoke to himself under his breath.

"Well, what do you know? Those two got along a lot better than I thought they would." Taking in a joyous breath, he continued watching the stars and spoke again, this time to the stars themselves. "It seems I still have a lot to learn about the heart, huh? It was always too complicated to wrap my head around, all those things like love. The things other wolves consider so easy are such headaches for me. It has quite the touch of irony, doesn't it? Though, of course, you already knew that from the start, didn't you, my dear? You were always so patient with me, weren't you? Help me keep an eye on these pups, would you? Who knows. They might be able to help each other more than I'd ever dreamed. Hopefully, that'll also mean it's more likely for Princess to stay out of the way and keep her from likely burning the Breeze to the ground. I'd really hate to have to plan a way for her to get hurt. She seems like such a sweet girl under her shell." Oliver then looked straight and held commitment in his voice. "Good luck with the battle against your demons, kid. It's time for me to continue the fight against my own."


Chapter 9: So Approaches the Brimstone Rain

January 15th, 2013

The days flew by faster than any of the Breeze was prepared for. Days felt like hours, and hours felt like seconds as time grew closer to the fateful day. The Breeze had been keeping a very close watch on the Rogues and roughly knew when they would be able to attack, but even if they could know when the battle would start, the Breeze couldn't afford to waste a moment if they wanted to win this fight. As the days marched on, Cloud, Cody, and Chad made exhaustive preparations, coming up with the best plan of defense they could with Thunder regularly sitting in, providing vital insights for the validity of their plans.

However, when Thunder wasn't helping strategize, he could be seen running throughout the pack with the little Echo at his side. The whole pack couldn't help but notice his running around considering it was hard to miss a wolf of his size, but none were more curious than his father, Cloud. Cloud wanted to know what his son could possibly be up to, but that curiosity was often drowned in his mind with countless other worries. Meanwhile, Benny would always have either Zephyr or Drizzle or both of them watching over him as their prisoner, though he gradually started to feel like a prisoner only in technicality as Benny and Zephyr ended up getting along quite well over the past two weeks. Drizzle maintained a watchful eye over Benny, and while she still remained cautious, the suspicions she felt about him gradually decreased over time.

The days marched on until judgment finally came with there being no time left to plan. Scouts returned to the Sanctuary as quickly as they could and told Cloud that today was the day for war. Cloud then put his plans into effect and gave out the instructions for the entire pack to follow. The Omegas would remain safe in the Sanctuary while Cloud would take the Alphas and get everyone into position. Cloud sent off Chad and Cody to let everyone within the pack know the battle was upon them and that all fighters were to meet at the gate. While Drizzle and Zephyr were watching over Benny who was resting in a den that was being used as his prison, the two were quickly informed by Chad that it was time to meet for battle.

The two worried about the battle that loomed overhead but had steeled themselves as this was a fight for their home and their family. It was a fight they had to win.
The two looked at one another in silence before Benny spoke.

"So the time has come for you two to go to war, huh?"

Cracking a grin, Zephyr looked back to Benny.

"What's that?" Zephyr replied sarcastically. "Does the prisoner care about what happens to his captors? That's so sweet. I didn't think you cared."

Zephyr continuing to act light-hearted surprised Benny, but Benny wasn't sure if that worried him less or more.

"Hey, now don't go twisting my words. You guys seem nice and all, but my biggest concern is getting out of here alive, you know."

It sounded like Benny was trying to convince himself more than anyone else, and he wasn't fooling anyone. In the time he stayed with the Breeze, Benny would act tough and yet still say things that showed he cared. Drizzle was unsure if it was all an act or if that was who Benny actually was. It was a mystery whose side Benny actually was on. Maybe he genuinely cared about Drizzle and Zephyr, or maybe he was working for the Rogues or Oliver as some kind of double agent. Unfortunately, there wasn't any time left to untangle the mystery, and now the best guess had to be made. Drizzle wanted to say something, but Zephyr responded first.

"Whatever you say, mister tough guy." After he said this, Zephyr leaned over to his sister and spoke softly so that Benny couldn't hear. "So, Drizzle, what do you want to do? Want me to give you guys some alone time?"

The question was more serious than anything Drizzle expected out of her brother, and she talked as if she pretended to not know what he was talking about.

"I'm not sure what you mean. Why would I want alone time? That's crazy."

Zephyr could see right through his sister and spoke back as if what he was saying was obvious.

"Oh, come on, sis'. Goodness, everybody around here always loves to make things so much more complicated when they don't need to be. And you know, as someone who's always the lookout, I've gotten pretty good at knowing what I'm looking at. And what I see here when you put it simply is a couple wolves who have been getting to know each other and are even starting to really care about each other. I don't think it's love, but you two obviously at least care about each other, so sharing a couple of words would probably do you both some good."

Drizzle was completely dumbfounded that Zephyr could say something or even comprehend something so mature.

"Wow, uh, I guess you're right, bro. I didn't even know you were capable of thinking about stuff like this."

A grin formed on Zephyr's face as he looked at his sister.

"Oh, I can do it. I just prefer not to. It's so complicated for me after all, and that makes it so much work. To me, simplicity is best, and I like to stick to that rule, but I can tell there's a conversation here that should happen, so I figure I'll make an exception for you since you're my beloved sister and everything." Drizzle gave a look of being equally impressed and grateful. She knew she wanted to talk to Benny, and that little push from Zephyr was all she needed. Then Zephyr continued. "Don't worry. I'll go get the puppysitter while you two have your chat."

The two looked at each other in understanding as Zephyr ran off, and Drizzle turned back to Benny. Benny was curious about what the two could have been talking about but didn't want to interrupt what was likely an important discussion between siblings.

"You two finish your secret meeting?" Benny then asked. "Anything I should know about?"

Feeling a hint of concern in Benny's voice, Drizzle decided to say something back sarcastically.

"Oh, yeah, we were just thinking of using you as a meat shield when the fighting starts."

Her joke got a chuckle out of Benny, but Drizzle could still tell Benny was worried. Was he worried about her, or was he worried about himself? Over the weeks, she felt like she had gotten close enough to Benny to maybe consider him an actual friend, but was that something he could be?

"Oh, come on, we're friends now! Besides, I'd never make a good shield. I'm all skin and bones!"

Benny's response put a smile on Drizzle's worried face. Neither could tell how the other was feeling, and both approached the other cautiously. Drizzle was unsure if she could trust Benny or even believe a word he said, even though she wanted to, and from what she could tell, it was almost like Benny was feeling the same way, but even if she asked if that was how he felt, how could Drizzle trust Benny's answer? It was like both wanted to trust the other but weren't sure if they could, and it left their feelings about everything between them clouded and unclear. After a moment of silence, Drizzle asked something that would elicit introspection.

"Hey, Benny, do you like it here? Do you miss your old pack?"

