“Ye have done well. Both of ye” Amiable First Eyes Set’s affectionate air (that would make him appealing to a young, impulsive Set) makes me cringe at the patronisation. “Ye truly are of-the new, pure, Set-Pack.” All the other separatists are here. The “one-notches” (Wary Set and his bond-mate Bold Set), then the other underlings such as Still Runt^ and me: Braggart Set and Calm Runt Set. “We” are a small pack. At first, I thought Amiable First Eyes Set was keeping his larger force as separate packs to deter infiltration. But I find, a quarter-season^ later, I think, this is all he has. With us finally accepted into the pack, they do not even have a littersworth^ of dogs for the cause. Recruitment is their current priority. But then, there could be cells like this all over the compound. Gaining support in tiny packs who think they are the only ones fighting. A dog against the Wilderness fights all the harder.

I dismiss them and second-guess my dismissal once a degree^. They seem so pathetic in their efforts that it could be a scent-mask. The amateurish concealment. The apparent lack of planning for life that would follow this astounding feat of self-banishment. But then there are too many things that even the most-informed rebel packs would not think to consider as bluffs: the hint of mistrust in the central pack-bond, down to subconscious scent. I know my uncertainty has tainted Still’s first assignment. This is a strange time. It is hard to trust my (normally confident) instincts without Soil beneath my feet, supporting me.

What we know for sure is the separatists are planning to leave the compound and set up a new “pure” Set-Pack. They also have a large act of terror in mind as part of, or immediately preceding their departure. There have been cryptic references to “At least there will be fewer Rises for runt-making Sets to swell with.” and “They won’t be coming after us.” from time to time between Braggart Set and Calm Runt Set (when they forget they are not meant to trust us yet). But for two questions, we would be able to leave this pack. One – do they have any knowledge about how to breach the barrier which has, as yet, eluded our research? Two - what act of terror is planned and does it actually pose any risk to any-dogs who are not involved in the planning of it?

My last encrypted message from Sweet-Pack Guider^ Sleek Runt Rise stated his preference for (if they are as few as it seems) them being brought into HQ as quietly as possible. If they can be apprehended without any-dog noticing they ever existed. Their ideology cannot spread far enough to give any other old- or young-minded dogs a chance to think it too. If it is a bigger pack, then we will hopefully find out in the planning of this attack. Still Runt and I are here for another while. They do not seem to be in a rush to take action, it may be another season before I get to feel Generous’ soft skin on mine.

I am not attending.

“…we are not just planning to make small swipes at the spreading poison – we will make a decisive hit. That is all the information ye need now. There will be individual tasks for ye each, which we will communicate to ye as we need ye to complete them. It is important that we recruit and grow a strong pack-bond. We will need a reliable pack-bond by the time communication opens for the plan to serve. I expect each of you to bring two new recruits into pack before the end of this quarter-season.” Amiable First Eyes Set is too excited. He wants to tell us all of the plan, right now. But he has something telling him to be cautious. Maybe he does have some sense (when he listens to it).

We all come together to groom and tussle. Still Runt and I have been practicing hard at separating pack-bonds. We can “drop our barriers” to these dogs while maintaining our closed pack-bond. She is inexperienced with pack-closeness of any kind. It is sort of endearing, but I am surprised she hasn’t even experimented with bonds with creche- or training-mates. How socially damaged is she and why? She seems to have an aptitude for keeping varied barriers up. It has been a case of teaching her to conceal those barriers and to freely open some. It is essential to give no-dog a reason to doubt the connection they feel with a stealth-warrior. She is doing an excellent job. Her provider doga^ is open to these lost pups in beyond their ability to swim.

( Open with me privately and them at the same time! You’re getting this Service. ) When I praise her, she does not react in a way detectable to my ears or nose, but she glows in the pack-bond.

We groom one another and share “our” excitement over the glorious new day coming. The separatist pack-bond is developing sufficiently. We rarely get a chance to renew it, so it is feeble and flickers between different members. None of these dogs has the expertise to precisely control their pack-communication. Except Still Runt and me, but then no-dog knows that but us. We each occasionally flail wildly in the bond to show them how hard we are trying to control our pack-communication.

As I groom Still Runt’s shoulder, I notice she has a healing cut. She was touched by either Generous or Honest in the last day. I press my nose into her wound and breathe very deeply, drawing every scent I can into my lungs. I don’t bother concealing the action. These dogs would not think anything of me showing special attention to Still Runt when we are also Service-mates. I can’t smell who actually scarred her, but Still Runt has been in my den, the scent of comfort is there. I close my other pack-barriers and send this feeling to Generous. I don’t know if she feels anything, but it feels nice to let that part of me free for a heartbeat in a place where I hide most of myself, most of the time. I gently reduce my rebel-barrier and join in again. The meeting will break up soon, dogs are beginning to think about circuitous routes to den and the rigmarole of leaving at appropriate gaps apart.

Amiable First Eyes Set meets with Wary Set and Bold Set at the end of these wider meetings. I have managed to glean a tiny amount of information through laying low in their pack-bond. They do not have the best barriers and (for at least a degree after we part) I can generally creep in and get a tiny whisper of what they discuss. Tonight, I really should try to listen.

“Alright, Still Runt my pup” (For some reason this doga I have developed is patronising enough to make Amiable First Eyes Set seem lacking in confidence) “we better head back to den. Don’t forget we are going on a long-provision tomorrow for an eighth. I want you to remember what Pack Guider said about recruits. We know there’s no Set-spirit in any-dog from our provisioning pack but those joining, from over the river, might be worth a try.”

