Finding You, Again
Again 13 - Land of Snow

A black luxury car, slowly docked in front of Jean Lesage Airport, Quebec.

It's almost midnight. The airport is certainly still alive, but not many passengers are seen pacing around. Most were sitting with their heads down, trying to close their eyes in an uncomfortable position.

But there were only a few people who turned their heads, when they saw the two people who had just got out of the car, and hurried to walk towards the VIP waiting room.

Their figures are very striking. First, because both wear thick coats that are expensive. Second, the size of the two of them is very different. A man of above average height with a girl who looks petite.

The man wore wide sunglasses, but failed to hide the handsome face that was behind it. Causing most of the female officers behind the deserted counter, whispered to each other noisily and pointed at the man clandestinely.

But it's not just the women who are stunned. The security guard who was supposed to be on patrol, could not help but follow the golden-blonde girl's light steps.

The girl will attract attention wherever she is. His face was mostly covered in a white scarf. But from the rest of the visible face, it was enough for anyone to judge that the girl was beautiful. What else are his uniquely colored eyes. Blue and green are sharp.

But no one was stupid enough to linger looking at the girl. From his attitude, it was clear that the man who pulled his hand was his lover. And looking at his size, he was not the one they wanted to fight against.

The VIP room doorkeeper who looked extremely nervous, lowered his head briefly before opening the door for the two of them. Her nervousness made sense, as she was an omega werewolf from Blackmoon. He knows exactly who the two of them are.

"Thank you" Lui greeted warmly as she passed by.

Which immediately made the guard wrong. He had heard the news about the new Zhena apparently coming from the descendants of the Elves, which he did not know was if she was also very beautiful and friendly.

"You.you are welcome, Zhena" he replied nervously.

Lui passed by with a big smile, following the Duke's impatient hand.

"I don't have to apologize to him, do I?" lui asked as her eyes caught a handsome figure in the corner of the lobby. Kamaria is seen enjoying a cup of tea while talking to one of the gentry from Levana.

"Mkr...." The Duke snorted when he saw the direction of Lui's gaze. "He was lucky to have the title Damsel. Otherwise, I would have already incised some claw blades onto his back for daring to insult you"

"She's just a young girl" Lui said, still in an attempt to appease the Duke. He didn't want any division between alliances because of him.

"Indeed, and you too. I bet he's older than you" Duke said scathingly.

Being young will not justify Kamaria's insolent attitude yesterday. She's just an*ss, Inner Duke.

"You're swearing!" Lui smiled a little. Lui doesn't need a mindlink to know when Duke swears, like Myra. The Duke smiled wryly, as Lui's guess was very precise.

The airport VVIP waiting room was full that night. And all the creatures in that room are werewolves. More precisely werewolf gentry from various packs. Therefore, they were more careful in speaking.

The gentries in the room looked very awkward with each other. It is clear they are trying their hardest so as not to engage in a fight between packs. In accordance with what is ordered by Alpha respectively,

Duke even heard the rumors, Urtzi had to take out Alpha Tone to control his warrior. Shavarana is the least common pack with both inhumane and human beings. No wonder they are very vigilant when meeting with other packs.

Duke was relieved the warriors had left the night before on Delmor's Airbus. At least if they were to fight in Alaska, there was little chance that they would encounter humans. Tonight is Gentry's turn to be transported by Monath's three jetliners.

Duke had no idea what Rex was doing, until he could pass all these unregistered flights. Including Delmor's Airbus yesterday.

Duke still has an idea if the flight only involved the Canadian area. Monath's power has penetrated the political sphere through Seema's husband.

He was one of the politicians who held important power in the government. He is usually responsible for cleaning up licensing and all documents related to Blackmoon.

But Alaska is America, Duke can imagine a bribe with a zero of more than seven that smooths out this trip.

"Lui!!" a calling came from one corner. Arana exclaimed happily to see Lui. Due to Lui's busy training, she never met Arana again after the incident in the park.

Arana pulled Aygul and approached them, "You've just arrived?" tanyanya while lightly hugging Lui.

"Yes, we departed from Blackmoon this evening" Lui replied.

"I heard you were training with Sorrel, I can't wait to see the results" said Arana, no matter how many werewolves were there, putting on an ear with interest.

