Swift gently nudges Bladen aside. "Shift over. You are shaking."
Kiri nuzzles against him, "That was incredibly brave. How did you do that without panicking outwardly? "
"Oh I was, she could tell." Bladen leans against Kiri, "I can't believe you actually got into our head. I wasn't sure you could, not with them all right there."
"Bladen! We are getting weaker. Our injuries are still bleeding." Swift calls back.
"I know, it's not good. Just keep the body running. Just get us somewhere safe. Please, Swift."
"D'vala threw me into your head. I don't know how she did it." Kiri admits. "I think she used the bond we have."
Bladen nods, "Want me to throw you back?"
"Please. Not that I don't like it here, but its weird."
Bladen banishes him, slapping him back into his head with a wall. He moves closer to Swift. "Want me to take over again?"
"It's ok, I've got it." Swift insists, "Go rest. I will get us and Kiri to a safe place to rest, don't worry."
Bladen backs up. He examines his charge seriously for the first time since the separation. She was small, not even 5 months in their years, but she handled herself with a maturity that not even the best of the alpha line creatures managed at this age. He sighs, heading back to his corner. "Swift, why don't we consider telling Firestorm who you are?
"Bladen, she has eyes. She has a nose. If she is really that oblivious that she can taste my blood, my flesh, and still not recognize me as her own, how much can she really teach me that I couldn't learn by tapping pack lines and listening to Frost teach my brother?"
Blade nods, "Frost isn't going to be teaching Sky correctly. He's not right in the head."
"I know. But the basics are there. Perhaps we really need these ideas revamped by a youngster's ideals." Swift digs her claws into her paws.
"Swift." Bladen chides, "She won't think less if you come home now. In fact she will be extremely proud of you. She's pleased with what she saw just now, and she doesn't even know you're hers! Think about that."
Swift glares at Bladen, "I don't want her approval anymore. Just yours. And Kiri's. She is nothing to me now. I don't care what she thinks or doesn't think of me. She is just another alpha to respect grudgingly. That's all."
Bladen chuckles knowingly before curling up in a ball. "Alright kit, no need to get all defensive."
She huffs. "I'm not."
Bladen nods sagely, "Of course. Whatever was I thinking."
Swift ignores him. She swims up beside Kiri. "Are you ok? Is that cat's words still affecting you?"
Kiri shakes his head, "I don't think so. Why? I mean, I felt a compulsion when he uttered them, but it wasn't that strong. I could ignore it easily."
Swift leans her head against him. "Oh good. I was so scared. I don't want you to die. That would really really suck. I wasn't sure what his power level was. If he was an alpha he could've just ordered your heart to stop and it would've."
Kiri squeaks as he is accidentally dunked. He swims away and resurfaces with a glare. "What do you mean? I can't control my heart."
"We can control absolutely everything about our bodies Kiri, right down to our hearts. That's one of Alpha Nix's favourite ways to torment disobedient pack members. He orders their heart to stop and he just waits as they beg and plead. If they try to wait him out he will just let them die."
Kiri sinks deep into the water, He stares at Swift, his eyes wide. "Don't joke about this."
Swift shoots him a memory, borrowed off the pack link.
Frost sits in his base. Ink swirls around him, the night thick with fog. A pair of wolves slip back into pack, reeking of sex and blood. An underlying scent tickled his senses.
He appears, a menacing form of a wolf, standing ar least a head taller over the tallest pack member, and a good 2 feet above these two. He gives them a toothy grin. "Explain."
They wilt, the female stammering out a few half statements.
The male sits, he flicks a piece of flesh off at the alpha male. "We went to play. Is that a against your rules now?"
Frost twists his head, watching the insulting leg twist with his head. It snaps, flopping away at a vile angle.
The male squeals in agony, his bravo gone. "We didn't mean it! It was an accident!"
Frost smiles. "What did you do?" He asks sweetly.
The female flattens herself to the ground, belly up. "We went into the sea..."
"And?" Frost prompts
"To one of the islands..." Stammers the male, he copies the female.
"Why did you go?" Frost prompts
"We wanted to try breeding a lesser species..." The female mutters.
"But it didn't work, they were terrified. So we just killed them." The male says the last part proudly. "It was easy. They only talked about us being evil demons."
Frost nods. "So you disobeyed my pack law. You pillaged, attempting rape and murder, decimated a civilization, just because you wanted to create a new thing?"
"Yes?"
Frost laughs, his tone dropping to power. "Then die."
Their breaths freeze, heartbeats suddenly missing from the din that wasn't even noticed.
Frost smirks. "Better. You killed your own kind. They are a lesser species, sure. But they were Dukari thousands of years ago. We do not kill Dukari outright. Ever. Especially not for fun."
The female dropped, mouth agape as she tried to force air into her body. "Alpha please, we didn't know. We followed you"
Frost regards her coldly. "My mind is emotionless. That's why we have such strict rules here. Do not follow in my steps."
"You kill though! You've just killed us!" The male exclaims.
Frost turned, smoke seething around him. "I do. You have emotions. You love your pack. Your people. You would scream at the agony of losing them. Every person, murdered. And then imagine its just because some pups were bored. No real reason. You posed no threats. They were just bored. Would you be excited? Or horrified to learn this?"
They both look away. "Horrified." The female admits.
Frost nods. "You're free."
She gasps, inhaling deep. She jumps to her feet and rubs against him. "Thank you alpha! I promise I won't do it again ever." She vanishes into the cloud of fog, into base.
Frost walks away, leaving the pup mewling on the ground, "Wait! Sir, what about me!"
