Crowned Wolf (Original)(Completed)

Forty-Four

Nathan lets out a low growl as he walks around the newly built throne room. It's only wood and plaster right now. The walls are plain and dull with no color and no decorations. The floor is rough wood, unpolished and unstained. There are boxed holes where windows should be and the doors haven't been placed yet. Materials and supplies are laid out along the side and Nathan ignores it all, pacing as he waits impatiently.

The sun is starting to rise. Light is slowly shedding through the dark tresses of the sky but even then, all Nathan can see is the storm approaching. A dark, ominous cloud comes towards them, looking menacing and dangerous. The air is chilled and the wind is starting to pick up. This storm might even come with a tornado, if it's strong enough. But tornado or not, he will get Audrey back.

"Roman and Gavin are on their way." Ralph states, leaning up against one of the bare walls while looking out towards the back of the house. "This is pretty big. Audrey's doing a good job of building it up."

Nathan looks up at the ceiling, seeing the wiring for a chandelier. "She said no chandeliers. She's going to be pissed."

Ralph snorts. "Where are your thrones going to be placed? At the end or on the balcony up there?"

"Wherever she wants them." He replies, looking out. The border patrols alerts him of Roman and Gavin coming with the two ex-Crowe wolves and Nathan calls out to the other ex-Crowe wolf who broke the border formation before the attack. Carter enters then, cautiously looking around. Nathan normally wouldn't have given his head guard to a new pack member so easily but Carter stood out from the rest. He's strong like an alpha but he isn't as relaxed as his previous alpha, Luke. He's silent, only speaking when spoken to and he's stern on himself. He takes his job very seriously and surprisingly, has an unspoken understanding with Nathan that the Kappa didn't need to be protected. This is all just formality for Audrey's sake and he's perfectly fine with that. He still takes it seriously, cooperating with Audrey's guards perfectly while always remaining close to Nathan.

"Audrey's guards are healed up. They'll be here shortly." Carter reports, folding his arms over his chest. "From their reports and their wounds, they didn't go up against normal alphas. It seems like they were alpha rogues."

Nathan lets out a growl. There's only a few differences between alphas and alpha rogues and they're honor and character. Alphas enjoy warfare like an art form, controlled and precise. They train and train to perfect techniques, to learn their weaknesses and strengthen their defense around them. They read their enemies and judge their next actions based on their enemies. Alpha rogues don't do that. They're wild and feral and go straight for the kill. They act fast and act first, saving any questions for later. They focus on power, striking with all of their strength rather than strategize and conserve their energy. If they manage to catch someone off guard, they'll kill. And even if they don't go for a surprise attack, being unreadable, uncontrolled and completely wild makes them a difficult ally to efficiently fight. Instead, their enemies usually have to match their power with strong defense or risk a wound to get a good shot with a single blow.

His pack is strong. They're warriors and warfare is their culture. But even he knows that alpha rogues are hard to face. The fact that they managed to defend against four of them makes him proud, even if they failed to keep Audrey away from them.

"No wonder Audrey shifted." Ralph comments, letting out a growl himself. "She knows better than to put herself at risk like that."

"Millis and her were cornered by two of them. She must've thought she could provide a distraction long enough for Millis to go for the kill. She underestimated them." Nathan sighs as the urge to hold his mate until she melts into him runs through his veins like poisonous blood. Even he doesn't believe his own words but he keeps telling himself that it's truth.