"In the past four months, Lycan forces in both North America and Europe have inflicted losses over the kinbushi," Akiko Thornblood said over the video conference system which connected the Clan leaders. "However, we've taken losses as well. Thankfully, we've been handed an unexpected benefit in that many of the Lone Wolves of the European Lycans seem to have unofficially joined in with us. According to what House Melior had forwarded, over a dozen different Order strongholds have been wiped out by Lone Wolf attacks."

"Meanwhile, the European Houses have sat on their asses and done nothing," Peter Alces, standing in as Alpha for Clan Kenai, responded. "And we've lost nearly four hundred Lycans here in North America. Between that and the first attack on Lockwood Manor, we've lost nearly twenty percent of all Lycans in our Clans. We can't keep this war up much longer."

Keith sighed and looked over at Akiko. She had decided to visit Lockwood Tower for this meeting, allowing for faster communication and less stress on the computer servers. Akiko shrugged, not able to retort. Just a week prior, Clan Thornblood had been hit heavily when a small preschool, owned by the Thornbloods and educating all the Lycan children in the Clan under the age of seven as well as visiting children from other Clans, had been attacked by silberjagger. The cover story that was leaked to the press was that a mistaken attack in a gang drug war had led to the drive-by, which involved three cars spraying the classrooms with over five thousand bullets. Thankfully, the heavy cinderblock construction and the fact that one of the two classrooms was on the other side of the building doing music saved many of the children. Of the twenty dead, fourteen of them were Lycan adults who tried to save the students under their protection.

"We are aware, Peter. Which is why we are going to stop this war of attrition, and go for a final, decisive strike."

"What do you mean?" Connor Mac Tire asked. "This is something new to me, my friend."

"House Melior recently have passed along the most recent intelligence that they have. They have determined that the head of the Order, who goes by the title of Archbishop, is leaving the stronghold in Liechtenstein and going to Scotland for a conference of the Order and their potential allies. They're meeting in an old monastery among the Cuillin Hills on the Isle of Skye. Guillaume Bisclavert has told us that his Second Mate, April Bell, is willing to meet with us and coordinate information on the island. Her House's territory is adjacent to the island, and she is supposedly familiar with it."

"And your plan?" Connor asked.

Keith took a deep breath and looked at his family. "We end it. I've already coordinated with Akiko, Clan Thornblood will be providing two aircraft, a C-5, and a C-130, upon which I am loading every remaining Thornblood and Lockwood warrior as well as our two attack helicopters. They will fly first to Iceland before refueling and then Scotland, where we will land at an airstrip owned by Lady Bell's House. From there we will attack the meeting directly via land and air."

"Why such overwhelming forces, Lord Lockwood?" Harold Longtooth of Clan Lykos asked. "We have conducted this war so far very clandestinely. Such a large attack will surely garner the notice of British authorities."

"Because we are attacking in daylight," Keith said quietly. "According to the Melior, the Order has beings on their side that are better adapted to night fighting than even us."

The collected group fell silent as the implications came over them. While the Lycans were clear masters of the North American continent, there were still tales told of beings who were even stronger. Steeped in mythology and old superstition, the names varied depending on the Clan's home country, but the stories were often the same.

"For the Hunters to be cooperating with such creatures is.... disturbing," Connor Mac Tire replied. "Is your attack worth riling up such enemies? No offense Keith, but wouldn’t securing North America alone be enough?"

Keith shook his head. "Connor, you know as well as I do that any such security would be fleeting at best. The Europeans are not willing to assist us in whittling down our enemy. Quite frankly, I'm not sure if they are as powerful as they claim. If we merely throw the silberjagger out of North America, they will lick their wounds, heal, and then work their way back in through other means. You all know what we've learned. No longer are our enemies using just legal trappings. Now they are partnering with criminal elements such as street gangs and other groups. If they want, they could pull every Hunter out of North America and fight a proxy war using just their money. That is a war we can’t win."

Akiko interjected before any could say anything. "This war must be finished, and soon. The world is changing. We can’t go on as we have been, fighting a constant low-level conflict. In the past, our kind could just fall back or move to another territory if normal humans learned about us. This isn't possible any longer in North America. We have this last chance to strike and secure our peace, or else face slow strangulation from all sides. I request your warriors, I request yourselves. I can fly another thirty people on my aircraft, and through the Air National Guard get another plane if needed. If I have to I'll charter an airliner."

