The late evening air was brisk, we were gathered at the entrance of the cave. Most of the group that had gathered here this morning were still here, but there were a few missing. Looking around I began to really pay attention to who was missing, there were two from one group and one from the other. No one from my group was missing. While pondering why they were missing, Fawn on the Meadow stepped upon a rock and called for our attention. "Take a good look around, this is your squad. Oya is your leader you will take your orders from her. Good luck and may the Goddess bless you and return you to us." With that, she jumped off the rock and disappeared into the woods.

"We move out now," Oya announced. Without another word she turned and headed North.

For days we traveled shifting often, with none of us all in one form. We hunted in fur for our meals and most nights we slept in fur with at least one guard in the skin. On the morning of the fourth day, we were told that we would reach our objective in a few hours. Upon arrival, we were to make camp and await our orders. Everyone's energy level jumped and the excitement was high, finally, we were going to meet the enemy. Sune, Rose, Willow Cries at Night, Dancing Leaf, Moose Jaw, and I all came together and set our tents up then we broke up and went off for what we would need to make our camp work. Before night fell we had several rabbits, a small deer, more than a few local vegetables, and a large stack of firewood. With the prep over we set about ensuring that we would not lose any of the supplies, cleaning the meat and began cooking everything down. We each took a turn watching the food through the night, by morning our work was done and we had enough stable food to last several weeks.

"Gather up", came the call the next morning, Oya stood with Liv on her right and Golden Morning on her left; her chosen lieutenants. "Today we will scout the area on this side of the river, teams of two will go out at different intervals if you spot anything, report it." She gives us our orders and then leaves us with her lieutenants. It took just a few minutes for them to break us up into our teams, within minutes we began to head out. Sune and I headed down steam keeping in constant contact with the other members of our team, it made it super easy as we were all of the same pack. We had run for several hours without seeing anything, which I thought was unusual. Where were all the birds and game, when we arrived we had not hunted this far downstream and the game seemed plentiful, but now it has seemingly disappeared? Just as I was about to report that we had literally had found nothing, we hit a wall. An energy wall was protecting something and we had run into it. Thankfully we had not been running full out or we would have knocked ourselves silly if not out totally. Both of us quickly reported the find and where we were, then began a long roundabout run back to camp. We had to make sure we would not lead anyone back to camp because we knew that by hitting the wall we had alerted someone that we were out here. It took us all night to get back to camp, as we entered Golden Morning waved us over to ask us exactly what we saw. "Were you chased", Liv asked?

"No, that confused me", I told her. "If they took the time to put up an energy wall, something that takes a lot of power to keep up why would they not monitor it"?

"Are you sure you were not followed", Golden Morning asked?

"Positive. We ran for several hours then shifted into skin, bathed, then ran for hours in skin, before rolling in well don't ask, then shifting back and coming back", said Sune. Looking a bit put out as they questioned us.

All Sune and I wanted was some food and sleep. We understood they needed answers but right now they were going to get a side of attitude with it.

"Golden Morning, you can mind seek, can you not", I asked?

"You would allow that", she returned look taken aback?

"If Oya trusts you then that is enough for me", I say looking at Oya. Oya nods at me then at Golden Morning.

"This is going to get personal so you might as well call me Mel", she says moving to stand in front to me.

The morning was bright and loud. I has no memory of how I had gotten into this tent. I moved to sit up and as I did I smelled myself, I was clean. My last memory was Golden Morning telling me to call her Mel. What happened? I felt great, but my stomach was grumbling and rumbling so I headed out. The camp was quiet, the fire banked. No one was in eyesight. My skin began to crawl as my wolf went on high alert, "Something is wrong. Bo, we need to shift..."

Before we could shift an energy ball hit me in the back and a cackle was heard. "So this is the great wolf shifter I have been hearing about. What a tiny pup". The voice was rough and sounded like the female had burned her throat. As she leaned over my prone figure, my wolf and I merged I swung on the witch raking my claws along her face. "AH, you little whore. You'll pay for that." She screamed as I moved to strike her again, clawing her again in the face ensuring that she was blinded. My wolf moved to rip her throat out. Instead, we felt another energy ball headed our way so we dropped to the ground and the witch was hit. She froze before falling to the ground and breaking into tiny pieces which then began to smoke black as nature rid itself of her evil. As she was hit a scream echoed through the wood before the smoke had cleared another female was on her knees next to the pieces.

"It was you who was to die", she screamed at me. "Why did you kill her, she was my life", as she launched herself at me my wolf met her and ripped her throat out. Spitting out her flesh and blood, we moved to get out of the cleaning and into the wood where we would have better coverage.

"No, no, no you aren't getting away that easily", another voice said from above.

I didn't stop to look or respond. I did not know where my squad much less my team was, all I knew was if I stopped I'd die. I wasn't going to make it easy on me. I had barely entered the wood when a figure dropped beside me, rolling to the opposite side I kicked out my legs. My toes now supported claws like my hands. My wolf and I worked together to eviscerate this enemy. Never stopping we moved toward the river. Then I realized something, no one had touched me. None of the females had made a move to hurt me. The energy ball had not burned me and the fight had been too easy. Reaching down to my boot I pulled out my knife and ran it over my arm, nothing happened. I was not in my realm. "Very good child. You are smarter than I would have given you credit for", this female was dressed as a witch of power yet I could not feel more than base power from her. "Are you not going to welcome your Aunt Frode? Aw, I'm crushed. Did no one tell you about me?" She was talking and I was wondering where she was going with this because I wanted to go home. "Bodil was my sister. She was born like our father, strong and of the wolf blood. Our mother was a witch that father had brought back from a raid. Bodil got enough witch to make her noticed by everyone. But mother hated her because father loved her. Father wanted more sons so he impregnated mother again and got me. Father was told mother would only bear him daughters, he tried to beat me from her womb. But I defied him and lived. As soon as she could she fled with me." She smiled a crazy smile. It took me years to find my sister, imagine my surprise when I discovered she was mated to a first blood and was pregnant. I killed your father, then tracked your mother down and ended her. But you, my darling one, were nowhere to be found, who would have thought that Bodil would have had the guts to return to the one pack that wanted her dead. Or that she would have left her precious baby girl with her enemies." She giggled and rubbed her hand together. "They thought that it was rogues that ended them. I heard the talk and it made me sad I couldn't claim my kills. But with your blood, I will be the most powerful witch in the world and everyone will know my work." Her smile was crazy and her eyes were swirling with madness.

