Chapter 5
898 Words
Night covered the Blood Moon borders. Assigned guards walked the patrol path, torches flickering against the trees.
“If patrol keeps going like this, I might start bringing wine with me,” one of them joked as the other laughed
Another wolf chuckled. “Careful. The Alpha might hear that.”
“He can join us then.”
The third wolf shook his head. “You two joke too much.”
Then the third wolf slowed.
“Wait.”
The others kept walking.
“What now?” one of them said with a grin.
“I heard something.”
The first wolf waved his hand dismissively. “It’s the bushes. The wind is strong tonight.”
But the rustling came again and it was louder this time. Their laughter stopped.
“I’ll check it out.” The first guard rose and moved to investigate the source of the noise.
He pushed the branches aside and leaned down to look through the thick brush.
Suddenly his body jerked.
“What the..”
His legs were yanked down violently.
“HEY!”
The other two rushed forward.
Before they reached him, the bushes exploded.
Rogues poured out of the forest.
The pack guards were heavily outnumbered.
Claws flashed in the moonlight.
Steel struck flesh.
The patrol wolves barely raised their weapons before the rogues crashed into them like a wave.
Torches flew through the air.
Flames caught the dry crops instantly.
Fire spread across the fields.
“Burn it all,” the Rogue leader ordered. Fire raged in his eyes.
One wounded guard staggered away from the chaos. Blood ran down his arm as he shifted and ran toward the pack center.
He burst through the gates and shifted back, breath tearing from his lungs.
“Rogues!” he shouted to the sentries. “The eastern border is under attack!”
The alarm horn sounded across the pack.
Within minutes the message reached the Alpha hall.
The door was pushed open as Alpha Varek entered the hall. The room was filled with Elders of the Blood Moon Pack, who were the strongest warriors in their prime and young, powerful werewolves who had survived a hundred battles to earn their seats.
They all stood up to welcome him and the hall became silent as he took his seat. He raised his hand as a signal for the messenger to report.
"The east is burning, Alpha. Crops are gone, three of our brothers were killed by the rogues and the worst is that the Iron Ridge pack has sealed the pass and stolen our imported medicine."
Varek said, his voice deep and steady. "If they think the Blood Moon Pack will beg for scraps while our children go hungry, they are wrong."
“Double the pack patrol.
Curfew starts tonight. Everyone stays home before midnight.
From today, all food is shared. No leader, not even me, eats more than a pup. We suffer together. We survive together.
If Iron Ridge fails to return our medicine by dawn, we will take it by force.”
The elders murmured in approval, but one voice cut through the room like a knife.
"This is too dangerous," Lucien said, stepping forward into the light. He looked at Varek with sad, tired eyes. "Varek, if we strike now, we are inviting a war. We are already hungry and weak so I suggest we should wait. Maybe they will listen to reason if we send a diplomatic envoy and why should we the elders eat the same as the rest, let our meals be more than the others so we will still gain their respect."
"And if we do nothing, our sick will die in their beds while we sit here discussing risk. For the food part, even a father will learn to give his children the last supper after seeing their state. I would rather die fighting for our survival than watch this pack fade away in silence." Varek strongly opposed.
“You call yourself a father to this pack. But your children have no Luna,” he said.
“Your hunger for war comes from being alone because there is no mate to steady you, and there's no one beside you to say you are wrong. If you want war so badly, go fight it alone. Stop dragging the pack with you.”
Varek’s eyes turned red with rage. His fists tightened until his knuckles turned white.
"Be careful with your choice of words Lucien," Varek warned with every calmness he had left.
"Well, someone needs to tell you the truth around here," Lucien continued, caring less about Varek’s anger.
Varek didn't argue further, with a c***k of bone and a rush of power, Varek shifted into a massive black wolf.
Lucien shifted as well, a silver wolf meeting the challenge.
They began growling and tearing at each other with their claws and their fangs.
Lucien was fast, but Varek was a mountain of muscle and will.
Within moments, Varek had Lucien pinned to the floor, till he admitted defeat.
"The next time you try this again, I won't consider that you're my brother and will have your neck chopped off," Varek warned, flinging him away.
Varek turned to the elders," Prepare the wagons. We are going to get our medicine."
They all agreed, afraid to get on his nerves like his brother.
- Writer
