Once Upon A Fae

Chapter 17

"Honesty, integrity, and accountability, the values that should be the hallmark of this government, have instead been thrown under the bus by an arrogant majority, casualties in a misguided campaign to shield from accountability those who abuse this House"
Louise Slaughter

Something wasn't right. Dmitri and his team had noted small inconsistencies on other assignments in recent years but had never questioned their assignment. This though, this had to be some mistake.

Rechecking the Council's missive, Dmitri looked back at the scene before him. The light of the moon shown on a small grouping of houses. Each house was small but well kept with clean lawns marred only by the normal debris of family life. A tricycle in one yard. Another contained a grill and a basketball hoop that was hooked to a flood light.

The quite of the night was only broken by the rustling of the wind through the trees and the steady breathing of his teammates. How could anything so peaceful merit total destruction? What evil could be present that no living being was to be left alive?

Dmitri's orders were clear. Every male and female, wether ancient or still a pup were to be put down and, for the first time in his centuries of service, Dmitri questioned those orders. He hesitated in making his sanctioned kills.

If insanity had taken over the entire pack where was the destruction? Where was the chaos that followed a shifters progression into madness?

"Something is wrong here.". Dmitri said in a low voice as he turned to his team. "Though the coordinates match up, this cannot be what we are looking for."

"There is no sickness here." Gaius the oldest team member agreed. "I do not feel right with this."

"It is close to dawn, should we wait and approach them on the morn?" Brandr suggested.

None of the small team felt right about their orders. Brandr's twin, Havardr, shook his head while looking over each house visible from the woods.

"Sir, I have followed you in battle through the ages. But in this I will not follow. If you mean to attack, I must deny you."

With a sigh Dmitri sat on the forest floor. "I do not plan to attack. This is not a place destroyed by rabid shifters. Mine own conscious would not allow me to follow these orders blindly. ". Getting comfortable Dmitri gestured for his team to sit. "We wait until dawn, then we shall seek answers, if not here then from council."

As dawn came so did the gentle stirrings of the small pack. Gentle light glowed through windows as first one home then another awoke to start their day. Not with the hum of televisions and the starting of cars, but with the familiar sounds from the men's childhoods. Wood was being cut behind one house as a small child ran to an outhouse. The smell of woodsmoke hung heavy in the air as stoves were stoked in kitchens.

The men prepared to enter the clearing knowing they would not be fulfilling their duty to council. As they approached the ancient, chopping wood behind his house, Dmitri wondered, was this the first mistake that the council had made, or had he unknowingly killed innocents on their command?

The ancient rested his axe on the ground and looked at the males approaching him. He started in surprise at the sight.

"Gaius? Mi frater (my brother). It has been too long.". With a huge grin the male bounded forward pulling the warrior close.

"Valerius? How are you here? I had thought you had gone on to Shoal after the new council's turning. "

Valerius's smile fell. "No, I could no longer follow the path of the council. Now I live with my descendants in peace following the old ways. ". A look of sadness passed over his face before he once again smiled at Gauis. "But what of you frater? To what do I owe the happy occasion of your arrival?"