The Raven

Life is a struggle. Every creature understands this on some level. From monster, to beast, and even the 'higher' races. The walls themselves were built against that struggle. Yet, far too many get complacient. They feel the monsters that lurk outside, are not their problem. That the guards will handle everything. That is where everyone above the underground is wrong. It's not the guards that keep the fragile peace. It's those of us underground, that put in the blood, sweat, and tears. The guards might parade around the outside of the walls, but as soon as something comes that they cannot handle. Well they just retreat behind the walls, to drop everything they can on top of it.

The outside walls are made to be breached, it's just the sad fact of life. Why not distract whatever comes in, with prisoners? Those that have received a life sentence for their crimes. Sure, every one of them deserved it. The truth seeker branch of the guards, employ all sorts of mental magics and tricks before giving someone the sentence. Still those lives cannot be viewed as inferior to that of a noble child. We all struggle, and every other life is just less than my own and the lives of those I cared for.

Keeping my eyes closed, I rolled onto my back. We were in a small room, that happened to be a safe house. Well away from prying eyes, with runes that prevented anyone from eavesdropping. I could hear curious movement from the corner of the room where the door was. I continued to pretend that I was asleep. I could sense exactly where she was, because we were bonded. I could feel her confusion, and hesitation as she approached me. She placed her fluffy ear to my chest, to check my pulse. I kept it steady and slow. She was second guessing herself, wondering if I went back to sleep on her.

She moved closer to check my breathing, and that was when I chose to strike. Leaning forward, I stole a kiss from her. Causing her to pull back blushing after our lips connected. I opened my eyes with a smirk to take in the young werewolf woman before me. She had icy blue eyes, that glared at me. Her form was currently human, but there was no hiding her deep blue hair. More aptly described as a mane or pelt that fell from her head, along her back, and covered her tail as fur. I could see it softly wagging, letting me know that she wasn't as upset as she pretended to be.

I reached out to her, running my hand through her soft, but coarse hair. She was incredibly fluffy and warm. A sharp contrast to my own rugged hands. I worked my hand to the back of her head before pulling her into a tight hug. Cradling her to my scarred and exposed chest. We both had scars, from living down here. Mine covering my chest and abs, and running down my arms in a crossing pattern of bites and scratches. Her own hidden behind the silk muffler I stole for her. She couldn't speak because of what was done to her. I lightly stroked the one good ear she had, the other cut in half by her father.

I couldn't find it in myself to be angry while holding her. We were both scarred, and we both took care of each other. She was the only one I truly cared for in this world. As she nuzzled into my chest, licking a scar. I felt her love as well. Everyone struggled, but what truly separated the weak from the strong, was just how far they were willing to go. Both of us would see the world burn before hurting each other. Which meant that everyone that hurt us before, simply had to die.

Everyone that was on my list at one point, mysteriously disappeared. There was no one that dared to cross me these days. Charlie on the other hand, still had one big grudge she needed help with. Even when we bonded, I never could have guessed we would end up here. All those years ago, when my first attempt at making a gang fell apart. I had to run outside the wall, using every bit of my youth to keep running. I never thought, I might find a werewolf left for dead and bleeding out. I happily accepted the fact that I might die. That she would eat me, to regenerate her life, but she just looked away.

I had stood there exhausted, my chest burning. Fresh scars on my arms, to the point I was about to bleed out. I was angry that she ignored a free meal. I took a step towards her, as she looked at me. Those sad eyes, wanting to die. She had been thrown out of her pack, and mauled within an inch of her life. She had changed from her full wolf form, to her human form, showing me her neck for an easy kill. I tore what was left of my clothes, to stop her bleeding while making a promise. We bonded, over the fact that we were going to raze all those that stood against us. That we would destroy them so utterly, no one would think about hurting us again.

It took months for us to recover in the forest. Even now, one of us kept watch, while the other slept. No one knew that Charlie was alive, which should make it all the better when we drag her dear father out of from the Hole. The plan was simple enough. I had my whispering hounds running around outside, gathering other packs. All to fight and become Alpha. Some of the others escaped in different directions, but they were not needed. Now there was an army of them, waiting for my signal to attack the walls. The guards would be called into action, leaving no one to defend the Hole. That's when, we would grab everyone inside that was worth anything. A few exceptions for those we had special plans for.

