Dominque and Isabella exchanged a worrying glance and Isabella ran to open the door. Taylor stood there, looking extremely worried.
“Dominque. There are humans. In the forest. An army, with guns and weapons,” he said.
“Hold on. Humans? How?” Dominque asked.
“The forest was starting to fill up with their stench. At first I thought it was the pup, so I ignored it. But it kept getting stronger, and I told Lucius to just do a run and make sure it’s all good,” Taylor said. “It’s not good. Humans are here, with a proper army. They will be here in less than an hour or so.”
Isabella saw Dominque’s eyes light up with determination. “Get the pack. Tell them what is happening. Get them all ready to fight. Send someone to the armory, and get as much armor as we can,” he said, taking charge.
Taylor nodded. “Any other orders?”
“Yea. Send Lucius. Also, tell Rose to take the little children and the extremely old, and then evacuate. Tell her to take the pup with her. Go somewhere and hide. Everyone who can fight, stays,” Dominque instructed. Taylor nodded, running out.
Dominque took out a piece of paper and started to write a note. Isabella didn’t interrupt him, letting him concentrate. He finished writing and turned to Isabella. “Do you have any wax?” he asked.
Isabella nodded and handed him some. He melted it and then stamped the note with his ring. Lucius was here by now and Dominque turned to him.
“How many?” he asked.
“Over a thousand. They come prepared with silver bullets and weapons,” Lucius replied.
“Get to the armory. Get as much armor as you can. I am sending a note to the other packs, to ask them for help. We need to hold on, until we get reinforcements. I appoint you general. Go and assemble everyone,” he ordered and Lucius nodded, before leaving.
“Isabella, come here. Look at this map. You see this place? Here is a letter, stamped by me, asking the packs over there for the reinforcements. It’s a three-hour journey, if you run non-stop. Get there, give them my note,” Dominque said.
“Three hours? Just to reach it? It will be six hours before the reinforcements can get here. Can you hold them for that long?” Isabella asked, feeling herself melt with worry.
“We will. I promise you. But this is important. We can hold them, provided that help reaches us,” Dominque said.
Isabella didn’t want to leave, but she knew she had to do this, no matter that. She nodded and took the letter.
“Promise me, that when I get back, you will still be here. Alive,” Isabella said.
“Aye. Have I let you down yet?” Dominque said smiling. Isabella shook her head and gave him a long and passionate kiss before leaving.
Time was running out and Isabella knew she had to do everything she could to keep her pack and Dominque safe.
Chapter 17
Dominque
Elder Lawson finished suiting Dominque in his armor, a rather genius invention. Dominque had started work on the design almost five years ago, in case there was ever a situation like this. The entire council had taken on the project with fervor and now the results stood before them. The armor was light, with multiple thin plates overlapping to provide extreme flexibility, allowing the wolf body to twist and turn almost naturally.
It also provided protection against the silver bullets by absorbing most of the force of the bullets. Of course, it did have its faults. For one, someone had to put the armor on the wolf after they shifted. For another, giving flexibility to the armor meant compromising its strength. The material could only take a few bullets before it would stop offering protection.
Nevertheless, it was quite a genius invention and Dominque was confident that they could hold them off. After the elder finished suiting him up, he went to help the other wolves, and Dominque walked out. The evacuation was complete, the children and the elderly had left with Rose. Only those who could fight stayed behind, like Elder Lawson, who was still a very strong fighter.
The women also dressed in armor, ready to defend their pack. Dominque continued to study the area, trying to formulate a plan. Taylor finished suiting up and walked over to Dominque.
“Almost everyone is ready. The humans are almost here as well. I can smell them,” he said.
Dominque nodded and once almost everyone was assembled, he started to pace. “My soldiers. My wolves. My fighters!” He roared.
The wolves howled in response and Dominque stood facing them. “My warriors! The time has come we show these humans that we will not bow down! We have followed the treaty with dignity and respect, but if they dare break it, then we will teach them a lesson they will never forget!” He roared, and the wolves howled again.
“Something like this happened twenty years ago. The great battle, which our elders fought valiantly. Many of us lost our lives that day! Now, we are stronger. We are better. We know that they are coming, and we have prepared well. This time, they will run back with their tails between their legs! We will show them what it means to be a wolf!” Dominque shouted, and the wolves howled and growled in response.
Then silence fell, as the wolves stood in their formations, ready and waiting for their enemy. Taylor walked forward and stood next to Dominque as his right hand. Lucius stood to the left of Dominque, his general.