"Ah... Arana, we'll discuss that somewhere else, how?" Aygul stopped Arana's curiosity because he knew that the discussion was not to be heard by the public.

The duke immediately gestured for them to enter a more closed area.

From now on, the Gentry who were there could not help but look at the two of them. Alpha and Zhena from the world's largest werewolf pack certainly made them curious.

And the Duke knows it. Hence, he slightly dragged Lui to immediately enter the room. He did not like the amount of attention Lui received.

The four of them stopped in front of the luxurious door room and knocked slowly. After hearing the words from within, they entered simultaneously.

Inside, all the alphas are there. With Magena and Shashi.

The Alpha from Levana still can't come. According to Shashi because of her age, she can no longer leave the pack. At the moment it could be said Kamaria and he were the one leading the pack. But Kamaria refused to be made an Alpha before her father died.

All the eyes that were there were instantly fixed on Lui. It made Lui misbehave, if the Duke was not holding his hand, he would have retreated behind the Duke.

"Include this is Blackmoon's Zhena, Eluira Theobald" the Duke said, looking at everyone.

"It's nice to finally meet you, I'm Magena, Zhena of Shavarana"

Magena was the first to say, probably because she was the only woman there. Magena rarely speaks.

"It's nice to meet you" Lui who finally gained courage, looked kindly at Magena and shook her hand tightly.

Seeing that, one by one the Alphas stood officially introducing themselves. Except for Jacy, he's already met Lui at Blackmoon.

Lui had already seen them all in the Duke's memories, and also the Duke had already given her a brief info on who they were. Lui is now trying hard to match the name with the face.

After the introduction was over, Arana immediately took Lui's hand and invited her to sit somewhat apart with the Alphas. Magena finally followed them taking their place on the sofa located in the corner.

"It's nice to finally be free of the tension" Magena whispered as soon as they sat down. Arana laughed at me understandingly.

"The men have to learn to live more casually" he said.

In his heart Lui agreed. He had never met an Alpha other than Duke and Aygul, but seeing the tension as he entered the room, Lui knew, not all Alpha was as relaxed as they were.

Moments later, the Alphas began discussing the strategy of returning to war. They had all heard about the additional troops Crispin had brought in. And because of Sorrel's big mouth, they all also knew Lui's strength.

They were all excited to hear that, except for the Duke of course. He still felt bringing Lui here was a mistake.

"I heard you gave an unforgettable lesson to that arrogant girl?" Magena whispered back asking Lui. He did not want to interrupt the ongoing discussion. But he became curious as they discussed Lui's strength.

Lui's face was clearly blushing straight away. Didn't know it had spread to everyone. Arana without a doubt giggled happily, though,

"I was there, and was very satisfied to see how the girl was in pain because of Lui. The girl would think dozens of times before daring to flirt with people's husbands again" she said.

Magena shook her head hearing that, "I knew she would cause trouble when she saw her clinging to Alpha Duke. Nice work!" magena said as she gently rubbed Lui's hand.

"Ah.. Hmmm" Lui who did not know what to say, finally could only smile awkwardly.

A few minutes later, Duke's phone shook, sending a message from El. All planes are ready to go. At about the same time, all the alphas woke up and walked out of the room.

In the main lobby, Roan and Myra looked impatiently waiting for them. Roan has been in Quebec for two days. He and El arranged the entire warrior's departure. His face is just annoyed. Roan never liked any other job but fighting.

Three Monath jets are seen parked neatly in the hangar. And since El arranged the flight, Kamaria could not have been on a plane with Duke. He puts Aygul and Arana and Alpha Jacy and Myra on Duke's plane.

And Lui welcomed this arrangement. The existence of Kamaria would make him even more uncomfortable during those twelve hours of exhausting flight.

"You ready?" Duke asked while holding him up the flight of stairs.

"Of course!" Lui smiled broadly in response to Duke's question.

For Lui, the current state of affairs was better than waiting for Duke with anxious feelings at Blackmoon.

This way he will know for sure how the Duke is doing.

\~\~\~\~\~\~\~IlI\~\~\~\~\~\~

As planned, the landed werewolves continued their journey to Wales on the run. All, without exception.

In the middle of the cold arid rocky snowfield, an abnormal sight was seen. In the usually quiet and empty field, passed a large group of wolves running at high speed.

