An Unexpected Invention

Father's POV

3:30am

I've been starting my days an hour earlier sense my Lilly began alpha training 2 months ago. It's been a lot of long days but she's coming along nicely. She's looking like a real alpha.

"Mail's here alpha Mason"

"Thank you, Dorothy" I say taking the envelopes. More paperwork. I crack my fingers and flip through the mail.

"Trash, trash, bill, trash, what the? Alpha Anthony"

At the bottom of the stack was a letter from one of my fellow North America Alphas. I rip it open. It reads.

"To my colleague and fellow Alpha Mason,

I have heard that your heir has shown herself a true alpha. Rumors also tell of her great strength. I am looking forward to meeting her at the upcoming Alpha banquet and testing this strength. That is if the rumors are true. Not everyone can have a strong successor.

All the best, Alpha Anthony"

"That... grrrrrrr" I yell throwing my stapler across the room embedding it in the wall by the door.

"Is everything alright alpha?" Dorothy calls from the other room.

"YES Dorothy everything is fine!" I retort.

"I just have to figure out what to do with Lilly" I whisper to myself.

Lilly's POV

I've been training 6 days a week for the past 2 months. I get Sundays off and no night training with Beta Carson on Saturdays so it's a nice little break.

I report to father at 4:30 each morning 8:00 training with Delta David and the warriors. Back to father after lunch and 4:00 endurance training with Beta Carson each night. It's alot! But I can say I sleep very well.

I can see myself getting stronger. I feel... Well I feel like an alpha.

"That's because you are one numb skull!"

"Ahhh... The ever encouraging and loving wolf... Good morning"

"Yea yea, hurry up or you'll be late for father!"

I look at the clock. Dang it she's right. I need to get a move on.

"Told ya so"

I roll my eyes at my wolf.

"Good morning father." I say as I enter his office. I place my work out bag on my little desk in the corner and take a seat opposite my father at his desk.

"Humm." Father mumbles looking up at me from the letter he is holding. "Yes, yes morning." He replies. "Anyway." He says folding the letter and turning his attention to me. "Today we are going to talk about blood."

"Blood? Seriously? What about it?" I respond.

"Yes blood." He says "but more precisely Alpha blood"

"Where does an alpha's power come from?" Father asks as he opens his pocket knife and begins fiddling with it.

"Well" I respond "you've always said it comes from the pack."

"True enough" father says "but what ties the pack together? How are they connected to the alpha?"

I stare at him without offering a response. I'm sure by the intro to this conversation the answer is undoubtedly "blood" but I can't explain why or how so I clam up and wait for him to answer his own question.

"When a wolf is brought into the pack the initiation ceremony requires a mingling of blood." He says as he slides his knife across his palm allowing the blood to drip on the paper in front of him. "As the alpha's blood joins with the new pack members the mind link is opened to them and the alpha gains strength from them."

"So." I respond "the larger the pack the stronger the alpha?"

"In most cases yes." He answers "however the alphas personal power can give him an edge when pack numbers are close."

I think over my father's words a moment then as thought crosses my mind.

"What about the children?" I ask "we aren't born with the mind link."

"Do you remember your first change?" Father asks. I shudder it's not something most of us choose to recall. The first change is a long drawn out and excruciating experience that typically happens between the ages of 6 and 8. I don't want to think about it.

"Yes." I respond

"Not every child born to a wolf completes the change." Father says "so once the child completes their first shift the alpha is called. When I come into the room the parent wolf will bite the pup on their scruff, I bite my hand and place it on the pups neck accepting them into the pack."

"Ok two questions." I say "first why didn't you do that with me? And more importantly WHAAAT? Not all pups change? I didn't know that!?"

"Firstly." Father says "being my pup" he says with a grin knowing I hate being referred to as a pup. "You already have my blood so your shift itself opened your link." He took a deep breath and looked down not wanting to answer the second question. "Secondly, yes not all pups change. It is rare but it happens. Because of the possibility that they won't shift we wait to accept them into the pack."

"Soooo... what happens to the pups that don't shift?" I ask. Father begins rubbing the back of his neck dreading that exact question.

"It varies from pack to pack.... but this pack has always placed the child with an adoptive human family." He answers and I note how he referred to the pup as a child distancing them from our wolf ways. "It seems the most decent thing to do... a human child raised with us would not fair well. Some packs... well some packs are less kind"

"What about the parents? Losing a child? How is that decent?" I yell furious over this new information.

"What else would you have us do little wolf?" He asks calmly staring at me. His waves of calm chipping away my anger.

"Stupid Alpha influence" I think.

"Bite them in." I say without thinking

"I won't do it." He says bluntly

"Why not?! they deserve a family!"

