The winter den was filled with cheerful voices that summer night. It was very odd to have a winter den during summer, thought Katari as she sat just outside of the den. Ice roses began to bloom nearby as glacier lilies swayed in the wind. The wind shifted, and Katari could hear the voices coming from the strange den. "Why...it's a miracle! She shall save us all!" Katari moved closer to the den's entrance to hear more messages. "The battle can be stopped by this miracle pup!" One after the other excited voices echoed in the air, all in which Katari heard. "What will you name her Lethia? She is a blessed pup, since her father is a warrior." All the voices seemed to pause after this question was asked. It rang a bell in Katari's mind, like a squirrel's juicy prey-scent. Lethia, the very name perplexed her, it's sound, the way it was pronounced even gave her not even the slightest hint of who it was. Katari kept on pondering about this until her close friend, Akira, stepped out of the glowing den. Akira's usual silver pelt now seemed like all the stars had seeped into it. The pools and dips in Akira's fur served as a more animate thing in Katari's vision. The stars would slip across the sky in a blur, getting to it's destination without stopping a heartbeat. Katari saw these things and considered them carefully. She would always think of Akira as one of the wolf warriors. Now, Katari thought that if she saw these strange visions in such a vivid way, maybe she was a wolf warrior! But she knew wolf warriors started sprouting wings when they were born, they also possessed a skill, a kind of power. Katari had overheard many discussions about a warrior's power. They would either hold a stone skill or an element...this sounded much better than the stone skills to Katari. She had always longed for the element of fire, then she could blaze through her pack like a hero or a high ranked position. Currently, Katari was a scout, a wolf that is sent to search for prey and report back to the alpha. But through all her years of being in MoonPack, Katari had never heard the name Lethia before. It kept repeating in her head, stringing endlessly. Akira suddenly asked,"Why are you staring at my darn pelt again? You seeing starlight again?" Katari replied in a startled tone,"Oh! Um...I was just...um...hey uh what happened in there...and who's Lethia?" Akira licked her paws then whispered into Katari's notched ear,"Well for starters, a warrior pup was born. It's wings are already broad and steady! Lethia, the warrior pup's mother, named her Renn, short for Rennagade. Lethia has a sort of demure personality. She's mates with Yatzu, you know, the famous wolf warrior that flew through fire to save our alpha." Katari blinked, then flicked her tail in interest,"Can you tell me more about Lethia? The color of her pelt? Her comments?" Akira ruffled her head fur with a paw then answered,"Sure. I can't quite remember, but I think it was midnight black with a bit of white and grey. She said Rennagade was a charm to every wolf in the world, Lethia seemed to savor every heartbeat of the moment, it was daring to say after the Star Wolf's amazing deeds." Katari waved her tail once more,"Lethia must be so proud of Renn. What color was the pup anyway? A brown? Or perhaps a tawny gold?" Akira shuffled the dirt and dug her paws in the earth so deeply...it was up to her dew claw,"Rennagade is pure white. Not a splash of grey or a speckle of cream. She might as well glowed in the den. It was like she was outlined in gold. Her claws are silver and sharp, her eyes a dazzling red, like her mother." Katari's ears froze when Akira described Rennagade's eye color. How could it be red? Why? It was a very bad sign, an ill omen. To the wolves of MoonPack, it meant the dim skies. Something a mother should dread of if found in their own pup. Soon, Katari was shaking violently. How could the alpha allow this? Especially the alpha female! This is bad bloodlines. Now Katari knew why Lethia's name tingled her marrow. Rennagade could destroy the whole pack! Maybe even the whole clan! Worse, even the other packs and clans of Blue Moon Valley! The guard hairs on Katari's back were bristling wildly, and her teeth were showing, as her dark pelt fluffed out so much, she appeared twice her size. Akira took a step back from her friend, regarding her for a moment. Akira always felt Katari was different from the other wolves. The way she spoke, the rhythm of her paw falls, and mostly Katari's pelt. It was dark brown with white on the belly and a tawny gold star in between her icy blue eyes. Akira darted away in terror, Katari never showed her teeth before! She was usually patient when handling problems. But this, great Star Wolf, this was not right! Akira just knew Katari was deeply jolted by the fact that Renn's eyes were red. She headed toward the alpha female's den just as Lethia bumped into her. The mother glared annoyingly at Akira then shoved her aside. Akira groaned with disapproval and surprise, then listened to Lethia's words, the words that were not meant for her to hear. It was horrific: "When my darling daughter grows up, I'll make my Rennie girl become the apprentice of that bum Katari. She'll teach her how to get things done! My daughter shall be the next alpha in line...she shall lead for mama! (evil laughing)

To be continued.....