Their size, which was larger than an ordinary wolf, was enough to give a nightmare to humans who had accidentally seen them.

But no one will see that sight. Abel has arranged for all Welsh and surrounding communities to be evacuated.

There are no visible or smelling traces of fresh humans in the area.

The Hunter Council deliberately spread news of fictitious natural disasters to the local government, making settlements and cities located not far from the area empty.

And because of the harshness of nature in the area around the Bering Strait, it certainly makes the area not experience a significant population explosion. The total number of refugees is only about 200 .

And Monath kindly, provided them with hotel and lodging accommodation. Hundreds of Welsh and surrounding residents are currently enjoying facilities at the nearby Monath hotel. Their time of refuge will feel like a holiday.

At the very front position with a distance of almost a hundred meters from the next wolf, it seemed Lui was riding on the Duke's back comfortably.

With the appearance of Lui's ability to withstand the cold, it made Duke no longer hesitate to run at maximum speed. Lui enjoyed it too.

The drawback is, Duke has to work hard to block Roan's curse from his head, because obviously Lui and also Myra will hear it.

Lui giggled several times when she heard the short long curse that Roan threw tucked loose in the Duke's mind. He had already tried to beg Roan to stop, but of course Roan refused.

Myra, who was used to Roan, also had time to object, but did not comment after a while. He temporarily blocked the Duke's mind until there was no need to hear Roan's voice. Unfortunately Lui has not learned that way.

After about an hour or so of running without resting, a row of roofs began to be seen in Duke's eyes. It was a basecamp prepared by the warriors and the Hunters who had come first.

A body wrapped in a thick coat and boot is seen standing next to the building that is located the outermost of the settlement. Her clothes showed how real the air temperature was when it was extremely cold.

The snow is no longer falling, but a very thick pile tells us that this area is not friendly to humans.

And because of those clothes, it was obvious the figure waiting for them, was a human Hunter.

The duke recognized the face that was now smiling widely when he saw it approaching. That's Lael.

With graceful steps the Duke stopped in front of him. Duke lowered his head and Lui slid down smoothly. Lael blinked, then smiled at Lui.

Without needing an explanation, he knew who Lui was. Lael had never met Lui, but he doubted the Duke would carry another woman on his back.

"Laul? Introduce, Eluira Theobald" Lui immediately greeted him kindly. He read how Duke accompanied Lael's shadow with a warm feeling . Lui became aware that Duke liked this young man.

"It's nice to meet you Zhena, I'm Lael Maaz"

"Yes, you've been through a great time with Duke. I saw it at a glance" Lui said.

He did not have time to see the scene in full, as the Duke immediately stepped away to return to being human once he descended.

The Duke is now seen exiting the building - made of a tarp with wide doors deliberately built by the warrior so they can change comfortably - where he transforms\, where he transforms\, by wearing long pants and loose shirts.

Lael looked confused at Lui's words. Never in her mind could Lui have a mindlink with Duke. Before he could ask for an explanation, the Duke had already approached and extended his hand.

"It's good to see Lael again" Duke said kindly.

Lael's smile was getting wider now. He was eager to chat more familiarly, but several Alpha and Gentry started popping up after finishing dressing.

Most were wry-faced, irritated at how once again the Duke had outperformed them even in terms of speed.

And Lael must be disappointed this time, for he must immediately carry out Abel's strict command, that all Alpha should be brought to him once they arrive.

But despite his disappointment, Lael Maih can politely ask the Alphas to follow him.

In a process they walked across the base camp which is now full of warriors from various packs. Like the gentry, they tried to blend in, but failed. They remained seated in groups, dispersed in several parts of the settlement.

The warriors, who were mostly sitting on the rocks and chatting leisurely, immediately stood up and lowered their heads in respect when they saw their entourage.

With a wave of the Duke's hand beckoned for them to sit down and continue their activities. And immediately visible on the part where the Blackmoon warrior is located. They immediately sat back to look at the Duke's hand.

But the warrior of the other pack, still standing waiting for orders. And after some time, only Aygul gave a similar order. The other alphas just walked by without showing any signs of seeing them.

