Page 16 of Rejection on the Full Moon

“This is Amberle, the wolf I told you about. She agreed to train our Trackers for a month and possibly become our new Head Tracker. We were just discussing the shape of our Hunters and decided she would help train them as well. This also includes you and I, Christian.” Dominic answers, filling in his Beta on our arrangements. I catch Christian eyeing me for a moment as he takes in my appearance, and a slight frown appears.

“How long have you been a Tracker?” He asks, crossing his arms over his chest. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at his antics before answering. I explain to him that I shifted young and began training with my mother, the previous Head Tracker of my old pack, as well as training throughout the years I was left in Blue’s care. This answer seems to be what he is looking for, as Christian just nods and welcomes me wholeheartedly. It was weird to know that the wolf I’m used to cursing at me when in wolf form is treating me with respect. Maybe no one knows I am Fire Foot yet.

“Have you found a Head Hunter yet since Rick retired?” Christian asks Dominic. I’m surprised that this pack had no Head Hunter but decided it isn’t my place to say anything. I begin to stretch for the next part of my training.

“Not yet, Christian. Amberle, think you could help us out and decide who out of the Hunters has the potential to be a Head Hunter for the pack?” Dominic turns to me as he asks the last part. I’m glad he’s giving me a chance to choose, considering the Head Hunter and I would have to work together for this month to train all of the wolves. It would make it easier for me if the Head Hunter is someone I could get along with.

“Sure. It will make training easier for us if I get to choose someone. I’ll keep an eye on the Hunters during practice, and so should the both of you. We can talk about the options for the best candidates during lunch.” I answer with a smile. Shortly after, Dominic calls for the Hunters and Trackers to gather round as Christian and I take a spot on either side of Dominic.

“Thank you all for coming here today. Normally, we do not train Hunters and Trackers together, but it’s come to my attention that we are thoroughly out of shape. So, I have asked Amberle Crest, as our Prospective Head Tracker, to train you all. By the end of the training, we will also discuss who is suitable as our Head Hunter. This wolf will work alongside Amberle to help train every Hunter and Tracker here, both full and in-training wolves.” The crowd gives a big ‘Yes Alpha’ after Dominic’s instructions. My eyes scan the new wolves in the group. All the Hunters have a similar build—muscular and an unmoving personality. Even the she-wolves who are Hunters were built differently from the she-wolves that are Trackers.

"I will be testing you all for a month and will tolerate nothing but respect. Dominic asked me to come here to train you, and ultimately it is my decision to stay or leave after the month is over. Remember to follow my instruction well.” I begin, seeing some males roll their eyes at me, and I instantly recognize them as the ones who fall into the traps they set to capture me. I couldn’t help grinning as I think of a way to make training harder for these Hunters.

"Most of you have dealt with me already this past year, and I will be brutally honest—You all suck at teamwork and have no stamina," I state plainly, not sparing any feelings. Some wolves growl at my harsh words, only to be met with an even louder growl from Christian and Dominic, the two putting those dissatisfied in their place. Once everyone settles down, I continue speaking carefully, making sure that everyone understands my words.

"So, for today’s training, I will be focusing on teamwork between the Hunters and the Trackers. Your Alpha and Beta will be joining in on this training, as all of you are the backbone to this pack. Your sole goal is to work as a team and improve your stamina. None of you are to shift at all. If you shift, we return here and start from the beginning. At the same time. if any of you quit or slack off, we will return here and start from the beginning. We will continue restarting if we have to until everyone starts to collapse from exhaustion. If you think I won’t know, I have the former Head Tracker sitting by looking at a tablet that is receiving video feed from cameras I’ve hidden throughout the forest. She has already been told to tell Dominic when someone quits or shifts, and he will call for a restart. Any questions?” The clearing goes dead silent as all the wolves, including Christian, stare at me in disbelief. They finally realized that I’m not going easy on them and that training with me will be a challenge. No one raises their hand to ask anything as looks of fear and admiration are directed at me. I couldn’t help the feeling of pride swelling inside as the feeling of being a leader rushes over me.

"Who are you?" I hear Christian asks after the silence continues, turning to look at the wolf with a smirk playing on my lips.

