Chapter Twenty-Four
Turning his head to look out the window, when the carriage had finally arrived near the entrance of the Sprites Kingdom, Ryanne flexed his shoulders and cracked his knuckles.
He also mentally prepared himself for the encounter with the Cold Sprites Queen. For whatever he was about to face was unknown.
He also remembered to be cautious but shrewd.
The tall walls were looming, the watchmen standing in their posts becoming cautious when they had sighted the nearing carriage. Tightly, they held onto their bows while pursing their lips.
With a shrill whistle, they alerted the troops guarding nearby.
Frowning faces, they watched the carriage like hawks. When it was nearing the closed golden gates, they placed an arrow in their bows and lifted it in front of them.
The drivers instantly stopped the huffing horses, and the carriage became standstill.
"Who goes there?!"
One of the eight watchmen, the Commander, barked, his voice guttural and rough as he pointed his weapon in the center of one of the driver's forehead.
Upon hearing this shout, the gatemen quickly descended the gate so that a large number of Sprites guards, about twenty in total, could rush towards it with their spears and swords raised and prepared for an attack. Mages, both women, and men had also made themselves known with the group as electricity pulsed around their hands.
Their reactions were understandable because they had a recent attack on their Kingdom.
Feeling the repealing static of the mages' powers, Ryanne dispelled the large growl of disapproval aching to come out of his chest when one of the Sprite guards had practically ordered the two drivers to come down from the carriage and slowly step away from it.
They were extra wary of sudden visitors.
“Why have you come here?!”
Hearing the one-sided interrogation with his sensitive and powerful hearing, Ryanne huffed.
Standing to his full height, he stepped out of the carriage and interjected before his two drivers could attack or answer.
“I seek an audience with the Cold Sprites Queen.”
His voice was stern and loud enough to reach the ears of the curious watchmen.
Widened eyes, for they had least expected the mighty Lycan King to grace their Kingdom; all the guards and watchmen pointed their swords, spears, and bows to aim in his direction, for he was a definite threat.
Raising an eyebrow, he growled in irritation at the men lack of respect.
“I did not come here to cause any trouble. I have only come to apologize to the Cold Sprites Queen for the recent invasion.”
Insisting, while not convinced with the Lycan King words; a guard snarled.
“How do we know you are not lying, your highness? Our attackers were Lycans!"
Sighing heavily, Ryanne was about to answer but quickly jumped a few yards away from the carriage and men.
That was because a familiar frozen wave of ice had formed a long line in front of him.
He growled and searched among the people for the perpetrator of the rude attack.
His red eyes soon landed on the Cold Sprites Queen, who had made her glorious presence known by suddenly materializing in front of the guards through a portal.
She was furious with two beautiful formed ice blades in her hands.
“How dare you, your royal highness, after the damage your people caused? They destroyed an entire village! A lot of my people died, and you now show your face?!"
Shaking his head to prevent his beast from taking over because of her tone of voice, Ryanne slowly began to speak.
“Forgive me for what has fallen on your Kingdom, Cold Sprites Queen, but it was not my fault, nor was I the one who ordered these Lycans.”
Growing angrier, the Cold Sprites Queen unleashed one blade that Ryanne dodged by sliding his feet against the ground with a displeased grunt.
“DO YOU EXPECT ME TO BE COMPLIANT WITH YOUR HALF-HEARTENED APOLOGY, YOUR ROYAL HIGHNESS!”
He instantly evaded the other blade from the pissed off woman.
“Listen to me, woman! It was not me who troubled your Kingdom! Even if I am King, I will not abuse my power for such egotistical gain!”
His canines and claws surfaced from the irritation boiling inside of him, for the stubborn woman was not listening to him, or was she?
The hue in her eyes was condensed.
She was enjoying herself by attacking him.
Her entire face was emotionless, but the tiny spark in her eyes gave off such satisfaction away.
He had always known the burning hatred of the Cold Sprites Queen directed to him. Every time she spoke to him, it felt as if she was chewing on glass.
That was an attitude he let slide for centuries because he could never dismiss the impact the Exiled Lycan King's actions had on the Kingdoms.
Suddenly, her attacks abruptly stopped when she quickly averted her eyes to look behind him.
Ryanne soon followed her line of sight by turning his head on one side.
Recognizing the fast approaching and beautiful, but a little disoriented Angelique on top of a hurriedly galloping Diana in the distance; he frowned.
A sneer suddenly erupted from the Cold Sprites Queen lips.
"Why is she here? It is not yet safe."
He, on the other hand, felt his heart sore with relief, for there was not a single scratch on her pale skin.
Ryanne fully turned around with a frown when he had spotted the familiar beasts chasing her.
They were part of Rolando’s uprising, the deep scars in the middle of their forehead a definite sign of this allocation.
Ryanne did not hesitate as he rushed with lightning speed towards the too close for comfort beasts readying to attack an unprepared Angelique.
Growling, he jumped in their wake.
Haggard breathing, he chose his first victim, the one closest to him. Jumping, he held onto its big neck with his large arms in a crushing hold and pinned it onto the ground.
Snarling for the fighting beast to stand down, he was pushed away from it by an angrily growling beast.
Landing and feeling the dirt sticking underneath his elongated claws when the force of the push had caused his body to slide against the ground, a dangerous growl rumbled within Ryanne's chest.
The beast from earlier quickly jumped back onto its large paws. With a mocking wolfish grin, it with the others circled their King.
Their eyes had grown redder with glee, for the worry he had towards the Princess was suspicious.
Gnashing their teeth, they dug their paws onto the ground.
They pulled the skin away from their teeth. It was a guttural smirk.
This smirk caused Ryanne’s heart to pinch, for he sensed that they had managed to connect the dots.
They had recognized he was the father of the hybrid lying in the womb of the Princess.
'Well, well, well. What do we have here.'
Those words he could feel echoing in his mind as they looked mockingly in his direction.
Using his slight hesitation, the five growling and snapping beasts intercepted his person to get back into the thrilling chase. Fast reflexes, he ran behind them. They were taunting him by running in zigzag, and it made him mad.
Angelique had summoned vines to erupt from the ground to evade their advances, which made him smirk, for one of the Lycans had gotten caught up.
Growling, he leaped onto its back.
Sinking his claws into its neck, he tore it to shreds with a sinister shout.
With his eyes a gleaming and dark red color, he finally allowed his angry beast to surface, and he was thirsty for the remaining Lycans' blood.