Dante

This mission was a rush from nearly the drop, but it was imperative that the lands around our home get taken care of as soon as possible. Finding Kristos was a stroke of luck we hadn't had in a long while. Times are changing, and the humans aren't as afraid of us as they used to be. The old wolf knows this and agreed to our terms, bringing in another Pack as well that he'd already started negotiations with. Grotto Falls weren't too keen on leaving their ancestral home, but for the safety of his people, he knew it to be the best option.

We own a large portion of the mountain range already, and combined with the land they bought, it provides over a hundred miles of territory. Plenty of ground for them to run and spread out, but also lots of ground to cover for grooming patrols. Not only do we have to prepare them against the humans, but other werewolves. Survival training at its best.

Homes had already been built up for the Alphas and Betas for each Pack, along with a scattering of others for them to hand out to who they wished. Otherwise, the materials are provided for them to build their own. While waiting, a type of boarding house, or 'Pack House' was also built for them to stay in. A few rather, considering the numbers coming in. While not popular at first in the other communities, many had taken to it as it built stronger bonds among them, which was the whole point.

Barracks are also built near the training grounds, a school with a connected library, an airfield, a few farms with large greenhouses, communications and water towers, community center, a small store, and various shop fronts. Everything they'd need to make their own small community. Roads and trails lead from their area to the Grotto Falls which neighbors them, to ours. Each separate yet together, with plans for building and expanding more.

After a month, people had started settling in, helped along that they didn't start out as strangers coming from the drop. The Alphas and Betas have taken to their homes just fine as predicted. Where Lunar Soul had offered one of their open homes to their advisors, Alpha Kristos had given his to his Omega's. Seeing the dynamics between the different Packs always interests me.

As soon as everyone was settled, there was a purge in items as there was limited room. Not too many people were happy with that, especially the younger generations. Joke was on them, however, when they got rounded up anyway. Well, those eighteen to twenty-five. Parents were already spoken to by the Alphas before coming, so they knew what was going on and knew not to interfere.

Those who had yet to have their survival training would properly have it by those who knew what they were doing, and those who 'did' have it would be retaking it. I'd gotten all their files and had a chance to go through them with a few others from Midnight Fang. After their basic training, other training would take place to show us what they have an aptitude in. After seeing their files, I'm not holding out much hope that too many will pass on the first go, so this will take some time, with lots of hard labor on the farms for those who fail.

Even the adults go through a type of fast course to get them acquainted with the area, and I'm surprised by how many in Lunar Soul fall short. Clearly this was a city Pack for a long time. The one I don't come across is the one my brother asked me to keep an eye out for, which is slightly irksome considering her scores were some of the highest. The fact that a runt beat their Alpha-in-training's time is just shameful.

When I inquire as to her whereabouts, I get mixed reports, yet the basic consensus is she ran before they made the move. There's mention of her going feral by a few but Faust had already assured me those were false and any who brought it up were to be recorded as potential problems. And while that does seem a bit off, there are too many other things I have to worry about than to linger on why a runt would take off, feral or not, so I put it to the side while I focused on other things. Faust will have to get over it when he returns and just accept it.

Weeks go by allowing for us to see who has potential in what field and everyone gets schooled more in depth accordingly. Tracking, hunting, espionage, information, communications, scouting, farming, building, the list goes on. Whether they be an asset for the defense of the community or helping it grow. There are a few that prove to be damn near helpless, but because they aren't putting forth the effort.

The female Faust warned me about, Mythine Gallents, has proven to be a thorn in my side. I'd taken him at his word, but I didn't think she'd be that bad. Being royalty, we never have to want for a bed partner, but we do have to be cautious. My brother and I both have found that out the hard way. A spurned lover is just as likely to bare teeth as a Rogue with a grudge.

Mythine acts as if she's one such person; as if she has the right to our beds and bodies. Watching her brother, he doesn't carry the same attitude though there is an edge to him as well. A determined drive. Really makes me wonder what's wrong with the runt that attracted my brother. It's their parents that're the advisers to Lunar Soul, and while position isn't always inherited, I seriously hope it isn't in Mythine's case. Hopefully they have the brains to see through her manipulations, for if they don't, I sure as hell do.

The brother, Apolphos, has actually shown promise in a couple of fields. Tracking and gathering information seem to come easy to him, so he gets put in a group with select others to continue with it and broaden his horizons. The Grotto Falls wolves have shown to have better wilderness survival skills as a whole, while Lunar Soul have better espionage and communications, and while we focus on what they're good at, they all need to know a decent amount of both given their location.

When my brother finally returns from the mission I'd sent him on, he looks a little ragged, but no worse for wear. He'd taken care of the Rogues that had attempted a coup in Grotto Falls before they could get close to the wolves, their plan to ambush those left behind while the others go on their hunts was a low blow and one that had worked for them before, but we got to them in time before it could happen again. As if we didn't have our hands full with the humans wanting to push herd and claim on us, we have to worry about our own trying to wipe out whole Packs at a time, and we don't know why.

I let him get cleaned up a bit before he makes his report, his coming in through the main gates causing a stir among the populace. While everyone is free to come and go as they please, the territory is gated to help with defense. There are several roads that lead out, though many are hidden from the general populace. There's an actual human town miles down the mountain that we get supplies from when needed, but for the most part we're pretty self-sufficient.

It's been a little over a month and a half since I sent him out, and while I didn't think it would take this long, I know these things take time. When he finally finds me in my office in our main house, freshly showered and shaved, I catch sight of a few new scars on his arms. Faint and in the process of being nearly completely healed, but it has me frowning nonetheless.

"What happened?"

Dropping into one of the plush chairs against the wall, he waves a hand up in the air with a sigh.

"The trail went cold after leading me through three other territories. I killed the majority in Grotto Falls, thought I had killed them all, but it came to my attention later that I hadn't. Didn't think they were even connected until the information you gave me led me back there. The Rogue didn't follow them though, instead he headed East across state lines. There's evidence he came into contact with at least one Pack, leaving a body in his wake, but it's figured the wolf had attacked him first after talking to the others there."

"So he was defending himself after someone jumped the gun."

Faust nods and mutters under his breath that it looks that way. Writing everything down myself as a record, I ask more questions about the other wolves he came across and who they are. Unless provoked, those in a Pack setting aren't known to attack Loners or Rogues. If the one Faust was tailing was attempting to get away clean, why would he have left a body to be found?

"I came back to tell you more than what I could by short message bursts, but I'm going to have to go back out to try to pick up the trail again. I have a feeling this Sigma isn't just your run of the mill Rogue. Most Rogues we've come across are scattered and Loners, yes, but lately they've been banding together. The humans may be part of that, but it doesn't make complete sense with the humans focusing their efforts going after large groups. Something tells me this male has something to do with it."

I watch my brother as he leans forward and taps on the table holding an array of maps. With a flip of a switch, the light table can be illuminated from underneath allowing us to see details on old parchments easier, or cast to light hidden details. Right now it's covered in stacks of documents from the new arrivals. Looking over them for a moment, his eyes rise to mine.

"So, what do you think of Wynter?"  

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✰ \(‾▿‾\) 𝔇𝔬𝔫'𝔱 𝔣𝔬𝔯𝔤𝔢𝔱 𝔱𝔬 𝔳𝔬𝔱𝔢 (/‾▿‾)/ ✰