Aodhan took a deep breath and began telling his king every detail of the Vicious Fangs Awakening as reported by their informant. He left nothing out, recounting the atmosphere and the tension of the ritual. Kallos leaned in, fully engrossed in the narrative, and kept interrupting him to ask about specific details he didn't want to miss. He was the kind of listener who needed to understand every grain of the story to feel like he was there. Aodhan, the ever-patient Lord Commander, simply paused each time to answer before picking up the course of the story.
"And then," Aodhan said, his voice trailing off as he hesitated.
Kallos shifted forward, his silk robes rustling. "And then what? Why did you stop? Don't leave me hanging—it's getting more interesting, Aodhan."
"According to our informant, something happened during the ceremony that broke the rhythm of the ritual," Aodhan said, his brow furrowed as if he were still trying to wrap his own mind around the report.
"What went wrong, for crying out loud?" Kallos asked, his fingers drumming impatiently against the armrest. He clearly did not appreciate how the momentum of the story was being stalled by Aodhan's own disbelief.
Aodhan nearly burst out laughing at his king's insatiable love for stories and details. He was certain a war could be breaking out in Omnia and Kallos would remain blissfully unaware until the very last sentence of a good tale was finished.
"During the Awakening, one of the pack members did not get a wolf at all," Aodhan said.
Kallos blinked, his expression blank for a moment. "What do you mean? What kind of wolf won't have a wolf? Did one of their parents mate with a human? Is this a half blood situation?"
"No, Sire," Aodhan answered, shaking his head. "Both of her parents were wolves. They were Umbra wolves, in fact."
"Her?" Kallos asked, his interest sharpening. "A wolf-less wolf from a line of Umbra wolves? That is unheard of—a biological impossibility in a lineage that strong. And will you stop pausing after every sentence and just tell me everything that happened?"
"I'm sorry, Sire," Aodhan apologized quickly, inclining his head in a slight bow before continuing. "According to the informant, the pack believes she was cursed from her mother's womb. Her father died the day her mother's pregnancy was announced, and her mother followed him in death during childbirth. It is also said that her curse killed her only friend when they were just nine years old. Because of these events, the pack believes the Moon Goddess deems her unworthy and has refused her a wolf."
Kallos's face twisted in disgust. "Nonsense. Pure, superstitious nonsense." He leaned back, his eyes flashing with a cold light. "I have known the Vicious Fangs for many shameful deeds, but I never thought leaning on old wives' tales would be one of them. They are simply looking for an excuse to torment a child, and a girl with no parents is an easy target. How is she to blame for her parents' deaths? A girl who needs the protection of her pack is instead treated like a leper. That pack gives me far too many reasons to want to wipe them out. How exactly did the friend die?
"It was said she fell from a plum tree while they were playing in the forest," Aodhan said.
Kallos's voice thickened with sarcasm as he asked, "What, did the girl turn into a tree branch and push her friend down? Did she command gravity itself to drag the other child to the ground?"
Aodhan sighed, his shoulders relaxing slightly. "No, Sire. The friend simply fell from a dead branch while she happened to be nearby. It was a tragic accident of childhood, nothing more."
Kallos could not explain why, but hearing the girl's story made his blood simmer. It made him want to go berserk on the Vicious Fangs for the years of cruelty they must have put her through. He felt a rare, protective heat rising in his chest for a stranger he had never met.
"What is wrong with these packs and their need for a scapegoat?" Kallos asked, shaking his head. "Anyways, that is not my problem." He shrugged the uneasy feeling away, trying to focus back on the political fallout. "Just tell me how that has something to do with the Vicious Fangs getting only two Umbras and so many Ashen wolves. We're talking about the pack with nearly the most Umbra wolves in Aethelgard."
"After the girl did not get a wolf, it was said her mate bond awakened instead," Aodhan continued, his voice dropping an octave. "It paired her with the Alpha's son."
"Hahaha!" Kallos burst out laughing again, his white hair shaking. "Talk about nemesis! You mean the one they hated is going to be their future Luna? Oh, I love this tale. The Goddess has a wicked sense of humor. Tell me more."
"Actually, she was rejected," Aodhan said. "The Alpha's son rejected her when his father gave him the choice: take her or forfeit the right to become the next Alpha."
"Coward," Kallos spat, the humor vanishing from his face instantly. The anger he felt now was sharp and jagged. "Axel should have taken the offer to claim her as his own or just been a man and killed his ruthless father. He should have claimed his mate and become the Alpha by right of strength. Who in their right mind rejects their mate? A mate is a gift, a tether to one's own soul."
Aodhan watched the King's fury, then continued. "After that rejection, the remaining Dormants awakened as Ashen wolves. Every single one. Not a single Umbra or Earthen followed."
"Hahahaha!" Kallos's loud voice cut him off again, his laughter returning with twice the force. "Let me guess, they blamed her for their misfortune?"
"Yes, Sire," Aodhan replied, fighting hard not to join in on the laugh as his king's continued laughter echoed off the vaulted ceilings, shaking the very air of the throne room. "They said she tainted the ritual stone with her presence."
"Oh my goodness," Kallos said, wiping a tear from his eye. "Did their narrow minds not tell them that maybe the Goddess is angry with them for all their cruelty and decided to punish the entire pack? This is the first time in history they are getting more Ashen wolves than Umbra or Earthen. They are going from a pack of elites to a pack of laborers in a single night."
Kallos chuckled again, his chest heaving. "I hope it continues that way. I hope Vexton has to spend the rest of his years witnessing the awakening of more Ashen wolves in his pack at every ritual." Aodhan watched his king with a look of concern, worried that such excessive laughter might actually make the man faint.
Suddenly, the heavy doors of the throne room swung open. An old man burst into the room, walking with an energetic stride that defied his weathered appearance. The intrusion startled both Kallos and Aodhan. Kallos glared at the newcomer, his laughter dying in his throat.
"What is going on, Hecate?" Kallos snapped.