Blood of the Clan

By Lazette Gifford

They made an interesting pair, walking late at night down the dark, deserted streets of Askalan. People in the area knew them: tall, rangy Edel and short stocky Alita. She took three steps to his two with their boot nails making an odd tapping noise against the worn stone of the walkway. The only people they passed tonight stood in the doorways of taverns and scowled. Like many Kav -- lycanthropes, in the human tongue -- the two preserved just a touch of their animal essence in their human form. Alita's uncommonly long fingers retained a talon-like appearance, and she looked from side-to-side with the quick, sharp glances of a bird. Edel's hair, short and scraggly, showed the same black-to-brown ticking of his wolf-shape, and his dark-rimmed blue eyes looked wolfen even in a human face. Oh, and the stares he gave others -- well, they never doubted what blood he held.

Werewolves and werehawks didn't often work on the docks together, but he and Alita had managed quite well for lycanthropes in a city where their kind wasn't always welcomed. Humans sometimes appreciated hard workers, however -- especially ones that gave them no trouble. They especially welcomed ones willing to work late at night -- like he and Alita had tonight -- to help finish unloading The Firewater , a late arriving galleon from Nolmedron, carrying saltpeter and iron goods. Edel suspected they had unloaded a good many crates of weapons, although that had not been what the crates said they carried. He also suspected that the ship had come purposely late to port to avoid the daytime crowds. Rumors abounded in Askalan about the coming of a civil war, and the recent murders of humans had not eased the tensions.

But he, Alita and a dozen others had unloaded the crates to the waiting wagons so that the morning shift could immediately move the paper and other supplies from the warehouse for shipment to the government at SpirosBlaak. He wondered how many of those crates of paper already had important messages written on them, but he wasn't likely to find out -- even though he and Alita would be back here at first light to help with that loading.

The job had paid well, at least, but left them walking the streets close to midnight, and hurrying to home along the road that snaked along the edge of the shore, past the warehouses and briefly into an area of port taverns, brothels, and sleeping rooms before it circled back down to the Kav Quarter at the northeast corner of the city. The humans tolerated any lycanthrope that worked hard and gave them no trouble... and who went back to their own kind when they weren't needed. It galled Edel still, but he had dreams of saving enough money to leave the city. He wanted a place in the backcountry. There were still villages out there, mostly hidden, where werewolves lived by their own rules.

He worked hard, and he stayed out of trouble, and he planned.

But he hadn't planned on the trouble he found this night.

Edel wrinkled his nose as he and Alita hurried past an alley at the edge of the tavern row. The usual vile stench seemed more pungent in the stifling heat of the summer night. The two said nothing, listening for trouble, and walking with their hands on their belt knives to discourage any of the city's nighttime denizens from bothering them.

Edel only wanted to get back to his den where he could sleep until sunrise. He started to hurry, Alita skipping to keep up with him, her shorter legs straining as he picked up speed. She tugged at the end of her braided belt, a nervous gesture that Edel knew too well after working with her for a couple years.

They had reason to be nervous. Four humans had been murdered in this area in the last ten days, and trouble whispered in every tavern and slinked away into every shadow.

Home, he thought. I want to get home -- but stopped abruptly at the far corner of the murky alley, his nostrils flaring. It wasn't the usual offensive reek that caught his attention this time, but another odor that made his pulse quicken: fresh blood, and a large amount of it. That wasn't good, especially here close to the Kav Quarter, where trouble had been brewing since the last body had been found.

"Trouble," Alita whispered, shaking her head with dismay. " More trouble. Human blood."

"More than one human," Edel said, his nostrils flaring again. He wanted to change, to dart into the dark and... No. He was not an animal, but the shock of the blood scent drove him so close to that madness. He took a deep breath, blocking the scent with his hand, striving for calm. "Too damn many humans getting killed near our Quarter. Only..."

He looked down the alley between the leaning buildings, where debris littered the enclosure and the walls cast shadows obscuring the area where the alley curved toward the right, along the edge of an obtruding building. Moonlight illuminated the top edge of a high brick fence that blocked the far end of the alley, a dozen yards away. He knew the area. Beyond the brick wall was a small courtyard of a Bakad shop where the hagglers had piled wares. He'd seen the mounds of what he would have called junk, when he went home by rooftop to avoid trouble on the street. He didn't understand Bakads and their constant need to trade.

He had started to go on, but Alita headed straight into the alley's darkness. Edel hadn't a choice now, unless he left this feather-brained Kav behind. And that was damned tempting at a time like this.

But he knew what had drawn her. He could hear a soft rasping breath, and a moan. He still paused, intending to walk on, to leave it. Human, after all. Humans were no friends of his, despite the years he worked on the docks with them.

However, before he could take a step away, he thought of his cubs back home. His wife was the child of a Kavraen -- a man who had not been born to the werewolf blood, but cursed by some wizard. It took at least one generation, the curse being hereditary, before the body adjusted and overcame the madness. And sometimes it did not breed true. Of the two cubs born to his mate last week, one had the gift of Kav blood, and one did not. That made the second child essentially human. Not many cubs were born that way in the den, and he had never thought to see it in one of his own children.

Would he leave his own baby to bleed to death in the alley because it was human? Would he want another to?

"Damn." He started into the dark, quickly passing Alita. She followed, her footsteps light on the stone pavement.

He could hear other sounds, some far too clearly now -- the gurgling rasp of someone choking on his own blood, and then the scurrying of small predators into the dark. Rats or worse, he thought. His eyes adjusted -- wolf eyes in a human body, but he dared not let himself go into the transformation. Tired and angry as he was, the sight of the dead might drive him into a frenzy that would not help their cause.

They found the bodies just past the curve, lying before a decaying brick fence that stood a good five feet higher than Edel. The buildings on both sides had been built so high he could barely see the tops against the dark sky. Trash littered the corners, spread out across the path, and around the bodies. Not two bodies. Three.

Alita came up behind him, stopped and stared. Two humans. One Mentor.

"Gods," she whispered. The scent of the Mentor had been lost in the pervading odor of dying humans. It was dead, beyond a doubt. Gray skin hung in torn shreds from the body and even half of the face tentacles had been cut away. Bones showed through nearly everywhere that Edel could see -- and he looked away. That didn't help. The second body -- human -- looked nearly in the same state, but still barely alive. Seeing the extent of the injuries, Edel, acting on an old instinct, drew his knife as he knelt, and gave the man a mercy stroke, and a far quicker death.

"Thank you," the last one whispered.

Edel hadn't expected it to be conscious, but the man -- young, dressed in tattered silk tunic and bloody leather pants -- didn't look as badly hurt as the other two. His right leg showed long, bleeding cuts, as though claws had caught hold and raked the skin from thigh to ankle. His hands were bloody and bleeding, and his face bruised. Edel had heard a slight accent plain even in the soft, slurred words. Not a local boy.

"What happened?" Alita asked.

"We were... tricked," he said. His eyes fluttered as he tried to remain conscious, and the words came between little gasps of pain. "Trapped. Get me away. Splintered... Zackrians."

His eyes closed, unconscious or so near it that it didn't matter.

Edel felt a wave of loathing that mixed with a trace of dread. There had been rumors that the followers of Zackria, one of the several dark aspects of the Splintered God, had begun gathering somewhere in catacombs beneath the city -- but he hadn't believed it until now. Zackrians hunted humans and tortured them to death as part of their ritual. If this human told the truth, Edel didn't want to be anywhere near here, where he might be mistaken for one of those damned fanatics. Humans weren't apt to listen to reason from a Kav of any breed if they thought they might be associated with the followers of the Splintered God. He and Alita weren't going to find anyone reasonable if they came across this scene.

"Let's get away," Edel said, standing. "Get away quickly."

"They killed a Mentor," Alita said, her narrow, long foot nudging the large, gray skinned body as though she expected some reaction. "Humans I can understand, but why the Mentor? They're such a benign race. I never knew of one who wasn't a teacher --"

"I don't know. I'm not one of them, and I don't --"

He could hear movement a street or two away and coming closer. The number of the guard had doubled since they had started finding dead humans, and they all carried firearms. They'd also started routinely checking alleys for bodies. He and Alita didn't have much time.

Alita looked down at the still living human and frowned. "What are you going to do?"

"Leave him for his people," he said. "They'll come looking down here, especially if they see you fly off."

But the human's bloody fingers unexpectedly caught Edel's leg in a death-tight grasp. "Traitors in the ranks," he whispered. "Traitors in the nobility. Kill me. Do not let me fall to them again!"

Edel pulled his knife once more, ready to do just as he the human asked. The man closed his pale eyes and willed his trembling body to be still. It was, as far as human courage went, a remarkable sight.

However, it occurred to Edel that he didn't want this human dead. It had said something that might, in fact, help his people. He knelt and lowered his voice. "Is there someone among the humans working with the Zackrians? Are they purposely setting up the Quarter to take the blame for the killings?"

"Killings?" the stranger asked, eyes fluttering open again. They were light colored -- gray or blue --Edel couldn't tell in the faint moonlight. The human's face had gone so pale that even the long blond hair looked dark against it. He stank, and Edel had to put a hand before his nostrils to block the smell. "Zackrians. Killing humans. They took the scroll..."

"Scroll?" Edel said, hoping to start him talking again. "Are you a courier?"

He nodded just a little. His breath caught before he could speak again, but then he looked clearly at Edel. "Someone knew. Must not..."

His eyes closed once more. Edel wanted to shake him. Instead, he quickly tore at the man's battered shirt and used it to bind the worst of the wound on its leg. He tried not to think about the dark creatures in their labyrinth beneath the city, who took humans and tortured them, tearing skin from living bodies.

