*The night of the attack*

*4/20/90*

Ember's pack stood ready. Their leader watched the gold and red flames of the village's street lamps flicker. Her claws dug into the ground as she scanned the borders of the human village. If her knowledge was correct, Scar's pack would emerge soon.

Nearby, Ellora gazed at the town with nervous eyes. She tried to get out of being a part of this attack, but Ember had been clear that all the strongest fighters needed to be here. "We're not attacking the town," she reminded herself. “We're just using this opportunity to further weaken Scar's pack."

Practically everything Ember did was to undermine Scar's pack, which controlled most of the woodlands and plains in the area. They were ruthless, ferocious fighters whose only weakness, ironically, was their bloodthirsty leader, who relished in killing humans. Ember often exploited that, staging small raids on the towns and leading the Huntsmen toward Scar's territory before hiding.

Now, she hoped to use their weakened state after a large raid to further decimate their forces. It was a brilliant, risky strategy that invited the human's Crystals as much as it did Scar's fangs.

When the first of Scar's werewolves came into view, Ember was quick to react. She raised her head and howled, unleashing her awaiting pack and charged into the fray.

Ellora was knocked on her back by a larger male wolf with smoldering black fur and two throwing knives lodged in his tender flesh. She quickly got ahold of his shoulders before biting down into the crook of his neck, cringing at the smoky scent of his fur. She almost yelped when his claws dug into her back. She managed to lift her hind legs to dig her feet into his exposed belly. Toppling him over, she let go of his shoulders and bit down on his throat. She turned her head sharply, and a sickly crack told her that this fight was over. Eyes blazing, she gave in to her natural bloodlust and ran eagerly to meet her next opponent.

Her former opponent's taste lingered on her tongue, and the frantic singing in her veins caused her fur to bristle as if charged with lightning. She fell upon another wolf and slashed wildly with her claws. Some part of her mind coldly observed how easily flesh was cut, how richly blood flowed from new wound after new wound.

Another form grabbed at her from behind, and she roared her defiance before quickly killing the young, inexperienced wolf. She could hear her packmates fighting and feel the vibrations of dozens of paws on the ground. She smelled the strong metallic scent of blood as it soaked into the earth.

Then, something broke her out of her frenzy. It was a tiny cry of pain and fear. It was a soft sound that barely carried over to her ears. It was the distressed call of a young girl.

Ellora turned her head in time to see a small group of wolves fleeing the town. Two of them were running on their hind legs and carrying something in their forearms. Narrowing her eyes, Ellora broke away from the battle and ran after them. She heard some of Scar's wolves pursuing her and barked over her shoulder, hoping some of her packmates would hear her cry for help.

As she drew closer, her eyes widened, and she suddenly became aware of the painful rasp of breath in and out of her heaving lungs. Scar was in the group of fleeing wolves. A large, black beast with streaks of red that appeared as fresh scars. He turned and bared his fangs at her as she approached.

Knowing she had no chance in a fight, she dodged to the side and kept running. Planting her paws on the ground, she spun around, losing one of her pursuers and allowing herself another look at the fleeing group. One of the upright wolves was far less guarded and trailing behind the other. Also, Scar stayed near the front, making it easy to decide who to attack.

Ellora head-butted the werewolf's side, knocking him off balance. The thing he had been holding fell out of his arms, letting out another girlish cry when striking the ground. Sharp pain in Ellora's shoulder caused her to spin around and snap desperately at a new foe. Luckily, several pack members approached, pulling Ellora's attacker away and easily killing the wolf carrying the small girl. Scar, the other upright wolf, and the rest of that group disappeared into the forest.

A frightened howl signaled the pursuit of Huntsman on horseback. Scar's pack was mostly gone, so Ember called for a retreat. Ellora bent down and picked up the tiny girl before following. Since she was running on her hind legs, she quickly fell behind.

To her relief, she saw her friends Bandit and Scarlet slow down to keep pace with her. She smiled gratefully at them before ducking as an arrow whizzed past her ear. She heard Scarlet pause and turn around to attack one of the human pursuers. There was a slash and a thump before she rejoined them.

