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Lykos - Lone Wolf

Chapter 8

Ben awoke to find himself alone in the bed that he now shared with his mate. He sat up in his human form, yawned, then rolled over to find the other side of the bed empty. Steve had to work today to make up for his lost days of work, so the alpha was alone. Missing his mate already, Ben buried his nose in the sheets to drink in the lingering traces of Steve's scent to tide him over. He rolled onto his back and sighed, then closed his eyes and did a mental checkup on himself. He had assumed that the alpha aggressiveness in him had gone dormant when he had changed back to his human state, but he realized that it was still there, lingering just under the surface as though it was lying in wait, ready to pounce. Rather than feeling disturbed, Ben felt pleased. It meant that he could assert his dominance in an instant. He also noted that he still felt the intense pride and drive to be dominant despite his non-bestial state. He truly was an alpha werewolf now that was so fused together in the halves of his being that there was no distinction, just an excess or lack of overt savagery and primal emotion. In his human form, Ben felt more like the drill instructors at the bases he had lived on as a child than the snarling, feral animal he was capable of becoming by changing to his wolven form.

He elected to stay in his human state for the time being and rose for the day as he got dressed in one of Steve's dirty shirts so that he could have his mate's scent with him, which he draped over a pair of denim shorts. Despite the cold of the approaching winter, Ben felt comfortable dressed this way. Apparently, his new body had a higher resistance to the elements. Not as much as when he went wolven, but enough to be noticed.

He made his way to the kitchen where Jessica was prepping the dishes for the dishwasher and opened the fridge, exchanging a greeting with her, then frowned. There wasn't much left in there and he had used up most of his money buying new clothes to fit his larger body. He sighed. *We'll need to hunt soon... Well, it's about time I learned how. After all, if I'm living here now, it's only fair I help keep us all fed.* He pulled out some ham, cantaloupe that had been cut up, then closed the fridge and grabbed two bananas from the counter before he sat down to eat.

Ken came into the kitchen to eat, dressed in a t-shirt with Japanese writing on it that translated as 'You know how to read Japanese? Cool!' and jeans. "Morning Alpha. Morning Jessica," he said cheerfully.

"Morning," they both said, Ben mumbling his reply through a mouthful of ham.

Ken opened the fridge, then turned to Ben with disappointment. "Is that the last of the ham?" he asked sadly.

Ben nodded, munching away. Deep down he knew he could share, but he was hungry and had spent last night defending the honor of the pack, so felt entitled. Besides, the beast in him didn't want to share such a prize and as alpha, he had no need to.

Ken sulked, but Ben was remorseless. "Find something else," he said between bites.

The Asian sighed in disappointment and rooted around the fridge before he settled on salami slices out of a carton and some of the bananas, frowning at the clashing flavors. Ben decided to be slightly generous by offering some cantaloupe as the beta sat next to him, but Ken wrinkled his nose in distaste and politely refused, not being a fan of melons. Jessica frowned at that, but kept silent. Ben was acting rude, as far as she was concerned. Ben finished gorging himself and sighed as he licked his fingers clean. Jessica sighed and tossed him some napkins. "At least use these," she grumbled, annoyed that Ben was letting canine mannerisms win out over human manners. He was acting as instinctual as Kyle, if not more so.

After they ate, Ben sat there and stared out the window as Jessica poured herself a cup of leftover coffee and joined them. "Man," Ken said as he wiped his hands clean from his own meal. "I can't believe how you did all that, beating Berke like that!"

"He wasn't the challenge everyone thinks he is," Ben said flatly. "He fights sloppy."

"Compared to you, I guess," Ken said thoughtfully. "But you were amazing!" he said, making Ben swell with pride. It felt good to be appreciated. "And the way you stabbed him in the gut, then yanked him down? Man, you're crazy!"

Ben felt a sudden, intense surge of anger and punched Ken on the nose for the insult.

Jessica flinched. "Really, Ben?" she said loudly.

"He knows what he did," Ben replied firmly. "Ken saw firsthand how I don't like being called crazy. He earned that."

Ken held his nose and sighed in a manner of acceptance. He was used to getting clobbered by the guys for his smart mouth, so it wasn't surprising that the alpha would do likewise. He held it for a moment until the bleeding stopped. "That's no reason to hit him!" Jessica snapped.

