Battle at bay

Hendrickson Boyle whose eyes were fixated outside the window gleamed with the bright lights of the crackers and lamps and he then grabbed Themisto's attention towards the map once again.

There was a pointer laid on the map and Hendrickson moved it and placed it on a different spot than before.

"This is the place where the wolves were spotted a week ago." He stated. "The villagers said they were passing by in masses." He added.

"Any recent deaths or anyone missing from your kingdom recently?" Themisto confirmed.

"Nothing of the sort! The villagers reported the wolves were just passing through the forest, nothing else. No harm was done to the villagers and the surroundings." He informed. "But according to the intel, the population of the wolves have spiked up recently. Several of the new wolves were reported." He added.

Themisto inhaled sharply in response and then closed his eyes as he pressed his temples for a few seconds. He contemplated thoroughly as to what could be the sudden cause of the wolves passing through a shared boundary.

Hendrickson on the other hand thought if he missed some detail because compared to Themisto his deducing skills were non existent, so he relied on Themisto to lay out the probable causes. Meanwhile he prepared himself for the second that he wished to discuss with Themisto, something that was the principle reason for hosting the ball.

After giving it enough thought Themisto finally came to a conclusion, "They are already prepared."

"What do you mean?" Hendrickson flicked his head immediately towards his friend Themisto.

"The wolves are already prepared for the war, my friend. It seems like our negligence has costed us much time." Themisto gritted his teeth as he spoke. The one thing that he could not bear was the fact that he missed such an important detail all along while the enemy kingdom concocted a new strategy.

"What makes you certain about this?" Hendrickson moved away from his spot and came to stand by Themisto's side.

Meanwhile Themisto had moved the pointer placed above the map to a different spot and then he began, "The villagers have seen them moving from this area, right?" Themisto confirmed and on Hendrickson's affirmation he continued.

"The wolves have been migrating from this area to some safer areas of their territory. According to the intel provided by our spies, this region here is the area including the hilly terrain where the impact of war is almost negligible. And if I am being certain then they might be shifting their women and children to the safer areas, meaning they can attack anytime soon." He finished.

Color disappeared from Hendrickson's face on hearing Themisto's words. The wolves were coming to avenge for what the hunter kingdoms have done to them decades ago and he was utterly aware that this isn't something one can keep on ignoring because this upcoming battle would decide their fates and future of their kingdoms. Hendrickson wondered if negotiating was the only way left to resolve this matter but recalling the previous battle he dropped the thought immediately.

"Hendrickson?" Themisto put a hand on his shoulder swooping him out of his troubling thoughts.

"We need to prepare ourselves as well and starting now we need to plan our strategy." Hendrickson's voice was a mix of concern and anger.

*****

The other section of the castle was filled with pleasant music and rhythms. The grand hall was filled with laughter and chatter of the people who danced and enjoyed the event hosted by the royalty of Santok. The lights were bright and the vibrant hues scattered around appeared like flowers in a valley. The two Queens, Artemis and Samantha, were observing the ball from the upper section of the hall.

Samantha Boyle, the queen of Santok, was pleased upon the sight of her son, prince Alexander, waltzing with Selene. She admired her as the future queen of Santok and the wife of her son. Samantha approved of Selene's quirky mind and strong will. Although Ariel Cromwell was blessed with immense beauty, ladylike attributes and generous manners, Selene was the one who possessed both beauty and the brains. And she who was peculiar, was the brightest star and the most gorgeous flower in everyone's eye, including queen Samantha.

Samantha have known her since she was an infant and she has always appreciated her unique ways and her ability to stand poles apart from everyone else. She could stand among the crowd of people yet be spotted from miles with the aura she possessed and this one quality of Selene invited Samantha. She hoped for her son and Selene to tie the knot in future, unbeknownst of the fact that her son wished for the same thing.

Like his mother, Alexander was also dreaming of the same thing. When people notice something unique and beautiful, they try to get their hands on it. To get that thing under their possession, so that they can use it or control it their way. Samantha and Alexander were no different.

"Don't they look good together?" Samantha remarked, as her eyes gawked Selene.

*****

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