BENJAMIN’S P. O. V.
Standing here in this clearing I am filled with dread. What if I don’t make it to my date with Olivia? What if I don’t make it out of here at all? I don’t usually doubt myself. I don’t like this feeling. I have fought rogues before but never like this. I have never been in a war before. I know wolves will lose their lives tonight. I just hope it isn’t anyone I know. We have to hold them back at any cost, we can’t let them get past our line.
I am standing here in my fur, I have a dark brown coat, some spots are flecked with black. Peter links me. “How’s it going? Are we going to need to worry?”
“Shouldn’t we worry anyway. We aren’t as prepared for this as we should be. I mean you just took over a new pack. You have no idea how loyal these wolves are. I don’t like this, I don’t like it at all. I know it is just supposed to be talks but it feels like we are doing way more than that.”
“I know, look, don’t worry so much. I know we have the numbers and the skills in this force to take out the rogues.”
“Peter, I am glad you have this confidence. Just how many wolves will be lost in the process. We are the front line men. What if we don’t make it back?”
“I have set up a contingency plan if I don’t make it back. Listen, don’t doubt. We can do this. Mind over matter dude. Keep it in mind that we will make it back and we will. We have about ten minutes before he arrives. Our wolves are all in place. We got this.”
I look over and I see Peter, Victor, Shawn and Hugo lined up ready to greet the rogue forces. Each of them has something worth fighting for. Hugo has a wife and family. Shawn as an unborn pup. Peter and Victor both have the same reason to come back. I should be at Peter’s side, not Hugo. I am not jealous per say, I just am next in command not him. I have the same reason as Peter and Victor to make it out of this. I also want to make it out of this for my pack. I need to be there for them.
The ten minutes seem to feel like an eternity. Finally I start to hear the thunderstorm of paws. They have arrived. I start to see the first wolves in the tree line. The hairs on the back of my neck are standing on end. Here it is.
It takes a few minutes for the wolves to assemble. Then a man steps out to the clearing. He made sure that he was surrounded by wolves. Getting to him will be almost impossible unless we divert those wolves somewhere else.
His voice is husky and deep. “Finally. I was starting to wonder if you guys cared about your she-wolves at all.”
Peter leads the conversation. “What is your name Rogue?”
“Doesn’t matter. What matters is you are not leaving this field alive. I have no intention of releasing those wolves and I don’t particularly care about you. My pack has grown as you can see. I need the land for them. That means you need to go.”
“I guess he is forsaking the formalities.” I link to Peter. I see him smirk.
“If that is what it comes to. We are not leaving the she-wolves to you. We came prepared to take them back if need be. Is this really something you want to start?” Peter grins at him. I know he is trying to portray confidence, but I find it irritating. Peter is a bit too cocky sometimes for his own good. He should be talking them out of a fight not egging one on.
The Rogue leader doesn’t even dignify Peter with an answer. He just snaps his fingers and they attack. Fur lunges on both sides. I am met by two wolves, one brown and one gray. They try to circle me and fight. One of the reserves from the back comes out and takes on the brown one. Then I am left with the Gray. He lunges at my side, I quickly dodge. He just keeps lunging, it is like he doesn’t have any real training, he is just feral. Attacking at anything that he can reach. His teeth are snarled. What is wrong with him? He looks desperate. He doesn’t really look like he wants to be fighting, but he is supposed to win. I decided not to kill him, just incapacitate him.
He has left his left flank open. I lunge and take a chunk out there. He whimpers and falls back. Then he comes back at me. I thought if I pushed him back far enough he would yield. He doesn’t seem like he is capable of that. It is like he physically can not give up, even if he desperately wants to. Then it hits me. He is being forced into this. There must be something that the rogue leader is holding over him. I have no way to communicate with him but that has to be it. Now I know it is a kill or be killed situation. These wolves are desperate they are not going to stop.
Peter must have noticed too, he links over to all of us. “These wolves won’t stop, you need to kill them if you can.”
Things have turned bad, even if we had more training it wouldn’t matter. These wolves have no reason to give up. They are willing to fight to the death.