The question surprised Benny, but he thought about it as if he had asked himself the same questions a million times before.

"I… I don't have any real family left in that pack, and I only agreed to be one of the fighters to come along, so that other families didn't have to be separated. So much of this... So much of my life has been hard since I lost my family. But coming here, being around you guys, it's felt kind of…. right. In a time where I don't really know what right is anymore."

Seeing the look in his eye, Drizzle gave a somber smile before kissing him on the cheek.

"I hope you do, Benny, and just remember. There's nothing wrong with being afraid as long as you still do what's right in spite of the fear. That's what bravery is. It's not the absence of fear but overcoming fear." Drizzle's head turned to the cave entrance after it seemed like she heard something. "Looks like Zephyr is back which means it's time for me to go. Please think of what I said, Benny."

Benny nodded as Drizzle then ran out of the cave to meet up with Zephyr. Suddenly, Benny ran to the entrance of the den and yelled.

"Make sure to come back in one piece, okay!"

Looking back and seeing the concern once again in Benny's eyes, Drizzle gave a nod and ran off. Benny gave a sigh when he heard someone talking from outside the den.

"Man, you guys really have quite the mess of feelings to untangle, huh?"

Surprised by the sudden voice, Benny popped his head out of the den to see a giant wolf standing outside. He recognized the wolf to be none other than Thunder but was still surprised by his appearance as this was the first time the two had directly spoken.

"Geez, big guy, you startled me. You're Thunder, right? I know we haven't formally met, but your siblings talk about you so often that it feels like I know you already. Do you need something from me?"

Thunder noticed Benny didn't answer his question but decided to clear up Benny's confusion.

"Yeah, that sounds like my siblings alright, and I've heard a bit about you from my siblings too. Considering they have to go off and fight, they asked me to keep an eye on our prisoner as the puppysitter since I have to stay here."

Benny turned to look out to the walls surrounding the Sanctuary. Thunder studied Benny. "Looks like I'm not the only one worried about the safety of my siblings, eh Benny?"

Benny looked down and away from Thunder.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure what you mean."

"Heh, yeah I'm sure you don't, Benny, but don't you worry. They're my siblings after all. I'm sure it'll take a lot more than an army to take them down. At least I hope so."

As the two talked, the Alphas of the pack converged at the entrance of the Sanctuary as ordered. Drizzle and Zephyr were the last to arrive, and once everyone had gathered, Cloud gave out a speech and announced his plan. He informed the Breeze that, according to the scouts, the Rogues planned on committing to a full frontal assault with the entire Rogue army hitting the Sanctuary in waves. It was an effective strategy but not the most difficult for the Breeze to handle and seemed a little too simple for how crafty this Oliver wolf was. Perhaps that was intentional and part of the help Oliver said he would provide. Regardless, Cloud knew they needed to watch out for traps or tricks. In order to combat this, the Breeze would line the path the Rogues would take, using hit-and-run tactics to kill off the Rogues bit by bit. The Breeze would have to be fast and efficient for this to work, but it was the best chance they had.

Cloud led his forces and placed them into their positions where they would wait for the Rogues to come to them. As they took their positions, the sky started to snow. If they were so fortunate, then the snow would slow down the progress of the Rogues and give the Breeze more of the time they desperately needed. Cloud looked up and believed the sky was with the Breeze on that day. It was then he heard the rumble of the approaching Rogue army. Cloud asked for his mate to watch over their offspring and keep them safe as the battle for everything the Breeze held dear soon began.

The snow started to build upon the ground. It began to slow the advancement of the Rogues. Suddenly, one dropped to the ground. At first, the other Rogues thought he'd just tripped, but when he didn't get back up, the others realized the red snow that had appeared under him. His throat had been cut. First blood of the war had been spilled, and it was now a game of which Rogues could get to the Sanctuary fastest before a Breeze wolf could kill them. As the Rogues lost warrior after warrior, the forest floor began to be covered with bodies and red snow. Word of this went to Elgin and Oliver. Oliver suggested using the bodies of the dead Rogues to traverse the forest as they would be easier to walk over than snow.

Oliver and Elgin led the attack from the rear, using their chain of command to give out orders. The Rogues walked over their own. They took the battlefield yard by yard, step by step. The Rogues were being killed one after another but were still pushing forward to the Sanctuary all the same. After what felt like hours, the members of the Breeze were starting to tire and were even starting to get spotted by the Rogues, even if they were still too fast to get caught. However, that wouldn't last forever. Going in for a kill, a member of the Breeze was too slow in his escape due to fatigue and was caught by the Rogues who then ripped him to shreds in a horrifying and gruesome fashion. The battle was beginning to feel like a group of mice trying to fight a bear. The death of the first Breeze member haunted the hidden pack while it boosted the morale of the Rogues. To the invading army, it was as if they'd just killed death itself. The Breeze was no longer invincible. Its reputation was shattered.

With their morale boosted, the Rogues pushed on harder and faster than ever as the forest was further blanketed in snow. The Rogues would lose wave after wave, but with each one, the Breeze would lose more of their precious stealthy fighters. It only made it that much harder to defeat the next wave of the seemingly endless amount of Rogues. The Rogues grew increasingly close to the entrance of the Sanctuary, and the Breeze was pushed back as they fought from the shadows as that was all they knew how to do. It was looking to be a losing battle and Cloud needed to think of what to do quickly or else his whole pack would truly end on this day. The Rogues were now able to see the entrance of the Sanctuary, and Cloud decided he was going to have to take drastic measures to try to turn this fight around. Cloud only hoped these measures weren't too little too late.


Chapter 10: The Sky Roars a Booming Thunder

There seemed to be no end in sight. The Rogues were endless in number and relentless in their assault, but thanks to Benny, Cloud had a suspicion that many of these Rogues didn't even want to be part of the fight to begin with. While Cloud felt bad for killing these wolves, the lives of his pack were more important. What was truly important in this information was that if Cloud could destroy the chain of command, then the Rogue army would likely crumble with tons of wolves either choosing to save their skin or abandoning the fight like they wanted to do all along. This was a simple war strategy but an effective one all the same. If you cut off the head of a snake, then the body will die, which meant if the Breeze wanted to stay in this fight, then Elgin needed to be taken out of the equation. Cloud wasn't sure how he'd get Elgin somewhere vulnerable enough to attack, but Cloud decided he would just have to figure it out on the fly. Otherwise, everything would be lost.

Cloud turned to his commanders and silently signaled it was time for plan B. Using the blessing of the snowstorm, Cloud would use his skills to take on Elgin alone and get him out of the way. In the meantime, Cody and Chad would continue to lead the assault in Cloud's absence and make sure to keep Cloud's precious family alive. Entrusting both the battle and the lives of his offspring to his commanders, Cloud ran off to hopefully turn the tide of the battle in the Breeze's favor. And with Cloud's departure, the squad of five was now down to four as they fought to continue holding back the onslaught. Without Cloud coordinating the Breeze's small squads, it was now that much harder to fight the waves back, and they were pushed back that much faster. The siblings worried about their father, but they worked their hardest to make him proud since they hoped he would stay alive.