He paused, "What about you? You nodded with her. You've made no effort to prove your guilt, you've only spoken up when it was a matter of your integrity. Are you sorry you did that? Or did you like hearing them scream?"
The pup whimpered, trying to avoid the truth, "I liked it..."
"Would you do it again?" Frost asks
"Yes...." He admits
"Even if you know you'll be caught again?"
"Yes."
Frost nods. "Sorry boy." He walks away, leaving the male to wriggle until he finally falls limp.
Kiri blinks away from the memory, "I- Why? Why not just kill him humanely? Why wouldn't someone help him? Just.... Why?"
"Why not? It drove his point home. That female got up and tripped over her friend's body the next day. She was horrified and devastated." Swift shivered. She struck off for another island, a good distance away. "Come on. I'm cold."
Kiri paddled up next to her. "You think they could do that to me?"
"They tried. You said you shrugged it off." Swift points out. "They aren't Frost or Firestorm."
"Are they supposed to be able to order people about like that?" Kiri asks, noting how his friend was sinking into the water.
Swift heaved a sigh, strokes faltering. "It's about where our minds fall in the hierarchy. If we are the top of the top, only other top of the tops can possibly order us, but that doesn't usually work except when we're under 10."
"Like now."
"Yep. I don't know what ranking those 2 were, but they weren't top of the top. I'm pretty sure we are." Ice shimmered around her, helping nudging her forward.
"Is that weird?" Kiri prods, worry spiking in his mind.
"Well, it's not normal. I uh, technically Firestorm is my mother. Frost my father. I was expected to be an alpha. You are the weird one. Neither of your parents were proper alphas, and it's rare to produce higher then your mental compassity."
"Really?" Kiri adds his abilities to hers, helping bolster her along.
"Yeah, it's why Thermal was being so weird. The packs had a major issue a long time ago with something that took all the alphas away. I don't know what it was. Just that it was really bad. You're one of the few who isn't directly related to each other."
Kiri stares at her in horror. "You mean Frost and Firestorm-"
Swift snorts, "Full siblings. I wholeheartedly agree with your ew."
Kiri shudders. He glances ahead with a start when he realizes how close they'd gotten to the island. "That approached quickly."
"I was giving you a boost too Kir." Swift yawns. She pulls herself out of the water and flops onto the sand. Blood runs down her chest. "Help me stand?"
Kiri lifts her to her feet, holding her steady as he darts around her to examine her chest. He gasps, "Why haven't these healed yet?"
"I don't know. I'm worried." Swift admits softly.
Kiri drags her over to the treeline. "Just, stay here. I'm going to go find us somewhere safe to hide."
Swift licks cautiously at her chest. She winces. She pulls herself to her feet and slips deeper into the shadows. "Bladen, why won't we heal?"
Bladen perks up, he drags himself back to the front of the mind, stretching out to release himself from his stiffness. He shoves her aside and examines their internals. "I think the bitch poisoned us, just slightly. It's not healing right away. Sorry Swift. Do you want me to take over again?"
She shook her head, "Later please."
———————
Kiri hums, D'vala matching his tone. "She'll be fine boy." She reassures.
"How do you know?" He asks fearfully.
"If she wasn't going to heal Bladen would be panicking. He's napping right now. So while she may feel like crap, she will heal up and be ok. Promise."
Kiri sighs, "I don't like this. I don't like being here. I don't know where there's anywhere safe here."
"Home was more unsafe. I'm sorry Kiri." His eyes flickered off to the right. "Look, a cliff face. Maybe we'll get a lucky and there will be a cave."
Kiri headed towards it. His body low like he's hunting prey. He moves close before darting away, checking for any major dangers. "I see something up higher."
"Not good right now. I don't want to make Swift try and climb." Kiri explains.
He slinks along the edge of the cliff, pausing occasionally to dig at seam edges.
"Hey, I think I found something!" Kiri exclaims. He digs harder, earth flying around him. The earth dips below him.
D'vala forces them back, earth dropping away under their feet.
They stare down at the rushing water beneath their feet, eyes wide. "Thanks..." Kiri whispered, his voice bringing credit to the scene below them.
"I think we may have to find another area." She suggests.
Kiri nods, "Agreed. Hard agree." He turns, vanishing back into the brush.
Half an hour later he returns back to the cliff. "I can't see anything better then potentially that upper cave. Should I go get Swift?"
She sighed, "Yeah, let's go get her."
He trots back to her, nuzzling her awake. "Swift." He nudges her harder, "Swift. Wake up."
She blinks up at him, a fog in her eyes. She leans against him as she pulls herself to her feet. "I really don't feel well."
"You're really hot. Like really really hot." Kiri murmurs. "Bladen, are you awake?"
Swift shakes her head. "No, he's not. I told him to sleep, he's feeling worse then I am." She chirrs softly, blood still seeping from her chest. "Did you find somewhere to rest?"
He nods, moving slowly towards the cliff he found. "A cave, not sure how good it is. It's up high a bit though..."
Swift chuckles, "Kir, I'm sick, not an invalid. I promise." She gives him a hard head butt.
Kiri leads her to the cliff. He stops her just before she reaches the soft ground. "Up there. Do you see it?"
She gives him a look. "Still not an invalid. Yeah I can see it. Have you been up to it yet?"
"No, but it's definitely a cave. Not just a crack." Kiri glances between her and the cave. "You go first. I'll follow."
"What, just to make sure I don't fall?" She teases.
Kiri blushes and looks away.
She hehs, not wanting to admit that he may be in the right to worry. She braces herself, claws digging deep into the earth.
She jumps, landing perfectly on the edge of the cave. She sways forward, stumbling as the world vanished around her. Kiri's voice reaches her through the blackness, "SWIFT!"