Of Blood and Duty

Chapter Twenty Three • Trouble Up North

-Loren- 

The next day he awoke to loud bangs outside his door. The soft and serene state he had slept in was gone the second it started. He opened his eyes and sat up straight.  Instantly on edge, he was on his feet and on his way over to the door, grabbing his trousers and shirt off the floor. Judging by the sound of the banging, he quickly realized that someone was going crazy on either Mae or Hagan's door. He jumped into his trousers and secured them around his waist, buckling his belt but choosing to leave his socks and boots by his bed. 

As soon as he reached the door, he put his ear against the wood and carefully listened to what was going on in the antechamber, managing to catch the exact moment when the twins both stumbled out of their burrows. 

"What's up?" He heard Mae grunt with sleep still present in her voice. He pulled his shirt over his head quickly, mindful not to make any sound or not to miss anything of what was being said. 

"Yes, what the fuck Yrsa...?" Hagan groaned. Agreeing with his sister for a change.

"Get outside. Now." Evor's rough voice commanded before Yrsta had made a sound. "There's trouble up north." 

"What kind of trouble?" It was Mae who spoke first. Suddenly sounding like she had been awake for hours. 

"Guards... or soldiers." Evor spoke. "Not sure whether they're with Loren or the other one but they are too close for comfort and we need to make sure they don't wander in on any of our burrows." 

Ice cold fear rushed through his body at the sound of those words. Despite that he could not recall when he had last slept as good as he had up until a minute ago, it now felt like had been nothing but a dream. His muscles tensed, his eyes widened and his breath got caught in his throat as he waited in suspense for the chief to go on. 

"Who is on duty?" Hagan asked. 

"Karr." Evor replied. "He sent one of his to bring us the intel and we need to go right now." 

"Has something happened?" Mae wondered.

 "Not yet." The twins' father spoke. "But according to Karr's message, they are roaming the woods for some reason and they have gotten too close for Karr to just sit and watch. " 

"Have they been made?" 

"No... but they are worried that they are looking for something since they have ventured off the roads and in among the trees. Karr is calling for reinforcments." 

"If it's trouble, then it's probably not his people." Mae argued. He could hear that she was referring to him. 

"We don't know that." Yrsa objected, clearly speaking in favor of Hagan and his decision to bring Ulf to the Guild. "It could be his people out looking for him. Could be-" 

"What do you want us to do now? How many are going?" Mae spoke as if though Yrsa was not even in the room anymore. 

"Gather your packs. Bring him as well." Evor said darkly. "Mae, let him pick a real weapon from the armory and meet me up top." That was the end of the conversation. That his son had breathed the words 'both packs?' seemed to have flown past him or he had simply not cared to answer it since he had given the order for exactly the amount of packs that were going. 

"I will take care of it." Mae answered her father calmly. 

"You're going to give him a weapon?" Loren heard Hagan shout after his father who seemed to have left as soon as he had given the order. Whatever answer he got in return, Loren was not able to hear from where he was.