Chapter Epilogue: Family Dinner!
There was much to celebrate at this family dinner. Joy and excitement was thick in the air as it surrounded the territory. Laughter rang out in the workshop as the men enjoyed swear time and drinks.
“Fuck you Damon, you tried to feed me to him….twice” Carter fired at him, causing Johnny to double over laughing.
“Wasn’t my finest moment” Damon shot back. “The fuck you laughing for, you were already running.” He fired at Johnny.
“I didn’t want Zombie Kane to eat me” Johnny howled out.
“Fucking idiots” Kane mumbled shaking his head.
“Hey, I wasn’t the only one running Marco damn near cleared the warehouse if it wasn’t for Kenneth catching him” Johnny said.
“He wasn’t running away, he was going to dig a hole to bury him” Kenneth broke and started laughing.
“Are you serious?” Kane looked at Marco.
“Non lo so! Sembrava morto! (Looked dead!)” Marco defended himself, throwing his hands in the air.
“You were going to bury him?” Damon asked, fighting back his laughter.
“Sì. Kenneth mi ha catturato (Kenneth caught me)” Marco answered.
“Brother, good thing you popped up when you did” Damon said to Kane.
“No shit! I’d be six feet under if Marco had his way” Kane agreed.
“Dodici (Twelve)” Marco corrected him. “Sei piedi zombie….still….get out!” Johnny and Damon howled out with laughter.
“What’s up with you Carter?” Damon asked when he could breathe again.
“Brandon wants to have kids,” Carter replied, then scratched the back of his head. “He said something about a surrogate and I was going first. I don’t really know. What the fuck does a surrogate have to do with me?”
“Congratulations!” Was the only thing Johnny could say before he broke out laughing again.
“Am I missing something?” Carter asked, as he watched Johnny double over clutching his sides.
“What do I not know?” Carter asked, turning to Kenneth. The more panicked he looked the more of them broke out laughing.
“What am I supposed to do with a surrogate?” Carter looked from Johnny to Kenneth then to Marco. None of them could answer his question, none of them could really breathe with how hard they were laughing.
“Damon, what the fuck am I supposed to do with a surrogate?” Carter asked, turning to him.
“Yeah Damon….tell him!” Johnny choked out.
“Why me?” Damon asked, tears streaming down his cheeks.
“Cause he’s asking you” Kane roared with laughter.
“She’s gonna….carry….your….baby” Damon replied, Carter stared at him blankly.
“How does….what does….” The wheels in his head turning it began to click into place and Carter’s skin paled. “DO I HAVE TO SLEEP WITH HER?” Carter yelled, his eyes wide.
“That’s gonna be a problem. I can’t sleep with her, I’m gay!” The workshop exploded with laughter.
“No, no, no. No sleeping with anyone. It’s….a….donation….in a cup. That’s your part, they take care of the rest. Brandon didn’t explain this to you?” Damon finally said.
“No, he didn’t. He might have. I stopped listening after he sprang the whole kids on me. I was just about eaten by my Alpha” Carter replied, defending himself. The workshop roared once more with laughter.
“You guys have never talked about it?” Johnny asked when he calmed down.
“No, this is news to me. Maybe, he might have brought it up once when he gave me salad, he said something about kids. I was too focused on not wanting to eat the salad” Carter replied.
“Surrogacy is no big deal. A lot of wolves do it. My father used a surrogate. My family has a hard time finding their mates. My sister and I are actually the only ones that have managed to find ours.” Kenneth added,
“Test….tube….bitch” Marco blurted. Johnny broke out laughing again.
“I think you mean baby Marco, not bitch” Kane corrected him as he cracked up laughing again. His English has not gotten any better! No, but it has gotten funnier!
“Sì….bambino” Marco nodded, that was indeed what he was trying for. Johnny cracked followed by Damon.
“I am not a test tube baby, you deranged lunatic,” Kenneth countered.
“Sì, esperimento di laboratorio.” Marco shot back,
“You tried to bury your Alpha,” Kenneth fired at him.
“Sembrave morto! Non lo so….I….not know!” Marco huffed again.
“Talk to Brandon, and see what he says and listen this time,” Kane told Carter.
