by Ellis Byrd
“After everything you’ve done over the last week,” Sir Gilbert said, his voice dangerously low, “you have the nerve to confront us now?”
“No, listen,” Artie pleaded. “It’s not what you think . . .”
“Cosmo saw you fleeing after what happened at the ice slide.” Liza looked at him calmly. “Have you been working with a Phantom named Sebastian to sabotage the Winter Games?”
Artie’s gaze dropped. “I . . . I have. But—”
“How could you?” Peck cried. “You put so many animals in danger, Artie. Including your friends.”
“And why would you ever work with a Phantom?” Cosmo exclaimed in disbelief. “You know their only goal is to destroy Jamaa!”
“Mt. Shiveer is your home!” Graham added, gesturing up at the mountain. “Why would you want to harm it?”
“That’s just it!” Artie said, looking from one Alpha to another. “That’s why we did it! Look, the Winter Games were a great idea, but in case you didn’t notice, you were the ones polluting Mt. Shiveer. The Phantoms didn’t do it.”
At that, Cosmo and Graham shared a look. Peck frowned. “Us? What do you mean?”
“What do I mean?” Now Artie sounded angry. “Look around! There’s trash everywhere, confetti and pom-poms and empty hot cocoa cups all over the ground. And after this is all over, you and most of the animals here go back to your nice clean homes. But some of us live here.”
Liza looked pained. “I know this was an inconvenience for the animals of Mt. Shiveer, but—”
“It’s more than an inconvenience,” Artie interrupted. “You’re harming our habitat! Just like the Phantoms. So we turned to Sebastian for help teaching you a lesson. He’s good with water, he knew exactly what to do to ruin the events . . .” He bit his lip, looking down at the ground. “But it got out of hand. We never wanted anyone to get hurt. At least, I didn’t.”
Sir Gilbert narrowed his eyes. “You keep saying we. You mean you and Sebastian didn’t act alone? Who else is working with you?”
Artie’s gaze dropped to the ground.
“Someone I thought was my friend.”
Greely heard the distant cheers of the crowd far below as he loped up the path, his eyes on Walt. His ears twitched and he listened hard, half expecting the cheers to turn to screams. Something didn’t feel right. He should be down there with the other Alphas, ready to protect everyone in case Sebastian and Artie had anything planned.
“Walter, I don’t have time for—”
Suddenly, the snow rustled and shifted beneath Greely’s feet. A split second later, the wolf Alpha yelped as he was catapulted straight up into the air. Snarling, Greely slashed at the ropes tightening around him. But it was no use. He was trapped in a net, hanging helplessly between two trees directly over the path.
Greely twisted around until he spotted Walt, who’d stopped walking and was staring up at him. “Look out!” Greely called. “There may be more traps around. Take care where you step.”
Slowly, Walt’s lips curved up in a smile. Or was it a sneer?
“Oh, I will.”
To Greely’s surprise, Walt turned and continued up the path, leaving him alone in the trap.
“Walter? Walter!”
Greely could see the anger in Walt’s eyes as he turned back and growled.
“Walt! I’ve told you a hundred times, Greely . . . my name is Walt!”
CHAPTER NINE
“Walt?!”
The Alphas stared at Artie in disbelief. The arctic fox looked even more nervous now, his ears flat against his head.
“Walt was the one who warned Greely about you,” Sir Gilbert said. “Right after the opening celebrations. Why would he do that if you were working together?”
“Because I was just a scapegoat all along,” Artie said miserably. “I think that was part of his plan with Sebastian—use me to throw Greely and the rest of you Alphas off Walt’s scent.”
“Greely,” Peck said suddenly, her heart hammering in her chest. “We have to tell him, he’s right up—” She stopped abruptly, pointing to the rock where Greely had stood just minutes ago. “Wait . . . where’d he go?”
A booming laugh began, distant but loud enough to be heard over the hoots and hollers of the animals. As the Alphas craned their necks, searching for the source, another noise started—a deep, rumbling sound Peck could feel in her bones. She squinted at Mt. Shiveer, her gaze traveling up and up and up until . . .
“There!”
A hush fell over the closing celebrations as everyone looked at the ledge near the top of the mountain. A massive mound of snow was building up over the crest, growing larger and larger right before their eyes. And next to it stood an arctic wolf, his white fur making him almost indistinguishable against the snow.
Peck swallowed hard. “It’s Walt.”
“You Alphas think you’re so smart!” Walt’s deep voice echoed off the rocks surrounding the now-silent festivities. “But you’re not clever enough . . . not even my dear friend—and mentor—Greely. In fact, I’m not sure why he was even chosen as an Alpha to begin with.”
