Page 14 of The Silent Mountain (Under the Werewolf Crown #2)

fourteen

Surprises and Attacks

*ALANA*

I ’m still trying to recover from the fact that Favian apologized and retracted from his previous standing, completely, and is now fully on board with inviting another witch to the clan, as he leads me back into the castle.

My eyes fall on a couple of guards first, who are surrounding a group of people. “Our first guests have arrived,” Favian says.

“Is that the surprise?” I ask curiously.

He just smirks and gestures for the guards to make room for us.

Once they do, my eyes fall on Azadeh, my sister-in-law and current queen of the werewolf kingdom, Beta Shayan with his friend, a majestic dog-like creature named Cù Sìth, next to him, and Gamma Tynan, one of my best friends.

I squeal, letting go of Favian’s arm and running towards my friends. Tynan catches me midway, twirling me around in joy. “Alana!” he blurts out before hugging me again. “You look fantastic!”

“You too, Tynan.”

Favian has stepped closer, and Tynan makes sure to put me down again. “All platonic,” he blurts out. “I’m mated.” He fumbles over his own words before gesturing towards Shayan, who just looks amused. “To him.”

Favian nods. “I know.”

Meanwhile, Azadeh steps forward and hugs Favian. “It’s good to see you,” she says with a smile. They share a look that only they can understand. For months, their fate was connected to each other, and it was crucial for Favian’s release from his mental prison that Azadeh found a way to use that bond. It’s like a sibling bond, nothing more. Neither of them ever wanted the other one. Aza has always been in love with my brother, and Favian… well… I hope that from the moment we met, he has only ever wanted me.

It's similar with Tynan and me; no sexual tension anywhere.

I remember my manners and greet Aza and Shayan.

“What’s with the dog?” Ludwig asks. He has followed us inside and now eyes Cù Sìth curiously.

“It’s the harbinger of death,” Shayan explains calmly. “We bonded when we fought against the dark witch.”

“The warrior saved me, and I’m bound to him now,” Cù Sìth growls, making the dragons around me halt in shock when they realize he is able to talk.

“I’m sharing Shayan with a deathly creature,” Tynan grumbles.

Shayan snorts. “Are you truly jealous of a gigantic pup?”

“It’s the harbinger of death, not any pup,” Tynan argues.

Azadeh just rolls her eyes. “Tynan has been like that the whole way,” she whispers to Favian and me. “I’m not sure if I want to wait and see Shayan losing his patience with him.”

“It’s a creature, it’s not like I’m sharing my bed with it. That spot belongs to you, if I may remind you.” Shayan tells Tynan in his usual calm manner, which is probably what riles Tynan up even more. I know my friend. He is a hot-headed, fun and strong guy, but a tad insecure sometimes, especially when it comes to his intelligent mate who, although only human, is considered a war hero in both the human and the werewolf kingdom.

“Allow me to show you around, Azadeh,” Favian says loudly now. “And you too, Beta Shayan. I’m so honored to finally be able to greet both of you in my kingdom.”

“Thank you, but the honor is mine,” Shayan says.

Aza turns around to look at me. “Kilah sent something for you. Let’s meet later!”

I smile. My sister Kilah and I didn’t have the best relationship, but we understand each other a lot better now. I’ll bet she sent a dress for me. Previously, it would have annoyed me, but now I’m quite thankful. Something to surprise my dragon mate with.

“I will show you around, Ty,” I say, grabbing my friend’s arm and tugging him along. I gesture for Ludwig to follow us. “Stop being so dramatic,” I whisper to Tynan.

“I am not-“

“You just made a scene because of a dog.”

He frowns. “Okay. I am a bit dramatic, it’s part of my charm!”

Behind me, Ludwig laughs, and I use this moment to introduce the two men to each other.

“Hey, maybe I can make Shayan jealous with his help,” Tynan beams.

“Are you really the Gamma of the royal pack?” I mutter.

“I’m probably of no help,” Ludwig says. “My preference lies with women.”

“You don’t need to be into men, you just need to pretend.”

“You know, games like that always backfire,” I point out.

Tynan just grumbles something inaudible. Unfortunately, I don’t think he will drop the plan. Since there is no reasoning with him right now, I lead him through the royal clan, showing him around and also introducing him to some of my new friends. Elio and Theodor are outside, training, and Elio is happy to see us. During the war, he spent some weeks with us werewolves and grew quite fond of my family.

I’m about to show Tynan the more secluded areas of the clan, the cliffs and the mountain paths, when the sun above us suddenly darkens, and a different flock of birds disrupts us. Their screeching is loud, almost like they are screaming. Ty, Ludwig and I raise our eyes to the sky, shock and dread filling me at what I’m seeing. It’s like the sky is covered with thick black clouds, but it’s birds. Possibly thousands of them.

“What the fuck…” Tynan mutters.

“Ludwig, go and alert the king,” I blurt out.

Ludwig nods and dashes off while Tynan and I keep our eyes glued to the birds. This time, they don’t pass by the clan and fly off towards the ocean. They seem to have accumulated above us, angry and chaotic.

“What are they doing?” I ask.

“I have no idea. I have never seen anything like this,” Tynan says.

The flock of birds seems to move downwards, closer to us, making us take a couple of steps back. “Alana,” Tynan grabs my arm.

“Yes,” I agree. I know what he is about to say.

We look at each other. “Now!” he yells.

At his command, we both start running. Like they were just waiting for that, the birds flock together, following us. Soon, we are surrounded by them, their claws awfully close. “Shift!” I yell, while I allow Ros to take over, turning into her beautiful, dark brown wolf form. Tynan follows suit and shifts to his wolf form, both of us picking up our pace.

