"Let me tell you one final story," his grandfather coughed a bit. It was scary watching him like this. When he coughed, blood trickled out of his mouth. His body no longer looked like the strong grandfather that had trained him all his life. But his eyes did. They looked soft and loving. They were so much different than his dad's. They actually wanted to see him every time he walked in the room. His dad just looked like he hated him.

"You should keep from talking, Grandpa," Hiroko said. She sat on the other side of him on the concrete floor. "Preserve your strength. I'll go get the doctor."

"No, no, Hiroko," he held her hand as tightly as he could at the moment. It looked like it hurt him to do so. "No doctor can save me now. Listen to my final story. Then you will know why this has happened. Then," he coughed again. "You will know the truth of this pack. For I have failed at the one thing that the Spirit of the Moon requested of me. And this is my punishment."

Tears stung his eyes, but he would not let them fall. He looked at all of his friends, both the old ones that he had since he was a child, and the new that he had just made within the month. Both of them were looking at him with a curiosity so strong. They didn't know just how far back this went. They didn't know just how dark this went. He looked at Geo, Jin, and Miki. He had kept them in the dark about this for too long. For he was too worried that their curiosity for it would kill them. Or they would wind up doing something in their own blind rage.

Hiroko worried just like him. She agreed with him that no one should know until the time was right. Until it was time to seek justice on the man in which they all hated so much. For they didn't know just how deep Shiro and Hiroko's hatred towards him went.

"Before I try to take leadership of the Reverence Pack," he looked at them. "I guess it's time to tell you all the truth." It wasn't something that he had originally planned. He didn't want to tell them until he had got his revenge. He didn't want something happening to mess it up. He thought he could simply handle it himself, but it seems like that wasn't what the Spirit of the Moon had wanted. That was why he was mated to an Alpha of another pack. The Spirit was trying to teach him to trust in others. He had lost it so long ago, but Jett had slowly brought it back. And, for that, he was grateful.

"Start with Sakdah," Jett said. His eyes were soft as they tried to sympathize with him. He knew he could feel the emotions that were raging inside of him at the moment.

"No," Shiro shook his head. "This goes beyond Sakdah. This first starts with my grandfather." He looked to Jett's father. That face looked so confused when he said that. Confused and hurt. He had known Shiro's grandfather for a long time. But he hadn't known his greatest secrets.

"The Reverence Pack had been cursed with the Alphas only bearing one child," Shiro said. "Munni Wang was the only child of his father. He had been blessed by the Spirit of the Moon due to all the hardships that he led the pack through. That was when we dealt with the most enemies coming onto our land. Ones that wished to tear our pack apart. If it weren't for every member working together through him, he wouldn't have been able to keep the Reverence Pack alive.'

"Munni believed that if he studied hard enough and worshipped the Spirit with all of his being, that he could be lifted from the curse of only having one child. He prayed to the Spirit of the Moon and meditated under her every night, waiting to hear a message from her. During that time, he found his mate and married her. They had a single child the first year in which they were mated: a girl they named Ming, meaning 'Enlightened'. Munni was sure that he would gain another child, a son that he could teach how to lead the pack with.'

"After five years, the Luna to the Reverence pack died after an attack on the land. Munni didn't know what to do other than pray. For he only had a daughter to teach his lessons to now. And there was no one else who could take their legacy. For five nights he would tuck his daughter into bed and pray to the one with whom he was loyal to.'

"On the fifth night, the night of a full moon, the Spirit finally spoke. She told him to not fret anymore. She would take care of the ones in which were loyal and devout to her. The moon shined on him and told him that Ming would be mated to a strong Alpha, one in which would help her bear strong children and end the long line of infertility in the family. This Alpha will be one of the strongest, creating some of the strongest children in the family, ones that could lead the pack and make it prosper.'

"However, her one request was that this Alpha never be allowed to lead the Reverence Pack," he paused to look at all of them. So many different eyes were looking at him, transfixed with his story. He was sure this was how he looked when he was first hearing it. "For he is not from here, and does not know the ways of our people. If he is given power than he will abuse it."

"Munni never had a son?" Henry asked. "He never told me otherwise."

"Ming Wang was his only child," Shiro said, his eyes wandering down to the ground. "She was my mother."

"You look just like her, Hiroko," Grandfather smiled, touching her face. "She was just as intelligent as you, you know. I taught her how to lead this pack as well. She believed me when I told her that your father was not meant to lead. She was one of the greatest warriors this pack had ever seen. And her beauty was enough to make half of the packs across the world wish that she was there's. That was why she stayed inside all the time. Your father was a jealous man," he chuckled a bit. "He didn't want anyone taking her away from him. I remember Ming laughing at the thought whenever he would mention it. She would hold you on her lap and say that the only one who could take her away from him was you."

"How does he have his last name then?" Alex asked. "Did he just lie about it until everyone believed him?"