"Please Aunt Frode don't kill me", I begged. I did not have enough answers. I needed more time and information.

"You seem plenty strong, you created this realm." I began to lead her.

"Oh, this old thing", she waved her hands around. "This is your imagination. We are in your head." She laughed as if that was a grand thing.

"WHAT? How did you get into my head?" I needed more answers now. I also began to talk to my wolf, "Can you access my memories of the Archives? We need to know how we can fight her in my mind without killing us." Having sent my wolf off to search my memories I again focused on Aunt Frode.

"Oh, it was easy, see you hit the wall".

"How did hitting the wall get you into my head"?

"The wall has energy barbs and they stuck in you making it easy to access your mind and to track you." She was starting to pace and I didn't like that.

"Aunt Frode, why do you need my blood"?

"OOOO, I was wondering if you were going to ask. Well, I am going to take you for a walk-- in the real world-- when we get back to the Coven you will be prepped, your throat cut and your blood collected, under a dark moon, I will drink it thus gaining your wolf and your powers." She acted like she said she was going to get a new perfect dress when we went to town.

"What do you mean in the real world"?

"Well right now you are in a trance of sorts, you have wandered off to be alone. You will continue to walk until we get where I want you to be. Then all my dreams will come true." Her face was really getting to me.

My wolf suddenly popped back in with the information we needed. Turns out we had more control in our mind than she knew, also we were not walking to her destination. My wolf suggested having her eaten be by one of those dragons we had read about, she didn't want to taste her-- the last witch has tasted awful.

"Aunt Frode?"

"STOP CALLING ME AUNT", she suddenly screamed. I had been quiet too long and she may have noticed that we were not going where she wanted us to be. I had to keep her busy until I could kill her.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I don't have any Aunts. Ya know, not any by blood." I bowed my head and sniffed like I was going to cry.

"You can't fool me, you have that bunch of wolves that you live with. I've seen them, they call you family."

"They do", I agreed quickly, "but they are not blood. You are." I raised my head and smiled sadly.

"It really is too bad I did not get to you sooner", she sighed. "You would have made a wonderful pet." She said moving to run her hand over my head. I rolled my head into her hand as if I were tamed.

"Ma'am do I really have to die"?

"'Fraid so", she said with no pity or apology in her voice.

"What about my friends?"

"They will try to avenge you so they will die. Well anyone who stands against us will die." She again looks away as if she is contacting someone through a mind link.

"Ma'am. Ma'am. Aunt Frode..."

"I told you not to call me that", she says snapping her gaze back to me.

"Sorry, ma'am, who is we?" I had to know.

"Oh, yea I didn't finish my story. So I really didn't get to kill your mother. She was a true mate to your father", at this she shutters as if the idea is repulsive. "So her soul had already begun to die and her blood was breaking down. She was accidentally thrown off a cliff in the fight. Believe you me that rogue was punished properly." She again showed off her crazy with that smile. "I knew I would need help so I sought out mother's sister. She had migrated here years ago and I only had a vague idea of where she was, so imagine my surprise at finding her in just a few days."

At this point, my alarms were ringing. This old witch had wanted to find her and I needed to know why.

"She took me in and helped me become a witch of power", she pulled out the skirt of her dress and spun around like a little girl showing off her new dress.

"Why do you need me then?"

"Oh, you will make me the most powerful witch in the world. The power you inherited from your mother and the bloodline of your father have combined to make your blood strong, but it is wasted on a wolf. It takes a strong witch to control such blood. And I am..." Before she could finish her sentence another witch stepped out of the woods. "Bellona what are you doing here?"

"Are you not happy to see me, my niece?" The words were benign but the look in her eyes was predatory.

"No, I am happy you here to witness my moment of triumph", Frode said moving toward me.

She began chanting and my breath got short. It took prompting from my wolf before I remembered how much control I had in this. "Can we use the dragon"? My wolf asked, more excited than I would have expected. 'Why not I thought', closing my eyes to envision a dragon of immense proportions.

"Aw, look Auntie she is praying. Isn't that cute, too bad I didn't find her sooner. She would have made a lovely pet." Frode said as she broke from her chanting.

"Child do not stop the chant, this must be done. NOW", Bellona said in a hard tone. It made me wonder who really was in charge. I now had the dragon in my mind and was waiting to release it when my wolf got impatient. She popped my eyes open and released the huge blue/green dragon onto my unsuspecting Aunt. The crunch as it ate her was rather anti-climatic.

"No", Bellona screamed. "Do you realize how much work you have destroyed?" She turned on me, launching energy balls at me. I jumped behind the dragon, his turn knocked me into the bushes narrowly missing several trees. Bellona though took the force of his tail it flung her into a tree, as I moved toward her the landscape faded and everything disappeared.