ZARAMANNI (BOOK ONE)

Alpha King Darren, the ruler that presided over Zenrada had been riding for five days and as his tired horse tried its best to keep up with the pace he was aiming for, he realised that he was moving closer to The Big Tear- the very thing that separated Zenrada, the biggest werewolf kingdom in the universe from Amarxona, the land of the fairies.

But, the funny thing was, Amarxona was built on Zenrada’s land.

Riding past the many trees that hid most of the well-built, tall, abandoned buildings that felt the effect of the grievous attack, King Darren's mind travelled down the path of history.

About a thousand years into the past, when Zenrada was still growing, when the Kingdom barely had two wolf packs under its jurisdiction, the fairies approached the then King who had just been chosen by the heavens. That King went by the name, Ezekiel.

The leader of the fairies was a shattered soul, on the verge of madness. She knew that there were plots against her, plots to overthrow her but all she concerned herself with was finding a place for her people to settle.

King Ezekiel who had been searching for a means to grow his Kingdom saw an opportunity. He knew having the fairies would make the Zenrada flourish, so the leaders struck a deal.

The fairies would provide Zenrada a portion of their magic and they’ll get all the land they want.

That wonderful plan worked for ages. It seemed, as time flew, that the goddess was in support of the alliance but she wanted her people to be safe, so the high priests said.

So, The Big Tear was created.

The wall between Zenrada and Amarxona didn’t hinder the flow between the two kingdoms, it just kept everyone in check. It was a wall that was easy to pass through but the werewolves never ventured toward the path that led to the land of the fairies.

And since exchanges between the kingdoms were made without physical contact, the wolves believed the fairies did the same- that they stayed away from the wall.

So they thought until the attacks began.

It was unbelievable at first.

The first attack was even tagged as a result of an intense fight between two men from different packs who hated each other’s guts, but as time passed, as months flew, the cases increased.

The fairies were really killing his people... King Darren had finally realised this after he had assured his people that the people of Amarxona would never harm them.

Of course, the battle line was drawn. Zenrada was getting ready for a great battle, they were ready to destroy the bond they had with the fairies but the Amarxonans had planned the whole thing.

They knew precisely what their aim was. They had meticulously planned their attack.

So, while the wolves prepared their weapons and prepped their wolves for battle, the Amarxonans snuck upon them, rendered Zenrada's moon powerless with their magic, and started the killing spree, not giving a lot the chance to escape.

Of course, they had the support of Zenrada’s enemies, the Vampires who populated the land of Skullis. That support and the fairies' immense magic were how they overpowered the greatest kingdom in all the lands.

King Darren sighed as he looked up at the red sky whose growing gloomy shade was preventing him and his horse from seeing the road ahead properly.

While he felt sorry for the animal who he wished he could urgently get some food and water for, Darren realised how bad it would have been if he had taken the were-mobile. He wouldn't have been able to see a thing if he had chosen to drive.

Lifting his sight from the horse, Darren quickly questioned his journey to Amarxona as seconds of silence passed.

He was approaching the abode of the creatures that killed his people, and he was without a small troop.

Sure, his present goal was to get his Queen. But, Alpha Darren knew that he would be doing more than that once he gets to Amarxona, so it was totally risky to be the only one on the path he had chosen.

But, what could he do? He had already failed to protect most of his people, his heart hated the thought of putting more of them in danger.

Besides, they would do a better job of protecting the Kingdom, he knew that much.

His horse let out a snort as its paces reduced and as it shook its head to get rid of the flies that were coming at it.

Darren managed a small smile as he petted the poor thing. The horse had never gone so long without getting proper feeding and a bath… neither had he, the King thought as he sniffed the air around him, his lips pressed as his face failed to hide his disgust.

A low sizzling sound reached Darren’s ears and he finally realised the real reason his horse had slowed its steps- they had reached the wall.

Like the ancient books said, the wall was thin, multi-coloured and it had the ability to flow as though it was water, and that flow was making his eyes feel weird, just as it had been written.

“Oh well, here goes nothing,” Darren said to himself as he quickly shielded his eyes and pulled the hood of his thick, black cloak over his head. “May the goddess be with me.”

As he passed through the wall, he felt a chill envelop him. That chilly feeling dug into his bones and made him shiver. But, that feeling lasted a few seconds.

Patting his horse who also felt the chill and showed discomfort through its whines, the King’s eyes surveyed the view in front of him.

The land of the fairies, Amarxona.

Nothing much was in Zenrada’s books about Amarxona but one thing that was consistent in the little essay written was how beautiful the land was.

