When I Next Wake (On Hiatus)

When I Next Wake - Chapter 5: They Only Come At Night

Chapter 5: They Only Come At Night



"They only come at night," the alpha declared to the pack once they had gathered around the main fire to wait for the arrival of those they had joined with. Nobody except Ultar, the beta and Ultar's sick mate, Jenna, knew who ‘they’ were. The rest of the pack just knew that Ultar had called upon someone who would be able to help them defeat their growing enemy.



Things had begun to progress more rapidly once Ultar had declared the plans for battle, and the realisation of war was finally beginning to really set in. Training had begun, and additional weapons were being made in case they were needed. They learnt and practised everything from combat to basic medical care. Everyone was involved in something, and there wasn't a point in time when a wolf was left idle. There were 476 individuals in the Equinox pack; ordinarily this would have been more than enough against Winter's clan of 340, but their numbers had drastically increased to about 590 since the Aves had joined them. This was a huge difference the pack couldn't make up without a strong alliance that had plenty of men.



Hours passed until evening came and settled, and those they were waiting for still hadn’t arrived. The half-moon shone brightly and the stars twinkled and shone against the dark blue background of the sky. The pack was growing more restless, and many howled and snarled in impatience, some even snapping and baring their teeth at another when their patience grew particularly limited. Only the alpha and his beta were still standing, though it was clear that Reece wanted to sit down but Ultar wouldn't let him.

All of the pack were in their wolf form. Most of them, including Oliver, cowered in the shadows made by the rocks of their hide out grouping together, and only some of the pack were visible in the faint glow of the camp light, their eyes reflecting the light of the fire. Ultar was to greet the alpha of the force he had made an alliance with. His grim face was illuminated by the fire, and his beta occasionally glanced at him for reassurance and out of wonder before looking back at the ground again. The level of uncertainty within the pack was perfectly clear by now.



The tension carried on building up to an almost unbearable climax until a chorus of whispers and growls echoed around the wolves’ campsite. "They’re here", "How are they going to help?" and "This is a huge mistake," were some of the more prominent shared thoughts. But the alpha continued to look into the horizon, unfazed by whatever his pack said. Oliver knew that the alpha knew what he was doing, so kept quiet and just glanced around the pack occasionally. Ultar was sensible enough to join with a powerful force.

Oliver craned his neck until he could see the figures. There are about eleven of them in total. Some walked in front of others, though they travelled clearly as a group – what confused many members of the pack was that there was no clear ranking based on what they could see. One of the figures was a lot smaller than the others, but the rest of them were about the same height. They all carried bows and arrows on their back except for the smaller member of the group.



Reece let out a long, sorrowful howl that caught the attention of everyone around the fire, his dark brown wolf raising its elegant head. Upon hearing his howl, the figures picked up pace. Within seconds, they were all standing around the fire. Moments of silence passed as the pack took in their new partners, and then the alpha bowed his head. A woman with fiery red hair bowed her head as well, her gold leaf tiara shone from the camp fire light, the refracted light causing some of the pack to shy away. She was the Queen. She was surrounded by other women all with different appearances, and to the Queen’s right was a small girl with black hair. On her head was a silver tiara adorned with rubies – she was the Queen’s daughter.

"Queen Leila," the alpha began gruffly. "I humbly welcome you to my pack."

The Queen carefully looked around at all of the wolves that were lying around the stones high up into the cave, and a small smile forming on her mouth. "We haven’t woken in a long time, so please excuse us for the slow journey here." It was almost as though she was addressing the pack as a whole, not just the alpha. This was most unusual, and the pack felt more uneasy.

"Your tents can be found on the right," Ultar gestured with his large paw, even though their Queen wasn't paying attention to him.

"Thank you," Queen Leila said, bowing her head before walking in the direction he pointed, the rest of her group followingn with almost the same amount of confidence and sureness.

"Allow one of my pack members to escort you." The alpha scanned the pack, before shouting out, "Oliver, show the Queen and her warriors to their tents." The Queen abruptly stopped and looked back, her body angled to the fire. She was quite beautiful, though she looked domineering and imposing at that particular angle.

Oliver carefully made his way out of the ground and to the camp fire. He bowed his head in submission at the alpha before shifting back into his human form.

"Oliver, correct?" The Queen asked.

"Y-yes, ma’am," Oliver replied, trying to be as polite as possible but failing not to show his nerves.

"No need to call me ‘ma’am’," she tutted, waving her hand loosely before it returned to her side. "Leila." she insisted.

"Yes, ma’ – Leila."

Oliver showed the warriors to their tents two at a time before finally showing the Queen and her daughter to their tent – which was just as plain as her warriors.

"I don’t believe in having something extravagant because of my status; there’s absolutely no need," she began. "Plus the enemy will find me more easily if I’m in a fancy tent." Leila could tell what Oliver was thinking, but knew he was too polite and shy to ask.

Oliver just nodded, then bowed and left the tent.



The entire pack was puzzled at how 11 individuals could help win the battle against Winter and Nate, and they laughed at how Ultar had joined with a group of women. But they didn't know the strength of this group of women, nor the impact that they would have on their pack. Eventually, the pack would learn not to judge a book by its cover, nor to underestimate the power of a small group of people.

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A/N: Not completely happy with this chapter, so it will need a lot of editing and adding to. Suggestions for improvement/reviews would be really helpful