Pack (canine)
Animals which typically predominate over others are associated with the term "alpha". Among pack-living wolves, alpha wolves are the genetic parents of most cubs in the pack. Such access to mating females creates strong selective pressure for intra-sex competition.
Shaman (novel)
The novel begins with Loon, a boy from a Tribu of Ice Age humans who call themselves the Wolf Pack, being stripped naked and sent into a lonely valley where he is expected to try to survive alone for two weeks as a test of manhood. Despite a rainstorm on the first day, Loon succeeds in using the skills he has been taught by Thorn, the Wolf Pack's shaman. He manages to start a fire, kill animals for food, and make himself clothing. During his trial he encounters a group of Neanderthals (a species of human whom his band calls 'the Old Ones') who attack him, and he injures a leg while escaping them, an injury that will trouble him for the rest of his story. Despite many adventures, Loon completes his trial and returns to the Wolf Pack. At this point it is revealed that he is just twelve years old.