A lithe, white fae glided over the ground with ease, her paws barley making any sound as her light-footed lope took her quickly across grassy plains. Her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she ran and her golden orbs watched everything around her. Not a single movement of her surroundings went unnoticed as she quickly crossed into the shade of a forest. Upon here she slowed to a walk, turned and looked back the way she had come. The pale morning light streamed through the canopy of leaves, a single beam alighting on her head. The ground was crisp from a frost the night before and running had been easy for there had been little chance of slipping. She could feel the warmth of the sun already heating her head and she looked up at the canopy, gazing at the pricks of light that made it through the dense vegetation.

Her breath clouded slightly in the air and she watched it fade, her orbs shining, this cold snap would not last too long. Already she could feel the hard ground between her claws beginning to soften. She blinked and lifted her maw to the air, taking in a deep lungful of air, scenting it and searching for any evidence that the land on which she was standing belonged to another. The scent that greeted her made the lithe fae frown and she paced a little, wondering how the scent of a pack could be so faint. Unless...the had been wiped out. She shook her head, a frown furrowing her feminine features as she begun to walk the the trees, more cautious now.

She stopped every now and again to scent the air in detail, searching in vain for evidence of the scent she had found earlier to be stronger as she continued on. No such luck. She had come here to join a pack, had hoped to find one. But maybe her options had just opened out. Maybe she could start a pack of her own. That prospect made her eyes glitter and she pushed forward, back into her fast, easy lope, quickly mounting a hill as the trees faded away. She stopped once again up here, the wind whipped at her soft, white fur and she felt her spirit soar with freedom as she looked out around her. She saw a large rock jutting out from the side of another hill a little ways off and she frowned. That was strange, this land didnt seem like there was much rock around. So why was that there?

Curiosity quickly overcame her and she leapt down the hill in powerful bounds and raced across to where the rock was. The trees had risen up again and the rock was in a clearing backed up against the hill and surrounded by the trees. She looked up and it, the rock was quite high up but she reckoned she could get up there. She might as well try. The fae crouched, her muscles tense as she prepared to spring. She pushed off and leapt up at the rock that jutted out from the hill. She made it. Just. Her rear legs landed just on the edge and she almost lost her balance and fell.

She shook her white pelt and looked at where she was, suddenly seeing that the rock was not just backed up against the hill, a stone cave sat in the hillside and she peered inside, creeping forward on tensed muscles as she entered the cave. She could smell the faint scent of an alpha and she shrunk back slightly, expecting jaws to close around her throat at her tresspassing. But she did not feel the prick of teeth on her skin and she opened her eyes and looked forward. The den was large and she realised it would be a nice place to stay. But before she settled down the fae trotted out of the cave and onto the jutt of rock. It went uphill at a gentle angle, slimming down to a point at the end. It was here to where she walked and rested her front paws on the edge, looking out at the trees that surrounded her.

A quiet groan pricked her ears and she jumped, her heart leaping to her throat as the strong scent of blood caught at her senses. She jumped down off the rock ledge and landed with a soft thump on the ground, turning around to face it again. Her eyes widened with surprise as she saw a small tunnel underneath the rock and from its opening there lay a bloodied wolf, its russet pelt soaked with blood. She rushed toward it and looked at the wolf which was crawling forward gingerly on wounded legs.

"Alore's Peak." it muttered. The wolf was male and the fae looked at it quizzically,

"what?" she asked, her feminine voice soft, yet strong at the same time.

The wolf peered at her and its glazed eyes cleared momentarily, "Keira" it muttered and the fae looked at him with a confused expression,

"my name is Crystal," she said, "i dont come from here, you must have me mixed up." she stepped backwards slightly as the wolf continued to crawl toward her.

"forgive me, my mistake." he muttered, "Tamu and Keira were our last alpahs but the humans...they...they...came with their dogs while we were sleeping. A few of us escaped and we were living in these tunnels for months, almost a year, only leaving to get food and water. The humans caught us when we were tracking a stag." The male lowered its head, "i was the only one to escape, but i am dying, i know i am. They shot me as i retreated back here." Crystal listened, horrified as the wolf recounted what had happened. Then he told her of the way the pack always lived and she listened to his dying words, about Alore, the founder of the Alorian pack, the names the wolves here went by and the customs of things.

She knew why he had been telling her this and she had intended to claim this pack for her own anyway. Then the wolf told her of three other packs that had wiped themselves out in a crazy war and her mind buzzed slightly as everything was poured into her brain, so much to think about. Then she looked down at the wolf again and saw him gasping, foamed blood dripping from his mouth as he fought to stay alive for just a little longer.

"i have told you." he said. "please keep the knowledge of Alore and stop it from being forgotten, lost in the past."

Crystal nodded, "i will." and with that a last, rattling breath escaped the wolf and he lay still. A single tear trickled down Crystal's cheek and she took up the dead body and pulled it away, taking it to a secluded spot in the forest before returning back to the rock and marking it with her scent, a feirce determination entered her eyes and she inflated her chest and let out a howl, telling the whole world if it was listening that she would forfill the dead wolf's wishes. The burden pressed hard on her shoulders, she didnt really know the first thing about being an alpha but she would try and she would do it, she was alphess of the Alorian pack.