[CHAPTER 22: THE HUMAN AND THE WOLF]

Bella sat facing Borius in the front carriage pulled by giant brown and grey wolves. Borius pursed his lips as he gazed back at Bella who was wearing the black lace dress and black furry coat she had worn the first time she came to Ang.
A Moro tribe attire.
"I never had the chance to ask... How did you survive in the Moro's territory?" Borius asked.
Bella shrugged slightly. She knew what he wanted to ask. Tayen was known as a vicious and deadly snake, just like his father. And yet, Bella was able to stay there unharmed for a couple of moons.
"I helped Tayen. So he kinda owes me his life. Well, that's what he thinks," Bella explained, "the beastmen there treated me with hospitality, if that's what you're wondering."
Seriously, although they were beasts, they're actually considered gentlemen. At least towards her. No one has ever mistreated her the whole time she was there. Except for Gaharu and Mihaje, who had shown some aggressiveness towards her, however, it was only at the beginning.
Bella rubbed her palms together, she glanced over to Borius. It was only evening but it was quite dark in the wagon, she couldn't make out his facial expression clearly but she could see his gleaming silver eyes that appeared to be glowing.
"Are you the only Snow Wolf left?" Bella asked, "You are a Snow Wolf, right?"
Borius seemed hesitating for some reason. Or she could be overthinking.
"I just thought you looked different than the other wolves, that's all." She said again.
Borius was the only wolf that has silver hair, eyes, and tail, and snowy fair complexion. The other wolves she saw were brown haired or greyish black haired.
"I did not think you would be so attentive. Please pardon my bad judgement."
Bella bit her lips. What the fuck does that mean?
"Are you complimenting me or insulting me?" She grunted.
Borius let out a chuckle.
"I am. The only pure breed Snow Wolf left. My clan had died because of the illness."
"I see."
Bella drew a breath. If... If the tribes can work together, will they be able to find a cure for this illness?
*****
Wolf Palace
The sky had darkened and she almost dozed off when the carriage suddenly stopped. Bella rubbed her heavy eyelids as she peeked through the carriage's curtain.
"Welcome to Wolf Palace." Borius said.
Bella glanced around the forest that was covered in snow before turning to see the huge stone mansion in front of her.
The palace was surrounded by water-- that had turned into ice. The carriage had to cross a long bridge to get to the palace. The wide wooden bridge seemed very sturdy and safe. Bella had to give credits for that. She watched as the draw bridge lowered so that the carriage could enter. The main gate was a thick, iron-studded wooden door, that seemed hard to break through. A spiked wooden barrier raised by chains to let the carriage go through the gate.
There were not many guards at the castle entrance. When the carriage stopped, Borius leaped out. He offered her his hand and Bella took his hand before climbing down the carriage.
"Welcome back, Lord Borius!" Rows of raven, hawk, and wolf soldiers bowed their heads upon the leader's arrival.
Borius immediately gave out his order, sending rescue teams to the Ang's main. He also assigned several soldiers as Bella's personal guards.
"I will be very busy for a while and won't be able to accompany you. Will you be alright here on your own?" Borius asked as he walked side by side with her to her room chamber.
"It's fine, don't worry. Um... Is there anything I can do to help?"
Borius flashed her his most handsome smile as he touched the side of her face,
"Stay safe. That is all I ask of you,"  Borius said softly, "Garuda will be here when he is done with his duties."
After saying that, he leaned down to give her a light kiss on the lips. Bella's eyes widened and she was taken aback but Borius pulled her into his arms,
"I will come back to you. I give you my word."
*****
He shot his hateful glare at the being standing beside his lord. He could not understand why would the lord choose to trust that treacherous scum, yet he had no right to question. That red eyed scum who had killed countless of Ra armies, and had wounded him severely before.
That day when lord Gaharu showed up in the barrack with that snake, Satria's jaw dropped open in huge shock, thinking how dare that snake to come here alone? Satria grunted quietly. That snake did not shudder, even knowing he was in the enemy's territory and surrounded by hundreds of Ra soldiers. His blood red irises were cold and steady, as if he knows no fear. Everyone was extremely shocked to see the lord bringing the Moro's general with him. What's more shocking was that the Moro soldier was not held captive but came as an ally.
