-HER-

I wanted to rub my eyes to make sure that I was seeing the right thing but at the same time, I was afraid that I'd miss something if I blinked at that moment.

My eyes widened as more and more lycans rose from the river, all equipped with weapons I'd never seen in my life. They struck a fear inside me... the fear of the unknown.

I tightened my fingers around my sword, embracing myself for another war which— I had a feeling that we might lose because we were severely outnumbered by them and also, it would still take some time for more enforcement and weapons to arrive for us.

The army that rose out of the river didn't attack us right away. It seemed like they were waiting for something.

Was this why Ezekiel had been scared of them all this time? I think not. There must have been something beyond it because Ezekiel didn't seem like the one to be scared of just a bunch of soldiers from another army. I took this moment to glance at Ezekiel to find him glaring at the troops who stood tall at the edge of the river.

"Who are they?" I asked in a whisper, edging closer to him but he ignored me. His eyes were set on the troops and his jaw was clenched tightly. I glanced at the rest of the wolves and Lycans who seemed to be just as clueless about them as me.

"Step back," He growled at me lowly before he put his sword back and stepped towards those troops. In the front of the troops was standing a grim and deadly-looking lycan. He was taller than most and had a nasty scar running across his face.

As far as I could guess from looking at ranks on his armor, he seemed to be the General of the army of 'Lycans of the river'— that's what I decided to call them for now because I really have no idea what they were called.

Though I was more bewildered when the General didn't bow to Ezekiel. I had thought that all the Lycans were Ezekiel's subjects but the way the general was glaring at Ezekiel, I deduced that maybe, there was another clan or kingdom of Lycans who weren't Ezekiel's subjects and about whom I wasn't aware.

"Tell him to come out," Ezekiel glowed at the General.

"He doesn't need to come out. I am enough for you," The General declared before he cracked down on Ezekiel with his sword. Ezekiel took the blow but he hit the River General harder while the other river lycans charged towards us with a war cry.

I met them with the same deadly energy even though I was tired and injured from fighting so long but the war didn't seem to have ended yet. Instead, it felt just the beginning of something big.

The River lycans were easily winning over us and for once I was also starting to lose hope when Ezekiel managed to kill the river General. The small war was instantly halted as Ezekiel dumped the dead body of the River General in the river.

There was something so primal and dangerous about him as he did that. I didn't know what it was about him that made him seem like that but he seemed like an entirely different person at that moment.

"Baltazar! Come out of that jacuzzi, motherfvcker, and face me!" Ezekiel roared at the bloody river whose water was too still to belong to a river. Just seeing the water sent shivers down my spine because so many dead bodies were floating in it.

Ezekiel's voice boomed in the bloody valley. For a moment the only response he got was the echo of his words but we didn't have to wait long.

All of a sudden, something started to rise from the river water. A huge figure slowly rose out of the water. It seemed like a person. At first, nothing was visible but after the person rose to his full height, the river water washed down to reveal....

... my jaw dropped for the second time that day. I heard several people gasp behind me as they looked at the tall, regal Lycan floating above the river water in front of us.

I wanted to drop my sword once and rub my eyes again just to make sure that I was seeing the right thing. I was unable to believe my eyes. I glanced at Ezekiel and then at the Lycan who had just risen out of the River. The pair were glaring at each other so passionately that it seemed like the gods had made them solely hate each other.

Just imagining the two of them clashing sent a shiver down my spine.

When I slightly recovered from the shock, I dared to step closer just to have a proper look at the Lycan who had just risen out of the water.

He was the exact copy of Ezekiel. Or should I say that Ezekiel was the exact copy of him? The River lycan looked a bit older than Ezekiel and he was missing his dreadlocks. From what I could deduce, he was much likely to be Ezekiel's older brother.

"You have broken the treaty," The river Lycan spoke before spitting nastily, "Brother,"

"I fvcking didn't," Ezekiel spat back, "Brother,"

"Then why did one of your lycans drop down into my kingdom like some bird's shit?" The River Lycan growled. So powerful was his growl that the mountains shivered, "And not only that, you have dared to disrespect our mother by contaminating her with the blood of sinful mortals!"

"Well, we could disrespect her less if we don't spill more blood here," Ezekiel had the nerve to say that lightly with a shrug in such a tense situation. In response, his brother roared with burning fury.

"You have broken the treaty. You either hand your kingdom to me or you go to war with me," His brother challenged as he climbed down the air and started edging closer to Ezekiel. Both the lycans met with each other eye to eye. Their chests and foreheads were pressed as they glared at each other.

"I'd love to go to war with you. After all, you still have half of my kingdom but the treaty hasn't been broken,"

"You haven't stopped lying, I see,"

"And you're still as ignorant as ever," Ezekiel spat back. Ezekiel calling someone else ignorant?

If irony wasn't a thing already then Ezekiel would have invented it at that moment but hey, the other Lycan was Ezekiel's brother after all. It was safe to assume that he would have some ignorance and arrogance in his genes too.

"I will beat your cocky ass today, motherfvcker," Ezekiel's brother cursed as he pulled out his sword.

"Careful, mama's boy. History repeats itself," Ezekiel smirked.

_

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