"It's EVERY reason!" Ben countered firmly. "I'm well within my rights to discipline my betas whenever they get out of line! Besides, he can take it and I used a fair amount of restraint. He isn't twitching on the floor with half the bones in his body broken, is he?"

"He's right, Jessica," Ken said while pinching his nose. "I brought it on myself. You know how I'm always getting clobbered for my mouth. to be honest, I'm surprised it took me this long to piss him off enough to attack me."

"That's not the point!" the woman exploded, as Luke entered the kitchen.

He took one look at his mate and sighed in intense suffering. "Really Ken? Already? You sure don't waste time, do you?" He shook his head in disgust as he walked over to check on Ken's injury. Ken shot his mate a dirty look, but said nothing.

"You still had no right to hit him for making a jab at your ego," Jessica told Ben.

"As alpha, I have every right! I hit him because as a werewolf, I knew he could take it. He knew what he was doing was wrong and I took appropriate action. We're WEREWOLVES, Jessica! We're creatures of violence, in case you haven't been paying attention! Ken disrespected his better and was disciplined accordingly! I don't have to explain my actions to you! He's my beta and it was my right to punish him for his offense!"

Jessica paused at that. "Beta? If Ken's a beta, then who's the omega?"

"No one," Ben stated coldly. "I won't have an omega in my pack. We're not so weak as to need someone to take our frustrations out on to prove how strong we are. I refuse to follow such a weak concept as needing an omega among us. Our pack is better than that!"

The keeper just stood there, too numb to speak. She'd never heard of such a thing as a pack without an omega. She'd never heard ANYONE talk the way Ben just had. "We need no omega," Ben reiterated. "As for Ken, his rank is as lowest beta. With his mouth and lack of discipline, he is the lowest ranking member of my pack, but he is NOT an omega!" He stood up so he could look down on her to add extra weight to his words. "Don't tell me how to discipline my betas again, Human. I was within my rights and I acted accordingly and with restraint." He turned to Ken, calming himself. "I love you, Ken, but I won't be insulted or disrespected. Next time you do so, I'll punish you more severely. I'm not cruel, but I demand respect." He sighed. "Clean yourself up," he finished in a gentle, yet resigned tone of voice.

He sighed heavily and sat back down as Luke helped Ken wash the blood off of his face, the injury already fully healed. "I really hate being called that. It was bad enough thinking it about myself, but it really hurts to have other people call me crazy. I suppose you all know what I went through before with my illness, right?"

The all shook their heads, looking confused. "What do you mean, Alpha?" Luke asked him gently.

Ben snorted. "I'd thought you would've already heard. I was mentally ill, although from what I can tell, it went away when I became harmonized, or more specifically, Unified. I guess my wolf side boosted my confidence in myself enough to drive it away. I can tell because it no longer hurts whenever people criticize me. I used to have Avoidant Personality Disorder. My case was mild, but whenever anyone I met didn't react to me in a way I thought meant that they liked me, I assumed the opposite and that they hated me; wanted me to go away and suffer all alone. It got so bad that I became a shut in and lived alone without anyone close to me. You guys are the first people I've had extended contact with outside of work in nearly a decade."

The trio stared at him in shock. "Ten years with no one in your life?" Luke asked as he and Ken sat down next to their alpha.

Ben shook his head. "It was too painful to be around others. It was just safer to be by myself. That way I didn't have to be afraid of being judged and hated; it felt better that way. I was lonely, but at least I wasn't always stressed out wondering what was going through the minds of the people around me in regards to myself. My wolf side healed me and gave me confidence. Now whenever I'm criticized, I don't get depressed, I get pissed off. I guess it's what becoming such a strong alpha wolf has done for me. I like being this way much better... Anyways, I thought I was crazy for being that way, and now it pisses me off whenever anyone calls me that."

Ken sighed. "I'm sorry, Alpha. I didn't mean it that way, and I should've thought about it before I said that to you. I DO remember how angry you got at Kyle for calling you that and I should've known better than to say the same thing to you. I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted," Ben said, patting him kindly on the shoulder. "I mean it though; next time you get out of line..." Ben said, held up his hand and grew out his claws to show what he meant.

