Disclaimer: Characters and events from Balto and Balto: Wolf Quest are the property of Universal Studios, Inc., while most of the other events, places, and characters are the fan property of the author herself, Juuchan17. This is a total work of fiction, not based on actual events.

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PART TWO

The dawn had arrived, and the young quarter-wolf was awake for leading the morning hunt. Sleep after the vision was rather calm, although many more questions than answers swarmed around her mind.

Why her? She asked herself as she descended the mountain to quench her thirst within the nearby river. I mean, she’s busy enough as it is with other problems with her Clan – why does he want Keliah to find the next Alpha? Why can’t he do it himself?She dunked her head into the water, hoping to drown her problems of these pesky visions that only managed to leave her mind-boggled once she returned back to her normal world.

But most of all, why is Aniu showing me this? She lifted her head out of the river, not bothering to shake the water off as she looked up into the pink and orange clouds above her. I’m sorry, but I just don’t understand . . . What does this mean, Grandmother?

“Well, I see you’re up early, Sleeping Beauty.”

She let out a gasp, surprised to hear someone behind her. It was a gray she-wolf with white markings – “Oh, hey there, Lorna!” she greeted her friend with a smile.

“Scarlet told me about last night,” Lorna said. She and Scarlet were half-siblings – they were both children of Nava, the previous Alpha. Also, Aleu knew that she could trust both of them with her problems. “That sounds like quite a strange dream you had.”

Aleu’s ears fell. “Yeah, and it gets even stranger after the recent vision I had when I slept just some hours ago.” She told Lorna about Keliah, the encounter with the blind Alpha, and this quest to find his heir. The she-wolf listened carefully, hoping to be able to translate what she thought this could be.

“Hmm, Scarlet was right – this is quite an odd vision that Aniu has sent you,” Lorna commented.

“But what does it all mean?” Aleu asked. “Why am I seeing all of these things as if I am Keliah? I’ve never heard of her before in my life until now; what is Aniu trying to tell me?”

Lorna shook her head. “I haven’t a clue. Sorry I’m no help."

“It’s all right,” Aleu sighed. “Scarlet said that if Aniu’s trying to send me a message or something, it’ll become clear enough soon.”

“He is right, you know,” Lorna smiled, nuzzling her friend gently. “You are learning a little more about this Keliah with each vision, so it shouldn’t be too much longer before things become clear.”

“I hope so,” the young Alpha sat up and stretched her front legs, Her paws splashed against the surface of the water, wetting her face. She shook it off, suddenly feeling refreshed. “Now, I’m ready to start a hunting party. Wanna join me?”

Lorna nodded. “Of course. I could use a bit of exercise.”

Together, the two females met with a couple other wolves and began their hunt. It was about a half-hour before they returned back with a large caribou calf in their grasps. Aleu was exhausted by the hard work it took to catch food, but she was a wolf now – wolves hunted and killed for food, and now that they had discovered a small side herd of caribou nearby, the Kawa Clan would at least be fed for the rest of the winter months. Spring was only weeks away, and with spring came the arrival of newborn calves and weaker caribou – perfect prey for any wolf hunting party.

The pack gathered around the dead caribou, blessing and thanking Aniu for giving them this bounty of food before allowing the stronger wolves – mainly Aleu and the guards – to eat first. Once they finished, the others took their fill until there was only bones left.

Aleu had finished after fifteen minutes of tearing a few pieces of the bloody meat with her teeth. She didn’t have much of an appetite after all of those visions with Keliah still fresh in her mind, but she knew that she still needed enough strength to last until the next time that they needed to hunt.

Why can’t I get her out of my mind? Aleu thought to herself as she tried to walk off her frustrations near the river. It was midday now, much to the surprise of the nearly sunken sun that barely made the tall tips of the forest trees seem as if they were ablaze with orange and yellow from behind. The scenery, strangely, did not distract the yearling Alpha on her silent pondering, but it offered a sense of serenity for a while.

I guess I’m not getting anywhere by pacing around here, but I need to know more about this Keliah . . . if I ever want to figure out what Aniu’s trying to tell me . . .

She sat there alone for quite some time, not moving an inch and mainly sighing out of irritation of these thoughts that made the Alpha worry. One would think that she was being quite reckless by abandoning her Clan over of a sudden, but Aleu had faith that her friends – mainly Lorna and Scarlet, whom she trusted with her life – would act upon her wishes until she returned from her solitary soul-searching. It wasn’t until around evening, after the setting sun caused the sky to fall under a navy spell of twilight magic.

