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Learning to Fight, Part 2, The Black-Claws

A furious maddening howl echoed through the black forest. In an instant the whole army of wolves took up battle positions. They had been making good time south and east towards what Night-Runner said was the new clan hold of the outcast shadow-clan warriors. This wasn't the first time the war band had run into the black-claws in the last few days, but the attacks were becoming desperate and more frequent. As the scarred black hides of the black-claws fell upon the war band Dire-Fang howled out orders to fight defensively. Steel roared in fury as he shifted to his long-fang form and snatched a charging black-claw warrior out of the air. Unlike the other coyotes these beasts preferred to kill with tooth and claw. They had already murdered two packs of scouts that were caught unaware the day before, now the wolves wanted blood for blood.

Dire-Fang shifted to fight beside his brother high-alpha, and between their claws and fangs more than two dozen black-claws found death that day. The other wolves fought as they preferred, some as swifter agile wolves, and others as hulking beastly long-fangs. In a few hours the black-claws were defeated and the wolves stood victorious, but bloodied and wounded. "Steel! Dire-Fang!" A familiar wolf shouted as he carried a broken and bloody body in his arms. "It... it's brown snout!" White-Ear howled. "They caught him behind lines and... and look!" The long-fang warrior placed his elder mate before the high-alphas and wept openly.

Dire-Fang stepped forward. "I will give him my mark..."

"No," Steel said and put his hand on the other alpha's shoulder. White-Ear and Dire-Fang both look at him in shock. "Brown-Snout will die within the hour, but my mark could save him... Walker's would serve better, but he is not here to grant it to our warriors."

"But Steel! That would violate your own word..." Dire-Fang growled, but White-Ear looked about ready to beg the other high-alpha to take Brown-Snout as a long-fang son.

Steel didn't wait for permission. He bent over Brown-Snout and sank his fangs into the other wolf's wounded shoulder. Brown-Snout coughed up blood as Steel's mark flowed into him. "Black-Fang!" Steel growled and summoned the most powerful magic user in his pack. "You will pass on my mark through your seed. Your magical energy can heal if focused correctly. Yes?"

"Of course my Alpha!" Black-Fang said as he leaned over Brown-Snout and looked at White-Ear who nodded quickly to give the polite wolf permission to mount his mate.

Brown-Snout was so broken and bloody that even Black-Fang had to be gentle as he pumped his wolf cock in and out of the other male. The wolves gathered around watched in awe as Brown-Snout's gray fur began to darken to black as he inherited Black-Fang's unique mixed heritage. His wounds stopped bleeding and healed before the eyes of those gathered around. Black-Fang's potent pre-cum was having a powerful effect on the elder wolf, but even with his magic it was hard to heal a wolf from near death back to full health. In the end Black-Fang made a sacrifice. He traded the vast strength of Steel's mark for a chance to see Brown-Snout survive his injuries. As grave as the circumstances were, there was still a passionate pleasure that gripped both Black-Fang and the wolf below him. The moment his load exploded into Brown-Snout's ass Black howled out in passion, but his mate came behind him and took his muzzle in a sloppy kiss. Black pulled his cum-soaked cock out of Brown-Snout and White-Ear scooped the new long-fang up into his arms.

"Brown-Snout... my precious mate..." White-Ear cried as he licked blood from the black and brown hide of his injured lover. The scene was touching to say the least, but in war there was little time to be sentimental.

When Brown-Snout finally opened his eyes and looked up at his mate he did something only a human would do. He smiled softly and reached up to touch the feral face of his lover. Brown-Snout was still shifting from wolf to long-fang in White-Ear's arms. His paws changed to hand-paws with gentle fingers instead of short clawed digits like his mate had. In moments he looked more like Walker and Black-Fang than his own long-fang mate. "I feel... so funny inside." Brown-Snout whispered, but White-Ear just growled and held him close in a tight hug.

"That's because you are a long-fang from Walker and Steel's line now my love." White-Ear whispered to his mate. He and the rest of his pack stayed close to Brown-Snout for the rest of the day and night. Steel looked slightly disturbed by the transformation of his old friend, and by the fact that a veteran scout like Brown-Snout could nearly die at the hands of their foes. It was, oddly enough, Silver-Fang who consoled the alpha. "You made the right choice Steel," Silver said roughly as he put his paw on his huge alpha's shoulder. Before Steel could object Silver pulled him into a tight strong hug. It was a hug that only two warriors could share. "What good are our laws if they cost our allies their lives?" Silver asked as he looks up at Steel from the other male's chest.

