Rogue Wolf

Chapter Six - Ultimatum

I wanted to lash out and claw at those wolves, but I knew I had to behave. I had to be a good little wolf with murderous intentions until Ceraron came. I didn't know how he could help, but I knew he would come. So I just had to wait. So I let the four wolves take me right into the heart of Caedes.

Thankfully I was no longer being dragged by my scruff, as that would have been rather embarrassing. Instead, the white wolf had gotten tired and told me to walk on my own and that I'd better not make a run for it.

And so I walked into the center of the gathered wolves as the sun began to rise, spilling its lazy morning light across the sky. I could feel theirs eyes boring into me, but I refused to duck my head. Instead, I strolled straight towards the fallen tree that Ragged was perched on, head and tail held high.

"You wanted to see me?" I said, my tone icy.

Most of the surrounding wolves snarled and growled disapprovingly at the confrontational edge to my voice, but I ignored them. They didn't matter. All that mattered right now was finding out what Ragged wanted with me, and what he was prepared to do to get it. And I was going to keep my cool, no matter what happened. I was not going to show the slightest hint of weakness. I could not afford to be weak.There is no place for the weak in this world. If you're not strong, you're as good as dead. At least that's what I had always believed.

Ragged tilted his head, his expression unreadable. I tensed, feeling my fur begin to bristle. The entire Pack hushed, none of them even daring to breathe. They were waiting to see how their Alpha would react to such open hostility. The forest seemed to have lost its voice, as if the world had frozen over. The seconds dragged on at a snail's pace, and I could hear my heart pounding. I had no idea what was about to happen. Anything could go wrong at any second.

Ragged laughed.

Well, that was unexpected.

The red-brown wolf's shoulders and sides shook as he burst out laughing. Every wolf - including myself - was staring at him as if he had gone nuts. Not that he had any shred of sanity to begin with. I'm pretty sure Ragged had lost it a long time ago.

"Ha! You certainly have changed, haven't you Sleek?" The Alpha straightened himself and flashed a toothy grin. I wrinkled my nose at a scrap from a recent meal that had lodged itself between his teeth. Hygiene certainly wasn't a priority in Caedes, that's for sure.

"Um...Excuse me?" I stared at his completely out of the blue smile, raising an eyebrow. "What happened to the whole 'I'm the Alpha of a crazy 'Yayhappymurderfuntime' Pack'? You know. Because you're supposed to be an evil murderer."

Snarls echoed around me as the surrounded Caedes wolves bristled at my words, even though what I said was true. Did they really think they weren't killers? If so, that Pack was even more insane than I first thought.

"Silence!" Ragged howled, and every wolf immediately shut their meat-reeking mouths, though nearly all of them were still growling softly or muttering curses and threats under their breath.

The Alpha gave a quick nod to a pale brown and white wolf that was sitting at the base of the fallen tree. The she-wolf dipped her head and stood, speaking quietly to Ragged before bounding off somewhere. I only caught a few words here and there, but I couldn't quite make out what the she-wolf had said.

Ragged turned his attention back to me, and I stiffened, waiting to see what would happen. After his fit of laughter, I had even less of an idea of what he was about to say or do. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to keep up a calm and relaxed appearance, even though my thoughts were racing inside my head.