Not a strange attitude, because such absolute reverence was common. It was precisely Duke and Aygul who looked awkward. Duke and Aygul's more relaxed attitude emerged from the rest of their association with humans.

"Welcome...Welcome"

Abel appears to greet them from a large permanent building that looks like City Hall.

The actual form of base camp used by Abel, is a settlement that has been left displaced by humans. The duke could still smell their scent left behind from various angles.

Abel went forward to shake their hands one by one. When it was Lui's turn, she unhesitatingly hugged him and laughed happily.

"I'm glad to see you're healthy Lui, I didn't expect to meet one of my distant relatives yesterday" he said.

He did not care at all about the loud snapping of the Duke's teeth trying to restrain himself, so as not to do anything stupid to Abel.

After all Abel was a distant brother of Lui, and also he was old.

Lui knows from Duke's story about who Abel is, and he's happy to see her. Even though the hug surprised her a little, she kept smiling.

And behind Abel, appeared a short-haired woman with a sour face. Her black eye makeup contrasted sharply with her pale white skin.

The duke could hear how the breath of El that was behind him, became disordered the moment Faust appeared.

He had to learn to control himself better, the Duke deepened in his heart.

Faust's heart was as hard as a rock, even after receiving all of El's attention while in the hospital pack, his attitude was more or less still the same.

Until now El still did not make any approach. His main goal right now was to make Faust behave a little kindly towards him. Only that high level of success that El dared to dream of.

Lael leads the gentry - including El and Roan - to the other buildings next door, while Abel takes Alpha or his representative into the building that turns out to be City Hall.

Inside there is a large table with various papers scattered, and also chairs around. Obviously this room is where Abel plans the troop movement later.

"Arkin and Oulam haven't come yet?" asked the Duke, while sitting on one of the chairs with Lui.

Abel shook his head, "The plan is they will come tomorrow, or maybe tonight. They need more complicated preparations than us, don't they?" said.

Vampires had to avoid the sun, of course they took longer to reach this exact point. Unfortunately Crispin did not have that weakness anymore.

"Sorrel?" Rigel asked reluctantly.

Abel nodded again. "After his departure from Blackmoon, no one heard anything from Appoline. And as we all know, the news from the Elves is one-way"

More or less meaningful, Elves would come if they wanted to. No one knew when they appeared, or even guaranteed they would come.

"What about Crispin? Have they moved?" asked Aygul, who as usual took the place next to the Duke, with Arana.

"It was, but very slow. One of the drones I sent managed to take aerial photos, there was a troop group from the north still on the way. They were waiting for him" Abel handed him a wide photo showing black dots scattering in the white snowfield.

"North? Don't tell me they're Stray from Siberia?" Urtzi who had just sat down said with a sinister face, when he heard Abel's words.

With a bitter smile, Abel nodded.

"Stray from Siberia? Who're they?" Kamaria voiced a question that only Lui dared to think about.

"Siberian Stray is a real ordinary werewolf stray. But their pack-less lives are bristled with violence and wildness, and therefore they are very tough. Almost their entire lives were filled with fighting. Until some people forget their human form. They live as wolves all the time". Jacy kindly explained.

The explanation made Duke recall his fondness for fighting Roan, but he would never agree to live in the middle of nowhere in Siberia. Duke is very sure, cell phone signal reception is very bad there. And for Roan it was a disaster.

Duke had heard of them of course. The Siberian Stray is a favorite creature for parents to scare werewolf children into conformity. She heard most of them from her teacher at the pack school, Ms. The cetta.

He was often threatened with being sent there whenever he skipped class with Roan. Very kind Ms. Cetta added they are cannibals who like to eat children. At that point the Duke was almost convinced that they were just mythical creatures.

But of course the assumption is wrong. Like the Dyad, the Siberian Stray really exists.

"How Much?" Duke tried to calculate the point he saw on the photo and stopped at the number fifty. "Nearly a hundred if you look at the photo" replied Abel.

"This fight is becoming more and more interesting" Aygul rubbed his hands excitedly now.

While Arana's face showed disobedience. Obviously the Serbian Stray legend doesn't just circulate at Blackmoon. Arana also knows horror stories about them.

Worries do not only befall Arana, because Lui unconsciously squeezed the hand of the Duke who was holding it. Abel's brief explanation might not give him the same horror feeling as Arana, but the word wild and fight was enough to give Lui a reason to worry.

