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Chapter 1

Dogs were among the purest of animals as considered by Man, capable of sniffing out the lies from the truths of mankind and their ways when eyesight could not be trusted. The smartest ones could determine the difference between a native human and a foreign one not from the clothes they wore or the way they spoke, but the smell of their odor and the scents they carried around them. They could tell from which part of the country they hailed by the scents they carried from the earth, whether they hailed from the mountains or tundra, the marshlands, the grasslands, the deciduous and coniferous forested country, the smell of the flora, and the smell of the animals from which they dwelt.

They could determine class based on perfumes humans wore or their cleanliness, and the sweat and earthly smells of the poor, lower, and working classes. They could sense all of these odors that stuck to man, and thus pass greater judgment and perception of man's loyalties to other men than men could to each other.

They were also the fairest of animals, not as fierce and independent as the wildcats, and not quite as ambitious and aggressive as the wolves. However, like the wolves, from which they shared a lineage, they maintained some semblance of order. They had a leader, and to their leader they had respect without fear, and to the rest they were acknowledging and yielding.

Most importantly, they were loyal to man, to whom they had a bond that went above mutual understanding, and so there was love between the two species.

Canadal was the fairest and most critical with the keenest sense of smell and detection, the unifier with which had the respect to naturally guide his kin, and the most loyal to man, to whom he confided his intelligence and the information he deduced from man to which other men were ignorant. He was the hounds' leader, the chief of the kennel in the Palace of the Dawning in Culdwell of the eight kingdoms of Verea.

Meol was considered the purest of the kennel and to whom gave his wisdom and advice to Canadal. Among the humans he might be considered the priest.

And then there were the rest, who embodied the compass of the group. While Canadal was the beacon, without the others there was no direction nor voice.

Norther was the most introspective of the group, and while these qualities were not seen as an incentive to form relationships and influence among the kennel, he was treated as one of the best companions to the hounds, solely for his politeness, good nature, and sensibility. Despite his shyness and tendency toward submission, he had the most eloquent voice. He was the storyteller.

Norther was an older hound, but not considered elderly. He was above his prime now, so his knowledge of the past and his virtue for storytelling was unmatched, even among the elders. Like all the hounds he was bred by the humans to be above all else loyal to man, so that their keen senses could provide intelligence to communicate with the humans, especially those of royalty. He was a Greyhound, among the most trusted by royalty. However, there were a smattering of other dogs, sighthounds as well as mastiffs.

It was raining outside, so the humans were not working with the dogs in their usual practice or hunting rounds. On a cold and rainy night, when there was no activity, it was up to the storyteller to entertain the group.

Norther, who sat in the straw by the window, was telling the story of how the Spaniel Rengan hopped aboard the pirate ship of the notorious Captain Longwind and stopped him and his barricade of fellow pirate ships from raiding the Verea-Alaran Medial Company of Commerce that was responsible for trade of the most valuable resources between the two continents.

With the attention of those gathered around him, which were many, Norther began, "Captain Longwind was an ambitious and influential pirate lord who had a history of raiding major ports with his fellow band of pirate ships. They would pillage the ports, kill the men who defied them, and rape the women who tried to protect their children. He was a savage.

"Rengan, personal hound of the owner of the Verea-Alaran Medial Company of Commerce, heard the news of the barricade by the pirates and the meeting of his master and the pirate lord to negotiate peace and snuck out of the crowd of businessmen and out of the building into the morning air, which was warming at the beginnings of summer.

"He made his way across the planks of the docks on light paws. The sun was further down in the sky, and on this day it had two bright spots on each side, forming a sort of halo. Rengan felt the rays of light warm his pelt, and began drawing in the heat to give him the energy to complete his quest, as is said to have been done when the Sun God of the hounds, Cunobalinus, has chosen one to do greatness.'

On hearing of Cunobalinus, there were some nodding and mutterings of agreement.

Norther continued his story, "He leapt into the water, soaking his pelt in cold, pressing thickness, battling the waves until he reached the ship of the notorious Longwind."

One of the yearlings, the most curious and rambunctious of the youths called Ilow, raised his head up and spoke excitedly. "Did he swim all that way with the current against him? Surely that's impossible. How did he get aboard the ship from the water?"

"When one is chosen by Cunobalinus and has the energy of the Sun inside him, one can do remarkable things. As for how he got on the boat, he used the only way he could. There was a small boat at the side with a rope, which he gripped in his powerful jaws, and pulled himself up by the pulley. As if by an act of the hound god, no one was aboard the deck, and Rengan was able to sneak into the Captain's quarters unnoticed and confront Longwind in his chamber.