“Ah, you’re back,” Scarlet welcomed the weary female back as she hobbled back from her day-long thought at the river. He gently nuzzled her with his nose and got her a smile. “So, any answers or revelations yet?”

Aleu shook her head. “I’m afraid not, Scarlet.” She let out a deep sigh as she prepared for her guard duty, as she had promised the night before. “I fear that I may never understand what Aniu is trying to tell me through these strange visions . . .” Her head and ears fell in defeat as she sat herself down near the main caverns where her Clan would rest for the night.

“Now, now . . . don’t give up so soon, Aleu,” Scarlet tried his hardest to encourage her with his wisdom. “I believe that visions such as this take some time before one can understand them.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Aleu joked slightly. “You’re not the one receiving them.”

“That is true,” Scarlet let out a light chuckle, but tried to remain serious on this situation. “Again, I don’t know Aniu’s reason for showing you these dreams and making you focus on this Keliah, but in time, everything will make sense . . . I’m sure of it.” With a smile, he turned away, knowing that Aleu had everything under control.

But when? Aleu thought once Scarlet’s presence was gone for the night and she was all alone for the early watch. When will I be able to understand?

Who is this Keliah . . . and what does she have to do with my dreams? Please tell me, Aniu . . . and make it soon, okay?

The night breeze began to make her fur shudder a bit after a couple of hours just sitting in the chilly Alaskan night, but she still had another hour left before the next guard arrived to take her place. The watch duty had grown quite boring this night, for it was good fortune smiling upon Aleu and her newfound Clan – with no enemies or threats to their territory and people, everyone could sleep soundly . . . everyone, that is, save for the Alpha herself.

She was again lethargic, completely ready for sleeping once her duty to the Kawa had been fulfilled, but now was not the time to doze – Aleu had made that mistake once and swore never to do it again – so there had to be something to take her young mind off of getting some rest. With nothing else left to do, Aleu felt like thinking over what she had seen in these dream-visions, hoping that perhaps there was something that she had missed.

Okay, what do I know as of now? Let’s see . . . there’s Keliah . . . she’s a she-wolf, Aleu reminded herself, picturing the soft-brown female in her mind as she did so. And she’s part of some small wolf Clan that is led by a blind Alpha . . . but they’ve been through many hardships and losses since they are in the middle of a war . . . and now she’s been given this quest to find the Alpha’s heir . . . 

As she watched the stars begin to twinkle into the evening sky, Aleu was almost mesmerized by the slowly appearing constellations above her head. As if by some crazy twist of fate, the stars almost seemed to wander and move, reenacting her two visions of Keliah and causing her bright eyes to widen amidst the wondrous canvas of night. For about a half-hour, she saw what looked like wolves running and howling in her celestial imagery, almost as if they were tracking an unknown enemy.

Wow, that’s a huge responsibility for someone as young as her . . . I’ve never known of anyone who had so much to do at that age . . . She let out a sigh as another flurry of questions suddenly entered her mind. But I still don’t understand – why would the Alpha select her – a young she-wolf like Keliah – to find his successor? Why not have her sister, Palei do it instead? I mean, she seems like a wolf that actually wants to do something for the Clan but can’t because of her age and runty size . . . Doesn’t she deserve a fair chance to prove her worth?

Aleu lightly chuckled. But then again, it’s almost like having a yearling who is only a quarter-wolf to lead a pack of purebred wolves toward caribou and life . . . She couldn’t help but to compare the wolves in her dreams to her own short life. Aleu had only been living as a wolf for a little less than a season now, and she still didn’t know that much about the lupine hierarchy system or anything related to wolves, with exceptions for hunting, howling and the Great Aniu herself. Still, she had tried to maintain some order around the Clan, unafraid to remind her followers that she was the Alpha, but Aleu managed to lead in her own unique way. Her rule was fair, allowing every member of her pack to live peacefully and with freedom while also making sure that the Kawa Clan’s new territory remained free of predators and other threats to their well-being.

Secretly, she still blamed her father for not telling her more about her wolf heritage, but she understood his reasons – he was protective of her due to her wild looks and actions, but perhaps he kept quiet about it because he had forgotten most of his wild instincts when her patriarch connected more to his husky roots instead.