Voices and yells are around us, and I can see Theodor dragging Elio inside while Favian, Ludwig and Stefan run toward me.

I see the beautiful gold glittering even before Favian has fully shifted. The golden Dragon King is truly a sight to behold.

A loud screech can be heard as Stefan and Ludwig follow their king, shifting as well and dashing in our direction. Favian lets out a breath of fire, successfully distracting the birds. I try to remember what he taught me about being agile and about my strong points. I am in my wolf form, but Ros can use the advice too.

Got you, she tells me, successfully rolling over so that the birds dash head forward into the snow. Then, she jumps onto Tynan’s back, tugging one big, black bird off before it can claw into his fur. Another breath of fire finds its way through the birds, the smell of burnt flesh crawls into my nostrils, while dead birds drop down all around us.

The birds seem to recollect, moving back slightly. It almost seems like they are communicating with each other, before regrouping again, but this time, they don’t target Tynan and me. Instead, they fly past us and toward the direction of…

That’s the camp! I link Favian. Where Barbara and Cassie are keeping the mare!

I can feel Favian’s anger through our bond, both alluring and terrifying at the same time. He takes off after the birds, Ludwig and Stefan following him. While Tynan and I also pick up our pace to follow them. I’m relieved to see that Shayan and Theodor have barricaded the windows of the castle, at least those on the front side.

Cù Sìth, however, joins us to my surprise. I still don’t know what exactly he is. It’s like he is a mixture of many animals, both fascinating and a bit scary. Now, however, I am glad to have him at our side as he leads the way towards the camp. Once there, I can see the three dragons fending off the birds, more and more guards following and shifting to their dragon form.

Cassie is dashing into a tent and hiding there. To my shock, a whole bunch of birds follow her.

“The creature,” the harbinger growls.

The creature? He must be talking about the mare!

I take the front, leading him and Tynan to the tent Cassie is hiding in. A flock of birds follows us, but one swipe with Cù Sìth’s tail and they are gone.

“Cassie!” Barbara yells while fighting herself through the birds in the tent. There are too many of them, surrounding Barbara and clawing at her. Cassie is hiding in the furthest corner, the mare in the cage right next to her. Her eyes are wide in fear, and she buries her head in her arms.

Before any of us can act, Cù Sìth lets out a loud growl. It shakes the ground and makes my head spin, and for a split second, I can see and feel it all. I see Ita’s body in front of me, the mortal wound she received, I feel the pain once more, the loss. Ros groans in pain while Tynan lowers his head, whimpering slightly.

Around us, birds drop to the ground, and Cù Sìth stops his battle cry. I try to get my emotions under control, remembering from Shayan that this is Cù Sìth’s power—to awaken the deepest fears in someone. He did it to target the birds, but it did have some effects on us too. Barbara drops to her knees, looking tired and sad, her arms full of scratches, while Cassie looks at us through teary eyes.

I swiftly shift to my human form, hurrying to her. “That's the battle cry of Cù Sìth,” I reassure her. “Everything is alright.”

Cù Sìth tilts his head. “I apologize, but it was necessary.”

His words seem to pull Cassie out of her haze. “The harbinger,” she whispers. “He is really here!”

Cù Sìth turns his head to the cage that the mare is kept in. “They didn’t get him, fortunately.”

“That’s what they were after?” Tynan asks, back in his human form as well.

Cassie gawps at him and blushes, averting her gaze. I completely forgot that we are naked after shifting back to our human form. I don’t need to look for something to cover myself with for long, because Favian hurries to us in the tent, with relief on his face when he sees us. Then, he swiftly takes off his coat and puts it around me. Tynan, meanwhile, unceremoniously takes the tablecloth off the table and wraps it around his body.

“Cù Sìth said the birds were targeting the mare,” I tell Favian.

“Why?”

“Because it’s not from this realm,” Cù Sìth says, circling the creature in interest. “It shouldn’t be here.”

“I thought mares were just uncommon in our area?” I ask.

“They are uncommon in this whole realm. They were banned from here,” he says. “Only myths and legends about them remain.”

“So, it escaped?” I ask.

“Maybe,” Cù Sìth lowers his head to stare at the malicious creature. “I would like to do my own research.”

“Of course,” Cassie blurts out. “Research, however…whatever…” she pauses. “This is a dream come true! The harbinger of death in my tent.”

“One's dream is another’s nightmare and the other way round, I guess,” Tynan mutters.

Seeing how they have it under control, I remember that Barbara got hurt during the attack. Fortunately, Stefan is already tending to her. I still want to make sure that she is alright though, and follow both of them out of the tent. “Barbara…”

“I’m okay, Alana,” she shows me the scratches. “It’s all just on the surface.”

“I still want you to get them treated,” Stefan says. “It was slightly stupid to jump into a flock of deadly birds.”

“She was defending Cassie,” I say.

“That’s why I said it was only slightly stupid,” he says.

“Don’t be so patronizing,” Barbara chuckles. “You sound like my father. Maybe that’s why the king always glares at you.”

Stefan sighs. “I don’t think that’s the reason,” he says.

His words stir my interest, but it’s not the place to enquire further. Stefan is right, Barbara needs to see a healer.

“Still so gloomy,” Barbara teases.

“In the good old days, insulting the king’s advisor would have landed you in the cells,” Stefan teases right back.

“Yeah, however, something tells me if you suggested that to Favian, it might not end too well,” I chuckle.

“Well, at least not for me,” he admits with a smile. “I am not particularly high on his list of favorite people. Come, Barbara, allow your patronizing mentor to take you to our healer.