Steel put his arms around the elder warrior and his right hand wolf. "I don't deserve you Silver," he said softly and noticed the rest of his pack looking at him with tender watery eyes. "Oh come on you overgrown cubs!" Steel growled as he shifted into his huge long-fang form and swept them all up in his arms. The twins yipped excitedly and nuzzled and licked Silver and Black as all five wolves broke into a heap of wrestling and hugging muscle. This was a rare tender moment for the gray-wolf pack, but the timber-wolves just watched happily as the five wolves reaffirmed their love and passion for each other. In wolf terms this was a healthy activity even though it was something most packs did only in private. The tussle ended when Black and Silver scooped up a twin each in their mouths and pulled the cubs away from Steel. The two young gray-wolves noticed the host of timber-wolves watching them and composed themselves for the sake of their pack's honor. When everyone was calmed down Steel turned to Dire-Fang and smiled. "Sorry for that," he said softly. "Sometimes these cubs of mine need a little extra love and attention."

Dire-Fang nodded and looked at his own noble pack. They were all smiling big happy smiles as they looked at the younger noble pack before them. "We wouldn't have you any other way," Dire-Fang said softly and smiled at the gray-wolves.

Winning the battle that day came at the cost of six scouts and nearly ten warriors. Dire-Fang was busy reorganizing displaced wolves into new packs who would work well in battle together. During times of war special care was given to what role a wolf played in their pack structure. Losing a single wolf could unbalance a pack and lead to poor moral and fighting performance. Dire-Fang was wise about how he positioned his warriors with respects to their abilities and experience. Wolves like Brown-Snout were irreplaceable in times of war, so older males were often paired with younger packs regardless of their social position as alphas, betas, or omegas.

In war, packs that might not have had honor could gain honor, and before nightfall that day Dire-Fang and Steel were both busy handing out marks of honor to young and old wolves alike. It was not the glorious ceremony like what Walker had received, but honor was honor, and wolves fought tooth and claw for the right to stand proudly and defend what they believed in.

Night brought with it a renewed sense of pride in the bloody war band. Their hearts were harder and their hides tougher. The wolves slept in rotating shifts in a large circle around the injured and elder members of their clans. Yet, even at night the army was assaulted by groups of shadow-singers who hounded the flanks of the wolves. This war was proving to be far deadlier than either high-alpha had expected.

...

The morning howl woke Steel from his light slumber, and before he had even woken up completely a newly turned long-fang scout was waiting for him with a report. Brown-Snout looked rough, and he had some new impressive scars now too. "Steel-Fur!" The scout said as he stood, a little wobbly, on two legs with his mate poised proudly behind him. "I have scouted the surrounding lands with two subordinate packs, and we are confident that we are now inside territory controlled by the Black-Claws."

Steel turned to Night-Runner who nodded gravely, but the vassal coyote offered no words. He was oddly silent for a coyote, and more often than not he hid from the wolves using their own shadows to cover himself. Only Ruff and Tuff were able to keep an eye on him, but Steel wondered sometimes if that was because the Coyote allowed himself to be seen by the young twins.

Dire-Fang nodded to his scout and stood beside Steel. "We should move with caution brother." He said and Steel nodded his consent. Today was going to be a touchy day for their war band. They were still nursing wounds from the night before, and now they were inside the territory of the most dangerous coyotes the wolves had ever faced. "Tighten the ranks and move in battle formation!" Dire-Fang howled and looked at White-Ear. "Take lead position White-Ear! I want my best three scouting packs in the front formation as we enter enemy lands!"

The wolves around Dire-Fang hurried to do his bidding and make ready to travel, in less than ten minutes the howl went up from the front of the packs to move out. It was Brown-Snout who was howling, and hearing it brought a smile to Steel's face. Hearing Brown-Snout gave the other wolves hope. They could survive this war... they could get stronger.

. . .

With each passing hour the war band pushed deeper into black-claw territory. Occasionally they would be attacked on their flanks, but the wolves held their formation and usually killed the erratic black-claws. There seemed to be no thought or order to how the savage coyotes attacked, they simply threw themselves at the wolves and fought until they were put down for good.

Traveling in formation was slower than running swiftly, but it afforded better defense from attacks. By noon the wolves reached the center of the black-claw lands, but what they found there was too horrific for words. In the center of the hastily dug burrow were the bones of countless coyotes, foxes, and countless other animals. Even wolf bones and sculls lay scattered in the horrific mass grave. A mindless angry laugh came from the other side of the pit, and the wolves watched in mute horror as Scar-Hide himself appeared before the wolf army. "Thank you cousin wolves!" He shouted in pain as he collapsed before the pile of bones. "Thank... you... for killing us..."

