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Chapter 6: A Dream of Mirrors.

Humphrey stood alone in the middle of a thick, black abyss. So dark was this place that he could not see the end of his muzzle. He couldn't tell which way was forward and which was back, and all around him was a silence so thick that he could have cut it with his claws. Given his previous experience in Alpha School, he had learned to recognize when he was dreaming, so he felt no fear of the crushing blackness which surrounded him. All he had to do now was try to convince his brain to either wake up or change atmospheres to one which was more pleasant. What would be a good dream? Anything with Kate in it would do. He tried to picture the scene that he wished to portray in his mind, but as he closed his eyes and began trying to paint such an image in his head, he heard a flapping sound at his side.

"That won't work this time, Humphrey," a female voice said to him flatly.

This caused Humphrey to jump slightly and he turned to his left to face the wolf that addressed him. However, he could not see her through the void which divided them.

"Who are you?" Humphrey asked of her skeptically.

"No one important," she replied matter of factly, "I just figured it was time that you learned the truth about your past."

"The truth?" Humphrey asked, confused as he tried to pick the female out of the darkness, "I already know the truth."

"Do you?" the female asked him, quizzically.

Humphrey furrowed his brows in confusion and began to babble as he searched for an answer to such a ridiculous question, but before he could properly formulate his sentence, the female spoke.

"What if I told you that I knew something that you didn't?" she asked him flatly, "would it not pique your curiosity, even a little?"

"What are you talking about?" Humphrey demanded as he felt confusion evolve into frustration, "I'm pretty sure that I would be the most familiar with my own past. It is mine after all."

"For argument's sake, would you be willing to believe me if I told you otherwise?" she asked him wistfully.

Humphrey scoffed.

"If you could prove it, sure," he replied bitterly.

Under the cloak of the darkness, the female nodded then a soft, luminescent glow began to surround her. At first, Humphrey had to squint his eyes against it, but as his eyes adjusted he could then see her clearly. As he gazed upon the glowing figure before him, he felt a nagging sense of familiarity tugging at the back of his mind, but he couldn't place where he had seen her before.

"I see by the expression on your face that you are a little confused," she observed.

Humphrey scowled.

"Is it really that obvious?" he asked her sarcastically.

"Sarcasm won't help anything, Humphrey," she said to him flatly.

"Well, do you mind telling me what this is all about?" Humphrey demanded, "I've had enough with these games."

She nodded once then placed her paw on his head. Humphrey attempted to pull away as she made the move, but as soon as she had made contact, the land around him lit up and he watched as everything seemed to move in reverse. The land remained bare, but up above the clouds, the sun, the moon, and the constellations moved across the sky the wrong direction.

"What's happening?" Humphrey asked her nervously.

"Don't be alarmed, Humphrey," she comforted, "we are simply journeying through your memories."

Humphrey nodded as he lost himself in the spectacle which occurred around him.

Day became night and night became day, endlessly as days came and went, until finally the cycle was complete and they came to rest outside of a den.

"Do you recognize this place?" the mysterious, luminescent female asked.

Humphrey had to take a moment to study the den before which he stood. Then finally he realized where he was.

"It's... my old home..." he began slowly.

"Yes," the female replied with a nod, "everything you had was perfect, but as you are aware, it drew to a terrible close, but time and trauma have disallowed you to grasp the reality of what had truly happened here. Watch closely."

Humphrey's brows furrowed in confusion as the two of them suddenly appeared inside of the den, but when his eyes fell upon a much younger version of himself, in the company of his sister and under the watchful eye of his mother and father, his jaw dropped.

"What is this?" Humphrey demanded, "this is not my memory."

"Of course it is," the female replied dryly.

"My mother and sister both died when I was born," he argued, "I never knew them."

"Then how is it that you can picture them so clearly?" she asked him, "your mother and sister both survived your birth, Humphrey. This fact cannot be refuted, but your mind buried this piece of your life to protect you from what I am about to show you."