"We meet again, young cub," was what Mihaje said to him when he saw him that day. Mihaje's cold raspy voice sounded despicably disgusting in Satria's ears.
Ra tribe barrack. It was snowing lightly. The barrack, surrounded by dense forest, was dead quiet. The soldiers all came out from their tents when Gaharu's arrival was announced.
The formidable lord Gaharu who stood on a platform of the rally spot gave his commands clearly. They were going to charge into the Zov's main. Mihaje who was wearing a thick furry coat on top of his black leather armor, stood at the front row amongst the Ra soldiers who were larger and bulkier. He was the only beastman who was slim and had a slender figure, although he was at the same height as them.
"Satria, I understand your hatred towards him. Lord Gaharu must have a solid plan." Sora gave a single tap on Satria's shoulder. He was also not willing to cooperate with a Blood Snake, but he had faith in Gaharu. Gaharu would never risk something if he was not certain of what he was doing.
"But why would we need a snake to lead us?" Satria grunted.
"Mihaje will lead us the way to Zov without having to cross Moro's borders," Gaharu explained before turning to Mihaje, "Are you sure you can manage alone?"
Mihaje, understood what he meant, nodded his head once,
"I cannot endanger my subordinates in this matter. If lord Tayen wants to punish someone, it shall be me alone."
Indeed, he was now considered as a traitor of Moro tribe. Tayen would not let him off easily.
"You are still calling him 'lord', so you have the intention to go back?" Gaharu questioned, raising an eyebrow.
Mihaje's low laugh could be heard muffled under his mask,
"I am still a Moro soldier."
Satria and Sora gave each other a questioning look. Lord Gaharu and that snake... They both seemed to hit it off. They were supposed to be mortal enemies, were they not?
Gaharu wasn't the prejudice type. He detests the Blood Snake clan. However, he acknowledged the fact that there could be one good in a hundred of bad. Nonetheless, Mihaje was a snake. Simply put, although he let Mihaje into his troops, he didn't fully trust Mihaje.
The next day, Ra barrack tent. Gaharu, Sora, Mihaje, and several other soldiers were discussing some matters before they leave for the battle.
"We have to take down at least thirty of them, each. We are outnumbered to take the initiative," Mihaje spoke, tying his red hair into a braid, "we are likely going to lose if we go unprepared."
"Thirty each?" Sora frowned. Thirty wouldn't be a problem if the enemies were just wolves. Zov were hard to deal with because of their hawk and raven soldiers that attack from above the ground. Moreover, ambushing the Zov in their own territory will only advance the Zov armies. And what if the Ang soldiers are there as well?
"Leave the winged soldiers to me," Mihaje responded. The cold dangerous aura exuded not only from the paleness of his skin, but also from his sharp vicious-looking gaze.
"What makes you think that we can easily breach into their main?" Sora asked, his eyebrows frowned. Gaharu didn't say anything... What on land is going on? Does lord Gaharu actually agree with this plan?
"Should you not feel more assured, leopard? Of your own army and yourself? You have strange weapons there to your advantage." Mihaje scoffed, "I did not expect you to be so timid and unconfident."
How unsettling, Sora thought. Is it really alright to trust this snake?
As they were talking and discussing matters in the tent, a soldier ran in. He bowed his head slightly to Gaharu and Sora before saying,
"My lord, the wolf had left his main and was seen heading back to the bear's territory." Bane reported.
"Good. We should be on our way too, then." Gaharu gave the order to depart.
The Ra troops bowed their heads before they left the tent. At the rally spot, numerous soldiers that had transformed themselves into large beasts and had queued up into several rows, waiting for Gaharu's command. Detachable harnesses were put on them to carry the newly developed weapons.
Gaharu, looking even bulkier with a tiger fur coat on top of his animal skin armor, climbed onto one of the front row beasts,
"Choose your ride, snake." He said to Mihaje, smirking as he brushed off the snow off the shoulder of his tiger fur coat.
