Father of My Son

With Bryant's speed, we reached the bloodbath from earlier in the day. Now it was just a bunch of scattered wolf corpses lying around, with a few vultures here and there gnawing at them. Ares followed behind Diane who gracefully walked past the bodies. There were more than I remembered. Niko must have lured them back here to taunt them.

He had good reason to. There were at least twenty corpses lying around, half of which were clean kills.

"Your son's work?" Diane mused. "No wonder everyone's scared of Purebloods..." she chuckled.

Ares stepped back in awe. "He must be wicked strong."

As great as it was that they didn't fear me or Nero, it still didn't feel right to have them witness the death of their clan members. All wolves are family--at least that was what Ralphie taught.

"Luna, they are in the wrong to attack even if it was under orders. Those who do are traitors. We do not have sympathy for those. Do not be upset," Bryant clarified when he noticed I had tensed up. I thanked him of course. He was our Beta, but he seemed to know my thoughts as well as Ralphie though he didn't talk much.

Honestly, Bryant was someone I never thought I'd get close with because of his strict personality, but he turns out to be more compatible with me than I gave him credit for. I

"This wasn't Nero," I stated as I dismounted. "This was my...um...ex- well, no...by title...husband...Nero's father..."

My companions' jaws hardened and they couldn't mask the tint of frustration from all the recent disclosing of secrets. I crossed my fingers they were ready for more to come.

"The Commander of the Army?" Diane asked.

I dipped my head.

"Speak of the devil..." Ares added when he saw a shadow rise from across us.

On the opposite side, Niko stood half naked. His clothes were torn and stained and his hair was disheveled as if he'd just tumbled down a flight of stairs. He'd never appear like that. Ever.

We didn't make contact for more than a few seconds when he suddenly appeared next to Ares, about to sink his nails in. If not for Bryant shifting into Lycan mode and pushing Niko back, I'm afraid the little black wolf would have been a goner.

"Niko stop!" I motioned before the two clashed again. "They're friends."

He tilted his head as if recognizing my voice before retracting his claws.

"You came back willingly?" His velvet voice only emphasized how pleased he was, losing all the bloodlust from a few seconds prior.

"Did you think I'd abandon you?"

"It wouldn't have been the first."

I could feel something boiling inside me. "I left because you gave me a reason to."

"You didn't give me a chance to apologize."

"Do you really believe you deserved it?" I raised my voice, startling the others who I had temporarily forgot were still there.

"Apologies for the scene and you have my thanks for taking care of Alvena," Niko addressed our spectators and then to me, "Either way I'm glad you're safe."

There was a genuine gratitude in his words that made it hard for me to be mad that he acted like he had a responsibility to care for my well-being.

"She is our Luna, of course we'll protect her."

Niko knew Diane was speaking, but he couldn't understand a word as she was in wolf form. Nonetheless, he seemed to pick up the gist of her dialogue and dipped his head. "As long as she's safe."

I turned to look at him from the side and was guilted to be nicer to him after seeing the state he was in. He still had open wounds and I don't believe he had blood, probably just a short nap before we arrived to disturb his slumber.

"Why is Alvena being chased?" Niko asked Bryant who had no problem speaking in our tongue while in Lycan form.

Bryant took a step closer to make sure I had room to retreat and have him to protect me if necessary.

There was a long silence before I decided to break it. "They found out I was the Pureblood breeder." It was a very straightforward title but I knew he hated it since forever.

"And these are ALL those who decided to stick by you?" Nikolaj's face darkened. After a long regretful pause, he chuckled. "For a brief moment, I had a thought. If I could confirm for certain that you won't be hurt again and that you're truly happy, I would be satisfied. I was even thinking, if the three of you teamed up against me and have the child deliver the message to bring backup, you could easily claim victory. You could have me cornered and eliminate the enemy Commander. Then everything would clear itself up."

Niko looked at me, looking not much better than when we parted. "If it was her association to me, then I'd understand. But to say that it's her bloodline...I'm greatly disappointed in these Werewolves. To say you love humans as equals was unrealistic back then, but now it's just as far from the truth as anyone can fathom."

I wanted to defend my family, but perhaps it was the fatigue or the emotions or all the things that had happened that I couldn't find the strength to. I too felt betrayed. From a less stubborn perspective, it wasn't much different here than back in Argid with Niko.

Right then, Bryant surprised us when he shifted back into a human. "I don't have anything to defend ourselves either at the moment," he sighed.

Before I could catch a full glimpse of the grown man, Niko spun me around. Ares followed and let out a boyish laugh in his birthday suit.

"Please tell me the females here aren't as bold," Niko muttered and I let out a giggle. He was experiencing the culture first hand where it was encouraged to indulge in self-appreciation and full confidence in one's appearance.

"Everyone, this is Aleksandar, Nero's father," I introduced Niko when the ice seemed to break a little. He didn't fuss too much about the title or associated relationship and I was going to leave it to that for now.

Ares scratched his head in confusion. "Wasn't his name Niko?"

I thought the high noble would've stared darts into the boy, but he only prompted me to explain with a patient smile.

"It's custom that personal names are reserved for certain individuals. Everyone else addresses them by their title and if they're close or acquainted on good terms, then maybe the first name."

"Alek is fine," Niko assured and then I went on to introduce my entourage.

.....

As soon as we found food and shelter, everyone settled down. It surprised my folks when they learned that Niko could eat and appreciate the same foods they did. They turned out more receptive of him than I expected them to.

Niko too seemed to approve of them, especially Ares who was now sleeping like a baby with his back against the walls of the cave. Diane and Bryant went to patrol the areas and prompted us to rest, though Diane did make sure to warn me to signal if I was in any trouble.

"The child is young but unbelievably talkative," he said after glancing at the napping wolf. "He talked more to me the past half hour than Nero did his whole life."

I looked at Niko who had his back against the wall too, barely clothed in his tattered clothes and haggard compared to how I remembered him but still surprisingly regal. His long hair was swept to the side and despite the circumstances, his blue eyes shown with a golden glint so full of life as if the sun was shining in clear skies. That was a nice sight compared to the snow lands I've been staring at for the past months.

"You don't get along?"

Niko met my gaze before piecing out that I know something.

"You've seen him?"

I nodded. "Quite the change."

Another smile appeared across his face. "I guess the both of us realized our wish to see you again..." His eyes dropped on me. "I'd wait a hundred more years if I had to."

"I wouldn't be alive then," I reminded him. I'm human after all.

To my surprise, he leaned closer. "Oh, we can change that."