Dominant Species

Donald had to keep his head low as he rushed under the back of the truck. When he reached his target, there was no time to jump.

The punk never knew what hit him.

The convict was leering at a crying young woman while lifting the tailgate. Suddenly, his groin exploded in pain. Donald bit deeply as the momentum of his charge knocked his man on his back. The wolf released his bite and lunged for the man’s unprotected throat. This time his teeth bit deeply, and he held on. Viciously shaking his large head, his wolf ripped the man’s head off. It rolled along the sidewalk in front of the shocked townspeople.

BANG! Donald looked for the source of the shot. It was from the man who was pistol-whipping the mom. He didn’t get off a second shot. Barry leaped onto his back, his teeth gripping him by the back of the neck. The man screamed as he fell forward, and his gun dropped from his hand. He tried to reach the wolf with no success. Barry slammed him into the pavement with his body weight, then shifted his grip and tore his throat out.

Donald looked to his right. Terry had finished off his man and was running to Brian’s side. Brian had not been as lucky in his attack. His man had moved during his leap, so he only succeeded in biting his shoulder and knocking him to the ground. The man rolled clear and pulled a knife with his good hand, pointing it at the attacking wolf. They could smell his fear as his eyes went from Brian to Terry, then to the others. The two wolves looked at each other, then made a space in the circle for Barry. These assholes had tormented and killed innocents. They would make ONE of them pay with more than a quick death.

Terry moved first, leaping from behind and grabbing his knife forearm with his powerful jaws. The man screamed and dropped the knife. He tried to pull his arm away, but it wasn’t going to happen. He reached across with his injured arm, but Barry grabbed it first. The man screamed again as he went to his knees. The two wolves pulled in opposite directions, holding the man in the prison jumpsuit upright as Brian growled in his face.

He pissed himself.

Donald smiled as he watched his friends take the man apart, strip by painful strip. The townspeople watched in a combination of horror and relief until he breathed his last. It was such an effective distraction that no one saw him shift into his human form. Pulling the shorts from the man Terry killed, since his guy had blood all over them, he stood up and faced the town. “ENOUGH,” he yelled.

The three wolves sat down looking at him, and the townspeople gaped at the bare-chested stranger who had just shown up in their midst. “My name is Donald Ross. I’m with the North Fork pack of werewolves. We come in friendship and mean you no harm.”

The statement set off a cacophony of questions that he couldn’t begin to answer. “Quiet, please.” He waited for the noise to die down. “I know you don’t believe it, but let’s face it, there’s a lot we can’t believe about these last few days. Terry, Barry, go and get some clothes. Brian, come here.”

Brian padded over as the others ran off. Despite being covered with blood, he was trying to be as friendly and non-threatening as possible. He even wagged his tail.

The scent of fear was still prevalent as Donald took the jeans off the man Barry had killed. The crowd moved back nervously as the two approached. Donald looked at them, then back at three women in the back of the truck. They were peering over the tailgate with frightened eyes. “Just watch. Brian, shift.”

Brian turned away from the large group and sat down before smoothly shifting to his human form. As the people behind him gasped and talked, he pulled on the jeans and stood up to face them. “It’s all right,” he said. “We aren’t here to hurt you. We are here to help.”

One of the men in the group stepped forward. “You are real!”

Donald nodded. “We’ve lived among you for centuries. We’ve been your friends, neighbors, and coworkers. We have a little extra fur sometimes.”

“Why are you here? We appreciate you getting rid of those guys, but why?” The man looked around, some of the people behind him nodding their heads.

“Abigail Dawson sent me to check on her family.”

There was a shriek from the crowd as a middle-aged woman with her dark hair in braids started to cry. “Abigail? My baby is alive?” She ran to Donald and hugged his bare waist as he comforted her.

“Yes, Angela, she’s alive. She’s in North Fork, Idaho, with my people.” She looked up at him. “Autumn is doing fine too.” He rocked her gently as she sobbed into him. “Your husband? Did Bruce make it?”

She pulled back and looked at the bank building. “Bruce is dying.” She looked down at the ground. “He tried to come for me. I was working at the bank when it happened. The sun blinded him. Now he’s got a fever, and he’s coughing up blood. We’ve tried to help him. We’ve tried to help all of them, but nothing works.”

“How many people are sick in there?”

“Thirteen. We lost five today. We don’t think the rest will make it too much longer.”

Terry and Barry returned wearing clothes they had taken from a nearby house. Donald looked at the people and made another decision he didn’t like, but he had to. “We can help. We have a doctor down in Salmon, and he knows how to save them. Terry, Barry, help them retrieve the sick. Let’s get them in the truck.”

Several people from the group on the sidewalk moved back into the bank, so Donald turned to the frightened girls in the truck. “Ladies, I’m sorry for what happened here.” Looking back at the crowd, he asked a few women to find clothes for them. Digging in his borrowed shorts, he pulled out a handcuff key. He quickly freed three girls, then moved to the front of the bed where the fourth was sitting against the cab, her head down. “Miss, I’m just going to remove these.” He stopped when he saw the hole in the back of her head, the exit wound on her forehead.

She was gone.

“FUCK!” His outburst attracted the other girls, who started to scream and cry for their friend Kim who now was cradled lifeless in Donald’s arms. He called for a blanket and got one. He had it spread out, then placed her in the center and wrapped the body up. He picked her up and carried her out. The townspeople were shocked at the death; the young bank teller was well-liked.

Two men came forward and relieved him of his burden. “We’ll take her. We have a grave in the park we are using for the dead.” They moved off as the sick and wounded made their way out. The girls got out after dressing. They moved quickly to their friends and family in the crowd.

Terry looked over at Donald, who was looking around the scene. “What now, Donald? We can save a few, but the rest are sitting ducks. Imagine what happens tomorrow night when the guys in Missoula figure out their men didn’t come back.”

