King Elk Forest Tell me, Grandson

Burke was extremely pleased with Mato. What he didn't find in his own son he found within his grandson. He was far more eager to help and mentor him. His words were respectful which was always a good thing to make Burke more friendly. He was glad that his grandson showed some Rochester potential. Burke returned a firm and respectful nod to Mato. Since his grandson was mature and respectful he had no problem serving under his rule.

"Naturally," he spoke in return. It was logical that the leader wanted to focus on his own pack first. "Though, it is important to know your standing and how you want your pack to respond to loners and other pack wolves. It must be communicated to all the members so you are one united front," he explained. Especially with all these wolves newly put together. Then Mato would be focussing on his own pack since to him it seemed vital to respond to everyone the same.

"I think it depends on the pack. I served the brotherhood for a long time. We had no alliances with other packs for most of the time. There was a brief period when we did but it ended in a disaster. The brotherhood living in Blackfeather Woods was mostly self-sufficient because they were big in numbers. Often we had 12 loyal adults protecting, attacking and defending. All for their queen. Hence why that pack could afford not having an alliance," he explained calmly to Mato.

"When you look at your father's pack, it is all very different. They were friendly to others, they let strangers in their ranks. There wasn't a defined assertive leadership. When I arrived at Broken Antler, there were hardly any loyal members. It was just your parents and their four kids. You need your members to stand behind you, and I believe some currently do that. I have not met all of them to speak for most of the group. However, due to the friendly nature of Sebastian's pack, he had alliances with the Caldera folk. They did take everyone in while we were all sick of poison. We lived because your father had been respectful and a good bond with a pack close by."

Burke wanted to sketch two pictures for his grandson. As both packs were different they also treated other packs in their own way. "We currently have 7 adults, however, of those adults I am elder and can only advise and protect when I can. That makes 6 abled bodies that could protect, but if one gets injured or some aren't loyal, you are left with fewer adults. So, in your case, I think it would be best if we could keep friendly with one pack at least. And I should say only one. Do not be friends with everyone, then you are serving other packs more than your own. It is easier to maintain an alliance if you can focus on one pack. But you must keep in mind that sometimes other wolves don't keep their promises. Plus you need to think what kind of pack Tindómë will be. To be associated with a pack with the same values an alliance is more likely to succeed."

Burke didn't want this pack to be overly friendly, but also not as paranoid as the brotherhood. But he knew it wasn't his decision, he could only guide his grandson. "You must make sure your members stay loyal to you. That is the most important thing before forging bonds with other packs though. For now, to give you some time to think about Tindómë and its politics, you can send out a scout to look for packs in the area. The scout should be neutral, gathering information and their philosophies. The information that is gathered about each pack can be useful for deciding which pack you want to be associated with," he advised and ended with a firm nod. Perhaps it had been a bit of an information overload, but Burke was confident Mato was smart enough to understand it all. "Do you have someone in mind to be a scout?"