The collection of faces on the video wall nodded, and slowly, one after another, more were added to the Lycan ranks. By the end, Akiko and Keith's original plan changed, and the old C-130 was ditched in favor of the 747, as over four hundred Lycans were to join the assault on the Isle of Skye.

After the meeting, Keith was stunned when Melanie came into the living room, dressed in SWAT boots, fatigue pants, and a long sleeved black undershirt with a tactical vest. "What are you doing?"

"Making sure it still fits," she said simply, looking at the assembled Lycan Alphas. "You seriously didn't think I was going to be sitting on my ass this time, did you? Edward can’t go because of your agreement with the Europeans. He'll watch Jay, and I'm coming with you."

"Melanie...." Keith said, before stopping. He knew the look on her face and knew she was committed. "Fine. Then I am making one command, and if you don't like it, I'll tie you up and leave you downstairs with orders to Edward to keep you there until we are gone."

"What's that?" Melanie asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She had worked hard in the months since Jay's birth and was now in better shape than she had been when she and Keith first met.

"You and Akiko are a team, no arguments. You stay on her hip, and she stays on yours. Akiko, do you understand?"

"Yes Keith," Akiko said directly.

Melanie looked like she was about to argue, but nodded. "Fine. Then I have one request as well."

"What's that?"

"I need something better than a Glock. I want something with more power."

Akiko grinned. "I know just what you need."

* * *

The four turbofans of the C-5 were muted to Melanie as she sat in one of the airline seats. She had been surprised when she found out that the massive aircraft, officially named Galaxy but the flight crew lovingly called FRED, had a passenger deck that normally could seat seventy-two people on it, laid out like a normal airliner. Due to the size of the average Lycan, Akiko had only seated fifty of the combined Thornblood and Lockwood troops in the plane, with Keith, the remaining Lockwoods, and the other allied warriors all taking the chartered 747 that would depart six hours later. The passenger plane didn't need to refuel to land, and could make the flight in one jump, while the C-5 would have a refueling stop.

Melanie was surprised when, just before takeoff, someone sprinted up the stairs and into the plane, breathing heavily. Looking up from the book she had been reading, Team of Rivals, she was surprised to see the streaked hair and amber eyes of her Sister. "Kim? What are you doing here?"

Kimberly, who was already wearing her slate gray flight suit, plopped down in the seat next to Melanie. Akiko, who was seated across the aisle, looked over, also surprised. "What?" Kimberly said. "Did you really think I would let you guys load my damn helicopter in the cargo hold of this thing without coming along? You must be out of your mind. Besides, I found out what some joker decided the in-flight movie was going to be on the other plane, and knew I had to catch this flight before I went insane somewhere over the Atlantic."

"What are they playing?" Akiko asked. "I merely instructed the accountant to charter a plane."

"Yeah well, some joker either knows we are Lycans or just has a terrible sense of timing, because the other three hundred and fifty or so people on this mission get to enjoy watching Bella, Edward and Jacob do their little romantic puke fest for twelve hours."

Melanie snirked, trying not to laugh, but finally, couldn't hold it in any longer. "Seriously? They decided to play the Twilight saga?"

Kimberly grinned and nodded. "Yep. When I ran through the terminal after changing, I heard Keith on his phone calling for a car and directions to the nearest place he could buy DVDs. I think he plans on taking control of the entertainment systems on the plane, even if he has to tear the player out of its cabinet with his bare hands."

Akiko laughed and leaned back in her seat. The seats were staggered so that, in most cases at least, people could lean back or spread out without bumping into a neighbor, and the seats directly behind and beside her were empty. "How ironic. I promise you, I didn't have anything to do with that. The charter company merely thinks that we're flying over a large group of Scottish Highland Games fans overseas. I'm surprised they didn't decide to subject them to ten hours of caber tossing and weight throwing. It was the best cover I could think of on short notice for a couple hundred men all over two hundred and twenty pounds and built like Lycans."

"In any case, I had just enough time to change into my flight suit and run out here," Kimberly replied. "I'm just glad that I can fit into Keith's still, my old one is getting just a bit snug in the belly. The arms and legs are a bit long, though."

"Get used to it," Melanie replied with a smirk. "Remember the basketball I had under my shirt that last month? Oh, and by the way, say goodbye to your twenty-three inch waist, dear Sister. You're heading for twenty-five, twenty-six afterward, even after the extra fat melts off."

Kimberly grumbled, then smiled. "Well, I can hope that I get the same benefit you did getting back in shape," she said, whispering in Melanie's ear. "Or did you get that rock hard booty that my brother keeps staring at constantly by pure chance?"