“Yeah, maybe we will find some true Sets amongst them.” She knows what to do next, without me using the pack-bond. She will attend to that while I try to get any scraps of information from the “high-notches” unguarded chat. We leave together on our rebel-pack designated, separate paths. She will leave a message for Honest to deploy Mirth Set, Proud Set and Timid Runt Set, as planned against this recruitment drive. Although the risk to us is higher if there is a larger stealth-pack (particularly so many untested ones); the fewer dogs who hear of the separatists the better. Containment is the name of the day.

I scent-mask and circle behind the entrance of the “secret” den. It could not be more basic. There is a shoddy cover that conceals it only from the least interested passing dog. I hide at the closest point I can be to them inside with the least chance of me seeping into any of their other senses. I concentrate hard. I send my internal nose sniffing to find the edges of the connection, however wavering. I am shocked to sense them all thinking about Still Runt and me. They are pleased with themselves and trust us. They are going through the show of developing trust slowly, but they all trust us implicitly. That’s a useful thing to know. We can worry less about proving ourselves and focus on gathering information. Maintaining this trust will only get easier.

They are all excited now, thinking about the future. I can’t tell if it due to the planned terror event or the perceived glorious future. Bold Set is tired. She wants to head to den. Amiable First Eyes Set and Wary Set are prepared to leave it…but there is a sulkiness in Wary Set that he doesn’t manage to conceal. They all slam up their barriers. They had been relaxed, but there is a seed of discomfort in them now. Interesting.

They are going to come out. Amiable First Eyes Set would want to leave first and let the mate-bonded pair address the outburst. Sure enough, as I lie pressed to the soil, Amiable First Eyes Set exits the den. Not even stopping to fully replace the foliage cover, he saunters on “Route 3” back to his den-complex. He dens one complex over from Still Runt and me. We sometimes smell him at provision change-over. His pack feed before ours. He looks at the sun, sees the degree and hastens to catch the end of his allotted provision. He won’t eat well today.

I smell the discord before I hear foot-falls. The other two have not resolved any of their unexpressed conflict. They exit unmasked and fully cover the entrance, adding sticks to warn of intruders while unattended. They return to their den-complex in an unsubtle straight line.

As their consternation fades into the air, I approach, remember the position of the extra branches and go back inside in case of any extra evidence. Having found it (as any-dog would) smelling like the secret play-den of creche-pups, empty and puppishly dug, I leave, replacing the sticks without denting the bark or leaving a morsel of scent behind.

I return to den, Still Runt is there.

( All done. Marker left. Timid Runt Set, Mirth Set and Proud Set should be in the other provision-pack tomorrow. We will have a quarter-season to “prime” them and then we can present them as new recruits. ) We communicate almost exclusively through pack-bond to strengthen our bond and skills. At first this was perpetually exhausting, but it is beginning to pay off and we can have clear and relatively complex conversations now. The next step will be managing to uphold this level of conversation while having another, in a different pack-bond.

( We ideally need one more – two each. Maybe we shouldn’t be too efficient. They trust us but I don’t want to outdo the others by too big a margin. ) We lapse into silence. She knows I have more, but I don’t know how to approach it. I am so sad and so jealous she got to be in my den. ( Why are you still pursuing our comfort-unit? That was a training-challenge for you. You’re getting in-role training of a more immersive kind than most stealth-warriors could hope for and yet you find time to try and sneak past my bond-mate. )

( I will not let Resilient Rise win. They have only caught me once. You have only caught me once. My skills are improving. It is a useful exercise. They do not even know it is me. )

( What if some-dog smells you coming or going and questions why you’re in a random den-complex? )

( I am developing a bond with a Set “potential recruit” who in my real life, I creched with. If either identity is observed, I can explain why I am in the complex. ) I am impressed, despite my anger and jealousy.

( The next time you come back scarred, I will send you back to Honest Set. Even Resilient Rise would be better for this mission than a dog who gets us caught! ) I imagine Still Runt in my den with Generous and Honest, they unknowing of her presence. She might be bluffing, but she at least imagines herself with great skill. I have noticed her sneaking in at night a few times. She often smells of the little-wild by our den-complex – she probably rolls there before she comes to den. That level of stealth in one, as yet, untrained is in equal parts frightening and impressive. If we were on World, I would hold her back from missions until I knew what her capabilities were and where her loyalties truly lie. But we are not on World and she might just be an asset to Pack.

( I will not be scarred again by Generous Set or Honest Set. I will not attempt anything to jeopardise our mission. How do you know they trust us so certainly? )

I send her my memory in the bond and she understands. She seems pleased.

( You have done well. We have infiltrated their pack. Now we need to find out what they have planned and when. Then we can stop them and return to life and training for a bit before the next threat to Pack security. ) Maintaining barriers for a whole day on this world, where degrees are longer, is exhausting Service. Our provisioning slot is coming up. I will eat and then sleep. I want to be as fresh as is possible when we’ll be serving hard tomorrow, a new layer of subterfuge will be starting.

I don’t need to tell Still Runt my plan, I had it openly and she felt it. We go to the provisioning-spot

In the long Sweet-night, I am disturbed from sleep. I did not deep-sleep tonight, despite wanting rest, to see if she was going to go again. She feels me awake.

( No scar. ) Fine. She will keep trying. I won’t stop her unless she gets caught again. I am intrigued to know if she can get past Honest and Generous. Plus, I would rather Resilient Rise didn’t win that contest. This time, she doesn’t smell of wild, she smells of den, my den, my role-mate, my mate-bonded. I do not send her thanks, but she reads it in the pack-bond anyway. I fall back to sleep with comfort in my nose.