Edward had sat back and listened to them all laugh. He had been quiet for most of the night waiting for the right time to announce something to them. This was the first time a pair of souls had ever completed the trials. He wanted them to enjoy their victory, but they weren’t done yet. The King and Queen may sit on their thrones, but now they need their kingdom. News had spread rapidly through the community. Their power could be felt all over. The King and Queen had risen and this was to give birth to a new era in the shifter species. There was still work that needed to be done.
“You’re awfully quiet over there,” Johnny said to his dad.
“You’re not finished” Edward spoke to Kane,
“What?” Damon looked at him confused. “They completed the trials, what more is there to do?”
“I’m sorry son, but you’re not done yet. The King and Queen may have risen but there is more work ahead of you” Edward told him as he retrieved the book from a work table.
“More work?” Johnny asked. “Please don’t tell me more trials, and possible death scenarios”
“I had Marco translate some of this” Edward handed Kane the book to look at. “Took a bit of time, it’s in every language”
“What does it say?” Kane asked, looking from Edward to Marco
“È ora di costruire il tuo regno! Your...kingdom!” Marco replied,
“My kingdom?” Kane asked,
“His kingdom? What the fuck does that mean?” Damon asked, “In English!” He added glaring at Marco.
“You….look….tre Alphas.” Marco said, struggling to get the words out.
“Three Alphas? What for?” Johnny asked,
“Una divinità caduta, the….r-right, uno che lega tutte le specie insieme, the….cen-ter. E uno che comanda la legione, the….l-l-le….sinistra (left)” Marco explained.
“Wait, one that commands the legion?” Johnny asked,
“Italian is paying off for you” Damon remarked,
“He swears at me a lot,” Johnny replied, motioning towards Marco.
“He swears at everybody a lot.” Kenneth interjected.
“What is the legion?” Carter asked, looking at them all. He has heard stories of an Alpha who leads an army of demons. They were called Legion.
“You don’t think?” Kane looked at Johnny.
“No, that would be too on the head. This is fate and it wouldn’t be that simple….would it?” Johnny replied, he was really hoping it wasn’t.
“Think what? Would what be simple?” Damon asked,
“La Diavolo!” Marco replied,
“The Devil!” Carter said when Damon looked at Marco confused.
“The Devil!” Damon went wide eyed, he’s heard the same stories as the rest of them. “Didn’t he snap a council member’s neck for interfering in his business?”
“Sì!” Kenneth replied. “He leads an army of demons, known as Legion. And I think it is that simple, I have never heard of another army of wolves called that”
“Where is he?” Damon asked,
“No one knows, he just appears and disappears at random,” Johnny replied.
“He is rather terrifying, when you meet him. Kane is bigger, but this Alpha….he’s a monster” Kenneth said.
“Doesn’t mean it’s him. It could be anyone” Johnny was saying, though deep down he knew it couldn’t be. “Does it say anything about them? Anyway, to tell who they are? Where to find them?” Johnny asked, taking the book from Kane.
“The book says they will bear a mark on their right shoulder blade. When the kingdom is complete the mark will be complete and they will come into their full power.” Was all Edward said.
“A mark?” Damon arched his brow at him. “How the fuck is a mark going to tell us shit?”
“Because it will look like the one on yours” Edward answered, looking pointedly at Kane.
“The crescent moon” Kane said, Edward just nodded.
“So we need to find three Alpha’s with a crescent moon birthmark?” Damon asked,
“Sounds like it!” Johnny replied.
“So the one on the left commands the legion, what the fuck does the one in the center do?” Damon asked,
“They’re the soldier, they bring unity to the shifter species. Ties them all together.” Edward replied.
“You mean….bears and cats included?” Johnny asked, Edward nodded.
“What about the one on the right?” Kenneth asked,
“A God, to bring strength to The King’s army,” Edward replied,
“Sounds like the one on the right and the one in the center have an actual purpose, aside from controlling the legion the one on the left does what exactly?” Johnny asked,
“Demon wolves are a special species of werewolf.” Damon replied
“Species?” Carter asked,
“They’re not a breed of wolf, they’re a species unto themselves and a fucking savage one. If the one in the center is supposed to tie all the shifter species together, whoever it is won’t be able to control the demons. Rumours say they will only follow The Devil. I’ve heard stories of other Alpha’s trying to command them to make them stand down, it didn’t end well” Damon replied. “The one on the left instills fear. No one’s going to fuck with The King, with The Devil and his Legion at his side.” If it’s who they think it is, then maybe it wasn’t a good idea to give the guy any more power than he already had.