"You know exactly how I did it," Melanie said, opening her book and finding her place. "The exact same way you will, and probably end up with a better butt anyway."

"Will you two young things give an old lady some peace?" Akiko chided gently from her seat. "Some of us don't have the body of a twenty-five-year-old anymore."

"And some of us will be happy to have the body you do when we're seventy-one," Melanie retorted, earning a grin from Akiko.

"So what are you reading?" Kimberly asked as she settled into her seat. The flight crew came on, stating that everyone needed to be buckled in, and they double checked their belts.

"It's about Abraham Lincoln's leadership in the Civil War," Melanie replied. "He did something really cool in that his Cabinet was made up of people that he didn't always agree with, but he knew were best for the job. With so many points of view and all the other stuff, it just reminded me of how we kind of are. So many different viewpoints, not always agreeing but working together. So I wanted to see if there was any way that I could learn something and be a better part of the team."

Kimberly sat back and patted Melanie on the leg. "You already are, Sister. Just by being you, you already are."

For the next five hours, Melanie lost herself in the book as the flight wore on. Kimberly moved over a seat and went to sleep for a while, before getting up to use the toilet and coming back a few minutes later and dropping back off to sleep. Melanie finished her book just before the plane banked and made final approach into Iceland, where the plane was refueled. Looking over, she saw that Akiko was still awake. "Aren't you going to sleep too?"

Akiko shook her head. "Since Nioclas died, I've only been able to sleep a few hours at most a night. I took a nap prior to us boarding, I’ll be fine. What about you?"

Melanie got up and quickly stood up. Grabbing a blanket from an overhead rack, she covered Kimberly up and propped a pillow underneath her head before moving across the aisle and sitting down. "I'm never one to get a lot of sleep before a big operation like this. I might drop off for a bit right before we land, but there's no way I'm doing a long sleep like Kim is."

"You should. You don't exactly have Lycan reserves," Akiko replied. "If you stay like this, you’ll eventually have exhaustion catch up with you."

"I know, but I'm too worked up," Melanie said. "I've always been this way. I don't know if it is adrenaline or just scared silly, but I can't sleep."

Akiko nodded, then held out her hand. "Give me your left hand."

"What?" Melanie asked, perplexed. "Why?"

"Ancient Asian reflexology trick taught to me by a Swedish massage therapist," Akiko joked softly. "Just trust me. Close your eyes and lean back, and let me see what I can do."

Melanie sighed and did as asked, letting Akiko manipulate and massage points on her left and forearm. It didn't feel like she was doing anything, but the touch wasn't unpleasant, and besides, Akiko was trying to be helpful. Still, there was no way that she'd be able to fall asleep under these circumstances.

"Mel? Hey, Mel? Time to get up, sleepy head," Kimberly said, shaking her shoulder gently.

"Wha... wha?" Melanie said, blinking her eyes. She'd just been getting her hand massaged by Akiko, what was going on?

"You've been asleep for seven hours," Kimberly explained with a light chuckle. "You looked so cute lying there, Akiko and I let you stay down after the plane landed, but now they've got most of the cargo bay unloaded. Keith and them are on final approach now. You ready to get up?"

"Yeah," Melanie said, sitting up and feeling more refreshed than she had in days. "Wow, whatever Akiko did, it worked wonders."

"Yeah, I can tell," Kimberly replied. "By the way, thanks for the blanket. Akiko told me you covered me up and made sure I was comfortable. Thanks."

Together, the two women left the passenger cabin and walked down the narrow stairs to the cargo deck, where Melanie saw ten lines of Lycan troops, lined up and ready for inspection. Akiko was moving through the files quickly, studying each of them up and down along with the field commander of her warriors, pointing out things to be fixed in every Lycan's readiness. At the far end of the line, ground crews were already working to reattach the rotor blades to Kimberly's helicopter, while next to it stood a tall brunette woman. From the way Kimberly bristled, she suspected that it was April Bell.

"Your best friend?" Melanie asked, glancing over.

"Wise ass. Come on, I want to make sure they don't fuck up my helicopter," Kimberly said, walking across the tarmac. Approaching the helicopter, Melanie was encouraged when she saw that the ground crew was actually four of the Lockwood maintenance techs who had prepared the Wolf for flying inside the C-5, to begin with.

As they came near, April Bell turned. Seeing who was approaching, she quickly swallowed a look of distaste before assuming a look of grudging respect as she saw the clothes Kimberly was wearing. "Lady Lockwood, I can assume you are the pilot?"

