made.

*

“See anything?” asked Kova for thousandth time.

“No, ma’am, not on ice.” Relied Viiv. “But I see their forces in forest on the other side. We will see if they are coming down.”
”I wish to have some wolves down there, in snow.” Said alpha-beta.

The surface of river was covered with snowy clouds and mist. Pack soldiers from Reindeer Hill could see movement of enemy, but didn’t see January and Maya. However they assumed that if regular forces of Talbourne were calm, there is no danger. Claners thought the same.

“We should have left a unit downthere…” murmured lieutenant Kimby.

“Too late for changing plans, boss.” Noticed sergeant Bill. “But at least we are sure they won’t budge.”

So as you probably figured out, the wolves January spotted were neither of Talbourne nor Pack front units.

*

“Oh, Lake!” called Maya, seeing friend of her sister-in-law. “What are you doing here?”

“Call them off! Call them off!” yelled January. “Quick, before my buddies react!”

“Lake, please, stop and…” started brownfurred, but then malawolf tripped her and overturned.

Lake pounced into air and flew on princess, but thanks to January he hit not her, but Packer. Those two rolled aside, trying to reach each other’s throats. Malawolf was shocked and confused, but training that Aarre had given him worked perfectly. They wanted to kill him, so the only way to survive was to kill in retaliation. But wrestling with redfurred Talbourne, he noticed in corner of his vision that in fact he wasn’t the target.

“Maya!” he yelled, seeing as three wolves pinned her down and immobilised on her back.

“What you’re doing!” cried brownfurred. “Black, what possessed you? That’s me, Maya!”

“Thanks ma’am, but I’ve already confirmed that.” Smiled blackfurred and bared his fangs, bending his head to her throat.

January put a desperate effort into hind paws thrust. He kicked Lake away and instantly stood up on paws. Then he pounced on mass of wolves, trying to stop the murder. He landed hard on Black, Snow and Maya, making them all yell with pain, but at least temporally saving the princess. Brownfurred was let loose and rolled away on the snow. But then January found himself in the middle of circle of five wolves, barring teeth on him.

“There was no order to kill him.” Said Snow. “But in the same time, there was no order to let him live…”

“Your logic is stunning.” Smiled Black, stepping further.

“Maya…” called January. “RUN!”

“Werk!” cursed Snow, seeing as princess started to run in milky way of snowfall.

In fact she was so confused that she chose the way up the creek, back to meeting spot, but not to any bank. Honestly speaking she wouldn’t know which bank she should choose, because on the east was enemy but from the west came friends that wanted to kill her. So she safely postpone that decision, escaping ahead.

But Lake was already on his paws and started to pursue. He quickly made up the distance and grabbed hind leg of brownfurred. Seeing that January howled with fear and charged. Because of so dense snowfall it was limited chance that anyone could hear that, but the charge was real movement and – what January had to admit, if he had a time – very stupid one. He simply jumped on back of Black and pounced on it as on trampoline. He should he stopped by Talbourne wolf and taken down. But thanks to unbelievable luck, Black was so surprised that he was late a second – with snap of his jaws he missed malawolf’s paw and Packer managed to get through.

Ha landed in deep snow, barely feeling the ice under it. He rushed ahead to help Maya, wresting with Lake. Redfurred was so focused on killing princess, he missed incoming danger. January hit him with all his mass, snatching him away. Unfortunately Lake’s jaws were still clenched on Maya’s hind paw, so malawolf heard a yelp of pain and saw as redfurred rolled aside, holding a piece of wolfess’s fur. Princess’s leg was red in blood. “Well.” Thought Packer. “I guess that’s all about possible escape.” He ran to Maya and grabbed her neck, trying to help her stand up.

He should had escaped and saved himself. But of course he stayed. That wasn’t caused by any large calculation, that for example he would be blamed of princess’s death and Ian would be killed because of that. He simply was unable to leave female in distress, especially that he gave her his word, she was safe.

“We must run!” he called. “Can you?”

“Why…” was whispering Maya. “They are my friends.”

“We must go!” screamed January, seeing that Lake was slowly standing up and rest of unit was already on chase.

He pulled her to run, praying she was able to jump on three paws. She was, but the speed they achieved was highly unsatisfying for them, yet excellent for the chase. Lake again was close, enraged and ready to kill. Malawolf pushed Maya ahead, slowing down and taking a position of her living shield. But it was just a one-time solution, shielding from first strike.