"You would be surprised what people will believe when given enough time to forget the truth," Shiro told him. "Sakdah came from a pack across the seas. He had been traveling as a rogue, trying to get away from his brothers who had kicked him out. His old pack believed in thirsting for power. He believed that along with them. However, he did not have the physical strength that they had. Instead, his mind was the most formidable foe.'

"He met my mother by the creek in which this forest and city are named after. He was merely looking for water, and fell for her beauty as soon as he saw her. Munni did not trust him, but he could not go against the wishes of the Spirit of the Moon. He allowed him into the Reverence Pack, and allowed him to marry his daughter under one condition: he would change his last name to Wang with the marriage, rather than the other way around. That way their children could still have the family name. What he didn't know was that it would lead him to his demise.'

"Time went on smoothly, as he led his pack with his daughter as acting Luna. They both worked hard to strengthen the pack, working on different fighting techniques as well as learning more about the forest around them. They were the two who made the warriors what they are today. During this time, Sakdah helped in little ways. He fought with the warriors from time to time. But his strength was in his diplomacy, and that was where Munni put him. After a year, Ming became pregnant. That was when Sakdah slowly started to change. Munni was in such high hopes for a boy in which he could have to replace him that he did everything he could to bless the child which was to become his grandchild.'

"Sakdah became angrier during that time. He held Ming back from going out and doing things, claiming that something could happen to the baby, or that someone would try to steal her away from him. Those were the first instances in which Munni and him fought. For Munni would not let him isolate his daughter, nor the newborn that was soon to come out. Ming survived the nine months of pregnancy easily, as she brought happiness with her everywhere she went. She gave birth to her first child, a girl that she named Hiroko which meant 'Generous'. After that, Sakdah calmed down for a while.'

"Munni went back to the Spirit of the Moon, desperate for answers. Frustrated and afraid for the same instance that happened with him and his wife, he prayed for five nights for guidance. On the fifth night, the Spirit answered him, on a full moon in a clear sky. The Spirit told him not to worry, for Ming was not to die before giving birth to a son. Patience was a lesson in which Munni had to learn time and time again.'

"Three years passed of his leadership before Ming became pregnant again. This time he knew that it would be a boy. He did everything that he could to keep Ming healthy while she was pregnant, happy to finally be breaking the infertility that their family had for so long. Sakdah, however, wasn't happy that his wife was pregnant again. He had bid his time in this pack so that he could gain leadership through his own patience. If he had a son, however, he knew that his patience would all be for nothing.'

"Sakdah was from a pack that dealt with poisons. It had gotten so bad that the other packs in the surrounding countries had to come and destroy them. For the poisons were too deadly for anyone to survive from them."

"Is that the poison that you were given?" Jett asked.

"They had many," Shiro shook his head. "But Sakdah didn't need his brother's poisons. He knew how to make his own. Over the nine months in which my mother was pregnant, he concocted a poison so deadly it could wipe out an entire pack. Then disappear without a trace. The only one who was immune to it, was Sakdah himself. He waited until my mother was eight months pregnant with me before he took the poison and injected it right into my mother's stomach."

He had to stop for a second to let his own words settle into his mind. He hadn't spoken of this since his grandfather had first told him of it. It still hurt to hear. For that man had killed every family member that Hiroko and him truly had.

"How did you survive it?" Geo asked. He looked to see that his best friend was so shocked by the words he spoke. All of them had known Munni. The whole forest knew him. But they didn't know the trials he had to go through, or the many problems of his own that he had to face.

"I am of his blood," Shiro told him. "He made the poison so that it was only immune to him. He failed to realize that I share a part of his DNA. He still fails to realize that. That was why you still found that poison in my system."

"Why would he not come up with that answer on his own?" Alex asked. "Why wouldn't he think of that if it didn't work?"

"There are instances in which a mother can protect her child," Shiro told him. "Even if she is not aware of what is going on. When Sakdah injected the poison into the womb while she was asleep, it caused her to go into labor within the hour. She gave birth to me prematurely, dying immediately after."

He had never seen his mother. All he had gotten to see were pictures. She truly was beautiful, and she was always happy. There were pictures of her and his grandfather in an album that he hid in his room a long time ago. At the end of the album were pictures of her holding Hiroko and playing with her. She looked so happy with his sister in her arms. He wished that he could share that happiness.

He wished that he had gotten to meet her.

"Munni had no choice but to allow Sakdah to take over Luna duties after that," Shiro continued his story. "He took care of Hiroko and I while Sakdah grieved over the loss of his mate. He raised us like a father would, along with all the other members of the pack who knew our mother. Then, he trained us to be leaders, never stepping down from his leadership role while he did so."

"I thought Sakdah was the Alpha before Munni passed?" Henry said. "He was the one going to most of the meetings when we all needed to talk."