At least this Keliah doesn’t have an overprotective father like I did, Aleu made herself smile at the thought . . . but remembered something else. But wait a minute . . . I haven’t heard about her father yet. I mean, she’s mentioned her mother, who is dead somehow, but everyone has both a mother and a father . . .

“Hey, Aleu!” It was Lorna, shining like silver moonlight emerging from the shadows of the caves. She was smiling as she approached her best friend with an energetic scamper in her gait. “It’s my turn to do guard duty now; you can go return to your visions tonight, okay?”

Aleu smiled as she nuzzled her friend with a sigh of relief. “Thanks. I’ve been waiting to get some sleep.”

“Hmm . . . You seem more excited about this whole dreaming thing than Scarlet described you earlier this evening,” Lorna sat down beside the yawning form of the quarter-wolf. “So, what’s new in the world of your weird visions of Keliah?”

“I don’t know, really,” Aleu nervously grinned. “I was thinking things over, and I have a lot of questions that need answering.”

“Well, I’ll let you catch some shut-eye, and in the morning, you can fill me in on everything,” the light gray female reassured her, nudging Aleu in the flank as she made her way back to the caves to rest. “Good night . . . and may you have sweet dreams tonight . . .”

Yes, I hope to have those too, Aleu thought to herself as she gave a final glance at her friend on guard duty and lay down at her cavern to sleep. Her eyes began to lower and rise drowsily, but soon natural instinct took over, allowing the young Alpha to close her eyes.

Maybe my next vision will clarify my questions . . . and guide me closer to the ultimate answer of why . . .

- - - - - - - - - -

“Keliah . . . Keliah . . .”

That voice again . . .Aleu immediately took notice of the speaker, despite not being able to see the source. That must be Palei, Keliah’s little sister . . . Keliah must be asleep . . . that would explain the darkness . . . She deciphered, knowing that she was seeing through the soft-brown lupine’s eyes in these visions.

“Hey, Keliah! Wake up!” Palei barked loudly into her sister’s ear. “It’s an emergency!”

Instantly, the darkness disappeared as Keliah’s eyes opened. The small smoke-gray pup was standing beside her, while the brown she-wolf was lounging on her usual rock by the river – Probably sleeping, basking underneath the sun’s warmth just like the first time, Aleu figured – but there was something about the pup’s expression that caused Aleu to worry. Oh no, this does not bode well, I’m sure . . .

Palei looked completely frantic, the panic could easily be seen emanating from her wide, young eyes, and it easily caused the older of the two to respond with haste. “What’s wrong, Palei? What seems to be the trouble?”

The dark-gray shuttered before finally speaking. “He’s . . . he’s . . . It’s the Alpha . . .” All of a sudden, tears streamed down from her eyes. Her head and ears fell low, and Palei couldn’t bear to talk anymore. It was as if the thought of what she knew had drained the energy completely out of her tiny body.

“What . . . No!” Keliah’s ears pricked up in a flash, and without another word, she had become a brown streak of lightning, rushing as fast as she could to the same place she had been only a matter of a day ago.

But I haven’t completed my quest yet! Keliah’s thoughts seemed to scream in her mind, causing Aleu to shrink down to the ground and put her paws over her ears. This is impossible! He cannot die now . . . not when his successor has yet to be named!

O Great Aniu, now cannot be the time you speak of . . . for I have yet to find the new Alpha!

Aleu whined with worry at the brown wolf’s dilemma, watching her run and hearing the heavy panting coming from within. Poor Keliah . . . I know she must be stressed out by all of this, the quarter-wolf thought with a heavy heart. It must be hard to deal with so many situations . . . Oh, I pray things work out well . . . for both Keliah and the Alpha . . .

The cave where the elder lived was surrounded by the females of the Clan, with exception of the younger pups that would only get in the way of all of the commotion and prayers of the wolves. There were about ten adults visible, and after easily sensing Keliah’s presence, one of them – a light-gray with gray eyes – leapt to meet her. 

“Meiah, how . . .?” Keliah’s query was quickly interrupted by the other female’s words.

“There’s no time to explain things, Keliah,” Meiah nudged her closer to the den entrance. As if they had been waiting for the brown female’s arrival, the rest of the she-wolves formed a path, clearing the way. “He’s been asking for you and only you since before dawn . . . I don’t know why, but you must be with him now.”

“What about our Healer?” Keliah was shocked that the elder would do such a crazy thing. “At least she could help with whatever’s wrong . . . that would be a lot more help than I would be . . .”