"Because they deserve to live Lilly!" Father explodes then takes a deep breath calming himself.

I slide back into my seat not even realizing I'd left it in my anger.

"What?" I breath lost for words.

"Few humans survive the bite." He says shaking his head. "That's why the process to get approval is so involved. Only an alpha can bite in a human and he must bleed into the wound like in an initiation ceremony. Then take the pain of your first change and multiply it by 10. That is the agony of being bitten in. The bite must be approved and witnessed by two North American alphas." Father pauses then continues "a child who doesn't shift on their own has about a 20% chance of surviving the bite....Its not worth the risk."

"Wow... I...I... wow" I couldn't say any more. Words failed me. I see why father was reluctant to speak of this. "I'm sorry father... I...I understand"

He shakes his head "anyway." He says quick to move on the conversation. "You know you have alpha blood." I nod and he continues. "That blood gives you certain power even before you become alpha."

"Like being able to command other wolves." I offer.

"Yes that. And the ability to resist an alphas command." He continues

"Alphas can not be commanded no matter how small the pack. It is a kind of natural protection. A certain amount of this protection extends to his children but with enough pressure even the strongest will break." Father finishes.

"Sooo... if you really wanted to you could still command me?" I ask a little shaken I've been able to ignore his commands for a while now so this shocked me.

"If I felt the need." He says bluntly "it is all in how much force you put behind the words and repeated commands have a compounded effect."

"Good to know." I say

"Anyway it's about time for your training with Carson and David so we need to wrap this up. Your endurance training will now be with me."

"Ok? But why?" I ask.

"You'll find out tonight" father says leading me to the door. As I grab my bag and head out his voice stops me "one more thing. There is an alpha banquet in 2 weeks time and you will be in attendance. Samantha will help you with appropriate attire. Go see her when you get a chance."

"What's a..."I begin.

"You're going to be late" father says cutting me off. So I leave making my way to the training grounds.

The rest of the day proceeds like normal. Until after lunch. I begin to make my way to father's office when he mind links me.

"Meet me in the cells"

Father's POV

I call Lilly to the cells for her new training.

"She needs to be ready before Alpha Anthony gets his hands on her" I think

"We could just rip his throat out and show him who's Alpha" I roll my eyes. My wolf has anger issues.

"Why are we meeting here?" Lilly asks as she enters the low dirty building that is our cells.

"Come with me." I say leading her to the room I'd chosen for our training.

"This is a sound proof room. It is necessary for this training." I explain

"What kind of training is this?" She asks

"Its still endurance training but it is mental not physical.... would you rather be doing paperwork?" I ask trying to set her at ease... she will be in enough pain soon and I don't know if I can take it.

Lilly's POV

I don't like paperwork but it's still freaking me out not knowing what's going on.

"So what does this "mental endurance training" entail?" I ask begging for more information

"Remember our discussion this morning about alpha commands?"

"Of course it was only a few hours ago." I know it was a little rude but I want a straight answer.

"Lilly I've got a bad feeling about this?" My wolf whimpers and for once we agree.

"We are going to build your resistance the only way I know how." Father says locking us in.

"SIT DOWN!" Father growls the fiercest command I've ever felt and my knees begin to buckle. I catch myself on the chair in the middle of the room and push myself back to my feet panting.

"What was that all about?" I think

"Yup, bad feeling about this" my wolf says

Fathers POV

I issue the first command and it nearly takes her out.

"Stupid rules. I so wish I could explain why I'm doing this."

"Tell her then I'm no snitch!" My wolf says

"I can't and you know it... I just hope she'll forgive me."

"COME HERE!" I give another command. Lilly is already shaking under the weight of my order. I can see her fear and stubbornness fighting my command as she steps away from me.

"That's my girl." I think trying not to show the joy and pride in my face.

The other alphas won't go easy on her so neither can I.

"COME HERE NOW!" I command again this time she begins to fumble forward falling a few feet away. I turn away. I don't want to see my baby girl like this.

"Fight it Lilly." I link to her because I can't bring myself to speak.

"It hurts!" She yells "I feel like I'm on fire. With knives slicing through my skull!"

I turn back to her "you have to fight it." I whisper. She looks up at me with a mix of anger and pain. That look replaced with determination as she stands and steps away from me.

"COME HERE!" I order one last time with increased force shaking the room.

I see my baby grip her head and cry in pain. The command overwhelms her as she nearly runs forward landing in a crumpled mess at my feet.

I help her up into the chair. As I do I can see her trying to get up for another round.

"She may be able to take more but I can't" I think

"We're done for tonight." I say blankly trying not to fall apart "gather yourself and take the rest of the night off." I unlock the door and begin to leave. "Be sure to eat something.... it will help." And with that I exit the room leaving the door ajar.