— Kaden —
"What is the status?" I asked Jaxx.
"72% of location covered for information extraction, phase three nearly complete," Jaxx told me.
"Jayson?" I said a little louder.
"All civilians aboard the plane, no injured," my beta said a little louder from outside of the building where I was.
"Where is it in phase four?" I asked Anders.
"50% completed. It shouldn't be long after the completion of phase three," Anders answered me in my earpiece.
I nodded to myself. Good.
I went outside, I wasn't necessary in this room anymore. I went to see where things were with my orders regarding the bodies.
The last few were being assembled in between two of the main buildings. My guys took what I told them to take, then piled them up in a small pyramid.
I could hear the thunk, thunk, of falling machetes.
We should be out of here before sunrise.
It took a little under an hour for phase three to be done and all information paper or electronic that could have values was extracted. Within fifteen minutes, just like estimated, phase four was completed and everything was ready for ignition. The last of us left in the boat we came in, and when at the safe distance, set up the charges that had been strewed around the island. The explosion was deafening but not painfully so as we were far enough. But it was big enough to send a shockwave strong enough to rock the boats. The rest of the combustibles were set aflame nearly instantaneously. Within five minutes the island was one gigantic pyre, that would leave behind only the blackened skeleton of a once lush forest and buildings.
Once I was satisfied with the blaze and its level of destruction, we sailed off.
We weren't that far from Monaweard Territory, and the commute was reasonable by land, but there was an airstrip much closer, and giving the amount of personnel with me, it was easier to move by air.
An hour later, we were landing on a field within Monaweard Territory. I'm sure Mariqueen was not excited about me landing there rather than to the other strip right outside her land, but I was going for efficiency not friendliness. Besides, I was about to piss off the whole lot of them anyways.
I walked first out of the plane.
Twelves Alphas were present with their small delegations, plus David, of course. He nodded to me amicably, despite the blood-splatter they could all smell on me, but the other's nod was a little tighter.
It was four thirty-three in the morning. The sun was rising slowly to my right.
I nodded to them for only social formality.
"What gives us the pleasure?" asked Mariqueen a little more polite than the others.
"I've raided the facility at eleven-o-six yesterday," I told them.
This shook them a bit.
"It was our call to make," said Alpha Sanders.
"No. It was mine. Two days ago a small group attacked another pack killing the Alpha, his family and household and kidnapping my sister and killing one of my men. This group was believed to be linked to the pack behind this facility. Which puts me in the right to act as I see fit. To get proper retribution."
That got me a small round of murmurs.
"I have survivors," I said as my men brought them out of the plane. Those naked had been given spare clothes, mostly men's clothes. Werewolves tend to always have spare clothes at hand. "I would like for you to check if you can identify anyone. I will leave any of your pack members in your charge."
That changed the ambiance.
Mariqueen nodded to me gratefully. I saw in her eyes how significant that gesture was to her.
I gave them time. Time for the survivors to come out, and for the Alphas to check with them.
David joined me.
"Which sister?" he asked me.
"Eva," I said.
"How is she? Truly?"
"I don't know. I didn't see her since we got her back. She's with her mate."
"She found her mate?" David asked surprised.
"A few months back. He seemed like a little lost pup, but he got a good head on his shoulders. Enough for me to make him Gamma."
David choked a bit. "Gamma of what?"
"Blakemore."
He whistled.
"Just before this incident, Eva was changing too. Taking her job seriously, wanting to study, to take more responsibilities. She has really grown in the last few months. She's not the little girl I used to know."
"Kids tend to do that," he told me wisely. He was only two years older than me.
"I'm just scared this might set her back. Things were not pretty in there. She was close to Mads, I know she saw things, it was bad. I also know she killed one of them to survive."
"Things like these, they leave a mark."
"They do," I said in a sigh. "You never forget your first. Then you spend a long time wondering if it will ever go away, or just become normal, until one day you barely notice when you kill one, not until you look in the mirror to see the blood."
"I don't think you're talking about Eva anymore." We were looking at the sunrise. It was pretty, there were a few clouds defusing the colours. The kind of sight that made me wish I was an artist to immortalize the sight, or even describe it well. But it was just pretty.
