The trip had been exhausting on the alpha, most of the time spent conjuring up questions of what could have happened exactly in that pack, what events transpired, and just how the woman he was traveling so far to see was doing. River found it hard to keep his eyes open as he knocked on the front door, the warriors of Alpha Leala surrounding the house for extra protection, a security detail even following him - not to keep River safe, but to keep Leala safe.
As the front door opened, the familiar face of Beta Cedric greeted him, rushing him into the house to keep River from the public eye of Crimson Lock. "How is she?"
"Tired. She was up this morning before dawn asking about the pack, but she is back asleep now."
As Cedric and River passed through the main hallway of the house, a familiar set of blue eyes landed upon River. A part of River wanted to lash out, to ask why she could not protect Leala, but River knew in sudden attacks, things cannot go as planned. Brie lay in the living room with stitches across her forehead and a sling capturing her right arm. Bruises covered most of her exposed flesh, her blue eyes surrounded by blackened bruises and a swollen jaw.
The two men walked towards the office at the end of the hall, oil canvases housed in brass frames, displaying the faces of alphas passed. River wondered when Leala would have her own painting commissioned and hung beside that of her parents. Entering into the office, the scent of Leala Maxwell overwhelmed River, driving his senses haywire as he reminded his wolf to lay low. "I came as soon as I could."
"I know," Cedric replies, taking a seat behind the desk as he invited River to make himself comfortable for the conversation they were to have. Before Cedric had even spoken to River the first time, River knew Cedric was no fan of his. The Beta of Crimson Lock was showing River more hospitality now more than ever, yet was still hostile at the thought of greeting the Alpha of Eternal Shadows. "Alpha Leala has left matters in my hands for the moment while she recovers."
"I was informed I would be meeting with Leala-"
"Alpha Leala."
"Right. I assumed I would be speaking with Alpha Leala when I came here. She is the one who caught onto the patterns within my pack."
Cedric was not fond of hearing River refer to his Alpha with such a casual tone. Cedric knew the short romance between the two alphas was something of the past, yet he did not expect it to still carry on to this day. The Beta had hopped the dull romance between the two would have died down when war was declared, yet he saw that to be untrue.
"Alpha Leala is unwell - she endured a great battle and fought bravely."
"I was told she rescued pack members from the burning pack house," River commented, recalling his phone call with Brie when he had set out on his jet to arrive here.
"But we are not here to talk about my alpha," Cedric pointed out, leaning forward in the leather chair as he clasped his hands together. "You flew here on a private jet to cover your footprints, but you know that the traitors of your pack are well aware of what you have done." River was not naïve, for he knew coming to Crimson Lock would result in an uproar within his pack, both on the werewolf and elven sides. Before departing, River had given his four most trusted werewolf advisors the responsibility of informing him of any peculiar commotion, rumors, actions within the palace of Eternal Shadows. The crows he had planted were seeded deep in the elven community, yet radio silence came from them on any new movements.
"I am aware."
"Then you have damned your-"
"I know what I have done, Beta Cedric. I know that coming here will cause members of my pack to become uneasy - especially those which may have attacked Crimson Lock. Brie informed me that your men managed to capture a few of the elves who attacked."
"We did."
"Then you should know I will be able to identify these elves if they were part of my pack."
"Or they could have been elves from another territory who fought under the control of Keva."
"I will get to the bottom of this, Beta Cedric, I swear on the goddess I will."
Cedric leaned back in his seat, looking over the alpha who sat before him. From the few times the two of them had met, both men were unsure of if they would rather dig their claws into one another's flesh or shake hands, but they knew they were now trying to help the same alpha - the very same alpha who lay asleep in her bed.
"What of Alpha Penelope? I know that Alpha Emmitt was saved from a battle with Alpha Finley thanks to your men. Alpha Emmitt sends his regards, for if Crimson Lock had not notified me in time, I never could have gotten hold of Emmitt without bloodshed."
It was true, for River knew that both him and Alpha Emmitt owed a great deal of thanks to Crimson Lock, for they had saved both Finley and Emmitt the bloodshed of their warriors.
"It is best not to speak of what transpired upon that battlefield."
The two sat in silence for at least half a minute, their minds running through the news which had reached them both nearly several hours ago. "What will Alpha Leala be told."
"She was informed during a moment of lucidness."
"I cannot imagine the pain she must have felt," River added, twiddling his thumbs as he glanced up to Beta Cedric.