“If it’s who we think it is, he’s probably going to be the toughest one to get. He was supposed to come here to sign the Peace Treaty, but he declined the invitation by saying if Kane wanted it, he had to come to him, and it took months of going back and forth with the Gamma to get that.” Johnny only nodded when he saw the look of disbelief cross Damon’s face.
“You spoke to the Gamma?” Kenneth asked. When they were down the only one that spoke was The Devil. The Gamma stayed quiet and stone faced the whole time. Though he watched Kenneth carefully he never uttered a word, even when he picked him and Marco up from the airport.
“It was made very clear to me that he was the one I would rather talk to,” Johnny replied.
“Then we start with him,” Kane replied.
“Great, we just have to fucking find him.” Damon quipped.
“Diavolo a sinistra, un Dio a destra e un soldato nel mezzo. Dovrebbe essere interessante!” Marco exclaimed,
“The fuck he just say?” Damon asked,
“Devil on the left, a God on the right and a soldier in the middle. It indeed will be interesting” Kenneth translated.
“Where was The Devil last?” Kane asked,
“Colorado”
“New Brunswick”
“Texas?”
“He’s from Canada, that is a good place to start” Kenneth said,
“Yeah….he has no territory” Johnny replied nodding “So he could just as easily be in Australia right now”
“And this just got harder. How the fuck do you find someone that has the uncanny ability to disappear and has nothing tying them to a place?” Damon asked.
“He’s only seen when he wants to be seen” Carter replied,
“What?” Damon looked at him.
“It was something I heard a prisoner say, I caught him on the territory freaked out of his mind. He went on about eyes that burned like fire in the dark. Kept saying Akuma, he repeated it over and over again. I asked him what it meant, but he only said ‘you don’t see Akuma until he wants you to.’” Carter replied. “Akuma means devil….I looked it up”
“How long ago was that?” Kane asked,
“Maybe a year ago,” Johnny replied. “Carter informed me and I wrote it in the book and sent sentries but they found nothing to support his claims. The reason he came on the territory was because he was scared, other than that he would have just passed by”
“So at some point he was near our borders, and no one knew,” Kane said. “Hell, he could have been within our borders. How did nobody know he was there?”
“Maybe we need to read up on demon wolves a little more. See what it is we’re dealing with before we go making deals with La Diavolo.” Kenneth suggested.
“That might be a good idea,” Kane agreed.
“What is this guy’s name? I don’t want to keep referring to him as The Devil, though the more I hear about him, it seems to fit” Damon asked,
“Adonis Bradshaw!” Johnny replied.
“Wait….Bradshaw….ain’t that the name of the Alpha that cast out his own kid?” Damon asked,
“I’d have to check with the council but yeah, now that you mention it, that sounds right” Johnny replied,
“We might not have to look for him then, we might be able to bring him to us. Didn’t he have twelve kids?” Kenneth said,
“Damn, Canadians can’t keep it in their pants. I thought Marco was bad.” Damon replied,
“Fanculo!” Marco shot at him,
“Seriously! You have three kids and one on the way. I don’t have grounds to say that” Damon fired back. Marco just huffed, then flipped him off.
“He cast his son out, we talk to the other eleven, one of them might know where he is.” Kenneth suggested. “We can also contact other packs to see if anyone has seen him or at least knows of his whereabouts”
“It’s a place to start,” Kane rubbed his hands over his face. He was really hoping this was done, but clearly fate had other ideas.