"They come," Alita whispered, her arm waving toward the street.

"Damn," he whispered. "Alita, can you change and fly away? Draw attention. But carefully -- don't let them get more than an idea that there was a bird here. They'll believe a vulture, perhaps. They'll guess a lycanthrope, but don't let them get any clear look at you for identification."

"And you?" she asked, trembling.

"I'm going to take him and run. The soldiers would have no reason to believe there were more than two bodies here."

Alita nodded and changed, a trembling of shape; arms lifted and transformed, feathers dark in the night, covering wings, head, body. The clothing she'd worn tore away. He grabbed it up and stuffed the cloth into his shirt to save for her, and to make certain they left nothing behind that someone might recognize.

A huge hawk now stood where Alita had been. Sometimes it still surprised him, to see her in this elegant shape. She lifted, wings flapping hard in the small area. He whispered a prayer...

"What was that?" a voice shouted. She had already lifted into the night, a shadow in the sky.

Edel shifted from human to werewolf, clothing stretching against furred skin, face shifting and growing longer, eyesight sharpening. In this form, Edel had no trouble picking up the man and sliding back into the shadows. His nose caught other scents now, and he barred his teeth at the little things scuttling back by the debris by the building to the left. He looked down, his heightened senses picking up something more. A trail of blood led back into the darkness and the fallen debris at the base of the building. He started that way and saw large red eyes, and knew that a wererat stared back at him. He saw the mouth pull back in a sneer of long yellow teeth, and the narrow ears go flat as if it readied to attack, though it slunk away into the darkness instead.

The guards had reached the edge of the alley. Edel took three leaping steps to the brick fence, hoping there would be enough of a handhold there to climb up. With his right arm wrapped around the waist of the human, he started up the bricks, his left hand grabbing at the rough surface and his clawed feet finding more purchase. The soldiers were not quiet, praise the Gods, and didn't hear his claws scratching against the bricks. He leaned into the wall to keep his balance the heartbeat it took him to grab hold again with his free hand and pull upward as his feet again found narrow indentations. Up and up -- he didn't have far to climb, at least.

He swung the unconscious human over the other side, and stopped before he dropped it. Lying flat against the narrow, uneven top, he watched as the guards arrived, a smoky torch in the hand of one, though the light barely illuminated the area around them. Edel almost jumped down the far side -- but they hadn't spotted him yet, and the noise would attract their attention. Besides, he wanted to hear what they said.

"Damn!" someone said while another got ill. Humans were so weak sometimes.

"A Mentor," a guard said and kicked at the body. "Damn Kav!"

Someone knelt by the human body. "This one was killed with a knife through the heart. I think that was a kindness."

"Makes no sense. Why do this to them, and then give them mercy?"

"Who knows? Kill all the bastards, that's what I say. Damn animals, pretending to be human! Look what they've done! We ought to bring down the cannons and level the entire Kav Quarter! "

Others grunted agreement, but none seemed ready to take up the crusade. It would not take much more, though, to send them into their own animal frenzy, attacking whatever they feared or disliked. They would be unable to reason with such creatures when they reached that stage, and no good would come of it.

"Travers, go check that ale shop we passed. The Green Glass. Ask who they've seen anyone on the streets tonight."

The barkeep had been tossing a drunk out when he and Alita went past. It would be easy enough to identify the two of them once they asked around the docks. Damn .

The weight of the human, pulling at his right arm, sent needles of pain up through his elbow and shoulder. He tightened his grip, letting claws dig into cloth, and maybe even flesh, although that hadn't been his intention. He just dared not drop the man now, since the noise would alert the guards. They could call in more of the guard before he got back to the Kav Quarter. He hoped the damned human didn't come to and start moaning again.

The human guards could also camp here in the alley all night. They obviously were in no hurry to move on, and the captain had started to poke around at things, coming closer to the fence. If they brought the torch any closer, they'd see him anyway.

Edel feared he would have to drop the man into the Bakad storage yard, leap down and grab him up again, and run. There might be cover enough among those heaps to escape the guns. However, in the bright moonlit night, they'd have no problem seeing his werewolf form. Add that with what the barkeep would tell the guard, and he and Alita were going to be in for a hellish time.

The only other choice would be to give himself over to the guard right now and trust that they would get the truth straightened out before they killed him. Edel didn't trust humans nearly that well. He carefully turned his head and looked over the far edge of the wall, trying to piece out an escape pattern through the maze of junk before he dropped down to run. If he made it to the building, he could easily climb the side wall and go over that low-lying roof, and into the street beyond. Edel hoped he could outrun bullets and the call for more guards.

He tried to flex the muscle in his aching arm and tensed his body -- and heard the flap of distant, large wings. Edel bit back a curse, never doubting that Alita had decided to return. He lifted his head -- but even as he watched, she swept over the alley and out of sight. A moment later she landed on a roof out on the street. Craning his neck, he could see her tearing at the covering, much to the shocked dismay of people inside. They screamed. The guards raced out to help.

Edel dropped the human and threw himself over the side of the fence, landing crouched on the other side. He looked up to see Alita circling up and away, and he smiled. That was why he and the woman did so well together on the docks. They looked out for each other. His own people sometimes belittled him for taking a bird as a partner, and a few members of the Clan said she had tamed him. In some ways they were right -- he got into far less trouble with a werehawk as a regular partner than he ever had with a fellow werewolf. But more than anything, they resented that he did better than most of them out in the human's world. He found regular work. Humans asked for him and Alita.

Even though he didn't stand high in their esteem, he did still belong to the Wildwolf Clan. That meant something. One needed a pack to run with, because a loner never survived for long. So he went home each night to his den and his wife, and Alita went home to her roost. He silently wished her a good night.

Edel grabbed the human and tossed it up over his shoulder, jogging down to the far end of the courtyard, hissing curses at rats and dry leaves. The Bakads were awake inside the building, having heard all the noise, but slow to come out in the face of danger. They probably heard him go up over their roof and down the other side into the street. He didn't stay there for long, taking to the first alley, then up another wall and across more roofs. A dog barked somewhere too close by. He growled in return and the creature went instantly silent and slithered away. Dogs in this city knew better than to annoy werewolves.

Edel hid three different times during the night as bands of guards swept past -- fools who never looked too closely in shadows. Or perhaps that made them wise. No matter. He heard too many of them talk about driving the lycanthropes out and burning their homes to the ground.

This human had better have answers to set that straight. And he had better survive. The leg bled badly still, and he felt ice cold beneath Edel's hold. Eldel needed to get it safely inside the den though his mate was not going to be pleased with their unusual guest.

More guards, on their regular rounds, came down the long narrow street that separated the mostly human areas from the strictly Kav quarter. No building front opened along this stretch, the blank walls on both sides hiding one group from the other. The guards stopped by the arched entrance to the den, a short, narrow corridor that emptied into a maze of paths through the dome tops of the dens. None of the guards looked stupid enough to head in there at night, especially at a time when they already believed werewolves and other lycanthropes were killing humans. They would walk their rounds, and if they happened on something outside the entrance to the dens, they'd be brave enough to act.

So Edel had to get inside. He watched until the guards moved on, slowly working their way down the road, around the curve, and back into the safety of the human world. He counted to five and then grabbed up the human and darted across the cobblestone road and into the shadows again.

Den. Home. Safe .

Only Edel knew that feeling of safety wouldn't last for long. There was no way he could drag a half dead, bleeding human through a den of werewolves and believe it would go unnoticed. He could already hear sounds behind the doors as he passed down the dirt paths that snaked through their part of the Kav quarter. Before long he heard subdued snarls behind him, raising the hair all along the back of his neck and arms. He did not slow or look back. He was nearly home, for whatever safety that might be. There was going to be hell raised over this, but he hoped they listened long enough to realize this damn heavy human could be their hope of exoneration.

He reached his home well ahead of any of the pack. They would gather in number before they came pounding at his door, and by then he hoped he would be ready to face them down.

He bowed his head as he entered the cave-like opening to his own home, and then kicked at the door that stood between him and safety of the interior. He heard the squall of two small voices, and the movement of bare feet on the stone floor. Malene stopped just the other side of the door. She'd picked up the scent by now as well.

"Open the damn door," he said, trying not to snarl the words.

"What have you got?" she answered. He heard her move, and the door bounced a little as she leaned against it. "What have you done!"

"I've saved this damned heavy human from the Zackrians, and if you don't let us in, the rest of the pack will be here before I'm ready to deal with them!"

He finally heard the bar move aside and held back the urge to shove the door, and her, out of the way. She opened it a crack and looked out, dark eyes half hidden in the shadows. The sweep of her brows was dark and high, eloquent with unspoken questions.

But when she heard the sounds of shouting throughout the Kav quarter, Malene retreated past the hearth and to the scattering of pillows and blankets, her skirt billowing in the breeze from the door. The babies nestled together there, sensing something wrong and whimpering. She went to protect the cubs; an instinct that made her bare her teeth even at Edel as he dragged the human into the single roomed home and dumped it on the floor. Then he saw it had regained consciousness, and it winced as it hit its head hard on the stone. Edel felt a wave of embarrassment and annoyance that vied with one another.

Malene stood between him and the babies. She looked down at the human and growled, her face changing, her body lengthening --

"No!" Edel said. The human, wise enough to recognize danger, had started to scramble away as best it could. Now, at his order, it froze. So, luckily, did Malene, whom he really wanted to stop. "We need this human, Malene! Calm!"

She glared at Edel from wolf-eyes, and her snout pulled back to show sharp fangs. Some lycanthropes never found the balance between understanding and madness. Malene had always tottered on a fine line of control. Edel noticed the human swallow, but he stayed very still when she turned that look to him.

