The Wannabe Warrior
Chapter 173

Zane POV

I was shocked when Zeek had told me that it had taken us four hours to travel through the tunnels to get here. I was surprised at how quick it had been. At no time could I tell we had gone under a deep ravine or a river. We had been slowly going downhill since we entered the tunnel with the lights that were fifteen paces apart, but it was so gradual, you hardly noticed the decline, or the slow rise after we had travelled under the river. Alex said it took him less time, but that was because they had run where Zeek had gone slowly, being unsure of how fit our warriors were. I was not sure whether to be insulted or not, but Zakary clarified what Zeek meant and informed me it was more about being underground, the air is different and affects people differently.

We were going to have dinner here and have the warriors relax for a while, and together with Alex, Zakary and Zeek, we would discuss what we were going to do from here.

The meal was good, a thick stew with some home-made bread rolls, though it did not look that appealing, it was tasty and filling, and that was more than enough for me.

While I ate with the alpha’s, I asked the question. I knew my warrior would ask me when I returned to him.

‘Zeek, do you allow outsiders as mates?’ I looked him in the eye, and waited for him to answer. I know if it was Alex he would have no problems, but Zeek, so far, though he has not been hostile, he had not been that friendly either.

‘That depends on the mate. If we are talking about taking our women away, then I would have to think hard about it. We have had, in the past, some men bring a woman here as his mate, and it is good to have new b***d in the pack, but I am reluctant to lose any.’ He was cautious and I understood that.

‘When we arrived here, the cave with all the people in it, one of the Blue River warriors said his mate is here, after we have rescued my mate, maybe we can look at this and see how my warrior feels about living here.’ I suggested and Zeek just nodded thoughtfully.

Alex and Zakary congratulated me on behalf of my warrior, and said he would make a good addition to the pack here. They need new b***d and being a warrior is a great honour for whatever woman had him as her mate.

We chatted all through the meal, looking at a diorama similar to the one Alex had, and then at another smaller one that had more details of the area. Pointing out where the pack was situated and which building Madison was in, Zeek suggested we go to the area at night or early morning, as the pack security was less active between two and four am, I was happy to go at what they thought was the best time.

I offered some of the darts to use on the guards as we arrived, knocking them down. They would sleep for a few hours, though Zeek knew nothing of these darts and what they could do. Zakary and Alex both had to explain to him in a language I did not understand, and by the time the other two had finished their heated discussion, it was agreed to use the darts on those we found till we reached the pack house, as they would not be able to give the alarm.

It was difficult getting Zeek to agree to anything, he was stubborn. Wanting to do things his way, we argued each time we suggested something different, like using the dart in the attack.

I advised the warriors to get some sleep. We would leave around one am and head towards the packhouse then.

Somehow I managed to get a few hours’ sleep, before Alex came and woke me up, I went with him to wake our warriors.

One by one, I nudged the people awake, and made sure they put on lots of warm clothing as it was very cold outside. Zeek said it was very blustery and perfect for an attack, where most guards would be huddled around fires and out of the wind trying to stay warm.

We sprayed our neutraliser on and I gave each of the blue River Warriors some darts to use. If they got close enough to use them, as I only had about ten blow tubes, I handed them to only those I knew had used them before. With the wind, we needed only experienced men using blowguns.

We headed to the cave entrance and immediately felt the cold chill outside. Once we were all gathered, Zeek gave us instructions on where we were going and to be careful. He was not going with us and neither were Alex or Zakary, they would wait for our safe return.

I left the warmth of the cave and entered the blast of cold air, which almost took my breath away. I had to cover my nose and mouth with a cloth, to stop the cold air from traveling straight down my throat and burning my lunges with its icy chill.

The Scout led the way, through the snow. We were in our human forms for now, deciding it was better to travel, and fifteen minutes later, we found our first three guards huddled near a drum that had a fire burning brightly.

I asked three of the Blue River warriors to put the three guards to sleep, and together they lifted the blow gun and I could hear them in the mind-link count.

One.

Two.

Three.

Then three guards slumped together on the snow, we laid them against a tree out of sight and continued on to the next group. We could see the fires burning from a good distance away from each guard post and the Blue River warriors had their blow guns out ready to hit the next group. Every time we approached, the enemy warriors were huddled around a pit of burning wood, talking softly to each other and stepping side to side, stamping their feet to keep warm.

By the time we had reached the area where we could see the packhouse, we had put twenty-one men asleep.

The scout pointed to the room Madison was in, so close yet still so far away, I couldn’t wait to hold my mate.

I went to mind-linked her.