"She wept," Cedric informed, his skin paling as he recalled the moment he told Alpha Leala of the great loss.
*
"How many?" She groaned, her head rolling to the side so that she could meet the gaze of Beta Cedric. The great Alpha Leala of Crimson Lock seemed less like an alpha in this moment, for the thought of even her most trusted advisor looking at her all bandaged, swollen, and bruised made Leala want to burry her face in a pillow and shy away from the light.
"At least fifty men on Penelope's side," Brie informed, taking a seat next to Leala's bed, reaching out for the hand of her alpha. Leala jerked her hand away, wishing not for pity, yet the pain which erupted through her body caused her to bite down on her tongue to hold in a cry. "We are not aware yet just how many members of Alpha Emmitt's pack were injured or killed."
"They were defenseless and Penelope must have noticed," Beta Cedric mumbled, shaking his head at the thought of the auburn alpha waging war upon a defenseless pack. "Penelope's men fought the elves as well. Charged into an ambush."
Alpha Leala's head spun, a white hot pain shooting through her face as she cried out, her fingers grasping at the sheets of her bed. "She needs more morphine."
"I'll grab the doctor," Brie commented, only for the shaky and warm fingers of her alpha to latch upon her arm, halting her from going further. "Alpha, you need to recover. Every sharp movement will only open back up the scabs."
"I've been sewed shut," Leala whispered, her voice breaking. "I have seen the stitched upon my body, Brie, I have seen the bruises, the swollen parts of my body, and the parts of my body which have been cut away-"
"Do not become fixated upon such things," Brie whispered, kneeling down before her alpha as she tried to offer a form of advice. "You have been on a battlefield against elves. You fought bravely for this pack - fuck - you saved children who will never forget your name. The scars you will wear for the rest of your life, wear them bravely as they are a testimony-"
"Everyone forgets names," Leala mumbled, turned her head back to the darkness of the room, shielding her face from her most trusted advisors. "Everyone forgets those who have passed."
Cedric motioned for Brie to leave the alpha alone, for they both knew she needed her rest and keeping her up any longer would make the alpha only more tired. As Brie stood to her feet, her swollen face caught a fraction of the sunlight flooding the room. Cedric looked upon the gamma with not pity, but pride, seeing a testimony to just how far Brie had gone to protect Leala. The Beta still had feelings for the woman who lay on the bed, tears falling onto her pillow. Feelings of respect, pride, and perhaps even romance, yet he knew it could not be. He knew to keep himself at a respectful distance if he were to ever do his job and remain truthful to Crimson Lock.
As Cedric made his way from the room, a soft sob escaped the mouth of Alpha Leala, causing the beta to look around to the woman he would die fighting to protect. "Alpha-"
"Please, just leave. I need my rest."
"Can I do nothing for you?"
A moment of silence stretched between the two of them before Leala answered.
*
The pack house was still standing, a small wing of the house blocked off from the fire. The two men made their way into the pack house with a security detail behind them. Pack members had been told to keep out of the pack house until notified, for the elves held captive within the walls were not afraid to use children as a shield if they were to escape. "How much damage?"
"At least three million total for Crimson Lock, most of the damage from houses burned down. Those who have spare beds have opened them up." Cedric pushed open the wooden door of the house, glass scraping against the floor as River noticed the chandelier which fell from the ceiling. Deeper into the pack house the two went, keeping themselves at least a meter apart.
"Were you able to get the names of the elves here?"
"Only one, just from conversation between the three a day ago. Aldon is the one with the white hair. We have kept them in different rooms to keep them from conversing any further."
River wondered if Aldon was part of Eternal Shadows. White hair was not uncommon for elves, but those born with white hair came from a clan eons ago, their ancestors having worshiped the moon as they also believed they were Children of the Moon. The fact no mention was made of any attempted escapes worried River, for elves being centuries or at least a few decades old before going to war, these men would be well-versed in how to escape some makeshift prison.
Knocking at a door, Cedric stood back as the two men could hear footsteps on the other side. A metallic scent of blood was strong in the air, pinching River's nose as he wondered just how beaten these elves were. Elves did not beat their prisoners - if they even kept a prisoner of war, but werewolves were notorious for dealing out daily beatings to their prisoners. Yet you would rather want to be the prisoner of a werewolf than vampire, for blood being sucked from your body would burn for every second as your body feels drained and hallucinations begin. The risk of being transformed into a vampire was also present, especially for virgins.