It was simple enough, and couldn't be traced back to us. My talent, Master Tamer, always worked well for this. Since no one could comprehend that anyone might be able to take on over fifty different bonds at once. I had to use my magic constantly, to not lose myself in all of the sensations and feelings of it all. The forty whispering wolves, I controlled, managed to form an exceptionally large pack. With another fifty that were brought into the pack. It was incredibly hard to keep control of the purple tipped alpha, but with a couple more packs found. The army numbered in the one hundred range.

I was disappointed to find out that fifty wouldn't make their ears change color again. Though it seemed to be a line that allowed more red ears to work under the purple one. The walls will fall, and everything would work out well. It should only take the pack maybe six days to reach the walls. With luck, the people inside the innermost walls, might finally pull their heads out of their collective asses. To worry about, just what was happening outside.

Then it happened, the last members came together to reach a pack of just over one hundred. I gave the final order for them to make their way towards the walls. The Alpha was bonded to me, and was extremely loyal. The group started to move, when suddenly I felt the bond sever. The recoil hit me hard, as I was left gasping. Charlie looked up at me, trying to comfort me in the best way she could. My body shook, as more of the bonds of my pack were severed. They didn't have eyes, so I didn't have the luxury of seeing through them.

Though I suddenly felt very happy to have let Edgar follow after the pack. Taking control of my weeping raven, I managed to see just what was going on. My Alpha was killed by another purple tip, that came about for some reason. There were five in total, and all of them were fighting. The others that didn't fight, were now red tips. Save for a few that I managed to keep control over. I could still feel my body shaking, even in Edgar's body. The five fought, until four submitted before one. It began to devour the old alpha, while it's ears turned silver. I ordered Edgar to keep an eye on the pack.

Breaking back to my body, I felt as if I were enduring a seizure. My muscles locked in place, while I rocked back and forth. The strain of so many bonds broken so quickly. I hadn't expected this, and now I had no control over the pack outside. Save for a precious five members within it. My teeth chattered, as I ground them against each other. Charlie held me to her chest, as I continued enduring the pain and shock of it. I've felt worse, but it still was not pleasant in the least.

An hour passed by, before I managed to get myself under control. The pack was still coming to the walls, which was welcome. Charlie looked at me, asking what happened with the way she arched her brow. I set about explaining it best I could. Letting her feel through our bond, so we could properly communicate. I could feel she was nervous about us no longer having control, but this worked in our favor. A large group, of whispering wolves were bound to be seen by an oracle or fortune teller. Especially with a new type of beast that needed to be identified.

Getting out of bed, I tugged my cloak on. A simple thing, with weeping raven feathers on the shoulders. It was black, with hints of blue and purple here and there. Falling over my back, I clasped the spiked collar into place. The same went over my wrists. The cloak was not able to cover my front, leaving my chest and stomach exposed. I stood over Charlie, who was only five feet high (152 cm), while in her human form. I scratched behind her good ear, before ducking under the door frame. We needed to eat breakfast before preparing, just in case the guards needed help.

If I'm lucky, I might be able to snag the silver tipped whispering wolf. Though I sincerely doubted it. The raid had to come first, and the Minotaur gang should move if anything too risky happened. Grabbing food, and eating with Charlie, managed to calm my nerves. All we could do was wait for what was to come. No real point in worrying about it, all we could do was prepare. Prepare and wait... I held my head shaking the thoughts away. It seemed that the shock left me a bit more off than I thought.

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Leaving Charlie in her room, I went about my usual day in the headquarters. Taking someone aside, to tell the Minotaur they might want to prepare for monsters attacking the walls. Something big would be coming, and he could take all the credit from the guards. It didn't matter if he did or not. The minotaur would prepare as he always did. I still had no idea who Mal might possibly be. As far as I knew, he was some noble playing at being a gang leader in the underground. Very reliable for information, but overly expensive. I sent another thug out to sell the information as well.

After all, there was no reason not to tell them about what might break through the walls. It was universally agreed upon, that if anything broke through the inner walls; we'd all band together to stop it. It just wasn't worth it to have anything even scratch the innermost walls. That could send the king into a frenzy, the nobles and their guards would pour out. Then the situation would get really fucked. Especially since the king liked to hoard talents that made a certain captain's look like a kitten versus a lion in comparison. My favorite had to be the count's blood magic. Hard to do much of anything when it feels like your insides are being crushed.