He looked around. “I don’t know, Terry. We only have one truck, and the night is half over already.” He got up and went to the group still gathered on the sidewalk. “Are there any vehicles still running in this town? Any big ones?”

An older man nodded. “There are a couple of old buses at the school district garage that have old diesel engines. I fired them up last night. We figured the bank with all the steel and concrete was what saved us from getting sick, so we didn’t leave.”

“Can you go get them?” He nodded, pulling another man with him as they walked down the street. Looking at the rest of the people, he stood tall and gave them a choice. “You can stay here if you want. Your wounded need to get to the Doctor in Salmon, and we can’t protect you if the bad guys come back in force tomorrow night. We do have enough room for you in North Fork and Salmon. If you want to go with us, grab what food and clothing you can carry and be back here in fifteen minutes to load the buses.” Some people left immediately, while others asked more questions, but soon they all left.

The wolves tossed the bags of money onto the road, preparing the truck for the wounded. As they made it to the tailgate, the men helped get them into place.

The four men looked around as the humans left. Barry looked at the wounded people in the back. “Good a time as any, boss. The sooner we bite them, the faster they heal. We don’t want to lose them on the ride.”

Donald nodded, jumping up into the truck as they closed the tailgate. He pulled off his shorts and shifted to wolf form. The wolf moved from person to person, biting their arm or leg enough to break the skin. It only took a few minutes before he was back down.

They could hear the buses coming. “All right. Terry will be with me in this army truck, and we will be in the lead. I want one of you on each bus so you can link with Terry. Sit up front where you can get out quickly if you run into trouble. Sit anyone with a gun near the exits. Tell the drivers to stay together, but stay back as far as you can while keeping us in sight. If we get it trouble, do what you have to do. Get to North Fork, or find a place to hide for the day.” The three nodded.

The townspeople had started to return and loaded up the buses. In addition to the wounded in the truck, they had forty-seven more in the buses when they left town. Donald drove the army truck south. He and Terry were busy scanning the road ahead and the surroundings for danger, but it was eerily quiet. It was quiet until they approached Hamilton, the first town they had bypassed. A man ran out into the road, frantically waving his arms. They slowed down and stopped next to him.

“Thank God you’re here! I can’t believe it!” The man was about eighteen years old and smelled of stress.

“Why?” Donald looked around; the town of over four thousand was strangely quiet.

“Well, because the Army is here to take care of us!” He looked behind them on the road, and could see the buses coming.

“I hate to break it to you, boy, but we aren’t Army, and we aren’t here to take care of you. We’re evacuating some injured and refugees. What is the situation here?”

The kid pointed downtown. “We’ve got a few hundred survivors. We are mostly in the town hall, except the sick are at the clinic.” He pointed to the building a few blocks down.

“How many sick?”

“Maybe thirty? I don’t know. They are dying off fast.” He shook his head. “Nothing we do helps them, and they end up choking on their blood.”

Donald sighed; he didn’t have much room, but he wasn’t going to leave more people to die. “All right. You wait here for the buses and direct them to the clinic. We’ll grab who we can. Meanwhile, who is in charge here?”

“The Sheriff, I guess. He’s acting like that, anyway.”

“All right, when you get done with the buses, you find this Sheriff and have him meet me at the clinic.” They pulled away and stopped outside the single-story building. He told Terry to wait with the truck while he went inside.

A middle-aged woman in bloody scrubs met him inside. “Who the hell are you?” Her eyes were sunken with dark circles under them. She clearly hadn’t slept in a long time.

“I’m Donald Ross. I’m evacuating wounded to Salmon, where we have a doctor who can help them.”

“How? I’ve been treating these people for days! There is no effective treatment for radiation sickness at this stage. If there was, I would already be doing it instead of palliative care!”

Donald smirked. “The cure isn’t one in the medical books. It does work, though.” He looked at her name badge. “Doctor Jenkins, I’d like to start with the most serious cases. We can load them in the truck. A few buses will be here shortly for the rest.”

“No one is going anywhere, mister. These are MY patients, and they don’t move until I’m convinced that they will get better care elsewhere.” She folded her arms across her chest, glaring at him.

“Fine. You want to see how the healing works?”

“Damn right.”

“Don’t scream.” Donald stepped back and dropped his shorts, then shifted into his wolf. He moved over to her. Doctor Jenkins froze until his nose touched her hand, then she started to scratch his ears. He changed back, turning to get his shorts back on. “I’m a werewolf. When we bite a human to change them into one of us, it has a strong regenerative capability. We’ve saved over a hundred people this way. We’ve restored from blindness and recovered people from burns and radiation sickness. There is no other way, Doc. You know that those who haven’t recovered yet, won’t.”

She looked at him in shock, finally using humor to defuse the tension. “Well, raise my rent! You ARE the kid.” She shook her head, still trying to get her mind around it. “I’m coming with, though. They are still my patients.”

“Fine.” She led him back to where her terminal cases were. Using gurneys, they had four patients loaded before the buses arrived. Barry and Brian exited while the other people looked out the open bus windows. “We’re taking Doc Jenkins and the sick with us. It’s going to be tight, so please cooperate.” Donald bit those who were unconscious, leaving the others to make a decision when they reached Salmon.

The ambulatory patients the men helped into the buses. Five minutes later, the bus and the truck were full.

The Sheriff arrived as they were getting ready to leave. “What the hell is going on here, Doc?” He looked at the half-dressed men and the buses. “And who are these people?”

“I’m Donald Ross, from North Fork. I evacuated most of these people from Corvallis. There is a criminal gang out of Missoula that sent men south to loot and kill. They are dead, but tomorrow night they might come here. I suggest you be ready for them.” Everyone else had loaded up, so Donald shook his hand as he got ready to leave. “I’ll send reinforcements when I can. We will honk the horn three times as we approach so you know we are friendly. All right?”

