Kyle stirred from his sleep, his eyelids hot as they slid gently open.

He felt considerably better than he had in the horrifying moments before his plunge into unconsciousness. His stomach still wasn't totally settled, but it was nothing like it was, and for that he was endlessly grateful.

“Where the hell am I?” he muttered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He pulled his feet over the side of the bed, and placed them carefully down onto the floor. His bones still ached, but he was stable enough to rise and stand up without falling over.

He looked around the room.

It was completely dark, with nothing but the beam of the full moon to illuminate his surroundings.

Gradually, though, he could make out the translucent shimmer of glass cylinders, all over the place- it appeared he was in some sort of medical facility, which made pretty decent sense when he considered it.

It made him feel nervous though...

He wanted to get out of here, to go back to his bed and sleep whatever the hell it was off.

Then a thought occurred to him, and he gasped, bringing a hand up to feel his swollen belly.

He felt the baby moving, then kicking at the lining of his womb.

He sighed with relief.

By all appearances, the child seemed okay.

What he really wanted right now, more than anything, was to have Adam by his side, reassuring him through all of this. Taking control of him and forcing him to know that all of this was going to turn out alright.

Of course, though, he knew this was entirely too much to ask for.

It would probably be better for him to focus on the things he could actually manage at the moment, and leave the dreaming for later.

He was just about to start toward the door, when suddenly he heard a sound outside.

Voices...

He moved through the window, and squinted into the dark.

Two floors below, he saw several of his fellow wolf-shifters swarming along past the building, weaving between their increasingly lighted huts, and all seeming to move toward a common destination.

“What the hell?” he muttered.

He turned away, thinking about this.

It wasn't uncommon for Rannulf to call pack meetings- he did so a lot, in fact- but having one in the middle of the night seemed odd to say the least.

“Maybe it's something to do with the full moon...” he speculated, and moved over to the door in hopes of investigating.

He tried the knob, and was pleasantly surprised to feel it give at his touch.

He pushed the door open, and peeked out into the hallway, ready to duck back inside at a moment's notice.

But there was no one there...

The kerosene lamps lining the walls flickered, their flames dancing and causing the shadows to move across the walls. Otherwise, though, there seemed to be absolutely no signs of life anywhere to be found.

He ventured out, tiptoeing across the creaking wooden floorboards, aware that every step he made my well be the one to alert those around of his presence.

Except there didn't seem to be anyone around at all to note the fact...

He cleared the hallway, then inched his way down the stairs, surprising himself with each and every bit of progress he made through the house.

At last he made it to the landing, then to the front door, and when he was certain that no one would leap out to try and stop him, he stepped outside, into the mild night air.

The bulk of the crowd had passed by now, but a few men were still straggling behind, racing to catch up. Some of them in their human forms, some shifted into wolves, with their little pups trailing behind them, scrambling to remain caught up.

Kyle stood watching for a moment, then hurried to follow them all as quickly as his tired limbs would carry him.

He followed the procession until he came to a sizable ring of onlookers, much like the one he'd been a part of the night he'd first come to stay here.

This caused a noticeable lurch in the very pit of his stomach...

He took a hard swallow, and ventured slowly on, easing his way through the crowd until he found a spot where he could see what was happening.

His blood ran cold when he finally did...

It was Derric, naked and lacerated, fallen to his knees in the center of the clearing, his head hung in shame. Rannulf wasn't seated on his throne as he often was at times such as these, but instead went pacing back and forth through the clearing, circling around Derric like a bird of prey.

“No... No... Derric... Derric!”

It probably wasn't the best idea to call out to him like this, but he didn't think anyone would notice him over the snarls and jeers of his pack-mates. Not everyone seemed to be cheering, though- only Rannulf's loyalists, which, to be fair, was a considerable portion of the pack. Many others though, looked on at Derric's stooped figure with sadness in their eyes, or else with anger on the brow, at the tyrant who'd reduced this once great alpha to the bloody pulp they saw before them.

“Children of the Moon Gods,” Rannulf spoke, in his typically loud, commanding voice. “I call you here tonight to witness the wages of disloyalty. The fruits of treachery. And the only reward given to those who turn against their own, as this wretch knelt before me has done.

“For you see, Derric here, this once loved and respected alpha male, was caught by my sentinels trying to abscond from his pack. Yes... Caught sneaking out in the middle of the night, almost certainly to go and fraternize with the human filth who live beyond this forest. And when my men approached him, and asked him his business, the wretch who now kneels before you lashed out and attacked them, without the slightest provocation...”

