Book 2: Chapter 96
John
My eyes were still dilated from the Crave, but I had a handle on my wolf. I got out the car with Heidi, though…. At least 40 Warriors stood behind me at the ready. They were instructed not to, however they held loyalty beyond my command… willing to die for the pack… willing to die for their Alpha, as all those wolves were mostly mine.
The Archbishop was in an SUV alone… just as he’d said, however someone of his holy stature could probably take the small army that willingly, voluntarily formed.
He held the white hair of an old man… however the youthful face defied logic. Most men of the cloth were old humans, at the end of their lives… but the XIII on his neck looked as if it had been done last week, peaking behind the collar on his neck. The Archbishop’s white hair was the only thing to reveal his age, since he looked about 50. I could tell the way he stood that his body was unaffected by whatever age he Really was.
His piercing eyes nearly glowed as mine, seemingly reflecting back the light of my headlights, but that was not possible with mortals. They were green as freshly cut clovers, holding the only wrinkles on his face at the corners.
“John, I presume, I am Father Rodrick, the Light Touched One, the Light’s Chosen, Left… and now Right hands of the Light.” He said taking confidant steps to me, and I would not be so easily intimidated.
“I am John the Earthen One, the Moon Blessed, The Silver Clawed.” I said shaking his wrist. He knew this custom, as our greeting was fluid. I was not firm; I didn’t want to break his hand. I was holding those titles in my back pocket, but I would let him know that I was not to be toyed with either.
“That you are…. The Diamond Fanged as well.” He said with a kind voice, but his face was steel. He did not trust us, nor we him….
“We have the body, but before I give it, you must Swear Peace.” I said clawing my hand. “In good faith, I vow my people in this pack will not retaliate on the humans so long as they mind their own. We have never hunted off our lands; may it stay that way.” I said firmly.
He pulled out a dagger from his boot, causing a bit of a snarling panic with the Warriors, but I held my hand up to stop them.
“I, Father Rodrick, vow that None will retaliate against your people and if they do, I will personally aid you. Neither priest nor hunter… nor thrall of any kind. It is Too close to your rightful King’s awakening…... The Treaty Must remain in place… too much is about to happen in the next few decades….” He said as he cut his hand. “I understand the Blood Oath, and though most other humans would Immediately break it, coming back with an Army… know that I Cannot… unless I wish to see my Lord’s Greatest Enemy and be the Adversary’s captive.”
Heidi said nothing, but I heard her stray thought. She wished he would just Leave, because the sight of him made her angry… I’d never seen that from her… she was so sweet…
“I’m glad you came without guns, armies, or anything.” I said shaking his bloodied hand. His blood STUNG, but for peace, I didn’t flinch.
“There is no need… your wife does that for you. So long as she breathes, since she killed the Right Hand, as I am, I can always find her.” He said matter of fact. It made my wolves nervous.
“Right, because now you claim both Left and Right Hands.” I said dismissively while Warriors were instructed with my hand signal to put the body on the ground in front of him.
“Yes… as bittersweet as it is. I do not Want this power… it is why he gave it to me, just as why the Moon Goddess gave you her silver claws.” He smiled. “But with pleasantries aside… I must attend to my work.” He said holding up his left hand, and it glowed white, catching on fire.
It did not burn him, and the chant he spoke made the right hand glow as well. The body slowly evaporated into light, flowing into the right hand… but ashes were left behind too. It smelled of burning fire and holy magic, a combination that set off my instincts.
I wanted to rip out his throat, but I could sense his power… Gulteer was his only equal now.
“Shouldn’t we Stop him sir?” Asked a Warrior.
“No.” Said Heidi. “He was already blessed by his god before he got here. What we see is only ceremony.”
He glowed a bright white, sprouting golden honey feathered wings. “I am Rodrick, the Light Touched One…. With the hands of my creator, I do His work, and with his words your people have Mercy. This land is Forever Marked, as are its people. The Lights eyes are on you all, but in his anger, he gives me strength that this never happen again. Not Easily anyway.”
He flew away, disappearing into the night like a golden shooting star. The car and the ashes of the body were gone.