"You will know soon enough. Now, as a pack, you need to trust each other and work as one. The game is simple, take the scarf off of me using whatever means possible, as long as I don't get severely hurt or killed. Scrapes and bruises are fine, but I have a feeling that today’s session will end with me winning." I continue my instructions, taking out a neon pink scarf from the bag I had brought for everyone to take a look at. I catch a few wolves breathing in my scent and smile as a Hunter with a green Mohawk stares at me. His eyes scan my appearance and scarf as he breathes in deeply. It is clear he is taking this seriously, and I take a note to tell Dominic about him later.

“As mentioned earlier, all of you will be in your human form. No shifting whatsoever. I, on the other hand, will be in my wolf form because, in a large green forest, you’ll all be able to spot me easily.” The group chuckles at the end, and I have a feeling they were underestimating me. But soon, they will learn exactly who their Alpha asked to train them.

“I advise you all to take Amberle’s words to heart. You have all met her in the past, and you’ll soon know why. She is a formidable Tracker, and you’ll be able to become stronger and faster with her training.” I smile at Dominic’s words as he gives a knowing smile to his wolves. He knew my secret of who I am from when I saved him nine months ago. With a nod, Dominic gives me the go-ahead to shift into wolf form, and I take this moment to slip behind some trees that hide me from view of his wolves. I remove my clothes and place them in a hollow in one of the trees, then tie the scarf to my ankle loosely enough so that when I shifted, the scarf would be snugly on my left hind paw. Once all set, I take a deep breath and shift quickly. I let a moment pass before slowly padding out from the cover of the foliage and take a spot just in front of everyone, my tail wagging gently.

Growls and gasps fill the training field as some wolves who instantly recognize me begin to lunge at me, their intent to capture me as my flame-like fur gives away my identity as Fire Foot. I simply dodge each wolf, finding amusement in their antics while they struggle to even lay just one finger on me. A loud, angry snarl floats over the group, and my pursuers stop suddenly, a look of fear filling their eyes while they scramble to return to the group. I roll my eyes and glare at Dominic for ruining my fun, then trot to stand beside him. I knew better than to continue to piss off an already angry Alpha.

“Amberle is the she-wolf I chose to bring here for the sole purpose of training every last one of you, with the intent to make her the Head Tracker of this pack. I have watched her personally kill eleven Soulless, who were the strongest I have ever fought against, and she saved my life in the process. I trust her even if she did loot our pack in the past, but she never caused any harm to us. None of you know what being a Rogue is like, so we can’t blame her. Instead, we should be thanking her for agreeing to train us all to be stronger, especially considering none of you have ever caught her, nor can any of you match up to her.” Dominic’s voice is loud as he directs his speech to the crowd. A look of shame crosses the group’s faces as their Alpha berates them. Power and anger radiate from Dominic and waves of disappointment fill his eyes.

"Alpha Dominic is right. None of us, not even I, could capture Amberle in the past. We need her to strengthen us so we can keep our position as the number one pack in Ontario.” I felt touched by Christian’s words, who smiles a wolfish grin as he places a hand on Dominic’s shoulder, visibly calming down his Alpha. I can see why Christian is Dominic’s Beta. They complimented each other, and Christian knew what he needed to do to keep Dominic calm. It reminded me of how Blue and my Father were in the past.

“So, when do we start, Miss Amberle?” Christian asks after a period of silence has filled the crowd. I send a wink his way before darting off into the trees without warning, my paws digging into the soft earth while I dodge trees and shrubbery.

“I think she means now.” I hear someone say before the sounds of pursuit follow. I couldn’t help but laugh as best as I can in wolf form, rolling my eyes at how slow the Hunters and Trackers are. Heck, even Dominic and Christian are a pair of idiots, considering I took off from right beside them. You would think an Alpha and his Beta would be smarter than this, but nope. It took a wolf pointing out that my running away meant to start. I was starting to realize why looting them was so easy a few months ago.

I took this lead time from my head start to go directly to the creek, just ahead from the training ground, running through the water to get rid of my scent trail. Once I feel like they will have a hard time following me, I scan my surroundings until I find the low-hanging branch of a sturdy birch tree and quickly hop onto it. I continue to climb up a couple of branches until part of me is well-hidden with the bright leaves and settle down to watch below me. Soon, the group crashes through the bushes, stopping for a moment to stare in all directions. Some sniff the air heavily to catch my scent.

"Where the hell did she go?" Christian’s cry of frustration reaches my ears, and I fight back laughter. Man, this brought back memories of him trying to capture me when I first started looting this pack. I could see the gears moving behind Dominic’s eyes as he scans the forest. The sad part is many were searching the ground while some were sniffing in case the breeze brings my scent to them.

