Published: 15 Oct 2018

Chapter 17

From Chapter 16:

Colt reached out his hand, but Gregory never moved forward to give the boy the sword. Colt looked up, meeting Gregory’s eyes, as a deep, soft, rumbling growl emerged from Colt’s throat. “Understand…” Gregory began, “this sword will test you. I’m not sure how, as I never went through it. But the texts I’ve read said that the sword will test the Alpha… to make sure he’s worth it.” Colt’s eyes raised and met Gregory’s. “Are you ready?”

Colt looked back down at the sword, instead of answering, he simply stepped forward, and put his hand around the hilt. Then everything went dark.

Blackness, That’s all that Colt could see, feel, hear, touch, or smell. A small part of his mind wondered how blackness could have a smell, but in this place it did.

Slowly, he started to see a light from far off. It wasn’t much at first, but it was there, and growing. Then, he started to hear things. At first he couldn’t even tell what he was hearing, but that too started to become clearer.

As the light got brighter, the sound became louder. Before too long, he could tell that it was night out, not much more than that. And he could tell the sounds were actually people talking, although he could not understand what was being said.

Colt was barely able to shake his head, and open his eyes, but when he did, he saw he was laying next to a fire. It was, indeed, night out, but the fire cast a harsh yellowish light. The voices slowly became understandable. Somehow though, Colt knew they weren’t talking in a language he knew, yet he was able to understand it.

“What is this?!” He heard one gruff voice speak loudly. “Now they send us children!”

“And such a small child!” Another one said in disgust.

“Have we really fallen so far?” A third asked as Colt shook his head one last time.

“I think perhaps we have made the wrong choice.” Another lamented.

“Once we send this one back to the bitch that spawned him…” The first one started, but Colt had heard enough. As that one began to speak, he finally was able to clear his eyes enough to see five old wolves, in their War Form, sitting there, looking at him, while speaking to themselves. When he heard the first one call his mother a bitch, Rage filled Colt. Faster than he could even think, he had snap shifted, came to his feet, and rushed the old wolf.

While the old one may have been caught off guard, he showed that he was a true warrior. Even as the two went falling back, the old man grabbed onto Colt, and flipped him in mid air, throwing him back towards the trees.

Colt came back to his feet searching for his target. One of the others, the oldest, by the way he looked, held up his hands and stepped in front of Colt. “Calm my young Alpha. You need to be calm.”

Colt felt himself start to shift back to his human form, as some outside force seemed to be forcing his Beast to comply. With utter defiance, Colt roared out, and forced himself back into his War Form before he launched himself at the offending Wolf once again, completely missing the shocked look on the older wolf’s face.

This time, however, the elder Werewolf was much more prepared, meeting Colt head on, and slamming him into the ground. However, Colt’s rage would not be denied. He came up and at the elder quicker than he would have thought possible.

Colt’s claws ripped across the Elder’s chest, causing the older wolf to howl in pain and rage. The fight would have continued if it weren’t for two war formed wolves slamming into Colt, and taking him to the ground, and the one who had tried to force Colt to shift, grabbing the one he’d been fighting.

Colt roared in rage as he struggled to get out from under the other two, but he was being held tight. “Calm young one.” One of the wolves said. “You must be calm if you are to learn from us.”

“Why would I want to learn anything from you!” Colt growled out.

“Because the sword demands it.” The first one to try and calm him said as he moved to stand in front of Colt.

“The sword?” Colt asked softly, then he remembered. He had been at Hank’s house, when Gregory handed him a sword… a sword that called to him.

“Yes pup, The Sword.” The elder said as he squatted down in front of Colt. “I sense great power in you, but very little understanding. That is what we are here for. To help teach you, so that you can lead your pack.” The Elder waved the two on Colt away, and they slowly, carefully, removed themselves from on top of Colt.