The four fought that much harder to account for their missing member as did the other squads that lost wolf after wolf; however, unbeknownst to the siblings, Chad and Cody seemed to be worrying about something else. As the fighting raged on, and the bodies of dead Rogues piled up row after row, the two commanders looked one another in the eye. They didn't say a word nor did they make any noticeable signals. They pulled back and seemed to come to some sort of agreement. Without saying a word, the two ran off deep into the words.

It took a moment for the siblings to realize the surprising and swift disappearance of the second and third-in-command. The siblings wanted to ask why the two would run off. Drizzle worried that they were running off to save their own skin while Zephyr hoped they had some kind of plan, but being down those two more wolves now meant that the Breeze was down their three best fighters, and the situation for the Breeze was looking worse by the minute. With Cloud, Chad, and Cody all gone, it was now up to the two of them to lead the Breeze army and fight off the Rogues. They both felt way out of their depths but knew if they didn't succeed, then their beloved brother, Thunder, would become trapped in the Sanctuary and be killed by the Rogues, so they looked to one another and steeled themselves for their refusal of such an event occurring.

They led the battle the best they could, but they knew, at this pace, it would only be a matter of time until the Rogues would breach the Sanctuary. Feeling there was no other choice, the two decided they needed to somehow fight harder. Unfortunately, the battle was already wearing down their stamina. The siblings tried to keep count of how many times they'd gone out to attack but had entirely lost track. It seemed like an eternity of gambling with their lives again and again. After they returned to a safe location to prepare for yet another strike, their luck finally ran out.

Drizzle tried to catch her breath when she heard a thud behind her. Zephyr had fallen. Drizzle walked over to check on her brother. She noticed the red snow that was pooling under him. Drizzle's heart sank. It appeared that a Rogue managed to slash Zephyr's throat. Drizzle tried to contain her panic and attempted to help Zephyr, but her knowledge of medicine was very limited. Blood continued to flow as life seemed to drain from Zephyr. He dared not to speak and reveal the location of his sister to the enemy, but he knew, by looking into her eyes, he would be able to convey his thoughts. He told her in a silent language that he wasn't going to make it and asked her to keep an eye on Thunder for him. He asked his sister to live a long happy life and to encourage happiness in others. Drizzle didn't want to listen at first and continued to desperately try to heal her brother, but she realized she needed to properly listen to what would be her brother's final words.

Zephyr watched his sister try to hold back her tears as he used the last of his energy to whisper the words.

"When you think of me, don't cry. Smile and laugh as you remember me and spread that joy. Do that and I will never die." And with that, the light faded from Zephyr's eyes. He was gone.

Drizzle wanted to claw her eyes out but had to hold it in, so she wouldn't be found. As she attempted to recover, she heard a cheer from the Rogues. They had made it to the entrance of the Sanctuary and were about to lay waste to the home of the Breeze. They were about to barge into her home and kill the only brother Drizzle had left. It was at this moment that all the sadness that gathered in Drizzle transformed. What was once sadness had now morphed into a raw powerful rage.

She refused to let them take anything else. The rage sharpened her focus. Consumed by bloodlust, she now fought like a demon, hitting harder and faster and being impossible to catch. Drizzle was a prodigy of stealth, and she would show the Rogues what that meant as she aimed to write it out with their blood in the snow and carvings on their bones. She danced across the battlefield and wiped out all the Rogues in her vicinity, but even with that, it was like she was chipping away a mountain. Their overwhelming numbers began to surge through the Sanctuary entrance.

Thunder and Benny continued sitting together in a den. They watched the snow fall until they heard a howl. Thunder looked to the sky.

"I was truly hoping it wouldn't have come to this, but it seems that it's my turn to join the fight."

"But I thought your dad said you weren't allowed to go out and fight?" said Benny.

Giving a smirk, Thunder responded back as he felt he'd found a clever loophole.

"Well, the rules are I'm not allowed to fight outside the Sanctuary, but… if the fight ends up coming here, then it's fair game."

"You don't mean—"

"Yep. The Rogues have entered the Sanctuary. It looks like the fighters outside couldn't hold them back. Don't despair just yet. I doubt all the fighters were wiped out. They just couldn't kill the Rogues fast enough."

"Considering how calm you are, I'm guessing you have some kind of a plan?

Thunder stood up.

"I'm sure you heard about me running around the pack these past couple weeks. Well, let's just say I wasn't doing that for the exercise."

"Wait, if you're going to the gate to fight, then who's going to watch me?"

"We don't have anyone to spare to do that job I'm afraid, so it looks like the time has come for you to pick a side, Benny. Either wait here for the Rogues to collect their captured soldier, or join me in fighting off the Rogues you say you despise."

Thunder could see the fear and uncertainty welling up in Benny's heart. He was scared and unsure of what to do.

"I don't know…"

Thunder left Benny with something to think about.

"Remember this, Benny. Doing nothing now is the same as accepting you'll never be more than what you are now. And whatever you choose, know we hold nothing against you, but make sure whatever you choose is a choice you won't regret."

Thunder then disappeared into the trees. Benny's head spun.

Meanwhile, the Rogues poured into the Breeze's home. They expected to find a bunch of whimpering Omegas begging for their lives. A number of them looked forward to the slaughter. Some were following the Rogue belief that Omegas needed to be extinct, some simply relished the feeling of the kill and longed for the sight of blood, and some did not want to fight and wished they could be anywhere else.

But upon entering the Sanctuary, the Rogues were surprised to find a row of wolves heading straight for them. It had seemed that the Omegas had decided to put up one final futile stand. This would normally make the Rogues laugh, but something was different. These Omegas looked stronger than an Omega should. They weren't many in number, but many of the Omegas looked large and strong. There were even elderly wolves and small wolves mixed into the Breeze members that seemed buffer than they should have been. The sight left the Rogues completely perplexed.

One small wolf stepped forward from the crowd of Omegas.

"Rogues! I am Echo, and we are the Omegas of the Breeze. Leave now and your lives will be spared; otherwise, you will be killed here and now."

The ultimatum presented to the Rogues caused them to break out in laughter.

"A small bunch of Omegas is gonna kill us? That's the funniest thing I've heard all week!" said one Rogue.

Another wolf approached from the back of the row of Omegas.

