Chapter 4

“We live in an age that is vastly different from any that comes before. This is an era where neither lycanthropes nor humans have to fear each other; an age of cooperation and trust. That is one of the duties of the Counsel. We were formed originally to prevent another massacre as well as to be a governing force to keep recalcitrant werewolves in line. Our goals have changed little in the years since then but for one detail. It is now one of our top priorities to assure the security and connection between all people who live on this earth.”

Alexi Baneheart was winding down his lecture. Krissi shifted next to her husband, trying discretely to dispel the cramps and aches from sitting still for two hours. She wasn’t feeling very well and sitting still for that long had never been her forte in any case.

“To wrap up this seminar, I would like to answer any questions you might have. My friend Boriel will go around with the microphone so that you can voice any questions. We’ll start in the front rows and move back to those of you seated on the hill; we want to make sure everyone gets a voice.”

Tarren had noticed her shifting and looked at her enquiringly. She made a face at him and turned to watch as people stood to voice their questions. Most of the questions were expected and answered easily. There was one notable exception.

“You say that you’re concerned about the threats to your kind. But what about the threat you pose to us? What are you doing about that?”

There was a heavy silence as the audience waited to see how Lord Alexi would respond. Krissi unconsciously held her breath.

“That is a valid question, and I thank you for bringing it up. “Alexi answered politely if crisply. “Lycanthropes have a series of codes that must be adhered to. First off, we do nothing that might threaten the existence of our brethren. Second, little to no bloodshed is to be spilled. Third, threatening normal humans is not accepted for any reason other than self defense. Even then it is closely scrutinized. There are of course many more, smaller details in our system.”

“One of the biggest, and may I add least enjoyable, jobs that the Counsel must do is disciplining those that break our code. Some of you may have heard about the fiasco that took place a few years ago in West Virginia.” Here he nodded minutely to Krissi and Tarren. “Unfortunately with that debacle, there was no recourse. Those responsible did not survive. But they knew the risks when they began their siege of the school grounds. This is a point that I feel should be made clear.”

He swept his piercing eyes over the crowd, making sure that everyone there was hanging onto his every word.

“Like normal wolves, werewolves have ‘territory’. This territory changes with the pack size, and with almost any condition that can be thought of. However, dating back to times when it meant death to acknowledge the existence of lycans, changes in territory are to be done silently and with little to no bloodshed. That calamity, which almost became a massacre, is a great example of where the power of the Counsel comes in. We are here to make sure that things like that do not happen. What if we hadn’t been there and it had spilled into the housing or onto the college grounds? There would be more casualties than the misguided perpetrators. That is unacceptable.”

His stare caught every eye, while never making direct contact with any of them. He let his point settle before moving on.

“Like a democracy, the Council answers to the will of our brethren. In the same way, our word is law.”

He moved on, answering the rest of the questions before concluding the conference. “I thank you all for coming out here today. I ask you to please adjourn calmly, and to enjoy the city for however long you are here.”

-

“I’m glad that you guys made it. I wasn’t sure you would come.” Alexi, Boriel, and Tarren sipped steaming hot coffee while Krissi mulled over a cup of herbal tea.

“We almost didn’t. Krissi was really sick this morning at the hotel. We’re thinking that the steak from the night before might have been going bad or something and she got food poisoning.” Tarren answered for his wife.

She made a face at him before continuing to sip her tea. “It’s not that bad. I just wouldn’t be up for a game of tag with the triplets.”

“Well I hope you get better soon sis. I’d like your pack to fly out to the castle for a vacation. Plus, I heard that your alpha just gave birth a little while ago, isn’t that right?” Alexi said.

“Yeah, twins. And that Isabella has a better set of lungs on her than Mathias did at her age.” Krissi grouched. With fair reason, she was tired, sick, and now…

“Wait, you want us to visit you in Glen Erie? Why?” she asked, suspicious. He’d never asked her to return to her first home; not after she’d left on such bad terms. He had to have a good reason beyond just a familiar visit.

“This goes no farther than your pack, understand?” Krissi and Tarren nodded, and leaned forward, worried by the tone Alexi’s voice had taken. Boreal sat stoically, silent.

“There have been some… deaths in the family recently. They seem to be normal, except that too many people are dying. I need some outside eyes to tell me what I’m missing. You know the territory as well as I do Krissi. And I trust your pack to back you. Plus, a familial visit is the perfect excuse. No one will expect that it’s really an investigation into the deaths.”

“I’ll talk to Isaiah and Meredith. But I don’t know how they’ll feel about bringing the new babies.” Krissi said. Tarren had turned inwardly, possibly trying to make a connection with Isaiah then and there. It was harder to do when not in wolf form, but not impossible.

“Isaiah says that a vacation is exactly what the pack needs. He’ll talk to the others and start getting people the required time off. Is next week soon enough?” Tarren asked Alexi after a period of time.

“Next week will be perfect.”

“Then we’ll see you then.” The two groups paid their respective tabs and separated, Alexi and Boreal to their plane, and Krissi and Tarren to their hotel room for one more night. There was much to get ready for, for the home of the Counsel was as much a challenge as any lions den, with much more subtlety.

Sorry it took so long to get this updated. I've been distracted with other ideas and stories. :)

I hope that you'll review, i love reading people's comments!

EF