Kyle was surprised when, out of nowhere, Derric jerked his head back, and cackled up at the full moon.

“Oh dear God... That is such bullshit and you know it,” he said, shaking his head. “I can't believe these idiots actually believe a word coming out of your mouth- it would be funny as hell if it wasn't so damn tragic...”

“Silence!” Rannulf roared, and jammed his foot through the air into Derric's face. Kyle flinched as his lip was busted open, blood pouring from the wound as he toppled to the ground.

“Motherfucker!” Derric swore, grabbing his bloody mouth in pain. Rannulf resumed his pacing, and picked up the thread of his story where he'd left off.

“In the process of his escape, this man went about mauling and maiming several good men, putting out one of their eyes and permanently half-blinding them before they eventually gave up the chase. And if that had been that, then- so be it. Despise as I do the world of humanity that lies beyond the bounds of this forest, I cannot prevent the defection of a single soul into their ranks, for whatever perverted reasons they might have for such treason. Nor would I seek to do so, in truth, for any wretched soul disloyal to this degree is unworthy of a position in my ranks. Unfit to serve in this kingdom, in any manner whatsoever.

“Coming back, however- trying to return to this place after having displayed such disloyalty, and harming so many of his pack members, as this miserable bastard has done- well, that's another situation entirely... I cannot, and I will not abide such arrogance. I will not stand for traitors in my rank any longer. I've tried to be a kind and merciful alpha to you all, but the bounds of such mercy has its obvious limits. After the situation with your former high alpha’s prodigal son, and now the clear contempt this man has for our most fundamental laws and statutes... Well, I think it is plain to see, something drastic must be done to avoid this growing epidemic of resistance. Of pack disharmony. And as such, I feel that I have no choice but to end this man's life, as a lesson to you all about the perils of disobedience. Of disloyalty, and-”

A murmur rose up from the crowd now. Clearly, many of them were not on board with this, and Kyle prayed that their opinions would hold some sway against the reckless decision of their leader.

“Silence!” Rannulf boomed, holding up a single hand. “Please, my brethren... I know this may seem an extreme course of action, but you must understand my position. This isn't about one man's transgression. It isn't about the immediate consequences of that transgression- the damage to the persons of so many good men wrought by his reckless attempt at escaping.

“Oh no... This is about something far greater than the sins of any one man. This is about the health of the group. The harmony of the pack, which hangs in the balance thanks to the man you see before you, and countless others like him who may well lurk among our ranks. This is about preserving tradition. About taking back what's ours from the human filth who've stolen it. And as aware as I am that a single man may seem like a negligible threat in the midst of such an otherwise strong, healthy pack. But you must remember, it only takes a single weak link in a chain for it to come bursting apart. And similarly, one man's transgressions can lead to a cascade of consequences, not immediately discernible by the naked eye.

“Taking all this into consideration, along with his past association with the son of the former high alpha who so ruthlessly betrayed this pack, I feel that my hand has largely been forced in the matter, largely against my own will. I feel that I have no choice but to execute this man, this very night, in hopes of exterminating this disease at its source. I am very sorry that this is the way it has to be, but in truth, you must all know that what I say is true...”

They didn't all seem to know this, Kyle thought. They were starting to get rowdy now, many of Rannulf's dissidents shouting at him, while his loyalists turned on them and began to get up in their faces. The tension hung thick in the air, and Kyle held his stomach in terror, dreading what was about to take place, and fearful that a massive fight might ensue at any moment, threatening his safety, and that of his baby.

Rannulf, meanwhile, seemed to pay no attention to any of this.

He walked back over to the spot where Derric lay, and lifted the sole of his foot into the air, and brought it down lightly onto his neck, holding it suspended there.

“I'm sorry,” he said, speaking as loud as he could above the din of the crowd. “But I'm afraid this is the way it has to be... Any last words, my friend?”

He looked down at Derric, surely expecting the man crumpled on the ground beneath him to have an expression of terror, or hatred, or anything plastered across his face, other than what he actually saw there.

A broad, pearly white smile...

“Yeah, actually... Nice try... And go fuck yourself...”

At this point, a widespread gasp rang up among the crowd.

Kyle whipped his head around to the spot they were all staring, and suddenly felt his heart skip a beat.

There stood Adam...

His body bathed in the golden glow of the firelight, with not a scratch to be found over a single, blessed inch of his musculature.

“Hey, everybody. Did you miss me?”