"You're right. Your numbers are formidable, but take a look around. Why don't you try to do some basic physics if your idiot Rogue brains can manage it." The Rogues looked around and started to realize what the Omega was talking about. The narrow entrance to the Sanctuary meant only a small fraction of their force could squeeze through at a time. Their number advantage was limited. "This is why we've given you this warning, and we know many of you don't want to be here. You're on our territory now. You've seen the mountain of bodies we can leave while fighting on your terms, but now we have the home-field advantage, and we will have you lose soldiers at three times the rate it was when you were just trying to get here."

By this point, the giant wolf had completely cut through the crowd and was entirely visible to the Rogues. He gave Echo a nod for getting everyone together. He was a behemoth of a wolf and seemed to be the antithesis of everything the Rogues believed an Omega to be, the antithesis to everything that was supposed to make an Omega inferior. Baffled by the wolf before them, one of the Rogues cried out as if the impossibility of it all finally clicked.

"Wait… THAT'S AN OMEGA!?"

Thunder gave a sigh and yelled out to his brethren.

"My friends! Here me now! We may be Omegas, but we are still members of the elite pack of the Breeze! These wolves have come to desecrate your home, to kill your fathers and sons! To take your mothers and daughters! To erase us from existence like a bug under their paw! Well, it's time we show them what happens when a fool tries to fly too close to the sun! So my friends, LET'S SEND THEM CRASHING BACK DOWN TO EARTH!"

Thunder belted out a mighty howl signaling the Omegas to begin their attack. True to his name, the howl sounded as if it was a clap of thunder and sparked hope for the Breeze both inside and out. Drizzle could hear the howl clear as day from the outside. The sound put a smile on Drizzle's face as she remembered the advice Benny gave her to trust in her brother. He wasn't about to give up hope so neither would she. The war then continued now being waged on two fronts. The Rogue column stretched out from the Sanctuary entrance, unable to move forward because of the living roadblock that was Thunder.

The Rogues were now sitting ducks. The remaining Breeze Alphas then attacked at the choke point. It was becoming clear that if the Breeze were to die, then it wouldn't be as a mere gust of wind but as a mighty tornado.


Chapter 11: Clouds of Red and Skies of White

Bodies covered the forest floor. The dead turned stiff and the snow turned red as a battle for survival reached its climax. The Breeze fought with a blind ferocity as they'd been pushed so far back, and the Rogues, who once thought this would be an easy fight, were now trapped, fighting on multiple sides, and they were experiencing their own desperation and horror. But many miles away, a pair of wolves could be found speaking in a den within the Rogue base. Abel and Princess slid from one profound topic to the next. The conversation was the most natural either had had in a long time.

It became apparent that they were even more alike than they originally thought. It was as if, for the first time, they had a sibling, someone who understood them on the deepest levels. Of course, they had their differences, but to both of them, it was a breath of fresh air. They had talked day in and day out, even into the start of the battle, but Princess's mission was to ensure the battle was a success, and she knew it would likely soon be time for her to leave Abel.

Princess stared out of the den. She knew she would soon have to end these conversations she had enjoyed. Abel noticed that Princess had grown quiet and had a good idea of what was on her mind.

"I'm assuming it's time."

"Yes," she responded softly. The battle was close enough to hear. The war cries of the wolves secured her gaze at the wintry world. There was a moment of silence as Abel studied her.

"And after that mission is completed, I'm assuming you'll have to return to King's side, and we would have to part ways."

"Yes."

Once again, Princess's response was quick, but instead of her usual monotone, there seemed to be a hint of sadness that Abel picked up in Princess' voice.

The silence returned to the room and weighed on the hearts of both wolves. the den had been filled with so much fun chatter that the silence now felt suffocating. Abel then said what he felt he had to say.

"You don't have to do it, you know. You don't have to return to that life, to the Rogues, or to King. You could walk away from it all. Ask yourself what you truly want, and seek it out. Maybe we could even… stick together, and I could help you find it."

"I can't, Abel. King is my father."

"But are you actually his daughter or just his favorite soldier?"

"The Rogues are my pack. I can't turn my back on them… What if, maybe, you come with me instead? I've never asked King for much, but if I ask, I'm sure I could get you a high-level position in the Rogues and we can continue talking just as we have done since I arrived. I truly have enjoyed these past few days."

There was more emotion in Princess' voice now as she kept peering out of the den entrance, more than Abel or likely any wolf had ever heard from her before. It was just a bit, but Princess had lowered her guard and spoke openly with Abel. Although her words were short, he could see, buried under, sadness, longing, and desire. For just this moment, her heart was filled with things she never experienced before. They had crashed into her all at once.

Maybe, Abel wondered, she feared if she didn't remind herself of what awaited her outside, she wouldn't be able to get herself to leave that den. But as she continued that desperate gaze, unbeknownst to her, Abel limped to the back of the den and moved a rock to reveal a flaky white orb.

"I'm sorry, but that is something I can't do. As it turns out, you're not the only one with a mission." Abel silently ate the orb and walked toward the she-wolf. "I'm sorry for this, Princess."

With a strong hit to the back of the head, Princess was suddenly knocked unconscious. He then quickly tied her up with caribou tendons he had kept in the den. He was about to leave when Princess awoke faster than Abel expected. She spoke in a groggy and confused manner.

"What… What happened? Wait, why am I tied up? Abel, what are you doing?"

He gave a sigh. He hoped to avoid this conversation.

"There's something I must do, and your mission would go against that. Please know that I hold nothing against you and have enjoyed your company as well. You're the first wolf in a long time I felt I've been able to open myself up to, and it pains me that we meet on opposite sides today. Remember what we have talked about. Look for what you want whether it's adventure, fame, or a family of your own maybe. Find your dream and seek me out. I will make up for my actions today by helping you achieve your dream if you ever decide to chase it. I will remain in this world in case you ever choose to call on me. I will live with my pain, to show the regret I truly feel for how this must happen now. Farewell, Princess, and may you one day awaken before it's too late."

With that, Abel left the den and ran off to somewhere Princess did not know. She looked to the floor and cried only a single tear.

"Idiot," she whispered.

Meanwhile. . .

A white demon moved through the forest. Cloud sought to find the command post for the Rogues and assassinate Elgin right then and there. He knew there were bound to be plenty of guards in a defensible position, but he also knew that Elgin was out of options. He would storm the post by himself if he had to if it meant saving his pack. But whether it was good luck or bad luck, Cloud didn't find Elgin; Elgin found him. Cloud's opportunity was in sight, and he was not about to let it pass.

Cloud circled the group, sizing up the weak members of Elgin's bodyguards. It was a group of randoms Elgin had organized to come with him. They were sloppier than Elgin, and several weak points were easy to spot. The Breeze leader secured striking positions. To make up for a lack of experience, the guards had a detailed formation plan. They made sure to keep as many wolves as possible between Elgin and Cloud no matter where Cloud was. This forced the Breeze leader to have to chip away at the formation.