"Understood, Alpha," Ken answered, as though he expected nothing less.

Ken left for work a short time later with Jessica close behind. "Where do you work?" Ben had asked her.

"A new age store downtown. The owner and manager are both keepers too. It's a good place to stock up on potion ingredients and it's nice having bosses who can let me leave in emergencies regarding the wolves, as well as being a huge relief to have bosses I don't need to keep secrets from."

Ben nodded. "I know what you mean about bosses you can be honest with. My boss knows I think she's a bitch and it's nice to not to have to hide it from her," he joked.

Jessica stared at him in shock. "What?" he asked, looking as though he couldn't understand her reaction. The woman just sighed in disgust and left, rolling her eyes as she went...

*****

Ben had the day off, but with nothing to do and most of the pack and both keepers away for work, he was one of the only two left in the house besides Luke, who was also off for the day. Kyle worked from home, but a local business wanted pictures added to the website he was creating for them, so the beta was away from home for now. The alpha stalked through the house, feeling antsy, but not up to going outside. It was rather cold out today, what with it being less than three weeks until the beginning of winter, and Ben didn't want to leave the warmth of the Den. He wandered down the hallway as a dull, musical note from a guitar floated mournfully on the air and stopped at Luke and Ken's bedroom to see Luke picking away at an acoustic guitar without interest. He was sitting nude on his bed, and as Ben gazed at the beta's hairy human-form chest, he felt a slight stirring in his groin. He knocked softly. "Hey, Alpha," Luke said in a bored tone.

"Hey. You feeling restless too?" Ben asked.

Luke nodded. "With everyone away and it too cold outside, I'm feeling a bit of cabin fever. I'm not tired enough for a nap, either."

Ben, knowing instinctually what to do, bore down slightly on his groin. The scent of his musk began to fill the air. He saw Luke drink it in through his nose as a look of hunger came over him. Ben thrust his hips forward suggestively, drawing attention to his groin. "Want some company?" he asked huskily.

"Fuck yeah," Luke moaned in need, setting side his instrument with care before crawling forward to the edge of the bed.

Ben walked forward to meet him and stood at the foot of the mattress as the beta crawled forward, then when he was close enough, nuzzled the alpha's groin through the denim of his shorts. He looked up at Ben briefly with golden eyes.

"No," Ben told him firmly, yet gently, stroking the beta's head and running his fingers through Luke's hair. "Don't change yet. Push it down... I want to feel your human teeth chew on my dick through my shorts."

Luke shuddered in lust at the notion, reacting to the raw masculinity of his alpha. He closed his eyes and used his will to suppress the wolf within him, knowing that both halves of his being found the notion of pleasing Ben to be hot. He opened his brown human eyes to show that he was obeying.

"Very good," Ben said in a low, husky voice. Then he moaned and let out a growl that was human in nature as Luke bit down gently on the tubular bulge beneath the denim fabric, before he began to kneed it sensuously with his blunt human teeth as his alpha wanted. He was rewarded with a groan of pleasure from the other male, who arched his back in pleasure. Then Ben looked down at Luke, staring into his eyes, but the beta dropped his gaze respectfully. "No, Luke," Ben said to him. "Look at me. Whenever we play together, you have my permission to meet my gaze. Sex is about pleasure. When I want to dominate you during sex, you'll know."

Luke looked up into the alpha's eyes and saw the pleasure and compassion there. Ben was truly incredible! Luke had never heard of an alpha like this. One who was strong, yet capable of such gentleness. He was a bit disappointed that Ben hadn't started changing yet, wondering if he was doing something wrong. But when he met the gentle gaze of the alpha and saw the pleasure there, he realized that Ben was pushing down his bestial power, clearly wanting to milk as much pleasure out of this while remaining human-formed as he could.

Ben sighed, looking down at him with a look of satisfaction and lust. "I can smell you," he said gruffly. "I can smell how sexy you are. How masculine. The grease and oil and dirty metal car parts you work with. It's so butch... So virile... I can picture you there, on your back on that cart with the wheels on it as you work on a truck, your muscles straining slightly as you loosen the bolts with a sexy grunt of effort... Your coveralls zipped open all the way down to the crotch... A tiny peek of public hair just above the zipper... Your muscles bulging as you use your strength to bend the metal to your will... So fucking hot!"

