The Tribrid War

Chapter 2

The man downed half a glass of his bourbon and took a drag off his cigarette. He glanced over the fight roster and began checking out the contestants next in line to fight. The options in this fight were boring; they were two humans who were relatively weak in ranking. The man began to observe the interactions of those in the tavern. Suddenly, a sound broke his concentration on a message coming across his phone.

It is time.

These three words could mean anything to anyone who received it; however, they meant one thing in particular to this man. He took the last drag of his cigarette and slammed it down onto the ashtray, which the flame extinguished into a puff of smoke. He stood to his feet and walked to the arena's exit, followed by the tavern's door.

The bustling nighttime streets of Alaria surrounded him as he closed the tavern's door behind him. This particular night was foggy and cloudy. This fog filled the air with a highly ominous aura, which caused the overall mood in Alaria to be very unsettling. The man continued to walk down the street until the lights of Alaria castle came into view, even through the dense fog. The castle was located at the head of the town and was home to the Alarian rulers, King Richard and Queen Katherine. The King and Queen were well-loved by their subjects. Not only for their honesty but also because of their empathetic ideals. It was because of these two monarchs that peace continued for years in Alaria. Due to their persistence, a three-way peace treaty was formed with the Vampire and Werewolf kingdoms. This accord allowed the shifter kingdoms to participate in local festivities, intermingling between the three races. Each domain signed this treaty; however, they tended to stay to themselves, except those who frequented the Midnight Arena. The arena attracted a crowd that managed to feed off the primal urges that the shifters have regarding fighting.

The man kept to the shadows and followed the road towards the castle. He stayed hidden and mainly walked in alleyways and dark corners. Eventually, he stopped and took shelter in a dark alleyway. In this alley, the man took the time to turn his phone on silent and spray himself down with a unique smell-canceling serum as a precautionary measure. He noticed the glow of his phone as it lit up; he glanced down to look at it as another text flashed across the screen.

Use the right-side entrance.

The man smiled in affirmation and excitement as he quietly followed the castle walls past the main entrance and made his way to the right side of the wall. A few conveniently stacked boxes leaned against the wall, almost like an invitation to enter. "How convenient," the man said quietly as he sneered in anticipation. He used the boxes to scale the wall and gave him access to the castle grounds. Bushes and statues covered the man as he continued to sneak through the courtyard. Finally, he found the door used for entry by the servants. He pulled his lock-picking tools out of his pocket, picked the lock, then carefully and quietly opened the door and the castle kitchen.

The castle was dark and quiet; at 2:30 a.m., many of the servants were asleep. Those who were still awake were in their chambers, which quickly allowed him the freedom to exit the kitchen and enter the main castle hallways. The man continued to follow the hallway; he crept past numerous doors undetected and continued towards his target of the steps to the upper levels. Before he could reach the stairs, the muffled sound of footsteps drew closer, which caused the man to take refuge in one of the unlocked rooms on the left side of the hallway. He quickly shut the door and peeked out of the c***k he had left in the door. A quick glimpse of a passing guard coming closer caused the man to tense up. He quietly shut the door and exhaled a nervous breath.

"Who are you?" The words projected from the other side of the room as he turned to see a servant. The servant held tightly onto the handle of his broom with a confused and scared expression as he stared back at the man.

"The last thing you will ever see!" Was the answer he gave as he sprinted towards the curious servant with non-human speed.

He quickly snapped the servant's neck before the innocent could even scream for help. The man quietly placed the servant's body on the ground and began to sneak back towards the door. He put his ear against the door and listened intently for any noise, hearing none; with the silence that awaited him, he assumed the guard had moved on to a different hallway. Silently he opened the door, returned to the hallway, and checked his surroundings one more time. The room was empty, so he exhaled in relief and refocused on his goal of the steps to the upper levels. Finally, he reached his intended destination; the steps to the royal wing on the third floor. He silently ascended the stairs as caution and excitement filled his body.

He continued his stealthy walk down the hallway towards the last door of the royal wing when suddenly, he was alerted by a passing guard. The man quickly hid in the shadows and held his breath to help avoid detection. The unaware guard continued his patrol, allowing the man to exit his hiding spot. Finally, he reached his intended destination and stared at the cherry door in anticipation. The man grimaced in annoyance as his eyes moved over the one last obstacle preventing him from entering that door. That obstacle was one palace guard who stood there alert and aware of his surroundings; he scrutinized intently for anything or anyone that shouldn't be there. The man decided that keeping his distance as he handled this issue would be best, so he remained hidden as he crawled into a dark corner. The corner allowed him a good view of the guard protecting the door. Once snug in his protective spot, he grabbed a small dagger he kept in a holster on his ankle, aimed, and threw it toward the guard. The knife hit the unsuspecting guard right in the heart, and instantly he fell to the floor dead. Once the guard fell to the ground lifeless, the man began to slink closer to the room, grabbed the corpse, and quietly opened the cherry door the dead guard was protecting.

The man dragged the guard's body into the room behind him and dropped it on the floor as he scanned the room. His eyes locked on his target, lying on the bed in slumber. Smiling defiantly, he crouched low on the ground as he stalked his prey and slinked towards his destination. He approached the bed and looked down at the person who slept peacefully in it; an evil smile crossed his lips from the excitement of what he was about to do. Suddenly, Queen Katherine opened her eyes in surprise and fear as a man harshly threw his hands over her mouth.

"Allow me to apologize to you, Your Majesty, but this will hurt you much more than it will hurt me." He smirked at her as his teeth expanded into canines, and claws and fur grew from his hands.