don’t you remember what happened to me there?”

Talkeet still looked angry, and now his tone was short and clipped. He had ceased yelling.

“That was dealt with.” Talkeet said, “Daie had no part in it.”

“I don’t care,” Rayne said. “Talkeet, I… I won’t go back.”

Talkeet sighed.

“Suit yourself then.”

He turned and began to walk away.

“Talkeet…” Rayne said, taking a step forward.

Talkeet stopped, but did not turn.

“Good-bye Rayne.” He said.

Rayne watched as he walked slowly out of the chamber.

Talkeet stomped toward the exit to the cave.

“You shouldn’t have hit her…” He thought.

“Yesss.” A dark voice hissed in his head. “She took a stand against you, you were just defending your beliefs, and besides, it woke her up a bit didn’t it?”

Talkeet heard the voice. He didn’t know what it was… but it was right.

“She’s a liar.” Talkeet thought. “I’m better off without her. She said she’d go anywhere I did, that it was up to me, yeah right, she planned this whole thing.”

Talkeet kept walking toward the exit.

“She’s lucky I didn’t kill her.”

A wolf darted in front of him, and he stopped.

“Talkeet, where are you going?” The wolf asked.

“I’m going somewhere where my beliefs will be received, and acted upon” Talkeet answered. “Just stay out of it Ramos.”

“Sorry buddy,” Ramos said, “but I can’t let you do that.”

“Who’s gonna stop me,” Talkeet asked, “you?”

Ramos’s eyes narrowed.

“I’ll do my best.”

“Some friend you are.” Talkeet said.

He started walking forward.

Ramos ran in front of him again.

Talkeet stopped.

“Don’t make me do this Talkeet, we’ve been friends for too long, please, just come back with me, we’ll talk to Shadow, and work everything out.”

Talkeet laughed.

“You’re so naïve.”

“You know the oath we all took,” Ramos said, “Talkeet, please reconsider.”

Talkeet shook his head.

“You’re right, I do know the oath you all took, that I took… foolishly.”

“How can you say that Talkeet?” Ramos asked. “Aleu’s been nothing but kind, she’s never steered us wrong.”

Talkeet sneered at his friend.

“She’s a monster, and one that needs to be dealt with. I too was ready to give my life for hers once. I’d’ve taken a bullet for her, but than I started to see who and what she really is.”

“What does that mean?” Ramos asked.

“It means that I’m not under her spell anymore, I’m free, and I intend to stay that way.”

Talkeet’s eyes narrowed.

“Now, get out of my way.”

Ramos shook his head sadly.

“I’m sorry Talkeet.”

Then, without further warning, Ramos leapt at him.

Talkeet snarled, and jumped forward. The two friends met in the air, and fell to the ground.

They were both quite skilled fighters, and were both back up in seconds.

Talkeet pushed forward, and was rewarded by two hits to the face.

He growled, and hit Ramos hard enough to throw the gray wolf to the ground, where he slid about five feet away.

Ramos got up.

He stared down his former friend.

Then he charged once more.

Talkeet recognized the attack immediately, he’d taught it to Ramos, and he’d taught him the counter to it as well.

“Wait for it...” Talkeet told himself.

Ramos leapt into the air, and Talkeet stepped sideways, and snapped out with his jaws, catching Ramos’s neck.

Talkeet twisted his head, and let the inertia caused by Ramos’s jump, do the rest.

Ramos hit the ground and rolled, bright red blood squirted from the side of his shredded neck in steady pulses.

Talkeet stared down at his best friend.

“Why’d you do that?” Talkeet asked quietly.

Ramos couldn’t say anything, he just gurgled.

Talkeet watched, as Ramos’s chest stopped moving.

My God,” Talkeet said, “I… I killed him.”

Rayne ran in then. She saw Ramos lying on the ground, and the blood on Talkeet’s muzzle.

“Talkeet!” She yelled, running over to him. “What did you do?!”

He attacked me.” Talkeet said flatly.

