You Rejected Me. Remember?

Draven was leaning on his throne, smirking at the wolves who had arrived in his makeshift palace.

Several years had passed since he constructed a temporary palace in the wilderness and crowned himself as the king of all rogues. Since he was of royalty, he held the authority over them. They rebelled against him at first, since the rogues didn’t want to submit to anyone. However, when he promised them special treatment once he got into power, they obeyed.

The wolves looked around. Their injured brother was placed on the floor of the palace. They hoped that the injuries weren’t fatal. Although he needed medical attention, they couldn’t leave instantly. So they took him with them and hoped that the werewolf healing process would be enough for him to hold on until they managed to go back to their pack.

The place was a palace indeed. However, it was nothing close to the magnificent castle they had seen in the lycan kingdom or the splendid palace of the vampire kingdom. The makeshift castle was dull and unnerving.

The high ceiling, the dull walls and the dusty floor made it unpleasant. What gave the wolves the real spook was the gatekeepers who stood at every entrance. Their pale, emotionless faces and the stench of death made them tremble. They knew they were surrounded by vampires. And if they chose to attack, escaping alive was going to be hard.

Baron stood tall and proud despite being in their court. The vampire prince’s intimidating stare didn’t waver his determination. He had come this far and he wasn’t going to back off. Elijah too remained focused on the pale face of the vampire Prince. They knew making a deal with the vampires was going to be risky.

However, since they had come here already, he was going to face anything and everything. He now had someone waiting for him back in the pack. And for her, he would fight like he never did in the past.

“You want us to join your army and help you do what?” Draven asked the alpha who stood in front of him. He too refused to look away, for it could be a sign of weakness.

“Help us defeat the Dark Howl pack. There is one girl I especially need from that pack.” Baron stated, looking into Draven’s half dead eyes.

“Her name is Monica. She is my slave. She ran off and now the Dark Howl pack had taken her in. I want her back.”

Draven let out a menacing chuckle.

“So is this about a slave who had run off? Why are you so worried about a slave?” Draven’s question felt like an arrow that didn’t miss its target. Baron felt his face heat up.

“She… she has poisoned my brother!” Baron spoke despite the distress he felt. “And she blinded my eye. She has to be punished!” He exclaimed.

Draven pursed his lips. “That sounds like a better reason to declare war on a pack rather than going after a slave who had run away,” Draven mumbled. His gaze shifted towards the wolves. He scanned their faces. They were ferocious fighters, there wasn’t a doubt about that. Their ripped bodies screamed how well trained they were. Draven thought he detected reticence from some of their faces. He knew that they might be intimidated by the vampires. Nonetheless, they were supporting their alpha.

“And what is in it for us?” His solemn voice gave them the chills. Yet Baron was firm on his position. He didn’t look away, nor trembled.

“I will give you a potion that will make you tolerate the sunlight. We have the potion. If you help us. My beta’s mate is a witch. She has made the potion and we have lots of it in the pack. I’ll give it to you if you agree to help…..”

“Deal.” Draven snickered. “You want the girl. I’ll get the potion. I think that will come in handy when I’m going to defeat my brother when he is crowned king. Then, I’ll be the king. I wouldn’t have to hide in the woods.”

Baron held back his urge to smirk. He liked this vampire prince. Perhaps they could work together as a team.

“I like how you think, young Prince. I propose we work together as a team in the future, Prince Draven.” Baron suggested.

The vampire Prince started to laugh. He shifted in his seat and looked at the alpha who stood in front of him. The dimly lit torches in the throne room reflected its light on his pale face as he laughed heartily. The sound of his laughter echoed in the palace. No one spoke. No one seemed to have the courage to utter a word.

Everyone remained silent until the Prince stopped laughing. Some of them shifted uncomfortably on their feet. Nonetheless, Elijah and Baron were firm on their grounds.

“Work with you. In doing what? Attacking a bunch of dogs who I don’t have any interest in?” He snickered.

Baron’s eyebrows knitted together. It was not easy to remain in control when their kind was being insulted. However, Baron knew he couldn’t start a fight. If the prince wasn’t interested in joining forces there was no way he could make him. Werewolves and vampires were strong in their special ways. If a fight broke out between the two species, it would be deadly. Baron was aware that the vampires were at an advantage since they were in their territory. So he didn’t want to start a fight.

He cleared his throat. He desired to finalize this as peacefully as they could.

“If you don’t want to, it is okay. Just help us capture our slave who had run away and I’ll give you the potion.” He said.

The silence that followed was deafening for Baron and the others. The tall, lean figure who stood beside Draven bent down to whisper something in Draven’s ears. They were aware of the werewolves’ enhanced senses, so the vampires made sure that they used their powers to shield their words from the wolf ears.

A sly smirk spread across Draven’s face.

“Okay. I am ready to join forces with you. But I have a condition.” He said.

Baron and the others listened attentively.

“Yes, Prince Draven.”

“I and my men should be able to capture wolves from werewolf communities. We need slaves,” he paused to eye Baron and the others.

“Slaves, and b***d bags,” he added somberly.

Baron felt his heart race when Draven mentioned wolves being used as b***d bags. He may be a ruthless tyrant. However, he couldn’t imagine the unimaginable pain anyone suffering as a b***d bag would have to endure.

“B***d bag?” Baron breathed out.

“Yes. Rogues have a hard time finding food. They have to kidnap humans from the human city and that’s hard work.” He paused. “If you don’t like it, leave it,” Draven mumbled, looking away.

Baron clenched his fists and closed his eyes as he sucked in a deep breath.

“Fine! But you shouldn’t take any wolf from my pack.” Baron demanded. Draven’s lips crooked upwards in a smirk.

“That is good enough.” He whispered.

***

After agreeing, Draven invited the wolves to go to a separate room while the warriors rested outside. The injured wolf was attended to. They couldn’t take them to the medical facility in the vampire realm, as it would attract the attention of the locals and eventually the king. So the vampires tried using their powers to enhance the healing process. Thankfully, it worked and he joined his comrades.

They rested in the woods, under the trees with the rogue vampires as their leaders discussed their strategies.

“We better attack them when they are least expecting. That way we will be able to ensure the worst possible damage.” Baron stated.

“Do we attack at night?” Elijah mumbled.

“I think that’s the best,” Draven replied.

“The sun will rise in a couple of hours. Which means we cannot go out into the open after that. We must travel during the night.” Draven told them. “I want to have that potion before we leave for war,” Dave added.

“How about we go to the pack now, rest the whole day and attack tomorrow night? Then the vamps can have the potion before leaving,” Elijah suggested.

“Can we travel that far in an hour or two?” Draven raised an eyebrow sceptically.

“Yes. We can in our wolf forms.” Elijah’s reply made Baron roll his eyes.

“Oh hello. We are vampires. We don’t shift. We have powers alright. Power of healing, hypnotising, confusing our prey and luring them into our traps, but we can’t travel like that.”

“Don’t you have unnatural speed?” Elijah’s forehead wrinkled.

“We do. But we don’t use it to travel far distances. It uses up a lot of energy. We use it for short distances.” Draven told them.

“We can carry you. If we hurry we can reach the pack in no time.” Baron spoke.

“Then hurry up!” Draven stood up from his seat.

“Let’s go.”

They made it back to the pack and safely entered the packhouse just minutes before the sun rose. As planned, they rested during the day and when the time for the sun to set got close, the potion was served to the vampires.

The warriors lined up. Baron, Draven and Elijah were to lead the army. Baron looked at his army in satisfaction. They were now strong. With the vampires on his side, he knew he was dominant. They would win. And this time, nothing could go wrong.