"Alpha!" shouted one of the werewolves.

Dmitri looked in his direction. "Yes?"

​​

"How far do we have to go?" he asked. "It is getting chilly and my wife is pregnant."

Dmitri couldn't help thinking of his pregnant Adrianna. She was fighting not only for her kingdom but also for his. Ever since Ziu had toppled their world, life had become one restless journey. Even though he was helping his pack, he felt helpless for not being able to stay with his wife. The werewolf in front of him had held his wife's hand. She rested for a moment.

"It is not very far," replied Dmitri.

The werewolf shape shifted, made his wife sit on his warm fur and ambled away.

Half an hour later, they entered the cave where Dmitri brought Adrianna during their honeymoon. This was the last cave they had visited just before Cy had attacked them. He sighed.

Once they were all settled in the cave, Dmitri went out and crested on a small hill that was adjacent to the cave. Under the moon, he stretched on the cool grass as the wind rustled. He remembered that he had gone to the werewolf realm after attending to Liam and Nate. Meeting with Niiya was a failure. Out of anger and desperation he went to meet her in order to discuss the strategy. He didn't find her there. In the bedroom, when he was lying down, a letter floated to him. He opened it and read it.

Dmitri,

This battle may continue longer than I had anticipated. Hence I am going to gather support from various realms. I want you to stay calm. With a person as deceitful as Ziu, anything can happen. Although I couldn't understand his intentions when I was new in the academy, it was only after I had borne the crown that I came to know about him. His aura was far different from all others. When I wear the crown, my world is changed. I don't see you all as people are, but there are a lot of things that I can see, visualize and think about them. Ziu was one such person, who struck me as too dangerous.

I had been in his cell various times and I know most of his plans, but he is true to being a serpent. He can change his plans, his strategies and his nature according to the situation.

With that being said, I don't trust him at all. Please take all the werewolves to a safe location. There is no point in fighting with an enemy that clearly outnumbers us. There are other ways to fight it out.

Don't get mad at me.

Adrianna

PS: I love you from moon to earth.

Dmitri chuckled at how he was actually pretty upset at her letter because he wanted to participate in the battle with her, for her. But then he thought about it and knew Adrianna must be having her own plans.

He rested for a short while and then shape shifted. He had to go back to her. Adrianna had told him where he would find the portal to enter the Wizard Kingdom. As he raced deep inside the jungle, Liam and Nate joined him. While Nate had fully recovered, Liam was still recovering.

"Why have you come?" asked Dmitri with a growl.

"You don't expect me to sit on the fringe and watch this," came an equally angered reply.

Nate laughed and pounced on his friend. The two rolled on the ground as they pawed each other in fun and then sprinted to catch up their Alpha.

It was not long when they entered Alex's territory. He was waiting for Dmitri. Without a word exchanged, Alex along with his pack of werewolves joined Dmitri. Known for the fierceness, brutality and coldness, Alex and his pack were the best warriors of all the packs. They never submitted to Dmitri's supremacy. However, in the current wake of the situation, it was Alex who approached Dmitri to help him fight against the serpents.

The serpents had slyly come to the land. Over the last one month, they entered his territory and dragged several men, women and children with them in the waters of the lake. He had to avenge his people.

The pack of werewolves stealthily sped towards the destination and under the moonlit night only their dark furs could be seen.

From distance, Dmitri saw a small gleaming circle of fireflies on the verge of the creek that fed the ocean. He directed his pack to it. As the pack raced near it, the circle grew bigger and bigger as more fireflies joined it. The werewolves jumped into it one by one. When the last of the wolves had crossed the portal, the circle shrank again. No one could even think that this was a portal created for emergency purposes. On the outside it just looked like a nest of insects in the grass and water.

---

The shooting continued for a long time until all the serpents were killed. After the operation the lieutenant who led the team informed the General that all the occupants of the territories were killed. The General was extremely excited to hear that. He rushed to update Ziu with the news.

---

It had been more than two hours but none of the serpents had come back. Ziu's father was getting impatient. He paced the chamber that was built for him under the water. There was no report from Ziu either. In the end he commanded another of his troopers to go and check.

The trooper came back soon. He was shaking uncontrollably. His voice was a mere whisper when he said, "All serpents have been shot in cold blood."

Ziu's father's eyes bulged, "What do you mean?" he struck the informant with his hand across his face so tightly that he fell on the bed of the lake. "What about the werewolves?"

"There were no werewolves," he replied in a subdued shrill voice. "Not a single."

"How is this possible?" the king was confused. He was mad.

When this information was passed on to Ziu, his anger had no bounds. He became frantic. He picked the table and threw it to the ground, shattering it.

"We need to attack them from the air. Prepare your fighter jets," he said to the General in a cold voice.