Chapter I

Everest was tired. Too tired too run. Too tired to go on. Too tired to take one more step. Puffing, the wolf flopped over on his side and played dead, letting his tongue hang out of the side of his mouth. 

His attackers on the other hand, were full of energy. Snarling, four little fluff-balls finally caught up with Everest, jumping on him and biting him with sharp little teeth. But when they noticed the larger wolf wasn’t moving, they stopped.

“Daddy? Are you okay?” asked the lightest gold fluff-ball, Ozark.

Everest’s eyes popped open and with lightening fast speed, he gently scooped up Ozark and took off again, making the others three pups laugh and chase after their father. But after a day full of playing, Everest was exhausted. 

“Okay, okay, you guys win” he puffed, collapsing next to his mate, Fly. 

“Now you know why I’m so tired all the time” Fly smirked, nuzzling Ishkur as he tiredly curled up next to her. “But I don’t think I’ve ever seen them so tired before” she added, chuckling. “I think it’s someone’s nap time!”

“Mom, we’re not-” Axle yawned widely. “-tired! Can we stay here?”

“Please Mom?!” Theo chipped in, obviously just as tired. 

“We can come back later” Fly said sternly with a half smile. “We need to go back before Arr-”

Everest frowned and Fly stopped mid-sentence. 

“Before Arrow gets worried?” Everest finished. Fly frowned and got Ozark, Axle and Theo to their feet. 

“You know he would” Fly answered. “And you’re the one that makes me stay there”

“Can we at least say goodbye to Uncle Will?” Theo yawned. “Please?”

Fly nodded, making Everest and Fly stop arguing for the time being. Fly picked the still-sleeping Ishkur up and led the way back toward Everest’s den while Everest herded the other three pups so none were left behind.

At the den, Everest’s pack lounged around the dried riverbank. Since Will’s pack had moved out of their territory, there hadn’t been so much to do. It seemed that most other packs had left the area too, finally understanding Hiatus’s power. 

“Uuuughhhhh there’s nootttthhhhing to doooo” Odin moaned, pulling himself across the grass on his stomach. “I waannnttt to doooo something...”

Quick growled from his place in the shade. He desperately wished Odin had left with the other packs. With him around, it was impossible to sleep. “Why don’t you go for a walk Odin” he muttered. “And walk far, far away”

Odin jumped to his feet. “Well being bored is better then being grumpy!”

“Just relax guys” Tempest said from her spot next to Will. “This is the first time that we’ve actually been able to rest since Hiatus took over. Why don’t we actually try to enjoy it?”

“Yeah Quick!” Odin sneered. “We’re all relaxed! What’s your problem?!”

Quick groaned loudly, rolling over and placing both paws over his ears. 

Before Odin could retort anything else, Fly appeared with Ishkur in her mouth. A few moments later, Everest ushered the other three worn out pups. Will stood up as Theo stumbled over to nuzzle him and say a weary goodbye before he followed after his mother and siblings back to Hiatus’s territory. 

Everest watched them leave, face emotionless, then went to the mouth of the den and collapsed. 

“Did Fly give us any new information?!” Odin asked desperately, not giving his best friend a moment’s rest. “So we can go on some mission or adventure or something?!”

Everest opened an eye. “She said Hiatus is still not doing anything. He’s either waiting for something to happen or he’s trying to figure out his next move”

“Oooooohhhh!” Odin yowled. “I want to do something! It’s so boring to sit around and do nothing!”

“Then why don’t you just scout or something. I need to sleep... I’ll scout later on tonight”

“So who wants to go scout with me?!” the sandy wolf chirped, turning to the others.

Odin’s eyes jumped from one pack mate to the other. Quick glared back from the shadows. Altea was nearly asleep next to Tempest, who was asleep. Comet was awake but she didn’t offer to go along. Will moved closer to Tempest and eyeing them, Quick stood up.

“I’ll go if you shut up”

“How come you’re in such a rush now?”

Tempest curled up closer to Will and smiled in her sleep. Quick jerked his eyes away and started off without waiting for Odin. A few moments later, Comet bounded along as well after noticing Quick had hurried away but admitted she was bored too.

Fly smiled as she moved her pups together. It was probably warm enough for the pups to nap in the sun, but the den was safer. Once she was sure they were all sound asleep, she set off toward the main den where she knew Hiatus’s pack was laying around. 

Before she got there, she spotted a grey wolf darting around franticly. She knew it was Arrow before she even got close enough to see. She padded closer, careful not to catch his eye until she was behind him. Then she waited until he picked up her scent. Once Arrow caught her scent, he whipped around, jumping when he saw her. Fly raised a brow.

“I uh... was just looking for you” he said awkwardly in his usual, husky voice. “You were gone for a while and I got...” he tried to think of the right word.

“Worried?” Fly offered, walking past him.  

“Yeah...” Arrow answered, voice trailing off. 

“Did anything happen?” Fly asked curiously as Arrow followed. 

“No. Hiatus’s only orders were to hunt. I think he’s letting the pack take a break”

Doubt it Fly thought. Probably trying to decide who to torture next.

“Then why were you in such a rush to find me?”

“I don’t know” Arrow shrugged. “I just wanted to see you”

Even though she bitterly hated Arrow, she let a smile flicker across her face. He may have been Everest’s worst enemy, but maybe there was some good in him after all.

Like she had predicted, Hiatus and most of the pack were sprawled around in front of the main den that usually served as a prison to Hiatus’s hostages. With a grimace, Fly noticed that the two wolves that had been kept there before she left were gone... Hiatus had “taken care” of them.

“Well well well” Hiatus hissed as he noticed Fly. “Where have you been all morning? You missed a wonderful event here... what made you leave...?”

Fly couldn’t bring herself to answer. Even if Everest hadn’t wanted to see the pups that day, she wouldn’t have watched Hiatus at his cruelest. 

She noticed that Tosca was gone from Hawk’s side as she wandered by Hiatus but it didn’t surprise her. Tosca was heavily pregnant before... Fly could bet she’d finally had her pups. To bad Hiatus will brainwash them too, she thought sadly.

“I saw something!” Odin barked, standing stiff-legged. “I know I did!”

“Then go get it Odin” Quick drawled.

Odin crawled cunningly toward the bottom of a tree while Quick sighed and moved off, Comet right behind him. Odin crept closer and pounced on whatever was there. Suddenly, he let out a cry, drawing Quick and Comet’s attention but when he shot out from under the tree backward, they saw that Odin had a raccoon clamped on his nose. No matter how hard the sandy wolf tried to shake it off, the raccoon was determined to hold on. 