Humphrey opened up his mouth to offer a response, but when he heard the scream, his mouth closed and he turned quickly to the source of the horrible sound.

"Humphrey, what have you done!" his mother cried as she entered the den and saw Humphrey standing in its center, covered in his sister's blood.

Humphrey turned away from the now lifeless body of his sister, whom he had brutally murdered and faced his mother with tear-stained eyes.

"Mom, I..." he began in a strained voice, "I-"

Aside, Humphrey watched shell-shocked as his mother slowly approached the younger version of himself.

"Humphrey, what happened?" she asked him desperately.

"Mom, I'm sorry," he cried as he fell to his haunches, "I couldn't stop it."

"Couldn't stop what?" his mother asked shakily as she struggled to keep herself composed in the midst of everything that was happening around her.

"The monster," Humphrey sniffled, "the monster was here."

His mother broke down at this moment and began to sob. For weeks now, their son had been talking about a monster, and every week, it seemed, his fear continued to grow until it had almost become a paranoia. Both she and his father told him that he was being silly and that there was no such thing as monsters, but now they saw how wrong they were. There was a monster there from the beginning, and unfortunately, this monster was their own son.

Humphrey watched as she collapsed to her haunches and allowed the tears to flow then cautiously slinked up to her. However, when he tried to bury his head into her stomach in search of comfort, she withdrew.

"No, you stay away from me you little freak," she growled as she pushed him away, "there's something very wrong with you."

"Hon, what happened?" a new voice, one which belonged to his father, called from just outside of the den, "what's-"

He cut himself off as the putrid stench of blood filled his nostrils and he barged into the den to find what Humphrey had done.

"Humphrey," he said in disbelief.

Humphrey sat aside and cried deeply, as the guilt for what he had done crushed him under its weight. However, a pain exploded in the side of his head which was so painful that it caused him to lie down and rub his face in the blood-stained dirt.

"No!" he cried in both fear and pain, "the monster's coming back!"

Both parents wanted to help their son, but fear and confusion locked them in place and rendered them unable to do anything besides stand and watch as he literally spiraled into what they believed was insanity.

Meanwhile, Humphrey continued to scream as he rubbed his ears with his paws, but the pain would not go away.

"I'm so sorry, mom!" he cried then gagged as vomit shot from his mouth, "I didn't mean to do it! I didn't want to kill her! It was the monster! The monster made me do it!"

Finally, his father stepped forward to assist his son, but as he took his second step, he paused and withdrew as the afflicted pup fell silent then began to laugh softly.

"What's happening to him?" his mother asked his father through a tear-strained voice.

"I don't know," he replied tersely, "I-"

He was interrupted when Humphrey's soft laugh built into a fit of hysteria which grew to an uncontrollable guffaw. Mother and father watched aside as their son continued to laugh on the ground. Then his laughter was interrupted by a piercing scream.

"No! Stay back from me!" he cried as he clutched his head, "I won't let you do it!"

"Go for help," his mother urged as she turned to her mate.

"What help?" his father rebutted, "we're all alone out here."

"Well, then what are we gonna-"

His mother's voice was cut off in her throat as Humphrey suddenly fell silent and pressed himself starkly to his haunches.

Curiosity held the two parents in place as their son silently sat with his back to them. Then, Humphrey watched as his younger self slowly turned to his parents, and as he saw his face, the blood in his veins became ice.

"No," Humphrey whispered in disbelief.

His parents stared in shock as their son glared into them with piercing, red eyes and off to the side, tears filled Humphrey's eyes as his memory came flooding back to him.

However, he remained silent and only watched with horror as the scene unfolded around him.

"Malachi, we've gotta get out of here," his mother said desperately to her mate.

Malachi nodded and turned to flee with his mate, but before either of them could make their retreat, Humphrey leaped upon his mother and took her to the ground by her ear. Malachi heard her cry out and rushed immediately to her aid, but when he approached and lowered his jaws to fling Humphrey off of his mate, Humphrey turned on him.

Off to the side, Humphrey closed his eyes as his younger self reached up and latched onto his father's throat, then pinched them tighter when he heard the pop then the scream which followed.

