Chapter 3
The wind gently blew. The tweets of birds filled the air. Seth woke up. It was about 7 in the morning. It was quite warm and humid after the down pour from the ngày before. Seth was still tired. He didn’t bother getting up. He just laid there where he slept. Under a tree. He slowly fell asleep again. Kate woke up. She turned over just to find her nose pressed against Seth’s. She opened her eyes, surprised to feel something against her nose. She leapt from where she slept. “AH!” She began breathing heavily. “Phew...” She sighed; relieved to know it was only Seth. She looked around. “What a difference...” Kate said. “I know right?” Kate whipped around to see Seth just waking up yet again. “Seth!” Kate said, smiling. “Morning!” The cueing of a chim bồ câu, bồ câu was heard behind them. “Seth looked up and Kate turned around to where the noise was coming from. “Oh! It looks like I caught bạn guys at a bad time!” Sam smiled. “Oh... xin chào Sam...” đã đưa ý kiến Seth, getting up. “What happened at the mudslide yesterday?” Sam asked. He began cleaning his white wings. “Kate almost died. Long story short.” Seth said. “Actually, my paws slipped, and i was going to fall. Luckily, at the right moment, Seth was there. He saved my life...” At that, Kate smiled and turned to Seth. “Oh it seems he did thêm then that!” Seth looked surprised but Kate’s already big smile went even bigger. “The hunters are back.” At the moment Sam đã đưa ý kiến that, Seth had taken a breath. At the moment that he took the breath, Seth thought of the killers that killed their family and loved ones. He choked on his own breath. “HEH... HAH... GUK...” He collapsed. “Oh my God!” Kate exclaimed. She helped him up and then Seth regained his breath. “What do the people who almost killed Seth have to do with him saving me?” She asked. “Well for one thing, the mudslide might have killed you. But at the time when the storm was, the hunters were at the bottom of the river. They would have shot you. Seth saved your life twice... Confusing, I know...” Kate smiled and looked down at her paws. She blushed and spoke. “Thanks...” Seth smiled at her. “Where are we now?” Seth asked, dismissing the other subject. Sam took a moment to look around. “He pointed to a direction behind Seth. “After the storm, bạn became off track. The mountains are over there.” “How long would it take to get there bởi foot?” Asked Seth. “About 2 weeks.” Replied Sam. “That seems good enough...” đã đưa ý kiến Kate. “2 weeks... Yeah... I’ll walk for 2 weeks when hell freezes over... Is there any... detour?” “Well there is a train in front of the mountain... It would take bạn around the mountain and bạn could get off near the rock flow.” “Silly delta... Always want the easy way...” Kate đã đưa ý kiến smiling and shaking her head. “Yep... That’s our way!” Seth answered. Sam shook his head and smiled. “Wolves... Silly creatures...” “What do bạn mean short stack?” Kate said. She smiled. “Come talk to me when bạn two have... Good, news...” He smiled and pointed in the direction of the mountain once thêm and flew away. “Silly creatures... Ha...” Seth laughed. “Come on bạn silly wolf...” Kate đã đưa ý kiến laughing.

Seth and Kate exited the forest. They passed through a swamp and even evaded a hungry croc. They reached the prairies, and they began to feel the pangs of hunger. “I’m hungry...” Complained Seth. Kate hesitated but she trusted Seth and even though she was an Alpha, she admitted that she was bothered bởi hunger too. “Me too...” “I haven’t heard of any prairie caribou...” đã đưa ý kiến Seth sarcastically. “We’ll just have to wait to get to the mountains...” đã đưa ý kiến Kate. Seth looked up at the mountains. “But... They’re so far away...” Seth complained. “I know but do bạn see any creatures large enough to feed a teenage delta and a growing Alpha?” Kate đã đưa ý kiến with a know-it-all tone. Seth remained silent until he found a large pond. He ran up to it. Kate followed. “What? Are bạn that thirsty?” Kate asked. Seth didn’t answer. “Seth? What ARE bạn doing?” Seth sniffed the water and then walked a few steps beside it. “Seth! Answer me-,” Kate saw what he found. He found moose tracks. He sniffed them and called out to her. “Follow me!” Seth said. “What exactly are bạn expecting to do?” Kate said. She ran up to his side when he gestured for her to stay. “What!? Me stay? I’m the Alpha! I’m the future leader of the pack! I should be-,” Then she saw it. A huge moose slowly walking around grazing on the grass. She looked at Seth. He was crouched into hunter’s position. She immediately mimicked him. The moose turned around exposing it’s rear end. “Ugh... Now that’s a moon I don’t want to howl to...” Seth said. Kate stifled a laugh. “Now!” Seth said. He leapt onto the moose. He began clawing and biting the moose as it jumped around trying to shake it’s attacker off. Kate leapt as well. The moose got really angry and rolled onto it’s side crushing Seth. Kate had leapt off just in time. She finished the moose off with a bite to the life-pumping artery in the neck of the beast as it tried to get up. Kate laughed. “Haha! Wolves-1, Moose-0...” She