"Babies," she snarled. "My babies."

"He won't hurt the babies. He's too weak to get near them." Voices grew louder outside. "Calm Malene! We have enough problems!"

"You brought it!" she growled, but her face had begun changing back.

"I did, and for a reason. Human, whatever happens now -- be calm in the face of my people. You understand?"

"Yes," he said. He pulled himself up, leaning against the hearth. His hand went to his leg where blood showed too bright -- and the scent of fresh blood wouldn't help anyone of the people keep their heads. "Rags, Malene! We need rags to stanch that wound. And that perfumed water you have. Quickly -- I'll buy you more! We don't want them going mad!"

Malene had a good head on her shoulders, and even in the throes of protective maternal instincts, she could be relied on. Edel was grateful; he wanted someone he could trust at his back. She threw him the rags from the box, and he knelt ready to grab the leg -- and saw the human bite at its lip and clinch its hands, prepared for any kind of roughness.

He reminded himself to be calm as well, and worked as gently as he could on the wounds. He didn't ask about them even yet, though bile rose at the reminder of what Zackrians did in their dark holes.

Malene liberally tossed the contents of her perfume water about the room, then poured the rest on the floor and grabbed a rag, wiping blood and scented water up at the same time. She worked quickly, whispering either curses or prayers beneath her breath.

The smell of the perfume proved almost overwhelming, and Edel's eyes watered --but he thought that if nothing else the shock of the scent should stop the pack. He could hear them coming closer, gathering in numbers before they came to his door.

Malene rushed back to the bedding, quieted the babies with cloths dipped in honey that they could suck on, and then came back with Edel's flask of brandy. She held it out to the human. "Drink. It will help. You're too pale."

He took the flask in shaking hands and sipped with a genteelness that made Edel look at the pale, young face again. No scars -- at least not older ones. The ragged clothing had been of very good make. He wanted to ask -- but not now. The pack had finally reached his door.

Edel pulled the door open before the first person could even pound. Hedin had already changed to werewolf, and Edel could see others shifting in the line behind him. He'd rather have dealt with human forms in a case like this, but he wasn't surprised. After all, he hadn't wasted the energy to turn back.

"Please be quiet. We have cubs. Don't upset them," he said, words distinct despite the inhuman shape of his mouth. Some werewolves never got that knack down.

"Damn your cubs," Hedin said, but stopped from saying more when Edel's head came up at the words. "I'm not here about the cubs. You brought a human back. A bleeding human."

"I did."

"There was trouble in the city. More killings. Some say a Mentor."

"Yes, there was a Mentor and another human. Alita and I found them."

"And brought one here? Found them -- or was it more than that? You bringing this trouble down on the den?"

Edel reached out, placing sharp claws beneath the shorter Kav's chin. The points pushed through fur and pricked skin and Hedin's eyes flashed with anger, but he held very still.

"I brought this human here because it can help clear us of the rumors. Can you understand that, Hedin?"

"He does not need to understand, whelp. But you had better make it plain to me ."

Dark shadows slid aside as a larger figure came forward, unhindered by the rest of the pack that quickly moved out of the way. Wulfric, the leader of the Wildwolf Clan stood before them. He had taken the werewolf from more than a decade ago, and despite often dealing with the human leaders, had never found a reason to go back. Only ten days ago Wulfric had torn the throats out of two young fools who thought they'd challenge him for the leadership. Wulfric had not chosen a new heir since the city guard killed Berg, his grandson, in a drunken brawl last year. Now every ambitious pup aimed at taking him down and usurping the leadership. He called them all whelps. No one measured up to Berg in his eyes, and the entire pack knew it.

But Wulfric held the rule by more than just the power of his claws. He had won the human leader's grudging respect, because even in his werewolf form, he proved that he was not an animal. The den even prospered, and the unfriendly encounters with humans had dropped to a few incidents rather than daily mishaps. For the first time in generations, they had a little peace, if not exactly acceptance.

Edel was one of the few wolves who could look Wulfric full in the face, being nearly as tall as the leader. They were of the same bloodline, but that didn't give Edel any special claim to dispensation. Wulfric, whose real name had long been forgotten, looked into his face, and then stepped past Edel into the room. He sniffed and stifled a cough, but nodded as though it was a good thing. Then he turned his attention to the human who sat very still, watching everything. Surprisingly, it was still conscious, though it didn't look to be for long, the way the eyes fluttered. Damn. Edel hadn't gotten answers from it yet, and he didn't want to face Wulfric without them.

Some of the others had pressed in behind their leader. Snarls and growls grew for a moment until Wulfric looked back at them, and the pack fell silent under his glare. Edel stayed as calm as he could, waiting for words -- any words that might seal his fate.

"Tell me how you came to have this bleeding human in your hands," he said.

Edel made quick work of the tale. "I brought it here," he said at last. "I thought we would want to have our hands on a human that might be able to clear us of these heinous crimes."

"I'm not surprised to learn the Zackrians have their hands in this," Wulfric said. He looked at the human, eyes narrowed, sniffing. "They want to turn the rest of the city against us. Hedin, take some of this rabble and spread them out to keep an eye on the entrances to the den, even the small ones. The humans may be too stupid to realize this whelp made off with a live one, but there are other creatures who wouldn't have trouble following his trail. I want to know what comes sniffing around. Go!"

"Yes sir," Hedin said, and slinked back, subservient. "As you command, so I obey."

"Teos," Wulfric said, signaling an older, much scarred Kav to his side. "Slip out into the city. See what you can sniff up."

"As you command," Teos said, and hurried away, passing Hedin who hadn't even started gathering people for the watch yet.

Wulfric leaned closer, but even as he did the human's eyes closed and he slipped into unconscious again. Edel stopped from cursing, but he did shake his head with a little angry despair.

Wulfric finally turned back to Edel. The scar on the side of Wulfric's face showed a livid, bright red where one of the whelps had gotten one lucky swipe. Edel looked at it, avoiding eye contact for as long as he could.

"Edel," Wulfric said. He finally looked fully into the dark, wolfen face. The brown eyes narrowed, but with calculation and not anger. "You will set this right, whelp."

"Yes sir," he said, and bowed formally. Wulfric gave one curt nod and turned. Others rushed to move out of the way, but their leader signaled them ahead of him. There would be no trouble tonight, praise the gods. Edel barely kept from sagging back against the wall. He held himself still until all the intruders left. His fingers trembled as he picked up the bar and put it into place, sealing the entrance.

When he turned back, Malene sank down on the pillows, her legs folding around her, ankles showing beneath the corner of her blue skirt. Her eyes were wide. Then she sniffed and frowned.

"We're never going to get that perfume scent out, you know. I don't think I like it nearly as much as I thought I did."

He laughed with the sound of a man who had escaped death a few too many times today, and staggered over to the bed. He sank down beside her, shifting back to human, taking comfort in her arms around him. Safe. Home.

But when he lifted his head, that damned human still lay there on the floor. Malene gave a little shrug. "I'll get it a blanket and pillow. I hope it doesn't die on us tonight. Wulfric won't be happy if we don't get answers."

He nodded unhappy agreement and settled back on the bedding to play with the cubs while she dealt with the human. He watched his sons for a few moments, wondering how he could have thought to bring danger here to them. But it was done. They lived in a world filled with danger, he reminded himself. What he did tonight might end a far more harmful ploy to kill them all.

He helped Malene change the cubs, resettle them into their nest, and then, exhausted, he laid there beside Malene... but he didn't sleep for a long time.

Edel awoke in the near dark with only a tallow candle above the hearth giving any illumination. The candle had burnt down shorter than the flame it shot up. By that he knew it was almost dawn.

The room stank of human blood and scented water. He almost gagged, and shoved his head down in amid the pillows so fast that he almost awoke Malene. He wanted to do nothing more than go back to sleep.

Unfortunately, he heard a soft, scrabbling noise outside the door. Giving up, Edel moved off the pillows, careful not to awaken the cubs in their little nest by the wall. The human, he noted, had awakened as well, and looked toward the door, having heard the noise.

At least it was still alive, though not by much from the paleness of its face. Edel grabbed his pants and dragged them on in haste, and was ready when someone knocked, a quick sharp rap that unfortunately wakened the babies.

He pulled up the bar and yanked open the door before Hedin could do more than retreat half a step.

"What?" Edel asked, far from civilly with the cubs wailing behind him.

" He wants to see you," Hedin said. "Right away."

"I'll be there in a moment."

Hedin started to say something, but changed his mind and backed away in haste. Edel closed the door, but didn't bother to put the bar back in place.

"Here," Malene said, handing him the red shirt she had taken from the hook. He threw it on and ran fingers through his hair. She put a hand on his arm, only glancing once at the human, who had the courtesy to look away. "I'll put the bar in place. Hurry back."

"I will," he said, burying the sense of dread he had felt at being called to Wulfric at this ungodly hour. He hoped that if it had been bad, Wulfric would have come here and confronted him.

He slipped out of his den and into the darkness. The morning already felt unbearably muggy, and dampness covered the packed dirt of the path. A faint sea-tainted breeze blew across his face, not nearly enough to cool him. The darkness felt heavy and oppressive, as though a storm that he could not yet see stood ready to break over them.

Wulfric lived in the center of the den, on a raised mound that gave him a view of all their homes as well as some distance beyond the Kav Quarter. A light brightened his window, an inviting beacon to anyone looking for trouble.

Edel didn't allow himself to slow as he neared the solitary building. They would hear him, and would mark any weakness. The door opened before he could come close enough to knock, and one of Wulfric's younger mates let him in. He gave her a perfunctory nod, and moved past.