Humphrey fell to the ground in company of his father's body and he pulled away as blood from Malachi's neck coated his face. He knew that, while his father was still alive, he would not be for much longer, so he turned his attention to his mother, who backed slowly away from him and left his father to choke on his own blood.

"Humphrey, there's something very wrong with you," she said in a voice which trembled with fear, "you need help."

This statement caused the pup to chuckle as he continued to slowly press upon her.

"Looks to me like the only one who could use some help right now is you, mother," he sneered.

"Humphrey, don't come any closer," she warned, but the pup continued his approach, "Humphrey, please. Don't make me hurt you."

Humphrey flashed her a bloody, toothy grin.

"You won't hurt me," he said to her flatly.

His mother gasped when she felt her tail hit something hard behind her and she realized that he had backed her up against a wall. Quickly she turned to face her son once more and she saw that he was preparing to make a leap at her. She was terrified. In her entire life, she had never had to fight. She didn't know if she could do it, but something deep inside of her was being stirred to life by the fear that she felt and it made time seem to slow down.

"Fight or die," her mind told her, "defend yourself now or be killed."

She didn't even know what happened, but when her son made the leap at her, she seemed to move before her mind told her to do so. Humphrey growled as he flew past her and struck the wall with his face. He yelped in pain as he reflected off of the wall and fell to the ground and shook his head as he tried to regain his paws, but as he rose, he was turned over and pinned onto his back by his shoulders.

"Humphrey, stop!" his mother pleaded as she stood over him, "just stop! It's over!"

Humphrey struggled beneath his mother's weight, but he couldn't get free.

"Get off of me!" he demanded as he continued to struggle.

"Humphrey, stop!" his mother implored as tears snaked through the fur on her cheeks.

However, Humphrey continued to struggle and the longer that he could not free himself, the angrier he seemed to become. A low growl began to rumble down in the base of his throat as he continued to struggle beneath her and his eyes began to glow a brighter red. His mother noticed this and a wave of fear washed over her.

"I said get off of me you f***ing c**t!" he screamed then clamped down on her paw.

In his anger, he had gained strength the likes of which should have been impossible for a pup his age, but as his teeth clamped down upon his mother's paw, they continued to clench until there was a dull crunching sound. His mother cried out in agony as her son's teeth shattered the bones in her paw and she pulled away.

As soon as Humphrey was free, he rolled to his paws and leaped at her again and this time she was not prepared; so when he struck her, she fell straight to the ground and landed hard on her side.

However, this seemed to wake her from her temporary shock and she rolled over onto her back to defend herself. Humphrey altered his stance as she moved so that he was in a position which was prime for his assault upon her and as she settled upon her back, he made a strike at her throat. However, she threw up her paws to defend herself and he clamped down upon her left leg. This time, though, he released it quickly, but blood still dripped from the holes left by his teeth. His mother writhed with agony and brought her hind leg up then raked her claws along Humphrey's stomach, leaving three deep gashes.

From aside, Humphrey lowered his eyes to his stomach and stared in shame at the scars which ran diagonally from the base of his ribs to his left thigh. He felt sick as the reality from which he had hidden for so long slapped him in the face, and it would only get worse with time.

The pup snarled in pain and rage and boxed his mother on the side of her muzzle which knocked her chin up and to the side. For only a moment, her throat was exposed, but that was exactly the lane that Humphrey needed and he went for it. With the speed and precision of a snake, he struck out at his mother's throat and locked his jaws around her jugular. His mother gasped and instinctively lashed out to defend herself against her assailant. She caught Humphrey solidly on the chest and sent him hurdling across the den. However, as Humphrey's paws left his mother's body, he latched down tighter upon her throat and the force of his body being thrown did all of the work for him. His momentum was arrested only for a moment as his mother's neck was pulled taught, but that brief pause was quickly replaced by motion once more as, with a dull pop, Humphrey successfully ripped his mother's jugular from her neck.

