His thoughts were racing.

Vandescelda told him not to be worried, not to be nervous, but how could he not be? After all, Vandescelda was the Master Alpha, the leader of the entire pack!

Vande looked at Cayde and politely dipped his head, "Wolf of Harmony, I have overlooked your performance in this pack quite recently, and I must say, I am beyond impressed. From your loyalty, to the joy you have spread throughout the pack. It is clear that you truly are worthy of the title of Wolf of Harmony, in terms of loyalty." He complimented.

"But, Vandescelda, I hate to admit this, but... why is being the Wolf of Harmony such a big deal? Besides for this marking on my head, what else does it entail besides for reputation?" Cayde asked.

"Hmm," Vande chuckled softly, "That, I cannot answer. Your path is your own, as is mine. However, I will say this. The path you shall walk is very important, and while you may not see it now, the stars have read that your path, your destiny, is very important."

Vande continued, "You see, while it may not seem like much now, I can assure you, your path will be filled with wonder, filled with amazing things, both good and evil. There is much for you to learn, despite you having learned so much already... I cannot fathom the things you shall learn, but I promise you, being the Wolf of Harmony is no small title. You have a lot of weight on your shoulders, even if it may not seem that way yet. However, your performance in this pack has proven to me that you can handle tough things. You overcome obstacles, take the initiative and become a leader when others aren't up to the task."

He took a moment to breathe, before smiling at Cayde, "In short, having that title is nothing to overlook. You shall find that out soon." Vande told him.

Cayde nodded slowly, indicating that he understood, "Thank you for your guidance, Vandescelda." Cayde said politely.

"It is my pleasure," Vande replied, "Ahem! Anyway, as I have stated, your performance in this pack is honorable. You are a Beta wolf, but your performance exceeds that of any other Beta, and I commend you for that."

"Thank you, sir."

"No. Thank you." Vande replied, before pacing for a brief moment.

"I assume you have heard of the Trial of the Mountain?" Vande asked.

"..." Cayde remained silent as he closed his eyes for a moment.

...

His father.

The father he barely knew.

The father who had perished on that very trial.

...

Cayde remembered, when he was old enough, he was told the truth about the whereabouts of  his father. When Cayde was born, his father wanted him to have a great life. With both his father, and his mother being Beta wolves, his father wished to become an Alpha, only because that way they would have a larger den, and a safer place to let Cayde grow up in.

But to become an Alpha, one must face the Trial of the Mountain, where one must reach the top of the snow capped mountain, starting at the base of the mountain where the Kimlascan Pack resided.

And so, Cayde's father wished to partake in this trial.

But in doing so, his father had perished during the trial, resulting in Cayde and his mother being alone, and with no father to help him grow, no father to tell him stories, no father who was an Alpha and provided his family with a big den to give them all more space.

Yes, Cayde knew what the Trial of the Mountain was.

...

"Cayde?" Vandescelda asked worriedly.
Cayde nodded slowly and opened his eyes again, looking at him.

"Yes, Vandescelda. I have heard of the trial." He said with a slight sigh, "Why do you ask?" Cayde added curiously, not wishing to delve on things of the past, things he could not prevent.

Vande nodded in response, "I assumed so..." Vande had a look of guilt on his face, remembering what had happened to Cayde's father, and wishing that he hadn't asked the question in such a manner, "My apologies, I shouldn't have been so intrusive in terms of asking that question." Vande added a few moments later.

Cayde shook his head, "It's alright, I understand, there is no need to worry." He assured.

Vande smiled in return, "Thank you for understanding." He said politely, "Now... anyway, what I was going to ask you is... perhaps you would consider partaking in that trial?" He asked Cayde.

There was silence for a while, and Cayde was thinking about his options for a moment, but before he answered, Vande spoke again.

"I'll give you some time to think, Wolf of Harmony. Perhaps we can speak again tonight? I'll give you the duty of patrolling the northeastern border today, that way you don't need to  do much and you have time to wander around and think, okay?" Vande suggested.

Cayde thought for a moment before nodding again, "That sounds good, thank you sir." He dipped his head in respect.

"Thank you as well, Wolf of Harmony. I thank you for your time, take as much time as you need, you can wander and think on this conversation, and think on this question without any interruptions. As I said, we can continue this conversation tonight." Vande said.

"Alright." Cayde stood up and nodded politely.

"Alright, you are dismissed."

Cayde turned and began to walk out of his den, but glanced around it for a moment. Obviously it was the biggest and neatest den in the whole pack, seeing how Vande was the Master Alpha, and rightfully so.

"And, Cayde?" Vande called to him before he left, causing Cayde to turn around for a moment to look at him.

"Thank you again, for understanding." He said.

Cayde nodded at him and smiled again before turning and walking out of the cave again. Cayde believed that Vande truly was worthy of the title of Master Alpha, he was a great leader, and Cayde respected him immensely.

Cayde sighed softly as he looked out from the entrance of Vande's den, overlooking the wolves below. He was going to prepare to patrol the northeastern perimeter and think over the conversation, like Vande had suggested.

He looked up at the sky for a moment. The conversation had left him with a lot of questions.

But his questions would be answered soon enough.

There was still much to learn, and much to discover.

Indeed, his journey was only just beginning.