Peace and Quiet Ch. 05

Are you sure this is not from Amos beating Zeke and then holding you off? I asked in a hiss. He glanced down. It was. He needed to release some anger. A lot of it. If you charge off as angry as you are, you will get hurt.

"I know that, but...sometimes I look back over my past and wonder what it would have been like had I not been a Solaris. I mean right now I am at my weakest. It's the height of the full moon and I can't take on my Solar form at all. It just pisses me off, ya know?" After it all sunk in, I hissed an affirmative. "You know, for someone who doesn't like being Lycan at all you speak Felis very well."

Amos made me learn and very quickly.

"Ah. I would love to rip his head off just for what he did to you." I rubbed my body along his leg, as much of a hug as I could do right there. He grinned and ruffled my fur. "Thanks, Quint. I feel calmer now." I nodded and padded back to Zeke who wuffed in approval.

We found the Ferals chasing the herd of Bison that was migrating through the area. The herd seemed to be afraid but not unduly so. Yeah they ran, they weren't stupid, but it was as if they knew Ferals and knew they were not as big a threat as I would take them. Gene held his hand up for us to halt and we watched. Yes, the Ferals were hunting, but they were being selective. They hunted the weak ones that kept lagging behind. "Dylan, how would you take them?"

"Quietly. They're strong and fast, but Zeke is far strong and Quint and Colt much faster. Right now I am the weakest and I would be hard pressed to take on more than one."

"Good assessment. I agree. Zeke, can you get their attention and make them come at us for us to ambush?" He, of course, nodded. "Colt with me, Quint with Dyl. Does that sound right, Enforcer?" Dylan seemed a bit surprised he was being asked, but I understood. It was a matter of rank and Gene might be our teacher, but Dylan was the ranked member of this pack.

"Yes. Quint is stronger than Colton and just as fast. Balance for the attackers." Gene nodded. We took our places and hid in the tall grasses. Gene was the bigger of the other attackers, but I couldn't see him. Yet Zeke somehow got the signal because he stood to his full height and let out the loudest roar I had ever heard. I cowered for a moment, not only remembering the night Zeke protected me last moon, but also some memories of the nights I heard explosions and gun fire.

Dylan touched the top of my head and I snapped out of it. His eyes flicked to the Ferals that were now coming at us, the herd having bolted at the sound of the large, unknown predator. "That's the past, this is now." I nodded and got into a crouch, my hind wiggling to ready for the pounce.

The lead Feral collided with Zeke and we moved. The others were not ready for the ambush and were caught by surprise, but not for long. I hit one squarely in the knees and began to rake my claws along his sides and up to get to his neck and go for a kill. Yet this foe had hands and grabbed me to pull me loose. Good luck, I thought, and latched my claws into his thigh, side, and shoulder. He would have to rip me off to get rid of me, and that would hurt a lot. I heard the sounds of combat all around me, but I was focused on this prey. I did take some claws to my back, but he knew he could not get a good hold without getting wounded and instead fell to the ground. I was ready and use his body as a running ground and clawed my way around to his other side. That exposed the soft underbelly to my raking hind claws and I shredded him in little time while I took his throat in my jaws and clamped down as hard as I could, tasting the blood spill into my mouth and making me sick to my stomach. It was rancid tasting to me. When he struggled no more, I ripped his throat all the way out and then turned to help Dylan who was grappling with his foe.

Dylan had a few gashes across his arm, but nothing serious. I waited for a good time to pounce and while I saw a few good ones, I waited. My mind was very clear tonight. Somehow I was not as feline as I had been in the past and I could almost read what Dylan was doing. He was as strong as the beast and was biding his time until he could get it in the position he wanted. Each moment brought him closer to that one thing he was looking for, and when it came even I saw it. The Feral pulled free on claw and swiped for Dylan's throat, but Dylan was more than ready and bent backwards, pulling the Feral off the ground and over him. Dylan didn't let go though, and he used the momentum to put him atop the Feral and he wrapped his mighty arms around the thing's throat and squeezed. The Feral scratched at his arms but he was not letting it break his hold.