There was a gurgling sound which drove into Humphrey's ears and he pinched his eyes closed. He couldn't take anymore.

"Make it stop," he begged as tears began to stream down his cheeks.

"I can't, Humphrey," the glowing female refused, "you have to see this."

Humphrey turned a teary glare over to her, but before he could unleash his anger upon her, a flapping sound caught his attention and he turned to see a new female wolf in the den before him.

And that was when he realized. It was her. She was the one who he had seen as a child.

"Deceiver, leave this vessel!" the female demanded.

However, the pup laughed as he collected itself and retook his paws.

"Make me," he sneered as he leaped at the female.

The female evaded his attack and turned around as he landed then knocked him over onto his back.

"Deceiver, leave this vessel!" she commanded as she placed her paw on his head.

"You can't get rid of me!" he laughed, "I'm in his head now, bitch! I'm here to stay!"

The female scowled and tried again.

"Deceiver, leave this vessel!" she yelled yet again, but again, the monster only laughed.

"Humphrey I want you to listen to me," the female called to the place in which Humphrey's true self had been buried, "you've got to fight this! Only you can stop him now! You must define yourself! Remember who you are!"

"I think you get the gist from here," the female replied as she clicked her claws and the scene faded away.

"Why did you show me this?" Humphrey demanded as he wiped tears from his eyes, "why did you make me remember?"

"Because now that you are old enough, you can understand the truth," she replied.

"What are you saying?" Humphrey asked her, confused, "what the hell was that thing?"

The female sighed.

"The Deceiver," she replied flatly.

"The who?" Humphrey asked her.

"Mandecium the Deceiver," she replied, "a foul, horrid creature whose sole purpose is to cast the world of wolves into darkness." A pause. "He invaded your body, overpowered your mind, and forced you to kill your family. You've buried that memory since, deep inside of your mind- so deep in fact, that you created a false memory which you believed to be the truth for your entire life. But the truth is, the blood of your family coats your paws."

Tears began to sting Humphrey's eyes.

"But why?" he asked her, "how is this even possible?"

"Your background with Jack and Mary Long has made you into a man of faith, has it not?" the female asked him.

Humphrey's eyes furrowed into a look which portrayed to her the depth of his confusion.

"Yeah?" Humphrey replied, "but what does that have to do with anything?"

The female drew in a long, slow breath.

"It is said that to each race of man and beast, there is a being of supreme power assigned to protect and guide them," she began, "it is believed that each presents itself in a different fashion based off of what each society can understand. While humans have many interpretations, the most common is of one martyr of Heaven, while you, the race of wolves, have envisioned the spirit realm as an order of spirits who each control their own natural element. Naomi, the Water Spirit, Terra, the Earth Spirit, Luna, the Moon Spirit to name a few. Each share power over their domain, but all answer to the god Akritok, the Spirit of Space and Time, who, as you believe, created the universe and everything in it. Think, and you will understand."

Humphrey stared at the female, lost, but after a moment it clicked. His eyes widened and his brows furrowed.

"Are you saying that you are one of the spirits?" he asked her shakily.

She simply nodded.

"Well... which are you?"

"I am nobody," she replied, "I am merely your guardian."

Humphrey was lost in the throes of disbelief.

"Do all wolves have a guardian?" he asked her.

The female shook her head.

"No," she replied, "only you."

"What?" Humphrey asked her as he continued to struggle to wrap his head around everything he was hearing.

"Those who know you say that you have the luck of the Devil on your side," the female began, "but there is far more at work here than mere luck could ever conjure."

Humphrey remained silent as the gravity of what she was telling him sunk in.

"None of what has happened to you is mere circumstance or coincidence," she continued on in his silence, "you are the chosen wolf."

"Chosen?" Humphrey asked her nervously, "chosen for what?"

"To lead all of wolfkind against the forces of evil which mount to corrupt and destroy the sanctity of your species," the female replied, "your influence will change the history of your race forever."

Humphrey was reeling, and the gravity of what he had been told struck him so hard that he collapsed onto his haunches.