"Don't be afraid, just think of them as Roan. Roan is under the influence of steroids" Duke said trying to give Lui a lighter picture.

And Lui barely giggled irreverently hearing it. Roan would be very angry if he heard this. Luckily, Lui could still hold back a smile, she shouldn't laugh at situations like this.

"How long will they reach the shore?" Duke pulled out some pictures that were on the table to research him.

"At the earliest two days, and after that they only needed a little time to swim and get here" Abel looked at the laptop screen that was in front of Faust in seriousness.

Faust is responsible for the use of modern technology such as unmanned drones that were called Abel. Hunter is actually less familiar with advanced technology.

"If you have a drone like this, why did you send me to Lavrentiya yesterday?" Duke pointed at the pile of pictures on the table.

"We didn't have it then, Duke. And I have no power to buy it. But now---" Abel did not continue his sentence.

But everyone knows Abel's rise to office gave him access to millions of dollars worth of equipment more easily.

"And I'm glad they work so well. But I didn't dare fly him too close to Crispin. There's a chance they're wearing protective magic" he continued.

The duke nodded in understanding. Man-made drones may have a stealth function to evade radar, but that function would be useless against protective magic.

They'll know if any foreign bodies come close. Especially after the surprise attack from Duke yesterday. They must be raising the security level by now.

"So we'll wait until they cross over?" Rigel straightened his legs and prepared to get up from his seat.

Abel nodded, "We'll fly the drones several times a day so we know when they're crossing"

"Then we'll excuse you" he said. It was followed by Urtzi.

Their attitude is still very rigid, and will not change anytime soon. So Abel took them out politely.

Kamaria and Shashi also came out, but for different reasons, and no one wanted to ask.

During the brief encounter, Kamaria and Lui had not met any eyes at all, they both pretended not to see each other.

"Well---I'm glad you guys are on the relaxed side" Abel said taking a deep breath, sitting next to Faust. He looks so tired.

"Maybe they need to get to know you longer, like me" said Jacy, consoling her with a warm smile.

"You've done an incredible job. Putting Alpha together in one place is almost impossible work" Aygul praised him sincerely.

"Thanks" said Abel, smiling slightly.

Aygul's words made Duke aware of something.

"Are you using your abilities as an imperfect to make this happen?" said Duke.

Abel unites not only the Alpha werewolf, but also the vampire. It's a job that's not only near, but it should be impossible.

"Oh. You're aware of it" Abel smiled at Duke.

Aygul and Arana straightened their backs with interest in hearing Abel's words.

"How's?" Lui asked excitedly.

They were both the same, he wanted to know more about the imperfect.

"My abilities are almost similar to Oscar's, your brother's" Abel replied as he looked at Lui.

"You know Oscar?!" Lui exclaimed in shock.

"Ah-no, but I heard about him from Dihyan. I met a lot of imperfects, but Oscar was the exception. I had absolutely no idea Delmora had any members of the imperfect family"

Abel's explanation was greeted with a nod of understanding by Lui.

"And--?" The Duke demanded further explanation about Abel's power.

Abel took a deep breath before finally answering.

"As I said, my powers are almost like Oscar's. Because it is both related to feelings. I have the ability to persuade"

Abel's explanation made everyone in the room think for a moment.

"Deferring? You mean like it affects the mind?"

The Duke is now starting to be unhappy, as he feels taken advantage of by Abel.

You could say all Abel's plans went smoothly until now. And he's in it.

"Not affect in full, Duke. I won't be able to deflect an already unanimous determination. But I can get someone to be able to more boldly take the unusual path. I'm getting rid of the doubt"

"You mean, if I didn't want to come to Blackmoon you wouldn't be able to force me. But since I was only hesitant, you could influence me to come?" Aygul asserted as he looked at Abel.

He doesn't seem to like it now either.

"Yes, and no offense. I can only be sure of what's on your mind. Not the opposite decision. In short, my ability will be very useful to speed up a process"

Duke and Aygul were silent again.

Duke was skeptical of Abel's plans at first. But inwardly, he knew the idea made perfect sense.

Crispin had managed to gather all the creatures under his command with the lure of freedom and power, but they could not offer it.