Rayne was shocked, and unable to speak for a minute.

“But… he was your friend.” She said finally, “he was your best friend.”

Talkeet nodded.

“Yes,” he said, “he was, but don’t you see what Shadow is doing?”

“What?” Rayne asked.

“How can you not see?” Talkeet said, his voice growing louder. “Shadow has turned everyone, even my best friend, against me, to the point where he tried to kill me.”

“Oh Talkeet,” Rayne said, “I was going to ask you to come back with me, and see if we could work it out here, but now…”

She looked once more at the dead wolf at Talkeet’s feet.

“… now that’s not even possible anymore. Let’s….”

She paused again, unable to take her eyes off the horrible sight of Ramos.

She shivered.

“Was Shadow right?” She thought, “Has my Talkeet been gripped by the forces of evil so much so that I can never get him back?”

She shook her head.

“No, I’ll never give up on you, never my Talkeet. Do what you want, I’ll always be there for you.”

“Let’s get out of here, let’s run away. We’ll go somewhere far away, where Shadow will never find you, come with me, please Talkeet, please, I don’t want to lose you.”

Talkeet just stared back at her.

“I told you, come with me, or not, this is something I have to do, for you, it’s a choice.”

Tears came to Rayne’s eyes.

“Please Talkeet, listen to me. You’re going down a path that I can’t follow, you can’t expect me to go back there, not after what they did to me, Talkeet use your head. I know that in there somewhere you remember.”

“I told you about that.”

“Talkeet, please, listen to me, You think he’s telling you the truth? He’s the enemy.”

Talkeet crossed the space between them extremely fast, and the next thing Rayne knew, she was lying on the rock floor of the cave.

The side of her face felt hot.

“Ow,” she thought, “that’s the second time he’s hit me tonight.”

Talkeet’s paw drew back, as if he were going to hit her again, and she flinched.

Talkeet dropped his paw.

Hot anger reflected in his eyes.

“You don’t know anything, nothing.” He said calmly. “Daie was right about Aleu, he was right about all of you. I don’t know why I even came back.”

He turned and started to walk away.

“Talkeet,” Rayne said, “what are you trying to prove?”

Talkeet stopped and turned around to face her.

“What?”

“What kind of peace do you think you’re going to achieve with the Uniea?”

“We plan to ask every clan in the area to join us, if they refuse… they will be dealt with, just as Aleu will be. Then, once we are all one clan, we will choose one leader, one Alpha for all, that way, what that Alpha says goes, and anyone who chooses to fight us will be destroyed. Through this, we will achieve true peace.”

“That’s not peace Talkeet,” Rayne said, “that’s a dictatorship, and that is oppression, you’ll have no fighting, but at what cost… freedom?”

“It’s worth it Rayne.” Talkeet said. “I wish you could see that.”

Rayne stood up and faced him.

“I’m sorry Talkeet, but I enjoy my freedom, my freedom to do and think as I please, and I will never give it up.”

Talkeet’s eyes narrowed, and blazed with hatred.

“I’m sorry you said that Rayne, and I hope I never se you again.”

“Talkeet…” Rayne said, dropping her defensive tone, and sounding submissive once more, at the thought of losing him forever.

Talkeet sighed.

“If you’re not with me, you’re against me, and that means you’re my enemy. Next time I see you… I will do what I must.”

He started to walk away.

“Talkeet!” Rayne said, a tear running down her face, “I… I thought I meant something to you… thought you loved me.”

Talkeet didn’t say anything, just kept walking, until he exited the cave.

Rayne dropped to the floor, unable to believe what had just taken place. Her perfect little world had been turned upside down, and was now in shambles.

She put her paws over her face, and cried.

Chapter 8

Talkeet walked into the cave.

The guard stepped forward.

“What are you doing back?” He asked.

“I’ve thought about it.” Talkeet said.

“What?” The guard asked.

“I’ve thought about it, and I was wrong.” Talkeet said.

The guard