“Get it off! Pleeeeasse get it off!”

Quick just laughed to himself and walked off, leaving Comet to scare off the raccoon. Odin whimpered, trying to pry the grey animal off his nose until Comet’s shadow fell over them both. The raccoon finally opened its mouth and scampered off into the woods.

“Thanks” Odin mumbled, gingerly rubbing his nose. But quickly added, “But I could’ve handled that completely on my own”

“Of course you could have” Comet grinned as they trotted after Quick. 

The search had already proved to be more boring then sitting around and every two seconds, Odin thought he’d found something. At first it was amusing, but Quick’s temper was getting shorter and shorter.

“Alright, that’s it” Quick said simply after Odin had “spotted something” for the millionth time. “I’m going back and going to sleep”

“You always ruin everyone’s fun” Odin complained, reluctantly following him. Then he paused, nose in the air. “Wait! I think I-”

“If the next words out of your mouth are that you think you smell something, I’m going to rip your mouth right off your face”

Comet’s ears flicked around and a strange look came over her face. “No... I think he’s right”

Quick rolled his eyes and went back to the other two. And suddenly, a strange scent hit Quick’s nose. 

“It smells like... a few wolves... another pack?”

Comet nodded her head. “But I thought Will said there weren’t anymore around?”

“He did” Quick said thoughtfully. “Maybe we should let everyones else know... I don’t know if this is what Hiatus was waiting for or not...”

“He’s waiting for something?” Odin asked quizzically as they rushed back.

“I don’t know. I mean that’s what I’m guessing”

Everest snoozed happily. He loved having a family! Even though it tired him out more then a good fight, he always came back to the pack happier then he’d ever been. Arrow could taunt him all he wanted. He could never have what Everest had and he never would. And that was more then enough to make the golden wolf sleep well. 

Odin, on the other hand, seemed determined to make sure he didn’t... Everest’s eyes opened. Odin was shaking him awake.

“Huh- what’s going on?” Everest mumbled sleepily, rolling to his feet. 

“We found something!” Odin barked excitedly. “For real this time!”

Everest glanced at Quick and Comet. 

“Are you sure there’s no other packs around here?” Quick asked, mostly aiming the question at Will.

Will thought hard, running through every pack he knew that had lived nearby. 

“It might just be a new pack” he finally shrugged. “Every other big pack left”

“Does that mean we actually get to do something!?” Odin squeaked, ready for Everest’s orders.

“Can’t we just sleep and let them find us?” Odin groaned, mostly to himself. 

Now that Everest had finally given them orders, Odin wanted nothing more then to rest. Everest had them on the lookout ever since they had found the scent. No one had spotted the group yet, but Everest was determined to keep them from getting to the Ublureak territory, before Hiatus found them.

“Just head north Odin” Everest grinned after they came to a spot where the trail split. “I’m going to the south edge of the territory. Just howl if you spot them”

Odin sulked but nodded, dragging his feet off in the opposite direction. Everest smirked but continued on his own. He was hoping that the pack didn’t drift into Hiatus’s territory. They’d done a pretty good job of keeping everyone and anyone away from the Ublureak territory... but something had to give eventually. But until then, they could keep the other packs far away.

Everest followed the trail as it sloped down and headed toward the more heavily wooded part of the territory. Now that it was summer and the trees had grown out, Everest was a little more on edge. At least when it was winter, no one could sneak up and attack because there weren’t any thick grass or leaves to hide them. Plus, it was easier to find footprints in the snow then in grass.

Suddenly, as Everest wandered along the trail in his own thoughts, he spotted another wolf. Jolted out of his own thoughts, Everest just stared. The other wolf, a furry, brown, plainly over-weight wolf blinked right back at him him. Both couldn’t believe they had just stumbled into the other one. 

“Hi there...” Everest finally said, breaking the silence. “Are you lost?”

The brown wolf beamed, relieved. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve been wandering through these cursed woods!”

Everest grinned, just as relieved that the wolf didn’t seem to be a threat. “Well let me help you out” Everest chuckled. 

The brown wolf grinned again and followed Everest as the gold wolf started to lead the other wolf back to the den. 

“I’ve been wandering around for almost two days!” the brown wolf explained. “I was supposed to be checking things out for the pack...”

“Pack?” Everest asked casually. “So you’re from the new pack”

The brown wolf nodded, going on to explain how he and his pack were moving through other territories and that he’d gotten lost. Everest smiled, even more relaxed. If the rest of the strange pack was like this wolf, he’d have no problem simply warning them away. Hiatus wouldn’t even know they had been there until they were already gone. 

“...So we’ve been trying to find a new territory, but clearly this one’s taken” the brown wolf finished happily. “And how rude of me! I haven’t even introduced myself! I’m Portly”

Everest smiled politely, “Everest”

Recognition sparkled in Portly’s eyes. “The Everest? The one that Hiatus still hasn’t captured?”

Everest nodded, beaming, but added with a more serious note, “Then you know why you have to tell your pack to leave”

“Well that’s why we travelled here!” Portly chuckled. “We’re trying to find his territory”

Everest’s smile faded. “His pack is too strong to fight. If it wasn’t, we would’ve taken care of it by now. Tell your pack it’s too late to try to stop the pack... it’ll only get yours wiped out”

“We aren’t going to try to stop the pack!” Portly exclaimed, as if that point was already clear. “What Hiatus has done is great! But we’d like to be in charge of this now. I mean, he hasn’t even caught you! And you’re not much bigger then me!”

Everest’s raised both brows. What?!

“In fact, after I take care of him, you won’t have much time left to live which is truly a shame... you seem like such a kind, young fellow but how else can we earn everyone’s respect-?”

Everest stepped in front of the round wolf, making him stop in his tracks.

“Listen Portly. It’s great that you have such high goals and that you uh... wanna kill me... but you’re in way over your head. I’m sure you don’t really understand what’s going on...”

“Of course I do!” Portly smiled, stepping around Everest pleasantly. “Right after Hiatus and you, I’ve got other plans too! Someone said there’s another Illiivat wolf? A female...?”

Everest’s expression darkened a bit. “Fly”

“Fly’s her name?” Portly asked, still smiling brightly. “Well no offense, but Illiivat wolves have no business being around here. It’ll be a shame to see her go if she’s a nice girl”

Everest frowned, cold, blue eyes following Portly as he came to the edge of the woods. Portly squinted and searched around. “So which way is Hiatus’s territory?”