"He was known for his diplomacy back then," Shiro said. "Munni didn't have the time to do everything that entailed leading the pack. Over time, he gave Sakdah more responsibility while he trained Hiroko and I. During that time, Sakdah used his skills to make our allies think that he was in command. He gained more power by doing so, biding his time as he figured out another plan in which to become the leader.'

"Munni knew that something was wrong about the way in which his daughter died. It wasn't normal, especially not with him caring for her to keep her as healthy as possible. Because of this, he kept a sharp eye on Sakdah. This was another reason why he took me everywhere with him when I was younger. He told me that he feared that Sakdah was going to kill me."

"You are the only one who's stronger than him, Shiro," his grandfather told him. "You are the only one who can defeat him. For I am not strong enough to fight him off anymore."

His grandfather's words echoed in his mind, causing him to hold back more tears. He wasn't used to talking about this. He wasn't used to recalling the story in which his grandfather told him on his death bed. The memory hurt to recall.

"During this time," he continued. "Munni got the aid of a friend of his, Detective Jim of the Dynamic pack. He got him to help him find information about his daughter. Anything that could help. It took years of research and digging around for Sakdah to slip up and accidentally allow Munni to know about the poison in which he had given her. Once he had the proof in his hands, he threatened Sakdah, telling him to leave the pack and never come back.'

"But Sakdah had bided his time too well," Shiro clenched his hands. "He had befriended many from the pack, making them believe that he was the true Alpha. He had gained strength through the ones that he had spoken with. My grandfather held no match against the many men who betrayed him and locked him up. They brought him to the basement, where Sakdah had made the very poison he used on my mother.'

"For three days, he tortured my grandfather," Shiro swallowed a lump in his throat. "For three days he cut him off from his own pack and subjected him to pain in every way possible. And, at the end of the third day, when he had grown bored of doing it to him, he poisoned him and let him lay down to die in the darkness.'

"Hiroko and I found him that night. That was the night in which he spoke of this story, and gave me the last lesson he had ever taught me," he looked at Jett again. Those orange eyes had a mixture of emotions that he couldn't define, for he was drowning in his own emotions at the moment. "We both saw him die, right on the concrete floor that Sakdah left him. They were the same floors that held me hostage when Sakdah led me to be tortured."

Nothing but silence filled the room as he finished his story. Geo, Jin, and Miki had a look of understanding, but also one's of rage and despair. He wished he could say something to comfort them, but all he could do was sit there and drown in his own sorrows as the memories played over and over again in his mind.

"He killed his own mate," Bree started, her face looking pained. "For leadership?"

"He didn't care," Shiro said, fighting the lump that was still in his throat. "All he cared about was gaining power. And that's all he still ever cares about." He looked at Jett. "The night that I came home, he asked me what your name was. He caught onto what my plans were and cornered me as soon as I got back. If I had told him your name, and that you were my mate, he would have used me as bait to get you to come over and kill you."

"So, he doesn't just want control over your pack," Alex said, his blue eyes filled with anger. "He wants to conquer us all."

"That's why he doesn't care about how many people are killed," Shiro told him. "He doesn't care about killing innocents, and he isn't affected by the curse due to not being from this land originally. He will stop at nothing to stay in control. And I'm gong to be the one to punish him for all of his crimes."

"What about the rest of us?" Jett asked. "If he's looking at taking over the other packs, they need to know about this."

"Tell them that," Shiro said. "Keep their guards raised. But don't tell them what truly happened. Don't tell them that I am alive. I have fooled the man for five years, making him think that I was merely a slave for him; a puppet to bend to his every will. But that does not make him foolish. He is smarter than you think. If he was able to trick my grandfather, he can trick anyone."

"There's going to be a lot of planning," Geo sighed. "Isn't there?"

"Yes," Shiro gave him a small smile. "But it is important, nonetheless." Then he looked at the Valor Council. All of them were mortified by his tale. "I am the true leader of the Reverence Pack. Born into the Wang family, my blood stronger than my forefather's and my will stronger than even my grandfather's. I have been taught many things, and have learnt many things. But the most important one that I have learned so far is to know when you need help, and to ask for it when you do. So, I ask for you to help me save the innocents and take down a man whos' blood has never been spilt. Will you?"

"That's like asking if there's any beer at a bar," Manny smiled at him. It was the first time he had talked since he came in. But his smile was warm and his eyes kind.

"Of course," Bree said. "I don't exactly appreciate someone who's willing to kill their own mate, let alone a baby."

Shiro looked at Jett again. Those orange eyes never left him the entire time he spoke. Their bond had grown stronger during the short time that he had been here. Jett had helped him with a lot of things. He made him feel strong when he was weak. He protected him when he needed it, and found him when he was lost. He was his guide through all of this.

Then he finally smiled and pulled him into a hug.

"I'm always going to say yes to you, Prince."