"You almost killed me, big man."
"You disobeyed my wishes. I regret not what I did."
"Adalyn, he's just like you. He loves, he's strong, he's fast, and he only attacks if first betrayed."
"I didn't betray him. I just….in his mind he thinks I did. Wait, where is he going?"
"He said we should follow him."
"I didn't hear any words."
"Exactly!!"
"Ehmhmm!! So, Wolf, is it? I like the name. Might I ask who gave it to you? Was it Mother Dragon, or was it your bio?"
"Hurrmm!!"
"Oo..kay. We'll circle back to that question later. Mr. Punching bag on your shoulder; you're holding him awfully tight don't you think. Give him room to breathe from time to time. Have you named him yet?"
"Aarghh!!"
"Rumour, do you see that? Why is one minute, Wolf looks all happy as a bug, then the next he pounces like a tiger?"
"When you go alone for so long, your social skills tend to drop...a lot."
"That doesn't explain his lashing out fits though."
"Our bodies weren't born with emotions. They were born with reactions. We were the ones that taught our bodies to know what emotions feel like, which are good for you, which aren't, how to spot them, and how to dim them when needed dimmed. Without them, we are left with two primal instincts."
"FIGHT OR FLIGHT!!!!!"
"Couldn't have said it better myself."
"You know something, Wolf. I too had…. have…a mask where I channel my negative emotions onto so that the world only sees my good. Course, I can't punch a punching bag as hard as you. Come on. Just like at my flimsy strings compared to your beef. No. Instead, I play with dolls. See, that's the smile I'm looking for, Wolf. The world needs to see more of that. Hey, don't judge me with it though. My version of 'play' was and is very different than other peoples' form of 'play'."
"I bet."
"It's a miracle!! The beast does talk. Tell you what. If you let me see some of your ol punching bags, then I'll let you play with my dolls. That is, the ones who are left, at least."
"Rumour, the wars over. You won. So, why are you still hiding?"
"Summer, can I tell you something?"
"Anything!! What is it?"
"Nobody ever wins a war. The two sides just sign a cease fire so that they can build up their wealth and damages again until one of them breaks that void of silence. Then round two begins. The only way a war is truly won is if one side cripples the other so much so that they're unable to get up again."
"Wolf, I heard you had a pretty stellar team back in the days. They could transform into purely amazon creatures. How is it that you still lost, when your team was so good?"
"That's because they weren't my team, nor were they my allies. They were….are….my friends; and I grew up with many of them. We played together, ate together, cried together, and lived together, but sadly we weren't able to die together. I was cursed with speed, and God killed me because of it."
"Maybe He saved you because He is not done with you yet. You said you haven't had a family reunion yet. Maybe He's waiting for you to experience that. In any case, I'm sure if your friends were here now, how do you think their reaction would be seeing you like this?"
"OOf!! Why'd you punch my side?"
"Race you!!!!!"
"Wait, I didn't even tell you where we are going."
"I know, and I don't care!!!"
"Hey, wait for me!! No one outruns a wolf!!!"
"Adelheid, what do you see up ahead?"
"It's kinda hard to picture, but they're running. I'll go catch them."
"Nooooo!!!! You can't chase a light. We have to think smarter, not harder.
Summer, can you give us a lift?"
"I think I can manage. Hop on. Up!! Upp!! And away we go."
"Do you see them anywhere?"
"They're too fast. I can't see with all these trees obscuring my view."
"Summer, bring us in closer."
"You got it, girls."
"Rumour, they're too fast. Tell me again how Shadow was able to beat you two?'
"He didn't!! Shadow played both sides. Wolf and I actually survived three wars. The first two, Shadow acted as if he was on our side, but then changed to show his true colors. The third time, he was actually hunting me down. He had no dealings with Wolf. That is, until Wolf took it upon himself to make his brother his business. It was actually Hawk, Shadows henchmen, that ultimately bested us. It was down to us two and I convinced Wolf that we should get out there and just run. He started running circles around Hawk as fast he could until a dust cloud formed and shielded us from the hawk's eye. Or so we thought!! A hawk is a hawk is a hawk!! Since he was able to see in slow motion, we were easily spotted, and he stopped us in our tracks. Thankfully, the Lord was with us and gave us the victory, but Wolf didn't see it that way. He would have rather died with his friends than not have any anymore."
"He still has his family…all three of them."
"Ha!! You believe that. Mother Dragon stole him from his parents. She so wanted a kid of her own that she didn't care how she was going to get it. Mesmerized by Wolf, she killed his family and stole the kid. When he landed back on earth, no family took him in. He scared them all away when they found out he could transform. Since Shadow can't transform; more families were willing to accept him. Thankfully though, Wolf didn't let that anger drive him. Even though he felt that he had no family, he made it his mission that others keep theirs. He turned into the legendary masked superhero with a cape you could say. It worked very well at first, but once his brother found out that the masked man was in fact his brother…. let's just say, that encounter didn't go as love would have planned it."
"Having no friends, when he found me, he stuck to me like glue and would never let me go. It's thanks to him that some of the books have still stayed alive, and we were able to share our story with others."
"I had no idea."
"The more you know!!! Don't worry. I know where he's taking your girl. Let's meet them there."
"Shadow, do you ever wonder what your brother has been up to ever since you left?"
"No. After our last squabble, I went back to the family….and he stayed with none."
"You said, 'Squabble'. How many of them did you have?"
"We had three. He always gets in the way of my plans of expansion."
"What that tells me is that you still love him and can't stay away. There is a popular saying, 'It takes three tries to make it right; don't make it four.' Would you really go to war against him even though he has shown no signs whatsoever of taking your throne? Is it worth it?"
"I heard you talk to my father. He said this war must commence so that Dreamworld can be no more. We had our bout, now it's over. But I know what he meant. He means that my reign is over, and now he wants Wolf to assume the throne and take over. Why? Since you girls have come back to dethrone me then that means I must've had a very bad reign. So, why not give Wolf a turn and see if events play out differently."
"Shadow, your father only knows killing; not love. He wouldn't even search for his son; unlike you. You have a bigger heart than he ever could. Please, don't break it. We came back to instill love in you, but if you can help us reach Wolf and reunite your family…. then we can instill love in all of you. What do you say? Do you know where he is?"
"Do I know where he is!!! Haa!! I've always known where he is."
"Then do what your father never could. Go show Wolf the love he never received. Where is he? You have eyes on him?"
"You kidding!! I never took my eyes off of him."
"Should we get your dad? I'm sure he would be overjoyed to reconnect with his son."
"As far as he's concerned, he has no second son. I've tried time and time again saying, 'Father, just come with me. I'm sure he would be thrilled to see you."
"How did he respond?"
"He never once turned his head to look at me. I think it's best if we go alone. Neither of them are ready for a reunion any time soon."
"What are we waiting for then? Let's go. I can't wait to see him in person. If he's anything like you, I know I'll be impressed."
"Oh, he's in a class all to himself, Milady."
"Adalyn, stop!!!! We're here."
"Here? Where is here exactly? All I see is…..aaaghh!!!"
"I got you, Adalyn. I won't let go."
"You're hugging me tightly, Wolf."
"I don't want you to fall in the hole, that's all. Would hate to lose one of my closest friends."