After one fell, Elgin yelled out in an annoyed tone.

"Hey, quit sleeping on the job! We've got a schedule to keep!"

But soon, the other guards noticed the red snow pooling under the fallen wolf which sunk their hearts. Cloud zigzagged around the group and killed them off one by one. He didn't plan to stop until the only one left was Elgin.

"You must be the Rogue commander. I've heard much about you. I am Cloud, leader of the Breeze. You have invaded my home. Your sins are many, and now you shall suffer the consequences of your actions."

Elgin then made a sinister cackle.

"I have been told there must not be many of you in the Breeze; otherwise, you never would have picked the method that you did to fight back against my army. I was also told that I might find you here attempting a desperate last struggle to take my head and end the battle, and it seems, once again, Oliver was spot on. I'll admit the fact that guy always seems to be right kinda bugs me, but I can't argue with the results! You see, I'll be the one taking YOUR head! I'll take it to King and reclaim what is rightfully mine! Power! Respect! And your pack will make the perfect stepping stone to do just that! But I've been told time is on my side, Cloud! The longer you wait the more your pack will die, so let's see what you've got!"

Cloud hated to admit it, but Elgin was right. It seemed as though Oliver had a perfect understanding of the situation and filled Elgin in on what he had to do. It seemed Oliver was not on Cloud's side after all, but that still didn't change what had to be done. The guards were many, but Cloud wouldn't let this end with Elgin at the helm. He used the cover of the white snow and slashed one guard and then another. None of them could catch a glimpse of the Breeze leader, and his title of unstoppable held true. He attacked again and again, but after a certain number of strikes, the unexpected happened. On an attack run, one of the guards made a blind swat.

Baffled, Cloud hid behind a tree.

"Your age betrays you," Elgin taunted. "I'll admit you're good at hiding. With all this snow, your white fur blends in perfectly, but your fur isn't totally white anymore, now is it?"

Cloud scanned himself and realized the blood of the last guard soaked part of his coat. By making the blind swat, it decreased the amount of time Cloud had to get away from the victim before the gushing blood stained him. The swing of the guard's paw had put them closer together. It had been years since Cloud faced multiple enemies at a time. Elgin then made a command to have his Alphas swat randomly more often. Cloud now had to be delicate. The more he killed the easier he would be to spot. Red was an excellent contrast against white. Cloud continued his assault on the guards. The lower confidence made his stikes become less and less effective. The Breeze leader slowed down from fatigue and, as expected, became easier to see. Eventually, it was enough that whoever was left was able to catch up to Cloud and pin him to a tree, surrounding him on all sides. Cloud looked around, desperate for a way out, but he was stuck. Elgin triumphantly gave out the order. "Finish it."

A guard went to strike when, suddenly, a wolf appeared before Cloud to defend him. This mysterious wolf then spoke out.

"Sorry, but if you want to kill the boss, you're gonna have to do a lot better than that!"

Chad appeared, arriving as the leader's savior. Cloud was grateful, but this turn of events confused and worried Cloud

"Thank you for saving me, Chad, but I gave you orders to lead the pack and defend our home."

"We'll talk about that later. For now, we need to get out of this alive, boss."

Cloud reluctantly agreed when Elgin spoke.

"Another one? Odd... Oliver said you'd be alone for sure. Well, I guess the fossil can't be right about everything. Either way, two wolves instead of one isn't going to make a difference here."

Abruptly, another guard dropped to the floor as Cody appeared alongside Chad.

"Then how about three wolves?" he said smugly.

Elgin, now annoyed by the appearance of these pesky wolves who stood between him and victory, cried out in anger.

"Two!? Three!? It still makes no difference! Now hurry up and die, and get out of my way!"

The trio continued the hit-and-run tactics. Soon, only a few remained, the ones that were clearly the most competent. One of them managed to swipe at one of Cloud's legs and render him unable to run away. Complete exhaustion finally caught up to Cloud. Cody and Chad turned around to see that their leader was hurt, a guard rushing to end him. The duo was too far away. As a paw came down to swipe at Cloud's throat, Cloud could only think of his offspring when a spatter of blood once again painted the snow. Everyone was stunned.

A new wolf appeared to defend Cloud except, this time, this was a wolf Elgin recognized.

"Abel?! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?"

The Breeze wolves were confused by the sudden assistance of this mysterious stranger. Abel looked at Cloud and gave a nod before turning back to Elgin.

"Sorry, big guy, but I'm afraid the working conditions with the Rogues were a bit too hostile for me! I quit!"

Elgin was beyond furious. His anger seemed to melt the very snow around him.

"You quit?! You don't get to quit! You're part of the Rogues! You're my soldier…. YOU MISERABLE LITTLE NOBODIES ARE IN MY WAY! I WILL HAVE WHAT IS MINE, SO WHY WON'T YOU JUST DIE!?"


(written from February 5th to February 6th, 2023)

Chapter 12: The Sky Falls - Part 1

This war had become a fearsome battle fought on three fronts. Cloud and his small band took on Elgin, hoping to end things in one strike, Drizzle fought like the specter of death itself alongside the Alphas that had managed to stay alive in the fierce conflict, and Thunder led the Omegas in a courageous last stand, though they did desperately wish it wouldn't truly be their last.

Thunder and his group were the ones struggling the most. While the Breeze's Omegas were certainly a bit different than regular Omegas, with some of them being impressively large and physically strong, none of them had experience with combat since Ranking School which, for some, had been half a lifetime ago, and at most, it was extensive stealth training which only had so much use in a large brawl. The Omegas knew vital locations to strike on a wolf's body for maximum lethality, but that was hard without the element of surprise. The Omegas evaded attacks from the Rogues the best they could, but they were clearly using a fighting style that did not suit them.

Thunder commanded the Omegas to keep within a tight formation, hoping that unity to defend one another would be enough to offset the sheer numbers disadvantage they faced. Thunder fought alongside Echo as he would use his massive size to throw enemy Rogues off balance, allowing Echo to strike kill shots at the enemies. Thunder would also protect Echo when she would occasionally slip or lose balance due to her occasionally clumsy nature.

Eventually, the Omegas began to face the same issues that the Alphas outside the Sanctuary faced. They began to slow down and tire from the massive number of enemies getting thrown at them without end. The Omegas got progressively more sloppy, and their numbers began to drop when, eventually, a Rogue was able to break through and go for a shot right at Thunder's throat. Thunder couldn't move fast enough to dodge the attack, and Echo wasn't able to move fast enough to stop the Rogue but someone was.

At that moment, a new wolf appeared and removed what have been the Rogue's glorious kill. He bit into the neck before spitting the dead body out of his mouth. Benny had decided to join the fight for the Breeze!

"Benny! Am I glad to see you! You really saved my neck… literally."