Ellora chanced a glance over her shoulder. The human was moving. There was no way to tell from where she was if it was her human.

Ever since that night eleven years ago, when she survived her encounter with the monster, she often thought about the young human she had met. Initially ready to kill her, just as any civilized person would. It took a total stalemate between them before he tried talking to her. Still, once Ellora let down her guard, he could have easily changed his mind and killed her. Instead, he freed her from the brambles. He even gave her a cloth from his shirt to bind her wound. A piece of cloth that she kept in her den. He spoke to her as if he expected her to keep her end of their bargain. That night changed everything Ellora thought she knew about humans.

After that, whenever Ember called for a raid on any town, Ellora made herself scarce, drawing the ire of the rest of her pack. She didn't care, though. Technically, her promise was not to lead her pack to his town. However, the pack already knew about the town, making the promise useless. Instead, she chooses not to participate in any of the attacks. Her fangs never tasted human blood, and she intended to keep it that way.

She hoped her human was okay and Scar's pack hadn't hurt him. Subconsciously, she hugged the girl closer, listening to the scared, weak whimpers. "Do you know my human?"

She could see bite marks on the girl. This didn't surprise her. She felt pride at having foiled Scar. "You won't be getting this whelp, you monster. This one is ours." Ellora thought proudly.

The run back to the pack's territory beneath the mountains was long and strenuous. They had some pursuit from Huntsmen, but thankfully not much. It seemed the humans were either tending to their wounded or pursuing Scar's wolves. By the time Ember's pack got home, they were perfectly safe.

Ellora found a patch of grass and placed the girl down on it before regarding her thoroughly for the first time. She was a tiny thing with wide baby-blue eyes. She was covered with bite wounds and trembled violently.

"Why did they savage a young girl so badly?" Ellora wondered before noticing an empty knife belt. She stiffened. "So, you're a Huntress. At least you don't have anymore."

After the girl's clothes were carefully removed, Ellora's eyes shot open when she saw she was covered with over a dozen throbbing bite marks. She winced at the sight of the poor girl. "How is this girl still alive?" She thought.

An angry bark caused her to turn around. Red eyes blazing, Sage approached. The beta wolf snapped angrily at Ellora's face, glaring at the human girl simultaneously. She was angry at Ellora for endangering packmates for the sake of a human's life.

Ellora's hackles rose as she indicated the bites on the girl. “She's one of us now.” She tried to explain without words. She risked herself getting something Scar wanted and strengthened the pack as a result. She would take responsibility for the whelp’s education.

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Sage took another step forward before a sudden bark from Ember caused her to pause. Her ears flattened as the flame-colored wolf approached.

Ember eyed Ellora before looking down at the girl. She leaned down and sniffed a few times, letting out a growl when she caught the smell of Scar. The black leader had bitten this girl personally. She was a prize, for whatever reason. Ember turned to Ellora and nodded once.

Relieved, Ellora left the girl in Bandit's care while she went to collect some healing herbs. This werewolf-to-be wouldn't be any good to the pack dead, after all.

~o0o~

Ellora awoke the following morning to stirring in her bed. She opened her eyes and yawned, stretching her pale human limbs, wincing a little as this action stretched some of the scabs from the previous night. She was also stiff from sleeping on a makeshift bed of grass and leaves. She had given her proper bed to her injured ward.

The girl was trying to sit up on the grass-stuffed mat. She looked around, gasping as her baby-blue eyes fell on Ellora. Her hand instinctively went to her belt and started shaking when she realized there was nothing there.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Ellora said calmly as she watched the girl. "I'm also not one of the werewolves who attacked your village. You were bitten and will need guidance when your time of transformation comes. I'll be your teacher. What's your name?" She spoke slowly and precisely. Though she wanted to go over and comfort the girl, she knew that would not be a good idea.

The girl swayed, looking like she would faint, but shook her head quickly. "I'm Coraline," she blinked a few times before her eyes widened. "Mom! Where's mom? They took her too!"

Ellora tilted her head and thought back to the battle. There had been another upright wolf carrying something. That must have been this girl's mother. She sighed regretfully. "We weren't able to get her. She is with Scar's pack. Moon help her."