Shuddering at another close call with death. I found myself alone in the warehouse we used as our headquarters. I didn't remember sending everyone off. The air grew colder, as I realized what happened. Grabbing the whip at my side, I waited for the princess to show herself. The only person, that I was actually afraid of. I didn't need to wait long, as she appeared from my own shadow. Rising like some kind of demon.

The girl herself had extremely long black hair that fell in messy curls all around her. It just went everywhere, and covered her face at times. She held a white iris, that made it seem as if all of her eye was white save the pupil. Her face was rather plain, but that was about as normal as she got. She was maybe five feet tall, with five inches (165 cm). Her skin was incredibly pale, while she herself had a large bust. She wore some poor nun's robes, with tears along the edges of the sleeves and bottom. There was also four large cuts along the side of the dress, to revel her ribs. As if daring someone to sink a dagger between them. The problem was, that anyone that did, suddenly found themselves becoming the princess' new toy. I personally watched her die three times, only for the body to become someone else.

I wasn't sure if it was her talent, or some kind of dark magic. Either was likely, since she had the uncanny ability to use whatever magic she wanted. Often letting others hit her with the same magic, before she learned how to use it better. It was just pointless to fight someone that kept coming back. Especially when dying seemed to only make her happier. Her form of love was twisted and rotten to the core. Even I gagged at how she'd leave the bodies after she was done.

She just stared at me, panting with that creepy smile on her face. I just gripped the handle of the whip tighter, ready to defend myself if needed. "I'm going to touch your nose."

Her alluring voice caught me off guard as I took a step back. "What?" The statement was so spontaneous, I didn't know what to make of it.

She took the initiative by making three copies of herself. I quickly whipped the one where she had been, with it cracking in the air. I stabbed at the one on my right with the dagger I kept on my other side. Only finding air, I looked at the third. Then felt her finger touching my nose, "Boop!"

I kicked her hard enough in the stomach that she slid into the wall, laughing madly. "What are you doing here? What's your game?" I didn't have time to play with her. Especially when I didn't know how she got rid of all my men.

"Tick tock, Adam. Tick tock." My blood froze as she said my name like that.

The world grew darker, as it was just me and her. Those nun robes, turning into a tattered cloak. An apparition of death seemed to move from her body, carrying a scythe. I found that I couldn't move, even after flexing my muscles. The sound of a bell began to toll. It chimed with every beat of my heart, growing faster as the specter approached me. I flexed my magic, to see if it was an illusion, and thankfully it shattered.

I was on my knees, sweating bullets. The princess walking towards me, "The Raven follows death, to feed after it my child." She changed her voice to that of an old crone. "You would be wise to remember it." Then she laughed, as if it were all a joke. Her voice back to normal.

I held my chest, still feeling the thumping of my heart. I just barely managed to get my breathing under control. "What..." I swallowed hard, "what do you want? You crazy bitch?"

She knelt in front of me, taking me head into her chest. Softly stroking the back of my neck. It took everything I had, to not stab her. "I'm a spider, split in two. Kept in the web of life and lies by the one I love." I had no idea what she was on about. "Both a monster, and a human. I mused, and mused. Til all the muses sang. Then can you guess what happened?"

"Just tell me, so I can tell you no already." I felt my body seize again, she kept me from talking any more. From even breathing.

"My, such a rude child. Though I love all children, I love all humans." You're human you crazy bitch. She laughed as if hearing my thoughts, "No, I'm not human. I'm two spiders. Though you need me to let you breath, I want you to hear my story Adam."

She snapped her fingers, and I gasped still unable to move. "Just hurry it up already."

"Tsk, tsk." She tutted, "I came all this way because of the screeching. So many bonds were broken at once. I was so worried, that one of my children were hurting. I came to see if you were alright."

"I'm not your child, you're maybe twenty at best bitch." If she wanted to kill me, she'd have done it by now. I wasn't going to let her intimidate me.

She hugged me harder, "Oh, poor boy. Ears full of wax I tell you. All humans are my children, some monsters as well. Did you know, when I was a spider, I couldn't have children?"