Luke moaned in passion. He had always liked the slightly erotic masculinity of his job as an auto mechanic, but Ken hated the smell, complaining about how he always brought his work home with him. That was the only bad thing between them, yet Luke let it go because he loved his mate. But here was someone who got it the same way Luke himself did. He often had a hard on while he worked, forced to keep his wolf in check to avoid changing as he worked. He had longed to do just that, unzip his uniform all the way down and stroke himself with one hand while he worked on vehicles with the other. Ben understood his masculine drives... And it made Luke fall in love with his alpha all over again.

It wasn't as strong a romantic type of love he shared with his mate. This was the love of closely bonded pack mates, beyond the love of family, a joy that humans could never know. Both of them could feel this way and express their passion together without fear or guilt, knowing their respective mates would understand and show no jealousy. To them both, it was a level of love and tenderness that they each felt for every member of their pack, the strongest feelings being reserved for their specific mates.

Ben sighed and moaned. "If you ever work on one of our cars, I want to be there. I want you to dress just like that so I can stand there and masturbate while I watch you work. I want that to be our ritual every time you work on our machines. I want to see your raw masculinity in action and get off on it."

Luke growled in spite of himself, feeling his muzzle trying to form; but he pushed it back with an effort. This was so fucking hot! The image of his sexy alpha appreciating his passion as he worked drove him nearly past the breaking point as he chewed away, pausing to avoid causing injury as he had to force his shifting teeth back into their human configuration. He nearly came as his alpha spoke to him, driven wild with lust. It was so difficult to control himself, but he did so because he knew that it was what the alpha wanted.

Ben sighed. "You have a good sense of self-control. Very good. Now pull down my shorts."

Luke did so, releasing Ben's human-shaped penis from the confines of the fabric. Once the rigid slab of meat was free, Ben looked his beta in the eye. "Suck it," he ordered in a deep, husky human growl. Shivering, Luke took his alpha's dick in his mouth and began to pleasure him slowly. Ben rolled his head, groaning in lust, then looked down at Luke, staring him in the eyes. "You're so fucking sexy," he human-growled. "So hot... So virile... So masculine... Watch me, Luke. Watch what you do to me, you fucking stud," Ben told him.

Then Ben slowly released his hold, letting the bestial nature within him manifest slowly. Luke moaned in surprise. He hadn't realized it was possible to actually slow down the rate at which a werewolf changed forms as he'd never considered trying. Speed it up in times of need, such as in an emergency, yes, but not slow it down. But as he watched his alpha show the power of his wolf, Ben's body gradually swelling up and out, the eyes changing slowly, gradually, as they faded from hazel to their vibrant golden yellow, the beta learned something new about lycanthropy. The muzzle and ears followed as the hair on his head and body grew out, his brow swelled thicker and his changing mouth crept

forward centimeter by centimeter while the teeth flowed outward into fangs like molasses and the tongue spread wider bit by bit as it flattened. His nose turned upward slowly as the muzzle formed, darkening gradually like a slowly deepening shadow upon his face.

His muscles followed, inflating gradually as his claws edged out gently. The genitals came next, which Luke found surprising as that was always the first part of him to change whenever he became aroused. Then he saw the pattern and realized Ben was actually controlling not only the rate of change, but what changed when, working his way down the body from his head to his feet, piece by piece. Luke found this such a turn on and wanted so badly to change himself, but the alpha hadn't yet given him permission, so he held himself back, feeling the delicious torture of doing so.

Once the alpha's crotch had changed forms, the penis swelled from it's normal stiff, yet unerect state to full erection as the knot formed. Luke groaned as Ben's shaft twitched in his blunt human mouth, filling him with a squirt of precum.

"Don't swallow," Ben commanded. "Savor it."

Luke did so, swishing the thick, runny, salty and musky wolf honey around in his mouth, letting it tingle on his tongue as the smell of wet wolf penis and the canine musk of arousal filled his nostrils. He felt a breeze and knew that Ben's tail had formed, wagging lazily in pleasure and stirring the air with its powerful strokes from side to side.