“How about I show you?” Everest said, hiding his switch of emotion. “After all, if both of us are in the same area, it’ll be easier to get rid of us at the same time, right?”

“You really are such a nice fellow!” Portly smiled graciously. “Such a shame...”

Everest nodded and jogged away, smile fading into a determined frown as soon as his back was turned to the fat wolf. 

Portly tottered after, head and tail as high as his spirit. Everest led the wolf right back to his own territory. When he climbed down into the dried riverbank, he was relieved to see that no one had returned from scouting yet. They probably would’ve given him away.

“Where is everyone?” Portly asked, confused. 

“Out hunting probably or killing another pack... the usual” 

Everest led Portly to the main den and eyed an old log resting on top. 

“Just wait in there and Hiatus will be here in a bit”

“In there?” Portly asked, face a little puzzled. “But shouldn’t I wait out here, in case the rest of the pack follows?”

“I’m sure they’ll find you” Everest reassured the wolf, as Portly warily entered. Everest hopped right on to the top of the den and using all his strength, pushed the rotting log until it rolled off the sloped bank and clunked in front of the den. Sealing Portly in. 

Portly made some strange noise and rushed to the log, trying to claw his way out.

“Everest! Everest help me out! I seem to be stuck!”

Everest hopped down, smiling pleasantly. “Good”

Chapter II

Portly’s terrified expression turned to anger and he stuttered a mess of words out as fast as he could. Everest ignored him. He could see Quick and Will were returning back to the den. They both seemed a bit confused after witnessing Everest roll the log down but they hadn’t spotted Portly. For the moment, the fat wolf was struggling quietly, so Will and Quick couldn’t hear him either.

“And I thought I was bored” Quick snorted. “Maybe it’s just me, but that log seemed more useful when it wasn’t in the way of the den...”

“I don’t get it” Will added airily. “Is this a joke... or a test... or something?”

“Uh... not exactly” Everest replied, kicking the log to make it shift a little. 

Portly jumped back from the log, then tried to wedge his nose out. “Please tell me you’re letting me out!”

Will jumped back, smacking into Quick.

“Wasn’t expecting that” he mumbled sheepishly, backing away from a glaring Quick.

“Who’s he?” Quick asked blankly. 

“Portly. He’s a part of that pack-”

Portly laughed forcibly from inside the den.

“A part of the pack?” Portly snorted. “I’m the leader of the pack. And trust me! They’ll hunt me down if it’s the last thing they do!”

“Huh” Everest blinked. “Didn’t know that” he grinned, gaging the other’s reactions.

“Well that’s just great” Quick snorted. “Me and Will didn’t find the pack yet either... so I guess this means we’re going to have to scout even more?”

“Yup” Everest answered simply. “Let the others know too. If you find the pack, howl and we can try to handle them”

Quick groaned but Will obediently nodded and hurried off. Quick jumped after, mumbling “Suck-up” under his breath.

“They’ll find me you know” Portly insisted as Everest laid down in front of the den.

“I’m sure they will” Everest yawned sarcastically. “Just like Hiatus’s pack found us”

“You’re underestimating them! My pack is much stronger then yours and Hiatus’s! You’ll be sorry!”

“Well until they get here, why don’t we chat?”

Portly didn’t respond. His angry mumbles echoed in the den, but Everest didn’t understand any of it. Not that he cared. 

“I bet you’re related to that other Illiivat wolf... aren’t you”

“Nope” Everest replied without opening his eyes. “Nice try”

“Well you know her...” Portly mused frustratedly. “You knew her name”

“Who doesn’t” Everest replied, adding with a grin, “She’s pretty”

Portly scuffled around the den, thinking silently to himself. 

“Well you know what I’m going to do once my pack gets me out of here?”

“Kill me, kill Hiatus and kill Fly?” Everest mumbled, starting to doze off.

Portly laughed eerily, making Everest open his eyes. 

“That’s what’ll end up happening, but you got the order all wrong” Portly chuckled as if Everest should have known better. “First we’ll drag you along to Fly and kill her. Then we’ll kill Hiatus. Then we’ll throw you around a bit-”

Everest stood up, and walked right up to the den so that him and Portly were almost nose to nose. Everything inside the gold wolf was yelling to tear the fat wolf to shreds but Everest only smiled, half-closed eyes hiding everything.

“Well good luck trying and get comfortable” he grinned, shaking the heavy log. “‘Cus there’s no way you can move this and we’re not letting you out anytime soon”

Everest’s pack was working twice as hard as it was before they had found Portly and as the sun set and darkness shadowed the territory, they took shifts stopping at the den to rest and make sure Portly hadn’t gotten out. 

Quick, more then anyone else, was glad. Every once in a while, he’d pass Will, Comet or someone else, but for the most part, each of them was scouting on their own. It would be easy to sneak away and the grey wolf doubted that one less scout would hurt anything. 

So double checking to make sure no one was around, Quick trotted off into the darkness. At night, his slate grey coat seemed to blend into the grass that was far darker then the usual snow. It made it much easier to sneak by Hiatus’s guards too. But even if they did spy Quick, he wasn’t too worried. They weren’t going to chase him.

The Ublureak pack that Hiatus dominated was lounging around in a different part of the territory then Quick was in. But they weren’t what he was looking for. He was looking for his sister Tosca. As he trotted along, he was careful to slip by Fly’s den. Hiatus wouldn’t chase him but Fly could tell Everest if she saw Quick. 

Thankfully, she seemed to be asleep. A few moments later, Quick found his sister’s den. The grey wolf made one last check around, then quietly called into the cave. “Tosca? You in there?”

Something scuffled around and Tosca’s voice echoed out. “Quick?”

“Yeah. Did you have the pups?”

“Yeah!” Tosca whispered excitedly, peeking her head out of the den. “A boy and a girl... Hunter and Angela. I had ‘em a few days ago”

“Are they okay?”

“Yup, perfectly fine”

“That’s good...” Quick said, voice trailing off. “Has Hawk come here yet?”

“Yeah and he’ll probably be back in the morning”

They were quiet for a bit before Quick finally decided to head back. “Gotta go before Everest notices I’m gone... I’ll talk to you later”

With that, Quick padded away. Just as he climbed the slope leading back to the pack’s territory, he spotted Hiatus and Arrow and froze. Hiatus’s yellow eyes jumped right to him and Arrow followed Hiatus’s gaze. All three just stared, then Hiatus calmly continued on his way, Arrow throwing Quick a dirty look before following after. 