"Well, doing this is probably the stupidest idea I've had in a long time, but I'm all about stupid ideas so I figured, 'screw it.' Hope I'm not too late to the party!"

Thunder gave a grin.

"Eh, we'll call it fashionably late."

"Glad to have you with us, Benny," Echo then cut in with a sassy tone. "Welcome to the stupid idea club! Now are you boys gonna keep chit-chatting, or are you gonna help me kick out these party crashers?"

Thunder let out a chuckle.

"Well, you heard the boss, Benny. Let's get to work."

The three continued the assault with the rest of the Omegas. With Benny added to the fight, Thunder now had an Alpha to watch his back, allowing the giant wolf to fight even harder than before, mowing down Rogue after Rogue. Before this battle, the Breeze were already legends, but should any survive this battle, they would surely tell a story of terror of a wolf made of shadows who couldn't be touched and a giant wolf built like a mountain, both able to wipe out dozens of wolves with ease. However, the Rogues' force was simply overwhelming, so the tide of the war remained stubborn. The situation was beginning to look bleak for the Breeze. They were down to a handful left, and death was almost certain when something completely unexpected happened.

A howl rang out through the forest, and all the Rogues suddenly stopped. Suddenly, instead of pouring into the Sanctuary, they were now leaving. It was a signal for the Rogue army to retreat. It was too close for comfort, but miraculously, the Breeze had survived the onslaught of the Rogue army.

The Omegas began to cheer when Thunder boomed out once again to the Omegas. "Do not celebrate victory yet! Stay alert! What's left of their army may return! I need a squad of you to go out and look for survivors while the rest remain here on alert in case another attack comes. Anyone seriously injured is to be brought to the healers at once! In the meantime, I will go find the pack leader as well as my siblings."

The Omegas nodded in understanding and moved as ordered.

"If you're going, then I'm going too!" said Benny. "I might not like it, but I'm already all in, and you'll need someone to watch your back."

"You sure you're coming to watch my back and not to find Drizzle?" Thunder replied with a raised eyebrow.

"What? It can't be both?"

Thunder then saw Echo looking at all the fallen wolves. She appeared to grieve, for so many had died. Thunder approached her as she spoke.

"We were lucky enough to survive, but there are so many who weren't. There's barely any of us left now..."

"I know how you feel, but grief is not something we can afford to let in just yet. There's still an enemy on our tails and the living who need our attention. Speaking of which, should we go look for your family?"

Echo's face turned more acrid than it was before.

"No, there's no need for that. My family has already been dead to me for a long time." She looked into Thunder's eyes. "What matters now is your family, our family."

Thunder didn't say a word but nodded in understanding. He signaled for Benny to join them, and the three made their way out of Sky Sanctuary only to find what could be described as a large raft of bodies in a sea of blood-soaked snow. The three began their search, looking for any sign of Cloud or Thunder's siblings. As the search went on, Thunder became more worried for their safety. If they had died, if he had failed his mother and broken his promise, then Thunder didn't know what he'd do. Thunder searched frantically for his family, using his exemplary senses and pushing them to their limits to try and find any clue to their whereabouts, any sight, any sound, and any smell that might indicate what had become of them. He desperately tried to keep a level head as he knew Echo would tell him to do.

Then, off in the distance, Thunder found the clue he was so desperate for. Thunder heard a sound, and after he focused on that sound, he discovered it was Drizzle, and she was crying. Thunder told the others, and the three raced to where she was. Soon, they could all see she was crying in front of a body, but they couldn't yet tell who it was. A sense of foreboding and worry loomed over Thunder's mind. As he got closer, the sense of worry only got worse. His heart progressively sunk. And once they finally reached Drizzle, Thunder's worst fears became reality. Before his very eyes laid the dead body of his little brother, Zephyr.

The realization hit the others as well. Echo teared up.

"Oh no… Zephyr."

"He seemed to be a bright light and a kind soul, too kind for a place like war," said Benny.

"And yet a warrior he was," whispered Thunder.

He set a paw on Drizzle's shoulder, and it was only then that she noticed their presence. She tried to quickly speak, and she ended up stammering through her tears.

"I... I... I tried to pro... protect him! It all happened so... so fast! Everyone was gone and... and it was just us, and he got hurt and I... and I... I couldn't help him."

Thunder pulled in his sister to hug her which made her now just burst out into tears.

"It's okay, little sister. I'm here now. It's not your fault. I should have been there to protect you. I'm so sorry I wasn't there."

The group mourned for a moment before Thunder continued. "I know it's hard, Drizzle, but now isn't the time to mourn the dead, we have to find Dad. Do you know where he is?"

Meanwhile. . .

The last fight was beginning to see an end. Before the signaling of a retreat, the group of Cloud, Cody, Chad, and Abel were fighting off Elgin and his guards. Cloud and Abel kept Elgin distracted, using his blind rage against him. Elgin was a large wolf and very proficient in combat, considered one of the best in the Rogues. However, Elgin was not just large. He was overweight. He hit very hard but was also slow for his size. Often, he accidentally struck the guards around him as he fought.

In a rage, Elgin cried out.

"THE LEADER OF THE PATHETIC BREEZE AND A MISERABLE TRAITOR, I WILL TEAR YOU BOTH APART!"

"Is that the best you've got, you poor excuse for a wolf?" said Abel with a laugh. "With all that fat, I'd say you're closer to a momma bear! But with how stupid you are, that's probably not fair to a momma bear!"

Abel and Cloud continuously insulted Elgin to keep his attention and fury on them when a howl rang out for all the wolves to hear. Elgin looked to the sky.

"Oliver…. You dare betray me like this…. I'll kill you for this… I'LL KILL YOU OF ALL FOR THIS!"

"Your name was Abel, right?" said Cloud. "What was that howl? What does it mean?"

"That howl is to signal a retreat. Oliver used the commanding authority that Elgin gave him to pull the troops back. The Rogues are now running with their tails between their legs."

Cloud was barely able to crack a smile before Elgin charged at them once again. It seemed now that there was no longer light behind Elgin's eyes. He had become nothing more than a rampaging monster. Words could no longer get through to Elgin as he was the only one remaining. All of his guards were gone. Realizing his entourage was destroyed, Elgin began to hate with a burning passion, but one wolf stuck out in his mind more than any other.

"OLIVERRRRRRR!"

Suddenly, from behind a tree, a voice could be heard.

"Geez, you don't have to scream so loud. I'm right here."

Elgin went to attack the old wolf who he now knew was responsible, but Abel pounced on him, pinning him against the ground. Elgin's stamina had run out, and he was too exhausted to put up much of a resistance. "Excellent timing as always, my friend," Oliver praised.

Now coming to his senses, Elgin put two and two together.

"Wait, you two know each other?! You were planning this the whole time, weren't you?!"

Oliver gave a chuckle.