"Now take the thumb and index fingers of each hand and massage the lumps of my knot," the alpha commanded huskily as his transformation finished. Luke did so, and was rewarded with a lustful snarl. He looked up to see the pleasure in the eyes of the wolf he pleasured, feeling a sense of pride that he was doing so well to bring his alpha such bliss. Ben let himself be pleasured this way for over a minute before, with a growl, he yanked himself free and stepped back out of reach, his penis jumping as another spray of precum hit Luke right in the face, making him moan in ecstasy. Ben grabbed his dick, aiming, and Luke opened his mouth to catch the next squirt of wolf nectar on his tongue.

Ben growled in lust as he saw that. "CHANGE!" he snarled passionately...

And Luke cried out in bliss as he let his wolf burst free as commanded, moaning and growling as his body twisted from one form into the other in the throes of erotic fury. His change was rapid and fierce, and he was fully formed within seconds. IT was a wonder he didn't cum right then, but he only barely managed to avoid doing so.

Ben got up onto the bed and plopped himself down next to Luke, his head towards Luke's feet and his groin near the beta's head. Knowing what was expected of him, Luke took Ben's phallus back into his now muzzle-shaped mouth, then moaned in pleasure as he felt his own wolf meat get swallowed by the alpha's muzzle. They sucked each other slowly and passionately as their musks mixed together in the stifling air of the room, making their heads swim in a drug-like euphoria.

It wasn't much longer before Luke lost control and came, painting the inside of Ben's muzzle yellow with his musky cum. The taste and smell were too much for him, and Ben released his orgasm into the beta's muzzle, bathing Luke's throat in his lupine essence.

They gradually came down from their respective orgasms, then at Ben's command, Luke flipped over so he was head to head with the alpha, who gave him a deep muzzle kiss. Ben gave Luke a long, sensual lick on the ear, then sighed in satisfaction. "You're such a fucking stud. I'm glad to have you as my beta. You make an alpha proud. Ken's very lucky to have such a stud for a mate. And I love you almost as much as he does. You make me happy."

Luke looked at him, his eyes moist. "Thank you, Alpha. I love you too. It's an honor to have someone like you to lead our pack. You make me feel proud and strong. That means more than you'll ever know..."

They kissed again before they drifted off to sleep, basking in the afterglow of their exertions...

*****

They awoke some time later to find that everyone was still gone. They sat down at the kitchen table, eating the last of the bananas as there was little food left. Ben frowned at that. "It's going to be hard to keep us all fed." he said with a sigh.

Luke shook his head. "Not really, Alpha," he said, keeping his gaze no higher than Ben's nose. Now that the intimacy was done for the time being, he was once more submissive, recognizing his place. "In truth, we usually hunt game. There's still enough left around here to tide us over for awhile, but winter gets to be a lean time of year when the prey thins out, so we usually shop for much of our food then. I get paid on Monday, so I'll do some shopping after work. To be honest, we normally hunt more often than we have been, but with welcoming you and establishing ourselves, we'd fallen a bit behind."

"Once more of us are home, we'll go out hunting. I need the experience and we all need the meat. Besides, it's time I became blooded. I'll need the pack's help to learn the nuances of hunting. I believe I instinctually know what to do, but food is too important a thing to essentially phone in."

"We'd be honored, Alpha."

"But until then," Ben answered, glowing in pride that his second beta considered it an honor to teach him, "Tell me more about yourself."

"What would you like to know first?"

"Well, let's start at the obvious. How'd you end up like this?" Ben asked, waving a paw at Luke's wolven form.

The beta sighed heavily. "Through my own sheer, stupid ego. I was at a sports bar about four years ago, smoking outside when a guy came near me and started pissing right against the building. I thought it was almost as disgusting as the Bulls jersey he was wearing, rather than my own Wizards one, so I walked over and started trash talking him about his lack of decency on public urination and lack of local team loyalty. He growled at me and told me to quote: 'mind my own fucking business if I knew what was good for me'. Naturally, I got pissed off and punched him. We started scuffling and during the fight, I tried to push his face away by the chin. Suddenly, he bit me on the hand and I was so shocked that I could only stand there, holding my bleeding wound. The guy, Rich, by the way, took one look at it and freaked out, babbling about how he didn't mean it and started begging me not to die. I looked at him in confusion as I wrapped my hand in my handkerchief, and after a few minutes of him ranting, pleading and apologizing, he got this look of realization on his face and said. 'You're not allergic'. He sighed in relief, then swore to himself and apologized for infecting me."