As the coyote's body died a black miasma began to rise from his rotting flesh. His bones began to fall, one by one, into the pit as they joined the terrible grave. A strange haunting laughter filled the empty coyote den site, and the wolves watched as the black mist all around them began to swirl violently. A dark evil voice sang out on the wind. "From darkness born, by fang and claw, Warriors rise and kill them all!" The mad laughter twisted and groaned as the mist flowed into the grave. Steel and Dire-Fang watched from the front of their army as the paws of countless skeletal coyote began to climb out of the grave before them.

"L... Luna help us!" Dire-Fang shouted when he saw the undead skeletons rising from the grave. "What are these abominations Steel?"

Steel couldn't rely on his wolf mind... wolves had no words for these kind of creatures, but humans... Humans understood these things. "They are skeletons, undead, maybe even zombies!" Steel shouted as he struggled to summon words from the human side of his brain.

"They aren't zombies Steel!" Black-Fang shouted back. "They are undead constructs, similar in shape to a humbaba or other monsters who possess no soul, but have physical shape instead."

The wolves were breaking formation to back away from the encroaching wave of undead skeleton beasts. Steel knew they needed to fight these things, but there was no way to kill something that was already dead. "How do we kill them Black-Fang?!"

It was surprising to hear the voice of a coyote speak up. "You kill them like you do any other beast," Night-Runner growled as he appeared beside Steel. "Crush their damned bones and send them back to whatever hell spawned them!"

The wolves didn't need any more convincing. Steel howled a war howl and charged into the first line of skeleton animals. His claws and fangs proved next to useless against these foes. At first it was frustrating, but then Steel roared and balled up his hand-paws into a fist. He brought his huge meaty fist down on the spine of an undead coyote that had bitten his leg. The bones simply shattered as Steel smashed his hand-paws down onto them. "Smash them brothers!" Steel roared as he proceeded to crush the next dozen or so skeletons that emerged from the pit with his paws.

Wave after wave of undead beasts poured from the pit of bones, but that was hardly the most disturbing source of the undead monsters bearing down upon them. From the forest around the wolves came more undead creatures. Even the bodies of coyotes, slain only hours ago, surged through the forest to make war with the wolves. Yet, as unsettling as this dark army was there was simply a limit to the strength of these dead creatures. Their bites, while painful, lacked the power of a true beast's jaw, and their claws, while sharp, left shallow wounds in the flesh. Steel almost thought they had gained an advantage over the encroaching horde until he saw something he would have never expected to see rising from the pit of bones.

A beast from his own nightmares brought its massive black-boned hand up to the lip of the pit and slowly pulled itself out of the grave. The wolves around Steel began to back away, and soon only Silver and Dire-Fang stood beside him. "Is that... truly a humbaba skeleton?" Dire-Fang asked in shock.

Steel could only growl as he exchanged a knowing look with Silver. "Yes brother, it seems as though they have an undead humbaba now."

A low growl came from the other two warriors as they readied themselves for a real fight. Steel had no idea how they could kill a beast like this... Walker had killed the last humbaba, but that beast had been blinded both physically and by its own rage. This creature seemed to see with no eyes, and it had its empty cold eye-sockets fixed on Steel.

In all his battles so far Steel had found no need to use the full measure of his might. Being too big was often as much of a disadvantage in combat as it was a boon. However, as he locked eyes with the undead monstrosity before him he summoned all his rage and might from deep inside his heart. Thoughts of Walker and of defending his mate spurred his transformation onwards. In moments Steel was nearly twenty feet tall and practically bursting with strength and power. He roared in a very un-wolf-like way as he charged the undead humbaba.

The two titans met in the middle of the ground between the wolves and the encroaching skeletons. Dire-Fang and Silver also grew larger and stronger, but their full battle forms were nothing compared to the giant Steel had become. Unfortunately even as a huge hulking beast Steel could sill tire and lose strength. Wrestling with twenty five foot undead humbaba was more than any of the other wolves could have hoped to do, but it was clear that Steel was not the bigger or stronger of the two giants. The massive black skeleton managed to knock Steel to the ground crushing nearly thirty of the smaller skeletons gathered around them.

Dire-Fang howled as he leapt to his brother's side and vaulted onto the arm of the massive black skeleton. In an instant Silver was beside the high-alpha and together the two of them managed to knock the black beast away from Steel. As they tumbled to the ground the staggered skeleton fought to right itself. A glorious howl came from behind the lines of the wolves, and like magic, for that was what it was, the voices of Moon-Song and Snow-Song began the first chords of a mystical howl that few of the wolves in the army around the females had ever heard.