The Elder also stepped back, then shifted into his human form. Colt was amazed to see an older man with long red and grey hair, a long red beard, and furs over his shoulder, standing there. He looking like he stepped out of some of the old Viking movies he’d seen. Colt slowly stood, then he too shifted down to his human form, not really caring that he was naked.

Shaking his head, Colt sighed. “I don’t really have a pack yet.”

“You don’t?” The elder asked in amazement. “Why not?”

Colt looked a bit embarrassed, but pulled himself up straight and spoke clearly. “Because there are so few of us. I only had my first shift a short time ago. Besides Christina, the only one who is sort of a member of the pack is a Bear.”

“A bear?” The elder asked in shock. “As in a bear shifter?”

“Yes…”

The old man sighed, then moved over and sat by the fire. As he was sitting, one of the others approached Colt with a deer skin cloak, and held it out for the boy. When Colt nodded, the older woman moved around and placed it over Colt’s shoulders. “Thank you.” Colt said. Then, when she motioned for him to, Colt moved and sat down across from the old man.

“First off, I am called Raven Feather.” The old man said. “I am the Spirit Talker and historian of the Pack of Golden Fall. It is an honor to meet one as young, and as strong as you are.”

“Thanks.” Colt said nervously, noticing that there were now four others sitting around the fire, all looking at him.

“If I may be so bold…” The one who Colt fought with said softly. Colt wanted to growl, but decided it may be better to see what these older wolves could teach him, so he simply nodded. “You fight like a demon.” The man said with a grin. “However, if there are so few of you, who taught you how to fight in such a short time?”

Colt hesitated for a moment, but then decided he needed to be honest, since this was the best chance he had to get answers to what he, Christina, and the others were. “It was Runi who taught me the most so far, and Christina.”

“Runi?” The one who asked the question asked in confusion. However, the spirit talker, Raven Feather, cocked his head to the side.

“Runi? As in Runihora, ‘The Destroyer’? A young, but very powerful Vampire?” When Colt nodded the old man sighed and smiled. “He was a good friend to the Wolf folk. If there are no elders to teach you, then I can think of no one better. Just be warned. The night walkers are a strange breed, mostly only concerned with their own power and wealth.”

“So I’ve found out.” Colt said thinking about the ‘fun’ they’ve had so far when it came to the vampires.

“Please though. Start at the beginning. That way we know how to best help you.”

For the rest of the night, and into the early morning, Colt told the group about everything that had happened to him since the night he left his friends house, and what happened when he got home.

When he was done, the largest wolf, the one he fought sighed deeply. He looked around to the others, seeming to be in conversation with them. Colt decided to be patient and wait. While it might have annoyed him, he knew by now that these wolves were here to help him.

After several minutes of the silent conversation, the largest one sighed deeply again before he stood. He moved himself to stand in front of Colt, and signaled for him to stand again. The man absolutely towered over Colt’s small form. He smiled down at the boy and nodded. “My name is Moon Blade. I am the Ri of this group, and was once the Ard-Ri. I know neither of those terms mean anything to you, but they will shortly. What you need to know now is this. The sun is close to rising, and you need to go back. When the sun reaches its highest point, you will come back. Being a Ri yourself, you will have the ability to bring those that are with you into the Spirit Realm. You are not to speak of this Realm to any, other than shifters. The nightwalkers shall never know of it, and you must keep it that way.”

Colt looked up and nodded, but them grew concerned. “How will I bring everyone back here?”

“That my young Ri, is what I am about to teach you.” Raven Feather said as he too stood. “Come, I have much to teach you, and little time to do it in.”

After hearing Gregory call for help, everyone came running. Of course, Runi was able to get there first. “What happened!?”

Seeing Constance show up right behind Runi, as well as several others, Gregory shook his head. “I don’t know! He touched the sword, then seemed to pass out.”

“What happened?” Christina called out, huffing after her run from the lake. Behind her, and struggling to keep up were the two pups.

“He is having a dream vision!” Takoda said as the small Sioux pushed through the growing crowd. “I was deep in meditation when I felt it happen. Something pulled him into the vision.”

