It was raining. It had been raining since the day the humans left. That was a few nights ago. Now they were gone and I could see the smoke of Asken army's camp from my chamber window.

A click alerted me to my door being opened. Cerberus trotted in, soaking wet, and a headless rabbit in his jaws. He set the decapitated animal at my feet. I briefly glanced its way before my gaze returned to the valley below.

"I don't eat fur," I mumbled.

Cerberus gave a nod before picking up the rabbit again, this time in his paws. His claws dug in its pelt while the other hand grasped its hind legs. With a mighty yank, he ripped the hide clean from the carcass. The meal was dropped onto my lap.

"Thank you." It was a murmured phrase, but one I meant nonetheless. Every joint in my body had begun to ache and every limb to weaken. It would be torture to do a task as simple as skinning the thing myself. It was difficult enough to simply grasp it to lift it to my mouth.

My throat was slightly sore, making swallowing a bit challenging, but it tasted good. I almost smiled, though the exhaustion of my body reduced my reaction to a soft sigh. I always hoped to acquire a taste for raw meat, it seemed I finally had. If only 'finally' didn't feel like irony.

Something was wrong with me, more than a simple flu. Now I didn’t even have my nurse to treat me. It didn’t matter; she’d likely poison me to make me die faster.

Cerberus pushed himself up from sitting like a dog to a position more akin to that of a man. "They begin to wonder," he said. "You sent the humans away, and only Red and I have spoken with you. The army in our territory makes them anxious."

"I suppose I'll have to make an appearance then." I sighed again. It seemed I had been doing that a lot lately.

Familiar crimson eyes appeared in my line of vision. "Will you be strong enough?"

This time, I actually did smile. My fingers combed through the fur of his cheek. He looked so funny, his coat soaked and white on top, matted and mud-splattered on his chest and legs.

"I'll have to be," I said.

The lycan nodded, then lay down in front of me. I slid from my bed onto his back.

My spine twisted slightly in time with the swing of his shoulders, sending small sparks of pain through me. At first I slouched over him, my head resting on the back of his thick neck. Then he gave the long howl which would summon the others. As we approached the hallway, I pushed myself upright.

It was time for the Lady of the Lycan Mountains to give another performance.

We were greeted by our usual chorus of barks and howls. Cerberus leapt onto the platform that served as my hall's stage. He paced back and forth in front of my throne, waiting for the clamor to die down. It was then I realized, perhaps Cerberus was an actor just as I was. Perhaps he was even better. After all, no one had ever seen his strings. Only now did I wonder just what pulled those strings. What exactly motivated the alpha of lycans?

"Greetings, my friends!" I called out, throwing my hands up in the air. I was rewarded by a responding series of barks. They didn't see the way my eyes watered underneath my mask, nor how pained my false smile was. My joints may be rusted and my strings yellowed, but I still knew how to give a good performance.

"No doubt you have noticed the army at our doorstep," I continued on, sitting up despite my urge to support myself. I was riding Cerberus because I was in control, not because I couldn't stand. I chose to appear now because now was the time I saw fit, not because I was trying to hide weakness. "And I also know they outnumber us five to one." I shook my head because the idea was ridiculous, not because it worried me. "The fools," I laughed. "A hundred to one and it wouldn't matter!" Confidence flowed from my skin like the drug. Too bad it was only skin deep. "These are our mountains! We'll pick them off and feed them to our young!"

Resounding yips and howls of approval followed this. Yes, I was one of them. This was not a mask I wore, it was my face.

"Red!" The female was of my chosen few. I often used her to deliver messages, as she was one of the swiftest lycans. She was familiar, trusted even. I was a strong leader, a predictable leader. Everything was as it had always been. "Let's send them a message, shall we?"

She grinned, fur bristling in anticipation as she waited for my order. Red may be young, but she held significant influence, especially with the other females. She had given cubs to Graniteback and a litter to Thorn. With her heat come and past, perhaps her next litter would belong to Cerberus. Her loyalty secured many more.

"Go to the human camp. Tell my beloved Perimone he brought quite the audience to his surrender. And if that isn't their purpose..." I tapped my jaw, as if thinking, "...we appreciate the fresh meat."

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She nodded and left. Several others followed her.

I leaned forward, murmuring in Cerberus's ear, "Let me sit on my throne."

