26. Epilogue: The Legend of the Grey

Kala padded uneasily down the hill, hundreds of thousands of wolves standing to watch her arrival. Her ears flattened, and she felt like a pup in an area of the forest it should not be in. The dire wolves were far larger than any wolf she'd ever seen before, but they acted just like any other wolf acted. They tilted their heads at her, some sniffing her. Mothers cautiously herded their pups closer to them, but for the most part they still looked…friendly. It was a shock for her to see. They formed a path for her that led toward the mountains. At the end was an enormous white wolf, staring at her with piercing blue eyes. She took a deep breath and stood straighter; she was the daughter of a Leaderwolf, and she would not allow any others to look at her as though she were some immature pup (though in size comparison, she was nothing but a young pup to them).

She stopped several wolflengths from the white wolf, unknowing of what to do. She could see the looks of many wolves staring at her in shock. She knew why they looked at her like that. They were well-fed, sleek-furred, and in the perfect picture of health and prosperity. Kala, however, was thin with malnutrition, her fur rugged and unkempt from nearly two moons of traveling, her belly slightly swollen with pregnancy, her face streaked with dried tears and eyes bearing the pain of terrible loss. These wolves had never experienced anything like she had. They did not know what pain was; they were pampered and isolated from the harms of the outside world. She didn't understand; if they gave wolves a safe refuge, then where were all of the other wolves? Her heart went cold when she thought that the dire wolves may have killed them. She clenched her jaw, waiting for the white wolf to say something.

"We have not seen outsiders in nearly three millennia," his voice rumbled. 'Well, guess that answers my questions,' she thought. Kala said nothing in return. "We believed that our legacy had fallen into myth and legend to the outsiders."

"You did," she replied flatly, looking up at the white wolf. He peered at her curiously, pacing slightly. He observed her, looking her over.

"What happened in the outside world?" He asked. "You look…undesirable." She growled lowly at the insult, glaring at him. The dire wolves were shocked by her audacity to growl at one with such authority.

"Then perhaps you should have helped us in the war when we really needed you," she growled. He looked at her questioningly.

"War?" He asked, once more examining her. "Who are you, young wolf?"

"I am Kala," she said defiantly. "Daughter of Leaderwolf Humphrey of the Jasper Pack; my father was the Great Wolf." There were many gasps from the dire wolves at this statement, looking about in shock and staring at Kala in awe. Then, the wolves did something she did not expect: they bowed down to her.

"Daughter Kala," the white wolf said respectfully. "Forgive me for my incursions. Prophecy speaks highly of the One who Survives, the daughter of the Great Wolf. Your father will be revered for all time." He stood up and nodded to her, Kala courteously dipping her head to him as well. "Please, come with us. If prophecy speaks truth, then you have traveled far to find us."

"I have," she replied. It didn't quite occur to her until the moment she confirmed it just how exhausted and fatigued she truly was. He beckoned to her and she followed him to the mountains in the distance.

"You have much to talk about, Kala Star Wolf," he rumbled. She pricked her ears.

"You know the meaning of my name?" She inquired. He nodded.

"We know much more about you than you think," he said, turning to her. "You have a home with us, if you would like." She nodded.

"I've never had a true home before," she murmured. Her heart felt heavy and she blinked away tears. It was over…it was all finally…over.

**Two Standard Moons Later**

Humphrey may have been tormented by his demons, but his vision was not all a lie. In the world of the spirits, Jasper still existed as it used to. They offered Kacey to stay with them, but she shook her head and nuzzled Humphrey, gathering the pups and journeying west. She had personal debts to repay. She promised to return one day and visit on occasion afterward; after all, she was his second mate and they were his pups as well as hers. Humphrey was sad to see them go, and understandably so. He resided in the recreated den he had once shared with Kate, their unborn pups sleeping beside them.

It seemed that Humphrey was the missing piece to the pups. As soon as he met them, their ears pricked high and their eyes opened, revealing two pups with bright blue eyes and one with Kate's amber eyes. They gained voices and scampered about excitedly, reveling in their perfect world that would never be destroyed. The one with amber eyes, a small male, Humphrey decidedly named Winston, Kate approving with a small smile. She named another of the pups, a male, Taylor. Humphrey named the third pup, a female, Kerrigan. Winston, Taylor, and Kerrigan were rambunctious pups, constantly wanting to play. Luckily, Winston and Eve were happy to tell the three pups stories whenever they craved for history. Salty, Shakey, and Mooch gave them incredible log sledding rides, and Garth and Lily were always fun-loving family members. Kate gave Humphrey another bracelet to replace the one he lost. He had never been happier in his life to be with her again. However, on some nights, Sam would try to scare them when they were alone. Humphrey and Scourge had never forgiven him for abandoning them in the Marker crisis, so they struck a deal: whenever Sam messed with Humphrey and Kate, Scourge would deal with him, and Humphrey would do the same for Scourge and Collette.

