MEN CAN BE STUPID LIKE THAT

22 FEBRUARY, MONDAY, ONE OF THOSE UNGODLY HOURS

I had expected the main ball room door to fling open and the warriors to run out like the last bell on the last day of school in a high school musical, but more like Spartan than highschoolers, and instead of a rocky mountain pass, they would run out on a smooth marble foyer and spill out yelling into what I imagined might be manicured lawns and topiary. My imagination was messed up, I know.

Anyway, that didn't happen. The warriors silently filed out a hidden side door into the cover of darkness of the night - which was less dramatic, but admittedly more strategic.

Someone pushed me roughly from behind (and for some reason, my hair hadn't stopped the large hand), "Go that way, girl." It was Manstein, "I'm sorry girl. Run for your life."

Manstein had so much regret in his eyes, I worried for a moment that he was going to carry this to his grave (which the Captain did just make sound very close at hand).

"Thanks Manny!" I gave me my widest smile, "Let's run with no regrets."

Which was a thing old warriors would say to each other which clinking beers and before charging head on into battle. At least, that's what my Grandpa Alpha had told me. Now that I thought about it, I should have double checked that. Grandpa Alpha hadn't turned out to be the most accurate fact guy in the life.

But he probably got this fact right, if Manstein's expression was anything to go by.

He froze, his eyes widening in recognition, and then widening more, "No!"

Maybe Grandpa Alpha didn't get this fact right either... in fact he probably got it really, really wrong.

Manny drew back, {Captain, the girl is the enemy!}

Eh? Now it was my turn to draw back, I was the what now?

Manstein pulled out his gun, his hand shaking.

Randolf was by his side in two clicks, and a much quicker shooter, {I told you it was a trap!}

BANG!

I dodged.

{What are you doing? You gave our positions away!} The Captain shouted into the mindlink.

{The enemy tricked me!} Randolf accused.

Hey! You pulled that trigger all by yourself, okay?

Another explosion, this one was way, way, way, too close. If I could smell, I would smell it. I wished I could smell. Right now, I could only estimate its location by the sound, and the smoke trails in the sky. I darted off to see what that was all about.

The warriors behind me scrambled, but they weren't giving chase. The Captain was pulling them to flank the other side. Their position was compromised or something. Which wasn't very dramatic, but again, I suppose it was the more strategic option. Which did make me wonder why I was running towards the explosion?

I felt a bit sad about leaving the warriors behind. They had been so much fun to run with. It was like running in the stories Grandpa Alpha used to tell. At least, I imagined it would feel like this. But the way that Manny had looked at me made me feel bad. Why did he think I was the enemy? What did I say wrong? I felt kind of sad that we had to part on that kind of note. Maybe I should've tried to explain... but I didn't know what I was suppose to be explaining. I didn't even know what I did wrong.

"Who goes there?" A familiar voice shouted from the darkness.

And then suddenly a hell lot of arrows whipped my way from behind the trees. Oh hell no.

{Trap.} Boo stirred now.

Gee. You think? What the hell were you doing till now? But I guess better late than never.

My hair hardened and grew into a ball of metallic yarn around me. What else could I do? I had run into an ambush, and the arrows came from EVERYWHERE - even up in the trees.

I shut my eyes tightly, even while I was crouching inside the dark tight-knit ball. I had to admit, it was scary. I had even crouched so the shield size could be smaller, to have enough hair to reinforce the shield. But these arrows! They were not the skinny ones we used at archery club. No, these arrows drove down hard and at some points, one or two actually managed to bite deep enough for me to see the pointy tip with my glowy wolf eyes.

Grrr... if I ever get out of this alive, I was going to chew Heller out for this, because I was quite sure I was being shot at by his men. Probably even by his order! Someone needed to tell him that if he asked "Who goes there?" He should at least wait for the answer.

Also, I would like to be the one to point out that he had just compromised his position and wasted his perfectly set up ambush. I mean, even Boo didn't notice it right away.

{I wasn't paying attention.} Boo was just a little offended I should think she would not notice a trap right away.

"Cherrt!" That was the sound of the arrow hitting into my metallic shield. "Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt! Cherrt!"

It was probably the closest thing to death I had ever experienced. I hugged my knees tightly at each stab and waited for the rain of arrows to stop. I mean, they had to run out eventually, right?

I'm not sure what this T&T enemy was, but Heller definitely wasn't going to take any chances.

The arrows stopped, and I decided to identify myself before anything worse happened.

My hair flared up, flinging the arrows in all direction. I could hear the men exclaim and take cover.

"Heller? It's me Sam." I called out, "You know, dream travelling blue wolf..."

"Sam?" Heller stepped out from the shadow of one of the trees. He was dressed in camouflage, which took me by surprise. I don't know, last I saw him, he was all dapper with expensive looking fancy cloaks. Now his face was painted black, and his blond hair was covered with a bandana. Only his blue blue eyes identified him.

"Heller? What the hell happened to you?" Now I laughed. It wasn't that funny, but maybe it was the after effect of being ambushed and nearly shot to death by... I picked up the arrow. It was like as thick as my thumb. My hair was amazing.

