"YOUR MAJESTIES!" a male voice cried out as I stared at the ceiling above me. I turned my head curiously to look at the newcomer as he bolted through the opened door. "We've just received a message from our eastern border guards!"
"What is it?" asked another. This voice was lower and sounded very powerful. I turned again to search for its source. It seemed to have come from a man in a red robe. His red hair was at shoulder length and his eyes were a resolute dark brown colour.
"It's the Hyleborg," the messenger replied. "They've begun an invasion!"
"I've been waiting for this," the red-robed man growled.
"Our naval scouts have also spotted a fleet headed directly for Wolfhafen. They'll reach us in no more than three days!"
"How long will it take for our navy to mobilise?"
"They'll be ready within an hour of your command, sir."
"Have them ready for the enemy fleet. Direct all army units to fortify themselves in the southeast. I want to make this a war they won't win easily."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The messenger bowed before leaving the room.
~~~
"Cedric!" I heard a little voice say. It was high-pitched, and sounded vaguely familiar. It sounded quite worried. "Wake up, Cedric!"
My bed felt so comfortable, and I didn't want to get up. I shrugged the voice off.
"Cedric, come on!" The owner of the voice started shaking me awake.
Well that was annoying.
"Go away!" I muttered.
"Wake up, Cedric! I saw soldiers coming this way!"
"What?" I opened my eyes and turned my head to find a very wide-eyed blonde-haired little girl shaking me awake. I spent a few seconds wondering how she knew my name before I remembered that I'd rescued her from the Frontier fire the night before. And that my bed was destroyed in a similar fire.
The funny thing was, it was still the night before.
"What time is it?" I said as I sat up. I looked around. Hardir was sound asleep beside me. Fulmen was as still as a statue, and Arius was sitting on a rock, snoring away.
He obviously fell asleep before he could tell us to go on watch.
Fair enough — it'd been a very tiring day.
But now kneeling to my side was a very worried and jumpy girl who only hours earlier was almost doomed to a burning death.
"It's a few hours past midnight," she said. "I woke up a while ago to find that man over there on watch had fallen asleep. So I took over for him."
I started to stand. "Good on you, err..." I realised that I'd never asked for her name.
"Venoria. Venoria Evinaria."
"Ah. Good on you, Venoria."
"Thanks!" she smiled. Her grin was that wonderful, toothy innocent grin that somehow I knew was typical of a little girl such as her. But then she reverted to that anxious, fearful expression. "But we need to wake the others and get out of here, fast!"
After waking the two adults — Arius did not take well to silly tykes such as ourselves interrupting his peaceful slumber — and Fulmen, we packed up our things and quietly snuck off into the night.
YOU ARE READING
Alpha of the Shack
Werewolf"Where's the Alpha?" he asked. The Luna opened her mouth in an attempt to speak. She gestured to the small, rugged bundle that she was cradling. All that came out was a faint whisper, the first words she had uttered in days, "In my hands." --- For a...