“Alpha Ethan Bradshaw of the Primrose Pack, did indeed cast his youngest son out. Adonis Bradshaw became Alpha and created a pack from scratch at the young age of ten and he had no wolf when he did it. His eleven brothers turned their backs on him, including his twin. They won’t know where he is, and with the animosity between them I highly doubt Alpha Adonis would interfere should something happen to one of them. There are rumours that before Alpha Adonis was exiled from his family, they shunned him and viewed him as an abomination. More rumours say they are the reason he became known as the devil. They created him. An even darker rumour….is the council created him.” Edward interjected,
“You think that one might be true?” Kane asked,
“The council denies it, but I don’t know. There was a scandal some years back that involved a Bradshaw, the council kept it out of the record books and covered it up. Anyone that was present during it has been told to bite their tongues or risk death.” Edward replied as he sat back and listened to them dissect what he just said. Now it was time to tell them what he found out.
“How….” Johnny started to say
“I put two and two together and did some digging. I hit the archives and spoke to a few council members. Kenneth is right, the council is terrified of him and rightly so. From what I have managed to find, demon wolves are….fascinating.” Edward replied, when they all turned to look at him.
“How fascinating?” Kane asked,
“For starters, should it come to blows between the two of you, he’ll be able to kill you over and over again and never get bored or run out of ways to do it. They thrive on torture, Alpha Adonis’s Gamma Elijah Burns is one of the best, two minutes in a room with him and you’ll tell him anything he wants to know, to make it stop. He doesn’t stop in case you were wondering….he doesn’t leave survivors. That being said, I’ve heard rumours that his wolf is unpredictable, slightly uncontrollable and goes for the immediate kill. A lot of them are twisted and deranged. Something that would turn your skin green, they would find hysterical” Edward started explaining what it was he learned.
“They are stronger, faster, and much bigger. Their senses are far greater and their patience are far less. They heal quicker and any battle they are in ends in their victory. They’re savage and brutality at its highest level, they stop at nothing to put down their target. Silver and wolfsbane do not work on them so it’s not even worth trying to use to subdue them. The Beta wears a silver chain around his neck to prove it. They are also the only species that can take down a bear. You didn’t smell them on or near the territory because you can’t smell them. The only other species that can aside from another demon wolf are bears and they have to literally be right beside them. Normal demons have red eyes, whereas the ranks have eye colours you have never seen. They are also hard to spot, their fur is the colour of shadows so they blend real well,” Edward replied.
“Well that’s fun!” Johnny retorted,
“Just wait, they get funner. They carry unique attributes and those attributes break them down into five factions. The first faction is the Sirens, they use them as a first line of defence. They have an ear piercing scream that can deafen someone. Next are the wisps, the council member that was trying to study them….went crazy. Shadows are both the third line of defence and the first line of offence. Not much is known about the fourth faction….the seekers. Finally the berserkers, they’re the ones you don’t want coming to the door. Hardly anything is known about The Devil. Alpha Adonis is not the type to be a test subject for the council, or allow them to study him. He can’t stand being in the same room as the council and has on a few occasions made one bleed for fun. And this is only what I have heard, I don’t know if it’s true. The books the council has on them aren’t complete.” Edward continued.
“They sound peachy,” Damon said, nodding.
“Perché non mi culli per addormentarmi e mi canti una ninna nanna, già che ci sei? (Why don’t you rock me to sleep and sing me a lullaby, while you’re at it?)” Marco huffed,
“I only caught a piece of that, something about a lullaby” Johnny said,
“I’m not going to repeat what he said, but I will second it. I told you he was terrifying” Kenneth replied, a grim look crossing his face.
“There are a few other things I heard as well. They might thrive on torture, but they feed off fear, so you’ll need to watch that. The anger from their Alpha only makes them stronger, so you’ll need to keep him calm. And twins are very common” Edward informed them.
“They feed off fear?” Johnny’s eyes widened when he heard that.
“It excites them and encourages them. Makes them want more” Edward replied,
“What do you mean twins are common?” Kane asked,
“Twin wolves not twin humans, twin humans are even more rare with demon wolves. Twin wolves feed off the strength of each other making them twice as strong as they originally are. The downside to having them is that they can not be separated by great distances. It would be bad for everyone. When separated they go nuts and destroy everything in their path.” Edward replied. “If rumours are true, the Beta and Delta are not only brothers but their wolves are twins.”
“Oh that’s bad. A Delta with the strength of a Beta” Damon said, after hearing what Edward told them.
