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Lykos - Lone Wolf

Chapter 14

As the pack crunched their way through the snow, they mostly remained silent, savoring the experience of the night. For Luke, Kyle and Ken, it had been the best Moon Night they'd had in a long time. To Steve, the night had been like the old days, with his old pack, and he had enjoyed himself immensely. For Ben, however, it had been the experience of a lifetime. He felt sad that it was over now, but consoled himself that it was only a few more weeks until the power within him fully manifested again. It wasn't exactly an addiction, but the power had indeed been intoxicating. Part of him understood why they needed to be enclosed in a place they could not escape from, because it had been very difficult to control himself much of the time. He longed for that power once more, but understood just how dangerous it could be, and was willing to wait. As he walked, Ben noted something odd about himself... Something deep inside. Strangely, despite a full night of being awake, running, fighting and burning up energy, he still felt energized. He was almost jittery and felt like he could run a marathon...

Or three.

Ben looked to his pack mates and his hair fell into his eyes. *Is it really that long?* he wondered, realizing that his hair was now longer than he'd thought at first, when he had noticed it after changing back that it had overgrown rapidly. He felt his face and discovered that his normally short-trimmed beard was now rather shaggy and overgrown. As he looked at the betas, he noticed that the normally clean-shaven Kyle now sported a short beard, as did the others, not to mention the fact that their hair was all longer too. *I guess it's a side effect of going all the way,* he thought. *Well... I can trim it down once we get home... Or not...* he thought, glancing over at Kyle, who was scratching his face with an irritable expression, then to Steve, who was brushing his longer hair out his eyes wit a sigh of annoyance. Steve preferred to have hair so short it wasn't much past a buzz-cut, while Kyle whimpered often over the need to shave every few hours to maintain a smooth-skinned face. *I don't think I'll get to use the bathroom for grooming unless I force the issue. Nah, I'll make them happy and let them go first. Just so long as they don't start fighting over who goes first. If they do and I need to step in, I'll let Kyle go first as he seems to be the one in the most discomfort.*

They came out of the trees and headed back to the entrance to the sanctuary, but froze as they saw Lester walking towards then swiftly, looking furious. Ben tensed and growled in his human throat, his instincts still heightened from the effects of the now departed full moon. "Don't think this is over, Faggot!" Lester called out fiercely as he approached.

"There's no way I'm going to let you walk all over me!" He came up and shoved Ben hard but the alpha kept his footing and snarled as he began to transform into his wolf-man form in response to the threat against him.

"He beat you fair and square, Lester!" Steve snapped, glaring at the rival alpha's chin with a hostile expression.

"Watch your mouth, Omega!" Lester snapped, jabbing a finger at Steve's chest. "Don't go getting above your station unless you want me to beat the shit out of you!"

Steve growled, hating the wolf with a passion.

"And you, you fucking traitor," Lester said, glaring at Luke, his former omega, with utter disgust, "Not a word if you know what's good for you!"

Luke glared at Lester, remembering once more why he had left the pack. Lester was insufferable.

Ben snarled, trembling with rage. "Talk to my pack like that again and I'll shatter your jaw!"

"You want a piece of me?" Lester said, his fangs and claws extending. "Bring it on! This time you're going to learn your place!"

The werewolves readied themselves, the packs squaring off...

And the loud, piercing tone of a dog whistle made them all cover their ears in pain. "KNOCK IT OFF!" Mitchell said, coming forward rapidly, glaring at all of them. "Didn't you all get it out of your system last night?" he asked harshly.

As Ben recovered, he saw Berke coming out of the woods with his pack, all of whom were rubbing their ears to ease them of the pain of the whistle. "What was that for?" Berke said loudly, his ears still ringing.

"It wasn't meant for you," Mitchell said, looking very agitated.

"Mind you own business, Keeper!" Lester spat. "This doesn't concern you!"

"If it concerns werewolves, then it DOES involve me! Now shut up and list-"

"You shut the fuck up!" Lester snapped. "You have no right to treat me like a servant! I'll do whatever I DAMNED well please and if you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of it!"

Mitchell's face turned red. Ben hadn't known the keeper long, but he'd never looked so furious at anyone before as far as Ben knew. Mitchell was a normally firm, yet compassionate man, so his anger was rather shocking to Ben. Enraged, the keeper raised his hand and sent Lester sprawling sideways with a burst of telekinetic force.

"Back the fuck off, Human!" Lester snapped after he spat out a mouthful of snow. "I'm going to teach this worthless cocksucker a lesson!"

Berke snarled furiously at that. "SHUT UP LESTER! DON'T EVER LET ME HEAR YOU SAY THAT WORD AGAIN!"

"You're taking the side of this filthy pretender?!?" Lester spat.

"He'd make a better Head Alpha than someone like you! Besides, I'm through parroting my father's bigoted sermons, so if you ever say anything against gays again, I'll beat you into a coma!" he roared, making Mitchell blink in shock at the uncharacteristic behavior of the massive alpha wolf.

"Piss off, you lousy fag-lover! I always knew you had no spine!"

"You wanna see a spine?" Berke said as he began to transform. "LET'S SEE YOURS!"

Furious, Mitchell blew the dog whistle again, and most of the wolves reacted in pain to the friendly fire. "Please stop that!" Ken half shouted, half pleaded.

"Sorry guys," the keeper said, frowning with annoyance. "Lester, I do NOT have the time to deal with you right now! Either you stay and behave yourself, or get lost! I'm not in the mood right now!"

"Fine!" Lester snapped furiously, picked himself up, and stormed away with his pack in tow.

"Berke," Mitchell said, then paused as he noticed how differently the large alpha was behaving. *Since when was he gay-friendly?* "No more violence, there's already been enough bloodshed for one night."

In the distance, Monica and Angela came out of the woods, leading their packs to join the rest. Monica looked to Ben for a moment before dropping her gaze, somewhat bitterly, but without opposition. Angela walked up, as though moving as if in a dream, and stood nearby.

"Listen up everyone," Mitchell said firmly. "There's been a disappearance. A keeper from out of state was here, trying to track the direwolf last night, but he hasn't been heard from since before sunset. Did anyone hear anything?" The werewolves shook their heads, and the senior keeper sighed with regret. "Then we have no choice but to search the area for him and the direwolf." He opened a pack and held out a worn shirt. "This is the missing keeper's scent."