The Sheriff looked at Donald, then at Dr. Jenkins. She was sitting in the center of the bench seat. “You agree with this, Doc?”

She nodded. “We have to go now. Keep everyone safe, all right? Let them know I’m taking my patients to Salmon for care.” Donald hopped up and put the truck into gear, and they moved off with the buses following.

Donald pushed the truck up as fast as he was comfortable as they went down Highway 93. He was still nervous, as they hadn’t cleared this part of the road. They answered Doc’s questions, and she had lots of them. Donald had to answer about the changes, the process, the symptoms, everything. Finally, as they saw the sign for the next town, Donald realized that they still had decisions to make.

“We’ve got Como, Gorus, and Darby still before we hit the mountains. What about those people?” Doc’s question hit them hard; even though the towns were smaller, they still could have survivors.

“I’m hoping the Sheriff can stop any bad guys in Hamilton. That gives us a little time.”

Terry looked out. “Yeah, but that doesn’t help any sick, and it doesn’t ensure the towns are safe for us to pass through.”

Donald noodled on it. He didn’t like the answer. “You’ll have to link this to Barry and Brian. I’m going to drive straight through the towns. If they don’t attack, we’ll assume they are friendly. Have Brian get out in Como, Barry in Gorus, and you bail out in Darby. Scope out the people, change the sick, and organize the rest. Our top priority is vehicles, food, and drugs. I’ll bring reinforcements back tomorrow night to pick them up.”

“You sure they’ll want to go?”

Donald nodded. “Most will. We can offer them safety and community. If they don’t, fine. The towns are close enough that you should be able to pass messages along.” He waited for Terry to finish his linking. Just in time, Donald thought as they reached the outskirts of Como.

He didn’t slow down much as he passed through the one-stoplight town since the stoplight was not working. He had to stop and push a vehicle out of the way to clear the road. They were out of the town without incident. There were no issues in Gorus or Darby, and soon they reached the mountains again.

“Are we going to make it, Donald? It’s not too long until sunrise.”

“I think so, Doc. We’ve been through this part of the road. It’s clear and safe. I don’t think we will make Salmon, but we can at least stop in North Fork for the day.”

“That won’t affect our sick?”

“The first ones will start getting the fevers in a few hours. Our Pack has enough people to help them out, and you’ll be there to monitor.” They continued the discussion about Pack structure and the new werewolves. Her questions kept him busy until they were close enough for him to link his Pack.

Alpha Calvin was surprised to hear from him this soon, more so with what he was bringing. Calvin promised they would be ready, and Abigail would be there to meet them. “What do you want me to tell Silvia, Donald?”

He sighed. “Tell Silvia I couldn’t get farther north than Corvallis, but I’m going back tomorrow. I’ll explain it to all of you later.” He wasn’t looking forward to that conversation.

“I will. And Donald?” Calvin waited a moment. “I know you did what you had to do. She won’t hold it against you.”

“I hope so, Alpha. I really hope so. I hope she doesn’t hate me if she finds out her family didn’t make it because I didn’t go there when I said.” He cut the communication off, wiping his eyes as he needed to focus on the road ahead.

When they pulled into town, the whole Pack was there to meet them. Donald came to a stop, and before he turned the truck off, people were unloading the patients. He looked around for Silvia, and his shoulders fell when he didn’t see her. “Welcome back, Donald.” Calvin embraced his Beta as they looked back at the buses.

“GRANDMA!! GRANDMA!!” An excited Autumn raced forward as Angela stepped off the bus. They both started to cry as she hugged her granddaughter to her. A crying Abigail joined the embrace.

“Mom? Is Dad…”

“He’s still alive, honey. He’s in the truck. He is very sick. Donald said that biting him would save him, so that’s what he did.”

Autumn started to jump up and down. “Yay! Grandpa gets to be a wolf too!”

“Too?”

“Yep, watch me, Grandma!” Autumn pulled off her dress and shifted into her pup form. She jumped up with her front paws and started licking her Grandma’s face as she leaned down.

“Oh my, it’s true!” Angela knelt and hugged the pup to her. “You’re beautiful, Autumn!”

Donald walked towards the hotel alone. He was exhausted, and others would take care of all the people he had brought here. There was only one person he wanted to see, and she was hiding in her room. As he got closer, the door opened, and his mate stepped out. Her scent both calmed and excited his wolf.

“My family?” She looked at him with hope in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Silvia. Missoula is under the control of a criminal gang, I couldn’t get close enough to find them, and then I had to deal with all people in Corvallis.”

Her face fell, and she closed the door on him without saying another word.

Donald sat in front of her door with his hands over his face. He sobbed as his mind went back through everything that had happened, wishing it would have turned out differently.

Donald sat by her door, his wolf whining in his head at the separation from his mate. He had stopped crying twenty minutes earlier. He knew it wouldn’t help to rehash his decisions. As he looked at the people settling in, he knew he had made the right choice for the Pack by bringing them here.

It wasn’t right by his mate, though. Her disappointment crushed him.

He listened as she moved about the room, feeding and changing Michelle before putting her to bed. Abigail and her family had passed him as they went into the room next door. She hugged him and thanked him for saving her parents. He told her it was the right thing to do, and he almost believed it. They had seen Silvia’s mood and had taken Zach into their room. He was going to sleep with the puppy pile in one bed while Abigail and Angela shared the other.

The moon had set, and the dawn was quickly approaching. Soon he would have to go back to his home or find another place to sleep, as the light was still too strong to bear. He stood up, his old bones cracking and protesting from too long spent on the pavement.

Then the door opened.

“Donald?” His mate stood there with a long T-shirt covering her body. She was tired, and he could see the tracks where the tears had gone down her face before being wiped away. “Can you stay with me?”