“And you palled around with them and got into a bar fight” Kenneth looked at Marco,
“Non sapevo!” He shrugged.
“They got into a bar fight?” Johnny asked,
“They started the bar fight! When we went to sign the Peace Treaty between Blood Howlers and Black Shadow. They were almost arrested” Kenneth explained.
“Keeping the peace, huh Marco?” Damon cracked and started laughing.
“Non sapevo. Mi hanno chiesto se volevo divertirmi. Non ci ho visto niente di male. Il fratello maggiore ha dato un pugno in testa a un tizio. La rissa è scoppiata. Non l’ho iniziato. (I did not know. They asked me if I wanted to have fun. I didn’t see anything wrong with it. Big brother punched a guy in the head. The fight broke out. I didn’t start it.)” Again Marco could only shrug.
“Marco thought it was great, he didn’t have to practice English the whole time he was there. The Delta translated everything for him.” Kenneth added.
“Which one is the Delta?” Kane asked,
“The younger brother….Tyler I think his name is.” Kenneth replied.
“Si!” Marco chimed in “Il fratello maggiore è Jackson (Older brother is Jackson)”
“Smallest male wolf I’ve seen. He was maybe six feet.” Kenneth replied,
“That is pretty small” Johnny said,
“He’s a biter from what I understand” Kenneth informed them.
“Oh good! Pray he can’t lock his jaw” Damon gripped.
“They’re just sounding better and better” Kane exclaimed,
“Are you sure we can’t go after the soldier or the God first?” Johnny asked, “This does not sound promising for us”
“No, we’ll go after The Devil first. We get him and the others will fall in line. Damon said it best, no one will fuck with The King with The Devil by his side.” Kane replied.
“You’re going to need one hell of a plan. Last heard he’s unmated” Edward said.
“Fantastic, he’s going to be angry and aggressive. So much for keeping him calm,” Damon stated.
“As long as we don’t set him off, it should be fine” Kane replied,
“Then don’t let Damon talk to him” Carter blurted,
“Carter!” Damon gaped at him wide eyed, Johnny doubled over laughing.
“Sorry Damon, that just popped out,” Carter was just as shocked by what he said.
“Give the boy a rank” Johnny cracked, eliciting laughter through the workshop.
“I think dinner’s ready boys. Let’s go eat” Edward said, getting to his feet.
“Bless up, I’m fucking hungry” Damon was on his feet as well.
“You’re always hungry” Carter quipped,
“That just pop out too?” Damon turned to a very wide eyed Carter,
“Sorry Damon!” Carter replied,
“I think Carter hit his head a little harder than we thought” Johnny laughed as they all filed out of the workshop to enjoy the rest of their evening.
Meanwhile somewhere in Canada….
Four men sat around a table in the dark corner of a dive bar in a little backwater town. They were keeping to themselves, for the most part, but their dominating presence kept drawing the attention of the other patrons in the room.
“Rumour spreadin like wildfire” One of the larger men drawled.
“Oh, and what rumour would that be?” The largest of the four asked.
“Normals got themselves a king,” he replied,
“Well hoorah for them. I care why?” He asked.
“This could pose a problem if he decided to take interest in us.” Another man in a well dressed suit spoke.
“And why would he do that?” The largest one spoke again.
“Because their King is the Alpha of the Blood Howlers.” The fancy suit replied.
“It would only pose a problem for him if he decided to do that. We signed the stupid Peace Treaty and have kept our end of it. If he wants the treaty to hold, then it would be highly beneficial for him to keep his nose the fuck out our business and his royal ass the fuck out of my way.” The man growled his top lip curling back as he fought the snarling hell beast in his head.
“I see we’re in a good mood tonight.” The fancy suit replied, which earned a chuckle from the other two.
“I don’t care what the normals do. I don’t fucking care that they found themselves a fucking king they bow down to. Demons bow to no one.” The big one snarled.
“And should they decide to interfere?” The suited man asked, though he and everyone else at the table already knew the answer. Two of the men started to snicker as they saw the sinister smile spread across the largest one’s face.
“Vino după Diavol, el va trimite iadul după tine (Come for The Devil, he’ll send hell after you)” He replied, flames engulfing his eyes.