The packs came forward to sniff the garment over, memorizing the smell of the human.

"We need everyone to help search for them, both keeper and direwolf" Mitchell said.

"My pack is the most familiar with the East end of the area," Berke said. "We'll search there."

"Sounds good," Mitchell said. Berke nodded in parting to Ben, then took off running with his wolves close behind, stopping only to get their keepers to join them.

"What can we do?" Monica said, trying to overcome her resentment in light of the crisis at hand. "If there's a direwolf out there, it will need to be dealt with."

"If you find it," Ben said, taking the lead, "Don't engage. Call out to us and try to stall it if you can, but don't risk the safety of your pack trying to take it down."

"You defeated it," the female alpha said, feeling a twinge of respect for Ben's concern for the safety of her pack. "It can't be that hard to take down."

"I think I merely got lucky and surprised it; plus I think I zapped it in the eye."

Monica smirked in spite of herself, finding humor in that. "My pack is the fastest. We'll take the far end of the sanctuary and beyond."

"Stay safe and keep in touch. Remember; no unnecessary risks," Ben said gently.

Monica nodded, beginning to feel a grudging respect for him. "Let's go," she said to her pack, and they took off, heading North at a rapid pace.

Mitchell stared after her in shock. *Since when does Monica take orders like that? Is she really willing to follow Ben's commands? He must have impressed her pretty well for her to obey him like that.*

"My pack can take the West," Angela said, brushing her hair back from her face.

"Sounds good," Ben said, then as she turned to leave, he stopped her. "Angela?" She turned back to him with an expression of curiosity. "Why?" Ben asked with a frown of confusion. "Why did you just surrender without a fight?"

"I felt the power of your will and saw the strength you had left," she answered calmly. "Even after fighting Lester and James, I was uncertain I could beat you. Besides, I prefer a fair battle, and if you were still so strong then, I knew I could never defeat you when you were fresh, so it was pointless to try. You fought very well, by the way. Do you want to become Head Alpha?" she asked, tilting her head in curiosity that was more human than lupine.

"Yes," Ben said firmly.

"You already are as far as I'm concerned. I never cared to be Head Alpha, and if you are as strong and disciplined as you seem to be, I have no issue with you taking the role... I heard about your reaction in regards to the deer. If you feel so strongly about it, then I won't allow it to happen again," the mysterious female alpha said, then turned to her pack.

"Let's hunt," she said to them and lead the way into the wilderness at a run.

Ben could only stare after her in shock. "That was... Strange..." he finally said.

"Angela has never been predictable," Mitchell said with a sigh, "But once she DOES make her mind up about something, she sticks to that decision. I don't think she'll cause you any problems."

"Good to hear," Ben said. "That leaves the South to us, I guess."

"I'll come with you," Mitchell said, looking very worn out.

"You should go home and get to sleep," Ben said, frowning with concern.

"I'll be fine as long as I can get a lift," the keeper said.

"I'll carry you," Steve said before he shifted to his wolf-man form. The keeper climbed onto the offered back without protest.

"Where's Jack and Jessica?" Luke asked with worry.

"Coordinating the search effort. They'll meet up with us later. We need to go, before the trail gets cold."

"Let's go," Ben said, heading off across the road and into the wilderness, his pack close behind him.

As they ran, all senses keen for any trace of their quarry, Mitchell asked them about what had happened during the night. They told him everything except for the part about the mating, the keeper not needing to know about it, and he reacted with surprise. "Berke actually protected you from James' pack? I'm kind of shocked. I guess when Ben defeated him, he won both his respect and his loyalty."

"Good, having the strongest alpha after myself on my side will make things easier," Ben said as they ran.

"Don't discount Angela," Mitchell said. "She may not apply herself often, but when she does, she can be rather powerful and determined."

"What's wrong with her?" Ben asked. "She acts like she's always high, or something."

"She usually is, but with a past like hers, it's understandable for her to want to escape from reality as much as possible."

"What happened?" Ben asked.

Mitchell sighed. "She tried to come out as a werewolf to her sister about a year ago. When she transformed to show Beverly the proof, the woman panicked in terror and jumped out the window of a tenth story apartment to escape from her. Angela was devastated by her sister's death and has never forgiven herself for it. Now she spends most of her time lost in a drug-fueled haze. We've tried our best to help her cope, but it's been a long hard road trying to get her back to a measure of her old self. She doesn't even have any income of her own... Her pack supports her financially as she can't stay clean long enough to keep a job." The human sighed with regret.

If Ben had still been human, he would've asked how her pack could stand to be so burdened with an alpha who was like that; but as a werewolf, he understood. A pack stood together and took care of one another in their times of need, no matter how long it took. They supported each other in all ways necessary out of the bonds that went beyond mere love to a deep loyalty and compassion, coupled with a shared sadness of the pain one of their own felt. His own pack had proven as much last night as he had healed from his battles, and he knew he would do whatever it took to help them whenever they would be in need. He loved them too much not to do so.

Ben began to pity Angela, wondering if there was anything he could do to help her. He remained lost in thought as they dashed through the woods, hunting for the man and the monster who had wandered free last night...

*****

Monica's pack followed the scent of spilled blood to it's source, skidding to a halt with worry at the smell of silver in the air along with it. They approached cautiously and began to examine what little remains were left. Monica glared down at the sword. "This wasn't just a keeper," she said with disgust in her voice.

"A hunter?" Dudley asked with a frown.

"An assassin," Monica replied with resentment.

"Wait," Jennifer said, brushing her long black hair away from her face, "Keepers have assassins?"

"I've heard of them, but I've never seen one myself," Monica said grimly.

"You never will see an assassin," Melissa said, the keeper walking forward with a grim expression. "The only time one would be near you is to kill you and you'd still never know they were there until after they struck."

Monica felt an ice-cold trickle of fear go down her back. "The keepers must be desperate to call in an assassin."

"The direwolf must be eliminated," Melissa said bluntly, her red-haired ponytail drifting down over her shoulder as she bent down to examine the remains of the severed head before she sighed heavily. *So much for reading Wilkins' final thoughts,* she thought with a frown. She closed her eyes and reached out with her senses, but felt nothing out of the ordinary and no traces of the creature who had killed the man. She sighed with a mixture of disgust and worry, unable to figure out why she could find no trace of the direwolf.

"There's no tracks except the keeper's," Dudley said with worry.