"Oh my goddess, Sam! Are you hurt?" Heller rushed forwards now.

I grinned, "I'm pretty invincible."

But inside my head, I heard Mum's voice, "No one is invincible, Sam, not even you."

Mum was right of course. Just now was a little scary.

{Your highness, our position has been compromised. We await your orders.}

Heller blinked, "Let's go somewhere safer to talk."

On the mindlink he sent order, {Proceed to F5}

Since I had no idea what F5 was, I decided to follow Heller.

"What are you doing here, Sam?" Heller asked as we made our way through the undergrowth, "The T&T are here. They will kill all of us tonight."

"Why?" I asked.

"They are here for the Ring of Idonia." Heller admitted, "I might have aroused some unwanted attention."

And then Heller sighed and admitted all on his own, "I made some inquiries about your ring after you left, but because I was impatient to leave the Colored Mountains to bring Alaric home, I was careless. Jin got wind of it, and you know his gift of insight."

No, I didn't. So this Jin guy, he had the gift of insight too?

Heller shook his head, "But for some reason, he thinks I have the ring. Did you bring it with you?"

"No." I shook my head.

"Good." Heller nodded, "You need to leave. Everyone here will be dead by tomorrow morning."

"Why?" I asked again.

"The T&T... Sam... right, I forgot you're not from here. The T&T are a formidable foe. They would wipe out entire clans overnight." Heller sighed, "I cannot believe Jin would unleash it on us, I only pray my mate and daughter might escape their notice."

"Where are they?" I asked.

"Hidden." Heller said. His lips pressed together.

Okay. I nodded. I could understand why he would not tell and outsider like me. What I couldn't understand was why we seemed to be running the wrong way.

"The T&T are probably that way." I told Heller. With all my guts I could feel that was the right way to run.

"Yes, that's why we are running this way." Heller said.

Now we dropped off, down a trench. Oh, nice. Heller had more than one ambush set up.

"Wait, we are RUNNING AWAY?" I stopped moving. Heller dropped down and pulled my arm so that I would crouch in the trench with him. The other warriors got into their positions around us.

"We're all going to die by morning, right?" I asked.

"Yes." Heller said. He smiled. It was a very Fluffy smile. The kind he used whenever he wanted to hide his pain. The problem with owning smiles like that was that eventually, someone (like me) would decode them, and then all your smiling would just be clearly spelling out your pain.

"Then shouldn't we attack?" I asked, "If we win, we live. If we lose, we were going to die anyway."

"If we stick to the defense, we might not lose everything." Heller smiled, "If we can hold out till morning, my mate and Adelina will live."

Which was the more strategic way to go about it I guess, BUT...

It was going to be a horrible morning to wake up to, if you asked me. Mate was like that too. He was always trying to keep me at home... where it was safe... because he wanted to protect me. See... I told you I was good at connecting the dots. Okay, I was also slow, but crouching in the dirt with Heller like this, I remembered the trench Mate slept in, I remembered his cold dark bunker in the underground, I remembered the way he always looked like he was too busy to sleep. To keep me safe.

Suddenly, I get that Bell might not have been a total male chauvinist bossy pig every time he told me to stay at home. That was his way of loving me. ~ ❤️ He was protecting me with his life.

But why would I want to wake up to a morning where I find his body dead in a ditch?

Men can be so stoopid like that.

I stood up, "Okay, let's do both. You play defense. I'll lend you my attack."

"You can't." Heller said.

"Why not? I've got nothing to lose." I said. I wasn't the one with a mate and daughter at risk.

"Nothing to lose? Sam, you'd die! This isn't even your fight. Go back home where it's safe. I only ask you to please take care of my son for me." Heller said, "I might not be able to fetch him after all."

I punched Heller in the arm, right in front of his men.

"Shut up. Don't tell me what to do."

And then I climbed out of the trench, I was going hunting! Whooot! This feeling! It was exhilarating. It I were in wolf form, I'd howl out loud.

"Wait, Sam!" Heller shouted, "There's probably something I should tell you!"

You can't stop me!

"Tell me later." I called back and with a hop and skip, I jumped a bit to get up on a fallen log and then used it for a boost and scrambled up into the trees. Unlike the naked trees back home, these trees were still blooming in the winter. Not all of them though, just these large and old looking ones. I followed the branches and scurried towards my prey, leaving nary a trace of my own presence in the snowy ground below me. Even without my sense of smell (which I was missing terribly), my lucky sense of direction was leading me and my steps, even on the gnarliest branches, were surefooted. I felt a bit like a squirrel running along the branches - a rabid predatory squirrel. Muahahahahaha

Those T&T nuts wouldn't know what hit them.

{Who's the nut?}

Shut up Boo.

I had to say, I did feel kind of cold though. The first T&T guy I beat up, I'm going to take his jacket - and boots... and pants. Yeah. I could do with a pair of pants. I think I'd pick on the smallest guy first - for a better fit.

{Shift} Boo suggested.

Wolves were equipped with built in winter wear. But no. Not yet. I was having way too much fun.