“My guess would be the sword.” Constance said softly, hugging Clay to her side. “I have heard that the sword is much more than it appears.”

“Will he be okay?” Clay asked in a small voice.

“Of course he will.” Christina said as she too, pushed through the crowd, then knelt next to Clay. “You’re brother’s a lot stronger than people give him credit for. Whatever’s going on, I’m sure he’ll be back in time to make sure you get to bed before the sun comes up.”

Runi moved over, and put his hands up in a gesture to mean everything was fine. “He has been summoned by the sword. He is having a vision. He will be fine.”

Christina looked from Runi down to where Colt was laying on the ground, his hands still clutching the hilt of the sword, and back up. “How do you know?” She demanded

Runi dropped his arms, but smiled. “You will have to trust me on this one child. I have been around a long time, and have seen many things. He is having a vision.”

She was looking decidedly undecided, but before she could say anything, Colt stirred, and moaned. Christina wanted to go to him, but Clay beat everyone to it, slamming his small body into Colt’s. Only those with exceptional hearing could understand what the boy was sobbing into his brother’s shoulder.

Runi smiled, then turned, making a shooing motion for the rest to leave. Most obeyed, but Christina, Gregory, Constance, Mato, Takoda, and the two pups remained.

Once Clay let go of his older Brother, they both stood. Seeing the questioning looks on the others he spoke. “I’m not sure how I know this, but you were right, it was a vision.” Seeing that they wanted more, he smiled. “Honestly, I need time to digest it, before I can even figure out what it meant. I just know it was nothing bad.” Runi searched his eyes for a moment, than simply nodded, turned and started back towards the house.

Constance stepped up to Clay, and placed her arm over the boy’s shoulder. “Come on young one. The sun will be rising shortly. You need to get cleaned up before the morning sleep takes you.”

Clay looked at Colt with pleading eyes, making the older boy smile. “GO ahead. I’ll be right behind you. I’d really like to chat with you before you fall asleep.”

“Okay.” Clay said softly, then allowed Constance to guide him towards the house.

Colt looked around, making sure that none of the vampires were nearby. Once satisfied that they were alone, he looked at all of them. “Get some sleep this morning. At noon we’ll meet back here, all of us. There are some things we need to go over. Also, make sure everyone understands, the vampires do not need to know about it.” Getting a nod from everyone, he started towards the house. He’d only gone a few steps before he stopped and turned to Christina. “Oh yeah. Can you ask your father to join us. Not sure, but I think I would like him there.” She got a weird look on her face, but then nodded.

Christina and her Father walked up to where Colt was standing with the rest of the wolves, Mato and Takoda. “Okay, we’re here. So are you going to tell us what happened?”

Colt couldn’t help but chuckle, which got him a frown from Christina. “What happened is this.” He hefted the sword that he was holding. “This thing has the spirits of ancient werewolves in it.”

“What?” Several of them said at once, while Brad and Dustin, the two pups both exclaimed “COOOOL!”

“Not that I don’t believe you, but how is that possible?” Gregory asked as he looked at the sword. “I’ve handled the sword several times, and never noticed anything like that.”

“It’s because I am Ri.” Colt said simply. When he got a look of confusion he smiled. “The term true Alpha is not what the wolves actually called it. They called those born to be Alpha’s, Ri. With the Leader of the Ri, The Ard Ri.”

“Wait!” Dustin said quickly. “I know those words. Not from the werewolf texts, but from History class. It’s an ancient Gaelic Term. Ri means King, where Ard Ri means High King.”

Colt shrugged. “I guess. I mean it fits, but they never told me that. What they did say was that because of what’s going on, they’re going to teach us, all of us. But we have to go to them.”

“Go to them?” Christina asked. “Where are they?”

Colt and Takoda spoke at the same time. “The Spirit Realm.” Colt then looked over at Takoda with a shocked look. The older teen just smiled and shrugged. “Hey… It’s what I do.” Which caused many of the others to laugh as well.