"Sheesh, and I thought turtles were slow. Abel, do you mind?"

Abel struck Elgin in the back of the head.

"So you're the infamous Oliver," said Cloud. He looked down at the now-unconscious Elgin. "You leave quite the first impression."

"And you must be the leader of the Breeze. I haven't heard much about you, but what I have heard tells me you and your pack are just the wolves I'm looking for."

"And why have you been looking for us exactly?" Cloud asked, curious to finally get answers out of this mysterious old-timer.

Oliver gestured to the wolves behind Cloud.

"We can get into that in a moment, my new friend, but first, I think you have more important things to attend to."

Cloud turned around to see his offspring appear with a couple of other wolves. He was ecstatic to see them. He ran up and immediately pulled them into his embrace. After hugging them for a moment, he looked around and noticed he didn't see Zephyr anywhere, and as he looked down at their faces to ask where he was, Cloud felt a knot in his stomach and a claw press into his heart. Thunder and Drizzle had been crying, a deep pain on their faces as clear as day. Thunder tried to summon up the words to break the news but just couldn't do it. Cloud turned his head to Echo and Benny and could see the pain on their faces as well. No one had to say a word. Cloud realized it on his own. One of his sons was gone.


(written from February 7th to February 8th, 2023)

Chapter 13: The Sky Falls - Part 2

The air weighed heavily on the royal family. Knowing that Zephyr was gone cut a deep wound into Cloud, Drizzle, and Thunder in different but equally painful ways. Drizzle saw her own brother die right before her eyes and was the only one to hear his last words. She placed the blame on multiple factors. She blamed Elgin for starting this pointless war, her father for running off, and Chad and Cody for doing the same at a later time when it mattered the most. She also blamed Thunder for not being there like he always said he would be, and she even blamed herself for never learning how to be a healer. So much pain, frustration, and regret circled within Drizzle's mind, and they would not stop tormenting her.

Thunder, meanwhile, could only think to blame himself. He promised himself time and time again just as he had promised his mother so long ago that he would be there for his siblings no matter what. He could make no excuses, no justifications for his actions. He took an oath and he failed and that failure meant losing his beloved little brother. Thunder felt like he was finally turning things around after failing his exam, and yet here he was, a failure all over again. The loss of Zephyr was another thing Thunder had to come to terms with for the rest of his life.

Lastly, from Cloud's point of view, he couldn't begin to describe the feeling of losing a son. It was not right to have your beloved pup pass on from this world before you. It was something that didn't feel possible, like the world was made wrong somehow, like this wasn't the way things were supposed to be. Cloud had a plan for the future. Since Zephyr passed the exam and became an Alpha, he was next in line to be the next pack leader. Although a jokester on par with Chad and Cody, Zephyr had an incredibly kind heart. Cloud knew that kindness wasn't enough to lead, so he made Zephyr out to be the next pack leader who fought alongside his Alphas in the war in order to gain the pack's loyalty. Thunder was going to be the one to watch over Zephyr and act as an advisor. Cloud knew that Thunder was very intelligent and cared deeply about his brother and that made him perfect for the role. It all was going to work perfectly.

As the family sat together for a moment in despair, Cloud shifted through those painful thoughts in his mind. He kept asking himself why things had to play out the way they did. Why did his son have to die? What did he do wrong? And it was after that when his sorrow-filled mind finally came to the realization. Cloud left Chad and Cody in charge of the squad during the battle. Their task was to make sure Drizzle and Zephyr stayed alive, to make sure the pack's future stayed alive. Now Cloud saw where things went wrong, and that feeling of sadness and pain began to bubble into a rage, unlike almost anything the pack leader had ever experienced before.

Cloud spoke out with his usual soft voice, but now there was a certain intensity to it, a fury that hid just beneath the surface that was dying to be unleashed.

"Cody, Chad, come over here for a moment."

The two looked at one another confused but approached Cloud inquisitively. They stood side by side.

"What is it, boss?" asked Cody. "Is something up?"

Cloud faced the second and third-in-command, but while Cloud's demeanor seemed cool and calm, the look in his eyes made it very clear he was anything but.

"Refresh my memory. I believe, before I left, I gave you two explicit orders to watch over my offspring and keep them safe, isn't that right?"

The two nodded in agreement with Cloud that those were in fact his orders. "Then could you please tell me where Zephyr is?"

The two wolves hadn't yet put together that Zephyr had passed away and were confused as to what Cloud was trying to say.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure what—"

Before Chad could finish, Cloud pounced on them. The two were terrified and confused. Cloud then spoke again, keeping his signifying soft voice quaking with a level of fury that couldn't be missed.

"You don't know where he is? Well, I'll tell you then. He's dead... I gave you explicit orders to keep my pups alive, and instead, you showed up to save me. You disobeyed my orders, and now I will have to bury one of my own sons."

"Boss, if we could please explain—!"

But swiftly, Cloud cut Chad off.

"If either of you interrupts me again, I'll rip out your vocal cords. Now... the direct insubordination from you two has caused the death of the heir, but it also saved my life. It is because I owe you this debt that your lives will be spared; however, your crimes were inexcusable. They will not go unpunished."

Inside, Cloud wished there was some other way but felt the duo had brought this upon themselves. "For your crime of ignoring direct orders which directly led to the death of a member of the royal family, you two are hereby cast out from the Pack of the Breeze. With this mercy, my debt to you is paid."

The two were shocked as Cloud got off of them. As they stood back up, they wanted to say something in response, but they couldn't think of anything to cleanly justify their actions. They were loyal, but unfortunately, too loyal. They had put the pack leader's safety over his orders. They looked over to Drizzle and Thunder who could only give the duo looks of hate and discontent for abandoning the squad. The two then walked away in shame, disappearing into the trees after giving the royal family one last look.

Oliver stepped forward to Cloud once again.

"I apologize for getting so quickly back to business after you've lost a son, but there are still important matters I need to discuss with you."

Cloud turned his attention back to Oliver. This made Oliver nervously gulp. The old wolf was much more scared of Cloud than he was of Elgin. Elgin was nothing more than a mindless brute that could be easily manipulated, but Cloud was a whole different story. The leader of the Breeze, one of the few bastions remaining that can fight against the Rogues, was sure to be no pushover, and one wrong move could mean Oliver's downfall.

"I haven't forgotten about you, Oliver," Cloud replied. "I apologize you had to see such a shameful side of the Breeze."

Oliver considered the cordial and polite response to be a breath of fresh air after dealing with Elgin for so long.

"Think nothing of it," Oliver answered in kind. "War often has a way of showing the ugliest sides of all things. I don't hold that against you. That is simply the way of the world."

Following a nod in appreciation, Cloud decided there was no longer a need to beat around the bush. He jumped right into asking the old wolf the important questions.