"He's right," Parker said, looking around.

"That's impossible," Melissa said, staring around with a frown of confusion. "Can anyone catch a scent?"

"He was here," Dudley said, "but I can't tell which direction he went in and with no tracks to follow, it's like he vanished."

"That's impossible," Melissa said with a frown, "something physical killed this man... There has to be some trace of it," she finished in a tone of disbelief as Monica stared at the remains with a cold expression...

*****

Berke stood there, frowning as Ferris examined the husk of the direwolf. The burly alpha grimaced from the stench of the rotting flesh, wishing they could dispose of it alrady so that he could go somewhere with cleaner air. The strange thing was that there were no tracks of any kind. It was as if the monster had suddenly appeared there out of nowhere, like it had dropped down out of the sky, then keeled over and died before something tore its way out of the thing's stomach. Stranger still, there weren't even any tracks of the person who had emerged from the husk. It was like they had torn free and flew away like a bird.

The pack sniffed around, but the only scents were those of the snow and trees as well as the decaying husk itself.

"This makes no sense!" Ferris said. "There HAS to be something! A direwolf doesn't just teleport in, die and the human side teleport away the instant he frees himself from the husk!"

"Well we can't smell anything except that filthy thing," Dennis grumbled, nodding at the husk.

"Can't you use your magic?" Wallace asked, turning to the keeper.

Ferris closed his eyes and concentrated for several minutes, frowning. Finally, his eyes opened with concern. "Nothing! I can't sense anything about the direwolf at all! It's like it doesn't exist!"

"Doesn't exist?!?" Dennis exploded. "Then what the fuck is that?!?" he demanded fiercely, pointing at the husk.

"CALM DOWN!" the alpha barked. "Yelling won't change anything!" Berke said with a sigh of frustration, then as he calmed himself down, he turned as his mate squeezed up close.

"Berke," Misty said, looking afraid, "what's going on?"

"I don't know," he rumbled, wrapping a protective arm around her as she began to tremble with fear...

"I just don't know..."

*****

Mitchell felt a vibration in his pocket. "Stop. I'm getting a call from the others." the pack skidded to a stop. "Let me down," he told Steve, who complied.

Ben watched as Mitchell pulled what looked like a sphere of clear glass the size of a large marble from his pocket, held it in his hand, and as it began to glow with a pale blue illumination that radiated outwards from its center, he stared into it intensely. The werewolf was disturbed as he watched. "What's he doing?" he whispered to Kyle in a voice so soft the human couldn't hear it.

"They use those stones to share knowledge with others," Kyle whispered back in the same manner. "Kind of a magical version of a cell phone. Mitchell's the one who developed them. It's kind of a new thing he's testing and it seems to work pretty well so far, from what I can tell. It can't be hacked into as easily as a cellphone conversation."

Ben shuddered. *First telekinesis, then roots out of the ground, a magical barrier and now psychic communication? Is there anything these keepers can't do?* he wondered, finally beginning to understand just how powerful the magical humans were and resolving to avoid pissing them off as his respect for and fear of the keepers increased.

Mitchell sighed as the glow within the sphere faded, then pocketed it, looking deeply worried. "We can head back," he said heavily. "Monica found what little is left of the keeper and Berke found the direwolf's husk. It somehow managed to hide it's tracks. There's no way to locate it."

"You mean the thing that turned me into a werewolf killed someone and escaped again!?" Ben exclaimed angrily.

"Yes," the keeper said with disgust.

"How? That thing was the size of a car, for crying out loud! Even bigger than I am when I'm primal! There's no fucking way it just disappeared like that! It's got-"

"ENOUGH!" Mitchell snapped, trembling in rage. Ben paled and went silent, not daring to push the keeper. The human took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I understand how you feel, Ben," MItchell said tiredly, "but for now, there's nothing we can do. He could be anywhere by now... We need to come up with another plan. We need help."

"There's the other packs," Luke said. "You saw them; they recognize Ben as Head Alpha now! Angela said so, Monica was willing to work with us and Berke understands how it is now! That's something, at least!"

"But James and Lester are still fighting me," Ben said heavily. "My authority over the packs isn't complete."

"Don't worry about Lester," Mitchell said, rubbing his eyes. "As for James... We'll need to play this carefully. Let's head back." Steve took the human onto his back and they took off, heading back the way they came.

"Why not round up James and his pack at the sanctuary?" Ben asked. "I know you can't do it before moonrise, but what about the morning after?"

Mitchell shook his head. "He's thought of that, sad to say. He has them scatter the instant the barrier comes down. We just don't have enough people to police the entire length of it to catch them. James is a lot of things, but stupid isn't one of them."

Ben sighed in disgust as they ran, wondering how they would end the rogue alpha's threat...

They arrived at the entrance to the sanctuary to find Jack, Jessica and Helen all practically dead on their feet with exhaustion.

"What happened?" Ben asked them. "Mitchell said the direwolf killed the missing keeper and escaped."

"Yes," Jack replied heavily with bags under his eyes from being up all night. "What's worse is that all tracks, scents and magically trackable traces of the direwolf have vanished, even the physical tracks in the snow. It's like Wilkins was killed by a ghost, except for the husk."

"I want to see it," Ben said, shocking Jessica.

"Why?" she asked with revulsion.

"I want to see the thing that turned me. I want to know what it looks and smells like so I can hunt it down and destroy it!"

Jack shook his head. "Sorry, but the husk is being destroyed as we speak."

Ben sighed with resignation. "Guess I'll see it once we kill the damned thing, but some advanced intel would've been helpful." He saw then just how tired the keepers were and let his breath out slowly. While the werewolves could still go on, the humans clearly could not. "Let's head home. You two have more than earned your rest." He paused. "But you have to work today," Ben added to Jack with concern.

"Fuck it," the human mumbled, rubbing eyes that burned with fatigue. "I'll call in sick. There's no way I can concentrate on work today; especially after all of this."

They said goodbye to Mitchell and Helen, then headed for home with heavy hearts...

*****

Ben stood there with the rest of the pack as they gathered around Kyle's computer to watch the video. While each of the werewolves knew what the others of their pack looked like in their primal forms, to each of them it was a revelation to see themselves looking so drastically different from their human or wolf-man forms. Ken smiled as he saw himself.

"See? I knew I was bad ass!" he bragged, taking in his black-furred, sleek primal form.

