Betrayal

Months had passed since Slash died, and the memory faded to the back of Ice's mind, though he would never forget the feeling of cold and hurt, and he still remembered Slash's name, even though they never talked about him. The three pups had grown into yearlings, and now that the warm season was in full swing, they were becoming fine hunters.

But, of course, fighting was a substantial part of their training as well. Thorn was constantly predicting a Midnight Pack invasion, and there were always troublemakers lurking around the border. The family steadily began to grow apart, as more and more time was spent hunting, patrolling, and training.

"Go for your enemy's legs," Thorn instructed, pacing in a circle around Ice and Blood, who were facing off in a training session while Frost and Snow hunted. "Try to unbalance them and gain control." He critically looked over their defensive and offensive stances, then nodded. "Go."

Blood leaped for Ice, who rolled out of the way, shooting his legs straight up to avoid an attack. Blood reared up and slammed his paws down, catching a glancing blow on Ice, who dodged backward and then lunged for Blood's legs. Blood reared again to get out of the way, then pounced on his brother and clasped his jaws firmly around his ear.

Ice winced. Blood had gotten rougher and rougher as Thorn honed his skills, and now he almost always brought out his teeth during a training session. He wasn't as easygoing as he used to be, and his natural pride seemed to be developing into arrogance. What used to be Blood's playful teasing was now cruel mockery. Maybe he was just imagining things, but it didn't sit well with Ice.

"Break it up," Thorn ordered. "Blood won, but you did a fine job, Ice. Keep your reflexes sharp like that and your enemy won't be able to touch you." He stepped back, nodding in approval. "Go again, but this time, Ice will be on offense."

Ice stood up, flicking the ear Blood had bitten. It stung a little, but that triumphant smirk on Blood's face was much more infuriating. He narrowed his eyes in determination and leaped forward at Thorn's signal to begin. But instead of going straight for Blood, like his brother had expected, he swerved to the side and knocked him in the shoulder, unbalancing him. Ice took advantage of this to pin Blood, but Blood kicked him in the stomach and sent him staggering off. He lunged for Ice's scruff and grabbed him just before Ice could move. He then flung him to the ground and placed his front paws firmly on his shoulder.

"Enough," Thorn barked, trotting forward again. "Excellent job, Blood. Good work with the swerve, Ice, but be more careful when you pin someone." He glanced up at the sun, which was beginning to sink behind the treetops. "We should get back to the cave. Come on, you two." He turned and set off on a lope for the cave.

Blood's icy eyes gleamed. "Better luck next time, little brother," he taunted, still smirking. Ice flattened his ears angrily and stomped after Thorn, the fur along his spine beginning to bristle. He heard Blood snicker and then follow after them.

~

The family had eaten and had curled up to sleep about dusk. Ice felt as though he had just dozed off when he woke up again. He grunted irritably, wanting to sleep some more, but then realized that it was still nighttime. He was about to roll over and go back to sleep, but he heard pawsteps and saw Blood walking out of the cave, very softly.

What in the world is he doing? Ice wondered, but dismissed it quickly. He was probably just going to get a breath of fresh air, or relieve himself or something. He sighed and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep, with no idea of what was to come.

~

A week had passed since Blood's mysterious outing, and Ice had hardly given it a second thought. Life went on as normal for them, until one morning.

"Where is he?" Thorn snarled, referring to Blood. "He's supposed to check the south border with me!"

"Ice and I can go instead, Father," Snow offered. "There's no sense in all of us waiting for Blood to come back."

"That's not the point," Thorn snapped. "He has to learn that he needs to do what he's told."

"Maybe he went to check the border on his own," Frost said, an edge to her tone. "You needn't always assume that your pups are doing something wrong when you're not watching them."

"He knows better than to go near the borders alone!" Thorn growled.

Ice wasn't so sure. Blood had been extremely cocky lately, and he guessed that he probably thought that he could take the whole of Midnight Pack on.

"I'm going to find him," Thorn declared, turning to exit the cave. Before he could leave, though, Blood emerged from the undergrowth, a large, plump rabbit in his jaws.

"And where have you been?!" Thorn snarled, glowering at his oldest son. "I thought I told you yesterday that we were going to patrol. Or did I not make myself clear?"

"I woke up early and went hunting. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" Blood asked innocently. "I planned to get back in time for the patrol."

Thorn sniffed. "Well wait next time, all right? Now let's go." He turned to leave, but Blood stopped him. "Don't you want to know where I got that rabbit?" he asked.

"In the forest, where else would you get it?" Thorn said impatiently. "We're wasting time. Midnight Pack will have taken half the forest by the time we get to the border!"

"I got in from a ravine, actually," Blood barked. "It was full of rabbit burrows."

"A ravine?" Frost blinked, confused. "There's only one ravine in our territory, and there are no rabbits there."

"I guess I found a new one, then." Blood shrugged. "Come on, I just want you to look at it. It's near the south border."

Thorn rolled his eyes, huffing angrily. "Fine, if it will get your tail moving then we'll go."

Blood nodded, his blue eyes still wide and innocent. He led them on a roundabout journey through the territory, and finally wound up at a ravine--but it was the same old ravine and it was completely bare of rabbit scent.

"Blood, is this some sort of joke?!" Thorn howled, his eyes flaring.

Blood's eyes suddenly lost their innocent look and glinted maliciously. "No, Father, it's not a joke at all."

No sooner had he finished speaking then a howl sounded overhead and dogs suddenly started pouring into the ravine--Midnight Pack!

"Great Khazan!" Snow exclaimed, but Blood didn't look surprised at all.

Realization dawned on Ice. "You--you tricked us!" he snarled.

"Oh, how perceptive of you," Blood said sarcastically.

Ice was about to lunge for his brother, but then Midnight Pack was swarming all over them, and Ice was knocked down by three dogs at once. Before he knew it he was fighting for his life. None of Thorn's carefully taught battle tactics could be used here; all that could be done was bite, slash, and kick.

He finally struggled free long enough to spot Snow, who was grappling with another husky that looked about her age. Blood was standing nearby, his expression unreadable as he looked on. The husky threw Snow to the ground and pounced on her, quickly tearing out her throat.

"SNOW!" Ice howled, knocking over a large, gray-and-white dog in his charge to his sister. Blood was just staring at her lifeless form, his eyes flashing with a million different emotions. Then he turned away.

"TRAITOR! MURDERER!" Ice roared, on the verge of hysteria. He plowed over another dog in his charge for his brother, but paws slammed into his side and he hit the ground. Pain lanced through him as the dog clawed his spine, his struggles futile as he grew weaker. A streak of red crossed his vision, and then everything went black.