Ilio shook out his thick coat as he wandered down the wooded path, following his nose to the one person who kept stubbornly avoiding him.
He knew that Inkani had taken an excessive amount of his blood on purpose, but if he thought that a few nibbles was going to keep an alpha wolf down for long, he was sorely mistaken.
His little babysitter hadn't even bothered coming after him, either.
Karalius seems to have his attention quite well.
Of course, he would have intervened if he'd sensed any malice from the man, because his mate's heir was still technically important to him, but when he'd felt absolutely nothing amiss, he'd taken off faster than a rabbit being chased by hounds.
Now that he was nearly approaching the town, however, Ilio slowed and focused more on his surroundings. It was no surprise when he sensed some vampires nearby, clearly following him as he wandered along. It was also no surprise that they were keeping their distance, too.
Glad I didn't let my Inka get away with just some bites.
He'd pretty much rubbed their bodies together in any way he could manage while the man fed, all-but fusing their two scents together as one.
No vampire would dare attack him without thinking twice about it when he smelled so much like Inkani.
Slowing to a stop atop a small ridge, Ilio looked out across the land below, the trees extending nearly all the way to the sea.
That's a lot of ships... and they're too close.
He didn't like it.
They all looked too well taken care of, and far too clean.
Why are there so many? Where are all the pirate sh—his heart sank in his chest when he noticed a familiar mast... sticking just barely a meter out of the crashing waves beside one of the docks.
Inka's ship...
Heck, there wasn't a single pirate ship still operable before his eyes. The royal navy had severely damaged or completely destroyed every last one.
Why hadn't he said anything?
They had just been relaxing and messing around the past few days, and yet...
Clenching his jaws together, Ilio snorted and pawed at the ground.
Where is my vampire?
Leaping off the edge of the ridge, Ilio quickly bounded down the steep rocky slope, then through the forest below.
Soon he was walking into town, his large paws making small depressions in the worn away dirt and sand. More and more eyes found their way to him as he approached the busy area.
He earned a few hisses as he passed close by several people, but his main focus was on picking up Inkani's scent amongst all the smells of body odor, food, and blood.
No one seemed panicked yet, but they also weren't just lazing about, either. Everyone had something to do and the only thing any of them bothered to spare him were glares or grumbles.
Pretty soon Ilio found himself by the docks, his hackles raised to pinpoints as his streamline body stood tall. He wanted to roar a warning across the boisterous waves and howling wind, but for once, he knew better than to provoke.
A few humans or vampires was one thing, but an entire fleet of ships manned by a vampire they'd already had a close call with? He wasn't interested in bringing that kind of trouble to his man.
Besides, an attack was already clearly imminent. He didn't need to spur it forward any quicker.
Thus, he calmly turned around and walked away, returning his attention to the direction he'd been going before he'd gotten sidetracked by curiosity.
Pretty soon he was outside of a large tavern, his fluffy tail swishing back and forth behind him in interest. He didn't even need to step inside to know that there were a lot of people in the building.
My Inka is in there...
If his vampire was in there, then he would be in there, too.
Thus, Ilio simply gave his coat another shake, then nudged open the crude double doors with his nose.
The bustling room inside immediately fell silent as all eyes turned to him.
It didn't stay quiet for long, though. Soon the volume had risen to twice its previous height, making Ilio's sensitive ears flick repeatedly in annoyance. He was just about to snap his jaws at a particularly loud, rotund man chortling to his right when the sound of a loud slam from further inside brought everyone's attention to the person who'd split their thick wooden table in two.
That quieted everyone down well.
Ilio twitched his damp black nose, then grunted and hurried forward as his eyes landed on Inkani.
Ah, that's mine.
Nonchalantly loafing forward, Ilio nudged past several people and tables until he was able to crawl right up into the large chair the establishment had provided for his mate.
Just enough room for me, too.
Well, not really, but he made it work.
Satisfied, Ilio curled up as best he could in Inkani's lap, but when he finally looked up at the man's face with a proud wolfish grin, the man didn't seem nearly as excited.
"What are you doing here, Ilio? I told you not to go out by yourself," Inkani chastised even as he pet his fuzzy head.
I will listen next time, Ilio thought to him, earning a look that made him pin his ears to the side.
