C2 Chapter Two

The rising sun cast a rosy hue across the morning sky. Golden fingers of sunlight lit up the pack. The light of dawn seeped across Alpha Gideon's face as he fondled his bleary eyes and strode to his throne. “I appreciate you all for gracing this 'impromptu meeting'. I thought you all would never show up anyway,” Gideon orations the elders while Andrews gallantly stood beside him, securing his safety. He was inclined to protect Gideon with his life.

Alpha Gideon was entirely stunned at the immense turn-up of the pack. He never acknowledged everyone would show up so early. It's barely 9 am.

"We just had to. Andrew sounded so urgent over the phone. Please permit me to ask the Lordship why he summoned us all here to the pack,” Jephthah, the oldest of the clan, raised the question. He held a walking stick to subordinate his movement. Despite being 70, he still had the kingdom's interest at heart. His bravery and intellect caught the attention of the Alpha. Oftentimes, Gideon considers his assertion highly substantial in critical cases like this.

"May the goddess be praised! As you all know, Nyria is the largest and most powerful country on the continent of Etherus. We are bountiful and blessed by our goddess, Selene, our substantiality is unpaired. How would you feel if our land gets raided, our wives and daughters enslaved and my throne forcefully taken away from me? Should we tuck our arms and watch that happen?” Alpha Gideon put up a provocative question that awakened anxiety in the atmosphere. Finally, the logic behind his recent unrest had been uncovered.

"My Lord, you converse in parables. How genuine is your source?” One of the elders challenged the authentication of the source, which Gideon didn't find amusing.

"How dare you question the authenticity of my source? This is barbaric and unacceptable,” Alpha Gideon raged.

"Apologies, my Lord. Pardon my manners, but I was only inquisitive,” he quickly apologized to ward off the Alpha's fury.

Gideon further clarified how a reliable source disclosed to him that Alpha George of the Oshine kingdom was planning to dethrone him and enslave the nation. “I had a horrendous nightmare last night, too. It all came down to this,” Gideon summed up.

Oshine happens to be the second-largest country, they started evolving from wealth to wealth. Winning wars and gaining slaves. And soon, they stand a chance of evolving better than Nyria. Alpha Gideon won't let that come to pass. Not under his regime. He just can't fold his arms and watch his country be enslaved.

"So what are we going to do now? Procrastination, they say, steals time. We are quite conscious that neighboring countries like Yyphria, Zimblane, Yazuma, Usharia, and Reno are all covetous of us. You can't blame them. We are endowed beyond measure.” One of the elders joked and drew in laughter from everyone. Alpha Gideon was impressed by the keenness of his people. He could discern that they're prepared to safeguard the nation, no matter what it takes.

"Simple! We fight. The best way to defend is to attack. We can't give room for complacency. I'm willing to give up my life for this Kingdom. It's my obligation to defend my people” Gideon showed off soliciting their opinion. For the Very first time, they were quiet and went blank.

Minutes had gone by and everyone was still mild, while some faced the ground in loss. No one appeared to come up with an answer, and Gideon wasn't loving it. He was running out of time and needed answers. “Why the sudden mute? Quit playing dumb, you all. Speak up,” his voice strikes like a thunderstorm and created nervousness among them. Finally, someone courageous enough stood up and came up with a brilliant suggestion, Kane, a former warrior of the land. He fought for Gideon's late father during the ancient war and conquered many. Sadly, age got the best of him and bullied him into a premature retirement.

"I suggest we send spies to Oshine kingdom to obtain more information about them, and their mode of operation, too. Remember what transpired the last time we raided a land unprepared? We lost hundreds of our army. Of course, my Lord wouldn't want a repeat of that unfortunate incident, right? We might need some backup, too. We lost enough soldiers already during the last war. How do we resolve that? I bet I have spoken on behalf of everyone?”

"Yes, elder Kane!” The elders responded in unison.

"You've spoken eloquently, Kane. That shouldn't be a problem. I've got a perfect plan. A perfect solution to fix that. We would seek help from the barbaric werewolves.” Alpha Gideon proposed, which didn't go well with the elders. From the disposition around the pack, Gideon could tell his elders weren't supporting the concept of seeking help from the barbaric werewolves to emerge victorious in the battle. They are the most difficult people to deal with. Ruthless, cold-blooded, and extremely difficult when it comes to reaching a compromise. But who are they to question the orders of the Alpha? Right or wrong, he dares not be questioned by anyone. His opinion is final, without additivity.

The barbaric werewolves are normal just like Gideon and his clan, but suddenly, they started deriving pleasure in killing and feeding on human flesh. They formally resided at Usharia, the Northern part of the continent, until the Eradication of Barbaric Werewolves Association (EBWA) killed them all not knowing alpha Gideon took a few in, harbored, sheltered, and trained them to his taste. Now is the time for them to finally repay Alpha Gideon for rescuing them from the government. They're alive today courtesy of Gideon's heroics.

"Is anyone willing to travel to Oshine Kingdom as a spy? I need a volunteer. And I want to believe 24hrs is enough to get all the vital information we need about their modules of operation, right?” Alpha Gideon asked after talking endlessly. To his greatest surprise, no one volunteered to embark on a ruthless journey to oshine as a spy. They can't afford to risk their lives on a journey that appears unimaginable.

Oshine Kingdom is the second-largest country on the continent, but its security are always on guard. Consenting to spy on Oshine Kingdom is synonymous with signing a death sentence. One might not make it alive.

"Since no one is willing to volunteer himself, I guess I have to assign one myself,” Gideon proclaimed and stood up, touring the pack to personally appoint a volunteer. The whole elders got so scared and buried their faces in the ground; Their hearts clouded with fear.

"Hey, you, stand up.” Gideon pointed to Josiah, a middle-aged man in his early sixties.

"Me?” Josiah pretending not to know.

"Of course, you. You'll journey to Oshine Kingdom by dawn tomorrow and return in 24hrs. I'll leave you in the hands of Andrews, my aide, to equip you with everything. He'll also assign you tips on how to earn the trust of the Oshine people,” Alpha Gideon declared and concluded the meeting amidst the muttering by the elders. While some of them thanked the goddess for not allowing Gideon to select them, others pitied Josiah and were already planning his funeral.