"But... I'm not.."

"Special?" the female asked him, "or gifted in any way?"

Humphrey lowered his head, unable to find words.

"My father chose you," she began, "because he knew what kind of man he wanted to be the light of all wolves. He saw your plight as a pup, and witnessed how even in the face of despair, you never once lost sight of who you were. Mendacium knew that my father sought to destroy him, and when he discovered that you would be the one to do so, he attempted to corrupt you. He made you kill your own family, and though I could not remove him from your body, he could not have been locked away inside of your head without a soul as noble and true as yours to keep him at bay. We have been there to guide and protect you since the day you were born."

Humphrey began to pant as his lungs contracted in his chest.

"So my whole life," he began slowly, "has been the will of someone else?"

"No," the female replied, "Your life has always been your own. We cannot meddle with free will, but we have never been far away to help you when we could."

"Then where were you when that thing got inside of me?" Humphrey demanded, "if it was your job to protect me, then how could you let it ever get close to me?"

The female sighed.

"I was deceived," she admitted, "we all were."

"Even your all-knowing father?" Humphrey seethed skeptically, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you let this happen."

The female relapsed into silence under the accusation.

"You... did let it happen," Humphrey muttered in disbelief.

The female stepped forward.

"Humphrey please-"

"You son of a bitch," Humphrey growled as tears sprung to his eyes.

"Humphrey-"

"How could you do that to me!" he yelled, "I murdered my family because of you, you sick f***s!"

"Please, listen to-"

"No, you listen to me," Humphrey snapped, "I'm a lot of things. I am a wolf. I'm an omega. I am a husband, and I'm about to be a motherf***ing father. I am not just some puppet that you can make dance and do your bidding, and if you think that's the way this is gonna work, you've got another thing coming!"

"Humphrey, you don't have a choice," the female argued sternly, "whether you like it or not, you're in this and if you choose to do nothing, you will lose everything you hold dear."

"Threatening me won't work," Humphrey barked, "I w-"

"Humphrey it's not a threat, it's a guarantee," the female interrupted, "the Deceiver is still alive, and he's somewhere inside of the park, but he's weak and lying low until he can regain his strength."

"Then why can't you do something about it?" Humphrey barked, "you know he's here, so why don't you and your holy whatever go out and find him?"

"Because we can't," the female replied, "we are powerless against him."

Humphrey scoffed.

"Then just what in the f*** makes you think that I can stop him?" he demanded harshly, "how am I supposed to do something that gods can't?"

"Because, Humphrey, you have been given the tool to do so," the female replied calmly.

"Let me guess," Humphrey began venomously, "the answer is inside of me, but only I can figure it out?"

"No," the female began as she struggled to maintain her composure, "I can tell you the answer, but you're not going to like it."

"Well I haven't liked anything else you've told me, so why break stride now?" Humphrey seethed sarcastically.

The female drew in a long, slow breath.

"This was your design from the very beginning," she explained, "my father knew exactly who you were destined to be the moment you were conceived, as did the Deceiver. The Deceiver knew of your creation and knew of my father's plans to use you to destroy him, and as we had expected, he tried to interfere. All he would have to do was invade and corrupt your mind and my father's weapon would be turned against him. Since you were a pup, he knew there was no chance you would be strong enough of will to shut him out. We took a gamble on your own power ourselves, but in the end it paid off. Yes, we allowed Mendacium to enter your body, but had he not, you could have never served your purpose. When Mendacium entered your body, he unknowingly placed himself in the path of his own demise, because only those who have been cursed by the Deceiver have the power to stop him."

"So I am just a pawn then," Humphrey growled, "great. Outstanding."

The female sighed and she opened her mouth to speak, but Humphrey spoke before she could.

"So what else have you been up to up there?" he demanded. "If this was all ordained then was there ever anything that I did on my own? Did I end up here under the accord of your father? Am I married to Kate simply because it was all part of the plan?"

"Yes and no," the female replied.

"I'm looking forward to hearing this one," Humphrey scoffed.