“Of course, Silvia.” He watched as she turned around, walking towards the bed. He linked a Pack member, asking for clothes to be brought to him so he wouldn’t have to leave. He followed her in and tucked her in bed, leaning down to kiss her. “I will always be here for you, Silvia. You never have to ask.”

He gently stroked her hair as she fell asleep. There was a gentle knock on the door, and he got up to get the clothes and toiletries. He checked Michelle before he stepped into the bathroom. He lit the candle and stepped into the shower, glad the water was cold. He scrubbed the dirt, grime, and blood from his skin. He tried not to think about how the loose shirt Silvia had been wearing hid her luscious curves. She had a body made for loving and bearing children, and he and his wolf couldn’t wait to see it and touch it.

He cursed to himself, as he’d gotten excited just thinking about how he shouldn’t get excited. Directing the cold spray on the offending member, he did math problems in his head until it went back down. Freezing, he turned off the water and dried himself off. He pulled on a pair of shorts and walked back out.

The sunrise provided a gentle light in the room, enough for him to see that nothing had changed during his time in the bathroom. He looked at Silvia in her bed, curled up on herself on the left side of one bed. The other bed was empty, and this was his next important decision. She had asked him to stay with him, but was she ready to share a bed? The safe play would be to take the other bed.

Donald didn’t want safe.

He moved to the other side of her bed and quietly slipped beneath the covers. He laid down on his side, facing her back. His wolf pressed him to touch her, to hold her in her arms. He moved over until he was close enough to kiss her shoulder, then he put his arm over her and gently pulled her back into his chest. She stirred, moving her hips back to his and snuggling against his chest. He held her as she dropped off to sleep.

He smiled to himself; the pull of the mate bond was working. With that thought, Donald drifted off to himself.

He opened his eyes to find himself on a rocky hilltop, with fog moving between the broken stones. The full moon shone down upon him, the mist occasionally getting in the way. He was walking next to his wolf over the strange landscape when he saw them.

The woman was beautiful; her hair was so white it almost glowed, her face was pale, and her eyes swirled with power. The dress she was wearing was loose and thing, a light material that shifted in the wind while covering her body. By her side were two white wolves. They reeked of power and dominance. When the woman looked into his eyes, her power overwhelmed him. Donald dropped to a knee, his wolf lying down beside him. There was no mistaking who this was. “Luna?”

He bowed his head as she approached. Soon, her bare feet were in front of him. She cupped his cheek with her hand, raising his head. “Walk with me, my child. We have much to discuss.” She held out her hand for him. Her hand was warm, and he was instantly comforted as he stood up.

“My Goddess, I have prayed for your help many times.” He couldn’t look at her as they started to walk along the path, three wolves following close behind. “There was so much I did not understand, now more than ever.”

“The ways of the Gods are not always smooth. Yes, I am a Goddess. I have powers over the hunt and my werewolves, but I do not control everything. What happened was the work of the Sun God, not me. I try to save my people, but it is not easy. There is so much anger at the way the world has turned out. Most Gods wanted to start over, and they may get their way.”

“So all of this death?”

“Is shared punishment for wickedness. There will be more. To keep my people alive, I need people like you. You’ve seen what is going on up in the valley; there is true evil at work. My people were ready, and few survived. I want a Pack up there, but I have no Alpha pair to lead it. That is why I have chosen you and have given you a worthy mate. You need to be the Alpha that saves those people and forms them into a strong Pack.”

He looked at his wolf, doubt creeping into his mind. “But I am not an Alpha. I am a Beta. I am strong, but I do not have the power.”

Luna laughed to herself as the wolves chuffed. “Where do you think that power comes from, Donald? I give it to the bloodlines of those I deem worthy of it. You have demonstrated with your entire life, not just the past few days, that you are worthy. You didn’t seek power or glory. You sought justice. When hard decisions came, you always placed the Pack above your desires. You are who I need there.”

She placed her right hand on his chest and chanted a few words. Her hand began to glow, and then the glow spread to his whole body. He felt things shift as his wolf gained Alpha power. When the glow stopped, he fell to his knees and held tight to his wolf. It took a few moments to collect himself before he could stand.

He looked at his Goddess, and one question that had plagued him forever came forward. “Luna? I don’t mean disrespect, but I’m fifty years old. Why did you wait so long to give me a mate, and then it is a human who isn’t ready for me?”

She looked out, her hands gently scratching the ears of her two companions, as she thought about how to answer. “Sylvia is your mate, but she’s the third woman I’ve paired with you.” He froze as the implication came in. “Your first mate was a warrior in a pack in Colorado. She was killed in a battle months before your scheduled visit when you were twenty-two.”

“Wait, you’re a Goddess! How did you not save her? Or not know that she would die first?”

“Yes, I am a Goddess, but only the Goddess of Fate knows the future. When I pair wolves together, I make the best match possible. I try to influence things to get the two of you to meet. Most times, it works, but not always.” She wiped the tear from his face. “I then paired you with a child in a Cascade pack; when she grew up, she fell in love with another man and never sought you out. Last year she killed her wolf.” She looked at the moon. “She took a large dose of wolfsbane so they could be together as humans and have children. As you can imagine, this displeased me. Since she was human, she was no longer one of mine, and there is no going back from what she did.”

Donald was crying now. He sat heavily on the ground as his wolf rubbed against him, howling his pain and loss to the moon. Two mates lost before he even met them.

Luna sat at his side and placed her arm around him while the two white wolves and his own leaned against the pair. “I was going to find another, maybe one who lost her mate, when all this happened. There was so much death, and so many wolves died those first days. Then I saw you on the road to Salmon. Did you ever wonder why you didn’t recognize your mate’s scent when you first smelled her on the men who attacked her on the road, but you did when you found her in the car?” He nodded. “It wasn’t until I started to look at her that I knew she would be a good mate. She was so strong in the face of things; I know she is a mess now, but she has steel underneath. She is passionate and loyal, everything I was looking for in a match for you. Since her husband died, I put the bond in place between you. You know the rest.”