Wulfric and Teos sat by the hearth, both with cups of mulled cider in their hands. Above the fire hung Wolf's Claw , an ancient sword of power that glowed slightly even now. It had not been taken from the wall in more than twenty years, but it was a constant reminder of the power the leader of the den held.

Edel looked away from the long, silver blade and belatedly bowed to the two men. Edel felt a moment of shock, and embarrassment, realizing that neither of the men had slept, though he had. Wulfric looked him over with a polite enough nod, but then he sniffed and snarled --

"I know. I reek of the stuff. I'm going for a long swim in the ocean today."

"Good plan," Wulfric said. He lifted his chin toward one of the women, and she quickly brought Edel a chair while another brought cider. "It's been a long night."

"Yes sir. I'm sorry." He sat and held the cup, almost afraid to sip for fear of looking stupid.

Wulfric lapped at the liquid in the cup, then lowered it. "What have you learned from the human?"

"Nothing yet, I fear -- though it was finally conscious when I left to come here. I hope that it will have better answers when I return."

He nodded again. "Good. Teos did an excellent job, as usual, of reconnoitering the city and gathering information to fill in the blanks. It seems that three days ago a Mentor and two humans disappeared in the city. The humans were delivering a very important message. And this message drew the attention of the Zackrians, who were more than happy to work even with other humans to get their hands on the people who carried it."

"What was it?" Edel dared ask.

Both Teos and Wulfric shrugged.

"We rather hope your human will be able to tell us more. But the question is whether he will do it willingly or not."

"Ah." Edel suppressed a little shiver, remembering the bodies of the others and knowing that his human had been tortured as well. He tried to resolve his own feelings of guilt by reminding himself that he had promised the human nothing... but it didn't help much. "Do you have any idea who it was that actually gave them up to the Zackrians?"

"No," Teos said. "I heard the tale in different places, but no one had a definite answer, and not even a few silver patrons could buy that information. It could have been someone in the guard, or a member of the nobility with whom they met when they first came to town. I can't say."

"He thought it was a member of the nobility, but I'm not certain why. I'll ask."

Wulfric lapped at the cup again, then frowned. "Someone is stirring up trouble against the Kav, and most pointedly against the werewolves. They want a war between us and the humans, and I don't know if this trouble with your human is part of it, or just played into their actions." He lapped again, and finally sat the cider aside. "Drink."

Edel did, grateful for the hospitality. He drank down half a cup and then forced himself to savor the taste while he thought out his next actions.

"I dare not be late for work on the dock today," he said, looking at Wulfric. "It would draw attention. Let them think that a werewolf is involved, but I see no reason to give them a place to start looking."

"True enough." Wulfric stood and stretched. "Let us go see --"

Sounds outside, quick light steps, a sharp rap on the door. One of the women drew it open. A child stood the other side.

"Sirs. Trouble at the gate. A band of guards have come in, looking for Edel's place. A dozen or more of them."

Edel stood, putting the cup down on his chair. He should have realized that they would be coming in the light of day. It wasn't the first time they had waited for dawn before they came into the den. "Sir --"

"We'll go and see these guards," Wulfric said, standing. Teos did as well, a glint in his eyes that promised trouble to anyone who asked for it. "I'm sure they'll be glad to have me there to answer questions, right?"

Edel certainly didn't argue with that idea. Under any other circumstances, he would have been happy to have the company and go in search of soldiers. But the fact that they were looking for his home -- and what they would find there -- brought a surge of protective anger that might have gotten a change from him yet again, if he hadn't fought so hard for control.

They hurried back down the paths that snaked past the hundred or so dens, the dirt colored roofs just barely lit by the rising sun. Somewhere off over the ocean lightning flashed fitfully, and Edel wondered if that meant they would have a rain today. The city could use a good cleansing.

The soldiers reached his home before Edel and his group could, which meant someone had shown them the way. He saw Hedin sliding off into the shadows and marked the man for later discussion -- though from the look Wulfric gave Hedin, there might not be enough fur left to bother with.

The door to his home stood open, which frightened him at first, until he saw the humans standing back from an enraged Malene who was fully changed and howling.

"Not go near my children! Go away! Stay back!"

"Calm," a soldier said. "We're just looking for a missing human --"

"No humans come near my children!" she yelled again. She backed up, leaving the door open wide. Edel could see no sign of their guest, or the bedding he had used. The babies cried, nearly as loud as their mother's howling.

"If you would just let us in --"

One took a step toward the door. She bared her teeth and swiped at him with claws extended. If she had been serious, he'd have lost half his face, and deserved it. Only a fool made a move like that in the face of an enraged werewolf.

Teos put a hand on Edel's arm. His nose wrinkled in a show of humor. "Shall we go rescue the poor soldiers from your vicious wife, Edel?"

Other werewolves started arriving, and even if the humans got inside by means of force, they'd never walk back out. Better, under these circumstances, if they believed they had no reason to go in.

"Careful, humans," Wulfric said as he pushed forward. "Has no one told you about a werewolf and her children?"

"We heard..." one said, and then stopped. He must have realized to whom he was talking. His tongue ran over his lips, and he looked back at the men. "We were told that a missing human was here."

"You were obviously told wrong, weren't you? She would never let a human near her cubs."

"We need to see," he said. His fingers were white on the handle of his gun. It wouldn't take much for him to draw it.

"Malene, can a soldier step into the room and look?" Edel said, softly. It was a test. If she howled, he would know that the human would be too easily found if the guards came in.

"But not go near the cubs," she growled, and showed her teeth again. "No humans near my cubs!"

"I won't go near the young ones," the soldier promised.

Wulfric went in with Malene, carefully taking her arm and leading her back toward the bedding and the babies. The soldier followed, stepping inside, looking around, and then hurried out. He looked at the others and shook his head. "Not there. And I doubt he ever was, not from the way that bitch acted with a human nearby."

Edel stepped forward, and blocked his way of escape. "She is my wife. You have invaded our home. You will speak politely of her, at least on the steps to our own house."

This one hated confrontation. Edel could see the anger in its eyes, and in the way the hand tightened on the weapon again. But he nodded finally and muttered, almost indistinctly, that he was sorry. Edel let him go, and watched as the soldiers turned back toward the gate. He hoped they got lost on the way out. He hoped that they annoyed someone else into taking a few swipes at them.

"Ought to have just drowned the little bastards," another soldier said, but he was lost in the group of men as they retreated. "Don't need any more damned werewolves in the city. Look what they're doing to us."

Teos went into the little den with Edel. Wulfric and Malene still stood by the bed, both of them looking calmer now. "I think I shall go watch Hedin for a time," Teos said.

Wulfric nodded. "Get some sleep first. That dog is a laggard. You won't have to worry about him doing much since he stood guard duty all night."

Teos showed a sharp-toothed grin. He gave a bow to Malene. "Well done."

"I feared if I didn't open the door, it would be worse," she said and sat on the pillows again. Teos left, closing the door behind him. Edel went to his wife and sat beside her as she began changing back, always more comfortable as a human form. "Gods, I hate humans," she said, but looked at her hands and shook her head.

Something made a sound in the bed. She grinned, and reached over, pulling the nest with the young ones closer to her, and revealing the human beneath it covered with blankets.

"There you are," Wulfric said. "Are you prepared to talk?"

"Yes sir," he said. He sat up slowly, wincing at any movement of his leg. He looked pale, but steadier. Edel didn't think he was going to die at any moment -- well, at least not unless he did something really stupid with the leader of the Wildwolf Clan before him. "You are Wulfric, I assume?"

"Yes, I am. I've managed to ascertain a little of your story from rumors in the city." Wulfric dropped down on his heals and looked into the human's face. "You are one of the sentinels in training that they sent as messengers. But which one?"

"Bevyn, sir. The other was my brother, Arden."

"Brother," Edel said and felt sick again. "The one I... He was your brother in blood?"

"Yes. The one you killed with a knife through the heart, and for which I am still grateful," Bevyn said. He bowed his head a moment, and his arms shook from the work of holding himself upright. Edel came closer and pushed pillows back behind him while Malene carried the babies over to the hearth and quieted them again. They were good cubs. "My brother and I were sent to the wilderness west of SpirosBlaak to meet with someone... important. That person gave us a message to deliver to Rector Arphias at the Basilica of Cinnoldis. My superiors feared a full sentinel would draw too much attention. But as soon as we arrived in Askalan we were lured into an alley by the cries of a young woman under attack, and there taken captive. The Mentor rushed in and tried to free us. I think he was following us, for whatever reason. The wererats dragged us down into the subterranean hell."

He was almost breathless from the telling, and his white face showed bits of color at the cheeks now. Anger, Edel thought.

"You were captured by followers of the Splintered God, specifically of Zackria," Wulfric said.

"Y-yes," he answered. Nightmares rose in his eyes, but he took a deeper breath and continued. "There is a red-eyed female wererat who leads them. She knows dark magic, sir, and she is both blood-thirsty and sadistic. She wanted to know from whom the message came. Her magical powers keep the prisoners alive through her tortures -- but that magic also gave us the ability to escape, in the end. It didn't matter the wounds -- we would not die or collapse as long as her magic kept us alive. Only after we left that dark warren and climbed up into the alley did her powers finally fail us -- either we left the range of her spell, or she realized we had escaped and ended the magic that kept us safe. And that's where Edel and his friend found us."

Malene held both babies to her, anger fierce in her face, as though even just the tale could harm them. Edel didn't like the tale. He didn't like to think what lurked in the catacombs.

"How did you escape? How did you get free of her? No one else has," Wulfric said.