"Yes, I am. I'll be flying air support for the attack," Kimberly replied. "We wanted to thank you for your assistance, Lady Bell."

"It is no problem. We’ll be eliminating a threat bigger than just the Order," Bell replied. Turning her eyes, she looked Melanie up and down. "Greetings. You are?"

"Melanie Waldwyck," Melanie replied. "April Bell, I take it?"

Melanie could tell April bristled at her not using her title, but she let it slide. After all, if they really wanted to get into a pissing contest, Melanie was higher ranked than her, being a First Mate versus Second Mate. "I am April Bell of House Melior," the Scottish woman replied, emphasizing her House. "I have heard much about you. I look forward to seeing you in action."

"Let us hope the results are as good as the anticipation," Melanie replied tightly. "So you like Kimberly's Wolf?"

"Is that what you call it? A fitting name for a Lycan attack heli. However, I don’t get the reference. Someone told me it was famous."

Melanie squinted her eyes in disbelief. "How old are you?"

"I turn twenty-six in November," she said in clear defensiveness. "Why?"

Melanie blinked and just smiled. "Never mind. It's a bit before your time is all. If we survive this mission, I'll tell you about it sometime."

"Lady Lockwood, this helicopter is capable of multi-channel UHF transmission right?” April asked, dropping her conversation with Melanie and turning her attention to Kimberly. "It will be important for the attack."

"If you mean can it interface with the communication systems that the troops will be using on the attack, then yes. We confirmed that in the States before we left," Kimberly replied. "Why, is your radio different?"

"No, I'll be using yours," April replied. "I'm going to be in your co-pilot's seat, acting as your forward observer."

Kimberly bristled and clamped her mouth shut. Like hell she will.

Melanie heard the words loud and clear over their Link. Let's see what Keith has to say on this. Remember, he's the Alpha in charge of all this. Although, I can assume she isn't going to be on the Clan's Christmas card list?

Melanie was glad when she heard a chuckle over their Link, and Kimberly was able to keep her temper in check. "We'll see, Lady Bell," she said instead. "I will have to speak with my brother, make sure he doesn't have other plans. However, it would be helpful to have your expert eyes on the battle."

Just make sure she doesn't leave her lunch all over the co-pilot's seat, Sister. Melanie thought.

I make no promises.

"If you'll excuse us, Lady Bell, we'll go check in with Lady Thornblood, and get an update on the other people coming in," Kimberly said.

She turned and walked away before April could reply, while Melanie stood looking at her. The Scottish Lycan looked at Melanie evenly, a clear lack of respect in her eyes. She knew why as well. After all, Melanie was just a mere human and not a Lycan. Still, Melanie had played this sort of game before as a cop plenty of times, and returned her gaze with just the right amount of measured nonchalance, as if the taller Lycan was nothing more than an interesting bug. Finally, Bell could take it no more. "What?"

"Nothing," Melanie said with a small secret smile. "Just thinking I wish I could have met you at the trip you took to Thornblood Hall. I would have enjoyed the practice of extending hospitality in the Lycan way for you."

Melanie turned and walked after Kimberly, who spoke to her over the Link. You mean like when you damn near started a brawl with Morrigan Thornblood after calling her a bitch-wolf?

What? I think I handled that situation perfectly.

As do I.

A rumble permeated the air, and Melanie turned her head to see the lumbering 747 land on the other runway before slowing and approaching the parked C-5. Even at barely over an idle, the whine of the turbofans was painful, and she wished she'd worn ear plugs. Putting her fingers in her ears, she waited for the spinning turbofans to stop before jogging over with Kimberly to the stairs at the bottom in anticipation. As soon as she saw Keith, she had to resist sprinting up the stairs to embrace him, instead waiting for him to reach the ground before hugging him. "Did you have a good flight?"

"Yes," Keith said. "Luckily I was able to get over to a store and replace the DVDs they had. So everyone who wanted to watch got to watch Enter the Dragon instead, with Interstellar as the second feature."

"Wise decision, Mr. Roper," Kimberly joked, earning a smile. "Hey, did you know that April Bell wants to ride along as our forward observer during the attack?"

"No, but let me go talk it over with her," Keith said. "I know you wouldn't be exactly happy with that situation."

"Happy? I'd rather drop her on the Order instead, except I'm pretty sure it would just be more humane to kill them," Kimberly said softly, making sure nobody else could hear. "All right, let's go check in, get everything ready. When we hit, I'd rather hit fast and hard."

"Then let's go do our final briefs. We have a night to prepare, and hit tomorrow morning," Keith said. "So let's get a move on."