A rather large man, almost seven feet tall, opened the door, greeting Beta Cedric as he ushered them into the small hallway. "We have kept them three rooms apart each."
"Any Elder Speech?" River asked, curious if the elves had just been communicating in Elder or also the common tongue.
"I have not been here all night," the man informed, leading them towards the first door where the smell of blood was must pungent. "Travis came by earlier to do vitals, though our doctor has never treated elves before."
"Is this is the same doctor treating Alpha Leala?" River asked, curious and worried that these elves could have cast some spell upon the doctor. Any spell, no matter how minute, could be made dangerous to someone slipping in and out of consciousness.
"No, we have a different doctor with her," Cedric assured, knocking loudly on the door before swinging it open.
A bright light turned on, blinding River for a short second before his eyes could adjust. Before him hung an elf upside down by his ankles while his wrists were chained to the ground. As River stepped into the room, the stench of blood overcame the alpha, the pungent elven blood causing a wave of nausea to reach River and Cedric. Elven blood was something not even a vampire would dare touch unless near death, for although elven blood offered a vampire great effects, the stench and taste would be enough to send any vampire the opposite direction.
"Who are you?" River asked in Elder Tongue, the language rolling off his tongue naturally as Cedric perked up at the strange language being spoken. "What is your name?"
The black-haired elf glanced up to River for a short second, the metallic tattoos upon the elf's temples instantly telling River who this elf was. Looking to Cedric, River stepped back from the elf whose jaw was covered in a crust of dried blood. "He is not from my pack, but he is from a realm of elves at the northern edge of Norway. His tattoos tell me that. If he fought for Keva, she gathered quite the spread out army."
"Can you get anything out of him?" The guard asked, peering into the room as the smell of blood was enough to keep him out. River noticed rags hanging on the walls, used to filter out the smell of blood for when the torture would commence.
"I will see who else you have. It is hard to get an elf to talk who is not from your realm. I was raised by elves in a realm in Europe. If you have a prisoner here from a region like that or from my own pack, they will be easier to get information from."
"And if this elf is useless?" Cedirc asked.
"Then he is useless," River replied, stepping out of the room as Cedric shut the door behind them. "Show me Aldon next."
The three men walked to the furthest room, a soft mumbling from behind the door as River tried to hear for a spell being cast. As he came to the conclusion it was safe to enter, Cedric threw the door open and inside the room lay a white-haired elf huddled up in a corner. The elf did not glance up to the visitors, continuing his mumbling as River recognized the prayer to the Moon.
River held up his hand to expose his palm, speaking the common word for peace in Elder as Cedric watched curiously. The alpha tried to see if he recognized the elf, only to become empty-handed when Aldon did not appear familiar. "He is from a realm in Europe. If our last elf is no help, then he will be our first pick."
The last cell lay in the middle of the hallway, the door opening before River as he stepped inside to greet the lavender eyes of a familiar face. "Cirdan," River muttered, instantly recognizing the face of the elf who lay in the center of the room, his body seeming to fold over itself as his arms were chained to the ceiling.
"From your pack?"
"He lived just outside the palace walls," River informed, glancing to Cedric for a short second before walking forward to the elf. "He would often come to the palace to play the lute. Quite the little entertainer."
"Quite the traitor too," the warrior commented from outside, stepping into the room. "This little elf slaughtered a few innocent children. How I would love to wrap my hands around his delicate little neck."
"Silence," River insisted, kneeling before the elf as he brushed back the straw-yellow hair to reveal a deep gasp across the elf's eyebrow. "Speak Cirdan."
Cirdan's head rolled up, eyes glancing to both Cedric and the warrior. The elf lay exhausted from the previous night of beatings, his back torn into with different knives and whips, the cuts upon his back opening back up with every small movement. "Why attack? Why go against my orders? Why obey Asger and Keva? You have betrayed the name of Eternal Shadows."
The elf just gazed ahead to the wall, unwilling to hear what River would say to him.
"You sure he is our best bet?" Cedric remarked, unwilling to believe this silent elf would speak.
"He seemed to take an oath of silence when we brought him in. He would rather hold in screams then let them out while we-"
"I do not wish to hear how you beat him," River spat at the warrior, his eyes darkening as he watched the warrior back down. "I wish to hear why a large population of elves attacked Alpha Leala and Alpha Emmitt's packs, go against my orders, and betray me."