“So… we’re going to the Spirit Realm?” Lemar asked in his deep rumbling voice.

“Yes.” Colt said simply, then turned to look at Daniel. “Which is why I asked Christina to ask you here. I’m not sure if we physically go there, or if it’ll be like when I was talking to them before. You know, I was here, but I wasn’t.”

“You want me to watch over everything just in case?” Daniel said with a nod. “Wise.”

Colt couldn’t help but beam, even as he blushed slightly.

“Okay, so how do we do this?” Chris asked with a bit of excitement.

“Well… sit down and get comfortable. They taught me how to do it, but they said it would be easier my first time if everyone was touching.” He watched as everyone sat down in a loose circle, but frowned when he saw Takoda sitting next to Mato. “I’m not sure if it will work for you Takoda.” He said softly.

The smaller boy just shrugged. “If it does, it does. If not, then I shall help Daniel.”

Colt shrugged and nodded before he settled himself down next to Christina and Gregory. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and started to concentrate.

“Ahhhh… I see you made it.” several of the group jumped slightly and opened their eyes when they heard the voice. A few of them even realised that they were understanding a language that they shouldn’t be able to.

They all slowly came to their feet and turned to see five older wolves standing before them. Three men and two women, all old, and all wearing ancient clothing including fur cloaks.

Takoda was the first to speak, which caused some shock since none of them thought he would be able to come along. He pushed his small frame through the crowd and came to a knee in front of one of the women. In the language of the Sioux he spoke softly. “Spirit Mother. Thank you for the guidance.”

“You are most welcome my child.” She replied with a soft, kind voice.

He rose and turned to the rest, his eyes falling on the large form of his mate. “Mato, She is the one I spoke about, the one in my vision quests… the one that led me to you.”

Mato gave a grunt of surprise, but then also moved over, and took a knee in front of her. “You have my eternal gratitude. Without Takoda’s help, I would have been lost after I changed. Through him you have helped not only make my life easier by helping me figure out who and what I am, but also allowed me to find he who completes me. Thank you.”

Many of the wolves were shocked as they had never heard the huge teen say so much at once. “You are most welcome.” She said as she reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up into her eyes. “Though you are not one of the wolf folk, you are still a shifter. It was an honor to assist you. It is now I who must thank you for the assistance you are giving my kind.”

“Mother?” Takoda asked when she was done speaking to Mato. When she looked up and into the teens eyes, he continued. “How is it that I can understand you? I know the language is not one that I know… but still, I can understand it.”

She grinned, then motioned to one of the others. “That is a question best answered by our own Spirit Talker, Raven Feather. He is the one you called ‘Grandfather Thunder‘ and who led you to our children.”

All eyes shifted to the old man that she had motioned to. He smiled and took a step forward, towards the group. “That is indeed a fine question. The reason is, you are in the realm of the spirits. The language we are speaking is that of the wolves. You are speaking in the language of the Sioux, even if you do not realize it, while the rest are speaking in the language called English. In the Spirit Realm, it matters not what language you speak, you will be understood by those around you.”

“Oh this is soo cool!” Brad said a little louder than he intended while looking around. The rest, taking his hint, looked around themselves, and started to notice where they were.

“Yes.” Raven Feather said with a chuckle, “it does look a lot like where you just were. The realm of the spirits is closely linked to the realm of the living. There will be certain differences, and we will explain those to you, but for now, know that the two realms do look a lot a like. That will be a great benefit for you in the future.”

“How?” Christina asked as she brought her eyes back to Raven Feather.

“Ahhh… it is fitting that it be you who asked that.” Raven Feather said with a smile. “Imagine the advantage you will have in battle when you can come here, move to where you wish to be, and re-appear, all in the blink of an eye.”

All of their eyes went wide. “How… how do we learn to do this?” Christina asked.

“It is something that only those linked to a Ri can do.”

“What do you mean?” Christina asked slowly.