"Good, we don't need any more of you running around." I struggled again, only to find my arm was burning. I jerked, only to find that I still couldn't move. The pain running all over me, as I looked at the black fire.

"Don't worry dear, it only hurts. A light little pop on your rump for making fun of a poor mother's barren womb. Because I can't have my own children, you are all my children. Yet, I have to kill you all eventually. That's what the king wants." She sounded somber.

"Bullshit, if the king wanted that, he'd have opened the gates by now." I managed to move my head, to look into her eyes.

She stared down at me with something like sadness. "Poor child, not the king I love. The monster king. The king of all monsters. I am a monster, and he orders me to kill humans." She tilted her head, "How is this so hard to understand? I try warning everyone I can, but no one listens. They can't hear the king's voice, so they don't understand."

I didn't feel like pressing my luck any more than I already had. I just stayed quiet, which made the bitch smile.

"See? You are so much more precious when you are quiet. Quiet, but still alive. Good now, listen dear sweet child. Wyatt, is a wolf. A pet that I adore. He is going outside the walls with a new daughter of mine. This means your chorus of broken bonds and hounds will crash into them like a wave. I want you to succeed in crashing the wave into the wall, but not my newest daughter. I do not want to lose my pet to the hounds either. Do you understand? Of course you do, you're shaking because a mother knows her children well."

I was shaking from the information she provided. She knew about my the plan I spent months working on. She told me where the captain was going to be, and implied that I was going to die if she lost either of them. "Do you know what I'm going to do?" I had to ask.

"Of course, a mother knows everything about her children. You are going to use the chorus to distract the the king's children. Then you will go into the Hole, and grab a naughty wolf child. Anyone else you find will owe you favors and sweets. Even the dim ones could see such a plan. At least if they understood you like I did, my dear sweet child. I will not interfere with your plans, because they do not matter to me. At least so long as my pet and newest daughter remain alive."

I glared at her, which made her smile more. "How long have you known?" I asked, in a low voice. I told no one, there was no way she had spies here.

"Since I heard the snapping of so many bonds. All laughing howls by the way. I was curious if you broke your poor fragile mind." She groomed my black hair back.

"If I say no?" She only shrugged at my question. I swallowed hard, as she kept me waiting for an answer.

"There is a chance the dog will fly away with it's wings. Though my newest daughter might manage to kill quite a few before passing out. It depends if she dies or not. Though if they win, then your plan is broken and fractured. Unable to work without asking for help. You're a smart child when you want to be though." She finally let go of me, moving back as I fell to the floor.

"Play, shout, and fight my dear children. Mother will always clean up the mess. Unless one of you dies. Then you all shall rest, some deeper than others." She clapped her hands, disappearing into a black mist that made me wonder if she was a monster or not. Maybe a demon, but there were so few of those.

I managed to get back onto my feet, while my men trickled back into the warehouse. I needed a good way to lure a small army of whispering wolves away from the caravan path. That's the only reason Wyatt could be going out there. It was no secret the princess felt that same twisted affection towards him. Though I couldn't even begin to guess why. If it was anyone important they were her child, but Wyatt was demoted to a dog. I shook my head, not even wanting to continue that line of thought.

Using my magic, I managed to suppress my emotions, and the questions regarding the princess. I needed to focus on what was important. Edgar was watching the army move, but they would be starving by the time they reached the walls. The best I could do, was have a small herd released, then guided by a tamer under me. At least, that was the best without risking any of my gang in a meaningful way. If that failed, then I'd need to have a trump card that could create a distraction for Wyatt, and whoever the fuck he was with, to run.

Letting out a deep sigh, I realized, I might need to dip into the younger whispering wolves we bred. No, that was out of the question, adding more to the already large pack was foolish. Perhaps some Bew riders? No, then I'd be risking my men to save the captain, and that held it's own problems. Mostly in the form of making the other two gangs question if I was serving the king. Pretty sure it was Mal, but the Minotaur didn't trust me, and I didn't trust him. The last thing I needed, was to fight the wrong one without the other, and get all of us swallowed up and under the king. Scratching my head, I finally managed to come up with a much better plan. One that only needed a couple days to work out.