Marked Under Blood Moon

⚜ Dead Wolves ⚜

LUCAS GINGER

'Did you find anything?' A pensive voice sounded in Lucas's mind.

'Twelve dead wolves near the crook.' Lucas Ginger answered as he swept his eyes over the dead bodies which lay sprawled across the lush green grass.

's**t!' The voice cursed, after a moment it said 'We are coming, keep a watch over there.'

Lucas didn't answer, he didn't hear the faint sigh and he didn't feel the mind link being cut off.

His eyes were fixated on the not so bloody mess before him. Yes, there was no blood but the bodies lay lifeless, as cold as ice and as still as a rock. Four black and eight brown wolves now lay lifeless, their dead bodies now in a dull grey color. There was no colour in the pupils, the once shining eyes now painted in a lifeless shade of white. Lucas had never seen such strange phenomenon like the changing of fur colour after death.

Lucas stepped forward trampling the grass beneath his Nike boots. Crouching on the ground, he observed the body of the wolves but there were no signs of torture. Instead, the wolves looked as if they were in a peaceful slumber. There were no trails of blood marks, muddy footsteps or anything that can possibly leave a clue. The area of murder looked pristine clean, devoid of any foreign objects that may possibly arouse suspicion. For the first time in his life, Lucas felt confused, lost and helpless.

The dead wolves were his brothers-in-arms, they were all the rogues of the Grayclaw pack stationed at the border of the pack for defense purposes. If the attack had happened the day before yesterday, then it would have been his team who would have been lying dead in the woods. The mere thought sent chills down Lucas's spine. Shaking the depressing thoughts out of his mind, Lucas searched for any other leads, all for naught.

In a wolf pack, the rogues were the of the lowest kind. There were two types of rogues: those which were banished by the pack and the wolves with questionable background who were initially not a part of any pack but accepted into one out of pity. While the first type of rogues were a target of death for all the packs, the second kind were ostracized by all in the pack. They were bullied, exploited and all the menial labor was left to them. They were ordered to serve under the beta commanders to guard the pack border. Though they were looked down upon, Lucas felt that it was far better than to wander in the woods alone. But, now he started to have second thoughts. If even the pack failed to provide protection, then what was the point in suffering all the torment in the hands of a few arrogant well-born but ill-bred wolves.

For the enemy to kill the wolves without any bloodshed, Lucas could not even bring himself to imagine the strength of the other party.

"This time we are royally f****d up..." Lucas mumbled under his breath as the weight of the situation settled in his heart.

Soft rustling of the leaves and the low sounds of crunching of twigs snapped Lucas's attention towards the source of the sound. Looking at the group rushing towards him, Lucas slowly stood up while dusting his clothes. As the group were a few feet away from the cluster of dead bodies, Lucas backed away, his steps carrying him towards the lonely man standing under a tree away from all the commotion. Rogues had no place to stand along with the betas and the other higher up's in the pack.

"Aye, if not for me you would be die a lonely death." Lucas said as he neared the man, his voice carrying a teasing tone.

The man gave Lucas a side glance, one which he swiftly withdrew making it seem as if he was totally uninterested in starting a conversation with the energetic Lucas. Though brushed off, Lucas did not get annoyed. No one knew Damien better than him. They both met when they were kids, starving, scared and alone. They fought, cried and survived together. What they had between them was more than friends, deeper than familial bonds.

"With this stone cold personality of others, no woman will love you." Lucas smirked, he wanted to rile up this stone block, he didn't want his future sister-in-law to suffer later on.

"As if you have one." Damien rolled his eyes at Lucas.

Before Lucas could speak anything, Damien diverted the conversation.

"Same things happened in all the packs to the north of us. Wolves being murdered, bodies drained of blood."

With a hardened expression, Lucas sighed "Things are getting worse with each day, the enemy sounds too powerful."

"So they say." Damien answered, his tone enigmatic.

"Who?"

"The alphas of various packs. I spied on them."

"What else did they say?" Lucas knew about Damien's special ability- his hearing abilities are more sensitive than any other wolf, so Lucas was rather curious about what the news was.

"They said something about asking the help of the First wolves..."

First Wolves? Lucas didn't have to ask Damien if he knew because the latter sported a confused expression that mirrored his.

...

A week later, in the middle of the night.

"Lucas, wake up..." Lucas felt someone shaking him.

"f**k off!" Lucas mumbled as he turned around. The hands shaking him came to a halt but before he could relax he felt something hard hit his head. A sharp pain assaulted his head, sitting up straight in an instant, Lucas hissed "What was that for?"

"There's a pack meeting." Damien spoke as he pulled Lucas up.

"In the middle of f*****g night..."

"Language!" Damien warned as he stared at his friend disapprovingly while Lucas simply rolled his eyes.

As they neared the meeting hall, Lucas could see all the members of the pack huddled up making the spacious area look rather congested. Standing on the stage which was a step above the ground was the alpha of their pack, Alpha Dexter.

There was a tensed expression on the man's face, one which was less intense than the one he saw on the day the dead werewolves of their pack were discovered.

It must be good news, if not good, a better one., Lucas thought.

But, what came out of Alpha Dexter's mouth managed to knock everybody off their senses.

"Tomorrow, there will be a meeting of all the packs in the Night Woods. We, the alphas of all the packs requested the First Wolves for their help and it was only after a great effort we managed to get them agree with us. They examined the dead bodies of all the packs and you can expect an answer from them tomorrow. Each and everyone of our pack must be present in the Night Woods by dawn, any absence will be considered as the highest form of treason.

And, mind you all. The First wolves who I speak of are the very first werewolves created by the Moon Goddess herself. Keep this in mind and believe me when I say that I won't hesitate to kill any of you if you somehow anger them."

"Did I make myself clear?" Alpha Dexter spoke, this time using the commanding voice of the alpha.

"Yes, alpha." everyone bowed their heads in agreement though a hundred questions assaulted their hearts.