Luke found that he looked rather sexy as well. He'd always loved seeing Ken go primal, but to see himself beside his mate, sporting the lush brown fur that did indeed bare a similarity to his humanoid hair as the others claimed, he thought they made for a rather sexy couple.

Steve swelled in pride to see himself in the form that embodied the fullness of his lycanthropic power. "Wow," he said softly. "I knew I was huge in primal form, but not that big! Look how much taller we are than the humans!"

Ben nodded. "Especially me!" he said with a stunned expression. "I think the only other wolf bigger than me around here is Berke!" The alpha became silent for a moment as the betas agreed with his statement, watching himself and feeling a sexual stirring in his shorts. *I'm actually getting aroused by the sight of myself? Maybe Jessica has a point about the narcissist remark! ...But stilll... I look pretty fucking hot! I can't wait for next month! I hope I don't have to fight so hard then... I'd rather spend the night mating and running than be occupied with tearing into the other alphas and disciplining the lesser wolves.*

Kyle watched the scene with him and Helen, smiling when she said 'He's so adorable!' "I am, aren't I?" he said, earning a chuckle from the others.

The video ended, and Kyle glanced at the icon in far right side of the toolbar which flashed once to show the task was completed and held himself perfectly still to avoid betraying anything with body language.

"Alright, guys," Jack said in a no nonsense manner after the playback finished. "Show's over. Hand it over, Kyle."

"Oh come on!" the pack protested.

"We want to watch it again," Ben pleaded.

"You've watched it five times in a row, now give it!" Jack ordered.

The pack frowned, looking mutinous. Jack sighed and held up a dog whistle. "Don't make me force the issue," he said firmly.

"Give him the memory card, Kyle," Ben said with resignation.

"Yes, Alpha," Kyle wilted, removing it from the card port of the computer and handing it to the keeper.

"I know it seems unfair," Jack said, walking over to the butcher block, "but we can't risk this getting out to the public. It could spell doom for all your kind." He set it on the chopping block, picked up a metal meat tenderizer... And didn't stop hitting the blue plastic SD card until it was nearly powder before he swept the remains into a garbage bag.

The pack nodded, seeing the wisdom of the keeper's logic, but still feeling sad that it would likely be the only time they would ever get to see what they looked like under the influence of the full moon.

With heavy hearts, they wandered away from the computer after Kyle shut it off while biting his tongue nervously...

*****

For the rest of the week, the keepers tried in vain to find any traces of the direwolf, who seemed only to exist long enough to attack someone during the full moon before vanishing, leaving behind only one transformed man, a mutilated corpse and two direwolf husks to show that it even existed at all. The lack of tracks in the snow deeply disturbed everyone, sparking a series of debates over how the creature had done it.

Jessica vanished mid-afternoon Saturday and didn't reappear until shortly before Robert arrived, wearing her solstice gift dress, her long hair done up elaborately at the top of her head, and a tasteful application of makeup and jewelry with a fur coat Luke told Ben was fake, earning the woman's ire for his blunt, yet accurate statement. Fortunately, she had gone easy on the perfume in difference to the strong sense of smell of the wolves, much to their relief.

Robert arrived right on time, looking very handsome in a black suit that was just short of being a tuxedo, and escorted her away. She returned home four hours later, looking happier than the betas could ever remember her being, and knew the date had gone very well. Before she retired for the evening, the lady keeper hinted that it would be followed by at least a fore others...

Ben resumed training the pack. They had fended off James' lackeys well enough, but would need to become stronger and more competent fighters if they were to be the dominant pack of the region. Ben would not be challenged often, hopefully, but his betas were likely to need to defend themselves more often, so the Head Alpha wanted them to be strong enough to stand up for themselves.

He was pleased with their progress, as well as having achieved much of his dream. James would need to be dealt with. Ben refused to let such a cruel and ruthless wolf run around unchecked. The thought that James was still running free and unsubmissive set Ben's teeth on edge, both because his superiority wasn't being acknowledged by the rogue alpha, as well as the fact that he was a serious threat to the safety of the werewolf community the world over.

*Will I end up needing to kill him?* Ben wondered to himself. He hoped not; killing was a very serious thing, and Ben didn't want to be a murderer. He found himself wishing that James would settle down instead and start being a productive member of the community. The thought of having to kill him made Ben feel sick inside, and would be the absolute last resort, regardless of just how much Ben hated him.

Lester, however, was also a concern, but Mitchell said he would handle it, then told Ben his plan. Ben nodded and agreed to the plan, seeing that it was ultimately for the best...

*****

Lester stood there in Mitchell's living room, a pale white glow radiating from the walls, ceiling and floor to act as both barrier and sound-proofing along with having the curtains closed for visual privacy from the outside world. The alpha bristled at what he had just been told. "You're kidding, right?" he said in a dangerous tone, glaring at the keeper.

"No," Mitchell replied firmly, "I'm not. You're being relocated for the stability of the region as well as for your behavior."

"RELOCATED?!? YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT!!!" Lester screamed in outrage as his lupine power surged forward, causing him to transform rapidly, his tail bristling and as rigid as the rest of his body, fangs bared in a snarl.

"We have every right!" Mitchell stated firmly, starting at the wolf with a look of contempt. "I've TRIED working with you, Lester! I've tried, but you stonewall me constantly! Your hatred of humans has blinded you to reason! Being a werewolf may make you physically superior to humans, but it DOES NOT make you better then them! You thumb your nose at the keepers and ignore everything we do for you, then you harass Monica's family so badly that they flee the state in fear because you have the idiotic notion that werewolves don't need human relatives in their lives, and now you're picking fights and not having the good grace to surrender after your loss to a superior wolf, then lash out at him in retaliation for your defeat, rather than have the good grace to accept your loss with dignity! You've always cared only about yourself and never gave a damned about how your actions reflect on all of us, keeper AND werewolf alike! I'm stick of fighting you all the time on everything Lester! My patience has reached its end! It's time you learned some humility!"

"So that's how it is, huh?" Lester said, his growling voice full of contempt. "You want all of us to bow down and worship you keepers as gods, is that it? Well think again! You may have the others all slobbering at your feet, but I at least have some self-respect! I refuse to be a slave to anyone, werewolf OR keeper, let alone normal humans! You can take your godhood and shove it up your ass!"