“It’s so difficult. Sylvia resists the pull.”

“She’s in your arms now, isn’t she?” Luna smiled. “It is different when I put the bond with a human. They don’t belong to me until they gain a wolf. She feels a shadow of the pull now. I have been doing this a lot lately, as you have seen. I want you to bring humans in to expand our Packs and survive the coming years. Silvia won’t understand everything, but the bond will do what it must. Treat her well and have patience, and she will rule by your side.” She got up, and he stood with her. “It is time for me to go, Donald. I will help you as I can, but your future is very much in your hands. You have the right ideas and instincts. Think of the people of the Bitterroot Valley as your Pack. I know you will do the right thing.”

Donald watched as she walked with the two white wolves by her side until the mist swallowed them up. The darkness came.

When Donald opened his eyes, he had Silvia’s hair in front of his face. He smiled; his wolf was content with her in his bed. He let his mind process the dream. He had never expected the Goddess to answer, much less what she had told him. It changed everything, and he was starting to get excited about the prospect of being the Alpha of a large pack with her by his side.

His thoughts were interrupted by Silvia’s nightmare. She began to toss and turn, begging the men to leave her alone. He pulled her closer, and this made her fight him. He gripped her wrists, holding them to her chest as he called her name. Finally, she woke up. “Donald?”

“You’re safe, love. I’ve got you.” With that, she rolled over and buried her face in his shoulder as her emotions poured out. Donald comforted her while she told him of that night. It took an hour to get it all out, but she let go of her guilt and rage. She finally fell asleep in his arms. “I love you, Silvia. I always will.”

The sound was so soft he could barely hear it, but he did. “I love you too.”

Donald’s wolf was on alert as they slept, intent on protecting his vulnerable mate. As soon as the connecting door opened, his eyes opened. He saw Zach standing in the doorway. He could immediately sense his distress. “Come on in, Zach, Your mom is tired right now, but I can help you.”

Zach moved over and sat on the bed facing them. “I woke up, I’m all sweaty, but I’m shivering.”

Donald carefully moved Silvia’s arms and legs off him and tucked the pillow into her arms. He watched as she sniffed the pillow before dropping back to sleep.

Donald rolled off the bed and put his hand on Zach’s forehead. He was burning up. “It’s the fevers, Zach. The change is underway. You’re going to become a werewolf soon.”

Zach started to cry, and Donald pulled him to his side. “I’m afraid. It looked like it hurt so much!” He closed his eyes, remembering the change that had come to Autumn.

“It does, but the pain goes away. When you get your wolf, it is worth it,” he said. “Look at Autumn now. She loves her wolf.” Zach looked up at him. “Things are getting bad out there, Zach. With a wolf, you can protect your mom and your sister. That’s important because I can’t always be here for them.” He picked him up, pulled the comforter off the motel bed, and pulled the thin sheet back. He set Zach down under the sheet and put his hand on his shoulder. “You’ve seen what happens next. The fevers will get bad, but soon you will sleep and miss most of it. We’ll take care of you until then.”

“I’m thirsty, Mr. Donald.” Donald moved to the sink and filled a plastic glass with cold water. He let Zach drink it down. He got a washcloth wet and placed the cold cloth on his forehead.

“Rest now and try to sleep. I’m going to check on the others.” Donald knew that if Zach was already changing from the bite, Abigail would change too. He quietly opened the door to the other room and moved to the bed where she was sleeping. Her forehead was burning hot, and she had tossed her covers off. She didn’t wake up as he picked her up in his arms and brought her back into the other room. He placed her on the other side of Zach, then went to get a cold cloth. There wasn’t much else they could do. In about 24 hours, they would both wake up.

Duane Molback woke to the glare of the sun in his eye. He was going to roll back over and sleep, but his brain recalled that being in the sunlight was not a good idea.

Duane sat up in the bed of grasses he was using to separate his body from the cold concrete tube he had taken refuge inside. The drain pipe went underneath a road on the eastern foothills of the Bitterroot Mountains. He saw the poncho covering the south end of the drainpipe had fallen down.

He looked back the other way, over the huddled forms of the women and children traveling with him, and saw the north end was still good. Groaning a little as he stood, he tried to focus on the floor as he walked to the light. The culvert pipe was only five feet in diameter, so his six-foot-two frame stayed hunched over. He held a hand over his eyes, his tanned fingers touching the gray that had started on his temples when he turned forty last year. He smiled as he recalled how his Alpha had teased him, telling him some Grecian formula would help. “You don’t want to scare away your mate when you find her. She’s not looking for her grandfather.”

He reached the end and focused on moving the poncho and the sticks holding it until it blocked sunlight again. Today was their fourth day underground, and there was no telling if and when it would be safe to be out in the light again. Duane verified it wouldn’t move again before he turned and moved back to his makeshift bed. Laying on his back, he looked at the shadows in the diffuse light and thought about how he had gotten here.

That Saturday had been a quiet day for the Wise River Pack in Montana. He was in his office, working on the training schedules and his other duties as the Gamma or Third in Command. He could see the pups playing in the yard outside his office window when the lights went out. His radio no longer worked either. The Pack bond was full of confused voices and reports until a patrol on their southern border reported he thought he smelled other wolves. The Alpha blasted through the link, declaring attack protocol and calling all warriors to go with him to the south.

In retrospect, that false report doomed his pack. As third in command, he was the Luna’s bodyguard. She was in charge of protecting the vulnerable of the Pack. Rushing to the basement, he opened the Pack safe room as the well-trained women and children lined up to get in. He stood guard outside until all arrived, then pulled the door shut and locked it using the sliding iron bars. The thick steel doors and reinforced concrete of the safe room should to hold off attackers for hours.