"The Mentor, sir," he said and looked up again from his hands. "At first, the wererat turned most of her attention to him. I think because she'd never had such a thing in her hands before. But after... a day, I think -- maybe longer -- some humans came. I could hear them speaking -- echoes and words and I only heard a few, but I could hear both local and western accents. And I saw shadows. I only know for certain that they asked after the scroll, but she said she didn't have it. She lied. I remember when she took it from me. And when she came back from that conversation, she was very angry, hissing things about human lords, and that they did not rule her. That's when she turned her attention on Arden and me. Arden would not tell her who sent the message, and as long as he would not, it gave me strength of will to hold out as well."

He bowed his head again. Edel didn't want to know what thoughts came to him in that silence.

"Your escape?" Wulfric asked again, showing remarkable patience toward this human.

"The Mentor," he said. His head came up more slowly this time. "I think she misjudged its strength. When she left us that night, it pulled free of the bounds and released Arden and me. We escaped out through a long, narrow hall, lit with torches. The walls were painted with the signs of The Horde, mostly the shadow of Grijj and the flayed shape of Zackria. I saw human skulls and severed hands on spikes. The Mentor led us, and I kept them both to their feet until reached the alley, but there the magic that kept us alive failed, and none of us could go any farther."

Wulfric nodded. "Do you know what was in the scroll?" he asked.

"Yes." Bevyn looked up. "I am not at liberty to tell you. I'm sorry, but it is my oath. Nor can I tell you who sent it."

Wulfric's eyes narrowed. "Can you say if it is something we would want to see delivered into the proper hands?"

"Yes," he said without pause. "And even more so, you would not want it in the wrong hands. I can tell you that it concerns alliances that should never have been made."

"Then, for the moment, we are in league. Reluctant allies."

"There is no reluctance on my part," Bevyn said. "I owe my life to this man and his wife. I am grateful."

That appeared to satisfy Wulfric who, unfortunately, also appeared to be leaving the human in their care. Wulfric stood and crossed to the door, stopping there to look back at the three of them. "I will do my best to make certain there are no more incidents like the one this morning, but I suggest that you stay quiet, human. No few of my people would like to have a human in their hands right now, considering the trouble we've had. Do not presume on their good manners."

"I will be very careful," he said. "And very quiet, until such time as you send me away or I am able to leave on my own."

Wulfric nodded again, accepting those terms. "I have people already checking into this matter, and if we find anything of importance, I will pass the news on to you, probably via Teos. I do not want to be seen coming here too often."

"Yes sir," Edel and Bevyn chorused.

That seemed to amuse Wulfric. He laughed as he opened the door. Then he looked at Malene and gave her a very polite nod. "Good work. Good cubs, too."

And then he slipped out, pulling the door closed. Edel crossed and threw the bar back into place, and then leaned back against it. "Damn mess," he said.

"And all for my sake," Bevyn said. "I am grateful that you have kept me safe."

"Not just for your sake. They have been killing humans, and blaming it on lycanthropes, especially the werewolves. You are a chance to set that right."

"And I gladly will, if I have the chance."

Oddly enough, even though Bevyn was a human, Edel believed it.

Believed him . He could no longer think of Bevyn as an animal.

The storm still held off, a distant rumble on the sea, although the breeze at least had picked up. Edel opened the small vents near the roof, letting the fresh air blow through the room. He and Malene had changed the bandages on Bevyn's leg. The wounds looked clean enough still, and bled a little, and he smelled no stench of infection, at least not yet. The human might get lucky and not lose that leg.

Bevyn already looked stronger, too. He might not be with them for long. Malene set about making a broth while Edel got him far enough outside to use the communal latrine. They won a few glares, one from a boy he barely recognized, about seven years old and already sporting two scars on his thin face. It was Nye, a child born without Kav blood, and who would soon either find himself in a fatal battle with one of his gifted brethren, or else run out of the den to survive as a beggar on the streets of Askalan. Most born without the gift were quickly sent into the city for adoption, but this one had been held too long, an only child. Looking at Nye, he saw his own son's future if he did not act wisely. It shocked him, suddenly.

Bevyn leaned heavily on his arm as they went back, taking ragged breaths with each step. By the time Edel lowered Bevyn into the chair by the hearth, the human was bathed in sweat again, and Edel was just as glad for the cloying fragrance that still lingered in the room.

"Thank you," Bevyn said as Malene handed him a cup. He sniffed at it and even offered a smile. "Ah, this smells of home. Wild sage in the fields were my brother and I used to run wild..."

But he stopped and sipped the cup to cover his emotions. Edel wanted to snap at him. What the hell did humans know about running wild, anyway? How dare he bring his longing and his loss into this place, where they were trapped forever away from the fields and the wild places. And they were trapped precisely because his people hunted them and herded them into their little enclaves, away from the wilds.

Edel remembered running in the fields, when he was young, hunting with his father -- back before it became too dangerous for Kav to go that far away from the den. He wanted to run, and unlike Bevyn, he would never be given the chance --

Bevyn's hand rested on his injured leg. That stopped Edel before he said anything. The gods' knew this man would never run again anywhere, even if the leg healed and wasn't cut off instead. How could he be angry with this man for longing for something they both would be denied?

"I remember," Edel said, his voice unexpectedly soft. "I remember that it was sometimes nice enough just to lie down in the sun in those fields and sleep among the flowers."

Bevyn looked up, startled -- and then he nodded. His hand moved away form the wounded leg and he leaned back in the chair, sipping the broth. Malene changed the cubs and set them in a nest by the hearth. They gurgled and laughed, and Bevyn smiled at the sound.

"May I ask their names?"

"Cubs aren't named before the third full moon after their birth," Malene said. "For now they are just the cubs."

"Ah. I didn't know," he said, and seemed fascinated by this little bit of information. Odd human.

"I'm going leave for work. Wulfric will have this place carefully watched," Edel said. Bevyn still looked worried, and Edel couldn't blame him, considering there had been no friendly faces among the pack last night. "I have to go to the docks, just like normal, or else we'll draw attention right back to this place."

"Ah. Yes. Very wise."

"A bit more than the average animal cunning," Edel said, and won a surprised, worried look from Bevyn. Edel gave him a smile. "We do joke, you know."

"I wouldn't dare."

"Not surprised. Humans generally aren't known for their sense of humor."

Bevyn started to speak, and stopped himself. Edel grinned again as he lifted the bar to leave. "Wise, human. Rest. I'll be return near sunset."

"We'll be fine," Malene said. She crossed to seal the door again. "Perhaps Bevyn will tell me more about this place where he grew up. I've never been from the city."

Edel started to snarl some answer, but really it would do no harm. He nodded and left, pausing only long enough to hear the bar go back into place. Then he walked quickly out of the den, sparing only a few snarls for the unfriendly faces he passed.

Edel could feel the edge of anxiety in the city as he passed from the den and out into the street. Soldiers lingered close by the gate. That worried Edel, but Wulfric would know full well what was going on. Better if he went on about his business.

He lingered at the corner of The Green Glass tavern just long enough to hear the grumbled words about Kav, werewolves, and the dead found in the alley. The undercurrent of anger and mistrust had grown over night.

People fell silent when he passed, although he heard the sounds behind him again, the whisper of anger. Someone said they should burn the Kav Quarter to the ground. He did not look back, though he did snarl, and the people walking toward him hurried aside.

The last thing he expected was to be accosted by a dammed Bakad haggler before he reached work. Cidna Deffdek, as ugly a little goblin as they came, worked a tiny booth at the last curve of the road before it opened onto the dock. Thunder rolled across the sky, and he didn't even hear the little Bakad rushing over to him. When she grabbed his arm, he spun around and she very nearly got claws right through her hand. He couldn't imagine what kind of deal she thought he'd be interested in today, but that wouldn't stop her if she thought she could drag a coin or two from him.

"I have something for you," she squealed, her eyes bulging. "I have something for Edel."

"I don't want to buy anything today," he said and shook her off.

"Oh, this you'll want," she said, her gray face breaking into a wide, ugly smile. The damned little creature grabbed him again. "This you'll want very much. It's information, my fine Kav. Just heard information about your friend, the bird."

He went cold and very still. She started to back away at that look. " Tell me what you know about Alita."

"How much it worth to you, huh? I don't give anything away for free," she said, her beady eyes narrowing in her pale face. Her large ears moved up and down as she talked and her eyes grew brighter. "You pay for it, I'll give you the news."

He was in no mood for these kinds of games. Cidna must have heard the start of the growl when he reached toward her. She tried to dance back out of reach, but he grabbed her by the shoulder and lifted her off the ground, shaking her when she began to squeal in protest.

"Stop that squealing." People started to gather, though none of them came too close, and no one looked willing to step in for the little haggler. "Tell me what you know about Alita."

"No. No money, no information! No!"

He shook her again, and had the real urge to change right then; to let himself go to the wolf soul that howled to get out and show these damned creatures what they were messing with.

Cidna saw it in his eyes. She finally went still.

"Alita is dead," she said. "They killed her down by the sea to the north of the port. The guards just sent to her roost to come and get her."

Dead. Alita dead ?

He tossed Cidna back toward her booth and she hit with a dull thump, but pulled herself up and glared at him. Edel reached into the pouch in his tunic and pulled out a silver patron and tossed it to her. She caught it long before it hit the ground and grinned again, any complaints instantly forgotten.

Edel pushed through the people and headed northward, his legs picking up speed as he ran down to the sandy shore. The sky flashed and growled above him, but the day was still too hot, too humid. Everything swirled in blazing colors as his head pounded with the thunder.

He could see the guards, and a single figure stretched out in the sand, half human and half hawk. Feathers lay strewn across the shore, but the blood, at least, had soaked into the golden sands. He wanted to deny that the mutilated body was his friend, but he knew before he reached her and saw her face, unmarked and still, staring out at the sea.