'Don't underestimate a hound, Longwind', Rengan said in a deep voice, 'We can smell the lies from the truths. You don't plan on making peace with my master, I can smell your men below deck and the stink of exposed gunpowder.'

"Longwind, surprised at first, glared down at this creature and laughed. 'Your master is already on his way to my ship. What could you, a dog, do to a man who has control of the seas and the most powerful men at his mercy?'

"And Rengan stood on his hind legs, like a man, and pointed a paw at Longwind. The energy that was inside him flowed through his body, through his paws, and hit Longwind with full force, knocking him off his feet.

When Longwind awoke, he found Rengan's body on the floor of the ship. For the first time he felt sorrow for this animal, and when Rengan's master's ship arrived, he signed the treaty, agreeing to the terms, took the money, but took none for himself, and distributed it amongst his cohorts. Then he ordered his ships away and was never seen again.'

At the end, his audience was silent, which was unusual, although it was an unusual tale. Even Ilow didn't say a word. They were astonished by the lack of information as to how Longwind was defeated, and felt perturbed at this inadequate ending.

This time, Canadal, who was lying in his usual dark corner of the kennel, padded forward. It was obvious amongst the group that Canadal did not like Norther, perhaps out of jealousy for the well-liked hound, but the other hounds could feel the tension in the air.

Canadal said with an arrogant sigh, "Rengan knew it was the dark spirits that affected the pirates' minds, he could smell it coming from deep inside Longwind's body. So he used the power of the Sun to relinquish the dark spirit that fed off Longwind's soul, and by doing so the energy took its toll on Rengan's body. He died the instant the energy left his body, a peaceful death."

Canadal lay down now with the other hounds and began scratching his ear. "Knowing the other pirate captains would turn against Longwind if he did not at least accede to the bargain, he took his gold and distributed it amongst the other pirates, but did not take his share. When he left his role as captain and a pirate lord, word spread among the other pirates. They did not know what made the fiercest, most nefarious, and most powerful pirate give up his share of gold and leave his role as a pirate lord, but they felt inspired by this change, and some of them even followed his example. So Rengan became a hero, and stood amongst the other heroes of the Sun in the House of Cunobalinus."

Ilow looked from the Norther to Canadal, then back to Norther with an anxious expression on his face. "Do dark spirits actually exist? Could we be possessed by dark spirits too?"

The old sighthound Meol, whose ears perked up at this, said in a reassuring tone, "Hounds are too pure, too fair, and too loyal to be possessed by such things..." He trailed off, and Norther noticed that there passed a look of misgiving over his face. Norther wondered over this for awhile when the rest of the dogs had dispersed.

The young dog caretaker named Tain came in shortly after the story to feed the dogs and refill their water bowls. He socialized with them for awhile, and afterward Norther could hear Canadal talking with the boy in his dark corner.

"Why hasn't king Ayerick visited us in so long? Enera used to be favored by the Queen, yet we never see her visiting her either. Do they think they can no longer rely on us?"

"Don't fret over it Canadal," Tain said in a reassuring tone, "they will visit you. The prince can take you and the others out hunting soon with lady Mary, who will be visiting tomorrow. Ganwin, Mary's father, thinks that Mary is at the age where she should be married soon, and Ayerick invited Mary over specifically so that they might meet and gain alliance through marriage. The king is very fond of his son, being the only heir."

Canadal lowered his head onto his paws and let out a soft growl. "The king and the prince have their hearts in the right place, but it's not their love I'm worried about."

"Then what are you worried about?"

Canadal let out a huff of air and muttered under his breath, "I don't know yet."

Norther glanced over to Enera, who had been hovering by Canadal's side trying to catch his attention, when he noticed Meol not far away watching Canadal with intensity in his eyes. No one else seemed to notice.

Norther awoke with a jump as someone tackled him from the side. His nose told him it was Ilow before he even glanced up to see. The young dog was pawing the straw at Norther's feet.

"Tain told us lady Mary has arrived and she'll be passing by the kennel on the way to the gardens where she is to meet king Ayerick and the prince." He rolled onto his back and began to wag his tail excitedly against Norther's legs.

"Canadal left to see the king in the gardens," Ilow said, leaning back onto his side.

Norther got up and padded to the door, which was open a crack, and stood next to where a few others were gathered. He saw the King and the prince standing next to a grove of foxgloves. The king was looking down at Canadal, who was talking with the usual formality, although Norther could tell Canadal couldn't hide his excitement very well because he kept sniffing the king's boots and glancing back up to meet the king's eyes.

Wurthe, next to him, leaned over to Norther. "Poor Canadal, ever since the King's wife Ophilia died and he remarried, Ayerick hasn't spent much time around him anymore, preferring to stay in the company of his son. Maybe that's why he always sits alone as of late."