Meiah shook her head sadly. “He won’t see Felita, even though he knows it would be for the best.” She sighed, stopping at the open cave. “Somehow, the only one is you. Go to him, Keliah.”

There was no point in asking the others any more questions – They lack all the answers I seek, Keliah thought as she nodded to the females and stepped in with a silent gulp. She was still nervous, but it was more out of losing him than the eeriness of dark-lined cavern where the Alpha Male made his home. The ray of morning sunlight that rained inside allowed the brown she-wolf to see exactly what she feared.

“Keliah . . .” The Alpha’s voice was quiet yet audible as he lay on a stone slab near the furthest part of the cave. He was wheezing a little, sounding weak and close to the point of the end. 

“My Alpha . . .” She couldn’t bear to see him suffering like this. “My Alpha . . . What is wrong?”

“My time . . .” A sudden raven’s cry broke during his sentence, almost as if to foreshadow the events soon to come. “It is nearing its end, Keliah . . .”

“But it can’t be now . . . It’s only been a day!” Keliah’s head lowered as she let out a whine, her tears dripped onto the ground forming small pools. “I . . . I have failed on your mission for me, my Alpha . . . I haven’t found your heir yet . . .” 

“You tried your best,” the Alpha managed to smile a little, hoping to cheer her up despite the grave situation at hand. “but it’s my time, and nothing can change that.” He lifted his muzzle weakly upward, making peace with the natural flow of things. “When the Spirits call, one must heed it.”

“I don’t want you to die!” A sniffled pause made her lift her eyes at the frail sight of the elder wolf, hearing his breathing being slow and hoarse. “. . . Our Clan will be lost without someone as strong as you to lead us . . .”

“Are you not strong, my child?” The Alpha queried, but strangely, it did not sound like just his wise voice. There was another, a low, feminine tone that joined his own. “Are you of little faith? Do you not trust your own strength?”

“My Alpha?” Keliah’s ears pricked up at the ethereal tone, unable to recognize it. “What are you talking about? I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

Before Keliah could even say anything else, the Alpha's voice returned to normal, still aged and weakened. "I chose you to find my heir . . . I felt . . . I felt that you would already know the right leader our Clan needs to survive . . ."

"Of course I do, my Alpha!" Keliah murmured, still sniffling in tears. "Our Alpha must be strong and wise, knowing that they must fulfill the wills of the Great Spirits with their choices of leadership . . . only you have been like that, and no one else!"

“And so have you, . . . because you’re my daughter,” the Alpha murmured, placing emphasis on the last few words and smiling a bit as he said them.

Keliah gasped, as did Aleu who saw everything. Daughter?! Aleu thought, shaking her head in disbelief. Is Keliah the Alpha’s daughter? Why didn’t he say so before? She had learned a bit from Scarlet’s teachings about wolf life that in some Clans, the next-in-line after the Alpha passes on is his or her oldest child. Perhaps they follow the rule of heir-apparent too? She wondered as Aleu awaited Keliah’s own response.

“Me? I’m your daughter?” Keliah only said, surprised by her own tone. “I don’t understand. It doesn’t make any sense. How in the world can I be your daughter?”

“You are the last of my blood and the purest of those that remains here, Keliah. I’ve kept this secret for many years and never told a soul, but Aniu has told me that now you should know the truth of your birth,” the Alpha paused before beginning to explain the she-wolf’s heritage. His voice was still weakening, but perhaps it was Aniu’s strength that allowed the elder wolf to continue speaking.

“When I was young and just become Alpha of our Clan, I had a vision one night. Aniu spoke to me, saying that my legacy would be in a wolf with a brown coat. At first, I didn’t understand what she meant by that and completely ignored her words. I had a couple of other females during my life, each whelping several cubs after our first springs together, but both of them ended up being killed in battles. Their cubs never lived to see a year old, all dying from some mysterious illness.

“As I grew older and more and more death struck our Clan, I wondered why Aniu would take away those that I loved. She only reminded me of the same prophecy that she told me all those years ago – ‘a wolf with a brown coat.’ After years of leading, I learned to take heed to Aniu and her words.”

She must have punished him for not listening to her, Aleu thought to herself, responding to the story thus far. But to kill others just so he could make some prophecy come to pass? It just doesn’t seem right to me at all! She knew her grandmother was very wise and powerful, but the thought of killing off wolves and young cubs still felt wrong to Aleu.