Zeke roared out a warning and I turned to see the Feral he was fighting, while bleeding from a nasty bite around his thigh, was heading for Dylan to go for the kill while he was distracted and helpless. Not while I was there. I crouched and launched, my claws extended already. I grabbed the Feral in the chest and spun around to latch right on to its left arm, raking deep gashes from his chest to the right side of his back. With my sudden appearance, knew he would not get his kill. He would not see another day because Zeke was back and his massive paw literally took the head off in one swipe. It twitched and fell with my weight pulling it left. I landed hard and heard a snap. It made me flinch and my body lost feeling.

Zeke pulled the body off me and nuzzled my face, licking the blood from me. Feeling returned and I saw Dylan standing up, the Feral's neck broken. His eyes were a burnished gold and filled with almost a righteous blood lust. He let out a primal scream that was more roar than humanly possible. When his eyes fell on me, that gleam left them. I realized the fight was over. Colton and Gene had done their part, and we had done ours. We were hurt, bleeding, and would need some rest, but we were alive. Zeke took a step back when Dylan gestured and I was lifted into Dylan's arms. "You saved my life, Quint. No walking for you, you broke you leg." It took a moment to realize he was right. With all the adrenaline in my system, and the other various hurts, it was one more thing I just didn't notice. "Zeke, is it okay if I carry your mate?" Zeke nodded with a wuff.

The Hunters arrived about twenty minutes later with Jon and Pat jumping out of the cab of the truck. They looked at the Feral corpses and us while we licked our wounds. "Hmm. Looks like we missed the fun," said Jon evenly. "Dylan, please come with me." Dylan set me down gently and Zeke came to stand over me in protection. The Alpha and the Enforcer made their way out of most Lycan's ears, but mine seemed to hear just find. "You did something monumentally stupid tonight, Dylan."

"Which part? Taking them on against your orders or essentially saying fuck you?"

"Both. I know you are my Enforcer, but I worry Dylan. I have faced Ferals and I know they could kill this group, even with Gene here. Wait, let me explain before you start getting angry at me again." Dylan nodded and crossed his arms. "When I took this land, there were some Ferals here. You know that. I never told you we lost ten Hunters in three days to them. Men and women who knew what it was to hunt these beasts and were armed with guns and silver ammo, silver knives, and even shrapnel grenades with silver. Ten people killed by two Ferals." I almost felt Dylan's body get cold. "So, it was not an idle worry. I would have lost both my son and my Enforcer at one time had this gone differently. I couldn't stand that thought."

Dylan pulled his Lunais father into his arms, even though Jon was four feet taller. "I'm sorry, Dad, for being a dick and for challenging you. It's just...I needed this experience if I am ever to know what it is to be the Enforcer in all but name. I can't do this job you have given me without knowing what it is to fight threats." Jon pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I also needed to blow off some steam. Amos is pissing me off and hurt Zeke last time, and I couldn't best him even with Colt's help."

"You don't have to prove you can do the job, Dylan. I hope you feel calmer now." He nodded. "Good. Now, if you ever try this shit again I will kick your ass out of the house for a month and you better come back with knee pads for groveling," Jon said with a joke that was also a statement.

"Sure, Dad. Just...let me have the experience I need." Jon nodded. "I'm not ready to take them on alone, I know that, but I had my friends here. Quint had my back."

"I see. Then tell me what happened and then go see the doc to get patched up."

I blinked when I felt someone touching me. I hissed at them but stopped when I saw the pack's physician. Pat acted as their doctor in the field. "Let me look at your leg, Quint, please." I stuck out my leg and he did a thorough but gentle job of wrapping it after setting the bone. It hurt, but not badly, yet it would have healed at a bad angle had he not not set it. "There. Now, can you tell me what those two talked about? I speak Felis well enough."

They dealt with the problem. Dylan was angry for not being able to take on Amos and needed to get it out. He also needed to learn how to fight Ferals sometime. He took one on by himself. Pat nodded like he was impressed.