The guards had started to close in on him, but they stopped when he knelt and picked up a feather, holding it in his hand.

"You're the... guy who was her partner, right?" one of them said.

Edel looked up at him and nodded. He wanted to be angry. He wanted to howl, but he didn't.

"Wererats," the guard said and scowled. Obviously he thought less of them than of other Kav. "They were seen running. We sent to her place, and her people should be coming for her soon as they get the word."

Edel nodded and stayed kneeling, carefully gathering up all the feathers within his reach. Beautiful feathers; she had always preened as a bird, knowing she was far more beautiful in that form. The wererats had caught her in mid change, most likely while trying to fly away from their attack. Her shoulders and head were still human.

He brushed back her hair. "I should have sent word to you," he said. "I should have reminded you that there was trouble and to take no chances."

"What kind of trouble," the guard said.

He looked up at the man, started to snarl an answer and stopped himself. "Kav trouble, obviously."

He nodded, frowning. "There have been dead humans --"

"Dead of many types," Edel said.

The guard nodded.

Edel looked back at Alita. They'd been a good team. Damn, damn -- but it hadn't been his fault, he reminded himself. Alita had known there was danger when she left the alley. But it was like her to not consider anything but her day-to-day life.

He held the feathers in his hand, and then pulled her braided belt from the sand and began working the feathers carefully into the strands. One, two ... the guards said nothing. In the end he had woven seven feathers into the braid, and carefully tied the end before he hung it over his neck. He only then realized that the guards watched him.

"She was my friend," he said.

Nods, before they all looked upward. Lightning flashed, and silhouetted a line of werehawks, dark shadows against the darker clouds. They circled and came in, wide wings gliding down onto the sand. One had been carrying a blanket of green, bright and beautiful. They carefully laid it over the body and rolled Alita into the folds, hawk talons and beaks working in perfect unison, so that Edel knew he witnessed a ritual and held back. He said nothing at all, even though in some childish recess of his mind, he did not want them to take her away.

They covered over her face, and heads bowed, making a soft kee-kee-kee sound for the first time. And he knew that he would never see that face again. Damn, damn them all.

Silence, except for the wind blowing harder over the sea, and thunder shaking the world.

The loud kee-ahr yell of another hawk filled the sky. He looked, up, wondering if this was another part of the ritual, but then realized that the others looked startled as well. They had started to pick up the edge of the blanket in their beaks, but one stopped and dropped it. The werehawk tilted its head and stared at him with unblinking eyes.

"Go home," it whispered. The words, spoken in the conglomerate lycanthrope language, caught him by surprise. He was more used to the human tongue. "Go home. Den. Trouble, Alita's friend. Wererats."

They swept up the blanket and the body, lifting into the air as Edel turned, running back down the shore. He thought the soldiers shouted behind him, but he never slowed. Den trouble.

The storm broke, torrents of rain washing away the world. He ran, shape-shifting as he moved, but knew that he could never reach the den in time...

Kav scrambled out of his way as he came, panting, through the twisting paths of the den. He could smell blood, but his frenzied mind refused to sort it out. As he drew closer to his home, he began to see wererat bodies scattered along the path, as well as a couple werewolves. The closer he came to his home, the more bodies he saw.

He reached the last turn and found more Kav gathered around the battered and broken door to his home. A baby wailed, and he rushed through the mass of people, heading straight to the shattered door, and the gods help anyone who got in the way.

Malene paced with a child in her arms. He saw a bandage around her arm and tears on her face. But before he could even reach for her, Wulfric stepped between them. He almost growled and swiped even at this one, but sanity caught him just in the nick of time.

"The little bastards came up over the walls and across the roofs," Wulfric growled. The fire of wrath brightened his eyes, and it hardly did anything to calm Edel right now. "Came in and took them, though we tried our best to fight them off."

"Them?" he said. Bevyn was gone but also --

"The cub," Malene said. She looked up, tears streaming down her cheeks. "They took the other cub, because Bevyn was holding him and playing with the child. And they threatened to kill the baby if Bevyn didn't come peacefully. He begged them to leave the cub, but they wouldn't."

He felt sick. "I shouldn't have left you."

"We could not know," Malene said. She hugged the cub closer. "There was no safe thing you could have done."

"By the Gods, Edel, this will not go unanswered," Wulfric said. The anger in his voice silenced everyone both in the room and those standing outside. A moment later growls of agreement started up in the crowd, where chaos had been a moment before. Teos pushed his way in, dripping water and snarling as well. He had taken a bad cut across his chest, and it ran pink with rainwater onto the floor. The place no longer stank of flowers, but the scent of blood and wererats was much worse. "What do you have?"

"A half dozen of us worried them all the way toward the port. Even a few humans joined in, but we lost them in the fish market," Teos said and panted. He looked at Edel. "Sorry."

"It's all right," Edel said. He had gotten his breath back. "I know where they're going."

He started past Teos, but both he and Wulfric caught hold of his arm and held him.

"You cannot go after them alone," Wulfric said. "Give us time to gather."

"This isn't your battle," Edel said. "I brought the damned human here."

"And that did not give the wererats leave to invade our den, whelp. No, this is not just your battle now. Teos, send the call for battle, if you would. And get the sword."

Gods. Edel hadn't expected Wulfric to take this battle so seriously. But Teos bowed his head once, and changed from man to werewolf as he stepped out into the rain. In a moment he lifted his head and howled into the storm.

That sound sent chills up Edel's spine. He had heard the call only once before, in his youth, when a band of newly cursed werewolves had tried to invade their area. He had never thought to hear it called for his own sake.

Lightning flashed and thunder rolled in answer to the call, and all through the den wolves howled in answer. Edel could not imagine what the humans outside felt at hearing that sound. It was a song of doom, and a promise of vengeance.

"They killed Alita," he said suddenly.

"The werehawk that you worked with," Wulfric said. Anger showed in his face even for that death, which surprised Edel. "For what reason?"

"We were seen," Edel said. He made himself lean against the wall. "A wererat was there when I took Bevyn."

Wulfric nodded. "They have gone beyond all bonds today. They are gathering. Malene, we will do our best to bring back your cub."

Others gathered outside in the rain, first a dozen, then twenty, and then so many that he could not guess the number. Surely they had to know that they were going to go fight the wererats for his cub and for the human whom he had brought here -- and brought trouble as well.

But there had been years of waiting for a battle, while Wulfric's leadership prepared them. They were not animals, and Wulfric's intelligent leadership had honed them for real trouble. They were ready. But even so, Edel had never thought that it would be his trouble that finally brought them to arms.

Edel finally looked away from that madness and crossed to embrace his wife and child, silent for that moment. No promises. He could not say anything that she did not already know.

"The human took a knife through the shoulder, trying to save the child," she said softly. "I didn't think humans could be that honorable for our sake. He did not even ask which child he held, Kav or human, though we had discussed the problem with the cubs only moments before. He had been worried, being a human among us, so I told him about one of the cubs being human. When the wererats attacked, it didn't matter to him."

Edel would not ask which one had been taken, even though if he had tried he could have told just then, with the cub held close between them. But by the Gods, if it did not matter to Bevyn, it certainly wouldn't to him.

"It is time," Wulfric said, his voice a low.

He pulled away and nodded, crossing to the man. Teos returned, Wolf's Claw in his hands, the bright sword covered in rainbows of water drops. He bowed his head and held the sword out. Wulfric took it, hefting the sword for a moment -- and then he held it out to Edel.

"Your cub and your guest, whelp," he said. "You use the sword."

He took it without pause, feeling the magical warmth tingling up through his arm. He followed Wulfric out into the street, pausing only to close the door behind them.

Malene howled.

The rain still fell with a pounding force, and the wind wailed past the den's buildings. The storm nearly blinded him, though he had no trouble following Wulfric and Teos out through the paths and the archway, into the world of humans. The road was deserted now, at least. They would not have to fight the humans before they reached the wererats, he hoped.

Then he heard the sound of wings and looked up -- but it wasn't her of course. It wasn't even a werehawk, just a real hawk, probably unable to navigate in this storm. It landed on a window ledge beside him, and when he paused by it, the bird didn't fly away again. She turned her head, eyeing him with a strange calm that went straight to his heart. The others streamed past him, out past the den and into the world of humans.

"Alita, fly home now," he said, though he wasn't sure why. The hawk bowed her head and spread her wings, taking to the sky as though the storm could not actually touch her.

He thought it was a good sign. And now when he looked, he could see his people through rain and shadows, shape-shifting from human to wolf, ready for him to lead them to the place of battle. He took tighter hold of the sword and rushed ahead toward the lair of the wererats. The few humans daring the storm fled before them, this pack of werewolves that went howling into the storm.

Edel led them to the alley where he had found Bevyn and his companions, and tore through the pile of debris where he had seen wererat eyes watching them. It didn't take him long to find the opening at the base of the building that descended into a pit of darkness. Even with the rainwater rushing downward, the hole still reeked of rats and blood. He and his companions ripped the brick and stone away to make the opening wide enough that they could slip in. Edel knew the scent of the freshest blood too well. Bevyn was here.

He dropped through the hole, ignoring the ladder and looked around with shock. He had not expected the wide, tall corridors that spread out before him. Stone and brick of red, brown, gray and black covered the walls and formed arches and pillars everywhere he looked. A few yards away torches fluttered, shoulder high. High enough for the wererats, he supposed. He sniffed, taking a step forward as the others slid down behind him, clawed feet clicking on the hard stone, the sound echoing through the corridors like a thousand maddened crickets on a summer night.