“It was during a hunt that I met your mother, Hatalia. My eyesight was still rather good back then – when I first caught a glimpse of that beautiful brown coat, I felt my heart skip a beat. Spring was once again upon us, and I proposed marriage to her underneath the moonlight. Once she agreed, we consummated our union at the sacred place known only to the Alphas of our Clan – on the Plateau of Great Aniu.” He turned his eyes to Keliah’s face. “You were that spark we created that blessed night, and two months later, Hatalia birthed you in the Birthing Den of the North Woods. Once she returned back to us and I saw you for the first time only two months later, Aniu took away by sight after I got a good look at your perfect smile.”

“Why did Aniu make you blind?” Keliah asked, now getting curious about the tale of her origin and purpose. “And why after you saw me for the first time? Didn’t she want you to see me grow up into what I am today?”

“Of course she did, my child,” the Alpha told her sweetly. “She took away my physical sight and made me appear blind to mortal beings, but I still had my inner sight – my mind’s eye. Her prophecy was now in motion, my job was done; there was no need for my sight any longer. I can still see you, and I’ve always known that you are as beautiful as your mother was.” He paused to take a breath; this one was raspy and a bit rough, as if his voice was beginning to fade now as well. “When Hatalia died after birthing your sister and her four siblings, my heart was torn. I could not tell the rest of the pack that I was the father of you – they had all figured that on that day at the hunt I had already lost my sight and mated with another instead, especially since another she-wolf birthed on the same day as you – nor were they to know the truth yet. It was not time for them to know what I knew.”

“So, are you Palei’s father too?” She asked, hoping to make sense of everything.

He shook his head slightly. “She is not my true daughter as you are. Her father was one of my best guards, but he was killed a couple of weeks before her birth,” the Alpha told her. “Palei, although she was the runt of Hatalia’s last litter, ended up being the only survivor of the five. We buried your mother and the other four pups together down the river – you were a little over a year old back then, and it tore you up inside to watch your mother disappear from sight forever. I wished I could comfort you like a father should to their daughter, but I could not.” Tears swelled in his blind eyes, thinly falling down his cheeks. “I had to watch and wait from the shadows as you grew, knowing that one day you would ascend the throne as our Clan’s Alpha.”

Keliah’s mouth was dry, empty of the right words to respond to this sudden moment of time. Even Aleu was amazed by this revelation of Keliah’s past.

But why would he tell her this now, right before he’s about to die? Aleu thought, trying to piece the entire puzzle of her visions together. Suddenly, she gasped, her gold eyes were wide like pools at this new realization. Wait, the Alpha didn’t want the rest of the Clan to know about Keliah being his daughter . . . so maybe . . . yes, Aniu wanted only her to be present in his final moments . . . That all makes sense now! A smile brightened her white-beige face. That’s why he only asked for her . . . and none of the other wolves of the Clan . . .

She is the one he wanted her to find . . . Keliah’s destiny is to become the Clan’s new leader! Aleu let out a cheerful chuckle, but it was cut short by a choking sound and a scream.

“My Alpha!” Keliah watched the elder wolf’s body begin to tremble violently against the ground. Tears swelled in her eyes at the sight as she moved closer, hoping that this wasn’t the end yet. “My Alpha . . . oh, God . . .”

“Shh, my c-c-child . . .” The Alpha managed to stutter out weakly amidst the shudders. “Aniu is r-r-ready to take me h-h-home . . . Y-y-y-you are n-n-now Alpha, K-k-k-keliah . . . L-l-l-lead them w-w-well, my D-d-daughter . . .” His eyes rolled back as his final breath was released in a final message. 

“ . . . I-I-I . . . am . . . p-p-proud of y-y-you . . . I . . . I love . . . y-y-you . . .” 

His body now lay still on the rocky ground, the ray of sunlight within the cavern sparkled as it blanketed the gray-furred wolf and suddenly disappeared – the Alpha was dead.

“No . . . no . . .” Keliah’s voice cracked under the massive grief she felt in her heart. She shook her head, in denial of what she just witnessed, and the tears just fell. “No . . . No . . .”

Shutting her eyes tightly, she lifted her nose up, crying mournfully with a howl. 

“FATHERRRR!”

- - - - - - - - - -

She gasped awake once again, despite the redundant ending of a long, blasting howl and all. I thought I would get used to that by now, she grumbled to herself with a sigh of relief, realizing that she had returned back to her den. To her surprise, Aleu soon noticed the wetness on her cheeks, dripping from her tear ducts.

