Chapter 66: Moonrise

I arrived at Moonrise in the middle of the day. I set up in the packhouse. The rebuilds were going great. I started my search for a suitable interim Alpha by speaking with the Beta. He seemed a likely choice. I read through the alpha’s file on him. Then I interviewed him. He understood it was only temporary until little Gregory got his wolf. Gregory was only two years old. I told Beta Charlie to make decisions based on what was good for the pack and to always keep the pack as a whole in mind when making decisions. He was also to train young Gregory. When the time came, Charlie was to step down gracefully and not cause any problems or I would be back. I asked him to keep me informed of the pack’s progress and Gregory’s as well. After the interview, I made the announcement to Moonrise that Charlie would be the temporary Alpha until Gregory came of age and had his wolf. They were grateful to me and Charlie.

We celebrated that night. It was good to hear them all full of joy and excitement. They needed some revelry right now. I knew they were still mourning their losses but they also had a bright future ahead of them. I was glad they were looking forward.

The next day, I helped them rebuild their defenses. We started with a new wall around the territory. I thought it should look more like a gated community but be reinforced. I told them not to worry about the cost, I would make sure it was covered. The council had a discretionary fund for just such an occasion. They decided to go with a stone wall with a tungsten carbide center. I placed the order and it was delivered that afternoon. Now we just needed to assemble it. While we waited for the order, some of the wolves dug out the old wall. The new wall would be taller and stronger. After digging out the old wall, we needed to make it a little deeper to accommodate the new one. It took us two days, but we got the wall done. I suggested we celebrate the accomplishment with a feast. I wanted to keep morale high. Celebrate the little things to keep them motivated.

We started rebuilding the guard shacks and barracks the next day. Many of the guardians and warriors were sleeping on the ground, it was time for them to have a better place to sleep. We also rebuilt the patrol barracks for the security teams. With everyone helping out, it took no time at all.

We rebuilt the houses last. Most of them were still standing so we only had a few to rebuild. Afterwards, we helped them with training. Everyone was to be present for the beginners group. I didn’t know what levels of training any of them had. I taught both the beginners and the advanced groups. I wanted them to be prepared in case this happened again. I even told Charlie that after I leave he should hold training sessions twice a day. Once in the morning before everyone goes to work or school and again after dinner. After a while the only beginners should be those who have not shifted yet. Anyone who has a wolf should be in the advanced session as soon as possible. For those wolves who are disabled, there are still things they can learn. I suggested giving them weapons to compensate, even though wolves rarely used them, we still had weapons. Mostly blades and bōs, but we had them.

I had been helping Moonrise get back on their feet for a little over two weeks now. I would be heading back home tomorrow. Finals were next week. And then it would be the holiday break.

*****Lucas’s perspective*****

I was glad when EJ finally got home. I told him the jocks had been bullying me and Ethan again but we fought back this time. I told him that I think they will leave us alone from now on. We didn’t win the fight or anything, but we fought back for the first time and I think it scared them.

I told him about all the craziness he missed out on surrounding the gala last night. He wasn’t old enough to attend it this year, but it was crazy around here. And his aunts, Layla and Artemus, oh my gosh, they were like chickens with their heads cut off. I never thought we would see Layla acting like Artemus but there she was acting all girly. I guess all the girls were acting like that. It must be a female thing or something. But it was weird seeing Layla like that. Then when we saw her in her dress, she looked amazing. EJ wasn’t very interested in the gala. He wanted to know if the pack had any problems while he was away. I told him I didn’t hear about anything but maybe he should ask his dad because he would know for sure.

EJ left to find his father. I went to find Ethan. We needed to study for finals.

I found Ethan at his house helping his mom clean the house. His cousins had stayed over for the gala and those girls were messy. It might take a week to clean their house. Anyway, I asked Ethan’s mom if we could study at the packhouse and she said it would be okay. So we headed for the packhouse.

When we got there, we saw EJ coming out of his father’s office.

“Hey, EJ.” Ethan called. “Want to study with us?”

“Sure guys. Just let me grab my stuff.” He replied.

“We’ll be in the kitchen,” I said.

“Meet you there,” EJ replied.

He seemed a little off, but I guess if I had to deal with all that stuff, I would be, too. As I watched him walk up the stairs, I saw it. His hands began to glow. He noticed as well. He stopped and looked around.

“Are you seeing this?” He asked.

“Yeah, man. What is happening?” I said. Ethan came back from the kitchen and dropped his glass when he saw EJ’s hands.

“Wh-wh-what is happening?” Ethan stammered.

The sound of glass breaking brought Alpha and Strix out of their offices. We all just stood there staring at EJ’s hands.