This alliance does require more miracles to materialize.

He could not remember exactly how he accepted Abel's idea. The duke cursed and complained a lot, but he continued to run it without hesitation.

Abel had conquered it by then. And now all those plans are working.

Aygul also did not speak further. Since he knew in the depths of his heart, he also wanted this plan to succeed.

"I will remember to take you, if I want to bribe someone" said the Duke, finally.

It would be useless to scold Abel at this time. All plans are neatly arranged.

Abel nodded with a sigh. "I hope not soon".

Aygul's relaxed attitude has also returned. Like Duke, he didn't want to prolong the matter.

"I've provided some tents for you to occupy. I'll ask Lael to drop off" Abel said as he pulled his phone out.

"Something's coming" said the Duke stopping his movements abruptly.

He had just pulled back the chair that Lui was sitting on to help her stand up easily. But something was disturbing his instincts.

With a quick movement he walked to the door and opened it. On the highway that was in front of the building, three brightly glowing red magic circles. A few hunters who were on guard, had prepared with weapons pointed towards the magic circle.

"Sorrel?" Aygul who had caught up to Duke whispered.

"No! Sorrel's magic was blue" The Duke recalled Sorrel's magic circle that had appeared on the library floor. Some of the symbols that are there are also different.

A moment later six figures manifested themselves. Two in each circle. And Duke recognized one of them.

"Alva?" he replies with uncertainty. His appearance made Duke feel foreign.

Alva wears her witch attributes in full. Glistening necklaces and bracelets hung on his neck and hands. His hair was usually short, this time breaking down to the back, and several metal clips were pinned there.

She was wearing a long white dress, filled with beautiful golden embroidery. Not to forget, a long stick that seems to be visible from ruby, because it is reddish in color, tightly grasped in his right hand.

And his appearance was ordinary when compared to the other witches who came. Duke could not even look at them without feeling glare, due to the sheer number of accessories attached.

"Well?!!" a surprised cry came back from behind the Duke.

Lui who caught up with him, was also surprised to see a completely different figure of Alva. He was used to seeing Alva wearing an official suit and a doctor's robe.

"I absolutely must not underestimate the power of your persuasion" the Duke whispered to Abel who had been standing next door.

Alva is not an easy person to convince. But he's here with his covent members. Duke knows for sure, who persuaded Alva to do this.

Abel did not respond to Duke's accusations, and only smiled faintly.

Lui who was happy to see the Alva, went straight down and poured into his arms.

Alva smiled to see who was welcoming her.

"Hi's beautiful, it's good to see you healthy again" she said to Lui, hugging her tightly.

Alva did not meet Lui in a conscious state while at Blackmoon. He was certainly relieved to see Lui had run over cheerfully.

"I'm sorry. I forgot about you" Lui said, with teary eyes as she squeezed Alva's hand after taking off her embrace.

Alva had already struggled to care for him for so many years painstakingly, and she simply wiped it off with Duke.

"Silly girl! You're ill. No need to apologize" Alva stroked Lui's cheek fondly.

"Alva is right" The duke who suddenly appeared behind Lui, grabbed her chin.

And without any warning, a light kiss appeared on Lui's lips.

"What's that for?" Alva immediately denounced the Duke with a sharp look.

Lui could only silence in shock and felt like fainting from embarrassment.

Especially when all eyes are looking at him. The witch who was behind Alva until stuck out her neck with interest.

"Punishment for you. Since you said an unnecessary apology" Duke explained casually to Lui who was still blushing.

"That's not fair, I said it to Alva" Lui protested, having managed to find her missing voice.

"I never said I would only punish you if you apologized to me" the Duke deftly admitted.

Lui could only open her mouth foolishly hearing that. Because it's true.

"Hhhh-happy to see you guys back as usual. Weird Couples!" Alva just shrugged her shoulders looking at the friendly scenery in front of her. He was already used to seeing Duke's madness on Lui.

"I'm also glad you decided to help" Abel reached out to Alva, welcoming her.

"I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do" he said briefly.

Abel nodded in satisfaction, and then directed Alva inside. He would certainly give an explanation about Crispin like earlier.

Lael, who had appeared because of Abel's call, immediately led them all towards the tent provided. Lui has to be a little patient if she wants to have a good conversation with Alva.