40

Tiva rolls her eyes. "You know damn well that I can read a battlefield by this point. I know you don't want to admit it, but there's no denying what's happening. We need to get over there quick." She picks up the pace and races toward the front gate, the rest of you not far behind her.

As you near the front gate, it becomes clear that Tiva was correct—four wolves in full feral forms slash and snap at each other even as dozens of others try to pull them apart. Each lunges against the arms that hold them in place, slobbering and barking, snapping their fangs. Their arms and torsos are ripped and bloody with wounds sustained before they were forced apart. Behind you, the Elders' Circle finally catches up, their faces ranging from masks of horror to smug self-satisfaction.

"I knew this would be the result of a jump into violence!" Elder Hanska shouts, waving a fist in the air. There are veins bulging in his neck, and if you didn't know any better you'd think he was about to jump into the fray himself. Elder Mitena pulls Hanska back, whispering something quietly into his ear until the old man calms down.

"Again? This is a shit-show," Tiva says, severely understating the matter. "At this rate we won't need the humans to finish us off. We're doing their job for them!"

Sonoma bursts through the crowd, her presence extremely intimidating despite being in human form. "Who gave any of you permission to fight each other?" she bellows. "Save your energy for the humans!" Two of the feral wolves break free of the hands attempting to restrain them and attack each other with renewed fury. "Idiots!" Sonoma yells, lunging forward to grab one of the combatants by their neck, throwing them into the mud below with a growl.

This entire situation is suspect. I prowl around the crowd, searching for anything that might have sparked the fighting.

I stay back to protect the elders. If a feral wolf comes their way they won't be able to defend themselves.

I race in to help pull the battling wolves apart. We can't afford any more deaths.

Next

You pull away from the fighting, placing yourself between the feral wolves and the approaching Elders' Circle. Sonoma growls and hauls the wolf she'd pinned to the other side of the crowd while the three remaining combatants continue to claw at each other despite several other wolves trying to hold them apart.

"Why on Earth are they fighting?" Hanska wonders aloud. "I don't want them fighting the humans either, but that would be better than…whatever this is."

Elder Mitena purses her lips. "It reminds me of the infighting we had during the first year underground in the Nail. Don't they realize that they're free now?"

Ahote points to the back of the crowd at a slowly retreating figure shrouded in a dark hood. You have to squint to see her. "Maker," he says. "Wherever she is, trouble seems to follow."

"Give it up, old man," Mitena says with a sniff. "If we blamed everyone backing away from this idiocy, half the pack would be under suspicion."

"Maybe spending so much time in an underground prison broke some of them. We should be paying closer attention to the pack's mental health."

"We have to make them understand that prison behavior has no place in a free pack."

"Ahote's right; I think there's something more to this. The timing is just too coincidental and Maker is suspicious."

"Sonoma's working the fighting wolves up into a frenzy; it might even be on purpose. Get them to rage and then redirect it toward the humans. Those opposed to the raid might give in if they think it will decrease the infighting."

Next

"She wouldn't dare!" Hanska says stiffly. But you can see that your words have him thinking.

Ahote shakes his head. "Sonoma wouldn't think that far ahead. She's a brawler, not a tactician."

"You haven't known her long, Ahote," Hanska says. "This isn't Haven. Sonoma wouldn't have survived this long if she wasn't able to scheme."

Without warning, one of the battling wolves breaks free of the crowd holding him back and lunges at the elders, cutting the uncomfortable conversation short.

"Get down!" you yell, leaping in front of them, thanking whatever gods reside above that you'd chosen to watch over the elder wolves. You intercept the attacker and try to pull his attention in the other direction with a bellow of rage that you hope comes off as genuine. Your training pays off, and you're able to keep the feral wolf away from the elders just long enough for him to be apprehended again.

"Gods," you hear Elder Nakai say from behind you. "That was a close one!"

"Thank you, Holstein," Mitena and Hanska say in unison.

Ahote steps next to you and speaks under his breath. "That was quick thinking; you may have saved our lives! I don't think they'll be forgetting what you did any time soon."

Next

It's several minutes before Sonoma's personal guard are able to haul the feral wolves away. Away to where? you wonder. Concerns for another time.

Sonoma climbs atop a pile of crates next to the front gate, the fur of her wolf form rippling in the cold breeze. The copper smell of blood fills the air, and you can feel your inner beast stir from its slumber at the smell.

"We can wait no longer!" Sonoma calls out to the assembled crowd. "Can you not see what the humans' attacks and campaigns of fear have wrought? There's only one way to end this madness!"

A wolf yells from the crowd in response. "We need to fight back! They need to pay for what they did to us!" You're startled to see it came from Tiva.

Elder Hanska puffs himself up from the back of the pack. "You can't simply march to war without consulting the Circle, Sonoma! These things require the pack's consent!"

Sonoma spits. "I didn't hear you lot complaining when we marched into the pit of hell to save your sorry hides from the humans! If we don't move in quickly, the HSM will have the time to prepare their defenses or abandon their base. They came in hard—expected to wipe us out completely—they know they bloodied us and they won't expect swift retaliation."

"You're allowing anger to cloud your judgment!" Hanska says, almost pleadingly. "Acting without taking the time to think it through puts all of our lives at risk!"

Sonoma sneers. "I'm doing what I've always done—I'm keeping us alive and taking down the humans who would kill us all. If you'd rather roll over and die, you're free to do so. I think the rest of the pack would rather fight for their lives!"

The pack cheers, almost unanimously, while a quiet minority bite their tongues in the face of overwhelming opposition. Some of the former prisoners appear nervous about marching right back into battle, while Sonoma's rebels seem excited about the proposition. It seems like there's little hope of stopping the raid from happening, but you still have some choice in the matter.

I agree with Sonoma wholeheartedly. The humans need to be stopped before they can strike us again.

Sonoma is overzealous, but she does have a point. I cautiously agree to join her raid.

I need to consult with the elders before making a decision.

I can't support a hastily-planned attack that puts us all at risk. Sonoma should have consulted the elders first.

I refuse to support a warmonger. We need to work out a peaceful resolution.

Next