Quick hustled along, reaching the territory line just as he spotted Comet. 

“Spot anything?” she chirped happily, fresh from taking her turn to sleep.

“Uh... no” Quick answered.

“Neither did I” Comet replied, trying to start a conversation. “I just took my rest at the den. Portly’s still there and I don’t know who’s taking their break next... I think Odin?”

Quick shrugged, he was too tired to try to talk.

“So-”

“Gotta keep on scouting” Quick interrupted. “Before anything sneaks by”

Comet nodded, lowering her ears. “Uh-right. I mean Everest would be mad if we were talking when we were supposed to be scouting”

Quick trudged away and Comet glanced after him awkwardly before sighing to herself and continuing on in the opposite direction.

On the other side of the territory, Everest yawned. He’d just passed Will who was on his way back to the den for his shift to rest. The moon had already started to set and Everest wondered if Portly’s pack was nearby at all. Maybe they were just as lost as Portly had been.

He travelled around, passing a weary Altea who was too tired to say hello. Once the sun started to rise over the Ublureak territory mountains, Everest started to head back to the den. It was finally his turn to rest. He needed it!

As he climbed up the dried riverbank, Will’s scent was still fresh. He had probably just left. Everest finally reached the flatter ground by the den, eyes drifting around in case- someone moved the log!

Heart skipping a beat, Everest dashed to the log and the empty den. Peering into the darkness, Everest could clearly see that no fat, brown wolf was hiding in the shadows. Claw marks tore up the ground where the log had been as if someone had tried to dig Portly out first. Several different scents floated on the breeze... probably enough to make a whole pack. 

“They must have gotten him right after Will left” Everest growled to himself, cursing under his breath. He titled his head up, took a deep breath, but before any sound could come out, someone tackled Everest. 

Everest struggled out of his attacker’s hold only long enough to get a clear look. He didn’t recognize the furry, grayish wolf, but it didn’t give him a good chance before trying to jump at the gold wolf again. Everest dodged around it, leaping on top of the den only to come face to face with another unfamiliar wolf. Gritting his teeth, Everest whipped around and jumped off the side of the bank and over the first wolf... but it was hopeless. More wolves seemed to come out from either side of the bank.  

The pack crept closer, surrounding Everest, but Portly’s chuckle made them hesitate. Everest’s blue eyes leapt to the fat wolf, who stood on the opposite side of the bank proudly.

“I told you they’d find me” he smiled. “You underestimated us”

Everest stared at the wolf hatefully but didn’t say anything. Instead he studied the wolves around him, looking for an escape route. 

“Don’t even try” Portly gloated, reading Everest’s mind. “They’ll just stop you. And I wouldn’t howl if I were you either... we’ll just kill you now instead of later”

Everest closed his eyes and exhaled slowly, not believing he’d let this happen. He was better then that... 

“Well let’s get going then” Portly chirped, making Everest’s eyes pop open.

“Go?! Where are we going?!”

“We talked about this yesterday, remember?” Portly replied, glancing over his shoulder. “We have to go find Hiatus and Fly! Remember now...?”

Everest’s heart started to beat faster, but he kept his face blank. Two of the wolves shoved him forward and Everest reluctantly climbed up the bank after Portly. 

Not a problem yet... I can escape later. Everest thought to himself. 

“And just to be sure you don’t get too far if you manage to get away...”

Portly turned to one of the other wolves. “Cripple him”

The two wolves that had pushed Everest got a tight grip on the gold wolf. Another dove for Everest, whose eyes were burning as he fought to get away.

Since it was almost half a day since she’d had a good rest, Comet was starting to get tired again. The sunrise was pretty and even though she was on-guard, she couldn’t help but to sneak a few glances. There wasn’t anyone close by anyway. She’d know if there was. 

She tried not to think about the previous night... Quick must’ve thought she was kicked in the head as a pup. He didn’t seem to like her at all either. The only one he even showed any care toward was Tempest. 

Off in the distance, she heard someone howl. She perked her ears, straining to recognize the howler’s voice.

“Odin” she finally said aloud, taking off toward the location of the voice. 

Since she was practically on the other side of the territory, it took Comet a bit to get there but she finally spotted Odin sniffing the ground furiously along with Tempest and Quick who were nervously looking around. 

“What happened?!” Comet exclaimed as she skit to a halt.

“I think they got in the territory!” Odin replied, a hint of worry in his voice.

“How?!”

Tempest shrugged, green eyes still jumping from tree to tree around them. “I don’t know but they’re good... they must have snuck in between us”

Quick grimaced, not offering his own opinion. He knew how they had gotten in. The trail that Odin was following entered in through the spot Quick had ditched to visit Tosca. It had taken until morning for someone to find the scent trail.

Suddenly, Odin took off, nose to the ground. The other three followed right behind, careful to check over their shoulder every now and then. Now that they had already been tricked, they were twice as determined to catch the strange pack. Nothing would sneak up on them now.

The scent trail Odin had found led the four wolves up the slope leading to the dried riverbed. Once they came over the slope, Will and Altea were already frantically pacing around the front of the den. Quick, Tempest and Comet gaped at the moved log and empty den.

Odin on the other hand, was so concentrated on his tracking, he didn’t even notice the other two until his scent trail stopped in front of the den. Then he snorted and stood stiffly.

“I think he got out!” Odin exclaimed.

Quick squinted at Odin before the sandy wolf started to sniff around again.

“I don’t think he got out, I think someone else let him out” Will explained quickly. “It smells like more then one wolf”

“Do you know how many?” Comet asked, eyeing the claw marks around the log as Odin started to sniff around again. 

Will shrugged but added, “Enough to make up a pack I think...”

Altea cautiously padded into the den and finding nothing, padded out with a strange look on her face. “Why didn’t Everest rush over here... isn’t he the one that kept us on the lookout?”

Quick groaned. “You don’t think he went after them on his own, do you?”

Will shrugged again and no one else said anything.

“He didn’t go after them” Odin finally replied from behind them.

The others turned to Odin.

“They took him too” 

Chapter III

Everest limped along, mind pumping furiously through every escape plan he had ever thought up. For a second, he looked at his right leg again as he plodded through the grass. Thankfully, he didn’t think any bones were broken... but it was still throbbing with every step.

Portly pranced stupidly in the front of the group until they came to a fork in the trail and the group finally paused. Everest took the chance to soothe his injured leg as Portly started to argue about which way they should go. 

