"Is he going to be okay?" Kate asked worriedly, crouching near the medics.
The warlord arrived in force, bringing fifty wolfkins with her. The situation was still a bit confusing, but from the report that Annie was giving to Janine and from the answers she received, Geldi pieced together the general picture. A convoy of independent traders was attacked. Despite not being affiliated with the state, Alpha went livid, giving orders for the wolf hags to scour the area, wiping out any presence of the raiders. Janine volunteered to go and was joined by some wolfkins from Annie’s and Aranea’s packs. They arrived at the site of the battle and tracked foes all the way here.
Now the soldiers were standing guard over a few prisoners and preparing to leave the training area. Leila had briefly greeted everyone and was now busy pestering captives with questions, furiously scribbling something into her notebook. A few troops were sent to empty the training caves of supplies. Upon hearing about the attack, Alpha gave the official order, forbidding long-distance training without a proper backup from her pack.
"Honey, it’s just an ear, no biggie…" The soldier smiled.
"Kaleb will be fine," Geldi replied, finishing cleaning the wound and sewing the flesh together, "He is a new breed, this cut won’t drop us that easily. His ear will heal, and his hearing should be fine. He will probably get a scar…"
"He won’t," Said the medic of Janine’s pack, a tall and always scared-looking woman. She offered Geldi her own field and helmet, and now streams of sweat were running down her bald head, "Treated far worse wounds by now. In a week or two, he'll be as good as new."
“Great!” Geldi nodded to the woman, “Three days’ rest in the infirmary.”
“Four,” The second medic corrected her, “He is a male, they have somewhat weaker healing factor.”
"Yes, of course." Geldi thanked her.
"Oh, come on, it’s just a flesh wound…" Kaleb stopped talking, raising his paws in a gesture of surrender when he saw Kate's claws in front of his face.
"You are getting rest, and that’s final. You are not losing any body parts on my watch!" Kate hissed into his face, and Kaleb simply smiled, reaching out and hugging her. The soldier’s stiff body relaxed, and she returned the hug, "Sorry for failing to keep your back safe."
"It wasn’t that bad. Besides, we were in worse situations."
"True," Kate said quietly, "But when I saw them piling on you and was unable to help… I freaked out."
"Love, I ain’t made of ice. A couple of desert freaks ain’t dropping me."
"I will hold you to your word. Don’t you dare leave me, not until we raise our second cubs."
"I'm not passing this up for a billion tokens." Kaleb promised her.
Geldi stood up, leaving the soldiers alone, and walked to check up on the other members of the group. Gin was mostly intact, safe for a few cuts. Sly’s back was covered with lacerated wounds. Geldi did her best to patch him up, but she'd bet her week's pay that he'll have a few scars after this. Tiny had a fracture in her fist, that punch that knocked down the massive malformed didn’t go without consequences. Lucendra had her wounds treated by the two members of Annie’s pack.
"What are you doing here?" Lucendra asked.
"We were worried. This is why we volunteered to join Janine’s searching party after the freaks attacked a convoy nearby." Carty allowed her helmet to slide from her head onto her chest and back. When she saw the cuts, she clicked her tongue and said, "Sure wish Mia was here..."
"About me?" While the two soldiers finished stitching her up and bandaging her, Lucendra blinked.
"No, about Annie," Ultis said sarcastically, "Of course, we were worried about you, Lucendra! Wolf hag Annie can’t even walk into a toilet without stumbling on some great conspiracy, a sand reaper, or a raider!"
The wolf hag’s ears rose at the words of her subordinate, making Geldi half afraid that she might want to dominate the scout for the implied insult. Annie raised a finger to disagree before a thoughtful expression came upon her snout. The wolf hag simply nodded in the end, turning back to the warlord to finish her report.
The soldiers from Annie’s pack surrounded their fellow, and Ultis grabbed Lucendra into a hug, lifting the warrior with ease.
"Stop it," Lucendra tried to break free, "I haven’t done anything worth noting!" In fact, I got scared…"
"Lucendra, just because you ain’t the best of us, doesn’t mean we don’t care for you," Ultis threw up Lucendra, allowing several soldiers from Annie's pack to catch her, who then held the soldier above them and threw her up again, chanting triumphantly, "One of us! One of us! Annie’s pack, Dragena’s spirit, fuck yea…"
Janine and Annie let out a low growl, causing the cheer to die out instantly. The soldiers triumphantly threw up Lucendra a few more times before putting her down after Geldi smacked Ultis on the head and demanded to see the patient. Annie saluted Janine and went to join her troops.
"No hug for me?" Annie smiled wickedly, spreading her arms wide.