Coraline took a shuddering breath. "Who's Scar?"

"A rival leader. His pack is responsible for most of the attacks on your village," Ellora walked over to the bed and knelt beside it. "You will learn about him soon enough. Are you hungry?"

Coraline said nothing. Instead, she fixed her gaze on her hands lying in her lap. Her face rapidly turned red.

"What's wrong? Do you have a fever?" Ellora placed a hand on the girl’s forehead. Coraline winced instinctively in response to her touch but ignored it. She glanced at the herb poultices. They still looked okay but would probably have to be replaced by midday.

"Your face does feel hot. I'll get some water." Ellora took a wooden bowl from near one of the cave's walls and walked toward the stream.

Once Coraline was sure the werewolf was gone, she looked down at her bandages again with a sickened frown. She dug her nails into her arm that wasn’t bitten. She kept digging and scratching until the first signs of blood began to show. She fought back a sob. Her Energy hadn’t protected her arm from. It was gone. Her soul was corrupted. She was cursed to forever be a werewolf.

~o0o~

As Ellora cut through the denning area, Bandit ran into her.

"Hey, if it isn't the new nursemaid? How's your whelp doing?" His words were teasing, but his tone was kind.

"She just woke up. I'm getting her some water," Ellora knelt and dipped the bowl in the stream.

"Is it smart to leave her alone in your den?" Bandit questioned.

"What would she steal? Besides, she can't run away. One, she's still too weak. Two, she can't return to her home with those bite marks. I'm sure she knows that.” Ellora stood up and started back toward her den. "How many were injured last night?"

"Ten were injured. Three were killed." Bandit listed the names of the fallen.

None of the newly killed had been close to Ellora, but she still felt their deaths as much as any packmate should. She bowed her head as she walked. "At least we did sufficient damage to Scar's pack."

"I wonder why he wanted that girl. She seems a bit small, you know?" Bandit wondered.

"He didn't seem to want Coraline as much as the other one he had," Ellora glanced at Bandit, noticing his confused look. "Coraline is her name."

"Hm. Could've been a random turning, or maybe he'd been stalking them," Bandit mused. "Maybe he fancied one or both of them."

"Don't ask her about that now," Ellora warned as they approached the den. "She still needs to recover before thinking about anything else." She crawled through the entrance. "I'm back."

Coraline turned toward Ellora and Bandit before she quickly looked at her lap again. It was easy to see the redness in her cheeks from where the two werewolves stood.

Bandit frowned. "You don't need to be scared. We're not the wolves that attacked your village, and we won't hurt you."

Ellora stared at the girl for a moment before realization hit her. She looked at Coraline's carefully averted eyes to her own naked body. "She's not scared. She's embarrassed."

Coraline's sideways glance and the deeper flush to her face confirmed Ellora's assumption.

"Huh? What about?" Bandit tilted his head.

"Neither of you are wearing anything," Coraline muttered through gritted teeth.

Ellora nodded, chuckling a little. "It's been a while since we've had a newly turned werewolf. I forgot how you humans can get."

Bandit snorted. He glanced down at himself before shrugging a shoulder. "Wearing clothes all the time sounds like it'd slow you down. Humans are such prudes!"

"I guess I'll have to get used to it," Coraline cut in, her voice hollow. "I'm one of you now, right?"

"It's not as bad as your Temples make it out to be," Bandit assured her as he shifted most of his body into the cave's shadows, more for her benefit than his.

"Doesn't the Temples say that those bitten should kill themselves?" Ellora asked, recalling some of her parent's lessons concerning the manic nature of humans.

"Yes," Coraline looked at her hands. "I…I don't know if I could have done it under different circumstances, but I know I can't do it now. My mom needs me. If I can rescue her, I'll figure out what to do next."

She glanced at Ellora. "You don't like that other pack, right? Can you help me?"

Ellora felt a pang as she looked into the human girl's eyes. Despite her maturity and the fact that she had likely killed werewolves before, she was so young. While humans were zealous, they did at least seem to care about each other. Ellora couldn't help but think back to her human. Was he as compassionate as he had seemed to be eleven years ago? Did he know Coraline? Would he be the type to challenge Scar for her sake?

