Chapter 12

• *Unknown*
• Peeking over his shoulders, surveying the surroundings making sure that he was not followed. Rushing from one snow pile to the next, scuring around and hoping the wind would cover up the footprints that he was leaving behind. It took a day to get to the Spring Pond. With the water being frozen, the male travelled carefully over the ice. each step the ice creaking from his weight. The male wondered if the ice would break and he would be drowned. The moment he passed a pond the male continued to go to the meeting point.
• Still fearing that he might lose his life, he continued to look in the direction he had come from. Never fully feeling safe!
• Another day out in the wild with his provisions dwindling, the man knew he had to get to the target before the elements killed him or starvation.
• With only the light of the moon. The winter winds blew his cloak around his body. He could tell that frostbite had set into his feet and hands. Several times he had to stop to warm up his digits. He was about to give up when he noticed how close he was to the trees. Smiling to himself a new burst of energy urged him to get up and continue travelling to his destination. The male took each step as his head was down. In the thicket of the trees, General Viscarti watched the man struggle against the elements.
• Only when the man got to the safety of the trees did he sit down on a partially snow-covered rock. With his time in the North, he had never seen snow this plentiful nor winds that could slice the skin like a razor blade.
• “What news do you have for me boy?” General Viscarti dropped from the canopy of trees.
• With haste the male jumped up, stuttering, “You have to get me out of here. Bog is in the clinic. Gruneth tells me he will most likely not make it. Diven is dead! Killed in the attack. It is only a matter of time before they figure out I am a spy for my father!”
• “Your father will not be pleased to hear this news." General Viscarti studied the weakling. "What else do you get?”
• The male snorted not believing that the general would question him here and now.
• “Come on boy you were there for three years and you are telling me you have no news!” General Viscarti was growing more impatient. "Your brothers were more useful than you. Why your father sent you, a snivelling skirt here for such an important mission ... I will never understand your father's logic!"
• The male displayed his fangs at hearing the general speaking down to him. "I am not weak!" He shouted.
• Curling his lips, "What news do you have then boy?" General Viscarti hissed.
• “The day the Alpha Queen arrived … things became more evasive. The day Hinaar and his kin were captured, no news was leaked out. Everyone had been mandated not to speak about the going ons, even the maids were under this alpha order. The alpha’s do as the queen says. Bog did say one thing … The queen is not a fool but she is young. Her education is not of the old ways though she is quick to learn.”
• “Whatelse do you know of this new queen?” General Viscarti continued to question the man.
• The male shrugged his shoulders, “only that she is military-raised and she is always with the vampire lord. Only a few times has she joined the hall for meals and continently she is protected. Each time she is seen, someone is arrested for treason and taken to the dungeons. Once they are in the dungeons, no one hears from our spies again. I don’t know what you and my father are wanting?” The male was showing signs of stress. “I did what was asked of me, I could not get any closer to the alphas than what Belynor would allow.” He scoffed, "I only know what Belynor allowed me to see and hear. The moment they became suspicious, low-ranking attendants had been shut down and given pre-admin tasks."
• General Viscarti was bobbing his head, “you mentioned that Bog will die of his injuries?”
• “Yes!”
• General Viscarti started strolling, standing behind the male. “Your father is going to be very upset once he hears that his sons are dead.” Grabbed the male from behind. General Viscarti did not allow him the chance to utter a word. Sinking his fangs into the male's neck he paralysed him. Dropping his body to the ground.
• “Your father was a fool!” General Viscarti glared down at the male with spit. “The queen you speak of is Rimvan's kin … his daughter!” He roared. “This is what happens when you make haste decisions. Sending out all of our army and not knowing everything will cost us the war. I for one do not plan to have my head severed and handed to Baldwin on a gold platter.” He spat out at the man who had a watermark going down his face. “You will be joining Balvalur soon, but not until I see what you know!”
• Crouching down, General Viscarti sunk his teeth into the male's neck. Drinking his fill until he was satisfied.
