ZARAMANNI (BOOK ONE)

“I have no intention to offer you a seat,” Alpha Darren spoke, a reckless look in his eyes. Before he spoke further, his ears picked up the sounds of footsteps. Soon, the other Betas joined them. “We have offered you enough comfort by giving you a place to stay. You can’t be too comfortable either, I am certain you get my point.”

The Vampire managed a smile in response.

He settled his hand fan on the table and his dark-chocolate skin glistened in the light of the room for a second.

After a curt nod, he said, “Alpha King Darren, I fully understand you.” His voice was still very chilling.

But the exposure of his fangs which have been rumoured to have taken a thousand lives gave his overall presence a deadlier feel.

“I surprised myself as well when I found my way to your kingdom. Zenrada and Skullis have been enemies for so long,” he scoffed, his hands behind him, “so, it made no sense that I would follow the advice of my trusted ones and come down here. But it is necessary.”

“Why are you here, Overlord Zamar?” King Darren had no intention to listen to the Vampire’s derailing response.

With a sober expression on his jawed face, the Overlord raked his eyes through the small gathering, his long lashes dancing in a way that made it seem like he was about to fall asleep.

“Why am I here? Hmm… I am here because of the fairies’ evil plan.”

“So, you are here to rat out your ally?” It was Lord Elias that spoke, his serious face wearing a look of doubt. That face contradicted his outfit at that moment. His outfit was loud and colourful.

“No.”

“Then what?” King Darren asked, his forehead now wearing a frown, his long hair dancing gently as some breeze cooled him. “Do you need something only Zenrada can give you?”

The strength that started the King’s sentence faded before he could end his utterance.

He realized something.

It would be foolish of him to ignore the fact that the fairies told their allies about the existence of the half-fairy.

And it would be more foolish of him to think that the fairies weren’t steadily making more moves.

If his deductions were greatly true, it was likely that the Overlord wasn’t there to discuss Kingdom issues.

No, it was more likely that he was there to create a distraction.

King Darren jumped out of his seat and others wore confusion on their faces as they watched their Alpha drill glares at the Overlord.

“Uh… Alpha King Darren…” The unexpected visitor appeared uncomfortable when the Alpha reached for his hand fan and inspected it with a somewhat murderous look.

“Why are you here?” Darren raised his head to narrow his eyes at the man and his voice whispered, “Are you here for her?”

“Who?”

“Don’t play dumb, Overlord Zamar!” Recklessly, he flung the hand fan towards a corner. Its skull handle suffered a crack that interrupted the tense moment in the room. “You must have heard everything from the fairies. You must know their true plan, so don’t play dumb. Did you come here, to Zenrada, with your lowly entourage to kidnap our guest?”

“K-kidnap?” The Overlord was startled but Darren saw it as an act. Hands mid-air in surrender, he said, “I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“So, why did you help Amarxona attack us? Make it make sense, Overlord Zamar. I know we have been enemies for so long but we have never crossed each other’s border. We have stayed away from each other. So, why?” The King’s voice vibrated the room as he screamed his question. “Why did you help the fairies if you didn’t know about their plan?”

“That’s a good question,” Lord Elias added and he got up as well.

The Betas were still confused. That was understandable. After all, the issue being discussed was not known to them.

Lord Elias continued, “Why would you attack Zenrada if the fairies didn’t assure you that they had a foolproof plan which would ruin Zenrada and most especially, our Alpha?”

“I think… we…” The Overlord was now cornered. His mouth failed to produce audible responses as the men-wolves stared at him with sharp eyes.

Even the Betas who had no idea what was going on gave him the murderous look.

“I think you have some serious explaining to do, Overlord Zamar,” King Darren said, a demanding look in his dark eyes. “You have limited time to come clean. If not, this will get worse for you.”

The Vampire whose shoulders slumped in defeat let out a sigh. He then took a step back possibly to avoid the intense gust of air King Darren was emitting.

“I uh…” His voice boomed while he fought the urge to show the little fear he was feeling. The Overlord’s packed silver hair came loose when he slightly swung his head to the side and said, “You are right. I am well aware of the fairies’ plan.”

“Of course you are,” King Darren muttered.

“But before I go on, there is something you should know. I intended to mention this anyway.” The men’s tough gazes persisted. “The entirety of Amarxona is not responsible for the attack.”

The King adjusted his stance, a little crease on his temple. “What do you mean by that?”

“ An insatiable greed for power is the reason a small group of Amarxonian elders decided to plot the attack. They were able to secretly raise an army, they collected their best magicians to temporarily block the power of Zenrada’s room and they used Skullis as extra power. Even the Fairy Queen is not aware of this.”

The Overlord stole a glance at the Alpha before he continued.

“I am aware that Zenrada has intentions to attack, but I have to stop things from getting worse. I have to stop you from making a mistake. If you attack the whole of Amarxona, lives-”

“Shut your fucking mouth.” King Darren’s tone was sinister. “What nonsense are you speaking? You are here to stop us from attacking? Why? Did anyone stop you before you decided to attack us?

You think lives will be lost in Amarxona? Wow. You are so noble, aren’t you?

What about the lives we have lost here? Do you know how many families within each pack have been displaced because a group of old fucktards decided to seek power they won’t live long to use?”

“Overlord Zamar,” Lord Elias took over as King Darren took steps back to gather some sanity, “it seems you came here with certain hope. Perhaps you thought ratting out your ally would work in your favour. No.” The old one shook his head. “That hope you have brought with you will only harm you because right now, your intentions are extremely doubtful.”

