35

Elijah The elders call upon me sooner than I'm prepared for. Their dark chambers are cool as I step inside them. The low lighting causes my night vision to slowly adjust before I make my way down the passageway, coming out on the other side where it opens up into a grand chamber. Five of my elders sit uniformly in a line, all of them waiting for me to arrive. Back a few decades ago, this position within the pack was not only respected but revered. To be an elder meant that you were above even the king who ruled you at some points. As the eldest and wisest of the authorities, their rulings typically took precedent. However, that was decades ago, and times have changed. No longer as alpha kings do we fear our neighbors or the humans that have slowly begun to surround us. We, as our own