He looked around when he finished. The room was full of the Pack’s young, mothers of young children, and the vulnerable. The unmated women or mothers of older children were outside the Pack House, forming a last line of defense. He reported all secure, followed by the Beta female’s report that the Pack House was secure. He listened to the Alpha’s communications as the warriors rushed south.

It didn’t take an hour before they realized this something was wrong. Multiple wolves reported having problems seeing, and some were getting sunburns on exposed skin. By the time they realized that being outside was deadly, it was too late. Their eyes failed, and their bodies had already absorbed the radiation blasting down on them. The Luna ordered the women to report to the safe room, but only half of them made it. Their wolf healing couldn’t keep up with the damage. Over the next few hours, most of them died.

The ones outside were lucky, as their pain was over sooner. The safe room was a madhouse. Mates felt the pain and death of their men, and wails filled the dim space. Many lost the will to live and begged to join them in death. It broke his heart to turn them down. The Luna tried to stab herself, and Duane took the knife from her. He was still under orders to protect her, even from herself.

They didn’t open the room until well after sundown. When we got outside, the scene he found was horrible. The Pack members who had died in the sun were red and bloated with badly burned skin. The Pack cattle and livestock were all dead. When they listened, they heard nothing- no birds, no animals, just the wind through the trees and the wails of the women and children finding fathers and family members.

Their Luna killed herself on her next try. Duane was the senior wolf left, in charge of the twenty-two remaining members of the Pack.

The adults gathered the bodies and placed them in the hay barn. Duane said a few words before tossing a lit torch into the loose hay. The Pack watched silently as their family and friends went to the Moon.

Duane ordered them back to the safe room before sunrise, not knowing what dangers the sun might bring. It was a wise decision. Looking around, he had six women left now. He was the only adult male. The rest were children between six months and fourteen years. It wasn’t much of a Pack, he thought as he went to sleep.

That night was his first visit from the Moon Goddess. She told him they were to journey to North Fork to find their destiny.

When he woke everyone up just before sundown, he told them what Luna had said. They prepared for the trip immediately. The adults and older children packed backpacks with clothes, food, water, and medical supplies. He checked the vehicles, but the only one still running was an old dump truck they used to haul manure and hay.

It would be a fragrant trip, he thought. They stretched a large tarp over the back, then filled the bed with mattresses taken from the pack house. Pillows and blankets let the young ones sleep during the trip, and their backpacks lined the outside. Duane drove with two women riding shotgun. They only made it twenty miles the first night before they had to seek shelter in a drain pipe. Too many vehicles and other things blocked the road, forcing frequent stops.

The second night was a little better, but the smell of death was now constant. They stopped at a stream just outside Gibbonsville to stretch their legs and get water, all of them shifting and taking a quick run. Duane froze with the others when they heard a mournful howl in the distance. He raised his head, letting out a howl of greeting, and they waited. Soon there was another from a different hill. He sent the young ones back to the truck while he waited.

Ten minutes later, two wolves trotted up to him and shifted, so he did too. Luke and Leia were twins from the Wisdom pack. Both had reached mating age last year, and he remembered them from their recent visit. And yes, their parents were huge Star Wars fans. “Kids, what are you doing out here?”

“Looking for anyone who made it,” Luke said. “Our Pack is gone. We were the only ones to make it. We were exploring a cave when this thing hit, and we got enough of a warning to stay there until nightfall.”

“We spent the night looking for survivors, then went back to the cave for the next day. That night Luna came to me and told me we needed to head west to the Salmon River.”

Duane rubbed his chin. “Funny, she told me the same thing.” He looked up at the moon and smiled. “You may as well ride with us since we’ve got a truck. Just try to ignore the smell.” He led them back to the road and helped them climb in the back. After introducing them to his people, he got in and headed down the road.

Next stop, North Fork.

Beta Candice awoke in a sweat, her arousal heavy in the air after the dream she had finished. Her mate had come to her in a dream. He was tall and handsome, and she ran into his strong arms as he ran to her. Their lips crashed together. Candice ran her hands through his thick hair as their bodies made tingling contact everywhere. She felt the tingles shoot through her body like an electric shock, moving from her mouth to her nipples to her molten core. She wanted more, no matter how much contact she made with his skin. He carried her into her room, closing the door before setting her down on her feet. The need to be naked overcame them, and they ripped clothes off each other. Candice jumped on him and lined up his turgid length to her sex. She smiled before plunging down, and…

“Candice, we need you immediately!”

Dreamus Interruptus. “Yes, Alpha, I’ll be there in a minute.” She got up. Looking at the adjacent hotel bed, she could see the children were still asleep. Zach was no longer there, but she could smell him next door. She figured he had gone to his mother. Candice could see that the sun was still below the mountains, so she quietly left the room and headed for the park.

She could tell something was happening as she approached her Alphas and Beta Donald. The power emanating from the group was much stronger than usual. She couldn’t help but submit as she stood in front of them. With her Alpha pair, this was normal, but not with Donald.

“Candice, may I introduce Alpha Donald of the Bitterroot Pack.”

Reggie’s wolf moved through the barren landscape as Josi kept pace at his left side. They moved around the large rocks that were alternately hidden and exposed by the fog moving down the slope. “Do you recognize any of this, baby?”

“No, I’ve never been here.” They kept their senses alert, sniffing for clues about where they were. She rubbed against him, slowing him down as her senses started to fire. “Slow down. There’s something up ahead.”

They slowed to a walk and spread out instinctively as they crept forward. Their wolves each rounded a side of a large boulder. When they reached the other side, the fog suddenly cleared. They were transfixed, dropping to their bellies from the power of the woman standing in their way. She was ethereal in her beauty, with long white hair framing a classical face. She glowed in the soft moonlight. Her face was young, yet her eyes were old, with wisdom and power in their soft glow. A white fur graced her shoulders, sitting above the long white dress with silver bands on the arms and a silver belt at her waist. At her side were two white wolves of great power. She held her arm out to the two black wolves, and her voice filled their minds. “Rise, my children. We need to talk.”

