CHAPTER 46

CHAPTER FOURTY SIX
The Ash Band Territory was a place of great splendor and magnificence. It was a place of breathtaking natural beauty surrounded by woods rife with rogues and danger, nestled in a verdant valley surrounded by rolling hills and snow-capped mountains.
Baron and Ericson walked through the kingdom, assessing its outlandish view and ignoring the gazes from the frightened subjects of the territory. They couldn't seem to understand why the strongest Alphas would visit them because they weren't fighting neither did they owe them anything.
The duo of Alphas kept on walking with their head held high and clenched jaws. At the center of the kingdom stood the royal palace, a grand and opulent structure of marble and gold. The palace was home to the Alpha Thomas, who ruled over the kingdom with wisdom and justice. The royal gardens were a sight to behold, with carefully tended flower beds and tranquil ponds filled with koi fish.
The quaint looking territory was a bustling metropolis, filled with wolves, sirens, and a few trolls. The streets were lined with drab stalls selling a wide variety of goods, from spicy spices to shimmering silks. The city was also home to many grand altars and ornate fighting grounds, where the people visited to worship the Moon Goddess and be entertained.
The innards of the territory was dotted with charming huts and a sprawling estate, where the nobility lived in luxury. The fields were filled with crops of every kind, and the orchards were bursting with ripe fruit. The kingdom was a land of abundance and prosperity, yet it looked so dim that one would think it was deserted.
Overall, the Ash band territory was a place of great beauty and wonder, a place where not only werewolves, but other creatures as well, lived in harmony and happiness, without discrimination. It was a true paradise on earth, but that was about to change because two angry alphas had just stepped in.
"I have been expecting you two." Thomas greeted the fuming Alphas as they just walked past the gardens about to enter the palace door. Thomas was alone, without the presence of any guard; he just protected himself with a very wide smile that made Baron and Ericson be unable to attack him. "Welcome to my Kingdom!" He opened his arms and walked towards them, going for a hug.
"Where is she?" Ericson asked gruffly, stopping Thomas hug midway. Ericson had a concealed look of worry on his face; the more he stared at Thomas acting warm, he got more worried that his secret was out in the open. He also had a look of familiarity on his face.
"You have to be specific. There are a lot of ..." Thomas kept smiling.
"Where is Avyanna!?" Baron cut in. Baron was raging within himself but he was trying so hard to contain it. He didn't want his intense care for Avyanna to be too obvious to anyone, especially Ericson.
"Okay, it seems you too are in a haste, why don't you follow me." Thomas turned around and walked into his palace with a wider, more devious smile on his face.
Thomas was an equally strong Alpha with immense strength, and a dreadful past, he always tried to hide it under a smile that sometimes, made him look like a sociopath.
He led Baron and Ericson, deeper into his palace. He led them to a large dining table that was at the center of a dimly lit room.
"This is where my Mama and Papa sat to eat, when they were still alive."
"Don't sulk about it, we have all lost our parents." Baron sounded impatient, yet empathic.
"We all have, haven't we?" Thomas asked, trying to upset Ericson's conscience, "Some parents were not supposed to die though." To Baron, Thomas was talking about his own Mom and Dad, but to Ericson, it was about Avyanna's parents.
"Yes. Not all. It's what makes an Alpha stronger is it not? It seems we all have that in common." Barin went on, "Where is she?" He changed the topic immediately when he noticed that he almost forgot why he was there.
"Now now, dear friends, please join me for a meal." Thomas smiled and sat down. Just then, a bunch of cooks and maids walked into the dining with trays of meals.
"What is this? I need to see Avyanna now! There will be no meal if I do not see Avyanna." Baron snarled.
"I have the Luna, trust me you two, you're going to want to eat before you see her," Thomas said intensely, the he switched his countenance to his original sociopathic smile and said, "Besides you have been walking for hours and you seem really tired."
Baron and Ericson sat down reluctantly, and soon after an unsettling silence ensued as the trio ate the food before them.
Thomas was not wrong to reference his dead parents; their deaths had brought about a lot of changes.