"Wolf hag!" Carty returned the smile, speaking in a honeyed voice, "Love the color! This wild mix of blue and crimson really gives you the aura of a savage gladiator! But if you wanted to change the coloration of your fur, you should have asked me for a fur dye instead of using these sub-optimal methods."
"Piss off… Wait a moment," Annie looked at her suspiciously, "I always thought that blue was the natural color of your fur. Have you been dyeing all this time?"
"Oh, I'm flattered," Carty said gracefully, "My fur is a pale blue color, but I've always preferred a more vibrant color, like that of the deep sea. Like yours right now. Ah, this wonderful mix of crimson and blue almost makes me forget about the ste…"
"Carty, if you keep talking, I will give you a hug. Would you like a little bluer fur?" Annie started her approach, making the scout retreat in fear, "Tiny, assemble the pack, we are going to get a ride home. Our allies will escort the captives to the prison."
****
Javenika was sitting behind the table, listening to how the Dynast was disciplining Alpha. She had finished her investigation of Scorpio and Ivar for now. For the past few days, she has been trailing Alpha, being present at every meeting and every war council, always listening, recording, and sometimes judging. The captain’s head started hurting from all the smoke that the military officers were smoking non-stop, and at least this late-evening meeting was a pleasant change of pace with no smoke present.
Apparently, one of the wolfkins went to Iterna for her leave, and some misunderstanding happened, ending with the official envoy of Iterna demanding to meet with Alpha. Something about attacking a kid. While the envoy was busy expressing his displeasure to his excellency, the situation cleared a bit, it was the wolfkin who saved the kid amidst the terrorist attack. The envoy was quick to change his tune, offering his apologies. When the police of Iterna brought in the news that Alpha had promised to skin the wolfkin alive, both the Dynast and the envoy contacted Alpha, demanding safety for the wolfkin.
Javenika listened to the situation, taking notes. The Wyrm Lord intended to involve the Wolf Tribe closer in the everyday life of the state, and he had a full right to that. No society or people within the state should remain isolated from the whole. The fact that the Wolf Tribe was allowed to keep their brutal traditions was a travesty in Javenika’s eyes.
But she had a job to do, and this job was to assess the effectiveness of this campaign. The casualties were inexcusable: two warlords were lost in less than a half-year period of military action. Thousands of soldiers were killed or injured. Hundreds of new breeds were lost in action. Javenika arrived, filled with righteous anger and fury, ready to sentence everyone at fault…
So far, she has found little evidence of misplacing resources, corruption, or outright malice. Javenika massaged her temples, reading the information about the expenses of the Wolf Tribe’s warlords. Everything checked out. The warlords put in charge of cities made some mistakes, but those were made out of inexperience rather than malice. Janine's city, which she ruled for a short time, even began to generate profits.
"…Am I understood, Alpha?" The Dynast asked with a hint of steel in his voice.
"I won’t harm her, my liege." Alpha bowed to the ruler, and his image disappeared from the display, ending the communication.
The warlord threw a quick glance at the wolf hags of her own pack, who were planning a retribution operation against the malformed and new patrol routes to ensure the safety of locals. Then Alpha snapped her claws, and one of the soldiers near the door opened it, inviting the petitioner in.
"I demand a right to speak with Aranea." Javenika briefly looked over the ledger, fighting back an urge to sigh. Keyl. He waited patiently to be allowed in and now came to bother Alpha anew.
"Am I looking like her babysitter or her jailer to you? Go and speak when she comes back." Alpha’s eyes narrowed, and a thin wave of fear spread from around her. Keyl Summerspring, knight captain of the Ice Fang order, endured it without complaint, having grown accustomed to the effects of Alpha's powers in recent days. He was dressed in a white jacket with gold trim, matching long pants, and pitch black boots. Out of respect, he left his blade in his quarters.
Keyl and Zeke were both forced on her by First Sunblade. The captain had no real need to have others defend her, nor did the wolfkins provide any real help as her attendants. There were precious few things that she could have taught them, and both were competent enough in the field. The kids were loyal enough, but keeping them out of trouble was a pain.
"Lady Aranea is a member of the Wintersong household and…"
"Stop wasting my time," Alpha said tiredly, "I repeat myself one last time. Wolf hag Aranea is currently on the mission. It is up to her if she will speak to you upon returning. No, I will not approve her transfer to the Ice Fang order, not unless she requests it herself. Now piss off, I have work to do."
"Lady Alpha, I must request a little more of your time." Keyl demanded, reaching for something in his pocket.
"Have you not heard the order, boy?" One of the wolf hags asked. Like her fellows, she was dressed in stylish uniform provided by the tailors from the Core Lands: a green jacket and long leather pants. A ponytail of brown hair was coming from underneath her black beret. The most curious thing about her were the eyes. Amber eyes were a staple of the Wolf Tribe, this wolf hag had crimson eyes. Sunglasses hung freely from the front pocket of her jacket, "Will you leave in one piece, or should I carry you out?" A claw slid from her index finger.