He led them forward, one turn and another -- a single guard charged them, squealing in anger, his long snout drawn back to show dagger teeth, and his red eyes glowing in the dull light of the torches. Edel howled and threw himself at the wererat, sword raised, and killing it with one swing. He reached inside his shirt and pulled a feather from the necklace, dropping it on the body. The feather floated softly down, landing gently on the outreached hand. One for Alita -- he did not forget her, even now. There would be many more dead wererats sacrificed to her memory before he finished. He could already hear them coming already.

And if his child had died? The catacombs would run in blood. He thought he might even feel that way if they had already killed Bevyn, but that might just be a hint of blood-lust singing through his veins. He held back the call of wolf in his soul. He needed logic to find where they had taken the cub and Bevyn, not just the ability to kill anything that got in his way.

Leading the others into the torch lit, cave-like passages put him first in the next few encounters with wererats -- the outlying guards who came in ones or twos. The sword took them easily, and for the first six he killed, he dropped a feather in Alita's memory. He kept the last feather, putting it close to his heart. He would not forget her, and he had sacrificed the enemy in her name. But now he must go to true battle. The wererat guards had put out the call, a long squealing scream that echoed down the corridors, and he could hear the rush of far more wererats than he could handle, even with Wolf's Claw .

The others had not been following him docilely, even if he had gotten the first kills. They had found other wererats in the corridors they passed as Edel lead them on, following the trail of human blood that he could still sniff out. Many of the clan had already let the power of the wolf take them, conscious of nothing except for a driving blood lust to kill every wererat enemy that came within range of their swords and teeth. Growls and howls filled the darkness with echoing sounds, as wererats now came in a pack that blocked the wide corridor ahead. The Wildwolf clan swept past Edel at last, Wulfric leading the charge with a howl, and in that moment chaos spread in howls, screams, and flowing blood. Claws struck skin and fur on both sides, and he saw Wulfric tear the throat out of one wererat with a single bite before he threw the body aside and moved on. Edel, still holding to the thought of finding his cub, killed and advanced on the enemy, one bloody step after another, pushing forward while others guarded his back. He could no longer scent Bevyn in the mix of wererat and werewolf blood, but that they tried to keep him from advancing gave Edel the hope that he was still on the right trail...

At the next wide intersection, he found the dark corridor that Bevyn had described, flanked by rotting human skulls on crude spears. Still more wererats rushed down the intersecting corridors, answering the wild frantic squeals of their embattled brethren. Edel could also see shadows moving along the darker corridor that surely led to a hell. He knew that was where his child and Bevyn would be.

He took a step in that direction, and then stopped. The wererat witch that Bevyn had told them about -- a small creature, even by wererat standards -- came down the corridor to his left, magic crackling around her like lightning culled from the storm. She sent that power against the enemy, and even some of her own who were not quick enough to get out of the way. And then she stopped, guarding that skull-flanked corridor, her hands raised and magic flying as she squealed her magic and curses.

That did not dissuade Edel's people from throwing themselves against her. Edel raised the sword and started forward -- and stopped again as a single wererat emerged from the darker tunnel behind her. The crazed, red-eyed beast looked more like a warthog. Edel saw such madness in its eyes that he took a step back as it brought up a strange, multi-curved dagger.

It attacked with the ferocity of a mad dog. They parried, and struck at each other. The warthog caught him in the side -- a shallow cut and he had taken worse already, though the power of bloodlust had kept him from doing more than noting them. However, the cut gave the creature confidence to be more daring. The dagger swept up at Edel's face, and he pulled back barely in time. The blade, tainted with Bevyn's blood, had a fainter, but still fresh second scent -- the blood of Edel's own child.

It maddened him. He let the power of the wolf have him then. Edel might not have had a choice, feeling the rage blind him. Edel howled and grabbed the animal, his claws digging through the leather jerkin and into the gray hide. The wild-eyed, mad creature didn't even squeal. Blood-red eyes glared, and the mouth opened to show a dozen dagger-sharp teeth. Even as Edel lifted it into the air, the wererat wrapped both misshaped hands around the hilt of the dagger and tried to drive it down into his enemy's head. Edel's sword reached longer, and he swung it around, Wolf's Claw cleaved an arm from the bulbous body. Blood splattered everywhere, a more acrid scent then the other dead wererats. Edel growled, tossing the dead creature aside and looking for the next enemy.

He stepped closer to the corridor, and could hear the faint cry of his cub. She still stood in the way, but when he brought up Wolf's Claw , she hissed and backed up, plainly afraid of the magic it held. He nearly threw himself against her, despite the half dozen dead that lay around her, but Wulfric caught his arm and held him back at that last moment. Teos attacked, but not with a weapon. Edel hadn't expected the old wolf to know magic, and it surprised her as well. Teos sent her sprawling, and in that moment Wulfric propelled Edel forward, and they leapt over her and ran.

He looked back once to see Teos locked, power against power, with the witch. He couldn't guess which one would win.

He and Wulfric rushed down the long, torch-lit hall filled with images that he feared would haunt his dreams forever. Armless hands and body-less heads stood on pikes, while blood red paintings on black walls suggested even more gruesome acts. He saw the emblems of entire the Splintered Horde, but Grijj of the wererats and the dark werewolf God Zackria showed more prominently that the others. They reached a door, heavy wood, and partly open. He looked back to make certain nothing rushed at them, and saw Teos backing the witch away from the hall, while wererats squealed and werewolves howled. Nothing had gotten past to them, yet.

Edel pushed the door open and stepped inside what he thought must be the hidden temple of the splintered gods. It stank of human blood and bile. A dead body sagged, chained to the wall, and at first he feared it was Bevyn. But then he saw his human secured to an altar with heavy chains on his arms and legs. His shoulder bled where he had been wounded while trying to save the child, and his leg bled as well. There were other, new wounds.

The baby cried. Edel found the cub in a box by the altar and held him close, trying to avoid the splatters of blood that covered him. Except for a little cut down one arm, he appeared miraculously unhurt.

Bevyn's head turned as he took a gasping breath. Blood covered his chest, and cuts ran red down both arms. But in a moment the stupor disappeared and there Edel saw hope in his eyes.

"You came," he said, his voice soft and trembling. "Thank the gods you can save him. Take the child and go."

Teos arrived at a run, sliding into the room and grimacing at what he saw there "She ran, sir. And it sounds like more of the damned things are massing farther in the tunnel. I think they have some Kavraen wolves with them. We can't hold out much longer."

"Go. Take the baby," Bevyn said again. He looked up at Edel, pale eyes holding steady again. "Kill me first. Don't leave me for her. She wants to know from whom the message came -- who the traitor is on their side. I will not be the one to tell her. Sever my head. Even her magic could not keep me alive then."

"Bevyn," Edel said, faltering for the first time. Wulfric had tried the chains and shook his head.

"You remember how you found my brother," Bevyn said softly. Nightmares haunted his eyes again. "Do me the honor of killing me before it goes that far."

Edel handed the baby to Teos who took the child and held him close, turning the cub's head away from the sight as Edel lifted the blade. Bevyn looked up at it for a moment, whispered a prayer to his own gods, and closed his eyes.

Edel swept the sword down, one quick true blow -- and the sword rang like a bell as it cut through the chain securing Bevyn's arms. Wolfric gave a bark of delight, and Bevyn opened his eyes in shock that overcame all pain as his arms swung free.

Edel pulled back and swung again, severing the links of the chain that held his friend's legs. The sword, he saw with dismay, showed two small nicks now. He turned to Wolfric with shock at the sight, but the leader of the Wildwolves took the blade and ran his finger along the wounded edge, nodding.

"It was in a good cause, and will be a legend, I think," he said. "Now get your human and let us retreat from this place of hell."

He grabbed Bevyn up under the arms and swung him to his feet. He had strength enough to stay there and moved quickly with Edel's help. Bevyn even had the sense to grab a long-bladed knife from the stand by the doorway. The blade smelled of the human's own blood, and Edel almost balked at it -- but then he thought maybe that just made it a better weapon for his friend. He had sacrificed to it already.

They hurried back out of the hall --quickly past those horrors -- into the melee of battle. Wolves howled in greeting and relish as they saw both baby and human rescued. Wulfric, the sword now in his experienced hand, laid about on all sides, cutting down the wererats until he had cleared a path to their own people. The wolves surged in around them as they retreated toward the place where they had entered this labyrinth.

They stopped at another corridor, the wounded catching up and catching their breath. Sounds grew behind them -- yells of creatures, the clash of swords and knives. Edel saw a new wave of trouble crashing their way through the corridors, a dark mass of werewolves, wererats, and things that he could not even name.

"Edel," Bevyn said, breathlessly. "Leave --"

"Don't even say it," Edel replied.

"The child," Bevyn said, panic in his pale face.

"We'll get you both out, human," Wulfric said, pausing beside them.

Edel looked ahead, trying to see through darker corridors. He could see fewer enemies ahead of them, but those behind began gaining ground. Then he saw something move ahead, bringing shouts all along the line. Wulfric cursed and hurried forward, Teos, Edel and Bevyn following in his wake. At least it got him closer to the exit, Edel thought.

And then saw humans streaming down into the corridors, weapons ready. Edel cursed, a sound that mixed voice, growl and frustration. Bevyn lifted his head and tried to pull free of Edel, apparently to move to the front of the group and face the humans. He wouldn't let Bevyn go, and the man looked at him, fearful --

"Hold!" Wulfric bellowed.

Amazingly, the humans pulled back, except for one, who looked frantically past Wulfric's group to the battle still closing in behind them.

"We were warned by the werehawks," the human guard said. "And they showed us the way to the opening. Is Edel here?"

"Here," Edel said, coming forward, Bevyn sagging in his hold.

"You got him out? We thought we'd have to fight our way there. And the child? Then let us guard while you get your people out to safety."

