"Retaliation?" questioned a cooler voice, the Alpha of the West. Her posture relaxed, she leaned back, her fingers tapping a slow, deliberate rhythm on the wooden surface. "Or rashness? We know little of their current strength or intentions. To charge blindly into battle would be folly. We need parley, not war."

The hall seemed to hold its breath at the clash of ideals-aggression versus caution-as if the very walls were bracing for impact. Their impassioned pleas hung heavily over the council ...