Luke chuckled. "I thought he was talking about AIDS and suddenly I was the one freaking out. But he stopped me, saying it wasn't anything like that, then he looked around to make sure no one was watching, then held up his hand and grew out his claws. I damned near shit myself when he did that. He took me aside and started teaching me about werewolves. Then I was taken into his pack under Alpha Lester. They're one of the local packs here."

"Why did you leave the pack?" Ben asked.

"Because I was the only gay guy in it and they kept me as omega because of that. They didn't abuse me very much, compared to omegas of other packs, like the way James' pack treats Crissy, but I hated being kept at the bottom just because of my sexual orientation. When Kyle broke away from his pack for the same reason and he made friends with Ken after his mother sent him here to live with his great aunt, I told my alpha how miserable I was and that I wanted to leave the pack. He wasn't happy, but he didn't try to stop me. After that, I met Kyle and Ken, fell in love with that adorable little smart mouth, and we ended up hanging out together so much that we just kind of developed into our own pack. None of the other packs really consider us an official pack, though. They just consider us a cluster of rogue wolves."

"That's going to change," Ben told him matter-of-factly. "It's time this pack was acknowledged."

"I'm looking forward to it. Those lousy Breeders need to see that you don't have to go around popping out puppies all the time to count as an equal to those around you!" Luke growled. Ben raised an eyebrow at that. The beta sighed. "I should warn you that I'm basically a heterophobe. Jack and Jessica are alright, but as for most straight people, they're all a bunch of lousy Breeders as far as I'm concerned."

Ben had never really liked most straight people himself, so he had no objections to that. "Just keep your prejudice under control," he told the lesser wolf. firmly "If you get out of line or cause trouble because of it, you'll answer to me."

"Understood, Alpha," Luke answered respectfully. He had expected nothing less.

"Homophobia is a real problem around here, isn't it?" Ben asked, causing the beta to nod.

"It's mostly because of Berke," Luke explained. "He was raised Baptist and still holds onto all that homophobic crap he grew up on. Normally, most wolves are at least gay friendly. For most of our kind, sexuality isn't a big issue. But since Berke is so bigoted and one of the strongest alphas around here, people end up mimicking him, thinking it'll appease him. But now that you've put him in his place and made him swear off expressing his prejudice, things will start to ease up in that regard. Don't worry. Berke is a bigoted jerk, but a wolf of his word. He made a vow to you, even if it was under duress, and he always keeps his word no matter what. It'll still probably take awhile to spread before the bigotry eases down, though."

"Well don't worry; once I'm head alpha, all of that will change."

"Head alpha?" Luke asked, looking shocked. "You're really going all the way?"

Ben nodded. "My alpha ego will accept nothing less. Once I'm top wolf, the homophobia is going to stop. I won't allow it to continue. Anyone who doesn't like it can leave the area."

Luke felt a shudder at that. The way that Ben said it, it was as though he was stating a fact, an eventuality; like someone announcing that a storm was on the way. "Why?" he asked. "Why is it so important to you to be head alpha?" he asked. He understood the wolven side of it, but in Ben's case, the beta could sense there was an underlying reason.

"Because in her own way, Ino was right. I want everyone to acknowledge me," the alpha said evenly. "I spent my life being brushed aside by everyone in one way or another and now that I'm the strongest werewolf around, I refuse to let it happen again. People will recognize me and look upon me with respect. As my pack, you all will be acknowledged and respected as well. I know it hurts you all to be pushed down by the other packs. I won't rest until our pack is the strongest around. I'll make you all stronger."

Luke looked at his alpha and believed what he had heard. The way Ben had spoken... It was a promise. A Vow. "I'm looking forward to it. I want to be strong! I want everyone to look up to me, not down on me!"