"And what else happened? How did you break your leg? Actually, Dylan can tell me the rest when I patch him up. You rest. Thank you for saving my son." I wondered how he knew I had done that. He smiled and went over to his mate and son. Zeke lay back down and curled around me.

I was awakened when I heard Gene talking to the Alphas. "Those boys work well together. It is as you say, the old blood is strong in them. The old bonds are there. I almost got in the way."

"How so?" asked Alpha Alan.

"Colt and I have fought together before, so we knew what to do, but it was as if Colt and Zeke were in rapport with each other." Rapport? What was that?

"Has there ever been coyote/bear rapport?" Jon asked. "I know Quint and Dylan have it." We did? Was that the bond thing they talked about? I feigned sleep and listened.

"Not to my knowledge. Travis?"

"It is possible, but only just. Those two would have to have a very close relationship in their family lines. Perhaps their ancestors had formed a bond. Coyotes rarely form lasting bonds with mates, but bears do and their...presence is strong. If one of Zeke's ancestors had mated one of Colton's, perhaps on the way East, then there could be a small residual rapport. Tell me more, Gene."

"That's the only thing I can say it was. I was squared off against one of the Ferals and Zeke had his. Colton was keep one busy in a chase, but he would dart in, take a cheap shot at one I was fighting or Zeke and...Zeke knew when he would pass because that bear just lashed out like swatting a fly by your ear. Almost lazily. And he would connect, knocking the beast to the turf. Colton would then rush in, bite the throat, and move before he got hurt." I marveled at how this sounded. Zeke and Colton had done a number on them then. Perhaps the one that had tried to go for Dylan had been fed up with being mauled by a bear and went for weaker prey. "And I saw it happen with Quint and Dylan. Quint waited for Dylan to make his move and then protected his flank. Those two have rapport and it is strong. Never tell one of them something you don't want the other to know. They will know within moments."

"That strong?" Alan sounded shocked.

"Yes. He eavesdropped on Jon and Dylan after the fight and he did it without thinking. Just like he's listening to us right now, faking like he's asleep."

I snorted and opened my eyes. "Snitch," I said to Gene. I sat up, doing my best not to disturb Zeke. I was naked, but then all but Alan were too. It didn't mean too much in this company, but I was sincerely in awe. Jon was hung, Gene was decent, Travis was a beer can...and Alan's scared me. When I got to my feet, the few pains I still had screamed at me. Especially the arm.

"How are you feeling?" Jon asked.

"I'm not dead, but I'm hurting. This rapport thing...is that the shock?" Alan nodded. "So why do you shock me too, Alan?"

"It's in the blood. Literally. Dylan is my biological grandson. While you and I would have a rapport, yours with him is far stronger." I nodded and joined them when they motioned me over. "So, how much do you remember about last night?"

"Ferals, blood, pain, broken arm, Jon being worried about losing Dylan, and me hissing at Pat while he set my arm." I left out a lot, but that was enough for them.

"That's more than normal, isn't it?" Travis asked and I nodded. "So what aren't you telling us?"

"That's between me and Dylan." Travis smiled wryly, knowing I would saying nothing else and he could not order me to do it without dire need. "I will say that having me near him will keep him calmer, Zeke will keep him at pique condition, and Colton will keep him grounded."

"How do you know that?" Jon asked, curious.

"That can't tell you as I don't know how I know. As a unit, we're a good group. That I do know. I...I'm considering petitioning the pack for acceptance. Thinking still, because...Zeke."

Jon nodded. "If you do wish to, you will be accepted. You have proven a strong fighter and would be a wonderful addition to the Hunters, if you wanted to be one." The other Alphas nodded. "So, once you decide where you stand with Zeke, know that you have a place with us."

I bowed. "You honor me, Alphas." For once they didn't even smirk when I used their titles. To think, I could be in a pack. One where I would be welcomed and given a place that I knew what would be expected of me. Not a loner, not a nomad...a family member.