Everest’s two guards stood faithfully next to him but Everest ignored them. By now, his pack should have figured out he was gone. So maybe if he left some sort of a scent trail, they’d be able to follow. The scent of the pack was probably covering up his own but he could leave little traces of his scent. Odin, after all, was probably one of the best trackers Everest had ever met.

The gold wolf rolled over on his back, rolling in the grass as if he was scratching his back. Then he jumped to his feet quickly, making his two guards flinch and glare warily. Everest smiled politely at the bigger wolves then started to scratch his back on the bark of the nearest tree, groaning as if he was finally scratching an itchy spot. 

“Everest!”

Everest paused mid-sctratch, blank face turned toward Portly. 

“You know where Hiatus’s territory is, don’t you?” the fat wolf exclaimed.

Everest raised a brow and nodded.

“Of course I do. I would’ve helped you, but that’s before you attacked my leg” Everest shot back, “scratching” his back once more before plopping onto the ground. 

Portly scowled and turned back around, looking between the two paths. Everest fidgeted. He knew both paths: the one on the left would take him to the Ublureak territory while the one on the right would take the group parallel to the territory and right to a heavily wooded area. If he got Portly to take the right, maybe he could buy some time for his own pack. Everest grinned. He had a plan. 

“Fine, it’s the trail on the right” Everest scoffed. 

Portly glared. “You just said you wouldn’t help”

Everest shrugged, beaming. Portly looked between the two trails, mumbling bitterly under his breath while Everest placed his head on his paws, clearly amused.  

“Fine let’s take the right”

Everest got to his feet, looking down at the grass as if he was disappointed. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Portly smirk. Everest had to hold back from smirking too. Portly wouldn’t be smiling for long...

Back at the Ublureak pack, Fly was oblivious to the chaos in her mate’s territory. Tosca had finally emerged from her den and Fly had noticed the grey wolf’s suddenly thin figure. 

“Must of had her pups” Fly mumbled to herself. She should’ve been more excited, but the new additions were only going to be corrupted by Hiatus and Hawk, so why waste her energy?

Tosca noticed Fly gazing over in her thoughts and Fly quickly looked away. But too late. Tosca started to walk happily over to her. Fly rolled her eyes but flashed a fake smile as the grey wolf sidled up alongside her.

“You had your pups” Fly said through her teeth, trying hard not to say anything offensive.

“I did!” Tosca chirped. “A boy and a girl”

“That’s great” Fly replied, quickly walking away as if trying to avoid a conversation. Tosca just followed after the pale gold wolf.

“Yeah I was a little nervous about having pups but everything turned out to be okay...”

Fly nodded but didn’t really pay attention. Instead, she paid attention to Hiatus and Hawk, who were warily watching the two as if Fly’s thoughts would infect Tosca.

“... I thought you’d be pretty excited” Tosca suddenly said, interrupting Fly’s train of thought. “Because you had puppies too”

Fly furrowed her brows, but shut her mouth, shaking her head. Saying anything was a waste of breath and Tosca would probably just end up repeating what she said to Hawk.

As she tried to walk away from Quick’s sister, she tried to think about what Everest was doing. She hadn’t seen him for a while... but whatever he was doing must’ve been tons better then what she was doing.

Odin’s nose was in overdrive. The others followed behind them, still warily eyeing the shrubs around them but Odin was too focused to be afraid. So far he hadn’t gotten a trace of Everest’s scent. Portly’s pack must have covered it up. Comet, who seemed to sense the woods better then anyone else, was a bit more at ease too. She could tell no one else was around. But now that no one knew if Portly’s pack still had Everest at all, the pack was reasonably stressed. For all they knew, Portly could’ve just gotten rid of him.

Odin trotted over and started to sniff in circles. 

“I think they stopped here” Odin reported, lifting his head for once to look around. Then he got right back down to business again, sniffing one area in the grass that led up to a tree. Then his eyes brightened up.

“What?” Quick blurted impatiently. 

“I found his scent!” he squeaked. “I think he’s okay! I don’t smell blood or anything”

“Well which trail did they go down?” Tempest asked, looking between the split trails. “If they dragged him off to the Ublureak territory he’s goner”

Odin followed the scent down from the trees and to the pack’s relief, he started off to the right.

Everest’s blue eyes burned with excitement. Not that anyone noticed. The pack was too concentrated on being lost... just like Everest hoped. Thankfully, Portly didn’t seem to notice yet and if he did, he didn’t care.

The group was now in the thickest part of the woods. The pine trees were so tall, all Everest could see were the identical trunks without straining his neck to look up. Thick bushes and shrubs with full summer leaves blocked out the bottom of each trunk. They would be easy to sneak away in.

Both of Everest’s body guards were scanning around them. The tree trunks could hide anyone that could jump out and set Everest free. They were so on edge, Everest could bet that if a rabbit hopped out, they would jump.

Portly on the other hand, seemed more relaxed. 

“Thought we would’ve gotten there by now...” he muttered under his breath, confusion starting to stir.

“That’s because we’re going the wrong way”

Portly gave Everest a dirty look but chose not to believe him. He just kept plodding along. Everest followed quietly, biding his time. It was only a matter of time now.

And after a while, Portly’s pack started to complain.

“Shouldn’t we have found him?”

“We’ve been walking forever”

“My paws are killing me”

“Fine” Portly finally snapped. “Let’s take a break”

The pack started to shuffle around, laying down. Everest stayed sitting up. He had his eyes on a perfect getaway spot through the bushes. Now he just needed to figure out how to get rid of his two body guards. If he was going to take them out, he’d have to be quick.

The pack started to spread out a little and Everest’s eyes followed Portly. Just as Portly paused, halfway behind a shrub to talk to a pack mate, Everest made his move. With lightening fast speed, Everest attacked the closer guard. The wolf, caught off-guard, tipped over easily and before he had gotten back on his feet, Everest was off at a ferocious pace, leaping on three legs.

The guards yelled but the pack took too long to pull back together to chase after Everest. Smirking, Everest heard Portly yelling desperately. He ducked under bushes and weaved through tree trunks. Even if they did follow his scent, there was no way they’d find him. 

After a bit of three-legged running, Everest finally stopped behind the trunk of the tree, panting. He could hear Portly and his pack off in the distance, but he had a bit of time to rest before they got close again. 

Everest took a good look around where he had stopped. He must have been getting close to the edge of the woods. The shrubs and bushes were starting to thin out a bit and the smaller trees were letting in more light. 