“Luna.” Josi looked at her new Goddess in wonder, her wolf letting her know who this was.

“Yes, my special child. How happy I am to have you as mine with Reggie.” They shifted forms. With a wave of her hand, Luna covered Josi with a white dress and Reggie with white pants and a shirt. She opened her arms to them. They moved to her, and the Goddess hugged them as their emotions boiled over. When they could look up, she pulled back and took their hands. “Walk with me, please.”

“Luna, why did my parents die?” Their loss still crushed Reggie, and Josi could feel his pain.

“It wasn’t my plan,” she said. “Lisa was making a change in the Pack and a bigger change in her mate. If not for the hatred of that human, they would have made peace just like you did. I wouldn’t have had to push Josi’s wolf forward so fast.” She looked at Josi with a smile. “It is a good thing you are strong and young. Having that Alpha power come out before your shift could have killed a weaker person. I had no choice, though, and you responded magnificently. Your town will have peace, and your pack is becoming powerful, just as I wanted.”

“You don’t control these events? I thought you were all-powerful.” Reggie looked up at her, a little confused.

“I have many powers, but knowing the future is not one of them. Nor am I the only God, and we don’t always work in the same way for the same things. Some Gods initiated these events because they didn’t like how humanity developed. They think it is time to start over. I’m doing all I can to preserve my people, at least those I have left.” She brought them to the edge of the cliff, looking out over the Earth far below. “So much has changed since the Sun God burned the earth. Human nature has shunned community and compassion, devolving into power struggles and violence. I don’t need the powers of Fate to see what the end will be of this. Only a few will survive the coming seasons. The human species might end.”

She showed them images of burning cities, fighting, and violence. “Humans see werewolves as animals, violent creatures without humanity. They are afraid of the power of our wolf side. They delude themselves, thinking that the propensity for violence is not our common human nature. In the absence of moral guidance, they regress to this. Your job,” she said, “Is to provide that governance and pull humanity back from the brink.”

“Do we need to make them all werewolves?” Reggie looked down. “I don’t want some of them in my Pack.”

“Of course not, Alpha. Never make a wolf out of someone unworthy of being in your Pack. Do not force the change, either. What you can do is take control of your territories. Provide safety and governance for those who live there, human or wolf. My Alphas will become the basis of the next world system of governance. Only you can start the change. That change will begin in towns like yours and spread to cover the land.”

Josi looked out at the hellish landscape below and shuddered. “You ask a hard thing.”

“Not really. You are already doing many of the things I need you to do. Cooperate with good humans. Work with other Alphas to restore law and order. Finally, take care of everyone. I need you to focus on what is important and do it while you still can.” She squeezed her hand. “Winter is coming, and there will be no crops this year. Wildfires will sweep over the land and consume the dead trees. Consolidate your territories before losing everything to bandits, rot, or fire. Use the humans and the wolves while the food and fuel remain there for you to take. Centralize it and protect it so your Packs can survive for years.”

Reggie looked out as well. “And at the same time, make things safe for our Pack territories.”

“Exactly. You will not be alone, though. I am visiting the good wolves and giving them directions. Righteous Alphas will get this message.” The corollary was that there were Alphas out there who weren’t following her guidance. “Those who are of lower rank are told where the nearest surviving Packs are. You will soon see a flood of wolves coming your way, the remnants of their Packs no longer viable. They will bring the numbers and skills you need to continue your work. Don’t be jealous or possessive. Your three allied Packs will need to allow humans and wolves to move where needed. Many will find mates among you. That’s part of my plan to grow my people.”

Josi looked at her in confusion. “Three packs? There’s only Salmon and North Fork.”

Luna smiled. “You will see. Keep doing what you do best. Help humans through the change and train them to join the Pack. Let Alpha Calvin do what his pack does best, organizing the people to get things done that need to be done. Let the third Alpha establish a safe territory to the north and show you how to expand outward.”

“Who is the third Alpha?”

“You know him already, my child.” She led them away from the cliff and back to the rocks. “It is time. When you awaken, I need Reggie to take warriors to North Fork. Josi can watch over the changes. Remember that I will be with you as you go forth.” The two Alphas watched as Luna faded to nothing, then the scene faded to nothing.

They awoke in bed in each other’s arms.

“Holy shit.”

“You said it, Josi.” He pulled her into his broad chest and held her tight. “Shit just got real.”

The pair got out of bed. The sun was about to drop below the mountains, and the Pack was preparing for another night. Reggie linked his leadership, informing them of the gist of the dream. He notified the warriors to pack their saddlebags with food, water, guns, and ammunition. They would depart immediately to North Fork to join Alpha Calvin.

Josi linked with the people running the Werewolf Academy. There was plenty to do. More humans had requested the change, and the new wolves needed intensive training and immersion in Pack life to adjust.

Twenty minutes later, Reggie’s large wolf howled. His warriors followed him into the woods as they set off north. He set a fast pace, the twenty-five forming a long line as they raced through the trees, backlit by the fading twilight. The aurora borealis shone, but not as brightly as the previous nights. The solar activity was slowly returning to normal.

They stopped briefly when a truck approached carrying sick humans. Reggie talked to the driver, then linked Marcus they were coming. He would never turn down those in need of medical help.

As they approached the bridge that marked the border between their territory, Reggie howled in greeting. A welcoming howl answered him. A border guard was standing naked in the middle of the bridge when they came into view. “Follow me, Alpha Reggie. Alpha Calvin is expecting you.” He shifted into his grey and white wolf and took off. The column didn’t break pace as they continued down the road. It wasn’t long until they arrived in North Fork and stopped where Alpha Calvin, Luna Kelly, and his Betas were waiting to greet them.

