Black Feathers

5: Beryl

 Breathtaking. That was the only word Annabelle could use to describe Beryl. The heart of Lucian's kingdom, and the largest trade city. Anna had never seen so many colors in one place.

 Letting out a breath the human turned to look at Vitani, the female wolf stood next to Bethany and both were nose deep in the bright fabrics of a small shop with an open front. Annabelle wasn't expecting the women to invite her out with them. Bethany needed to buy special cloth for a project she was working on, and had offered to take Anna with her to the city. Of course Anna jumped at the chance. With King Lucian busy in his meeting there wasn't much to occupy her time. So there she stood right smack in the middle of a bustling street flooded with shops that over flowed with just about everything Anna could think of. 

 From foods, to clothes, to leather wares and jewelry, to armor and metal shops. Diners, inns, guide shops, and everything in between. 

 "Beryl is within the pack's territory, the wolves you see at the castle are Alpha Lucian's guard. Most of the wolves in the city are the extended family of them, or any stray wolf that goes through the process to become part of the pack."

 Blinking Anna turned to look at the Gamma as her baby blue eyes scanned the dense crowd of people around them. Vitani stood next to her now with a pure white fabric draped over her arms, it appeared to shimmer in the sunlight when the clouds parted. It was eye catching and beautiful, just like everything else here. The wolf's words peeked Annabelle's curiosity. Wolves functioned so differently from Hyenas, it fascinated Anna. They were so social and closely knit, there was no hesitation in depending on one another.

 "There's a process to become part of a pack?"

 "Of course, we can't just take in any Loner. Rogues would do anything to get into the King's Guard just to have a shot at his life."

 Frowning Anna glanced down, obviously there were violent wolves among the lot but they were nowhere near Hyenas. The structure was different here. Men and women stood on equal grown in the packs, Anna noticed this right away. Everyone had a shot at high rank positions. With Hyenas, the women were in charge. They were the most violent, and when challenged the battles were savage and often ended in death for the loser. 

 It was because of this that males were particularly mean to human females, it made them feel strong.

 "Is it hard to get into the King's Guard?"

 Watching as Vitani took another roll of fabric from Bethany, Anna reached out to help her. Cradling the soft fabric to her chest as Vitani snorted and rolled her eyes.

 "Like you wouldn't believe. Even being born into a position like I was, there are years of training you have to go through. There's a ranking system that you have to work your way up. Wolves that apply to be part of the guard are screened by Noah, if they get in then they start at the bottom. They're called Omegas."

 Listening intently Anna grunted softly and looked to Bethany as she bounced into place next to them. A happy smile on her face as she winked at Anna.

 "Even I had to go through the screening process, and I'm not a warrior. My father was a tailor, Beta Noah would bring clothes in and have the holes in the back fitted properly. He watched me grow up in the shop and when my father passed Noah pushed to have me join the guard."

 Surprise flashed through Anna, and she squinted at Bethany. She didn't look old, obviously but Noah didn't look all that much older than her. 

 "Wait, how... how old is Noah?"

 "63."

 Choking on the air Anna stopped walking after the girls as she coughed in shock, her mouth opening in disbelief. The expression on her face sent Vitani into a fit of laughter, Bethany pressed her lips together and gave the human girl a small smile.