The air around the other wolves began to grow cold and bleach itself of color. The sudden change in temperature caused small crystals of ice to form in the air around the wolves and the skeletons. The undead seemed unaffected by the cold at first, but as more and more snow began to collect on their bones it quickly became apparent that the ice was making it harder for the undead to move. As their song continued the winds around the den began to swirl violently, and what could only be described as a small blizzard began to buffet the skeletons and wolves.

The winds were strongest in the center of the clearing where the black humbaba was fighting to stand as his large body was caught by the merciless winds and the pounding snow. The brief snowstorm lasted only as long as Snow and Moon could sustain it, and even with their impressive command of magic the temporary blizzard began to ebb and eventually stop. The warriors fought on, struggling to keep the undead at bay, but Steel had regained his strength for the moment. The titanic wolf howled and stood to meet the humbaba again in a test of raw strength against undead beast's might. This time though, Dire-Fang and Silver were ready beside the titanic wolf.

Steel locked arms with the huge humbaba attempting to hold the monster with his powerful clawed hand-paws. As he held it still Dire-Fang and Silver raced up Steel's body and ran across his left arm and onto the shoulder of the skeleton. The humbaba made a horrifying rattling roar as it felt the two wolves tearing into its shoulder bones. The black skeleton was unable to move due to the presence of the titanic wolf bearing down upon him. The fight raged on around the black monster, but a thundering crack spelled the end for the beast.

Dire-Fang and Silver leapt from the shoulder of the black monster and fought their way through a few dozen skeletons to get clear. Steel roared as he felt the strength of the humbaba waning, and then another dangerous crack came from the monster's left shoulder. Steel reversed his pushing and in one glorious motion ripped the arm of this humbaba right out of its socket. Before the undead beast could react to losing its own arm Steel brought the huge appendage around just like a human would swing a club. The arm smashed into the skull of the beastly abomination and promptly shattered it. After that the fight between Steel and the humbaba was decidedly one sided. It didn't take long for Steel to smash what remained of the black skeleton into dust, and then he turned his fury on the skeletons below him.

With each earth shaking thud of the humbaba's arm crashing into the ground Steel felled at least a score of skeletons. Before an hour had passed most, if not all, of the undead had been shattered and reduced to bone splinters. Steel groaned in pain as he shrank down from his titanic battle form and hunched over from his own wounds. He was covered with numerous bite wounds, but they were nothing he couldn't heal on his own given time to rest and recover. Silver was beside his alpha before Steel could even shrink back down to normal. Despite his own wounds the warrior saw to his alpha's needs first.

As the wolves licked their wounds Steel felt a great empty place inside his heart. He groaned out in pain as he looked down at his hand-paws and collapsed to his knees. "W... What have I become?" He asked as he looked at Silver who seemed a little shaken by his words.

"You're my alpha," Silver said sternly without pause. "I would follow you to the ends of the earth Steel... you know that. Right?"

Steel nodded and put his paw on Silver's broad muscular shoulders. With his help Steel managed to stagger up onto his paws and stand before the other wolves. His eyes surveyed the damage to the other warriors with surprise. Despite the sheer number of their foes very few of the wolves had been severely injured, and none had died. The appearance of Night-Runner beside the alpha brought the report he was expecting. "My lord," Night said softly. "I believe we have seen the last of the black-claws. There is no sign that they survive to any great extent in these dens." The coyote said with no sadness or regret in his voice.

"Who then was responsible for this... corruption of nature?" Steel growled as he looked down at the small coyote below him.

Night-Runner didn't blink or pause in the least before he spoke. "This is the work of the shadow-singers to be sure. There are reasons why they were branded as outcasts, my lord. If I had known the extent of their depravity I..." Night-Runner paused as he shook his head. "This is wrong, even for coyotes, this perversion of nature is simply wrong."

Steel was glad the coyote had the same sense of disgust that the wolves now felt. It was clear that they were dealing with a foe that was not afraid to warp nature to suitits needs. If murdering countless living creatures just to raise an undead army was acceptable to the shadow-singers than what other horrendous crimes against nature had these coyotes committed? Steel could only begin to wonder what horrors awaited them at the shadow-singer's den site. "We should do what we can to heal the wounded and leave this place before nightfall..." Steel looked at Dire-Fang who was kneeling beside his own mate. Red-Tooth had been injured during the fight, but his wounds were hardly life threatening. Moon-Song was bent over her pack mate in concentration. A soothing white light was coming from her hand-paws and she was currently in a shape-shifted state to make dealing with the wolves and long-fangs easier for herself.