Norther nodded and raised his head with the others at the sound of hooves plodding on cobblestone and the wheels of a cart creaking through the walled arch of the Palace entrance. More of the dogs were crowding around the small opening of the door now. He sniffed the air and could smell the perfume of the lady Mary, pungent and smelling of rosewater, cloves and cinnamon. It was harder to smell her father, but Norther could guess they were from the south. Cinnamon was more abundant in the south, and Culdwell could also make out an oily scent, as was popular to smooth through one's hair in that region. He could also smell a dog too, or was it a dog? It had the smell of a dog, and the subtle smell of a wolf.

Finally the dogs watched as the lady and her father were escorted toward the gardens, where they passed the entrance to the kennel.

"That's Ganwin, Earl of Norrande in the kingdom of Julay," whispered an older wolf, who was talking about Mary's father.

Norther could feel Ilow struggling to see through the legs of the other hounds, and he moved over a little so that the yearling could squeeze through and get a better glimpse.

The earl and the king were now embracing one another and showing their teeth which was what humans did when they were greeting one another in a friendly manner, or expressing pleasure. The prince smoothly bowed and took the lady's hand, pressing his lips lightly there.

The king motioned for Canadal to leave, and he did so with downcast eyes, meeting the rest of the dogs at the doorway to the kennel. They made room for him and he squeezed by, then went back to his corner, laid his head on his paws and closed his eyes.

The hounds watched as the king, prince, earl, and lady Mary talked animatedly for some time, then the royalty entered the castle and the hounds stepped away from the door and went back to talking or napping or chewing on their bones.

Suddenly the wolf smell was back, and Norther heard heavy boots coming toward the door, accompanying a light, padded tread.

Norther heard a man talking to Tain, and then heard the man leave, and the door opened. A wolfdog came sniffing into the kennel, eyeing the others with curiosity. Tain introduced him as the earl's wolfhound, then closed the door behind him as he left.

It was quiet, more quiet than it had been the night before at the end of Norther's tale. Canadal got up from his spot and slowly trod over to the wolfhound. The wolfhound was bigger, but not by much. The wolfdog spoke first, his voice smooth and slightly accented.

"Hello, I am called Basker, my master Ganwin has invited me to stay at your kennel. He wants you all to know that there will be a hunt tomorrow with the my master, the lady, and your prince. You are all invited."

There were barks of delight at this news, even Norther felt a light rising in his chest. They haven't been on a formal hunt with the royal family in so long.

"What about the king?" Said Canadal, staring the wolfdog straight in the eye. "Why isn't he coming. Is something wrong with him?"

The wolfdog Basker looked uneasy at this and did not meet Canadal's eyes. "I overheard the king tell the earl that he won't be coming on the hunt because there has been some troubling news from the furthest town of Culdwell to the East. That is all I know."

Canadal backed away. He looked a little hurt, probably because he felt the king couldn't rely on his own hound anymore, although neither Canadal nor Norther could figure out why. Norther suspected it was still grief over the passing of his old wife, but Canadal felt it was something more, and the dejection was slowly seeping into him. Canadal walked back to his corner, hiding his emotions, and went back to his vigil, feeling as if his king and once greatest companion would probably never visit him again.

A little while after they had been fed, just past evening, the wolfdog Basker, to Norther's surprise, approached him.

"You are the storyteller they say." He said simply. He had brought with him two pieces of meat, one for himself and one which he gave to Norther. Norther accepted it gratefully and took a bite.

Norther chewed and swallowed, then looked up at Basker, "I know a lot about hound-lore and the myths of the old days, and have seen half a lifetime pass, but cannot boast much action of it."

The wolfdog a sound like a chuckle, "most dogs these days don't see much action. Not in these times of peace." He took a large bite and chewed on it slowly, waiting for Norther's reply.

Norther chose his words carefully. "These times of peace are necessary. What king Ayerick has done for the lands of Verea and the lesser kingdoms is more than most king's have done in the past century."

The wolfdog stared at him hard. "But the peace won't last, and when a threat finally reaches this kingdom, the dogs will see action and be trusted again."

'And when a threat finally reaches this kingdom...' Norther stopped eating and looked at him. The wolfdog had stopped eating as well. He spoke to Norther in a whisper.

"You are a dog who knows many myths. But how many of those fairy tales do you believe to be true?"

And then the wolfdog got up, taking his meat with him, and padded away. Norther watched him head over to Meol and scrutinized them for a bit, but was too far away to hear a word. Then he turned his head back and finished his meal and went to sleep. His dreams were of the wolfdog and Canadal, battling to the death, and hounds chanting. And Meol, gazing into his eyes with that same intensity with which he gave to Canadal. Those dark, knowing eyes...