Mitchell glared at Lester with resentment for a moment, then sighed and changed his expression to match the sadness he felt. "It's not like that, Lester," he said, shaking his head slowly. "It's not like that at all. You never could see that everything the keepers do is for your sake, not ours. It's not about playing god, it's about keeping you all safe and happy... Helping you to control yourselves so that no one gets hurt and your kind aren't discovered. THAT is what the keepers do. We don't want to be gods for you to worship... We want to be your friends... Your family. Only YOU choose to see it as enslavement."

"Bullshit!" Lester spat fiercely, trembling with suppressed fury.

The keeper shook his head. "It's not... I wish you could understand, but you chose not to. I find your opinion of humans strange, seeing as how you used to be one yourself..." Mitchell added, tilting his head thoughtfully.

"Don't talk about that!" the alpha snarled. "I'm not weak and pathetic anymore!"

Mitchell just shook his head sadly. "You're being relocated. End of story."

Lester roared, but the keeper was ready. He used his power to pin the werewolf's feet to the floor the same way he had done to Ben. Lester thrashed and roared in fury, but impotently. Finally his anger broke and his lower jaw trembled. "You don't have the right!" he said thickly.

Mitchell felt pity for him. "I'm sorry it has to be like this, Lester, but I DO have the right. Your actions threaten ALL werewolves... Not only the ones here, but ALL werewolves the world over! I was hoping that your loss to Ben would've humbled you some, but you're too prideful for that."

"Ben," Lester spat resentfully, "your new favorite lapdog!"

Mitchell snorted. "Ben is anything but a lapdog. He's Head Alpha now, whether you like it or not. Since you refuse to acknowledge him as such and continue to cause trouble with your pointless feud with Monica, I'm not being given a choice. You have to be moved elsewhere for the safety and stability of the region."

"What about James? You can't handle him on your own," Lester said in a thoughtful, calculating manner.

Mitchell grew furious. "Don't you dare act like you care about that!" He snapped, nearly losing his temper. "I practically begged you for your help in handling him and you thumbed your nose at us! Don't even try to use that as a bargaining chip! James will be dealt with in time, but that is not your concern! Not anymore it's not! You're moving, end of discussion!"

"Where?" Lester said, not willing to let the matter drop.

Mitchell sighed and took a deep breath to calm himself. "The original plan was to move you to Montana to a wolf preserve, but there's already another troubled alpha there and we don't need you making a scene, so we're instead moving you to Pennsylvania. They have a wildlife sanctuary there where you can get away from humans, if they bother you so much."

"What about my pack? What'll happen to them?" Lester asked, trying to hide his worry and showing the first bit off concern for someone other than himself.

"They can go with you, if they wish. Those who wish to stay can see about joining some of the other packs or move elsewhere, if they wish. I'd prefer to keep you all together, which is the most likely scenario, so if they want to follow their alpha, they can go with you."

Lester didn't like the way it was being handled. He wanted his pack with him. "They'll be coming with me," he said, "assuming I decide to go along with this."

Mitchell frowned, his face bearing a dangerous look. He stepped forward, lifted his hand, and a palm-sized ball of fire erupted into existence within it. "You have no say in the matter! You! Are! Going!" he said with emphasis, staring Lester in the eyes as the flame he held reflected deep within his own, giving the normally polite, respectful man a sinister look. "Unless, of course, I need to come up with a more permanent solution... I refuse to get my own hands dirty, if given the option, so I could always call in a keeper assassin, if you force me to."

Lester paled, his tail tucking between his legs as a look of fear came over him. "You wouldn't!" he wheezed, beginning to tremble all over as his eyes bulged.

"I will if you make this more difficult that it already is. I'd prefer not to have you killed, but I will if it's a choice between that and having the secret of the werewolves' existence jeopardized. Am I going to have to call for one of them?" he asked grimly.

Lester shook his head rapidly, his eyes still wide with fear. "No..." he mumbled.

"Good," Mitchell said, extinguishing the ball of flame. "Now put your wolf away, go home and start packing. We'll tell your pack mates for you and inform you of their decisions. A moving van will arrive first thing in the morning, so be ready for it. If you cause any trouble, you won't be around long enough to regret it."

Lester's feet were freed, he changed to human form, and left quickly once the barrier around the room had released.

He reached his car quickly and headed directly for home, full of resentment and fear, the resentment somewhat stronger. *Fine,* he thought, pulling out his phone as his confidence returned, *but not before I get a little revenge for this humiliation!*

~"Hello?"~ A male voice said, sounding full of contempt for being bothered.

"Hey James," Lester said with a nasty smile. "Couldn't help but notice how you needed your brainwashed cronies to save your worthless ass from the newbie."

~"Fuck you, Lester! You better show me respect!"~

"I only respect power, James, and I couldn't help but notice how you got you ass handed to you... And after I wore him down for you, no less... I always knew you didn't have what it takes to be an alpha."

~"You filthy nig-"~

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT WORD!" Lester snapped furiously, reacting instantly and cutting him off. "You must be fucking retarded to think I'd let anyone use that word against me! And don't take your own frustrations out on me! I'm not the one who beat you! If anything, -I- should be the one who's pissed! I won't be doing someone else's dirty work for them! If you want to kick Ben's ass then do it on your own and not sneak around like a coward, letting someone else wear him down for you! Even after I did, you STILL couldn't beat him! You're a pathetic weakling AND a fucking coward!"

~"You think I'm afraid?!? I'm not afraid of anyone!"~

"Well you sure looked scared, running away from him with your tail between your legs and whining like a terrified puppy while your flunkies covered for you!"

~"You think I can't handle some worthless faggot?!? I'll show you how strong I am! I'll beat the shit out of him, then I'm coming for you, Lester, so you'd better be ready to grovel at my feet!"~

"We'll see," Lester said smugly, then hung up.

He drove the rest of the way home with that same smug smile on his face, knowing that James wouldn't be able to resist taking the bait after his humiliating loss to Ben...

*****

Ben made another pass over his beard with the trimmer before he was finally satisfied with the results and turned it off, then examined himself in the mirror. Ken appeared at the doorway and looked at the alpha's reflection with an expression of appreciation. "Looking good, Boss Man," he said. "I see you're letting your hair grow out."

