Adalwolf, Chlodwig, Conrad, Amara
The founders of the 4 great families. They came upon a 4 way crossroads, a stone in the middle upon which you will find the mark of 4 claws next to one another. An oath that they would forever stay true to the promise that they made that day, that they should never raise claw or flash fangs on one another. A promise soon to be forgotten by later generations.
Everyone remembers the Fall of Man, even after all these centuries they haven't turned into tales and legends. Everyone knows that they started the Eternal Snow in their wars which led to their demise. These 4 wolves, these 4 great families, each created by their respected founder, have co-existed and reigned supreme over their occupied territory after the fallout. During the many centuries since the Fall of Men, the wolves, these apex predators, have evolved and learned to adapt. They became bigger, stronger, faster, smarter, better. Unlike them, many other creatures went extinct as the harsh environmental conditions made it impossible for them to continue.
And so during all these countless years the families have lived besides each other. They lived and they fought with each other. They made peace and then fought again. Be it for more land, more mates, or more food..especially more food. Food was running dangerously low, endangering the existence of all the families. To these problem the leaders, descendants from the original founders, of each pack got together and made a pact, once again, on the Crossroads Peace Stone, right below the ones that the founders made. This served to remind them of past vows and also to enforce new ones. They would ration their food, wait until the mating season until devouring their prey where every family shared their hunting grounds with each other, dividing the food equally between everyone.
For decades everything seemed fine until someone broke the vow. Before the mating season passed, 4 dozen snowsheep had perished, bite marks on their bodies and 3 dozen more disappeared without a trace. This riled up all the 4 families, each blaming the other. These were hard times even with the pact but now? There will be bloodshed for this.
You are a beta who leaves their pack with the purpose of either finding the real culprit to the sheep slaughter or just finding a new food source altogether. You will be venturing west past the Dead Zone. The last wolf who traveled through it died only a few meters in. That was more than 200+ years ago as no one has tried to cross it ever since.
If this gets interest I will expand on the factions, their traits and ideals. But that is all fuel for more colorful character interactions...which I expect there to be some.