"Trying to look cute isn't going to work when you're that big. Get off of me, you oaf," Inkani said, nudging Ilio until he was forced to slip from his mate's lap.
He eventually settled beside the man's chair, his eyes narrowed and ears pinned back as he glared at each and every other person in the room what dared stare at what was his.
He promptly got a smack on the back of his head for his efforts!
Behave, we were discussing some important things.
He had been behaving, though. He hadn't bitten anyone yet.
"As I was saying, the enemy is likely to attack within the next three days. They don't want us to get too comfortable, but they also know that quite a few of us are higher ranking vampires. I also have recently acquired an alpha werewolf, too, and Moral knows of him," Inkani said, drawing several pairs of eyes back and forth between the two of them.
Ilio huffed out a grunt but kept quiet as people began to speak again, adding their thoughts to Inkani's as they discussed the encroaching royal navy. He began trying to pay attention after a few minutes of scoping out the room for any issues, but when a giant plate of meat was set in front of him, there was no more room left for any other thought in his head!
He contently munched away as the talks got more serious and voices slowly began to rise as each person was determined to be heard.
This steak is so good...
There were also a few pieces of salmon on the plate and it didn't take long for them to disappear into his belly, too.
He was just about to reach for the last item on his plate, a single salted, boiled egg, when his ears abruptly flicked forward and he let out a loud, rumbling growl. Its sound was deep and prolonged, lasting far longer than normal as his lips slowly pulled away from his massive teeth.
The sound of a loud drum began to thrum throughout the docks as it was struck once, twice, then three times in succession. Each hit was louder than the last, and as the third sounded, its vibrations radiating through the floor, every man within the establishment immediately jumped to their feet and charged for the door!
Ilio stood up as Inkani did, but neither of them moved from their current spot yet.
"They're going to come after you first," Inkani said, drawing Ilio's gaze up to him.
He'd already figured that he'd be a main target.
The royal navy was used to dealing with human and vampire pirates all day long, but now that an alpha werewolf was thrown into the mix, it would definitely throw a wrench into their plans of a smooth attack.
"I want you to stay here for as long as you can," Inkani said right as Ilio began wandering forward, ignoring his request.
"Ilio! This is no time to be stubborn! They will kill you without a second thought!"
Slowing to a stop near the end of the table, Ilio glanced over his shoulder as Inkani walked up to stand beside him.
And I will kill them without needing to think at all, he replied as he pawed at the worn floorboards, itching to get out the door and begin tearing people apart.
Inkani remained silent for a few moments, clearly contemplating what he could say to get him to listen. Thankfully, he realized rather quickly that there was no way he was going to keep him inside, just waiting to be surrounded.
"Stay with me, okay? Don't run off or get distracted," he eventually said, making Ilio snort and nod his large head.
He had no intention of leaving the man's side.
Okay.
Seemingly relieved the slightest fraction, Inkani unsheathed his blade as the noise outside the tavern grew exponentially as cannon-fire was added to the fray.
"Let's take care of this before Binan and his demon have to get involved, hmm?"
Ilio's lips slowly retracted again as his full set of sharp teeth revealed themselves.
If his mate wanted the situation handled before his heir was bothered by it, then he would gladly take care of it.
In the next instant Inkani blurred forward with a snarled hiss that Ilio gladly matched with his own roaring growl as he, too, bolted from the tavern and out into the chilly twilight air!
A shrill whistle sounded the moment he managed to crunch down on his first victim's throat, making his fuzzy ears flick in the direction it came from.
In a blur he had the annoying man's arm in his jaws, but before he could deal a killing blow the sound of three cannons went off simultaneously!
Without thinking, he hunched down to jump away, but before he could even put enough pressure on his paws to move, a firm hand had gripped the back of his scruff and yanked him away... right before two of the three cannonballs slammed into the now-dead man who'd blown the whistle!
The moment Inkani released him Ilio blurred forward and took down another man in a navy uniform, easily disemboweling him with his claws as Inkani snapped the neck of another man in unison!
They quickly but carefully worked their way through the waves of military men as they came ashore, never straying more than a few feet from each other.
Several pirates had already been killed closer to the water, but considering several of the ships were focusing their cannons on him, specifically, their firepower wasn't as strong as it needed to be.