"I'll grant your desire," Ben told him firmly. "Tomorrow, we'll go to hunting. If we have time after that, I'll start to determine your strengths and weaknesses so I can develop the methods to make you all better. You all deserve better than to be lesser betas. You'll always BE betas, but I'll make you the strongest and most respected ones around."

Luke felt a surge of hope and pride at that. He couldn't wait to get started. As for always being a beta, Luke had accepted his lot in life years ago and felt no qualms about it. As long as his alpha cared about him, he was willing to take a subservient role.

"I can't believe," Ben said, changing subjects, "that no one's managed to track down the direwolf yet."

Luke scowled. "It's not that surprising, if you ask me."

"Why?" Ben asked, cocking his head in canine curiosity, a habit he had begun to develop since becoming a werewolf.

The beta sighed heavily. "The other alphas all have their heads up their own asses and refuse to work together on anything. Even the threat of a direwolf in the area isn't enough to make them put aside their differences and team up. If they did that, I bet we could sniff out the direwolf, no matter where it's hiding. But still, it won't be easy to catch or kill once we do find it. Direwolves are more powerful than any werewolf. It may take an entire pack or more to stop that thing once we DO find it!"

"They're THAT strong?" Ben asked in amazement.

Luke nodded. "I've never seen a live one, but it's said that they are stronger, have thicker hides, and more endurance than any werewolf. I still can't believe that you survived being attacked by one, even if you are an alpha."

"I got lucky, is all..." Ben sighed explosively. "Is ANYONE looking for the thing that attacked me?" he asked in frustration.

"The keepers are. We offered them our help, but they told us to just focus on helping you integrate into werewolf society. I don't get why, but that's what they told us to do. Maybe

they don't want an uneducated wolf running around... No offense."

Ben sighed again, this time in resignation. "None taken."

Just then, the back door opened and Kyle came in human-formed, carrying a few bags of groceries and his work bag. "I got us groceries," he said with a touch of pride that he was able to help provide for the pack.

"You got paid?" Luke asked.

The lesser beta nodded. "A commission fee. I knew we were almost out of food, so I splurged on the way home. Can I get some help getting the rest of it in?" he asked.

"Sure," Ben said, rising as he and Luke went out to Kyle's white Corolla to bring in the rest.

As Luke passed Kyle, the lower beta made a suggestive 'ooh' sound as he caught the scents of old musk and spent seed. "Someone had a good time."

Luke sighed in a mixture of satisfaction and disbelief. "You have no idea! It was one of the hottest matings I've ever had! Just wait 'til your turn comes... It'll blow your mind!"

Kyle murred in anticipation. "That's not the part of me I'd want to have blown, but still..." Kyle teased with interest.

Luke chuckled at that as he made his way outside to help bring in the shopping bags...

*****

It was early evening when the pack gathered together, transformed, and headed out into the night in search of meat. Ben let Kyle take the lead. As a wolf-born, he had the most hunting experience of the pack, and the other betas always let him lead their hunts before. Once Ben was proficient, he would naturally be the one to lead each hunt, but he would always have Kyle as his second to have the lesser wolf's experience to draw upon. They took off in their wolven forms, dashing through the trees, silent like bestial ninjas

as they ran through the night, making little noise as they went to avoid startling potential prey.

They ran several miles from the Den, traveling upwind to hide their scents from the wildlife they searched for, and heading further into the wilderness, when Kyle drew to a stop.

He sniffed the air, and Ben did so as well to take in the scent of a large, sweaty, hair covered animal. "Moose," Kyle said quietly. Ben memorized the way moose smelled as they began to spread out, circling around stealthfully with Ben following Kyle, who had been designated his official instructor.

"Be very quiet," Kyle said to him. The alpha had to mentally shake his head to get the voice of Elmer Fudd out of his thoughts. This wasn't the time for jokes. "The others are surrounding him," Kyle said as he edged his way forward, taking great care to avoid making more sound than was absolutely necessary. He paused and whispered in the Alpha's ear so softly that only Ben's superior lupine hearing caught the words. "The others will drive him towards us. I'll aim for the throat. You go for the shoulders or flanks if you can't get the neck. Try to sever the muscles to cripple him so he can't escape. Once he's down we can go for the killing blow." Ben nodded to show he understood. Kyle left out that they had never successfully hunted something so big before. Creatures such as this tended to escape them, but they had to try. There was no guarantee they would find another beast this night.