• Licking the blood off his lips, “You failed to mention how Rimvan's daughter taught the shifters how to do a half shift making them stronger.” He showed the male to the ground.
• Standing to his full height the general left the location. Speeding through the trees he made it to a small dugout in the earth. Entering the location, Noryeras was standing and waiting for the general.
• “What news did Buz have?” Noryeras asked as he took a step closer.
• Huffing out with irritation, “Nothing is known of the female vampire who was pregnant. Buz did not have interactions with the female. The alpha Queen on the other hand has taught the shifters how to become stronger by completing a half shift. Allowing them the ability to fight in their half form, giving them an advantage that they never had before.” General Viscarti pounded the cave walls. “Rimvan has taught his daughter well, if she were not a shifter … I would have turned Finja, making her mine! She has skill in military strategies, no different than Rimvan.”
• “General Zincan Ulla is not going to like this when he finds out about this.” Noryeras commented while rubbing his chin. “We need to get to Lich Princess and devise a plan that will defeat the shifters and witches.” He was pacing the location. “Rimvan was always an issue!”
• "It appears that when Coldfurgus killed Rimvan, he did not think to take the offsprings as well." The general was pacing the location as he was thinking. “Rimvan made sure that his offspring picked up where he had left off. As any parent would! What Zincan Ulla did not take into consideration was how efficient Rimvan’s offspring would be. The moment Rimvan was killed, Finja avenged her father ... now she will come for our heads.” Abruptly he stopped moving his feet as if a thought had come to his mind. General Viscarti glanced around the location. “We have to leave. Staying here is pointless, Carbel should have reached Lich Princess by now. It will take her another two days to get to Whitecrown Mountain to gather up our army. I will tell the council to meet us at our target.” Sitting on the ground, “First I need to tell Zincan Ulla the devastating news of his sons.”
• *Underground Army*
• Zane and his group had made it to Siver Heath. Camouflage into the surrounding Zane and his men observed the unregistered vampires that were located at the bottom of the hill.
• Signalling to his men to move back.
• “I counted 20!” Zane whispered to the fighters.
• “I think it is a trap!”
• Zane looked at the recruit, “you would be correct! Now tell me draftee … where are the others?”
• The draftee was shocked, “Um!” He paused not thinking that he would be called out.
• Patting the young man on the shoulders, speaking in a calm tone, “if you are going to think and speak … make sure you have an answer for my questions.” Zane studied the group. “Look at the landscape, you are all intelligent men and women. If this is a trap, where are the others?”
• This group was different from the others Zane had trained for fieldwork. The others were with their parents, whereas this group was made up of orphans and refugees wanting to make a difference. With the three months of basic training. The draftees were now paired up with an elite warrior who did not have offspring to tag along with them.
• “The landscape is flat with few hills, like this one!” A female recruiter spoke up. “But I believe that they are not on the other mound across from us. It is true vampires have speed, but from our classes. Vampires like to do sneak attacks. I think they are hidden in plain sight.”
• “You would be correct, draftee! Plan sight there are 20 unregistered vampires. There are an additional 95 unregistered vampires camouflage into the landscape. With more field training, you will pick up these subtleties.” Zane nodded his head once at his second in command, “warriors collect your second!”
• With everyone in position, the warriors took out their blow guns. Aiming for the hidden unregistered vampires, their second used the binoculars to see what they did not pick up the first time they were on the top of the mound.
• An unregistered vampire motioned his head in the direction of the sound he had heard. Unable to see what had made the sound, he turned his attention back to the conversation the group of 20 were having.
• Again the warriors readied their blow guns. The recruits continued to observe without saying a word or moving a muscle.
• This time an unregistered vampire stood up hearing a moan. The warriors did not move as they waited to see if the group of 20 could find their location.
• Laying low to the ground, the recruits' heart rates had picked up. Their hands were becoming sweaty. Only when the vampire sat down again did the recruits let out a soft sigh of relief.
• Motioning with his two fingers, the warriors placed a dart in the guns. Aiming for their next target. Waiting for the right second, they placed their lips to the end of the blowgun and blew, sending the dart in the direction they hoped would be the body of the hidden unregistered vampire.