“Well, you’re a Ri yourself, but you are also the mate of the new Ard Ri, so…” Raven Feather started, but was cut off.

“Mate?” Christina asked way too loudly as she and Colt both blushed heavily. “What do you mean Mate?”

There were many fake coughs, and out right laughs at the reaction of both teens. The glares that they were throwing at everyone only made them laugh harder. Finally Raven Feather caught his breath and smiled at her. “Well I was not sure if you two were mated yet, but I can see by your reaction that you are. However, that is not actually what I was referring to. You are a Ri. Colt said you are more familiar with the term True Alpha, but the proper term is Ri. The fact that you are a Ri is easy to see for someone as old as I. You are not as strong as Colt is, so that is why he is the Ard Ri.

“Now keep in mind, as one of the Wolf Folk, your instincts are much stronger than those of a normal human. One of those instincts is to mate. You may not feel the calling for it yet, as you are still young, but you will. And when you do, you will seek out someone who is strong enough to be the father to your pups.”

“Wait!” Christina paled. “Pups? You mean I’ll have… what… a litter?”

“I think it would be best if I let either Moon Dancer, or Shadow Knife answer that.” Raven Feather said indicating the two female wolves, who were trying mightily to hold their laughter in. “But, just to ease your mind. It depends on which form you are in when the pups are conceived. They will be born in whichever form you were in during the mating. The number will be what is normal for that form.” The relief on Christina’s face was evident, which caused several of the others to laugh again.

“Now as i was saying, as a female wolf, you will seek out one who you feel is strong enough to be the father of your…. Child. As you are a Ri yourself, the only choice, from what I have been told, would be Colt.” Again they both blushed, but not as deeply. “Know this though, wolves mate for life. Once you two officially mate, which I can sense has not happened yet. As long as you live, Colt can not even become aroused for another. The same is also true for you.”

Both Colt and Christina’s blush deepened to scarlet as Raven Feather said this. The rest of them laughed again, this time even louder.

“Now, I think we have embarrassed the young Ri enough for the time.” Raven Feather looked around at the assembled group. “I understand that you have created two packs? If you would, please separate into your packs.”

Christina, Takoda, and Mato moved to stand with Colt, while most of the others moved to stand near Gregory. Dustin and Brad hesitated a moment, then started to move towards Gregory. “Nope.” Christina called out. “You two are with us.” The two teens looked at each other then to Colt.

Colt looked from the two to Christina, then back. Finally he shrugged. “You heard the lady, who am I to argue.”

Only a few heard Moon Dancer comment softly, “Wise.”

They’d been split into their various packs for several hours, learning what the others could teach them. What they learned would take a long time for them to fully grasp, but they knew they had the basics. They had learned how to communicate with various spirits, some of which would be helping them when they needed it. Colt’s pack knew that Gregory’s pack was being taught how to speak with the spirits that would help them seek out and find wolves before they changed, and hopefully before the vampires did. Just because Runi had ordered the practice of hunting young wolves stopped, they all thought it would better to be safe, than to be sorry.

Raven Feather also taught them a ‘simple’ ritual. While it was simple to him, it was difficult for most of Colt’s pack to grasp. As it was, so far, only Takoda, Brad and Dustin had figured out how to do it. The ritual, while simple, would be something invaluable to them. It was called the Rite of Dedication. With this ritual, they would be able to Dedicate certain types of clothing to them, so that when they shifted, the clothes would not be destroyed, and, when they shifted back to human form, they would still be dressed. Of course, part of the issue would be, they would have to find clothing that was made completely of natural fibers, since anything synthetic could not be Dedicated.

Finally Moon Blade moved over to them, and stood next to Raven Feather. “It is time for me to begin my instruction of the two Ri. The rest of you will continue under the tutelage of Raven Feather. However, before you separate, you need to consider something. Every Pack has a name, so as to differentiate one pack from another. For instance, I am the Alpha of the Golden Fall Pack.