“Alpha…” Said one of the wolves bowing. Then they all did.
“Do not kneel to me.” I said quietly.
“Alpha what do we do….” One asked, afraid for their families.
“…Luna… know that we don’t want you to leave.” Said another Warrior. “I feel like he said that to make us suspicious of her… but if we are divided, we’re easier to pick off if we leave.”
He got growled at. “Luna saved my life with her monster, the least we could do is keep her out of this. We have the rest, don’t cry.” He said with a sad smile. I didn’t remember his name, but this wolf was from my pack… and she’d hid her tears, even the bond’s feelings until she couldn’t.
“…. What is done is Done. Our people and our pack are Marked… there is no point in trying to go somewhere else. Now that he’s gone, we need to regroup. I want the evacuation to stay in effect until sunrise at least. … we cannot run, it would only make us prey.” I said without a growl. “Leave me to comfort her..”
“Of course sir.” Most said more or less at the same time.
They left to carry out my order, but I was kind of glad that this went smoothly…. I didn’t want to shoot one who the Lord of Light valued, putting More attention on us.
The King was attending something else, not even in the country at the moment… so he would likely get here as soon as he could, but it would take a while…. But my mate’s tears made all of that irrelevant.
I put her in the car so she could cry in private. She balled into me as I held her gently, shedding tears of black blood. To my understanding… that blood was the last of Rahrraam’s pact with her…. making the truck smell of him, which made it worse.
“Let it out.” I told her, and she hugged me, hiccupping before slowing down. She blamed herself for the pack being Marked…. She blamed herself for the bond break, his death, my insanity from the Crave. “None of this is your fault. We are all adults, making adult choices.” I said with a small smile.
“I know, I know… it doesn’t make it hurt Less though.” She said smelling of fear. “what if they come in the night with torches… what if they burn all these innocent wolves at the stake? It would be My fault… if I wouldn’t have listened to Gaulteer-” I cut her off.
“A man who you told me said that he waited Lifetimes to find him would have killed Gulteer, then you, then every wolf here. Now that power seems to be in the hands of one who is worthy of it… and if he breaks his oath… the Horned One will have him. That would be like a spit in the Light’s face.” I said patting her on the top of the head, pulling her into my arms a little harder.
This went on for no more than 10 or 15 minutes, but the word was already spread around both packs, giving me time to go back to the upper ranked members so we could debrief.
“I’m ok now…” She trailed off, obviously not ok.
“We can stay in here a little longer if you need.” I offered and she declined.
“I know you hesitate to go for my sake, but right now I KNOW that everyone from Both packs need their leaders. We’re two of them…. I shed my tears, and I know Rahrraam wasn’t the kind of demon to want someone to shed tears for him…. I know he wasn’t the kind of demon that would allow me to shirk my duties to be sad… Everyone is counting on us.” She said letting me wipe her tears.
“You’ve gotten…. So much stronger.” I said truthfully.
“Thank you…. You have too. I can feel it…. I see it. I think Ron wanted everyone else to see it too….” She said with a small smile. “It’s almost funny how we both had so much happen…. You didn’t know that technically you were a prince… and I was made a princess only to find out I was cheated being one anyway.”
“… Yeah, but if it turned out that I was just a regular Joe under the Crown Prince, I’d be happy with that too.” I said truthfully. “And a lot less paperwork. I see now why he’s always grumpy.” I joked. I hadn’t gotten to my office yet… but I had my own. I knew it would be slathered with work, but I was looking forward to that.
However, I let her keep her smile as I drove. She didn’t need to know my worry just Yet.
All of what has happened means more than just watching some old priest absorb another priest’s power…. But I would say my piece when I got back to my pack… I had so many pack members in my own right…. At least ten thousand wolves were spread across both packs since we’d gotten more refugees, more Rogues, more weak wolves who originally either couldn’t join a pack, or were too afraid to try.
While I was gone, I’d even gotten some Omegas who lived in a human town for two decades before they tried my pack. They were still waiting on my say so, but since so much had happened when I got back, I hadn’t had the time to address Anything.
I was on my way to my pack though.
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