Ileus: The Dark Prince

Luke and Tasha had tied their horses to the nearby stumps and logs and were cannily hidden from the eyes of the guards of the Whiteclaw pack. They had climbed the trees and in order to hide their smells, they had plucked the leaves in the forest, ground them in paste and rubbed it all over their bodies. 

Right now, sitting higher on a branch, Luke focused on the sounds emanating from the pack. He was waiting to hear commotion which would be his cue to attack from the front gate. 

"After how long will you be seeing your father, Luke?" Tasha asked, sitting on a branch lower than him, interrupting his thoughts.

Luke stilled. A moment later, in a cold voice replied, "It's been over five years." 

"Do you remember your sister?" she asked further in a low voice.

He wasn't liking the flow of the conversation. "Yes, but I remember her childish face. I don't know how she looks now." 

"Do you know that I used to like Kaizan when I was in Silver Vales?" Tasha said, as if recalling and brooding over it. "He used to come to me, but ever since he married Olivia, he…" 

Luke gritted his teeth. He didn't like the sound of it. "He stopped coming to you."

"Yes…"

"What did you expect, Tasha? He is Olivia's mate," Luke snapped. 

Tasha inhaled sharply. She disliked how Luke put it, but that was the truth. "I hate Olivia!" she blurted.

A moment later he replied, "That makes the two of us." 

She chuckled. "Do you see any movement inside?" 

"No." 

They waited for some more time impatiently. All of a sudden there was a loud howl that broke with dawn. They also heard a loud metal clank as if something heavy and metallic had fallen down. 

---

Vaarin had taken a unit of soldiers along with him. The streets were deserted. The stars above had started fading in the night sky, which was beginning to chase the blackness. Vaarin headed for the northern periphery of the pack. He wanted to start from there and take a full circle. From the last few days, he was growing restless. There had been no rogue activity and his spies had informed him that Murtagh had escaped from the capital. That unsettled him a lot. He had increased vigilance in the borders and his soldiers had informed that there was absolutely no activity in the forest or the trade path. Plagued by those thoughts, unease blanketed him. When they reached the northern border, he found that the whole place was absolutely quiet. He headed for the eastern border.

As soon as Vaarin and his group moved out of sight, the rebel leader who was stationed on that side, entered the pack. With the leader ahead the rebels followed him inside the empty streets. There was no one outside at this hour, just as Murtagh had predicted. A smile crept on his lips. This was going to be as easy as cutting butter with a blunt knife. They moved ahead to reach the designated spot where the other team would join them. 

--- 

That kind of sound alerted Luke. He jumped off the tree. "Move! Now!" he yelled at his people. Tasha jumped off the tree and rushed after him. They ran to their horses and mounted them. All of them headed for the main gate. 

Luke was surprised to see that the gate was abandoned and it was hanging over hinges. Perhaps the guards all rushed to join their leader. A grin spread on his face as Luke nudged his horse forward, unsheathing his sword. He could hear loud cries of men and women. The carnage had started. Tasha and his men followed him to the designated spot. He was expecting to find his father over there. Excitement thrummed in his chest. Just a few more hours and then he would return the Whiteclaw pack to its rightful owner. 

Lights had begun to spark up the streets as men, women and children came out, but the moment they came out, they screamed. Rebels attacked them. 

Luke couldn't help but marvel at Murtagh for his planning skills. According to him, the soldiers would be focused on fighting with the rogues on the inside of the pack. Along with his men he would attack them from the outside, squeezing them thoroughly. No one would be able to understand what happened and they would win smoothly. 

Ever since Murtagh had saved him, Luke had hated his father with vengeance. At that time Olivia was a little girl and so he loved her. He was there to protect her whenever he was not fighting for the pack's freedom. However, once he left his pack, Murtagh had asked him not to meet his family otherwise things would get complicated. Luke understood the reason. Murtagh didn't want him to develop feelings for his family. He had said that if he was a freedom fighter, then emotions had no place. All that mattered was loyalty to the land. That thought was ingrained in his mind. He had nothing against Olivia until she married their bitter enemy and now, he resolved to kill her too. He was of the opinion that she should've rejected her mate. 

There was just one thing that clawed his heart at all times—his mother's memories. He didn't know how he would face her. He was going to take care of his mother if Alpha Murtagh allowed it. Else… Else he would have to kill her too. Dread skittered through his body when the thought crossed his mind. But he suppressed that feeling. 

The sky was now a shade of periwinkle and the moon hung low over the horizon.

The sound of metal clanking against metal neared. Men shouting, grunting and roaring as they fought against each other filled him with excitement. They were already galloping through the streets towards that direction. The rogues behind him were taking care of those who dared to come out. Tasha was galloping behind him. His skin pebbled with goosebumps in excitement. "Just a few more hours!" he murmured. The horses rounded a corner, galloped through an alley and then rounded to the left to reach the street in front of Vaarin's mansion. 

As soon as they reached there, and filled in the place, their eyes flew wide open. Luke pulled the reins of his horse. It neighed roughly and stopped. Tasha came to stop right behind him, her body trembling at what she saw. 

They all stared in the golden eyes. Shadows peeled off him angrily.

Panic and fear gripped Tasha's chest. "Prince Ileus!" she rasped. 

Luke came to a startling halt. He was expecting a full war out here, his men slaughtering the soldiers of his father's men, but what he saw was totally the opposite. It was his men who were being slaughtered. 

Right beside Ileus, stood Vaarin, who appeared as if he was controlling his shock. And behind them were the Mozias, some of them on the ground, while a few on their brooms hovering in the sky above them, all glaring at them. 

Next instant Tasha turned her horse back and yelled, "Retreat!" No sooner had they turned to retreat, they found themselves facing Kaizan and his men.