Mihaje observed the other Ra soldiers who had picked their rides. He then strode towards Satria who had transformed into a large tiger and patted one of its front legs,
"Your hand seems perfectly fine." Mihaje's cold raspy voice was full of sarcasm.
Satria growled warningly. He still remember the pain of having Mihaje's foot crushing the bone of his hand. It took him over two moons to recover from that.
Mihaje ignored Satria's warning growl and climbed up to its back. He made himself comfortable on the saddle and commanded Satria to move to the second row beside Sora, just behind Gaharu. Satria growled unhappily as it moved upfront.
"We head west."
"West?" Sora was surprised. Gaharu turned to look at Mihaje as well.
There was no emotion in the snake's eyes, it was hard to guess what he was thinking. Mihaje nodded once as he said firmly,
"The faster way to reach Zov."
*****
"My lord, general Mihaje was last seen heading to the border. No one has ever seen him since." The lizard soldier tried to keep his cool, but his face was getting paler.
Tayen grabbed the lizard's collar and dragged his face close, beaming his deathly cold glare.
"No one knows where he is...? And you expect me to believe that?!" Tayen hissed angrily, his mouth parted open, revealing his fangs.
"Forgive us for our incompetence, my lord! Have mercy!" The other lizard-headed beastmen fell on their knees, begging. Supa was amongst them.
"We are incompetence, we are useless... Forgive us, my lord..." The one who was grabbed by Tayen stammered. Fear was clearly showed in his eyes, his lips were trembling.
"Very well..." Tayen's jaw clenched. He would have let these incapable, worthless trash have a taste of his venom, if he hadn't thought about the consequence. Although he regarded them as a bunch of rubbish that were better off dead, he knows clearly that they were not. He was not an idiot to kill all of his soldiers, especially the strong ones who worked directly under Mihaje.
"Halt all search. We should focus on food stocks," Tayen let go of his grip on the lizard's collar, "Mihaje will return sooner or later."
Mihaje was a beastman with a very strong sense of responsibility-- towards the tribe, towards his subordinates... Also towards Tayen. He would never abandon the tribe, regardless of whatever reason.
Right now, Tayen had a bigger matter to attend to. Snow days will last until six full moons, he has the entire tribe to feed. Previously, he was busy sending out hunting teams to prepare food stocks and firewoods for snow days that he did not realize Mihaje had gone.
"Give me the report on remaining stock in the warehouse. Fast." He said again before leaving.
"Yes, my lord!" The soldiers stood up and bowed their heads down. After Tayen walked past them, they exchanged glances.
It's not that they were incompetent. Not at all. They knew exactly where their general had gone to. The general was last seen leaving the Ra territory riding a tiger, alongside Gaharu and other Ra soldiers. However, they knew if they reported such news to the lord, it would do general Mihaje no good.
Supa gave a single nod to the soldier who just now was grasped by Tayen. 'You did good', was what his eyes were telling the soldier. The soldier nodded back.
But why is the general engaging with the Ra? Supa could not get the questions out of his head. Is general colluding with the tiger on something? Supa gritted his teeth, shaking his head. It could not be, their general is not that kind of beastman, he told himself.
This must be related to Lady Bella. Could it be...
*****
Gaharu's eyes narrowed over to Mihaje who was quiet and calm the whole journey. Snakes could not stand the cold, it weakens them. No matter how skillful and strong Mihaje is, he may not be able to use his full ability in this weather, Gaharu thought to himself. Gaharu stared at the pale white skin of the snake that was riding on Satria. So pale, he looked as if he was dead. He had his body covered with that thick black fur coat, and a thin layer of snow was building up on the shoulders of his coat. He must be feeling very cold by now since he is different from us tigers and leopards who are warm skinned, Gaharu thought again, he is a cold skinned beast.
"Are you not afraid of the cold? Your body cannot maintain a constant internal temperature, no? You are incapable of staying warm on cold days." Gaharu felt like smashing his own face. He was simply asking out of curiosity, but it may sound like he was concerned about that snake.