“I just-”

“The fairies asked you to set a trap, didn’t they?” Lord Elias asked. As the Vampire whose powerful aura had now disappeared shook his head, the librarian asked, “You came for her, didn’t you? Did you decide to stab your allies in the back so you can have her to yourself and for your benefit?”

A nervous chuckle came from the Overlord who began to glance towards the door. “I… I think I should-”

“Are you leaving?” Beta Zoey got up majestically, a smirk playing on his lips. “At this point, that is not allowed. But,” Zoey released hissing sounds when he began to take small steps toward the vampire who had now lost all of his kingly presence, “even if you run, we will get you. So, you had better behave, Overlord. Or you will end up like the heads we sent to you.”

“Oh, right!” Beta Fam picked up from that point. “I am sure those heads sent a great message to you. Overlord Zamar, you made a huge mistake by coming here. If we get really angry, we can have our people lynch you to death or we can toss you in our deepest prison. Anything to ensure we don’t get to hear the nonsense you came here to say.”

“I mean, I was expecting something useful to come out of your mouth. But, you came to Zenrada to tell us who to attack and who to spare?” Beta Zoey was now in front of the Overlord, his gaze burning the man fiercely as the bitter tone in his voice ruined the vampire’s presence into nothing.

Patting the vampire’s shoulders with a hint of danger in his action, Zoey asked, “How about we attack Skullis first? After all, you helped the fairies attack us. It is only fair that we return your kindness, don’t you think?”

“Okay, I think you are being hasty with your words, gentlemen, I-” The Overlord’s attempt to get out of that ugly situation failed.

Beta Zoey was not ready to let him go. While he continuously tapped the man’s shoulder, he said, “I think you should stop talking, Overlord Zamar. I am already thinking about ending your life. For some reason, I can’t stop thinking about beheading you. But then, things never work that way, do they?”

“Beta Zoey, I also wish I could sentence our good old enemy to death,” King Darren added when he entered the picture again. With the side of his eye, he watched Zoey take a step back. “But, we need him. He is our key to ensure that the ones responsible for the attack answer for their crimes.”

The King faced the Overlord squarely. Darren took pleasure in the fact that they had ruined the creature’s confidence.

Surely, at that point, the Overlord was regretting his decision to travel down to Zenrada, the Kingdom he helped ruin.

“Beta Zoey, where do you propose we keep our visitor? We surely can’t let him leave so fast. We have a lot to talk about, Overlord Zamar. And, I think you will be useful for a few days.”

“We have spare rooms in the lower wing,” Zoey replied.

“We will send a message to the rest of your small entourage,” King Darren said to the Overlord. “They will be kept as prisoners till we release you. I am sure you understand.”

“Oh, I am sure he does,” Lord Elias said. The man then rushed towards the door. Quickly, he opened it and said, “Overlord Zamar, I will walk you to your new room.”

With a look of defeat on his face, the Vampire glanced around the room. Seconds later, his cloak made a flapping noise as he turned and followed Lord Elias.

When that unwanted presence was fully gone, Beta Zoey shifted closer to King Darren.

A blank look in his eyes, the taller man said, “I know you were talking about Zaramanni. I do not know what you are hiding, but I hope that it isn’t something dangerous. You may be the Alpha King, but things can change for you when you least expect it.”

“You are threatening me,” the Alpha replied, his voice mellow.

“Take it how you want, Alpha Darren. All I know is I will do anything to make sure Zaramanni is protected. Even if she has to go back to where she came from, she will. As long as she is safe.” Beta Zoey walked away after stealing a glance at Beta Fam and Beta Howli. But, when he was closer to the exit, he turned his head to the side and his deep, soulless voice said, “I will make sure to take good care of our visitor.”

King Darren didn’t utter a word.

Moments later, he walked out as well, glad that he was yet to feel the terrible pull of his wolf.

~

“What a jerk!” Zara cursed, kicking her right foot against the floor. That action caused her slow strides to halt.

Not only was she angry that her intimate moment with Zoey was interrupted, but she also hated the way King Darren acted. He spoke as though he had the right to determine whether or not she could be with Zoey.

He did the same when she landed in Zenrada.

Without going into actual details, he decided she wouldn’t be going to Mount Hermos. He used his authority as the Alpha King and her lack of knowledge to his advantage.

But, that was all in the past.

At that point, the past needed to remain in its position while she figured out her next move.

But… seeing King Darren made her dig out memories. And, Zaramanni greatly hated that.

She also despised how she couldn’t stop feeling such a terrible emotion.

Hatred could be equaled to poison for the human soul.

So, Zara wanted to do all she could to feel free at that point.

She was about to walk to the closest window and assimilate some fresh air when someone behind her said, “There you are.”

Before Zara could turn to see who the voice belonged to, the collar of her shirt was pulled.

Her neck felt suffocated.

Zaramanni was about to tear the hold when her buttocks painfully hit the cold floor.

Still trying to peel the tight feeling off her neck, Zaramanni wished for her powers to come alive and take control.

But, nothing happened.

Nothing she did to activate her powers worked.

The grasp remained and her face began to redden. Even when she began to break out little coughs, the furious hold was not released.

Instead, after a couple of seconds, the person began to drag her over the floor, pulling her as though she was a bag of unwanted goods.