“I think he went this way!”

Everest held his breath. Time to start moving again. He peered around the tree and a short distance away, a few of Portly’s wolves were sniffing around, ears twitching.

The gold wolf frowned, lowering himself down so he could move away under the cover of the shrubs. 

Everest’s pack rushed through the woods. Odin’s tail was high in the air; he knew he was closing in on the trail. Every once in a while, he’d come across a spot Everest had rubbed against to leave a scent. 

Then all at once, Odin stopped, nose glued to the ground and Quick, who was right behind him, toppled over Odin.

Cursing loudly, Quick picked himself up. “What is wrong with you Odin!?”

“I think he got away from them!” Odin said, sniffing around excitedly. 

“And you had to stop because of that?!” Quick snarled. “Wouldn’t it make more sense to run faster?”

“Well I thought everyone would want to know” Odin replied happily. 

“Just keep moving” Comet interrupted. “You’ll have time to fight once we find Everest”

Quick threw Odin a dirty look but the sandy wolf shrank away while Will seemed deep in thought.

“I think he’s heading for the marsh” the red-brown wolf said quietly. 

“There’s a short-cut along the river” Altea offered excitedly, “It’ll get us there faster then the way they’re going”

The others nodded and the pack sprinted off the trail, toward the river.

Everest stumbled away from the thinning trees. He had a good lead on the pack chasing him, but he wasn’t about to get caught a second time. 

He still hopped on three legs, mostly because he was afraid of tripping if his injured should give out. But even on three legs, he ran at a pretty decent speed. After a few more moments, Everest was out of the woods completely. And suddenly, Everest paws sloshed through wet grass, causing the gold wolf to pull up and study the area. 

He now stood at the top of a hill, overlooking the river that marked the territory line between his own territory and the Ublureak territory. The wet grass he was standing in was water running down from the mountains and into the river... and as Everest’s eyes traveled along the river, he spotted the vast marsh that had bloomed in the summer heat. Not only was it big enough to loose a pack, it was big enough to outwit one too.

Everest jerked forward instinctively when he heard Portly’s pack catching up again and slipped in the mud, sending him sliding down the huge hill. Mud sprayed up from underneath the grass and coated Everest in muck. Just before getting to the bottom, Everest lost his balance and tumbled to a stop and picked himself up, groaning. 

“Everest!”

The gold wolf froze, mid-shake, afraid his ears were lying to him. Farther up river, he could see his own pack charging toward him. Everest grinned thankfully, more then relieved. But Everest didn’t take another step before he heard his name called a second time. Portly had caught up with him too. 

Everest’s eyes flitted between Portly’s pack and his own before taking off on three legs again. His own pack had gotten a head start and Quick, being the fastest of the group, pulled up alongside Everest.

“Tell them to meet me in the marsh. We’ll have a better chance fighting them there”

Quick nodded and dropped back to the pack. As Portly’s pack tumbled down the muddy slope and Everest’s pack split off in a different direction, Everest got closer to the marsh. 

Everest reached the marsh first and dove straight into the tangle of cattails without hesitation. As soon as he passed the tall grass, he sank right away. Shocked, Everest paused for a moment. The thick, muddy water came up past his chest and only his head, back and tail were free of mud. During the winter, the marsh water was frozen and easy to walk on. Everest was used to the ice, not the mud.

But Portly’s voice made him push on.

At least they won’t smell me, the wolf thought as he bustled through the mud. The marsh seemed bigger because of the mud, but just as Portly’s pack crashed through the cattails, Everest was on the other side. He still hadn’t seen his own pack, but he could see an opening in the cattails. As soon as he got out, he could find his pack. 

Using all his strength, Everest climbed up the bank and with a final surge, he pushed himself up and out of the tall grass... only to stare into cold, yellow eyes.

It was hard to figure out who was more surprised: Everest or Hiatus. The entire Ublureak pack was lounging around, Hiatus and Hawk included. A short distance away, a wide-eyed Fly gaped at her mate’s sudden appearance. The four pups leaping around her feet had stopped. It was like time had frozen. 

Then everything moved at once. A mud-covered Everest leapt back into the cattail maze, Fly tried to control her pups who wanted to follow and Hiatus was on his feet.

“Get in there!” he hissed to the pack, sending a wave of wolves after Everest.

Everest, gritting his teeth, flashed through the mud, almost colliding with one of Portly’s wolves. Thankfully, it was quickly tackled by an Ublureak wolf and Everest slipped away.

“Just great... this is just great” he muttered under his breath, searching around for someone he recognized. It was to late to stop Portly’s pack now. Hiatus’s would surely wipe them out. But he needed to get out before either pack caught him or the others. 

Another wolf jumped out of nowhere and Everest whipped around on it, teeth bared defensively. 

“It’s just me!” Comet yipped quietly, jumping at Everest’s reaction.

“Sorry” Everest apologized sheepishly, trying to keep his voice low. “Hiatus’s pack is in the mix”

Comet nodded. “Quick spotted Arrow. What do you want us to do?”

“Get everyone out of here. It’s too late to try to save them... Hiatus will get rid of them quickly and they’ll spot us if we’re all together. Wait for me at the edge of the marsh”

Comet nodded and started off before pausing and adding, “And Tempest wanted me to ask about your leg...”

“It’s fine” Everest replied quickly. “I just need to get off it. It’s not broken”

Comet nodded again and took off. Everest took a deep breath. He was alone now. It was time to go.

Eyes darting around, Everest began toward the edge of the marsh that was between the two territories, trying to stick toward the thicker clumps of grass that hid him. He paused as two of Portly’s wolves rushed past, snarling at something he couldn’t see, probably an Ublureak wolf. Then, as if something had finally clicked, there was an uproar of snarling and chaos. The Ublureak wolves began to fight with Portly’s pack. Taking advantage of the chaos, Everest picked up his speed, rushing through the mud.

Two steps out into the open, one of Portly’s wolves spotted Everest and dove right for him, mouth open. Everest dodged out of the way, using the wolf as a stepping stone and leaping right off it’s back as soon as it plopped in the mud next to him.

Landing in a splash of mud, Everest travelled as fast as he could. The snarling got louder as Everest got closer to getting out of the marsh but before getting out, he passed the spot where both packs seemed to be fighting. 

He couldn’t see Portly or Hiatus, but Arrow was fighting one of Everest’s previous guards.  All of the others were too busy fighting to notice Everest. Hope rising a bit, Everest gave a last glance at Arrow. The grey wolf’s dark blue eyes made contact with Everest’s light blues. Everest flashed him a grin, making Arrow snarl and took off, the grey wolf hot on his heels. 