Ben ran a hand through the thicker hair he had taken to sporting after Moon Night. It was about an average of four to five inches in length now on the sides and back, and short in the front in the layered and wavy style, which softened his formerly aggressive style to something more civilian in nature. "You like it? I'm trying for the 'Al Parker' look," he said, referencing a famous porn star from the eighties. With his longer hair and the beard that still covered most of his lower face, he definitely looked like a close approximation of the legendary superstar of the porn industry.

"I have no idea who that is," the Japanese wolf said with a shrug and a sad expression for the alpha using a dated reference from before his time.

Ben sighed in disgust. "You're not THAT young!" he grumbled. "I'm only twelve years older than you. You need to get some culture."

"I have culture, it's just mostly Japanese," the beta said with another shrug. "But still, I like you like this," he said, edging up close.

Ben gazed into the lesser wolf's brown eyes lustfully, shivered with need and pulled him in for a deep kiss, concentrating to keep his wolf in check. Ken moaned in pleasure and squeezed his body up to his alpha, starting to lose himself in the heat of the moment. He felt himself start to change forms, and broke away with effort as he reigned the lupine power back in.

"Please don't... I need to get going for work," the beta said with a whimper.

"I know," Ben said huskily; "but I love you and wanted to show you how much you make me happy, especially with the compliment you just gave me."

"We still haven't had the chance to mate... Just the two of us," Ken said with a sigh of regret.

"I know. I'm rather curious as to how good you are in bed... Or wherever we end up doing it," the alpha teased with a smile. "But soon," he said, making it a promise.

Ken sighed, gave a quick human-tongued lick on Ben's fuzzy cheek, which he returned to Ken's own bearded cheek, then took his leave. The Asian man had given up on having smooth cheeks when he said the other day that it was too much of a hassle to maintain. Fortunately, the food industry allowed for facial hair, so long as it was trimmed short and kept well maintained, which meant a trip to the bathroom every break and lunch to keep it short, but Ken could now have less of a hassle in keeping himself well groomed, what with the lesser effort now required to keep himself looking presentable.

Ben liked him better with the beard anyways; it complemented his lupine nature nicely. Ben hadn't been very attracted to him with just the goatee, as Ben had only been interested in other white guys before. Now with the beard to make his normally angular face look more rugged, the alpha found himself more drawn to the beta than before. Ben had always been a face man, and had somewhat narrow tastes in facial structure. Only some other white men had faces he had liked, the bone structures of other races not nearly as appealing to him. Skin color, however, was irrelevant as far as he was concerned; it was all in the shape of the face. Now Ken looked rather hot to him, thanks to the increase in facial hair.

*Which only proves than I'm a shallow jerk,* Ben thought to himself with shame and annoyance.

His human-formed ears caught the sound of Ken's motorcycle starting up before he sped away. With him leaving, and Steve and Luke at work, Ben and Kyle were the only wolves left in the Den. The keepers were off at a secret meeting to discuss the threat of the direwolf and what it's vanishing traces meant. Ben had wanted to go, but Mitchell had told him that it was a keepers-only meeting, promising to share with him the results of the discussion he was allowed to know. The alpha grumbled at that, but let the matter go for now.

Sighing with regret, Ben made his way downstairs and into the kitchen to find Kyle hard at work, frowning at the computer screen. Ben left him alone to concentrate on his work, opened the cupboard and pulled out a box of milk bones, walked over to the sink as he pulled one out, then bit into it while leaning over the sink. Eating the tough canine treats was a difficult task to do without getting crumbs everywhere and plates had proven to be too small to catch all of the fallout, so he had relegated himself to eating them directly over the sink. *Maybe I should go with the smaller ones I can just pop into my mouth,* he speculated. *Less of a mess that way.*

Kyle let out a growl of frustration and leaned back in his computer chair. "Fuck! Why can't I figure this out? It's driving me crazy!" In his agitation, Kyle was beginning to change forms. He sighed explosively as his proto-muzzle formed. His tail thumped hard against the floor, acting like a stomping foot to vent his frustrations.

Ben walked over to him and began to massage the beta's shoulders. "What's the problem?"

"I think it's malware," Kyle grumbled, closing his eyes. "Fucking hackers... Like they don't have anything better to do with their lives! It's just a research site on psychology, of all things, so what's the point of messing with it other than to prove that they can? It keeps trying to reroute the viewer to spam links. The site owners may have to make it a legal issue against the companies the spam advertizes for. It's going to be such a headache."

"How long have you been at this?" Ben asked.

Kyle groaned and looked back to the clock on his computer. "Urgh! Four hours now! No wonder I'm so worn out!" He sighed explosively. "I've definitely earned a break."

"Come spend time with me," Ben said huskily. "I can get your mind off your troubles," he said suggestively, letting his wolven power come out as he changed forms.

Kyle murred in pleasure at the idea. "Let me save my progress... What little I've made, that is," he finished with a wry expression.

"Give me a kiss first," Ben said softly, them moaned into Kyle's proto-muzzle as his own finished forming.

Kyle murred again as his canine tongue dipped into the alpha's muzzle to slide against Ben's own canine tongue. "I can taste the milk bones on you... I can smell them... Can I have some? Please?" Kyle begged as Ben pulled back, gazing up at his chin with puppy-dog eyes as he whined pleadingly.

"Thank you for asking this time," Ben said with appreciation. "But you still owe me replacements for the ones you stole... You know," he teased, able to let the matter drop, thanks to his new found level of control over his instincts which allowed him to experience them without them controlling his every thought and action. He was still animalistic in nature, for the most part, but now he didn't let his temper rule him. "You know, for a wolf you sure act like a pig sometimes..."

"You're mean," Kyle pouted, his ears drooping.

Ben gave him a quick lick on the nose. "Save your progress," Ben said, letting him up and going back to the cupboard for the box of canine treats as Kyle did so. Ben came back over with the box, took one into his mouth, then leaned down. Kyle opened his muzzle to take the treat, but as he grabbed it, Ben bit the biscuit in half, claiming part of it for himself. He kept his lips pressed to the beta's as they munched on the halves of the treat, breaking it up with their powerful jaws as they shared a closed mouth kiss.

"More," Kyle whispered, so Ben kissed him deeply. As he pulled away, Kyle whimpered. "I meant more treats."

"I know," Ben said with a smile, his tail wagging lazily, then took a second one and gently placed it on Kyle's tongue, the beta snapping his jaws closed quickly on instinct, before he lowered his head to safely munch away on it and barely missing the alpha's fingers as he bit down.