"My father had it in his plan for you to wander after your encounter with the Deceiver, and he had it in his will for you to be found, but as to where and by whom was all contingent upon circumstance," she said to him, "it was also in his will to give to you someone with whom your spirit could be kindred, someone with whom your bond would be so great that not even death could separate you," she explained, "not even my father knew who your other would be, because we could not interfere with your free will. However, when we saw you take a particular interest in the one known as Kate Glover, we monitored you very closely and made sure that we did everything we could to assure you successfully married her. Not only because we value your happiness, but because of your design to change your world for the better."

Humphrey didn't know what to say, and henceforth a moment of silence ensued.

"So... I owe my marriage to you and your father?" he asked her in disbelief.

"Only partially," the female replied, "we could not force her to love you. You had to win her heart on your own. All we did was help nudge her in the right direction. Like on the train for instance."

Humphrey drew in a breath then lowered his eyes.

"Do I owe my life to you?" he asked her softly, "I remember you from my dreams. You pulled me and Kate out of the abyss."

The female shook her head.

"No," she replied dryly, "I merely opened the door to life for you after it had already been closed. Your survival you owe to yourself, and unfortunately to the Deceiver."

Humphrey's brows stitched together in confusion.

"What are you saying?" he asked her.

"I'm saying that you should have died," the female answered, "the damage that Gauge inflicted upon you was severe. Typically when one of your kind is in that condition, they die within a day. You, however, were an exception, and that was not because of us. The only thing that kept you alive was the succubus that invaded your body those years ago, because he needed you in order to regain his strength. He repaired your body from the inside, and all the while slowly grew more powerful, because your mind had been weakened in your state of comatose. You recall his attempt to take control before you returned the first time, do you not?"

Humphrey nodded slowly.

"It was not your skills alone that prevented him from successfully taking control of your body," the female explained, "as he repaired your body, he searched for the one piece of you he needed to destroy in order to effectively dominate your mind, but this piece he could not find. Can you tell me what that was?"

Humphrey had to take a moment to think about what the female wolf had asked him, but after about twenty seconds, the answer became clear.

"My soul," he replied softly.

The female nodded.

"Yes," she replied, "you've beaten him before in your mind, but if he had managed to find your soul, there would have been no stopping him."

"Well, what stopped him from finding it?" Humphrey questioned her, "I was completely lost while he led me along until I was strong enough to wake again."

"Now this part is interesting," the female began with a smile, "because the answer is within you, but you do not know."

Humphrey cocked his head.

"The necklace that you gave to Kate last year is very special," she explained, "its value cannot be measured, and yet, in the waking world, its presence is a mystery."

She paused.

"It would be impossible to bring a tangible object back from the realm of a dream," she continued, "but what you and Kate perceived as dreams were actually instances in which your spirits had left your bodies in search of each other."

Humphrey's jaw fell slack.

"You mean like a legit out of body experience," he said to her in disbelief.

The female nodded.

"Yes," she replied, "the ability of one's spirit to leave their body is very rare, and it is even more rare for these spirits to be able to make contact with each other inside of the veil. You and Kate were able to achieve this because you are kindred spirits, and your fates are now intertwined."

Humphrey remained silent as he tried to take everything in, so she continued.

"The experience of out of body ventures is quite tricky," she began again, "notice how there are discrepancies, inconsistencies, and many cases of spottiness between your experiences?"

Humphrey had to think for a moment, but he soon realized that she was right.

"Yeah, like Kate's necklace, actually," he replied, "she says that she received the necklace from me as a gift in a dream she had while I was under, but it didn't make any sense to me. I had no idea what she was talking about, even after she showed it to me. I had never seen it before."

"That's because before you went into comatose, the necklace did not exist," the female replied.

Humphrey's brows stitched together with confusion.

"Excuse me?" he asked her.

The female nodded.

"Don't worry if you do not understand," she assured, "that's why you have me."

Humphrey flattened his ears and sighed.

