Dead warriors

London

"Materializing cuts down on our lifespan, killing us slowly. Not to mention the horrid headache that lasts for days... or the—" I paused, pointing my glass in his direction to be more dramatic in my explanation"–that, you had mentioned."

He smirked at me, walking elegantly towards me. "You should listen to me more." He whispered with a wide grin, happy to continue our previous conversation.

"My goodness, Fuyu, you seriously don't want to let that go?" I was pouring myself another glass of whiskey, having gone past the stage of getting stunned by his... well, nature.

I poured a second glass, bringing it to him. He lowered his head and, with a low growl, began drinking out of it. This wolf was truly something else.

"You should get a bigger glass; it's hard to drink out of this. My tongue can barely fit." He grumbled before resuming lashing down the hot liquid.

My lips tilted. "Are you asking for a doggy bowl?" I asked innocently, regardless of my intended mockery.

He growled at me, "Do not even dare!"

I raised my hand in surrender, tilting my lips, "Whatever you say. I just wanted to be sure I heard you right."

In a way, my wolf was my comforter. Talking to him, despite his difficult personality, was enjoyable. He was a different wolf, and a very interesting one at that.

Wolves are said to be born from the depths of one's personality, and the longer you stay with your wolf, you find yourselves becoming one despite being one. In our case, our bickering made us stronger, and our irritation was just us feeling fulfilled with each other.

"I love the darkness." A random thought that subconsciously escaped my lips.

"It was never something to be feared. It's been since the beginning and will be till the end. A beginning that has no beginning." Fuyu said, staring into open space.

I smiled at his wise words. He was indeed correct.

"Eliza, what a pure shame she had to end like that and die like a dog. She would have made a great female warrior, but being overambitious was her downfall." I took a small sip of my drink.

"I don't care. Incompetence is incompetence! Disobedience is disobedience! Betrayal is betrayal! Stealing is stealing! And all are crimes punishable by death. I made that clear." Fuyu licked his fur without the slightest hint of emotion.

"Indeed." I agreed.

"Fuck that council meeting. You shouldn't go." Fuyu said after a while.

"A summit I can ignore, but not a council meeting, and you know this. After all, I am the Alpha King, and my presence is heavily needed. Besides, it's not like it holds every time; it will be over before you know it." I muttered, and the big creature scrutinized me before scowling.

"I don't like the idea of having to bear being around anyone, especially power-hungry fools that will be mixed with unsure idiots and cowardly morons. I'd rather choke myself to death," Fuyu said coldly.

"Ouch! You really don't know how to hold back, do you?" I chuckled darkly, and he raised a brow at me.

"I'm not the one who ingests wolfsbane from time to time. Neither am I the devil who might look calm on the outside but is badly fucked up in the head." He glared, and his tail swept my thighs while I could only roll my eyes at him.

"I act out what I feel. If you're too stupid for me or perceived as a threat, I'll kill you and get it over with. Simple!" He sneered.

"You bother me." I uttered.

"Do I? You're lucky I don't materialize all the time, thanks to the double-edged sword the moon-goddess gave certain lycans all in the name of a gift for that."

I shook my head, glancing down at the paperwork before me. "I should really get to that."

"It's mentally draining." Fuyu muttered, and I nodded my head in agreement.

"Yes, it is."

"Isn't it already exhausting to keep an eye on every little detail going on in your pack and the vast lands we own? I've gone through them; they are not so important, especially when I know what each paper contains." Fuyu sneered.

"I still need to sign the important ones." I sighed, rubbing my chin in frustration.

"Go ahead."

Fuyu went ahead to sniff my covered meal, which the maid had served me about an hour ago, leaving me to face the pile of papers stacked on my desk. I watched him open it by pulling the cover off with the help of his large teeth and big jaw.

The sight of grilled steak welcomed me, and I tipped my head at him to knock himself out rather than get hungry. It wasn't like I've had quite the appetite since I've known myself.

After minutes of mentally preparing myself to dive back into work, the door opened to reveal Reece.

He immediately bowed, "my king, I'm sorry for not knocking, but it's an emergency."

I tipped a brow at him questioningly, refraining from getting enraged at him for shattering the work mode I had succeeded in getting myself into.

He paused, shivering slightly at the chilly atmosphere that Fuyu left behind. I wasn't surprised that he retreated back to my mind, where he belonged. How fast he did it was what surprised me.

"I'm not your average wolf." Fuyu proudly said.

"Do not make me drink wolfsbane again." I threatened, and he smirked.

"Go ahead; it won't harm me."

"No. But at least I'd be free of you for at least two minutes." I shot back.

Reece cleared his throat, trying to gain my attention before continuing.

"The scouts we sent to survey the southeast?" Reece paused.

"Yeah?"

"Two bodies from the scouts were sent back to us... But that's not all; there was a message carved into their skins." He bowed his head, "the message is for you, sir."

I froze, my brows furrowing and creases from anger decorating my forehead. My teeth gritted as my hand tightened its hold on the glass.

My men? Killed? Message? What the heck was going on here? Who could possibly dare me?

"If I remember correctly, the four men we sent were supposedly the best warriors from the northern lands, no?" I slowly began while stirring the drink in my hand.

"Affirmative, my king."

"The southeast isn't so strong, so how could they get wiped out?" I growled slowly, my voice an octave lower.

"From the state their bodies were in, there was a hint of poison along with thorough brutality." Reece continued, "Not just any kind of poison; it was Orkan. Its very familiar scent was prominent in their blood."

Orkan? That plant was rare and very hard to find. I know because I've searched for one myself before. A plant capable of warping one's mind, shit.

To be able to produce a dosage that could kill someone, or at least from what I'm deducing from what Reece was saying, a great amount of Orkan was necessary, seeing as it was just a very little flower and a single one of them could barely produce enough poison to hypnotize a butterfly.

Who the hell did this?

I banged my fists against the table, ignoring the snack and cry of the table as it collapsed to the floor, taking everything that was placed on it with it—my finest bottle of whiskey included.

"How bad was the damage they sustained?" I asked, feeling my eyes twitch as a result of the rage I felt that was threatening to burn me to ashes if I did not let it out.

Reece drew a deep breath, already anticipating my reaction and bracing himself for it: "Their necks seemed to have been ripped to the point of nearly getting dislocated from their bodies. Their hearts were missing; claw marks scattered around their bodies."

"Rouges!" I growled, already telling from his vivid explanation the people who bore such attack skill.

"Exactly what I suspected. I would have concluded it to be a coincidental encounter, but then the discovery of Orkan and then the message left specifically for you told me otherwise."

"Someone is raising and training an army of Rouges; I can't believe this is happening, London." Fuyu growled, sharing in my furry.

I ground my teeth so hard that my jaw begged not to be broken. I chuckled, pulling my lips between my teeth to bite down on my rage.

"Take me to see the bodies." I snapped.