THE WHITE LONE WOLF

Bloodmoon Ants

Luke ran to the door, he saw two of Odesian guards and he quickly invited them inside, away from the heavy downpour.

"No, this is urgent and we've been asked to bring you to the great hall," One of the guards said. Luke looked ahead of them and he saw traveling carts already waiting for them. He nodded and went inside. He met Azariah whispering to Tosah, and he knew by her frowns that she was worried.

"No, no, no, Luke, you can't go. The rain is heavy and the majority of the watchers are not on the road. This is a dangerous time for you to be moving around," Tosah said while rubbing her tummy.

"Odesian want me, what choice do I have?" Luke said.

"You have a pregnant wife and four kids, that's the choice you have!" Tosah shouted and threw one of the food bowls on the wall.

"gods!" Azariah said and gritted his teeth.

"What's the commotion about? What if Azariah and I follow him? We can protect each other on the road," Niklaus said.

"No, you stay with my family while I am away and Azariah is coming with me."

"Me?" Azariah asked.

"Yes, you," Luke said and left them to gather the things they needed for the journey.

The Odesian great hall was not located in any of the settlements, but deep in the forest which was one of the reasons Tosah was concerned. And recently, there have been strange sightings in Leschan.

The cart moved with a dangerous speed and headed out of the settlements.

"Why do I have the feeling that this meeting is not going to end well?" Azariah said and sighed.

"Are you concerned about the other chiefs?" Luke asked.

"No, they don't bother me," Azariah said and his eyes glowed with menace. Luke nodded and smiled. The other chiefs have never accepted Azariah as a member of Leschan, he was an orphan who was left to die but somehow the gods kept him alive and they hated that about him.

"When are you going to get a mate?" Luke asked.

" Is it that easy to find mates? You of all people should know I just can't pick someone and mark her as my mate," Azariah said.

"But you are also not helping, you don't attend the town's meetings, you don't come to any of Odesian's festivals, how are you supposed to find a mate?" Luke asked.

"Are you seriously questioning my relationship status when we don't even know what has happened in the great hall for Odesian to summon you like this," Azariah said and scoffed.

"Don't try to change the conversation, we will revisit this," Luke said and Azariah didn't respond.

They moved to the outskirts of the settlements and were already deep in the forest when the rider of their carts screamed. The horse thrashed and screamed, the horse began to run without direction.

"What the hell is happening?!" Luke shouted, and they continued to hear screams from the other carts that were escorting them.

"Grab the wheels!" Azariah shouted and Luke jumped out of the cart to grab the wheels. Luke's horrible screams pierced the forest. Azariah hurriedly jumped out and he saw the reason for his friend's cry. He forgot about the wheels and the horse as he quickly rushed to Luke's side.

All over the forest floor were large, venomous ants. Luke had tripped while trying to hold the wheels and he landed into the sea of ants. Azariah grunted as he felt the sting of the ants. He knew that he had to get away as soon as possible before the effect of the venom overcame him. He knew he was so much stronger than Luke, that explained his resistance to the sting.

"The blood moon witches are here," Luke managed to say before he started convulsing.

"I need you to climb on me after I transform, can you hear me?" Azariah asked and scanned the forest, none of the witches had reached their side. They usually first send out their ants before they attack, there was no time to formulate a plan of attack. He was strong, but given the circumstances, the witches will definitely overcome him and he also had to protect his friend.

Azariah transformed into his wolf-form, and Luke slumped unto his back. He felt the stings of the ant and he raced into the forest. He knew that the other guards were definitely dead or deeply injured. He ran with his strength while making sure that Luke didn't fall off him.

Azariah got to the great hall and he knew that something was definitely amis. The number of guards patrolling the walls of the Great hall had tripled even in the rain and the war horn was blasting, sending fear to any ordinary wolf nearby.

Some guards were already waiting for them at the gate. He changed back to his human form and began to reel out instructions to the guards.

"Take Luke to the infirmary, make sure it's the high priestess that attends to him. He has been stung by the blood moon ants," Azariah said and grunted, he saw fear on the faces of the guards and who could blame them?

The remaining guards escorted him to the council room where the other chiefs and the Odesian were waiting for them. Immediately he entered, they began to whisper amongst themselves. Azariah's mind began to be foggy, his bones were aching, the effect of the venom was now overwhelming.

He ignored the murmurs and he knelt in front of Odesian, the Great Warrior Wolf of Leschan, the Leader of the Leschan clan. His skin was dark, glowing, and his eyes were fiery yellow. He exudes so much power and strength that even Azariah feared him.

Azariah had always felt like an outcast, he was the only white wolf in Leschan and he also had the fairest skin. The others had a much darker skin tone.

"Azariah, what business do you have here?" Odesian asked and the room became silent.

"My Lord, I came here with Luke son of Ragnar. His wife Tosah was worried about the recent uprising and she wanted her husband to be protected," Azariah said and tried to steady his breathing.

"Where is Luke?"

"We were attacked by the blood moon witches on our way, Luke was stung by the blood moon ants but I was quick enough to carry him and leave before the witches arrived," Azariah explained and the whole room erupted with noise.

"Enough!" Odesian commanded and the room became silent again.

"Also, my Lord, I encountered the shadowclan scouts earlier today," Azariah said and he noticed that there was no scream. It appeared that they were already aware of that.

Azariah could no longer hold himself, he fell and began to convulse and the whole room fell into chaos.