"Careful," Ben said to him in a mildly chiding way. "Leave me with something to hold them with."

"Sorry," Kyle said apologetically, the food making him slur his speech.

"I think you mean 'oink'," Ben half chided, half teased. Kyle whimpered. "Well you act so greedy when it comes to food that you'll end up fat if you're not careful."

"Werewolves have high metabolisms, It'd take a way bigger appetite than mine to make me a porker."

"Better safe than sorry," Ben said, closing the box and making Kyle whimper. "Hey... You wanna mate or not?" He saw Kyle mull that over, sniffing intently at the box while panting in anticipation of having sex as his musk began to grow stronger. "I'll take that as a yes," Ben said, putting the box back in the cupboard. Kyle began to whimper, clearly wanting treats AND sex. "Move your ass, Beta! I want to fuck it," Ben growled huskily.

Kyle saw that the needs of his alpha were ones he didn't want to deny, both from his submissive nature and from the excitement of finally getting a mating between just the two of them... He'd finally get the alpha all to himself for once, so he eagerly complied.

They hurried upstairs and entered the bedroom, the scents of themselves mixed with those of their pack mates surrounding them, along with the traces of old musk and spent semen. Ben closed the door that used to be the one to his and Steve's room. "Close the other door," he said.

"But no one else will be home for a few hours," Kyle said.

"I know, but it'll trap the musk in here better. I want us to be swimming in it," Ben answered with a smile. Grinning, Kyle eagerly complied, then removed his shorts to face his now naked alpha, Ben's plump proto-sheath bulging slightly with a hint of pinkish red poking out of the opening. "Come here, Wolfie," Ben said with a sly smile. Kyle approached him to stand before him, ears perked up and quivering slightly in anticipation, waiting for instructions. With his submissive nature, Kyle wanted his alpha to take the lead, so Ben did so by reaching up with both hands and, being mindful of his sharp claws, pinched the beta's nipples softly, making Kyle moan and throw his head back in bliss at the stimulation to his tender anatomy. "Aha!" Ben growled at the display, "so that's what puppy likes, huh?"

"Uh huh," Kyle moaned, his nose pointed to the ceiling as his tail curled upwards in bliss as his tongue flopped out the side of his proto-muzzle.

"What else does puppy like?" Ben cooed, continuing to stroke the nipples tenderly.

"That," Kyle said in a near whimper of pleasure.

"What?" Ben asked softly, not understanding.

"I like when I'm treated like an animal... Like a big, cuddly puppy... 'Cause that's what I am... I like being instinctual and treated that way when I mate..." he said, moaning and speaking in a near whimper of bliss as Ben continued to stimulate his nips.

The alpha thought back to the few times he had mated with this particular pack mate with the other betas. Kyle was rather quiet during matings and spoke rarely, if at all. He tended to act more instinctual while intimate, apparently feeling that speaking wasn't necessary. Ben liked the idea, and wanted to make his pack mate enjoy the experience. He wanted their first solo mating to be highly enjoyable for the lesser wolf because he loved him and wanted him to be happy. He leaned in to lick and nibble gently at Kyle's exposed throat, being extra careful to avoid breaking the skin with his sharp fangs.

He pulled back as the beta reached down and around to cup the alpha's buttocks in his hands and squeezed them for a few moments before he lightly drug his claws upwards over the alpha's flesh; not hard enough to break the skin, but enough to give a strong sense of stimulation. Ben's reaction shocked the both of them. The alpha snarled lustfully and stared into Kyle's eyes with his own wide in reaction, feeling both shock and erotic bliss that made him tremble with reaction. Kyle stared into his alpha's eyes, looking at him in shock at the strength of Ben's reaction.

"More!" Ben snarled lustily in a feral manner, feeling incredible and his voice growling so deeply that the word was barely recognizable.

Kyle felt a surge of excitement at that and eagerly complied, dragging his claws up the alpha wolf's buttocks and then continuing up his back to the base of the shoulder blades.

Ben became lost in erotic euphoria, snarling before hanging his head back to face the ceiling with his long canine tongue hanging out the right side of his proto-muzzle. Kyle pulled back slightly and switched to raking his claws gently down the alpha's front, making Ben growl lustily and shoot a blast of pre onto the beta's stomach from his rising erection.

For a moment, Kyle was worried that he was pushing the alpha too far, driving him too deeply into his instincts; but when Ben lowered his face to look his pack mate in the eyes, there was still sanity along with love in them. Even in the throes of intense passion, the alpha was in control; indulging his instincts without losing himself to his bestial nature.

Kyle relaxed, daring to go further without fear; Ben knew how to control himself while getting the most from the experience. With his fears proven false, Kyle began to rake away gently at the alpha's skin beneath the thick body hair his wolven form sported, making him growl and snarl in pleasure. As he did so, the beta felt a swell of pride and accomplishment. HE, HE had been the one to discover this about the alpha of his pack, and he loved giving the greater wolf joy, so he worked his claws for all they were worth.

Ben's brain melted into a warm, quivering puddle of goo within his skull at the intensely pleasurable sensations that washed over him from the gentle clawing. He had always tried his best to be careful with them, treating his natural weaponry as the dangerous tools they were, and had never considered that they could bring joy as well as pain. The beta had taught the alpha something new, and Ben loved him all the more for it.

Finally, his knees went weak from pleasure, so Ben moved them over to the bed and away from the small puddle of pre they had made on the floor. They laid on the bed, Ben carefully arranging his tail for comfort as he laid down on his back, and Kyle laid down on his side, his head in Ben's lap, and took the alpha's drooling shaft into his mouth as he drug his claws once more down the alpha's chest, making him snarl yet again in erotic bliss.

Ben worked his way backwards on the bed, Kyle squirming to keep his position, and soon Ben had his head resting on Kyle's pillow. He reached down to squeeze the pup's nipple, making him moan around the shaft in his mouth. Kyle curled his dexterous tongue around the alpha's wolf meat using the experience of a lifetime of having such a tongue to his advantage to give the best blowjob he could.

"That's it, Pup," the alpha growled lustily."Suck my wolf boner!"