Was I crying? She asked herself, using a front paw to wipe her cheeks dry. Was it because of what I saw or what I heard? Pausing to sniffle, Aleu looked sadly out at the opening of her den, watching the early-morning sky begin to slowly brighten in front of her eyes.

Keliah . . . to lose her Alpha and her father all at once . . . She closed her eyes, letting more tears stain her cheeks in remembrance of her vision. She had never felt such a heavy weight on her heart like this before – never had a single moment that she had seen or witnessed made Aleu sense such sorrow, not even at that time when she told her father goodbye only a month ago. It feels so awful and heart-wrenching . . . Hey, . . . why can’t I stop crying? It’s almost as if . . . as if I was feeling . . .

She shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. No, I don’t even know her . . . Why in the world would I be feeling what she felt? But no, that was impossible . . . even she knew that.

I couldn’t bear to lose so much so quickly like that . . . Why must she lose so much, Aniu?

“Because that is all a part of the struggles of life, my child . . .”

The ethereal tone of her spiritual grandmother entered her ears, nearly causing Aleu to gasp. She was still not used to the Great Spirit’s sudden appearances since she was still so young and green to the lupine life, but Aleu felt relieved that perhaps now was the time she would get some answers.

“Aniu?” Aleu looked to her side, noticing that white wolf’s black-velvet ear twitching beside her. “Is that really you?”

The wolf nodded. “All life has its obstacles . . . Sometimes through those times, there are lessons we must learn and doubts to be overcome.” Aniu paused, turning her gaze to the light brown-gray yearling with a slight smile. “Yes, it is me, Aleu.”

The quarter-wolf sighed with a relieved expression. “Thank goodness. I’m glad to see you again because I could really use your help.”

“I already know what knowledge you seek,” Aniu replied warmly. “Your visions have captivated your thoughts, and you want to know why I am sending them to you, am I correct?”

“That’s right,” Aleu’s light-brown head bobbed. “Exactly who is this Keliah and why is it so important for me to know the truth about who she is?”

Aniu closed her almond-shaped eyes, looking rather stern yet loving. “You will learn in due time, my granddaughter. Just observe her and her Clan for now, and eventually, your answers will come to you soon enough.”

The quarter-wolf huffed impatiently at the response. “I have been waiting, Aniu! I can’t be bothered by these visions that aren’t leading me anywhere! I have a Clan to lead!”

“I know, but this is a lesson that you must learn, Aleu,” the Great Spirit spoke calmly. “Patience is a virtue – when one is not patient, frustrations can flare, causing alterations to one’s destined fate. Remember that, my child.” Aniu’s form began to disperse into mist, fading into the morning light as she moved towards it. “Remember it well . . .”

“Please, Aniu! Don’t leave!” Aleu nearly barked out, but it came out normally once the white wolf has already disappeared. Aleu’s dark brown ears fell to her neck in defeat. “I guess I’ll never figure it out as soon as I wanted to . . .” She let out a soft groan of disappointment as her body slumped back to the ground, allowing the rising sun to reflect off of her eyes.

“Aleu?”

The masculine voice made Aleu’s head lift and a relaxed smile fill her suddenly flushed face. “Oh . . . Good morning, Scarlet.”

“Well, you seem well rested and up early,” Scarlet walked up to her, nearly close enough to let his nose graze against her cheek. His eyes grew wide when something caught his attention. “Aleu, have . . . have you been crying?”

The dark streaks on her light-marked face were wet to the touch, but Aleu didn’t realize that the stains were there, obviously visible to him. She lightly sighed and sniffled, nodding her head. “It was my vision last night,” Aleu explained. “I didn’t realize that I had been crying until I woke up just a few moments ago.”

“And you don’t know why?”

“No. I don’t understand what’s going on with me,” Aleu shook her head in confusion. In comfort, she leaned against Scarlet’s neck, enjoying his scent and warm fur by her face. “Aniu said that the answers would come soon, but . . .”

“Then you should do what she says,” Scarlet advised. “Aniu knows what’s best for you, and if she says to wait, then you just wait. Things will start to make sense soon.”

“You really think so?” Aleu’s ears pricked up, feeling a glimmer of hope in Scarlet’s words.

The reddish wolf smiled, lowering his eyelids as their gazes met. “I promise, Aniu knows what’s best for you. There must be something about these visions that will click in your head eventually. So don’t worry so much, Aleu. Okay?”

