THE WERETIGER

THE VAMPIRES' CONCERN

ADRIAN'S POV

The growls and cries that shook the forest could be heard faintly as they made a background for the meeting I sat in. Those darn wolves have been giving me a headache the past few months and the fact that there was nothing I could do to stop them was making the tension in the room thicker. Felix ran his hand through his hair as he paced and with one hand on his hip, his eyes were cast downwards, his eyebrows furrowed. At the long table sat every person with a big role in the kingdom while some vampires stood around the room all wearing exasperated expressions at the possible doom we were about to face. The forest is the only thing that keeps us sane and the only reason we can walk comfortably around humans without going berserk. It's destruction would only mean the end of the vampires and the thought makes me dizzy.

"At this rate, they will destroy the whole forest" Max, my general commented.

Felix suddenly stopped pacing and started walking towards a drawer at the far back of the room where some books were stored. He sorted through the various books that were stacked and came out with a blue book. There was a weretiger drawn on the front of the book and he walked over as he flipped the pages in concentration. I watched as every person's eyes glued to him. The weretiger is a mystical creature believed to be the protector of the forest and right now, it might be the only thing that can save the forest and us. It has however been asleep in a cave for the past 10 years and since then, the forest has been victim to a lot of fights and destruction. This has caused the forest to become weak and with time, we needed its creatures to fulfil what the forest used to do for us over the years. This being one of the things I regret most, we had to hold the creatures of the forest captive and although each was given free space to roam and adequate amount of food, it didn't compare to what the forest did for them. Without the forest, the creatures are growing weaker and the destruction of the forest only meant that the situation was getting worse by the minute. Felix placed the book in front of me as he continued flipping the pages until he stopped at a page on which the weretiger was drawn and a few words were written near it.

Everyone huddled near us to take a look at the drawing although we all knew the tale of the weretiger. The drawing was majestic with every detail meticulously drawn with such precision that it looked real. The weretiger is a fierce creature respected and adored by many although it wasn't seen all the time. It resided in the forest, protected everything that was in the forest with all it's might and had so much power that no one dared to oppose it. After it's disappearance for a reason unknown, people started making up all sorts of stories to explain it and now 10 years later, the aloof and ignorant werewolves don't know that the land on which they are resolving their squabble was a piece of the forest that had been protected by the fierce and wild weretiger.

"Our only hope is the weretiger," Felix said as he gestured to the fierce-looking creature that stood proud in a drawing.

I let out a frustrated sigh as I passed my fingers through my hair. I turned to look out the glass window that covered the entirety of the right wall. I could see the bigger parts of the forest that weren't used for the war and the image below me was spectacular. Any person who has lived and tried to protect the forest can notice the difference between the forest now and 10 years ago. The trees look healthy but the subtle change kept glaring at me and I could no longer avoid the fact that we could be in immense danger if the destruction of the forest continues. Felix was right, the weretiger was the only creature that could stop this war and bring the forest back to its state.

" The weretiger has been missing for 10 years now so we can't depend on it. Let's try and come up with other ways to stop those wolves from destroying the forest any further" I said.

Max placed his elbows on the table and his head between his hands as he frustratingly ran his hands through the entirety of his head. He must be feeling the most amount of frustration and tension since he is the general to the kingdom. Figuring out war tactics and being able to prevent war are some of the things he is and should be good at and the fact that he can't stop the war must be nerve-wracking. Vampires, witches and werewolves are not supposed to meddle in each other's affairs so this puts him in an awkward position coupled with the fact that our existence now depends on the survival of the forest.

"How about we try and sabotage Neon pack's plans so that they lose the war easily??" Alexa, a soldier suggested.

" Neon pack has violated the rules but since they have the witches on their side, their strength has multiplied," Felix said.

We are in this situation because they weren't able to control their greed and I want to finish them all but we would need a reason. We couldn't barrel our way through and start a fight for no reason as that would be a breach of the treaties we had signed with them in an effort to maintain the peace of the kingdom. I re-evaluated our choices as I massaged my temples, a mixture of anger and worry overtaking my emotions. It was a war that we couldn't interfere in not that we wanted to although we needed to. We were trapped with no way out except work in the shadows to stop this war.