"Teos, if you and some of the others would stay?" Wulfric said, and took the cub into his free hand, holding him close. "Coordinate with the humans, as best you can. It would be good if between the two of you, you could... make this count for more than a rescue. I should like very much not having to worry about the Zackrians again."

Teos and the human captain both smiled in ways that made them look akin. Edel almost asked if he could stay as well to fight this battle -- but he had fought enough already. Time to get back to Malene and bring a little joy into the world, rather than more death.

Humans and werewolves formed up side-by-side, guarding as Wulfric led the wounded back out. Edel wondered why the leader of the Wildwolf Clan didn't remain for the battle, but then he realized that Wulfric stood as the only true guard between them and any other enemy. Only the wounded that truly could not fight were leaving, many with them barely stumbling along as they tried to keep up. Edel grabbed hold of a young one's arm and propelled him ahead when he started to go down, but then a human came and helped as well -- and soon they reached the opening and headed up into the daylight.

The storm had passed, leaving behind a bright, hot day. Even the breeze from the sea felt too warm, though perhaps that was only Edel's reaction to having just escaped those dark, cold corridors. He stopped after he scrambled up the ladder, gasping at the fresh air. Then he reached back and helped pull Bevyn up out of the darkness as well.

The alley wasn't empty. Two large werehawks stood guard by the opening, and he could see others on buildings, and some circling. Guards, he realized, who would warn them if any other enemy approached.

He had not considered how Bevyn would react when they reached the alley. He had been moving well enough until now, but as the witch's magic failed him again, he collapsed, nearly knocking Edel down. Edel lifted him, hoping they could get the human to safety soon.

Outside the alley they found even more local soldiers, but this time standing guard over their own leader. Captain Faxon commanded the troops stationed by the port. Edel had only seen the man at a distance before this, and though he had shown no outward dislike of the Kav, there had been no close relationships. This was not a time of trust.

"Captain," Wulfric said with a polite enough nod of his head. "Thank you for sending the troops."

"This is the messenger whom you had rescued once already?" Faxon said. "We can take him into our care now."

Edel had just let Bevyn stand again, seeing that his human looked embarrassed at being carried. He nearly swept Bevyn back up, but the human put a hand on Edel's arm and shook his head.

"I'll go with them," he said.

It angered Edel. "After all we've done to get you out, you mistrust us now?"

"I trust you far more than I trust them," he said, and quite clearly enough that Faxon reddened. "In fact, the people of the Wildwolf Clan are the only ones in this entire city whom I trust right now."

"Then why?" Edel said, unwilling to let go even when Bevyn tried to pull away.

"Because I will not endanger you or your family again. Take your cub home to Malene, Edel. Go with my blessing, and be safe from my madness."

Bevyn pulled free and staggered into the hands of a guard who barely caught him in time. Edel felt a growl growing in his throat, and only stifled it when Wulfric pushed the cub into his hands. His child whimpered still, and he held him close in that moment, letting go of the wolf form and taking the human shape, comforting the... the human child.

Captain Faxon ordered his men to take Bevyn away and Edel watched with a whisper of despair. They still didn't know who had turned Bevyn and his brother over to the Zackrians, and seeing him go to the hands of someone who might do him harm --

How had that human come to mean so much to him? Damn!

"Captain!" Wulfric called out, and Faxon turned back, curious and a little bothered. "We have willingly given Bevyn into your care, but you would be wise to make certain we don't regret it. Keep him safe, sir, or you shall be answering to my people and me."

Edel saw the way Bevyn looked back, wide-eyed with shock. Faxon stood, stunned for a moment, and then, unexpectedly, grinned. Edel bowed his head to Bevyn as they got him up on a horse with another guard. He hoped he saw the human again soon.

Teos and several more of the clan stayed for several days in the catacombs, hunting with the human guards, and destroying the Splintered Horde's secret world below Askalan. Nevertheless, when Teos returned to the den he admitted that they would have to be vigilant in hunting out their lairs for a long time. The wererat witch had escaped, and probably taken a good many of her people along with her. Teos had, however, stopped her from taking most of her treasure as well. That he duly divided, as spoils of war, between the humans and their Kav allies, with a full quarter set aside for the families of those the Zackrians had killed. The level of cooperation stunned everyone.

At Wulfric's suggestion, Edel had spent all his time in the den. The humans still sometimes had trouble believing there were differences between Kavbroed werewolves, who were born to their form, and the cursed Kavraen, like those who had followed Zackria. Edel was glad enough to have a few days with Malene and the cubs. He and his wife had much to discuss.

On the eighth day he had been lounging late in bed when someone pounded on the door. He cursed, drew on his pants and crossed, almost opening the door he thought twice.

"Who is it?" he demanded.

"Wulfric." The muffled reply sounded breathless. "Your human is on his way!"

Edel had started pulling up the bar before he heard the second line. He glanced back only to make certain Malene had pulled on a proper dress, and then opened the door, bowing his head to the leader of the clan. He had not seen Wulfric since they left the tunnels.

"Sir. Bevyn is coming?"

"Should be here any moment," Wulfric said. Teos had come with the leader of the Wildwolf Clan as well. Bright red scars and a burn mark marred the side of his face, but he still looked pleased. "You need not worry. He's not coming for sanctuary."

"Ah, good," Edel said. He had, indeed, started worrying about weapons, blood, and his cubs again.

Wulfric growled as the other of the clan started to gather. "Go! You've seen humans before!"

They scattered. Edel could see Bevyn come around the curve of the path with a guide, walking slowly with the aide of a cane, but looking far better than Edel had seen him before this.

"Welcome back to the Wildwolf Den," Wulfric said as he neared.

"Thank you, sir," Bevyn replied and managed a credible bow, even with the cane. "I'm not certain that you have heard all the news. They deciphered incriminating documents found in the catacombs, and have arrested two minor lords who were working with the Zackrians to bring down the local government and take over the city. One was a local man and another from the west. I am convinced it was they that I heard when I was a prisoner. They've been arrested already."

"That, at least, is done then," Edel said and nodded.

"I came here to tell all of you that I am grateful for everything you did, and that I am going home to my village to further recover."

"That seems wise," Edel said. "To sit in those green fields again."

Bevyn nodded, but Edel could see the loss in his eyes for the things he could not have back: the brother who was dead, the leg that was maimed.

"I am sorry for the trouble I brought here," Bevyn said. "If there is anything that I can ever do to repay you --"

"There is one thing," Malene said, coming outside. She had the cubs in her arms, and handed one to Edel. He took the child and nodded, holding him close. A choice made, a good decision to something that had tried to work out for days now.

Malene stepped down to Bevyn and put the child into his surprised hold. "Take this cub, who is human in blood, back to your village. Find him a good home, where he can run wild in the woods and fields. There is no future for him here, Bevyn."

"Lady Malene," he said softly. His breath caught for a moment before he could speak again. He held the bundled child close. "I shall make certain of his future, my friends. I am honored to be of such help."

"Thank you," Edel said. He handed the other cub back to his wife, and let her go back into their home, saying nothing.

In a moment she returned with a case to carry the baby and everything he would need for the journey. They had known the child would leave soon. She and Edel had discussed what to do for days now, and this answer came as an unexpected blessing. They could trust Bevyn, and would not have to give the child over to strangers, or hope that abandoning him at a temple would guarantee a good future for him.

"The full moon is tomorrow night, Bevyn," she said softly. "Give him a good name."

He nodded, took her hand for a moment, and let her go. She kissed the baby and turned away, hiding her tears behind her hand as she went back into the house.

Bevyn carefully put the child into the carrier, and looked back at Edel, nodding as he slowly stood again. It was done, and for the good of the child. Edel would regret the loss, but not the choice.

"I have something else for you," Wulfric said. He pulled a small, rolled parchment from his tunic and held it out.

Bevyn took it, looked at it with his eyes narrowed for a moment -- and then swayed. Wulfric caught him, gently, by the shoulder.

"Gods. You got it back from her?" he whispered.

"We did. Teos harried her out of the labyrinth before she could collect any of her spoils, and then made certain that he collected this -- and other scrolls -- before anyone else found them. I do not trust this with any other, Bevyn. I could only hope that you would come back so that you could finish your work as a messenger. Iif you had not, I would have found a way to get the message to Rector Arphias, although werewolves are not often welcome at the Basilica of Cinnoldis "

"I will deliver it immediately."

Wulfric nodded and finally let go of the human. "I trust that you will see it settled well. And when the time comes, I ask only that you do your best to gut the rest of those who tried to implicate us and start a war between the humans and the Kav."

Bevyn's smiled brightly and he bowed very well this time. "As you command, so I obey."

Wulfric laughed. "Gods, boy -- I like you! You are named a friend of the Wildwolf Clan, and can claim of us anything you need." He pulled a ring from his finger and pushed it into the surprised human's hand. "That will win you den rights with us and any of our allies. Teos, go with him and keep guard over the cub while he finishes his work. Then help this boy find proper transport for he and the cub to his village."

Teos nodded and still looked very pleased. But Edel stepped closer and held out his hand, human gesture. "Thank you."

"Life for life," Bevyn said, and shook hands, holding on for a moment. "I will take good care of him."

"Good journey. Be certain to come by when you're in Askalan."

He nodded. Teos had taken up the cub and the bag -- it looked odd to see the old battle-scared warrior gently soothe the child as he walked with the slower human back out of the den. No doubt he would explain about the ring and den rights. Edel watched until they disappeared between buildings. Perhaps they could have kept the cub for a few years... but it wouldn't have made parting any easier.

Wulfric unexpectedly put a hand on Edel's shoulder. "It's not been easy, Edel," he said. His fingers tightened. "But you did right. Good work, Grandson."