Wolves at War: A Neocon Fairy Tale (Part II)

Colin Wolf liked to think of himself as being an honorable wolf. His whole career was based on this belief. Everyone in the forest knew the story about his vow at the end of the great Python War to never allow the politicians to make military decisions. It was a vow he took very seriously and one he had jealously guarded in the last war, the triumphant victory over Putrid Pig. Now the politicians were pushing for a second war against Putrid--a war that would result in the toppling of his house, something that had been left undone in the first war.

Leader Wolf and his advisors were huddled together in an undisclosed log, deciding how to react to the woodcutter's latest atrocity. A wolf had been killed by the woodcutter at Grandma's house and all of the wolves in Wolfland were howling for vengeance. Colin wanted to lead a pack against the woodcutter to capture and eat him, but Wolfowhit, Rumwolf, and Wolfdick had convinced the passionately credulous Leader Wolf that war with Putrid made more sense.

"What will the wolves say if we attack Putrid for something the woodcutter did," asked Colin.

"I know a pig who once lived in Putrid's house," said Wolfowhit. "He still has friends there." "They tell him that the woodcutter's friend, the little red-hatted girl, has a cousin who once might have visited Putrid's house to sell him straw," he continued. "That's a direct connection between the woodcutter and Putr..."

"That's not all," Wolfdick interrupted, "I know that same Pig." "He says that Putrid has built a wolfstomper."

"A wolfstomper!" cried Leader Wolf as he dove to hide underneath some moss in the darkest part of the log, "what will we do?"

"That's it," declared Karl Wolf, Leader's most trusted advisor, "there isn't a wolf alive who isn't terrified of wolfstompers--blowing down Putrid's house will make you the greatest Pack Leader ever."

Leader shook off his meager moss hiding place and stood tall. "We have to make the forest safe from those who would use wolfstompers," He declared in his best, most resolute, growl.

"But we all know that this pig you're talking about--the spy, Glutton--is a con pig," replied Colin. "It's my job to sell this to the other creatures of the forest, and they'll never believe it,"

The other wolves glared at him in response. They knew he'd tell the other forest creatures what they wanted him to tell them, because they knew the truth about Colin Wolf--the perception that he was an honorable wolf was just that, a perception. He had covered up the massacre at Maylay during the Python war. He knew how to take orders no matter how distasteful they might be.

Next week, Part III

Part I