"Alright, we'll go with Alexa's idea. Sabotaging their plans won't be hard if we place spies in their pack while watching out for the witches. Max, arrange people in groups and tell them where to pay attention to. Everyone should head to the hall to receive instructions from Max. We don't have time to waste as the second round of this war is in four days. Find out what they are planning and stop them" I ordered.

After a couple of yesses, everyone made their way out leaving Felix and some of the elders behind. I knew that the sabotage plan wouldn't completely stop the war and that I was just stalling. As we can't claim the forest, neither can we protect it openly when others are using it for an understandable purpose. We had tried speaking with both packs but it led nowhere as the war is justified with each pack making valid arguments although Alpha Daniel of Neon pack and his beta Simon were the most obnoxious people I had ever met.

" What are you planning on doing?? Sabotaging their plans won't stop the war and we don't have much time either" My father said as he pointed his chin at the window.

A few meters away there was smoke as light tremors shook the earth. An explosion could be seen as it made dust rise in the air with the trees shaking and some even falling. Felix placed a hand on my shoulder making me look back at him. His brown eyes scanned the entirety of the forest as worry and apprehension covered his features.

"We need to do something fast. For some reason, I feel as though you have a plan" he whispered low enough for only the two of us to hear.

I was planning on visiting the weretiger to see whether the war had woken it up or not. We had been able to make sure that previous wars didn't damage the forest and that they took place on a smaller part of the forest but this time it's different. These two packs had never fought before and since they were both strong in their own ways, stopping this war was near impossible. Everyone knew of the weretiger but only a few knew where it slept so disclosing my visit would be a bad idea.

"Let's talk about this again next time. I have a lot of things to do right now" I said to the ten or so people that were present.

They reluctantly started heading out and I understood them very well. Not knowing what will happen and having to watch everything happen with no way of helping or stopping the disaster is the most frustrating thing. The feeling of helplessness as what you treasure gets destroyed. The sound of retreating footsteps stopped after a while and we were left in total silence.

" I'll be back," I said.

" Alright, be careful," Felix said and after a pat on the back, I made my way out of the meeting hall and the house.

I turned the ignition and rode my way through the path that was made around the forest. I wanted to save the forest for a selfish reason for if the war occurred at a time when we didn't need its magical abilities, I don't think we would have bothered not that I feel guilty. I'm a leader so I have to do anything for the sake of my people. The trees whooshed by as the river came closer and closer to view. The cave was hidden from view by the river as it flows on an elevated surface beneath which is the cave. I parked my car near the river and got off. The wind blew in the silence making a whoosh sound as the leaves rustled slightly. I walked towards the river, an arm sprawled across my face as the wind picked up speed making dust particles and leaves fly around the area. The wind blew harder and harder and the ground suddenly shook making me lose my footing and almost fell to the ground. The wind caught speed once again and small materials were carried high above the ground forming a circle on top of the whole area.

The wind made it hard for me to take continuous steps as it became harder to stay on my feet. There was a sudden burst of light that made the river glow and I had to narrow my eyes, placing a hand to shield them from the light in order to see. The wind lost speed slowly as the light shone brighter. It was spectacular, beautiful and a sight I won't be able to forget. The river gained speed and the sound of the water as it ran its course made the atmosphere serene and the beauty of the whole area increased tenfold. I had never seen such a spectacle before and it felt strange. My heartbeat went up and it felt as though something unbelievably big was about to happen. The wind stopped blowing completely and the light simmered down but the water retained some light that made the water shimmer, something that felt nostalgic. The atmosphere went back to it's original state and the only thing that changed was the river that was glowing. I regained my composure, the confusion still making the situation feel strange and I made my way towards the shimmering river.

Using the bridge, I crossed the river and made my way towards the cave beneath it. I crouched down to the cave's level since the mouth was at a low elevation. The inside of the cave was spacious and I straightened up to be graced with shining stones that adorned the walls of the cave. It felt magical every time I visited this place but something was off today and I felt it. As I made my way inside the cave, the walls suddenly shook and a growl I had never heard filled the air.