They edged forward slowly until the prey came into sight. The moose was massive; the single largest creature Ben had ever seen in his life. Even the monster that had changed his life forever hadn't been this huge. His muzzle started to water in anticipation. All that meat... It would feed the pack for the next three days, if not four. His claws and fangs itched, eager to be used. After tonight, he would cement his place in the food chain as a predator. After tonight, he would be a wolf in every way. This was his final test as an animal. He refused to go home humbled by defeat.

The beast was nothing more than a pile of dead meat that hadn't yet realized it.

The massive cervine tore foliage from a bush, munching away placidly. It was far from oblivious, however. Ben saw the moose's ears twitch about, scoping for any telltale signs that it was not alone. He could near the snuffle of it's breath and see the flare of it's nostrils as it tested the air continually for the slightest betraying scent.

There was a flash of golden eyes in the distance but it was so brief that Ben didn't know which of his wolves it was. He felt Kyle tense up beside him. "Get ready," was all the beta whispered softly. but it wasn't needed. Ben felt his instincts kick in as his body readied itself to pounce, his muscles tensing with power waiting to be unleashed.

Ken snarled as he charged out of the darkness. The moose bellowed in alarm and turned away, directly into the path of Luke, who rushed forward from the right. The moose, turned away again to find Steve barreling down upon him. Desperate, the gigantic cervine turned in the only direction left open and charged away... Heading right for the remaining two wolves.

Kyle lunged forward with a bloodthirsty snarl, Ben right behind him. The beast panicked and turned back to Steve, then in desperation, rammed into him with it's mighty antlers, knocking him off his feet to crash down onto the forest floor with a thud and a scattering of leaves. But Steve's action had slowed the moose's charge, and Ken reached it, snarling in fury as he leapt forward to latch onto the creature's side, digging in with his claws and sinking his fangs into the tough hide. His weight slowed the moose enough that Luke reached it and latched onto the cervine's flank, hindering it. The moose bellowed in fear and pain as it thrashed around, trying to free itself. Kyle stopped and ducked back as the thing's heavy rack swung around, forcing him back. He answered with a swat to the prey's muzzle, gouging the muzzle of the beast and drawing blood. The coppery smell of blood mixed with the stink of fear in the air, driving the werewolves' instincts into high gear.

Ben came in from the side and dug his claws into the shoulder of the moose, wounding the creature and handicapping it's movement further before he slashed downward at the neck, cutting open a deep wound in the moose's flesh. Steve got back to his feet and charged forward, tackling the other flank and driving the beast to the ground. As the creature lifted his head to wail in agony, Kyle lunged in and sank his fangs into the exposed throat, then dug into the flesh on either side of the bite with his clawed hands and yanked outwards, ripping a massive wound in the cervine's neck. Blood gushed forward spraying him in gore. Steve got up and rushed forward, grabbing the beast's head in his massive arms from behind the antlers, and pulled upwards and back, bending the neck upwards un an unnatural way with a roar of fury...

And with a loud, sickening, wet cracking sound, the moose's neck snapped, ending it's suffering along with it's life.

The pack sat there, panting with exertion and covered in blood. They had done it. Now they would eat well for the next few days, all thanks to their teamwork. Ben felt the double thrill of victory and completion. He was now a hunter wolf. A predator. He was top of the food chain now and had claimed his first prey. That he hadn't been the one to deliver the killing blow was unimportant. They had successfully hunted, and that was all that mattered. He felt as though his life was nearly complete. He sighed in satisfaction as the adrenaline faded from his system. Now he could hold his head high as a carnivore, knowing he was so savage and strong. He felt no pity or remorse for the kill. He only basked in the afterglow of their accomplishment. As he looked around, he saw them stare in awe at the kill.

"Dude," Ken growled in awe. "We've never bagged something so big before! That was incredible!"

Ben turned to his mate, who smiled at him, wagging his tail happily. "You okay?" the alpha asked.

Steve scoffed. "He just knocked me for a loop. I'm fine."

They rested for awhile, then heaving the gigantic corpse on their shoulders, made their way home victoriously...