The Lykos Chronicles

3 - A delectable scent

Ronan

“Hurry up, Ronan. We have arrived.”

I rolled my eyes at Arthur, my youngest brother. As if I didn’t know that we had finally arrived in Scotland. After all, I was standing on the ship’s deck as we docked.

I could see the highlands, the greenery, and the beautiful trees surrounding Kelt Paw’s lands. The air was fresh and crisp, and I breathed it deep into my lungs.

How I had missed Great Britain. I missed England specifically. It had been so long since I’d been to my country of birth, but Scotland was the next best thing.

Relocating to the United States of America had not been as easy as I had hoped. Initially, it had been a struggle to adjust. Things happened fast, and many Lycan and Werewolf Packs moved with us, though more than a hundred remained.

It wasn’t long before my father began building the City of Lykos – a prominent place for Lycans and Werewolves alike. Father made many alliances with the Dragon King, Vampire King, and the Lion King. With the help of Dragon magic, Lykos became a fortress hidden from the human world – a cloak cast across our lands, making it invisible to the human eye.

I helped with the design of Knight Castle, giving me something to take my mind off our homeland. I learned to love America, and I settled down with my family by my side. Lykos was home now and had been for many years, and it always would be.

I was just weeks away from taking over the throne from my father. But a King without a Queen was not as powerful as he should have been. Because a King with a Queen becomes twice the man he was without her.

As the future King of Lycans, it was my duty to take a mate. If I had not found my destined mate one month before my coronation, it would have been my father’s place to find one for me. The very idea repulsed me. I did not want to mate with anyone who was not meant for me.

Of course, anyone could fall in love, even those in an arranged marriage. However, I had spent my life dreaming of my mate and who she might have been. I always imagined a slender beauty with blue eyes, dark hair, and a smile that could light the darkest night skies. She would be strong and formidable. I also dreamed of a woman who would challenge me and not be afraid to speak her mind.

Many men preferred a submissive woman who spoke only when spoken to and looked pretty at court. I could think of nothing worse. I wanted a confident woman my people could admire, much like my mother. But I feared she did not exist, and I would have no choice but to marry the woman my father picked for me.

Who would my chosen mate be?

Would she be a good mate?

Wife?

Queen?

Only time would tell.

“I wonder what our time here will bring.” James, my brother, who was eight months my junior and my Beta, pondered.

I had wondered the same thing. My father was here to bring a decree to the Alpha of Kelt Paw. Every Lycan Pack in the world had been sent the same thing. Father, however, wanted to deliver this one personally. Every Lycan and Werewolf worldwide would now be documented and accounted for under the King’s law. Too many of our species went under the radar, which meant they weren’t getting the help they needed when they needed it. That would now stop.

“Father merely wants to ensure Kelt Paw’s Alpha is abiding by Lycan Law,” I told him.

It was not easy to keep an eye on every pack in the world at that time. Father had long been appointing Head Alphas worldwide. They would keep things in order, and Alpha Duncan McAlister was one of them. Hench why it was so important for my father to hand-deliver said decree.

Supreme Alpha Henry Dalgaard travelled as much as my father to keep things in order. Henry should have been the one visiting Scotland as my mother had not long given birth to her youngest child. Father should have been home, showing the Kingdom the new arrival. He stayed only for the Welcome Ceremony, then left.

Mother had insisted that Father would go to Scotland and that their sons accompany him. She claimed she had a vision, though she would not tell us what that vision was about. She cupped my cheek, smiled, and asked me to trust her. There was something in these lands that I had to see. My mother was my world, and if I trusted anyone more, I had never met them.

Mother had the power of foresight, and her visions were seldom wrong. I did not know what was so unique about Scotland at that point, but it would not be long before I found out.

“Now,” Father stood before his twelve sons, tall and proud. “Remember what I have told you. Hold your heads high, but do not forget that you are no more important than anyone else. You are Princes of Lycans, and your duty is to your people. We may be Royalty, but we are guests here, and you will show respect to every pack member no matter their rank, as they will respect you. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Father.” My brothers and I replied in unison.

Father was a good man who cared about his people as much as he cared about his family. He was a great King, and I could only hope to be as good as him.

We followed Father off the boat, finally feeling land beneath our feet for the first time in almost two months. The boat hands would deal with our luggage, clean the ship, and restock, ready for the journey home in two days. It would take a further month and a half to reach America, weather permitting. Father refused to stay longer because three months was long enough to be parted from his mate and daughters.

“My King!” Came the booming voice of who could only have been the Alpha, dressed in a fine kilt of red and brown, and his dark wavy hair half up and half down.

The Alpha was a tall man, as most Lycan males were, with a powerful chest. He also had a warm, genuine smile as he greeted us. He bowed to my father and then to my brothers and me. As he introduced the man beside him as his Beta, I noticed a scent lingering upon him, and that scent was driving my Lycan crazy.

‘Calm down,’ I told him.

‘Can you not smell that? It’s like summer rain and the wind through the mountains.’

‘I smell it, Lucian. It’s probably Alpha Duncan’s mate’s scent.’

‘No,’ I sensed my Lycan shaking his head. ‘It’s too potent, too appealing to me. That scent, it’s belongs to…’

“Baths are being drawn as we speak,” The Alpha’s voice cut off my Lycan, who refused to tell me anything more. “My Beta here will lead you there so you can freshen up. My Luna has organised a feast in celebration of your arrival, and the whole pack will be in attendance. Also, we have prepared two stone houses for the duration of your stay with us. I hope this is to your liking.”

My father tipped his head. “That would be most agreeable, Alpha Duncan. It has been a long journey.”

“Excellent! Beta Archie, show our King and the Princes to the bathhouse. Have someone show these men where to take the King’s luggage,” He pointed to my father’s righthand men. “Make sure they are then shown where they will be sleeping.”

The rest of the ship’s crew would be staying on the boat. Father did not want to impose more on the Alpha than he already was. Besides, there was plenty of room on the ship for the crew. I would have gladly stayed there, but Father refused to allow it.

“Yes, Alpha Duncan.” The Beta replied.

The Alpha turned to my father. “The feast will begin in two hours.” He tipped his head and walked away, taking with him that delectable scent.

This trip suddenly didn’t seem so bad.