"Remember, she’s a top Tracker." Dominic reminds the group, looking at the Trackers mostly.

"What’s the main hiding spot that you all use, the way you take when tracking rogues?" He asks. It’s a smart question to ask, and silently I do a little cheer for the Alpha. Maybe he isn’t as stupid as I thought he was. The group of Trackers stop their movement as some look around confused. They definitely needed more training.

"Quick, search the trees. I remember Ashlee said Trackers use the trees since they are faster.” My eyes go to the she-wolf with pink-tipped hair. She was short, maybe five foot three inches tall, with a lithe build. I had a feeling that she would be a great Tracker with a little more training. Eyes continue to search, this time everyone looking into the trees in hopes of spotting me. I stay still and wait in my hiding spot, waiting to see just how sharp these wolves are. The pink-tipped wolf walks forward and comes to stand beside the green Mohawk wolf, their gazes trained on the trees above the creek. It was clear to see the gears were turning as I stare into their eyes, waiting to see which one of them would spot me first.

"There, I see her." Pink-tipped wolf says as her eyes widen with excitement, and she points at the birch tree I’m relaxing in. I lift a paw and wave before taking off, quickly hopping from branch to branch. The sounds of branches bending with the weight of a body indicate a few wolves have joined me in the trees, but their movements were slow and clumsy. I knew instantly I would have to focus on their skills in navigating through branches. The scent of fresh water slowly fills the air, and the scene of a lake greets me. Focusing more energy into my legs, I leap off the final branch. Twisting my body to the left, I dive straight into the safety of a lake, making sure I am deep under the water. Shadows pass by in the trees above, and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. The wolves chasing me did not stop to sniff the air to make sure they were on my trail and instead bypass me and the lake altogether.

An hour slowly passes by as I take the time to trick them, swim to the island in the center of the lake, and leave my scent all around it. I brush against the bushes and trees, seeing some fur left behind, and smirk. By the time the group decided to double back and regroup, I was on the opposite side of the lake, letting the warm sun dry my fur while hidden by large bushes.

"Anyone catch her scent yet?" The question is voiced by the pink-tipped girl, and I perk my ears up. Apparently, they were close, and I had to be ready to make a run for it at any moment. I peek under the bushes hiding me to take a look at the group. I could see some trying hard to track down my scent as some look around the trees and bushes.

“Miles, you’re our best swimmer in this group. See if she is over by that island over there.” Dominic suggests, giving the order to a wolf in the group. It turns out Miles is the green Mohawk wolf, and I smirk as he starts swimming to the island that I have left my scent all over. Another twenty minutes pass before Miles once again jumps into the water and swims back to the group, a frown on his young face as he looks at Dominic and Christian.

"She was there, but she seems to have left maybe an hour ago. She must be watching us." And he was right. Maybe I should throw them a bone. The wind was blowing in my favour, as everyone’s scent is carried towards me, but this exercise is to test their skills as a pack. Quietly, I make my way through the forest around them until the wind blew my scent towards the group. I waited to see who would catch my scent first, to see which wolf has the sharpest nose, and it isn’t long until I hear a shout.

"I smell her!" Dominic exclaims with excitement, signalling that it was time to leave the lake quickly. With a quick jog, I continue my path through the forest. Three more hours pass by in a blink, and in those hours, I continued to trick them, wait until many were just in reach to grab me, then take off in a sprint and even manage to lose the group. At one point, Dominic, Christian, and Miles split into three groups with a mix of Trackers and Hunters, impressing me with their idea. But no one has come close to taking the scarf away from me.

The sun is beginning to set, the sky ablaze in many reds, oranges and pinks, helping to disguise my fur even better. I was starving, having used the majority of my energy to mess with the wolves being trained by me. They had done well—better than I expected—and I had an idea of what needed to be done next. First thing’s first, I had to talk to Dominic and Christian about Miles and how he would make a good Head Hunter and partner-in-crime with training these wolves. I silently crept through the treetops, keeping an eye on the wolves below me as they continue to scan through the forest. I could see the exhaustion and weariness in each wolf below me, as some soon lean against a tree to support themselves. This is probably the most training they’ve ever done, but at least they knew their territory well. I knew how they felt, though. Other than my stamina being fine and my breath, even my paws were sore. I would be feeling it tomorrow if I decide to shift again into wolf form and go for a run.

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