“What do you mean?” Peck cried. “Why are you doing this?”
Walt sneered. “You’ve taken advantage of your position by forcing these Winter Games on the animals of Mt. Shiveer! You don’t care about us or what you’ve done to our land. But Sebastian does.”
A few arctic animals in the crowd nodded in agreement, and Peck shivered. Next to her, Liza stepped forward.
“I understand you’re upset!” she called, her voice strong and clear. “But whatever Sebastian has planned, it’s not the answer. Let’s talk about this together—I’m sure we can work it out!”
Another laugh began, but this wasn’t Walt. This voice was unfamiliar, high and cold, causing several animals to whimper in fear. Peck’s fur stood on end as a Phantom appeared at the top of the mound of snow, his eye blinking slowly as he gazed down at the ruined festivities. In one tentacle, he gripped a net—and inside the net, a large wolf struggled to get free.
“Greely!” Peck cried, fear seizing her heart. “Let him go!”
Sebastian raised his tentacles, and a powerful wind began to blow. Walt remained by the Phantom’s side, though his expression was suddenly wary. Inside the net, Greely continued to struggle and snarl. A second later, the mound of snow shifted forward and began to spill off the ledge.
“Avalanche!” Sir Gilbert roared, and the scene turned to mayhem. The tiger Alpha raced forward with Liza right behind him. Peck sprinted up the path to the ledge as fast as her legs would carry her. She could still hear Greely’s snarls over all the commotion.
“Can I help?” Artie called.
“You’ve done enough!” Peck cried, not bothering to look back. But she could hear the arctic fox racing after her, anyway.
Graham and Cosmo joined Sir Gilbert and Liza. They felt the power of their Alpha Stones flowing through them as they tried to slow the progress of the avalanche. But despite their best efforts, the avalanche was too big and too powerful. The enormous wave of snow was still making its way toward them, growing larger by the second.
“What can we do?” cried a lemur in despair.
A penguin glanced around, and his eyes lit up. “The stage!” he squawked, flapping his flippers to get everyone’s attention. “We can use the stage as a wall!”
While the Alphas focused on stopping the avalanche, the other animals rushed to the stage. Several rhinos hooked their horns underneath one end, and a group of elephants grabbed the other end with their trunks. They waited until the rest of the animals were in place, paws and wings all ready to lift the heavy stage. Then one of the rhinos called:
“One . . . two . . . three . . . push!”
Together, the animals heaved the stage onto its side. Eagles and falcons hovered in the air, steadying it with their talo
ns so that it remained upright. A moment later, the massive wave of snow rolled past the Alphas, heading right for the makeshift wall.
“Hold steady!” Shackleton cried, pressing his back to the stage. The animals braced themselves, and the roar grew deafening as tons and tons of snow approached. The avalanche cast a shadow over them, and then—thud.
Silence.
For a few seconds, everyone remained frozen in place. Then an elephant peeked over the wall.
“It worked!” she cried. “Look!”
On the other side of the upright stage was a gigantic pile of snow. The animals backed away tentatively, but their wall didn’t budge.
“We did it!” The penguins high-fived, laughing. “We really did it!”
A roar of anger sounded from the ledge. Everyone looked up to see Sebastian glaring down at them, clearly furious. Walt stood at Sebastian’s side, but he was gazing down at the animals, his yellow eyes wide with astonishment. Greely was still trapped in the net, which Sebastian had pulled so tight, Greely could barely move. Peck and Artie were nowhere to be seen.
As the animals watched, a portal began to open right behind Sebastian. With a cruel smile, the Phantom grabbed Greely’s net and began dragging him toward the dark, swirling cloud.
“He’s taking Greely into the portal!” Cosmo cried, and the Alphas raced up the path as fast as they could.
CHAPTER TEN
“Sebastian! What are you doing?” Walt exclaimed, the confusion evident on his face. He took a step toward the portal.Behind the Phantom, Greely gnawed furiously at his net, working at a hole with his teeth.
“Don’t you get it, Walt?” Sebastian sneered, gesturing down at the halted avalanche below. “The Alphas foiled our plans. They must be punished.” His beady eye narrowed as he looked down at Greely. “Losing one of their own is a good start, don’t you think?”
“But we made our point,” Walt said. “The Alphas disrespected our land, and we ruined their event. I—”
“You and your concerns about the Winter Games was never the point,” Sebastian snapped, moving closer to Walt.
The wind whistled through the trees, the only sound on the otherwise silent ledge. Even Greely had stopped biting the net. He and Sebastian were both watching Walt, waiting to see what he’d do. Then a soft but determined voice behind Walt said:
“You’re right, Walt. About how the Winter Games have been bad for Mt. Shiveer.”