This answers the question, she is of the Wolf Tribe. Javenika decided before extending her arm. Javenika’s gravity power acted as cloth at her desire, enveloping every inch of the wolf hag’s body, lifting her up from the seat, straightening her despite resistance, and pressing limbs closer to the body, leaving only the jaws and ears free.
"Was this a threat against a fellow citizen, wolf hag?" Javenika asked coolly, still reading the ledger.
"More like an invitation to a sparring match, ma’am!"
"Inspector. Release my soldier. Now." Alpha’s heavy gaze fell on Javenika.
Javenika obliged with the request, gently returning the wolf hag back to her seat. Not out of fear, no. She could reverse the flow of blood in Alpha's veins if she so desired. It would be a mutual destruction, for the fear wave would stop Javenika’s heart just as surely. The captain had never been afraid of death, but right now her only goal was to keep the wolf hag from harming Keyl and... Damn it. I am starting to behave like savages around here. I will report myself later. Javenika decided to dismiss any thoughts of rationalizing her behavior. Raising a hand against a subordinate or civilian was illegal in the state.
"Warlord Alpha, what a nice and pleasant surprise to see you at this hour." A new voice purred in the room, and all eyes turned to Keyl.
The knight captain held a small, silver terminal in his paw. Instead of a normal display, it had a holographic screen installed into this. Right now, it was projecting a figure of a female wolfkin in Keyl’s paw. Despite her seemingly lean form, made far smaller by a holographic projection, this wolfkin emanated barely hidden power and elegance, locked together behind a friendly smile. Her voice reminded Javenika of the river's murmur, while her eyes betrayed a surge of energy.
"Can't say the same about seeing you, sword saint Camelia," Alpha said, his voice sounding like metal gears grinding together. "It may be morning in your keep, but the hour is late around here. Speak and leave me alone."
"Why, I am simply eager to speak with my dearest kin," Camelia purred, "And any who stands between me, and the dear girl might just be met with the full force of the Wintersong household."
Javenika frowned, unsure if she should step up. Her role was that of an observer, but if two loyal servants of the state are about to start a civil war over…
"You want to stage joint trainings?" Alpha chose to ignore the implied threat, "Sure, if you want to see your ice boys being introduced to dust, mail me the plan. We’ll figure something out after the war."
"Alpha, I am not playing around," Camelia narrowed her eyes, and the aura of friendliness around her disappeared, allowing a hungry and dangerous beast to look from behind her crimson eyes, "Aranea have suffered enough, of this I have no doubts. Give me back my poor kin. She deserves better."
"This is for her to decide, and any who dares to force her will meet the full fury of Alpha." The warlord wanted to say something more when a portable terminal next to her gave a loud signal.
Alpha sighed, and countless mechanical limbs slid from the slices in the back of her military coat, picking up the terminal, opening it, and carrying it to the massive ear.
"Wolf hag Aranea? Yes, report." Javenika noticed Camelia's eyes flashing with anticipation, followed by Keyl's desperate expression. The two held their breaths while Alpha listened to the report.
"I understand. Yes, we will of course see to it. How bad are your injuries? Come back right away, before anything else happens." The artificial limbs trembled slightly, reaching out and starting to unbutton the collar of the Alpha’s coat, her eyes closing for a moment. The warlord looked up at the ceiling as her harness placed the terminal back at the desk.
"What happened?" The sword saint demanded to know.
"Is Aranea injured? I can lead a rescue operation at once!" Keyl offered his help.
"Wolf hag Aranea has just significantly expanded our current territory by persuading the commune of Saint Jeremia and the mountain malformed to join us," Alpha shook her head and turned to face the crimson-eyed wolf hag, "Bel, take your pack, engineers, and leg it to the commune. There are some prisoners there, leave some of your pack to keep them under control until a larger force arrives. Then it's off to the mountains, where the malformed population is likely to include slaves and young cubs. Business as usual; children and teenagers are to be sent to orphanages and rehabilitation camps, slaves are to be released, and the rest will be kept under observation until the investigation bureau arrives."
"Yes ma’am! And greetings to you, lady Camelia!" the wolf hag said and saluted the hologram.
"Bel, it’s been too long!" The sword saint smiled to her, "What a joyous meeting. Will you and Ultis come to visit this year?"
"Sorry, ma’am, duty calls!" The wolf hag stormed out of the room, putting on sunglasses.
Javenika noticed a strain in Alpha’s eyes before the warlord turned away to the main terminal, using the metal limbs to call the Dynast.