Though all he could see was greenery, King Darren concluded that Amarxona was indeed beautiful and strangely… soothing.

The ground he was on wasn’t sandy and rough like the path he was just coming from. The Amarxonan land was covered with carpet-like green grasses.

Unlike Zenrada’s latest plight, their sky was blue, the bluest he had ever seen. In addition, there were linings of different colours that looked so elegant in the sky, one could just stare at them all day.

Darren looked around again as his horse began to slowly move.

He could see things he had never laid eyes upon. Their flourishing green trees bore fruits he could not identify.

At the base of the trees which were arranged linearly on both sides, Darren noticed flowers with unique designs and colours. These flowers were dancing slowly as a little breeze arrived at intervals and made the place more conducive.

As Darren stared at the flowers, he felt drawn, he wanted to continue watching them.

But, his horse stomped its feet instantly and Darren jumped out of the trance he was being pulled into. He looked in his horse’s direction with concern and he saw that it was being bothered by a weirdly shaped fly.

“I’ll be damned,” he muttered to himself, tightening his hold on his horse's reins as the animal tried to get rid of the sudden disturbance.

With a frown, he watched as the uniquely designed flowers disappeared. As that happened, the roots of the healthy trees began to burn. They burnt all the way to the stems, making the trees an absolute waste and a disturbing sight within a few seconds.

Next, it was the ground. The grasses were torn apart by some unseen force, the ground shook slightly as huge chunks of the carpet grass started to fly out of the land, leaving nothing but a decayed sight of insects he had never seen before.

All of a sudden, the insects came to life and they charged at King Darren who found himself on the ground as fright poked at his heart.

The King pulled out his sword, ready to slay the disgusting creatures who looked bigger and bigger as they moved closer.

Then, the strangest thing happened, he heard the sound of someone being slapped and the next thing, he was back on his horse staring at the beautiful scene once again.

King Darren was no fool. Definitely, a game was being played and he wasn’t in the mood for stupid plays.

Cautiously, he looked around, checking for any sign of what happened earlier. He saw nothing, so he prompted his horse to move.

It didn’t move.

Instead, his horse fell to its knees all of a sudden.

King Darren knew he couldn’t push the horse anymore, so he got off the horse and decided to rest as well.

He had barely placed his buttocks on the ground when his horse let out a loud shriek.

His one-second confusion soon disappeared when he saw a sight that made him instantly furious. He did not miss the arrows suddenly being shot in his direction, and a couple of them had hit his horse.

So, as he tried to get rid of the flying arrows with the speed of his sword, he protected his horse. But, another loud shriek from the horse disturbed Darren’s heart. So, he fell to the ground, crawled toward the bleeding horse, and tried to see if he could stop the pain.

“Alpha King Darren, a pleasure seeing you here,” a voice that sounded sinister said. Darren turned, his bloodied hands still trying to stop his horse’s pains.

“Who are you?” he asked angrily. He knew the long-bearded man was definitely a fairy and Darren’s heart boiled with anger as his eyes landed on the armoured men staring at him with seriousness.

He also didn’t miss how blue their skins were. They were pale blue to be exact.

“You don’t have to know that,” the man said as he gathered his hideous robe before he squatted in front of the King. “All you need to know is that I am aware that you are the wolfless king of Zenrada, which is quite ridiculous.”

Darren’s heart squeezed as the man poked at his weakness and secret. Only a few knew that Zenrada's king was wolfless.

"Tell me…" The somewhat wrinkly creature spoke as he twitched his right, pointed ears with his frail fingers. “How are you powerful if you don’t have a wolf?”

Darren remained strong on the outside, his jaws clenched as he replied, “That’s none of your business.”

”Oh, it is.” Darren’s thick brows raised as the fairy glared at him. “Yes, it's our business. Because we are going to help you find that wolf.”

”What?”

The creature looked ahead, a look of reminiscence on his face. Then, he said, his voice softer, “A wolf is born under a full moon. A king is born under a full moon. A little half-fairy blood mixed, a full-length spell added, under a full moon, a king would be reborn. A wolfless king will find his wolf and his true power, he shall find.”

Darren frowned as the recitation came to an end. The fairy locked gazes with him once again and Darren became more confused. But then, he could not shake the feeling that something evil was attached to the whole thing that was just uttered.

“Now, you have to go to sleep,” Darren heard the man say before he muttered some words which he was sure were spells.

The next thing he knew, his breath became heavy, something bound his hands and feet tightly and the last thing he heard as he fell into pitch darkness was, “This should be fun.”