"Okay," he began, "so how is it that this necklace did not exist before I went under? And why don't I remember how I got it or when I gave it to my mate?"

"It's simple," the female replied, "just as your mind blocked out the memory of you killing your family, your mind blocked your memory from recalling the forging of the necklace."

Humphrey's ears perked.

"But why would it do that?" he asked her as he took a step toward her.

"In order to protect you from the Deceiver," the female replied, "there are parts of your mind that even he cannot access, and it was here that you buried the existence of the necklace and its presentation to Kate, because at the time you knew its importance. Though now that you have buried it, you have forgotten."

Humphrey nodded slowly.

"You keep telling me that this necklace is important," Humphrey inquired, "but why? What makes it so special?"

"You tell me, Humphrey," the female told him, "you tell me why it is that the Deceiver was not able to overpower you. You tell me why it is that he could not find that last piece of you that he would have needed in order to kill you."

Humphrey's eyes widened.

"You mean the necklace...."

"Is your soul, presented to Kate in tangible form on Earth in order to protect it from the Deceiver," the female concluded for him.

The weight of what she had just told him was so great that he collapsed into his haunches.

"But... that's impossible," Humphrey said in disbelief.

"Not as impossible as it may seem," the female replied, "the soul, even out of body, can still dictate the conscience of its owner. Just so long as the soul remains intact, so will its owner."

Humphrey was reeling.

"But... how do you know all of this?" he asked her.

"Initially we didn't," the female replied, "the Deceiver placed us in the dark while you were under, and it was only after you banished him from your body that we could help you. Once the Deceiver was disposed of, we could enter your mind once more, and it was then that we discovered that your soul was missing."

"But how did you do that?" Humphrey asked her, "if I had locked this piece of information away, then how were you able to locate it while the Deceiver was not?"

The female sighed.

"This little bit of information may be slightly distressing to you, but we can access these memories at a cost," she replied slowly.

Humphrey's head cocked.

"Cost?" he asked her confused.

"In order for us to access these memories which you have hidden away and bring them out of the abyss, we have to replace it with a different memory of yours," she explained, "but don't worry. These memories are either insignificant or hurtful."

"Insignificant or hurtful or not they're still my memories," Humphrey argued irritably, "what gives you the right to alter my memories without my consent?"

"All that is needed is implied consent," the female replied, "if your subconscious knows it to be for your own good, you allow us to do as we please inside of your mind regardless of if we have verbal consent or not."

Humphrey scoffed, but he knew that she was right.

"Fair enough," he replied, "but how do I know that this isn't all some crazy hogwash?"

"Have you never taken a close look?" the female asked him, "have you never noticed how, while in your presence, the crystal in the necklace will glow white?"

Humphrey's eyes widened, because he had taken note of this anomaly before, and now that he knew why, he was terrified.

"How do I put it back?" he asked her frightened, "there is no better place for my soul to become lost or damaged than in the mortal world."

The female sighed.

"That's the thing," she said, "you can't just put your soul back."

Humphrey leaped to his paws.

"What do you mean I can't just put my soul back?" he demanded, "it's mine, right?"

"You can't simply put your soul back once it has been removed because in order to return your soul to your body, your spirit would have to leave you, venture to the physical world and retrieve it," she explained, "this wouldn't normally be a problem but when you returned from the veil the second time, you returned damaged, and that part of you that allowed your spirit to roam was lost."

"What do you mean lost?" Humphrey demanded, "how?"

"I wish I could explain," the female said to him in a voice which was woven with regret, "but I can't, because I don't have an answer."

Humphrey rolled his eyes.

"Great," he replied sarcastically, "so what am I supposed to do now?"

"I don't know," the female replied, "but from now on, the protection of your soul is entirely up to you. Keep it safe."

Humphrey stepped closer.

"But that doesn't help," he said to her, "if the Deceiver is inside of the pack it's only a matter of time before he discovers the truth."

"I'm sorry, Humphrey," she replied through a sigh, "but there's nothing I can do."

"But-"

"I'll say no more," she concluded, "now wake up."