Hunted Princess

A War on Two Fronts

One decorated general cleared his throat and stood, glancing around the room before bowing his head to the King, "One month, sire."

Red eyes widened, claws extended into the table, cracking under his force, "One month? Do you realize how much destruction can be done in one month?! Do you realize you might not make out of this room in minutes much less than a month?"

"My King, war's are not won in a day, they take time to strategize thoroughly. Our soldiers are exhausted, and even if we use the remaining soldiers and prisoners to add men to our battalions...we still need at least two weeks to break them and train them. We will have Tacoma by the end of the day, but to move through and begin the assault on Whitehaven...it would be suicide my King." The scarred elder that spoke kept his eyes low, but his voice held firm under the blazing gaze of the Alpha.

"That child does not know how to lead an army, even one as strong as Whitehaven's. With Tacoma's and Rantock's men, we can take them easily by the end of the week. The askars that I have will make up for brute force, just give them a target and they will not stop until they are dead." The King rumbled, glaring at his head general.

A young tiger stood, his racing pulse echoing in Donovan's ears, "Sir, we just learned that the Icecap Kingdom and Itzmac have sided with Whitehaven, and there are whispers that highborns from other kingdoms are funneling their askars to her...That alone should make you pause."

His hand curled into a fist, blood began to drip from between his knuckles, "Do we have confirmation of these whispers?"

The elder spoke, this time lifting his gaze to the King, "Donovan, we are not asking you to not go to war. We all understand that she is a threat to your crown, and we have vowed to protect you and defend the crown until our last breath. We are asking for more time. As you said she is a child, she knows nothing other than being a soldier for all her life. Domhall was once a great general, but his balls have long since been held by Cilona who is no doubt against this war. Give us the time to prepare, and maybe, just maybe, Cilona may turn her over to you. After we take Tacoma, we can send a squadron to sit at the border and keep an eye on the roads for any movement. The castle itself is hidden in the mountains, and the winter snows are especially harsh, if you want to lose, we will move forward and attempt to storm the castle. If you want to win and have that child's head on your table...give us a month."

Donovan's eyes flicked down to his hand, his fist uncurled to reveal the large gash from his claws. Blood flowed profusely from the cut, which he held over the map of the kingdoms etched onto the table, allowing his blood to drip down onto Whitehaven. "One month. Any longer than that, and your heads will be used as the flags as we take Whitehaven. Do I make myself clear?"

The tension in the room eased, each general and captain releasing a breath, cherishing the air they were allowed to breathe. "Thank you for your generosity, your Majesty," the young tiger bowed low.

Donovan arched a brow, lazily lifting his eyes from the dripping blood to the undecorated lieutenant. "My generosity? Is that how you see it? What is your name, child."

He swallowed past the knot in his throat, "Baek, sir. I'm Lieutenant Baek Yun of the Ranger team."

He looked back at his hand, the blood no longer flowing, "Yun, you come from a powerful clan of shifters, purebred tigers. Your great grandmother was my grandfather's head general during the second shifter war, both of your grandparents sat at this table with my father, and your father sat with my brother, defended him until his last breath against the Roanoke." He kept his voice low and steady, the timber of his growl marking his every word, "It would be a shame if you were the last one to serve the Royal family, wouldn't it?"