Walt’s jaw tensed as Liza appeared at his side. When he didn’t respond, Liza continued.
“I understand your frustration, I really do,” she said. “But, Walt, this has gone too far. Don’t be swayed by Sebastian. He’s a Phantom, and all they want is destruction and ruin.”
Sir Gilbert emerged from a thicket of trees and crept closer to Sebastian, ready to pounce. Walt noticed Sebastian’s eye dart nervously from the tiger Alpha to Cosmo and Graham, who were hurrying up the path and had nearly reached the ledge.
What Sebastian didn’t see was Peck and Artie, slowly and stealthily making their way toward Greely.
“Is it true?” Walt asked Sebastian. “All you wanted was to destroy Mt. Shiveer?”
Sebastian blinked. “The Alphas wanted to destroy Mt. Shiveer, remember?” he said. “I was trying to help you save your home from them, Walt.” He held out a tentacle. “Come with me. I’m your friend—your only real friend.”
From the corner of his eye, Walt saw Peck and Artie free Greely from the net. All six Alphas surrounded them now. They could capture both Sebastian and Walt easily, if they wanted to—and, Walt realized with a flush of shame, he would deserve it.
But the Alphas waited and watched. They were giving him a chance, Walt thought. He lifted his head and looked Sebastian right in the eye.
“Why would I need a friend like you?”
Shock crossed Sebastian’s face, quickly replaced by fury. Quick as lightning, he flew into the portal. The dark cloud swirled and shrank to a point—and then it was gone.
For several long seconds, no one spoke. Then Greely turned and slowly began to walk away.
“Greely!” Walt called. The wolf Alpha stopped, but did not look back. “I . . . I’m sorry. Truly.”
“We’re sorry, too,” Liza said, then turned to Artie. “To both of you.” Artie’s eyes widened, and he smiled gratefully. The other Alphas nodded silently.
Walt hung his head. “Greely . . . before I met Sebastian, I—I really did consider you a mentor. Can you ever forgive me?”
Slowly, Greely turned to face the arctic wolf. “You betrayed my trust,” he said, his voice a low rumble. “I’m not sure you deserve forgiveness.”
“He made a lot of bad decisions in the last few weeks,” Peck said gently. “But just now, with Sebastian, he made the right decision. Isn’t that a start?”
Walt gave the bunny Alpha a grateful look. Greely considered this, then turned to his protégé.
“I suppose it is,” he admitted. “Very well. I’ll give you another chance . . . Walt.”
Walt blinked in surprise. “You . . . you finally called me Walt.”
Greely’s eyes glittered. “Well, there’s a first time for everything.”
Relief flooded Walt, and his shoulders sagged. More animals were emerging from the woods: snow leopards, polar bears, arctic foxes and wolves—the animals of Mt. Shiveer.
“We’re so sorry for the damage our Winter Games have done to your home,” Liza told them. “But we’ll clean up the mess we’ve made. If we work together, I’m sure we can restore Mt. Shiveer to what it was before all of this.”
Walt looked around at the Alphas’ determined expressions. And for the first time in weeks, he smiled a genuine smile.
“I know we can.”
EPILOGUE
MONTHS LATER . . .
The spring sun shone down on Alphas Hollow, melting the last of the frost clinging to its leaves. Inside, the six Alphas sat at the round table over steaming mugs of cocoa.
“I saw Shackleton and Lois at the Hot Cocoa Hut,” Cosmo told the others happily. “The penguins were all headed to the hot springs.”
Liza blew on her cocoa before taking a sip. “It’ll be crowded! The grand reopening is today.” She shook her head. “When I think about everything that happened during the Winter Games—those geysers, the icicles, the frozen pond—we’re so lucky no one was hurt.”
“Walt’s road to redemption is a long one,” Greely said quietly. “But his efforts to restore Mt. Shiveer over the last few months have been admirable.”
“Artie, too,” Peck agreed. “They both worked twice as hard as any of us at repairing all the damage they caused.”
“Their actions may have been inexcusable, but they did have a good reason to be upset,” Sir Gilbert mused. “All of the arctic animals did.”
“And Sebastian saw that discontent and used it to his advantage,” Cosmo added. “It was clever. It almost worked.”
“I still can’t believe a Phantom managed to convince an animal to work with him,” Peck whispered. “They used to launch full-scale assaults, but now . . . they’re getting smarter about their attacks. Sneakier.”
Graham set his mug down. “Which means we need to be smarter, too,” he said. “More diligent. More aware.”
“You’re right, Graham.” Liza sighed, then smiled around at her fellow Alphas. “But no matter what’s coming, I know we’ll be ready.”
CONTINUE YOUR
ADVENTURE!
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