"Alright, Oliver, it's time for some answers. You've been quite a shifty figure looming over this entire war lately, and now I want to hear things from you directly. Who are you, and what do you want?"

The straightforwardness had caught Oliver a little off guard as he was so used to being a bit more sly about things, but he appreciated Cloud's way of doing things and decided it would be rude to try to act sly when Cloud was being such an honorable fellow.

"I can see you don't mince words. Very well. Allow me to illuminate a few things for you. Who am I? I am old as you can tell, and I have seen a great many things throughout a great many places. You could consider me a purveyor of knowledge. I have my own secrets as do we all, but I have been, in a sense, contracted by my friend, Abel here, to assist with a sort of quest he's on. To the west, there exists a park you might have heard of known as Yoho National Park. Abel is from that park, and I believe the Breeze is our best hope for righting the wrongs that have been taking place there."

The members of the Breeze looked at each other, unsure whether to believe what Oliver was saying when Abel then chimed in.

"I know asking you guys to come all the way to Yoho to fight someone else's battle is unreasonable to ask, but I'm desperate, and I feel I need to ask it all the same. Yoho has become a nightmare for the wolves that live there, a living hell. I've done so many things I'm not proud of. There are so many wrongs I need to right before I leave this world, I… I need—"

Abel stopped talking when he felt the paw of Cloud on his shoulder.

"It's alright, Abel. I can sympathize with your frustration. And, of course, you saved my life. That is not a debt easily forgotten."

Abel nodded in appreciation of Cloud's kind words when Oliver quickly jumped into the conversation again.

"Alright, I'll cut right to the chase, Cloud. I'd like to propose a deal. I'll help to set up your pack so that the Rogues will never be more than a minor inconvenience to you again. If we're lucky, you may never have to even deal with them again. In exchange, I ask that you help us fix Yoho. I might be smart, but a smart wolf knows he can't do everything by himself or even with just one companion. When we went searching for the Breeze and found it under attack, I had Abel slip into the Rogues' army, and they were too disorganized to ever notice an extra wolf. From there, I worked to sabotage things from the inside out and well…" Oliver then gestured to the body of Elgin. "You've already seen what I'm capable of and that I've been working to help you from the beginning, so what do you say?"

Cloud thought for a moment before he called over Thunder.

"Allow me a minute to discuss this before I give you my answer."

"But of course!" Oliver replied. "Take all the time you need to give the answer you feel is right."

Cloud nodded in understanding and turned to Thunder. The two discussed their options. They weighed all the pros and cons of working with Oliver. They clearly saw he was capable of some pretty crazy things and that he was better to have as an ally than an enemy, but he was obviously very crafty, so the Breeze would have to be extremely careful with him. They acknowledged the debt that was owed to Abel before Cloud turned back to Oliver.

"Alright, Oliver, we've talked it over. We'll agree to your deal for now, but we refrain from saying how much we can help until we get a better idea of the situation in Yoho."

With that, a smile broke out on Abel and Oliver's faces. Their giant gamble had just paid off.

"Excellent! It's wonderful we were able to come to an agreement! And as such, the Breeze has officially hired my services as an advisor. Of course, I'll fill you in on all the details as soon as we get back to your Sanctuary. There'll be a lot to do after all. Speaking of which..."

Oliver then looked down at Elgin again. "I'd start by recommending you send Elgin back to the Rogues' pack leader as a message. Elgin should receive quite the punishment when he returns to King."

Drizzle immediately made an objection.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! That wolf is the reason my brother is dead and our pack laid to waste! He should remain our prisoner so that he can be tortured and face punishment by us and us only!"

The outburst was a surprise to Cloud, but he could understand where Drizzle was coming from. In fact, Cloud understood all too well. It had seemed that, of the three, Drizzle was the one that had inherited Cloud's fury, and as a result, Cloud felt he had to guide that fury to be something productive instead of destructive.

"I hear what you're saying, my daughter, and I for one agree that we the Breeze should keep him as our prisoner; however, I do not agree on torturing him. Your anger is understandable and powerful, but it must be directed to where it is needed. Torturing a prisoner will do you little good and will make you no better than them. If you wish to be a true warrior, then control your anger instead of letting it control you."

Drizzle who was steaming with anger managed to miraculously cool down due to her father's wise words. A part of her knew that her father was right, but another felt that it wasn't fair. She wanted something important to the Rogues taken just as something so important was taken from her. Meanwhile, Oliver acknowledged the leader's decision.

"Very well, Cloud. If you have decided that the risk of taking Elgin prisoner is worth taking, then I will accommodate our plans accordingly. Now then, the leaderless Rogue army will likely be running back to the Rogue base soon where they will scatter and draw the attention of other Rogue units throughout Banff, so we should head back to your home and begin preparations to move your pack somewhere safe before the Rogues return with another force to finish you off."

Cloud agreed with Oliver's assessment, and the group of wolves moved to head back to the Sky Sanctuary. Before leaving, Abel looked in the direction of the Rogue base, wearing a concerned expression. Oliver noticed and figured it had to do with Princess but decided not to say anything. He figured Abel just needed a moment to collect himself. At the same time, Drizzle was deep in her thoughts when she was given a surprise hug by Benny. At first, she wanted to push him away, but instead, she decided to stay in his embrace if only for this moment. His embrace felt to be the only comfort she had right now, the only good thing that came out of this whole war, and the two stayed that way for a moment as the others gave them some time. This war was one that had brought the sky crashing down to earth and burned it to cinders. Their home had been laid to waste, akin to a pile of ashes now. The Sky Sanctuary was no longer a sanctuary thanks to the Rogues, and the Breeze would have to flee for the sake of survival.


(written from February 7th to February 8th, 2023)

Epilogue

Several weeks later. . .

Cody and Chad were without a pack. They wandered from the rough and hostile land of Banff to eventually end up in Jasper. The winter had worn them down. They went days and eventually weeks without finding food. They sought a new pack and a boss they could swear their undying allegiance to. While the two understood their actions resulted in the death of Zephyr, they felt that they were unappreciated, for without them, Cloud surely would have died, and if that happened, it was likely there wouldn't have been a single survivor of the Breeze. At least that was what they tried to tell themselves to make them feel better. They simply needed a new boss, one that would appreciate them and what they're capable of, to let them show their loyalty in their own way and not be berated for it.

They ended up in the Valley. Weak from hunger, they collapsed into a ditch. This was it. There were destined to die.

However, as the two struggled to put themselves back together after stumbling, they heard a voice. Then a figure appeared above their broken bodies. It was a white wolf with brown patches who seemed to have a malicious grin on his face.

"Oh, my! Are you two alright? You seem hurt and hungry! Why don't you two come to my den, and I can see if we can't get you two something to eat. I'm a little short on caribou, but I have some really special onions that'll get you up and running in no time!"

To be continued. . .