Try as she might, the Elite could not get her Alphess to return to consciousness. The bite from the adder had been swift and the area had flooded with venom. The Alphess was such a small wolf it took next to no time for the snakes toxin to flood the snowy wolfs body, paralysing her where she was. Nnlya was swift to kill the reptile but it was already too late to save her friend. As Rose lay dying in the forest, Nnlya lay beside her so that she wouldn't be alone in her last moments. As the Alphess faded from consciousness, her Elite remained resolute in her guarding of her friend until she could pass on and find peace in the Other Forest. And when finally Rose's body gave up its last breath, Nnlya sat up straight, her body in salute as she tipped her muzzle to the grey winter sky and released a mournful howl.

Loud and clear the sound would travel across the river and echo off the trees. All would have to know of what had happened this day. The news was grave and so soon after the death of their previous Alphess, it seemed Helidos might be on the verge of collapse. Nnlya of course feared first for their children, both her own and Fenris'. If no new Alpha could be appointed and the pack disbanded, would they survive the rest of the winter? They were yearlings now and old enough to hunt for themselves, but they were still young and growing.

When she could finally compose herself, Nnlya bent to inspect the corpse of her friend, the smell of death already beginning to permeate the air. The cold may help preserve the body a little longer but she had to be buried quickly. The charcoal wolf took the body onto her back, travelling nearer to the base of an old tree by the river. Gently removing the body from her own Nnlya set to digging a grave for her Alphess, allowing her grief and anger to fuel her actions.



She plays. "She laughs." She wonders.

The wolf continued to dig. Through the snow and down to the sludgy mush below and beneath that, the dirt, the earth. The more she dug the less her spiralling thoughts could consume her. Everyone was leaving her. All her friends were dying, her son was missing and probably dead. Would the rest of her children disappear too? Would Drogo be taken from her in another horrible accident? Who would be next that she would lose? She felt awful and so very alone in this world. Did no one care about her? They just up and left and left her to deal with the consequences. Stop it, you're being selfish. None of them could control what happened to them. She snapped at herself. Yes they could have! Quinn could've not started that war. Marrok could have stayed behind with the pups. Thane could have stayed in the clearing and not wandered off. Rose could have gone anywhere else but here! She snapped back. The Elite gritted her teeth and continue to dig through the pain that was building in her chest. She wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, she wanted to curl up in a ball and hid away from the world. She wanted to seek comfort with those whom had abandoned her. Love was stupid.

Everyone she had ever loved, whether as a close friend or as family, were leaving her. Her pups avoided her. Drogo would despise her for the monster she was becoming. She was quickly losing herself to her grief and every time she tried to climb out of that hole the mud would give way beneath her paws and she would slide further into the darkness. It wasn't like last time, she didn't have the strength to pull herself out, she needed the help of those she had already lost and was losing. The loneliness was a crushing thing, crippling her mind and yet she had to push on and pretend it was all ok. She had to, for her family. It was the only way she could keep them.

So she dug. And dug. And dug. Sometimes a nail would crack on a rock beneath the surface. She'd dealt with worse. At some point she noticed that another wolf had joined her. She didn't bother to look up. She couldn't bear to. Nnlya knew she might lose it if she did. She had failed. As Elite she had failed in protecting her Alphess and whoever it was would judge her for it. They would call her unfit and unworthy of the title Elite. She deserved it. Two Alphess' had now died while she was at her post, both of them her friends. But finally, when she was close to thinking she might be finished, her forelegs gave way and collapsed beneath her and the Elite surged forth into the grave she had dug for her friend. She let out a low whine of pain and loss, barely able to drag herself from the physical hole.

Nnlya looked up, afraid to see who it might be that had chosen to join her. It was Azul. Helidos' first Alpha and the one to first give her this position as Elite. "I've failed," she whined, trying feebly to get to her feet. "I failed them both. I failed them all." She muttered, trying once more. The charcoal wolf managed to crawl from the empty grave and sagged on the edge. She looked up at the Elder with sad eyes, afraid. "I was here. She found me, looking for Thane. She offered to help. We-we talked and then... then there was the s-snake. It- it bit her and there was nothing I could do." Nnlya looked over at the corpse of her friend, so peaceful in eternal sleep. "I s-stayed with her until the end. She-she told me about Sitka." She gave a sort of half laugh. "She loved him very much. He was going to be Alpha with her, you know? She wanted you to do the mating ceremony." Nnlya sniffled. "It would've been beautiful..."

The Elite trailed off, wondering what would happen to Helidos now. Who would lead them? Sitka and Rose were yet to be mated so he wasn't Alpha yet, but it was Rose's wish that he had been her Alpha. If he was strong enough to take up the mantle, Nnlya would support him. He was good and he was her friend. She just hoped she wouldn't lose him too. It was quiet for a while and Azul finished the last of the grave while Nnlya could only lie there in her weakness. That was until he spoke. "I-I don't know. I mean we just lost Quinn... and Marrok. And now Rose too?" She sniffled, the dampness on her nose freezing in the winter air. Was she alright? Would she ever be?



She plays. "She laughs." She wonders.

Nnlya watched as the Elder dragged her friends body into the grave and sat beside her. She looked at her friend, so limp and lifeless. Her body looked wrong. Nnlya gingerly climbed down into the grave and rearranged Rose's position, setting her forepaws at a more natural position and resting her head on her paws. She nudged the tail into position around the hind legs. When she crawled back out of the grave and looked upon the body she felt a little better. Now Rose could be merely sleeping instead of lying dead in a grave by the river.

When she emerged the ex-Alpha had words for her. He told her of how he saw potential in her, same as Juno, and how he'd raised her to be Delta. She remembered. It made her think of Juno though, and how she had failed to protect her friends mate. Now Juno was captured and held by their enemy. Another to add to her list of failures. She felt this weight on her shoulders. With Rose gone, no Betas and no certainty of Sitka becoming their Alpha, she was the one they would turn to. Azul and Fenris held much sway and opinion as Elders but she was the Elite, at present their strongest and highest ranked. And an Elite could not be seen wailing over the death of those she loved. She had to be strong. She had to hold it in for the packs sake. She was realising just how much this pack depended on her, how her reaction to this death would spell community or despondency within Helidos. It was a heavy weight to bear.

The Elders head across her shoulders was of some comfort to her. She missed having a parental figure around after so long taking care of herself. She allowed herself just a moment to relax with him beside her, no feeling to the action aside from a feeling of gratitude towards the male. Nothing romantic. "I never knew Lucy but I could only imagine your pain at her loss. I nearly lost Drogo once, I thought I had, but I was fortunate enough to have him returned to me. I don't know what I would do if I lost him again. I suppose we forget, in our own sufferings, that others have suffered as much if not more." He still had more words for her, ones that echoed her thoughts for the necessity of strength in authority. She nodded and rose, gently removing his head from her shoulders. She swallowed her grief. "You have the right of it. Let us say our goodbyes and alert the pack. There is no time to lose." So she set about filling in the grave, taking one final look at her snowy friend and wishing a final goodbye...



She plays. "She laughs." She wonders.