Then January understood with perfect clarity that there was no chance to run. Snowfall was so heavy that no one of his army noticed what happened. Playing on time was out of option, as well as fighting eight wolves. Creek was there quite narrow – but narrow comparing to wide pools. It had about hundred yards wide, what give fifty to one or the other bank. They were in the middle…

“Ice mark!” he called in wave of inspiration, but then he understood it was simply way of suicide. But it was too late.

He simply threw Maya on the snow and stopped over crack in ice that few days earlier both sides of conflict marked a middle of river. What was just a slight carving then, became a serious crack later. Because of frost, still gripping the land, ice was restlessly growing and that rift, pressed by glaciostatic forces, caused crushing more of frozen layer. At least January hoped that.

“Use you head, son!” he repeated what father always told him and hit with forehead into cracked surface. To his surprise, it broke. He found himself with head among ice-shards, and with Lake just behind him. Acting with impulse, he grabbed in mouth one of shards and turned back. His head made a semicircle and guided by a cosmic luck hit the head of redfurred. Ice fragment, still held in jaws, plunged into Talbourne’s neck. Lake coughed with blood-flood, stepped back and fell to the ground.

“Come on!” yelled January, grabbing Maya’s neck. He lifted her and pushed to ice hole.

“We are going there?” she asked, confused. Then she noticed Lake, shivering in agony and bleeding from wounded throat. “He’s dead!”

“Take a deep breath or you will be as well.” Said malawolf and pushed her into the hole. Then – praying that water-surface was low and there was some space between it and ice – jumped himself.

When he hit the freeing water (somehow it was on low level, making some airfilled space to surface of ice – he instantly grabbed Maya’s paw, to not let her drown. He was afraid that he might let it loose, but then wave of frost came to him, his muscles tensed so much, that he barely was repressing his jaws from biting Maya’s limb out.

Malawolf tried to move his paws, to stay emerged, but coldness quickly drained his strength and son of Steele sank into unconsciousness.

*

“God… NO!” screamed Black, seeing motionless body of Lake, with icicle coming out of his neck. “Lake… Lake!”

But redfurred didn’t hear it. There was still some spark of life in him, but it faded in next moment, with another wave of blood flowing out of his throat. Talbourne unit was watching dead friend with shock. Finally Snow gasped.

“Those bastards!” and ran to the ice hole.

Inside he saw just a water, flowing about foot under ice. She growled inside and turned back to his companions.

“They could be alive… GET THEM!” and set off to run down stream.

His companions looked on dead friend, then turned north too. Soon the unit – shorter of one member – was pursuing runaways down river. Seven wolves were boiling with rage of revenge.

*

Kova – because she was calm and experienced commander – endured two hours, before the showed any signs of uneasiness. But then she simply burst with fury. She called all forces from second camp and was ready to send them down on ice, but Viiv stopped her.

“Maybe… maybe we ask them first?” he proposed.

“About what?” she snorted. They should have return us January long ago…”

“Maybe… you know. That Maya is hot chick after all…” started alpha-gamma, but under stare of Kova stopped. “But still we could howl to them and…”

But then howl sounded on the other side of creek. It was barely hearable, but Viiv – who had very sharp senses – read it anyway. When transmission was over, he stayed motionless, still looking on the milky wall of could before him.

“What?” asked Kova with breaking voice. “What did they say?”

“They claim that lady Maya haven’t returned and accuse us for taking her.” Said Kimby slowly.

“We will rip them…”

“They give us an hour, then sent strike team.”

“So we have a thirty minutes.” Smiled Viiv, hearing that. Then Kova looked on her soldiers.

“That’s it – January is in danger. Let’s go!”

*

Viiv managed to persuade Kova that only recon team should go. So alpha-beta joined her subordinate’s group and quickly came to the meeting point. They instantly noticed a dead body – commander yelled with fear, but soon after noticed that killed wolf had light-red coat. She ran there and looked carefully on scene.

The history of fight was unable to reconstruct – snow already covered all trails. But few elements were sure – there was a dead wolf, surely not the Pack soldier and a ice hole. There was no January at sight.

“Ma’am…” said Viiv, grabbing with jaws fur of alpha-beta and pulling her back. “We must leave, before Talbourne come. He might be still alive…”

“I will rip their throats apart!” growled Kova with

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