"This is nothing." Mihaje replied, short. He recalled the times when he was locked underground where there was only darkness and coldness. It was even colder when snow days come. He survived those years with no extra clothing to help him keep warm. Even when he couldn't feel his feet, his face hardened, and he could feel his fingers had turned to ice... He miraculously lived though it. For years. His body system had evolved to adapt to such coldness.
"May I ask a question?"
Gaharu turned when Mihaje spoke,
"You may, but I will not answer it if I do not like your question."
"Do you know your own origin?"
Gaharu pursed his lips. Mihaje's question struck him. Origin? What about his origin? His entire lineage has been tigers, there's no question to that.
Sora who was listening also tilted his head in confusion.
"What do you mean?" Gaharu questioned back.
"Halt," Mihaje said as he glanced around, "this is where we should turn."
Sora pointed at the direction that Mihaje had spoken,
"You mean, we have to go down? That path is slippery and dangerous during this time, are you leading us to our deaths?"
"That is the only path we can go through without being seen by the Zov soldiers. They could be patrolling above us and we could not see them."
Gaharu thought for a while. Mihaje had a point. Winged beastmen could see far from above and could easily spot them.
"Very well," Gaharu murmured, "move on." He led his pack down the narrow path.
Gaharu understand that his soldiers must be very unsatisfied with the current situation where they have to work together with an enemy. But he had seen Mihaje's skills. No one in his troops could ever match that fighting art skills of that snake. Even though Sora was his strongest warrior, Sora could never win against Mihaje. Gaharu considered Mihaje as a frightening enemy to Ra. With that being said, it would benefit him a lot if he could use Mihaje in this battle.
*****
Bella took a walk around the castle, with several guards following her here and there.
"Lady Bella, would you like a drink?" One of the wolf guards, Yok, asked.
"Sure."
Yok asked the servants to bring beverage for Bella. After a while, the servants came with a goblet of warm wine.
"This is Lord Borius's favorite during snow days. It is a must to keep his body temperature high during the cold." Yok explained.
"Oh?" Bella took the goblet and sniffed the aromatic liquor. The smell was pleasant.
"Your lord really love drinking, huh?" She said after sipping the warm liquor.
"Lord Borius needs to keep his body warm all the time."
"Hm? Why is that?"
Yok explained that his lord was prone to illness, especially during cold days. Bella find it hard to believe, since this was the first time she heard about beastmen getting sick easily. Sora had told her before that beastmen don't get sick that easy. She figured that it must be that their immunity system was stronger than human. They're animals, after all, she thought to herself.
"Apologies, my lady, I have spoken too much." Yok said as he bowed his head. Bella noticed the other wolves glared briefly at Yok.
Yok was a young wolf soldier with dark brown hair, pretty much the same age as Satria, Bella guessed. Very tall, and quite big. The furry shoulder pieces made his shoulders appear even broader, and masculinity exuded from him. Every time Yok speaks, his fluffy dark brown tail would wiggle lowly behind him. Bella restrained herself from touching that adorable fluffy tail.
"How old are you?" Bella couldn't help but ask. Her curiosity was killing her. She will definitely ask Satria his age too someday, when she meets him again.
"I am four and ten years old, my lady." Yok answered.
What the fuck, fourteen?!
Bella's eyes widened in shock. He's still a cub, then!
"And what about you? Are you fourteen too?" Bella asked the soldier next to Yok.
"I am three and ten years old, my lady." Fum, the other wolf soldier replied politely.
Whaaaat?! Bella ran her palm against her face. These bodyguards of hers were a lot younger than her. They're only teenagers. Oh, right... Bella realized something.
She forgot to ask Paas's age. He's probably four years old, she thought. She wondered how he's doing now. I hope Raneki will take good care of him.
*****
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
BRACE YOURSELF TO THE WAR THAT WILL TAKE PLACE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER.
WILL BELLA BE ABLE TO STOP THE BATTLE?