“Most packs choose a name based on how they came together, or on something that means something to all of them. For example, our pack formed in a small village on the coast. At the time that we agreed to become a pack, the sun was setting, to us it appeared as the golden sun was falling behind the sea. We then settled on the name of Golden Fall. You do not have to choose now, but it is something that you should do, soon.”

“It is also how those who hold the histories will be able to sing of your deeds.” Raven Feather said. “You should also start thinking about your Wolf Names…” He paused and looked at Mato and Takoda. “Or your Bear name.” He added with a chuckle.

“What’s a Wolf name?” Brad asked softly.

“A Wolf name is a name that the Wolf chooses when he changes for the first time. Usually, one would know that they would change, and could think about it beforehand. It is a way to separate yourself from others, as well as show the entire world that you are a Wolf. Sometimes a Wolf will know his name even before he changes, other times it comes to them based on what happened during their shift. Yet others do not choose a name for themselves until they go through a rite of passage. None of you have had to go through such a Rite yet, since there was no one to teach you how. However, you will learn how to perform the Rite, and make sure that the wolves that come after, go through a proper Rite.”

“I see.” Brad said deep in thought.

“You can decide on that later.” Raven Feather said as he started to move away. “We should leave the Ri to discuss what they need to.”

Once the others followed Raven Feather away, Moon Blade motioned for Colt and Christina to have a seat. “We have much to discuss, and little time I am afraid, to teach you.”

“I thought Raven Feather said we could come back.” Colt said as he sat.

“You can. It is we who will not be able to.” Seeing the look of shock on their faces Moon Blade smiled a sad smile. “From what I have been able to learn based on what you have said, our pack has lived within the blade for more than three millennia. WE had wondered why we had not been summoned to teach a new Ard Ri, but now we know. WE decided that it was most important that all of you learn what we can teach rather than just you Colt. However, in doing so, we have separated ourselves from the sword. Our time grows near, as we grow weaker. Soon we shall pass to the deep Spirit Realm, where we shall rest, as we should have all done, long ago. It was only with the help of the one you know as Runi, and a powerful Bloodstone, that allowed us to place our spirits within the sword. Now though, we will pass into the deep, and rest.”

“Wow.” Christina simply said, as Colt suddenly had tears in his eyes.

Moon Blade smiled. “Do not weep pup. We should have gone to the Deep a long time ago. It is not natural for spirits to be bound for that long. It gladdens my heart that we will be able to truly help one last time. So, before the hour grows to late, there is much to be told. First, let me explain to you about the sword.”

Seeing Colt nod and lift the sword up, Moon Blade smiled. “The sword was forged for one purpose, and one purpose alone. To be the Sword of the Ard Ri.”

“What does it do?” Colt asked now looking at the sword much closer. He noticed runes engraved in the silverish blade.

“Well as you are seeing, the blade itself is made out of silver. Yes, Silver does harm wolves. Not like many believed, but it does cause us a great deal of discomfort. This blade though will cut deeper than you might think. However, the greatest advantage of it is this. Once you bond with it, which we will do shortly, it will shift as you do. Meaning you can use it no matter what form you choose, other than the wolf form of course. It will also dedicate itself to you, meaning that no matter where you go you can choose to wear it visibly, or you can command it to meld into you, always ready though to emerge and be used if you so desire.”

“Wow.” Christina breathed as she looked at the sword. Colt was too stunned to say anything. Christina looked up at Moon Blade and spoke, still a bit breathless. “How do I get one?”

Moon Blade laughed a deep rumbling laugh as he slapped his knee. “You are truly a warrior.” He smiled at her as he spoke. “Perhaps one day you will rediscover the art of creating these kinds of weapons. Your Vampire friend can assist you, although he does not fully know all that goes into the creation of a Spirit Blade. However, if you persist long enough, I am sure you will find a spirit that would be willing to assist. However, it will be a while before you are strong enough to attempt that. For now though, let me teach you some of the things that you both, as Ri, are able to do.”

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