Moon looked up at Steel and seemed to frown slightly. Whatever was disturbing her thoughts she kept herself as she refocused on healing Red-Tooth. An uneasy silence punctuated the air between Dire-Fang's pack mates, and for the first time since they left the clan hold Steel noticed that the other four elders did not seem to be very supportive of their high-alpha. "I understand Steel," Dire-Fang said as he stood and looked at his fellow high-alpha. "We will rest while we can and gather our strength so we can move on." The powerful male seemed disturbed by the broken skeletons scattered at their feet. "This place is unnatural, and it offends our own reverence for the dead."

"We do not have time to sing for their deaths brother," Steel said swiftly. "Such a feat is beyond even an army of wolves... this place will be tainted forever, and I fear the coyote will not bother to try and restore the natural balance to these lands." Steel regretted his own words, but he knew the war band did not have time to sing the death song for so many creatures. It was possible, but it could take well over a day to complete, and that was a day that Steel didn't have.

Before Steel could turn away from his friend and brother Dire-Fang stopped him and pulled him aside. "Steel," The high-alpha said with concern heavy in his voice. "Some of the other wolves are... disturbed... perhaps even scared of your fury and anger as of late. They whisper of the humbaba's curse upon you. And now they fear that we have disturbed the same humbaba's grave! What if... what if this war is not right brother? What if we are creating these unbalances where we go?"

Steel whipped around to face Dire-Fang and snarled in a very un-noble way. "Have you lost your courage brother? Have you forgotten why we are here?"

"No!" Dire-Fang said angrily, "but beasts are not meant to go to war! It is not our way Steel! This is not natural for our people!"

"You can keep your reservations and those of your clan to yourself brother." Steel said as he turned away from Dire-Fang. "I am not in balance, and if I am cursed it is only because I don't have Walker here beside me." Steel touched his chest where a great empty feeling had been eating him up from the inside lately. Every night he slept alone the feeling grew stronger, and each day he spent away from his mate the void in his heart grew larger. "I'm fighting for what I believe in Dire-Fang... I fight to find my mate and bring him home! Why do you timber-wolves doubt me so?"

"Steel..." Dire-Fang said softly and with a slight whine to his voice.

"No," Steel said as he turned back to Dire-Fang and shook his head. "We can't let doubt cloud our judgment brother. There will be time to make things right later, but for now let us find our lost cubs. That's all I want Dire-Fang. I just want Walker back!"

Steel's eyes were wet with passion and love for his missing mate. Any wolf could have seen that the warrior's heart was breaking apart. Wolves were not meant to be separated from their mates. They often spent time away from females and packs, but no wolf was cold enough to leave their mate's side for good. Steel was a powerful warrior, but his heart was not as hard as he might have believed before. "I will not trouble you with these doubts again brother." Dire-Fang said and turned to look at his bloody and injured war-band. It truly was getting late in the day, and despite the perpetual darkness of these lands the urge to move on was strong with the wolves. A howl from the timber-wolf high-alpha signaled that it was time to leave this cursed place for good. There were growls and grunts of pain as the army of wolves struggled to get to its feet, but they moved on regardless.

. . .

Far to the Northeast a long line of wooden carts bumped and bustled along a well hidden forested road. The strange creatures who drove the carts looked almost like what Walker would have called a monkey on his own world, but they were larger and had no tails. The chimp-like animals were intelligent, but they did not bother speaking in the wolf tongue very often. Once in a while one would approach the two frightened young wolves and offer them meat or water.

It was a far cry from the way the coyotes had treated the wolves when they were their prisoners, but even if the wolves hadn't liked the idea of being held in their cage there was almost nothing they could do about it. The magical metal cuffs on their paws and neck prevented them from shifting shape. As such, the wolves were stuck in their smaller wolf forms. Usually it took a small amount of Walker's mana to remain in this shape, but the shackles seemed to lock him into wolf form regardless of its mostly magical nature. For that same reason Walker and Swift both found themselves frightened by this new development.

The cages, and the carts the cages were on, seemed to be propelled by some sort of horse-like creature. In only a few hours the carts made excellent time down the road. Every hour they traveled took the wolves further and further away from the possibility of escape or rescue. "Swift-Paw?" Walker said and looked up at the other wolf. "Are you afraid right now?"

"Yes," Swift said after a long while.

"Me too," Walker said and snuggled closer to his only remaining friend in this strange world. If he had known something like this could have happened Walker would never have come to Wolf World at all! He swore Steel had told him that most of the other animals on the planet were not intelligent like the wolves, but maybe Steel had been wrong?