"I wish to hear why an elf I grew up in the same village as would do such a crime," River whispered in Elder, looking deep in Cirdan's eyes. "Why attack?"
"What have you given him since he got here?" River asked.
"We give no drugs."
"I mean common things, such as sunlight, moonlight, food, and so on."
"Sun and moon both shine light in here. We offer water but no food."
River nodded, gathering himself as he walked over to the door of the room. "Make sure no sunlight or moonlight enters this room. Cirdan prays to such entities, so remove them from his reach. Elves drink water and retain it better than wolves. Offer him the blood of the other two elves here. Elves would never dare touch the blood of another one of their kind."
River watched the twitching of Cirdan's face, seeing how the very thought of light and water being taken from the elf caused him to wince. "We will then come back in two days to see if he has anything to say to us."
As the door shut behind them, River and Cedric thanked the warrior and walked from the hall of prisoners. One more River's attention turned to Leala as he wondered just how she was recovering.
"Is it possible to speak with the Alpha?"
"I will have to check with her first," Cedric informed, the two exiting the pack house and once more joined by their security detail.
"Inform her I am desperate to see her, to see that she is doing well."
"Do not get your hopes up," Cedric, spoke, recalling the words Leala spoke to him last.
*
"Please do not allow Alpha River to see me...not like this," Leala whispered, her voice soft yet strong of emotion to burry Cedric deep into a respect for her wish.
"As you wish," Cedric spoke, exiting the Alpha's champers as he was met with the concerned face of Brie.
"She is not recovering fast enough."
"You cannot rush such a recovery," Cedric snapped, keeping his voice hushed as they walked down the stairs.
"This is war, Cedric. We cannot be without our alpha for another day while we know what has happened outside of pack territory."
"Penelope made her decision."
"And Leala must know what that was. She needs to still be kept in the loop while in recovery."
"Tomorrow I will tell her," Cedric assured. "Tomorrow she should have enough strength to be delivered that news. We both know she will tire herself out thinking of ways to fix what we are in now."
Brie sighed, knowing that Cedric was right. Leala needed her rest and she already had enough on her plate to worry about. Yet Brie was still scared that waiting another day would mean waiting another two or three.
"If Alpha Penelope were to knock on the door right now, what would we do?"
"We would have no choice but to inform Leala."
"And have Leala made such a large decision. What Penelope did was wrong, Cedric, and we both know that, regardless of if she claims she was just protecting her men."
"I know!" Cedric hissed, shaking his head as Brie stood petrified as the mad beta stood before her. "I know Penelope will claim she was just protecting the warriors of her pack."
"And we all see through that bullshit," Brie commented, "You, me, Alpha Yusuf, and everyone else who has heard the news, we all know she slaughtered Emmitt's men like dogs and even tore children from their mother's arms. Alpha Emmitt will declare war on Penelope once his men mourn their families. Damnit! Penelope did more damage than the elves as they fought them off and slaughtered innocent people."
"And you understand why I could not tell Leala that right away, when she has enough strength to speak with us?" Cedric asked, wanting assurance that Brie understood why he had to lie to Leala for the moment being.
"I understand, but that does not make it right." Brie took in a deep breath. "I have no doubt River will declare war on Penelope if he manages to return to his pack. Emmitt will declare war any moment now. Penelope will come back here, playing victim, begging Leala for defense against these men."
"Do you really think she would?" Cedric did not think for a moment that Leala would dare offer Penelope or her men shelter nor protection for the decisions which they made on that battlefield.
"I know she would slam the door in Penelope's face," Brie replied, "But I fear as our list of allies grows thin, a second wave of elves will await us at the turn of the tide."
Cedric and Brie remained in silence for a few moments, recognizing they were on the same page. "Go get some rest, you look awful." As Brie made her way to find a nurse to reapply ointment to her healing stitches, Cedric thought through how he would greet Alpha River.
Cedric knew Alpha River would be traveling all this way to Crimson Lock just to meet with Leala and he would have to be the one to turn the visiting alpha down. River would travel hours to be told Leala was in no state to meet with him. In a way, it was true, for added stress to the recovering alpha would only mean a longer duration for healing.
As the sun would begin to rise upon Crimson Lock, Cedric recognized that the second wave was just about to begin.