The sounds of fighting faded and Everest had finally reached the dirt bank, giving him more solid ground to run on. Behind him, he could hear Arrow crashing through the grass still. The only thing preventing him from getting out was one last mud puddle.

Using the last bit of solid ground, Everest took a strong leap but Arrow was right behind him. The grey wolf landed right beside Everest, roughly cutting him off from his exit. 

Both panted heavily, catching their breath while their burning eyes didn’t leave each other. The silence was practically deafening. Whatever fights had been going on before had ended. 

Then their little break was over. Arrow dove for Everest, Everest just barely getting out of the way. Using all his strength, Everest shoved Arrow into the thick mud so that his head dipped under. Arrow kicked Everest off after thrashing a bit under the mud and came up gasping.

Everest attempted to get away again, but Arrow snatched Everest’s tail, dragging him right back. The gold wolf whirled around, biting Arrow’s nose and for a second, both were thrashing in the mud, making it impossible to tell the difference between the two mud-covered wolves. 

“Daddy?”

Both wolves froze, Everest’s tail in Arrow’s mouth and Everest’s teeth latched onto Arrow’s shoulder. Both looked for the source of the sound... it had come from Axle.

“What are you doing out here?” Everest snapped, letting go of Arrow.

Arrow growled, convinced that Axle had been talking to him. Arrow dove for Everest but he wasn’t the only one, more wolves appeared out of nowhere and barreled into Everest and the golden wolf was shoved under the thick mud. He struggled but the moving weight holding him down was too much for him to lift up. Just as his movements became slow, someone grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, dragged him out and dropped him on the solid bank.

Chapter IV

Coughing, Everest sat up, trying to get the taste of mud out of his mouth. None of his fur showed. He was completely covered in mud now. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Axle, who was worriedly licking his father’s paw as his tail wagged furiously. 

Then Arrow came into view, scooping up the chocolate colored pup and placing him in front of Fly, who was desperately trying to remain calm. The it hit Everest. He was surrounded by Hiatus’s pack.

“What to do with you now...” came Hiatus’s sing-song voice, forcing Everest to look up blankly.

Portly was there too... so was his pack.

“So you guys are suddenly pals now?” Everest uttered, eyes passing between the two alphas. 

“We each thought we were fighting your pack! Isn’t that silly?!” Portly chortled stupidly, puffing up his chest. 

Everest thought about his own pack... he could bet they were watching, ready to jump out if someone made a move. He didn’t want them to get dragged into this for his stupid mistake.

“So what to do with me now...?” Everest droned, imitating Hiatus’s voice. 

Hiatus frowned, clearly not amused. “Bring him to the den until we can figure out a punishment that fits”

The two groups started to move but Portly stepped in front, stopping them. 

“Well I have an idea-”

Portly stopped, noticing Fly’s pups. Fly protectfully nudged them behind her and glared at him.

“Those are pure Illiivat pups... aren’t they”

Everest and Arrow both started to object at the same time but it was Everest who shut his mouth first.

“They’re my pups” Arrow growled in a low voice as he stepped in between Fly and Portly.

Portly laughed out loud, making Arrow growl and Everest tense up. 

“They don’t look a thing like you! I can’t be possibly dumb enough to believe that-”

“Shut-up!” Arrow snarled, loosing his patience and taking an aggravated step toward the wolf. 

For a tense moment, Portly’s pack stepped forward, making the Ublureak wolves tense up, but Hiatus motioned for the pack to relax. Reluctantly, both packs backed down.

“Whether they are or not doesn’t matter right now” Hiatus said in his usual cold tone. “Why does it matter to you?”

Portly looked over to Everest, a new twinkle in his eye. Everest tried to keep his face emotionless, never letting his gaze waver but his heart was in his throat. Portly knew who the pup’s father was. Time seemed to slow down until Portly turned to Hiatus with a new proposition.

“They need to be killed”

Everest lunged toward Portly, but was held back by wolves on either side of him. Fly growled and stood protectfully over her pups. Arrow snarled out loud.

“You can’t let him do that!” Arrow exclaimed to Hiatus, who didn’t seem to be convinced. 

“That would... conflict with my own plans” Hiatus replied, seeming to lose interest in Portly and was gaging Everest’s reaction instead.

Everest forced his eyes to drop to the muddy ground. The last thing he needed was both Portly and Hiatus getting in his head at the same time. 

“Well that doesn’t matter” Portly chuckled. “I’ll just kill them after their mother I suppose”

Everest snuck a glance, fidgeting, but pretended to look away when both Portly and Hiatus noticed. He bit his tongue hard to keep from saying anything.

“I appreciate your enthusiasm but I’m the one in control around here” Hiatus said, starting to become irritated. 

“No you’re not” Everest said simply, starting to cook up another idea. “Not at all”

Hiatus strode angrily over to Everest until he was practically nose-to-nose with the smaller wolf. 

“Well I don’t see anyone good enough to challenge me” he hissed. 

“He is” Everest smiled charmingly, motioning to Portly.

Hiatus sized up Portly, muttering, “You’re kidding”

“Hey Portly” Everest called, getting the fat wolf’s attention. “You should fill Hiatus in on your little plan, after all, he’s a big part of it all too, isn’t he?”

Portly strutted over happily, previously preoccupied with trying to see Fly’s pups. 

“Well the order I planned to go in was Fly, Everest then you but you seem reasonable so you can take whichever turn you like!”

Hiatus raised an eyebrow, “For what, might I ask?”

“Well killing you of course!” Portly grinned, rolling his eyes immaturely. “What else?”

Hiatus looked at Everest, gaging to see how serious Portly was and Everest coughed, averting his eyes.

“And just what are you going to do...?” Hiatus drawled, voice filled with a deadly calm.

“Well take over what you’re doing” Portly began, only too happy to share. “I mean, you started off right, taking advantage of one of the strongest packs and built it up but when it comes down to Everest, you simply failed. After all, you’ve barely gotten rid of any of the troublesome packs and you haven’t even caught him yet!” Portly exclaimed, motioning to Everest. “Plus, I can clearly see the scars that everyone says he gave you which-”

Meanwhile, Arrow had been trying to sneak Fly and the pups off, only being noticed by Everest until Portly stopped, mid-sentence and shrieked, “Get her pups!”