The alpha bore down on his groin, releasing more of his potent, spicy musk into the air. Being right at the point of release, it struck the beta like a hammer wrapped in velvet, and he moaned as his instincts sharpened further, making him growl in pleasure. Ben growled at him. "More musk," he growled. "Let it out, Pup. I want to smell how fucking sexy an animal you are." Kyle murred in pleasure and did as commanded. He heard Ben sniff the air. "FUCK YEAH!" Ben growled savagely, his voice so deep the windows near his head rattled in their frames. "YEAH!"

He reached down, pulled Kyle off of his shaft, then used the beta's face like a sponge to mop up the musk that dampened his groin, painting him in it. Kyle growled lustily, looking up at him with dilated pupils. Ben saw how wild he was driving his love, so he took his free hand and grabbing his throbbing wolf meat, began spanking Kyle's face with it, jets of precum shooting up to rain down on top of the lesser wolf's head.

He pulled Kyle's head back and held it there. "Open up and stick out your tongue... Make it a trough!" he ordered, and when the beta complied, aimed his blood-red phallus and shot his wolven cock honey in squirt after manly squirt onto the offered tongue, the flat, long, wide appendage acting like a half-cylinder. He filled it with his pre as Kyle began to whimper, the tongue twitching.

"STAY!" the alpha wolf ordered, getting another whimper in response. Savor it... Keep it there. Can you feel it? Can you taste it? The raw, masculine lupine power of your alpha, right there on your tongue? You want it, don't you Puppy. You want to eat it up so bad, huh?" Kyle began to drool copiously, fighting hard not to disobey and swallow. "How's a good puppy?" Ben asked, making the beta wag his tail.

Kyle held still, except for his tail, and whimpered with need. "Puppy wants his treat?" Ben asked huskily, playing to the instincts of his beta. "You want it so bad, don't you puppy?" Kyle's canine whimpers were so adorable, yet tortured, that the alpha relented after one last tease. "Yeah, Puppy wants to eat up his treat... I wanna see him savor it. Eat up, Puppy!" he said sharply, and the beta moaned in ecstasy as he swallowed the precum on his tongue.

"Fuck yeah! Slurp it up. Taste the power of your alpha," Ben growled lustily. Then once Kyle was finished, he aimed his tapered phallus and pulled the beta's mouth onto it. "FUCK YEAH!" he snarled deeply as his shaft was licked and sucked. "SUCK MY FUCKING COCK!" Then he devolved to growling an snarling with passion as he was pleasured. He reached down, wiped his face through the sweaty musk seeping from his groin, and painted his face with it, getting a natural high off of his own pheromones.

They continued this way for some time, releasing copious amounts of musk and letting the potent scent of their secretions make their heads swim in a natural high as a warm lust-fueled fuzziness clouded their consciousness and heightened the pleasure they both felt. Ben continued to growl and snarl like human porn star Zak Spears, who was one of his favorites, as he was serviced, but finally came out of his revere to look with at Kyle. "You want me to suck you off?" he growled lustily, wanting the beta to get as much out of the experience as he himself was.

Kyle surprised the alpha by shaking his head. "I just want to make you feel good, Alpha. I don't need to get off right now." It was mostly because Kyle had already had two orgasms early that morning as he watched the video of them, masturbating blissfully to the copy of the video of them in their primal forms he had secretly made, so he was willing to focus solely on making Ben feel sexual gratification, wanting to show his alpha how much he loved him.

"Okay," Ben said, his surprise fading as Kyle raked his chest again, making the superior wolf growl in satisfaction, and push his chest outwards into the claws which gave him the delicious torture that drove him wild with pleasure.

After awhile, Ben began to buck his hips ever so slightly, but pulled Kyle's hair gently without causing pain to guide his head up so he could kiss him. "Climb up into my lap, Pup. I wanna bury my bone in the yard," Ben growled lustfully.

It took a second for the meaning to sink in, but Kyle murred in pleasure and did as instructed. "You control it," Ben instructed. "I want you to enjoy this as much as I will." Kyle just murred in response as he took the alpha's penis in his hand and guided it into place, then rubbed the pointed tip all over his anus as precum oozed forth, painting the entrance to his body in wolf honey. Once he was satisfied, he centered himself and pushed down, moaning in bliss as he was penetrated. He threw his head back and groaned in pleasure as he slowly took his alpha, inch by torturous inch, wanting the entry to be slow and sensual.

Ben groaned and tossed his head back and forth, fighting hard to resist the urge to grab the beta's hips and ram in up to the hilt. His clawed hands clenched and unclenched on the bed, palms upwards, as he fought the natural impulse, wanting Kyle to do this his way. He wanted the beta to get as much pleasure from this as he could. It took several agonizing moments, but finally Kyle's fuzzy nuts came to rest on Ben's torso, just over the sunken navel of the alpha wolf as the alpha's hairy balls pressed up against the entrance to the beta's body. Kyle pulled up, and they began to fuck in earnest.

Ben growled and snarled, especially at the random clawings to his torso and legs as they fucked in the rut, the alpha's knot beginning to inflate slowly as he worked his way up to a full canine erection. Kyle began to play with the swelling lump of Ben's cock, shoving it inside of himself with a satisfying pop before yanking it free, teasing the both of them as he took the throbbing cock up his eager ass, fucking the knot as it began to grow bigger and bigger.

Finally, he pushed it inside of himself one time too many, and it swelled to full mast, fusing the two werewolves into a single being. Ben growled deeply in a sense of accomplishment as his body told him it was time to breed his beta properly. Kyle humped rapidly as he felt the shaft buried deep inside of him twitch when it shot another volley of pre up inside of his body, grinding against the prostate as it happened. He lost his composure, lifted his head, and let out a long, blissful howl as he came from the stimulation despite his prior releases of the day, then as he began to paint Ben's face, neck, and chest with his yellowy wolf spunk, he raked the claws of both hands down the superior wolf's chest with a snarl of lust.

Ben went wild and howled long and deep as he blew his load up the beta's ass, shuddering in bliss as he came. As his orgasm continued and Ben ended his howl, then he looked at Kyle's spunk-blasting member with need. Seeing the spewing shaft before him, Ben used his canine flexibility to swallow the spurting penis, half to give Kyle more pleasure, and half to save the bed from getting drenched in lupine jizz. Curling his wide canine tongue around the gushing boner to drink him dry.

They writhed blissfully, tied together as they orgasmed in the luke-warm sunlight pouring in through the windows which made the thick body hair of their wolfman-formed bodies glow in the golden illumination...