The Alpha Female paused for a moment, enjoying the gentle touch of Scarlet by her side. It nearly tickled her with ecstasy, but Aleu suppressed the chance of nearly screaming out that she loved him. Her mind, however, was on the visions and all of the new questions that now formed after the end of the last dream.

Maybe he’s right . . . I’ve got other things to worry about when it comes to the Kawa Clan, but . . . I just can’t get my mind off of it . . . Keliah just keeps coming back into my head lately . . . and I don’t know why . . .

“Oh, I can’t help but to worry . . . everything just doesn’t make any sense,” Aleu complained. She let out a loud sigh, suddenly pulling her head away from him and started to lay down on the ground. “Sorry, Scarlet, but I’m just really frustrated right now. I’m not sure what to think.”

“Well, why don’t you tell me about it?” The red-brown wolf laid beside Aleu’s slender yet scruffy form, hoping that he could be of some help. “Maybe if we talk about it, things won’t seem as confusing as you make it to be.”

Slowly, a smile returned to Aleu’s face. “All right. I’ll tell you what I seen so far.”

As the sky began to brighten from the sunny orange and yellow of the dawn to the morning azure, Aleu told the private details of her dream-visions to the one she trusted most. From her first introduction to the lithe brown she-wolf, the blind Alpha’s quest to find his successor, and all the way up to the moment when a daughter mourned over her newly-found father’s passing, the quarter-wolf didn’t hold back on anything. Scarlet just listened, occasionally making some quiet noises at things that intrigued him until her story was over.

“And that’s when I awoke this morning,” she concluded her multi-part tale about twenty minutes later. 

It took a minute of silence before Scarlet finally responded. “It seems to me that Aniu wants you to see this time in Keliah’s life for a specific reason . . . but that hasn’t been revealed to you yet.”

“That’s what I was thinking too,” Aleu agreed, suddenly remembering her conversation she had with Aniu only moments before. “Aniu told me I had to learn patience . . . but it’s so hard to be patient when it feels like I’m getting nowhere . . .” She sighed deeply, returning to that familiar, whiny tone as her head and ears fell down.

“Don’t give up, Aleu,” Scarlet’s head fell to hers, using his muzzle like a lever to lift hers back up. “If Keliah’s quest is over now that she knows she is the next Alpha, then the end of your dreams from Aniu shouldn’t be too far away.”

The quarter-wolf turned to him with a sense of surprise. “You really think so?”

He nodded, smiling lightly. “When my father began having his visions on ‘the one who is wolf and does not know,’ he was unsure of what they were hinting towards. He told me that at first they were vague and basic, showing a raven and the caribou crossing the Great Water, never to return. Aniu’s voice echoed constantly through his dreams, saying over and over something about that wolf . . . ‘the one who is wolf and does not know’ . . .”

“Me . . .” Aleu murmured under her breath, entranced by Scarlet’s recollection.

“Eventually, that would be right,” Scarlet turned to her large golden eyes, watching them gleam. “He did not know what a single wolf had to do with these visions of caribou herds and the raven. However, he did know that the raven was a sign of Aniu’s presence – all wolves learn that at one point in their lives - and that the caribou were a source of life for all of our people. Without the caribou, we’d be–”

“The Clan would be lost,” Aleu completed, knowing this full well due to her own vision from the night before she accepted her duty. 

“Again, that’s right. About a couple of days before you and Balto arrived in Kawa territory, Father’s dreams became more vivid yet still unclear. He told me, ‘I have asked for my successor, and that one is coming as we speak . . . Aniu has prophesized it to me, my Son.’”

“So that’s why he said that he sent for us,” Aleu slowly took in a gasp. “Papa and I didn’t understand what Nava meant by that, but now it all makes sense. Aniu was guiding us to the Kawa Clan . . . to ensure that we completed what Aniu promised him.”

“Exactly. Aniu was waiting for the moment to be right before Nava received what he wanted – his heir.”

Heir . . . Heir . . .? Just that word continued to playback through Aleu’s head like a record.The Alpha . . . Keliah’s father said that too . . . about his heir . . .She shut her eyes tightly, playing those scenes side-by-side of her last dream and her own moments with Nava before they left the once-territory of the Kawa. I wonder . . . could that be the connection between me and my visions of Keliah? The fact that we are both heirs to a Clan? 

“Aleu?” Scarlet’s voice called out into her ear. “Hello? Earth to Aleu!” He waved a white paw over her closed eyes. “Wake up . . . hey!”