Both packs once again exploded into chaos. Most of Portly’s pack, including the two guarding Everest, sprang after the family. Hiatus’s pack blocked Portly’s pack.

Everest sprang away, flying after his mate in pups. As he expected, the others had been watching from the marsh grass and were alongside him in a second. 

“They have the pups!” Fly cried ahead, making Everest run faster. 

A second later, he found Fly, who was wide-eyed and desperately trying to locate any of her four pups.

“Arrow went after one of them!” Fly stammered, tears starting to form in her eyes. “I don’t know where the others are... I- I- they just wrestled them away...”

“We’ll find them” Everest said sincerely before rushing off again in the direction most of the wolves seemed to be running.

Meanwhile, Portly was simply beaming. He was positive that his pack could win. He was so confident, he hadn’t noticed that he had hit a nerve in Hiatus while explaining  his plan. And that Hiatus hadn’t run off to try to fight Portly’s pack.

“So You’re planning to kill me and take over my duties, are you...?” Hiatus started, creeping closer to the fat wolf. 

“Most certainly!” Portly smiled, not looking.

“And once again, Everest got away when I could have ended him... because of you...”

“Well that won’t matter, it won’t be too hard to find him again” Portly said, beginning to pick up on Hiatus’s tone. He turned around and stared into Hiatus’s deathly yellow eyes.

After some running, Everest, Tempest and Odin were the first to spot a wolf tearing away with a struggling Ozark in his mouth. Adrenaline allowed Everest to get there first, knocking the wolf’s feet out from right under him. Ozark let out a little yelp and rolled across the ground. 

Everest didn’t even bother with the strange wolf and was checking over Ozark instantly. Odin and Tempest chased away the strange wolf and Everest nudged the shaking pup toward Tempest. 

“Get him back to Fly’s den as quickly as you can. Fly will lead you there”

Tempest nodded, scooped up Ozark and took off.

“Keep your eyes peeled” Everest said to Odin, who was silent for once. 

Suddenly, Everest spotted a wolf running off, carrying something brown in his mouth. 

“Axle” 

Everest and Odin were right behind the wolf in a second. The other wolf tucked it’s tail and ran even faster, leading both of her pursuers out of the territory. Everest was tiring out quickly so it was Odin who finally tackled the other wolf, forcing her to drop the limp thing in her mouth with a yelp. 

Everest jumped over Odin and skit to a stop just before the small, brown figure. It wasn’t alive... but it wasn’t Axle either. 

“It’s only a rabbit!” the she-wolf cried. “I haven’t eaten for days”

Everest growled, kicking the rabbit and hustled back to where all the fighting was taking place. By now, the pups could be long gone!

When Everest and Odin finally came back to where everyone was before, they found themselves alone. 

“They all disappeared” 

The two stepped out into the open cautiously, finding that the only things around were what was left of Portly’s pack. Grimacing, the two searched for any familiar faces but thankfully didn’t find any. They couldn’t find Portly either... but he was the least of their worries now.

“Maybe the others found them” Odin offered hopefully, as they started towards the den. 

After a few moments of silently walking through the woods, they spotted the group waiting by Fly’s den. As soon as she spotted Everest, Fly gasped and rushed forward hopefully.

Everest’s heart sank. They hadn’t found all the pups...

Before Everest could say anything, Fly collapsed, sobbing and Everest had to dive forward to catch her. He could feel his own eyes starting to fill with tears as Fly buried her face into his fur.

The others shuffled around, head and tails low. They knew Everest wouldn’t blame them for any of it but it still hurt that they hadn’t been able to do what they were supposed to. 

“We lost Axle and Ishkur” Fly sobbed. “Comet and Will saved T-T-Theo but the other two...”

Everest closed his eyes tightly and tried to forget before he let it get to him. 

“I’m staying here tonight” Everest said to the others, voice cracking a little. The others nodded and started back to the den. Everest and Fly stayed huddled on the ground for what seemed like hours, mourning the loss of the their two pups. When they moved, it was only to move into the den to try to explain what had happened to Theo and Ozark. 

The pair’s sorrow had also blocked out something else... someone else was missing too...

Not far off, in another den, three figures stood out. Hawk frowned, face a mixture of anger and something else while his mate, Tosca, was curled at her feet. She was just as sad as Fly was but was desperate not to seem weak. So se covered her eyes with her paws and stayed curled in a ball. Of the two pups she had, only one was left. In the confusion, one of Portly’s wolves had followed Tosca back to her den and took one of her pups too. Unlike Everest and Fly’s pups, who might be able to manage on their own, Tosca’s pups were still defenseless. 

The third figure was Quick. He shifted uncomfortably, not sure what to do. He was horrible in touchy situations and he didn’t know what to say to make Tosca feel better. Nothing Hawk or Quick said seemed to console Tosca either.

“I can’t believe I let them get away with Hunter” Tosca finally squeaked, curling into a ball.

“Uh... it’s ok” Quick said awkwardly. “You can... have more next year...”

Hawk gave Quick a dirty look and Quick shrugged. “At least I’m trying”

“Well he’s right...” Hiatus crooned, seemingly coming out of nowhere. “It’s not hard to just have more”

Tosca looked up forlornly at Hiatus, afraid to say anything or disagree with him. Quick shifted, eyes flicking between his sister and the white wolf. Hiatus focused his attention on Quick.

“Well I can’t say, this couldn’t have been done without you”

Quick nodded, a familiar, bad feeling rising up in his chest.

“Honestly, I didn’t think that we’d catch up to them, but thanks to your directions, I guess we ended up being in the right place at the right time”

Quick frowned and got up. “I really should head back before anyone notices I’m missing”

Hiatus gave Quick a half-smile. “I’ll hear from you later. Maybe next time, you can bring me Everest instead of a rebel pack”

Quick paused but kept walking, taunted by Hiatus’s snickers as he left. Once Quick was gone, Hiatus looked down at Tosca, disgust flickering across his face.

“Oh pull yourself together and stop whimpering” he hissed. “Just make more next year”

Everest and Fly were still huddled in the den. Fly had finally calmed down enough to breath normally but she was still too sad to talk. Everest, on the other hand, was still trying to soothe her.

“We’re going to find ‘em... they’re tough like us and they’re still out there...”

Everest, Fly, Quick, Will, Tempest, Hiatus, Arrow and Axle (Indy) (c) me

Hawk, Tosca, Hunter, Angela and Theo (c) FallenAngel

Comet and Ozark (c) Jett

Altea and Ishkur (c) Saske Italian Wolf