Reggie shifted, pulling clothes out of the bag around his neck. He put those on, then a shirt, as the men and women behind him did the same. He embraced Calvin and Kelly, then stood confused as he encountered the Alpha aura surrounding Donald. “Donald?”

“Luna appeared to me and gave me Alpha powers, Reggie. She is sending me to the Bitterroot Valley to protect the people there.” He embraced the young Alpha, remembering when he used to play with Reggie at Pack functions when he was a puppy. “Come, we have much to talk about.”

They all moved to the picnic area where Calvin had his Pack waiting. “Wolves of North Fork, honored friends, tonight is a great night. Luna herself has spoken to us and blessed us.” There was a murmuring that quickly died down. “Last night, Luna spoke to me about how the North Fork pack would help lead the way out of the mess that surrounds us.” He detailed the charge she had given him. They were to teach and organize the resources of their area so that they would have food, water, and heat for all to survive. When he finished, he turned the stage over to Alpha Reggie. The new Salmon Pack Alpha described his dream and how Luna wanted their Pack to lead in changing and training humans to live within the Pack. Finally, it was Donald’s turn.

“Last night, Luna appeared to me and told me more about what was happening to our north.” He sighed; some people in the park had come from those towns, and more remained. “The Bitterroot Valley got hit hard. None of the Alphas of that region survived. Three wolves have already come to me, and others are still out there. Luna charged me to become the Alpha of that region. My first task is to protect the people that live there. Barry, Brian, and Terry were with me when we met the criminals in Corvallis. These predators were out to rape and plunder the populace. We killed them, but more are out there. My mate’s family is in Missoula, where this gang is based.” Silvia moved forward and took his hand as he looked at her with adoration. “Our first task is to bring peace to the Valley. After that, we will gather warriors to go to Missoula. We will help the remaining humans survive and change if they desire.”

“This isn’t just something for Donald to do,” Reggie said. “Luna wants us to bring peace first. How we behave will be a model for how we move into new territories. Whether you have friends or relatives up there doesn’t matter. We still haven’t heard back from our allied packs to the South, and that is the next direction we will go. Luna wants us to establish safe and secure territories, where humans and werewolves can live and repopulate the earth.”

“Donald will lead the fight in the north. Reggie and I will be at his side directing our warriors.” Calvin looked at his warriors. “Our Lunas will be in charge here. Beta Candice will go with us along with a few of her assistants. Luna’s charge for our Pack is to organize, and no one is better than Candice. She will be on loan to Donald’s pack until his pack is running smoothly.”

The meeting continued for another ten minutes before Alpha Calvin called for the warriors to head to the buses. Not only were they faster than running, but they would bring humans back to Salmon later. The Pack gave them a rousing sendoff as the buses pulled out and headed north.

From the door of her hotel room, Silvia watched silently. She had already said goodbye, but standing here with Michelle on her hip wasn’t easy as Donald headed for war. Silvia couldn’t hide it any longer; her heart belonged to him, and his leaving left her with a hole in her heart. Brushing aside the tears, she went back into the room and checked on her son and her friend. Both were still out of it with the fever.

Luna Kelly came to her room as she wiped the sweat from Zach’s forehead with a damp cloth. “Silvia, can we talk?” She waved her in, and Kelly sat on the bed across from her. “You heard the Alphas talk about how the Packs will be concentrating on what they do best. When the truck returns from the Salmon clinic in an hour, these two must go there.”

Silvia froze; she hadn’t thought that far ahead. She had fled Salmon Pack, but for the wrong reasons. “Who else is going?”

“You are welcome to go with them. You know Donald won’t be back for a while, and it won’t be safe for you to join him until he can get established.” She noted how Silvia blushed at the thought, then continued. “I’m sending Britney and Bethany. Their mates are fighting with Donald, and as recent turns, they can both help out. Autumn is going too. The training they get there will help them learn about their wolf side.”

“Do we have to stay?”

“No, of course not. The Alphas all agreed to allow every changed human to choose their Alpha and move freely between Packs. We expect that Luna will put people where they need to be, with the people destined for them.” She snickered a little. “I can’t even keep up with all the matings.”

Silvia came over and flopped down on her bed. “Will I ever get used to this?”

Kelly sat next to her and held her hand. “Of course you will. You have a lot within you that you haven’t tapped yet. Luna wouldn’t have picked you to be an Alpha if you couldn’t do it.”

Silvia shivered. “I suppose I’ll have to become a wolf too?”

“To have your Alpha powers, you will need your wolf. There is no hurry, though. Get your son through the change. When you are ready, Donald will change you. Then you will know the strength of the bond and the power you hold inside.” She sat up and pulled her with her. “Come on. We need to get you packed.”

Meanwhile, the two school buses were moving through the mountains. Alpha Donald was on edge, and his wariness was soon validated when he spotted the headlights approaching from over the next hill. “STOP!” The buses pulled to the side. Hopping out, he told the drivers to kill their lights as he met with the other Alphas. “There’s a truck coming.” They could hear it, a single diesel engine and the sound of gears changing as it reached the peak and started back down the road. “We need defensive measures. Reggie, send four warriors up each side of the road and get into firing positions. Calvin, have a dozen of your men shift and hide in the ditches down by the stream. Nobody does anything unless they fire at us or you hear my signal.”

“What’s your signal?”

Donald smirked as he opened the cargo door under the bus, removing one of his homemade Claymore mines, a detonator, and a spool of wire. “It goes boom.”

A few minutes later, the men were in place. A tree branch was across the road, and Donald had hidden a roadside mine. He was waiting behind a large rock that would provide cover. They all hid as the truck approached. The riflemen trained their weapons on it, fingers next to the triggers.

As it slowed before the downed tree, Donald stretched his senses out. Whatever was in there was masked by the overwhelming smell of manure.

He put his hand on the detonator and watched the truck come to a stop.