exclaimed. “Right Seth?” “Seth?” She turned to him and saw him sprawled across the ground. He was barely breathing. “Seth!!!” She whipped to his side. She rolled him over to his other side. He cringed in pain. Kate’s eyes widened. On the side of Seth’s mouth, blood trickled down onto the cỏ below. “No...” She murmured to no one in particular. She buried her nose in his ribs. “No...” Tears streamed from her eyes and dripped off her nose onto Seth’s fur. “I... I... Wanted to tell you...” Seth’s eyes slowly opened. He coughed several times and cleared his throat, at the same time coughing up blood. “SETH!” She put her arms around him and rubbed the side of her head against his chest and neck. He slowly rubbed his paw up and down her shoulder. “Who are bạn and what have bạn done with Kate?” He laughed. It hurt to laugh. It hurt to breathe... He coughed some more. “I hate seeing bạn like this...” Kate đã đưa ý kiến removing her self from him. “I’m fine... really...” He coughed yet again. “No... You’re not... It’s my fault...” “How so?” Seth asked. “Well, I let the moose roll on hàng đầu, đầu trang of you... And,” “Kate stop... Speaking of the moose, where is it?” “Well, I killed it...” “Then how could I get angry at you!? bạn got us lunch!” He licked her nose. She lay down yet again and rubbed her cheek against his chest. Sam flew overhead and saw the commotion. He swooped down. Seth saw him. Sam saw Kate on Seth and laughed. “Hey? I thought bạn had to be a certain age to mate?” He laughed. “We’re not,” Kate started. She quickly got up. She brushed herself off. Seth slowly got up and coughed. Sam perched on one of the few trees around the plains. “What happened to Seth?” Sam asked Kate. “A moose fell on him. During hunting...” She finished. “Ouch... Is he okay now?” Sam asked worried. “Yeah... I... I’m fine... Just hungry...” Seth took a few steps towards the moose and then began to limp. He managed to limp over to the carcass. He ripped into it. Blood soaked his muzzle and it looked very grim, but Seth was hungry and he didn’t care. Kate padded over and joined. “Wolves...” Sam đã đưa ý kiến shaking his head. “Mmmm...” Seth mumbled with a mouthful of meat. Kate looked up at Seth. His tail was wagging, and his mouth was soaked with blood. She felt a little bad about him getting hurt, but he was still happy considering the condition he was in. The moose was almost completely finished. It’s ribs showed and blood soaked beneath it. Seth lay down on his back, content, full and looking up at the sky. Kate looked down at him. She smiled to see him happy. She padded over to him and lay down beside him. He licked his lips getting rid of the left over blood... Kate did the same. “It’s beautiful...” Seth đã đưa ý kiến looking up at the fluffy clouds floating by. “I agree...” đã đưa ý kiến Kate with a relaxed tone. Seth slowly closed his eyes. Kate watched as he did. She slowly moved closer to him. Sam ruined the moment. He squawked. Seth jumped. “AH!” His eyes whipped open and he hit his side again. “Ow...” He mumbled. Kate scowled at Sam. “You are going to miss the train!” He said. “Ok...” Kate đã đưa ý kiến as she helped Seth up. “You’d better hurry!” My bird sources say temperature is dropping in mountains...” “We have a lông, lông thú coats.” Seth retorted. “Don’t say I didn’t warn bạn my chó sói, sói friends!” Sam đã đưa ý kiến as he flew off. “We’d better be going...” Kate đã đưa ý kiến to Seth. Seth nodded and padded past her. She looked back at the moose carcass, took a few bite fulls and ran back up to Seth.

“Sir...” Liam đã đưa ý kiến entering the looming cave shadows. “We have spotted 2 Người sói approaching the mountains...” He finished. A grey figure padded out from the shadows. “I know. Sam has alerted us.” “Do bạn think they pose a threat?” Liam asked patiently. “Sam also believes that they are from the southern pack. He didn’t give me any details of what happened hoặc what pack they were born to, but all I know is that they are heading to our territory, and we cannot leave it unaddressed.” “What about our Alpha?” Liam seemed to have many questions. “Yes... The death of Nia is an inconvenience... We don’t know whether Lilly should become Alpha, hoặc if one of the other Alphas outside of the royal family should lead...” “But Ruuqo...”: Liam started. “If Lilly becomes Alpha, she’s Beta! What will the other packs think of us? Furthermore, isn’t it pack law that only members of the royal family can lead the pack?” Liam jumped at the volume of Ruuqo’s voice. “I don’t know! I don’t... Who will lead the pack... Who will take the place of Nia... I-,” Ruuqo’s voice trailed off at the sound of flapping wings. He turned to the entrance. Sam flew in. “Hello Ruuqo.” Sam started. Ruuqo responded bởi dipping his head. “I have new information on the two wolves.” Liam’s eyes lit up at the mention of the two new wolves. “I have realised that one of the Người sói are the tiếp theo in line Alpha female and the other is a delta male. Kate and Seth. “Kate of the southern wolves!?” Ruuqo started. He looked away surprised. “Liam.” “Yes sir.” “I think we found our solution.”