The Warriors of Winter

Part 6 - Questions Answered, Mostly

I awoke in a bag. I was on a carriage and the man holding the reins was singing a song. He smelt like the hooded man from the prison but I couldn't see. Then we stopped. I smelt all sorts of animals; goat, horse and, I think, bat. They must be our brothers and sisters (or someone has a pet bat).

Two firm hands lifted me out of the bag and placed me on the snowy floor. I looked around and saw the brothers and sisters.

"Fresh meat, I see," That voice? I heard it before but it can't be him. "Welcome, Ayra. This is now your new home. Everyone here calls me Alpha but you, my chicka, can call me Ibranovski, Sven Ibranovski."

Sven. The person who killed Phocas and wants to kill my dad, the person who betrayed my best friend, who now hates me, and now he wants to lead me in his little pack. I suddenly jump in wolf form and attack him. I try to scratch his face but he defends it with his arm. He screams in pain when he then morphs into his snow leopard form an hisses at me. We circle each other, nod at each other and turn human. Everyone stares and 'the hooded man' takes pulls me back.

"You have strength, for a girl," I growl at him for that, "but you could come in useful. But for now, I have some explaining to do." He says something is Miau and the hooded man takes me to a teepee tent. I sit cross-legged on the floor, waiting for Sven to tell me everything. He'd better have a very good explanation.

"Ok chicka, I'm going to explain everything with no questions being asked until the end alright," I nod reluctantly.

"Good. So, I know what happened to Casor," replied Sven.

"What!?"

"Ah ah ah, no interruptions. Casor was burned in the fire four years ago, he didn't have any choice but to run to my territory. I was training some young Miaus, when I saw him wonder into our territory. Phocas said that no Islett wolf could come into our territory and live to tell the tale, so I had to 'kill' him otherwise the young ones would tell Phocas everything. God, I hate children. But instead of killing him, I cut him with a knife covered in Camas juice, the red stuff you drank to go to sleep, and brought him here. He kept out of sight but knew all the gossip in each pack, then he soon learnt that Rhonwen and 3 others like her from the brothers and sisters were wanting to combine forces to 'take over the world'. I pretended that I wanted to be part of this plan, and killed Phocas. Not out of cold blood, but because he was a bad, greedy and selfish ruler. When I was offered a chance to become Alpha, I handed this position to a worthy ruler, Nadya Ibranovski, my cousin. As for the meetings with Rhonwen and co. I made sure that someone like you, a person with a strong heart and loyalty beyond the stars, was watching. I would then go with the brothers-and-sisters version of Rhonwen and get that person who saw us, like you, into prison. After that, I would get someone like big-guy-in-the-cloak over here to get you. Questions?"

All this information gave me a headache, yet it made sense. Somehow I knew Casor wasn't dead but I wanted him now more than ever.

"Where's Casor?"

"Ah, chicka, he is everywhere and nowhere at the same time," he was really annoying me, how could Fylin ever love him?

"Do you love Fylin?"

"That is an intense question. I love him yet I can't. He is a different species for heavens sake! I want to but I can't. I want what's best for him and by telling him about this organisation puts him in danger. I may not trust him, chicka, but don't think for one second I don't love him."

"Can we save my dad?" He gave me an pitiful look

"No, he is a dead man. He chose his decision. I asked him if he wanted to join us, but he said that he wouldn't trust a Miau, he wouldn't leave his pack when I said that his pack would suffer if he didn't. He took that the wrong way and thought that we were going to attack so...." He pulled down his shirt so that I could see his back. There were three long claw marks going all the way down. Ouch.

"What is this organisation?"

"This organisation is called WOW. It helps people like you from not dying. There are only five of us, including you, that are part of WOW. You are special. You are a white wolf when your father is a black one. Explain how that happened."

"White rabbit theory?"

"No. You are a Warrior of Winter. You aren't half wolf and half human but you are all wolf and all human.You don't feel human when you are human but you don't feel wolf when you are a wolf either. No one can control their wolf in wolf form, but you can. You have all the senses of a wolf and a human at the same time. There are Warriors Of Winter in the centaur, satyr and vampire packs. Outside you saw them, Kalin the Vampire who turns into a White Bat, Omaker the Satyr with white hairy legs, Thoques the Centaur with a white coat and Sven the Miau with a white leopard. We are the most powerful creatures of our kind and we must unite. If we don't, Rhonwen and co will kill everyone."

"What will they do?" I was asking a lot of question but I needed answers.

"Casor tells me that all the evil Rhonwens (I'll call them that from now on) are going to a battle field where they will all betray each other and fight to the death. Many people will die but this will all stop when the Rhonwens are killed. The only people who can do this is are the Warriors of Winter. Us.

I had no choice but to believe him, I was a Warrior of Winter and I now know what I must do.

I need and will kill Rhonwen.