Once upon a time, there lived a king and queen who ruled over a land of great beauty and prosperity; the Ash Band Territory,. The territory was known for its exotic animals, verdant forests, and sparkling jewels, and it was a place where beings of all walks of life lived in harmony.
One day, a great danger threatened the territory. A wicked force had appeared, a lone-wolf berserker that was causing chaos wherever it went. The king and queen knew that they had to stop this force, but they also knew that their powers alone would not be enough.
So they called upon the people of the Ash band territory to help them. They gathered the bravest fighters, the wisest betas, and the most skilled healers, and together they formed a plan to defeat the berserker.
The battle was fierce and lasted for many days, but in the end, the berserker emerged victorious. The king and queen was defeated and the kingdom was almost taken over.
Fueled by rage, young Thomas challenged the berserker to a one-on-one fight, staking the rest of the kingdom on his victory. Eventually, Thomas furiously fought the berserker and mysteriously won a battle that not even a whole kingdom couldn't. Whenever he was asked how he did it, he would jokingly say; "I made a deal with the Devil."
Thomas was hailed as a hero, and their people rejoiced. The kingdom returned to its peaceful, harmonious state, and the people lived happily ever after, but Thomas was never the same after that.
When the dust settled, the bustling territory was a shadow of itself, it was up to Thomas to regain it's glory. The inhabitants had been driven out of the kingdom by the Berserker, leaving it with very few people. The kingdom was be filled with abandoned buildings, overgrown gardens, and crumbling
infrastructure. The once-thriving territory turned a ghost town, with empty streets and shuttered shops. The deserted territory had a sad, eerie atmosphere, as if the spirits of the former inhabitants still haunted the place.
That is why the Ash band still had a quaint outlook, even when it was rebuilt by Thomas into a very rich territory. Thomas rebuilt the kingdom from it's ashes, with nothing but his willpower and a scarred heart.
"Why are you not eating the food you have offered us? Is it poisoned?" Ericson asked with suspicion in his voice. Thomas was lost in his thoughts, the dining had brought memories that he preferred not to visit.
"Apologies. I was a bit carried away for a minute. And I do not have a reason to poison you dear Eric, or do I?" Thomas smiled.
Ericson went silent and took a bite from the steak before him.
"Thank you for offering, but I'm going to have to decline." Baron said, sitting still and waiting for Thomas to be done with his antics.
"Are you sure? We have plenty of food." Thomas grinned, pointing at the food and taking a bite from a prepared lobster.
"Yes, I'm sure. I appreciate the offer, but I'm not hungry right now. I need to see the Luna now." Baron spoke calmly.
"Okay, no problem. Is there anything else I can get for you?" Thomas disregarded the last words that he said.
"No, I'm fine. Thank you. I said I need to see the Luna." Baron said sternly.
"All right. Well, if you change your mind, let me know." Thomas said cornily.
" Why are you stalling?" Baron asked.
"I am not, but I would say you are quite more eager to see her than her husband is." Thomas smiled.
"Okay that's it! Take me to her now!" Ericson put down the steak he was munching on and stood up from the table.
"Okay fine. Sheesh. I was really hoping that you lot would care for a meal." Thomas got up to lead the way.
"Maybe another time, but under the circumstances we need to see the Luna right now." Baron remained calm despite his eagerness.
"Okay then. Let me take you to her. "Thomas led the way, he led them to the room where Avyanna sat quietly with an angry stare and a shattered heart.
She was about to see the last people on earth that she ever wanted to see.
The door creaked open and Ericson walked in chivalrously before Baron and Thomas did.
What was supposed to be a happy moment of reunion was very intense and confusing.
Avyanna's face expressed strong anger and concealed frustration. She had a tense and agitated demeanor, with furrowed brows, clenched fists, and a flushed face. She did not say a word, she just fumed quietly like she would be quick to react to anything that anyone said.
Ericson couldn't figure out why she was that way, unless... Ericson then looked at Thomas angrily.
Baron on the other hand felt a rush of guilt, and he casted his face down. Thomas just maintained his sociopathic smile and watched the drama unfold.

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