She shook her head. "Scar's pack is bigger than ours. That's why we had to attack while he was weak from attacking your village. A rescue of someone he wants is nearly impossible. I only got you away due to luck." Seeing the stricken look on Coraline's face, Ellora continued. "I will teach you how to use your new gift to your advantage. Train yourself and hone your skills, and you will become a member of this pack. Then, you can bring your case to Ember, our leader."

"There's no time! Who knows what'll happen to her? She's all alone!" Coraline tried to get up, only to be forced back down by Ellora's firm hand. "I'll go after her myself if I have to!"

"You're no good to her dead," Ellora growled, her eyes flashing. "Now, stop moving before you make your injuries worse." She fixed her gaze on Coraline's stubborn gaze, drawing on her instincts. She focused her stare until it felt like a physical force connecting her to this small human. A low rumble rose in her throat. She felt Coraline resist for a time before sighing and turning her head away.

"Okay," Coraline sounded deflated.

Ellora closed her eyes, her shoulders slumped a little. Her head pounded for a few moments before she calmed down fully. "I will do what I can for you. Just don't do anything stupid." Quickly, she turned and walked out of the cave to get a breath of fresh air. She heard Bandit follow.

After Ellora had had a chance to breathe, Bandit spoke. "So, you're getting better at that dominance thing. Maybe Ember's gonna have to start worrying about you sooner than we thought."

Elora groaned, shaking her head. "That meant nothing, Bandit. Any alpha wolf can do that. Just because I'm an alpha doesn't mean I must be the alpha."

"If you say so," Bandit shrugged. "I'm just telling you what I see. You're stronger than any of the other alphas our age. It won't be long before you're seen as a threat."

"Ember doesn't see me as a threat," Ellora protested. "Why would she have let me take charge of a new whelp if she didn't trust me?"

"Caring for the kid will take time and energy. Even if she becomes a supporter of you for being her mentor, she wouldn't be enough to fight those loyal to Ember."

Ellora growled in exasperation. "First of all, I have no intention of usurping Ember, so this conversation ends here. Second, when did you become so knowledgeable about pack politics?"

"I listen," Bandit glanced to the side. "And I take lessons from Scarlet. She's got a whole list of conspiracy theories concerning you and Ember."

"Well, see that she keeps them to herself," Ellora said firmly. "I need to tend to my charge. I’ll see you for the hunt tonight, Bandit.”

Bandit nodded, seeing that the conversation was over. "Okay. Take care, Ellora."

Ellora watched her friend go, a frown on her face. Bandit apparently hadn't realized that he had been in a submissive stance during his entire conversation with her.

"Even my closest friends view me as a future leader," she thought mournfully before looking back at her den. "Was he right, though? Is Ember letting me care for Coraline because she wants me distracted? What would she have done with her otherwise?”

She knew that Ember was cunning and calculating. Above all, she was willing to make large sacrifices for the pack's good as a whole. Some would say that the sacrifices were often too great. Those werewolves often cast hopeful glances in Ellora's direction when they saw her. She was always quick to avert her eyes.

Shaking herself, she returned to her den. Coraline was still lying on her back, head turned away. "Would you like some food?"

"I guess you don't have any cookies, huh?" There was the barest hint of a laugh in the girl's voice.

Ellora shook her head, smiling gently. "I'm afraid not."

She paused by a wooden chest and opened it, withdrawing a light brown cloak. She draped it around her naked form to make her new charge more comfortable with her presence. "There will be a hunt later, but I can dig up some bones or find berries for you."

"I think I'm fine for now." Coraline took a deep breath. "Thanks for taking care of me…." She paused. "Hey, you never told me your name."

Ellora sat beside the bed and gently petted Coraline's hair. Looking at the younger, vulnerable-looking girl, it wasn't surprising that Ellora's more maternal instincts were making themselves known. It wasn’t just that. This young whelp reminded Ellora of her long, lost baby sister. In the back of her mind, she became excited. It was like she was going to be a big sister again. She wouldn’t fail this young girl like she had Isabelle. "Ellora," she said. "My name is Ellora. I'm glad to have you here, Coraline."