• Each time the warriors would hit their target one of the group of 20 would stand, and survey the surrounding area. Only to sit when they could not spot the warriors. Repeating this cycle until the warriors believed that they had hit the 95 hidden targets. With the group of 20 unregistered vampires becoming more suspicious and on edge, the warrior aimed their blow guns at them.
• With little effort, the warriors were able to hit all of the 20 unregistered vampires. Each of them stood up once they had known they were poisoned. Coming out of their hiding the warriors and their second charged toward them.
• Before the first warrior had reached their target their blades were drawn. It would take another 30 seconds for the poison to take over the unregistered vampire, rendering them unconscious.
• The poison was taking effect, and the vampire's movement was slowed down. Some began to sway back and forth, falling to the ground.
• “You need to cut off their heads!” A warrior said to his second.
• The female glared down at the unregistered vampire, hesitation, glancing from the vampire whose eyes seemed to be locked on hers. Back to the warrior who was to trainer and not leave her side until she received her new name. “I don’t think I can do it!”
• The warrior placed his hands on her shoulder, “your parents never took you hunting did they?”
• The female motioned her head downward, glaring at her feet. “No sir! Pa said hunting was a man's job and I was to be in the kitchen with my ma!”
• “Well draftee … Here we are all equal, man and woman. You have two choices: return back to the kitchen or … do what every warrior has to do sooner or later.” The warrior handed the female a blade, expecting her to make her decision.
• Taking a few deep breaths, the female glared down at the vampire, “I take no pleasure in doing this.” She hardened her features as she bent down and cut the head off the vampire.
• “Each time you make a kill, repeat that over and over. It is what will keep your ethical viewpoints.” The warrior took the blade back from the draftee. “War is an ugly thing, no one really wins and pieces of what we were are cut out of us. War is destructive and messy, generational homes will fall to ashes and rubble. Not wanting the other side to use the structure for shelter or safety. Each side does what it takes to stay alive by taking the life of another. You will lose everything and be left with nightmares that will leave you screaming in the night. The day you lose your sense of moral … that is the day you die!” The warrior knelt on the ground. Muttering words that would have been spoken at a burial right, he glanced up at the stars.
• Wrinkling her forehead as she watched the warrior. “Why do you speak the words of a burial right?” She was confused as to why he would respect the enemy.
• “He was once someone's son, a possible brother. He could have been a mate and father. One thing is for sure, he was human before he went through the change. I give my respects to the human aspect as you should too!” The warrior stood up, “come on! There are others that need to find their final death.”
• There was no laughing or joking around as the warrior stood beside their second. Seeing if they could do the one thing many did not have the stomach to complete. By the time everything had been achieved, the recruits were off to the side, emptying the contents that were in their stomachs.
• Some warriors stood beside the draftee not saying a word, understanding what they were going through and the thoughts they were having.
• Calling everyone together, "you have completed your first task. The hardest thing for anyone to do. That is why I will give you the option to go back to the hive. No one here will think less of you." Zane spoke to the recruits.
• Studying the group he waited for a draftee to step forward. Admitting the life of a warrior was not meant for them.
• A young man stood up, "I can't do it!" He had tears rolling down his cheeks. "I thought I could avenge my father's death for my mother. But I can't look them in the eye and ..." The warrior who was standing beside him, placed his hand on his shoulder as he openly cried.
• "Revenge is not a reason to be a warrior. It clouds your mind, not allowing you to see clearly. You become a warrior to serve your people and land." The warrior glanced at Zane, "I will take him back to the hive."
• Zane gave him a single nod, "if you have thoughts of revenge, think twice! It will not serve you well to be motivated by rage and hatred. Yes, you are killing the enemy, but you have to remember ... they are no different than you. They are serving a master that did not give them a choice. We are giving you the choice to join or turn away."
• Zane gave the group more time to think about what they wanted to do. By the time everyone had made their decision three draftees had decided that they did not have the stomach to be a warrior.