Letting out a loud gasp, Aleu’s eyes quickly opened, turning to Scarlet’s as she panted to catch her breath. 

“Ah, um . . . A . . . A-A-Aleu . . . w-w-what’s wrong with your . . . e-e-eyes?” the reddish-brown wolf asked, completely stunned by what he was seeing.

Her eyes were a bright golden sheen, just as they had been a month ago when she first caught a glimpse of the caribou crossing the Great Water. She couldn’t explain what she was actually seeing; it was flashing past her eyes so quickly that it seemed to blur together, but it ended within a few seconds after Scarlet panicked, leaving Aleu to shake the feeling off.

“What . . . What just happened to you? Are you all right?” Scarlet whined with a worry once her eyes returned to their usual blue and gold.

“I think I may have had another vision or something,” Aleu told him to the point. “I’m not sure.”

“About Keliah?”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. The pictures were moving too fast for me to notice the specifics. It was like a flash . . . but this isn’t the first time I’ve had these types of visions.”

“Really?” Scarlet was intrigued by Aleu’s ability, his eyes wide in awe by the mystical power of those he knew. “How was it in the previous times?”

“Well, the first time was when a bear attacked me and my Papa,” she explained. “I don’t know what exactly was going on, but I just looked at the bear’s golden eyes . . . and I could somehow see what the bear was thinking. It pointed out a nearby ledge under a cliff, saying that I had to take a leap of faith to get to the place I was looking for. Thankfully, the bear’s advice was right, and Papa and I landed safely.”

“Amazing,” Scarlet murmured. “It must not have been an ordinary bear to have not killed you both.”

“I couldn’t catch its scent after I came to moments after jumping,” Aleu continued. “I had never seen a real grizzly up close before, but Papa was surprised by my recollection of what happened. But that wasn’t the last time I could see things like this.” She paused, still noticing that she had Scarlet’s attention. “When Nava was talking to both of us after he emerged from that tree near the sea, I had another one of these . . . I guess you could call them ‘flashed-visions’. I could see the caribou that he was talking about, leaping from one ice floe to another and just heading to a bright light. I didn’t understand what was going on, but I remembered hearing Nava say, “Each of us has a unique gift.’ It wasn’t until after I received another dream that night about the ice bridge and the caribou that I figured that these visions could be my gift – my own special ability that could help show me where I belonged.”

“Hmm,” Scarlet pondered for a moment. “Very interesting.”

“What?” Aleu’s ears pricked up. “What is?”

His brown stare was completely drawn into her eyes at the moment. There was something about those mysteriously, beautiful eyes that looked like no other he had ever seen. “Oh, it’s nothing,” the red wolf shook his head, smiling rather sheepishly at his own thoughts that he was so embarrassed to speak about aloud to her himself. He looked out at the sky in front of them, noticing how late it is. “Oh, my gosh . . . You’re going to be late to the morning hunt! I’m so sorry for keeping you, Aleu!”

“Huh?” Aleu had been so entranced by her dream and talking to the one she loved that all time seemed to have been forgotten, but she finally realized how high the sun was in the skies – it was above the trees near their caves, brightly warming the wolves that were gathering to hunt below them. The familiar light-silver she-wolf noticed Aleu’s surprised gaze and howled a soft howl as she flashed a smile. “Oh, the hunt! I forgot all about it!” She stood up, rushing past Scarlet and close to the opening where her hunting party waited for her. “I’m sorry, can we talk later? I’ve got to go.”

“Sure,” Scarlet grinned sweetly. “Good luck with the hunt, Aleu.”

“Thanks.” Nodding quickly, she took a leap from her den and made her way down to where Lorna and a medium-sized team of wolves patiently awaited her command. Scarlet, on the other hand, just looked down at them, keeping his focus on the gray-brown quarter-wolf that he loved so much.

“O Aniu, please watch after her as always,” he prayed as Aleu took charge of her team and began their trek into the woods past the river. “Aleu is learning more and more every day as our Alpha, and I pray that in time, she will understand what you are telling her through these dreams.” His ears fell worriedly. “I don’t know what it is either, but I hope this information you’re sending her will change her for the better. I know Father has made a real difference in her life . . . and I still miss him . . .” Thinking of his former Alpha, tears began to drip from his eyes, causing him to drop to the ground and cry softly at the memory of his Clan patriarch.

She reminds me of him . . . and I don’t know why . . .