Thus, within about twenty minutes enough of the encroaching forces had been injured or killed to not make it worth continuing... for the time being.
They were allowed to retreat without too much interference, because honestly, they'd done some pretty good damage, themselves. Sure, they'd lost more men, but they also had more to lose.
The ships themselves likely couldn't match the amount of men still able to fight on shore, but...
They are coming from behind us, too, aren't they? Ilio thought to Inkani as the man began hurrying toward those he still felt were alive in order to help with their injuries.
Yes, they will, though it should take several days to get here since none of our border guards have relayed any negative news as of yet.
Ilio wrinkled his nose, then darted forward abruptly... seconds before a cannonball disintegrated the large boulder he'd previously perched himself on!
"They're still after you. Get into the woods!" Inkani yelled at him.
Ilio, however, had other ideas as he nonchalantly swished his tail and yawned wide.
Let them keep trying. They'll burn through their ammunition faster.
He could sense Inkani's displeasure at his thoughts, but the man decided not to argue as he picked up a wounded vampire and began carrying him into the safety of the forest.
Ilio watched him, then blurred to the right as another cannonball sent up a massive spray of dirt where his paws had been a moment ago.
They're not very smart.
He was just about to comment something else when the familiar boom and screech of a third shot had him leaping backwards.
The ball of metal flew past his nose, the whistling of the wind from its speed making him snarl.
Loud... and annoying. Hmm, wait a minute.
Glancing down by the docks, Ilio flicked his tail from side to side as he realized something.
I'm going for a walk, he told Inkani before darting forward, down toward the docks.
What? Wait!
The man's response was lost on him as he easily closed the distance between himself and the worn planks. As he'd expected, not a single one was damaged.
They'd been extremely careful.
Smirking to himself, Ilio stood right in the middle of one of the longer docks, then waited as he stared out at the ships dotting the horizon.
Within moments he got what he'd expected, and forced himself to wait to dodge until the last second!
Fragments of wood pelted his coat and face as he landed about five feet away from the damaged planks, but before he could even bother to assess the damage, another cannonball was heading towards him, then another!
Pretty soon he had to put all of his effort into dodging as he leaped from one stretch of docking to the next! The navy quickly began anticipating where he intended to land and even brushed his coat with several shots as they thought ahead, missing a full-on hit by mere centimeters!
Even with the bruises and scratches he was acquiring, Ilio continued to dance around the increasingly-damaged docks until, finally, he retreated back to solid ground, panting heavily as his tongue lolled from the side of his mouth.
Shift back, now!
Startled, Ilio immediately let his form waver at the same time he felt strong, familiar arms wrap around his naked human form and carry him away. Not a moment later he heard four more blasts ring out right behind them!
Soon they were deep within the forest, heading back towards Inkani's home.
"I destroyed the docks so that they can't get on land as easily," he said, proud but quiet, understanding that his actions had made Inkani mad.
As if proving him right, the man tightened his hold on him as he sped up, but didn't quite start running yet.
"You did well... but I'll beat your fuzzy ass if you try something like that again without at least telling me ahead of time," Inkani replied with a hint of warning to his tense words.
Ilio hunched against him as he adjusted his arms around the man's neck. He was just about to say something to try and placate him when they heard the sound of wings overhead, drawing their attention up just in time for their jaws to drop!
Karalius descended from the sky like a fallen angel. He somehow still landed on his feet even with the sloppy flying, and in quite an impressive crouch, too.
"Ah, Bin," Ilio said, surprised.
The vampire calmly slipped from Karalius's back as the demon stood up, stretching his paper-thin, pinkish-black wings.
"His wings are still reforming, but thankfully they managed to regrow quickly after being fed so well," Bin said as he lifted his eyes to Inkani's.
"The house is already burning. We just-barely made it out."
B-but... hadn't Inka said that it would take them days to get here?!
He could feel the rage boiling within the vampire holding him, but when Inkani finally responded, his voice was deathly calm and contained.
"Then the guards at the border are already dead. We need to return to town and warn everyone," he said, clearly unwilling to leave his crew to get ambushed.
"I believe you have more important things to worry about right now, elder Inkani."
That voice...
Ilio was immediately released as Inkani turned around, allowing him to shift back into his wolf form as both their narrowed gazes landed on an unwelcome guest.
Captain Moral.