"Maybe, maybe no," I told David.
"She's a woman, don't forget to treat her as such, not like a child."
"I know."
"She has her mate, they'll probably move in together soon, get married, have babies, and then you'll look at those babies thinking how much they look like their mother, and you're gonna get all nostalgic about the time she ran around the yard half-naked in pigtails."
"I'm not sure you're having this conversation with the right guy," I told him.
"Everyone knows you're a big teddy bear."
"Is your eyesight okay, I think you might need glasses."
"I stick to my words," he told me.
"Go tell them that," I said referring to the Alphas behind us.
"Some of them got it. Those that matter," he said. "For the rest, then… Oh, well…"
I snorted.
"It's not gonna stop there is it?" he asked me. I knew what he meant. Nubinero.
"Me stopping won't stop them."
He said nothing. He knew.
"A Fae faction as fallen, there's a power vacuum."
"Fuuuck," he muttered under his breath. "How bad is it?"
"Not sure yet, but if it's having ripple in werewolf communities…"
"… It's significant enough to worry," he finished my thought.
"We start with Nubinero, we see how the rest goes."
"It's gonna be one massive dance, each to their own rhythm, with some stepping on others' feet," said David.
"I've never been a great dancer. I'll probably pull the fire alarm and deal with anyone who hasn't evacuated if they decide to get annoyed with me."
"I know. That's what worries me."
"And why?" I asked.
"Because doing that would attract a lot of attention, only this time it won't be just from werewolves," he said gravely. "There are a lot of scary things out there."
"I know," I said. "I'm not trying to get involved with those."
"But by getting involved with one of the players, you set yourself as a player in the game, and a significant one enough to warrant involvement of those you might not have wanted to be involved with. This could be just a sign of things to come."
I frowned at that.
"I can't just stand back," I said helplessly.
"I know," he said with worries on his face. "So listen to this very carefully. Get yourself prepared. Maybe the wave is gonna pass you by and you're gonna be fine, but if it hits you, you must be ready to surf."
"I think you're getting a little too deep on the metaphors."
I said with jest, trying to ease the tension.
"I'm serious," David said. "Some wars are for peace, and others to build. What do you think they will see when they look at you. Someone settling matters, or someone laying the stones of a new Empire? They're all running after a prettier, shinier throne to sit on. No one controls what tomorrow is made of. I know you don't wan this, but you won't back down either. Just don't be an idiot and look at the big picture. Fate is a river, you can divert it, you can predict some of it, but in the end you can only control so much."
"I know," I said thinking. I put my hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "I know." I told him more meaningfully. And I went to joint the Alphas as the remaining survivors returned to the plane.
"Gentlemen, I suggest you send them back with your people now before we continue this meeting," I told them.
Some seemed to want to question me but they didn't. They sent some of their entourage with them to return to their cars.
"What will happen to the others?" asked me Mariqueen.
"They will return with me, receive medical attention, and be returned to wherever they want to return when they're ready," I told her.
She nodded appreciatively.
"If some of them need a place, you can tell them I can give them one."
I nodded.
I signed to my man to bring the next guesses, and gestured for the Alpha to gather around.
My men brought five large trunks and they opened them.
Decomposition had not seriously set in, so the stench was not unbearable, but the smell of dead flesh was unmistakable. They nearly all recoiled at the sight of dozens of heads.
"This is what I'm going to send to Nubinero," I said. "For those who don't understand the message, it's a declaration of war." They stared in shock. "It's my war, not yours. I expect nothing from you, and am simply giving you a heads up." I gave a small hand gesture, and my men packed the trunks back in the plane. "If you want to get yourself involved, you have all the rights for it, given the present situation, and I will give you military support. For the others, if I keep giving you men and supplies it will be seen as participation from you so you have forty-eight hours to prepare for the loss of effective, then I will ship those trunks. Any questions?"
There was a hesitation. No one could deny me my right of action, but they were uncomfortable. The mood was as black as the forest I burned this morning.
"I'm in," said Mariqueen.
"You sure?" I asked her.
"Yes," she said. "We'll have talks," she said gesturing at the others.
"Well, then…" I said and walked back to the plane.
There is work to do.