Children of Sun and Peace

Chapter 46. - Pack

The smell of blood in the air was something Freya once never thought she could get used to, but as Nolan, Connor, Lucia and Aaron returned exactly five hours later as promised, the very smell of blood and death lingering on their clothes, Freya didn't even think about it twice. It was a familiar feeling at this point. One a predator inside of her practically enjoyed. It was astounding that not only werewolves survived, but that there were so many of them, with just how bloodthirsty her species were. There were laws, strict and unforgiving, but murder was not forbidden. No, there were simply rules in place, which justified it in many cases just like this one. Yet, Midnight City alone currently claimed close to two million residents.

"Is it done?" She asked Nolan while she and Demi were preparing the dinner table. He nodded simply.

"Did you find the source?" Demi asked next to her.

"No, but we will. I have eyes everywhere," he replied and Freya almost asked what he meant by 'eyes'. In the end, she didn't. She was just grateful that they existed, because Gods knew she needed it now.

"What's this?" Connor asked, looking at the table which was now full of comfort food and alcohol, ready for the dinner.

"Family talk," Freya explained.

"Nine chairs?" Lucia frowned.

"Liv is coming. She requested it," Demi shrugged.

"The girl's got balls after all," Aaron laughed, earning himself a growl from Connor.

"I'll go get her then. The sooner we start, the sooner we'll be done with it," Connor said in the end and disappeared into the hallway while the rest slowly gathered around the table and sat down. Within ten minutes, everyone was gathered around the table, but the food remained untouched and so did the drinks. Instead there was tension heavy in the air, everyone dreading the talk that was to come, yet aware it had to be done.

"Freya and I made it to the last four now," Az began, reminding everyone that this was the endgame now. Two more fights before the finish line."This means the stakes of unmasking us are significantly higher. We need a more effective way to communicate. In battle and outside of it as well. And we need to start thinking about after, too," he added.

"You really took a liking to that pack thing, huh?" Nolan chuckled bitterly. There was an edge to his tone, something Freya couldn't quite put her finger on. But whatever it was, she could tell he wasn't particularly a fan of the idea.

"As much as I hate to say this, it seems like our best option," Devan sighed.

"It's bullshit. We all know what it's like to be bound like dogs. We're here, like this because we didn't like the idea to begin with, including you, brother," Nolan ignored Devan and instead kept staring at Az.

"Which is why you should know, that regardless of this, I wouldn't bind you to me like that," Az hissed, clearly taking the exchange personally.

"Uhm... I'm sorry, but... you aren't a pack?" Liv spoke up, her question so innocent and her voice so quiet, Freya couldn't help but give her a smile. She wondered how long has the girl been gathering courage to interrupt Az and Nolan of all people considering she seemed absolutely terrified of them.

"No," Lucia chuckled. "Not sure how Southern packs work but here, being in a pack means being bound by your very being. It means bending the knee to your Alpha and Luna and sharing a connection with them and other pack members. Things like mindlinks and such. You give part of yourself away and never get it back. Severing the link can kill you unless you find an alternative, like another pack or a mate," she explained to confused Liv and Freya realized that more than anyone, Lucia spoke from experience. Demi and Devan were likely too young to be sworn into the Duskfall pack before they became outcasts, Connor never had a pack to begin with. Twins and Nolan were another question, she still knew very little of their pasts, but given Nolan's bitterness, it seemed like this was something he wasn't eager to do.

"Oh," was all Liv managed to reply.

"There is one more thing," Aaron said before anyone else could speak. "We promised no secrets, but there is still something we didn't say. It's a Silverstar family thing though. One we can only discuss as a pack. Regardless of how we feel about you or how much we trust you," he explained.

"Is it important?" Devan asked.

"It wasn't. As long as we stayed out of high politics, it wasn't anything you needed to know. But circumstances changed now," Aaron replied.

"I really wish this was included in the Freya-and-Az-have-been-signed-up-for-Royal-Trials talk," Demi whined.

"We told you that you could have stayed out of it. It was on us and our blood family," Az shot back, clearly annoyed.

"You're missing the point, Azazeal. I don't give a shit that there are issues. We've dealt with worse over the years. What pisses me off is that this talk was supposed to happen weeks, if not years ago," Demi shot back.

"Maybe. But we're all guilty if that's the case," Freya spoke up. The problem with their little group, she realized, was their 'don't ask if you don't want to know the answer' approach. She was guilty of it too, of course. She knew too well that she failed to ask way too many questions, especially when she first met them. They didn't purposefully hold secrets from each other, they just never asked one another instead. Maybe it was all the pain and trauma of their pasts that held them back. Maybe they all enjoyed what they had in the present and didn't want to even think of what was before. At least that's what it was for her.

"Okay, say we do this whole pack thing, what then?" Devan asked, once again putting his emotions aside for his logical, calculating side.

"I thought you'd never ask," Az said, looking suddenly way too excited for Freya's liking. "We'll start planning. Not just for the rest of the trials, but for what comes after. As nice as it was to come back here and forget the reasons we didn't get to sleep in our beds for the past two years, if we come out of this alive, we have a potential war to face. Which is why I'm glad our little Liv over there is finally coming out of her shell," his smile was wicked as he pulled a file out of nowhere and threw it on the table, his two colored eyes firmly on Liv, who covered in her chair in the opposite corner, white as a wall behind her.