The alpha lycan brought me close to the high-backed chair so that I could slide from him onto its hard seat. The wood never seemed so uncomfortable before. I settled myself against the armrest, both appearing at ease and also feeling the intense relief of no longer needing to support myself. The others took this as a sign that our meeting was over and began to wander from the hall. I stared out the doors where Red had left.

This pedestal was a very large stage. It was difficult to dance around it, wearing a drawn on smile and pretending the approaching army didn't worry me. It was becoming even more difficult with my rusted joints.

Maybe they knew I was a painted puppet. But maybe my performance could make them forget that. Maybe they wanted to believe, because, just maybe, they were worried too.

Perhaps it would turn out we were all just the puppets of our desires.

***

I stayed on my throne the rest of the day and throughout the night. I wanted to be there when Red returned. I wanted to hear Perimone's reply for myself.

Yet, as the sun broke over the rocky horizon, she still had yet to return. The task should have only taken an hour or two. She should have been back sometime ago. My concern grew with the light of day.

I sent out several other scouts in search of her. What they brought me was not a female lycan, but a man.

He wasn't a particularly large man. In fact, I would call him scrawny were it not for his swollen midsection. It was difficult to tell how old he was, he had the look of someone aged with work and sun. The man wore the garb of a soldier, but I doubted he was one by trade, or even choice. His lack of weapon and numerous small scrapes told me he had run from my scouts. Any experienced warrior would know they couldn't outrun a lycan. My guess was he was a new recruit, drafted from his fields.

Yet, he was not empty-handed. The man clutched a box constructed of thin wood. It in itself was uninteresting, most likely a small food crate. It was the crimson liquid dripping from the bottom that caught my attention.

"What is that?" I barked, pointing to the box.

"My lady," he started, giving a slight bow despite his trembling. "I am a messenger from Lord Perimone."

"I know that!" I didn't bother asking his name. I didn't really care. "Show me what's in the box!"

My demand seemed to make the man tremble even more. His fingernails rattled against the wood as he slowly pulled the pins from their latches. I sat on the edge of my throne as he shook the box, allowing the cover to come free.

Red's head fell out.

I screamed. It had been years since I allowed such raw, unfiltered emotion to flow through me. But that, the severed head of my messenger, it broke down all the barriers I had constructed within myself. With the dams gone, the floodwater came.

"Mercy! Mercy!" The man cried, now surrounded by a pack of snarling lycans. "I'm only the messenger!"

"So was she!" I hissed through my tears. I was actually crying, openly and unapologetically. I had known Red for years, and now this man brought me her defiled remains. I hated him. I wanted him dead. Not the Lady of the Lycan Mountains... me.

"Kill him!" I screeched.

I didn't need to tell the lycans twice. The messenger was dead before I could finish the order.

***

It was raining and muddy. The weather was horrid. It always was in the Lycan Mountains, which made it a horrid place to live. Still, I would rather be cold and soaked to the skin than live in Askance.

Cerberus's fur was slick, making it difficult to hold onto. My limbs were sore and weak. They protested with each of his bounding strides. But I hardly noticed the pain shooting up my spine as the lycan leapt from ledge to ledge on our descent down the mountainside. The rage boiling through my veins dulled all other sensations.

My mount landed on the mountain's road, once again jarring my back. I recognized the area as the lycans gathered around us. It was the exact spot I had met Perimone's messenger assassin. We bounded down the road.

We covered ground quickly. The lycans were tireless and as motivated by their anger as I was, as was evident by their collective snarls as the Asken army's camp came within our view.

They had created their base at the foot of the steep cliff. An unwise position, the lycans could descend upon them much faster than they could escape. Perimone's stupidity mattered little to me though, the geography suited my theatrics.

Cerberus started the long, loud howl. Within seconds the others joined him, their chorus crescendoing into an unignorable call. It didn't take long for the Asken Lord to respond. A crowd gathered at the bottom of the cliff, including Perimone himself. Soon it seemed all members of the Asken army stood before us.

This performance was not for the lycans. Neither was it for the soldiers below. This was solely for Lord Perimone. I didn't say anything. There was no need to, my purpose was clear enough. I lifted my hand, raising my message high.

Perimone went pale. Beside him, I saw Howens smirk. He expected this. The thought made me scowl.

I tossed my message out over the rocks. It rolled and bounced down the steep slope. The man's mutilated head landed at Perimone's feet.

The Asken Lord foolishly insisted he loved me. I originally planned on letting him spiral into madness from withdrawal. However, sending me Red's head changed that. Now I would show him just how poisonous my love could be.