Firetail sought the spirit of the Lord of Snakes; he had a score to settle before Kala's time came to join them. He was quite distant from the rest of them, but Lily and Garth supported his individuality. It was how everything should have been. Still, Humphrey was not fully complete.

He sat by the river, staring into its dark blue depths. Each time he did this, an image of Kala appeared. She was with the Pack of the Winter Mountains now and…she was happy. She had birthed two pups, both males. The dire she-wolf that helped her birth them smiled and asked what she wanted to name them. She nuzzled one, a small, blue-grey furred pup and smiled. She called him Faolan. The second, a small, silver pup with white-tipped ears and snowy paws, she named Humphrey.

Every dawn and moonlight, he would return to the river to check in on her. Faolan was an eccentric, hyper pup. She had trouble watching him. Humphrey, however, was polite and shy, much like Ryker was in his time at life. She loved them unconditionally.

Now, she sat on the peak of the western Winter Mountain. The pups were being watched by one of Kala's close friends while she waited for the Traveling Spirits. The river of colorful lights flew high above and she waited in hope for them. They began to fade, and she looked down, sighing. Humphrey formed behind her and grinned widely.

"Ah, come on," he said. She jumped, startled and whirled around. "You didn't think I'd just leave you hanging, did you?" She smiled broadly and ran to her father. She was about to embrace him, but remembered what happened the last time she tried to do so. She sat before her father, Humphrey smiling. He looked just as he did when he was three years old, back just before Kala was born. His bracelet was back, tied tightly around his leg.

"I've missed you," she murmured. He nodded and pressed his nose to her, scenting her.

"As have I, Kala," he whispered. He chuckled. "Though I must say, Humphrey is quite a cute pup." She laughed.

"What about Faolan?" She asked with a smile.

"Not as cute as Humphrey," he said with a large grin. She laughed and punched at him, but her paw went right through his body. She looked back down the mountain when she heard the distant howls of her pups. She looked back at her father.

"Thank you," she said. He looked at her inquisitively.

"For what?" He asked. She rolled her eyes at him.

"Thank you for being the best father I could have ever asked for," she said with a smile. "Without you…I couldn't have done any of this. I couldn't have made it this far without you, Dad." He smiled and nuzzled her. The howls of the pups were heard again.

"Sounds like your pups need you," he murmured. He looked at her. "Your mother and I are watching over you with your siblings. We're so proud of you." He began to drift away, flying back into the sky with the Traveling Spirits. She briefly scented him as they left, smiling. She turned back and began to walk down the mountain. Humphrey's essence, however, still briefly remained, lingering as he watched his daughter go.

Suddenly, he saw something on her paw. Three marks that looked like a more intricately designed version of the scars that had once been under his eye – it was the Mark of the Spirit Walker. One was only given that mark if they were part of a legend, a prophecy to be completed. He was the Great Wolf and the Legend of the Grey…or was he? Now it all made sense! Everything began to connect in his mind. No being had ever been given two prophecies, but the offspring of a prophesied wolf was almost always adept to having a legendary prophecy for themselves.

Saren was right; the world was changing. The final shockwave of the Black Marker wiped out all human life in a single, catastrophic blast. The gods had condemned them to death for the wrongs they had committed, and even now the last remnant of their civilizations were disappearing forever. Humanity was no longer a threat, and the dire wolves had returned to the earth.

"Ascendance is at paw," a voice whispered to him. He looked and saw Kate beside him, nuzzling him gently. He looked back at his daughter, pride welling in his chest. There would be a hard road ahead of her. She was to see wolves ascend as the rightful, dominant species of the world. Humphrey was the Great Wolf; his prophecy was completed, but his daughters was only just beginning, and her pups would be part of it. For now, though, it was time to rest, to live in peace until the evil returned. They had escaped the darkness once, but it was not fully destroyed. She was to battle it one last time and fight the evils that threatened the earth. Humphrey wasn't the Legend of the Grey; it was Kala.

**END BOOK THREE**

**A/N: This is the end of Out of the Darkness and the Darkness Trilogy. The past several months have been one hell of a ride for me, and I couldn't have done it without all of my friends and fans that supported this series from the prologue of the first book. My life has been forever changed by the experiences of this trilogy and I want to personally thank everyone for their love and support.**

**Thank you to Dawn Walker Wolf for the character Kacey.**

**Thank you to Crowwolf for the characters Taylor and Kerrigan.**

**Thank you to LoyalWolfHumphrey for the character Luna.**

**Thank you to absolutely every single person that ever read and reviewed Into the Darkness, Wolves of the Darkness, and Out of the Darkness. To everyone that read this story, it would mean the world to me if each and every one of you reviewed with your thoughts of this story, the trilogy, and your top most memorable moment in the entire series that you absolutely loved. You can choose to do some of these, add in something else, or you can do it all **

**Well everyone, I guess this is it! Until next time…**

**-The Dishonored Wolf**