The Wannabe Warrior
Chapter 200

Zane POV

As the time slowly drifted by, men were more relaxed, they were ready, but not sitting there stressed out. The Blue River warriors were used to long waits and knew how not to get bored. They chatted with the other men, keeping their voices low, but still maintaining a conversation. These men deserved some kind of recognition for all they have done and how well they performed their duties. I have to talk to dad when all this is over, and I want these guys to be part of the palace guard. I think I have talked about this before, but the more I see them interact with others, the more impressed I am with them, they take control without it going to their heads, they get the job done with little to no complaints and, unless you ask them, they will never say a bad word about another person. They were a tight-knit group, working well as a team, and also great leaders. The alpha of the Blue River pack has to be proud of his men, he has done an outstanding job with them and I wonder if he has other men he was training. You can’t get this type of man without leading by example.

Even the two thousand plus extra men dad had sent, the new arrivals had blended in easily, and soon you could see the difference between those seasoned warriors and the Deep Earth pack, where the seasoned warriors were laughing and joking with each other . The Deep Earth ones were more reserved and unsure. They were listening to the others and sometimes chuckling over some joke, but they were not interacting as easily as our guys. I am sure if Peggy saw these men interacting at the moment, she would have seen how different they were and how much her people needed to learn. Being this relaxed before a fight was a true art, and showed the difference between the experienced and the not so experienced.

‘Zane, can you come to the diorama room please.’ Madison called me and I looked over at the guys and smiled, they would be fine with me being gone for a little while.

‘Hey Wayne, can you organise the guys to start going to the bathroom and getting something to eat and drink, send them out in sets of ten men at a time.’ Wayne nodded and started to organise these guys to head out and do as I had asked. We had the main body of men here in this cave entrance. Peggy said this was the weakest place and most likely where Zeek would recommend you to attack first.

Madison was by Peggy, chatting quietly when I walked in, something had happened to Peggy, her face a little pale and she looked a little sad, not her normal focused woman.

‘What happened?’ I asked softly and went over and rubbed Peggy’s back, trying to give her some comfort for whatever she was suffering from.

‘We do not know how many people have drunk it, but the toxic water has been used, and Zeek is one of those who has drunk it. Peggy was suffering from Zeek’s pain, and I had to help her block out Zeek and to heal her wolf from the loss. I think she is okay. For now, she might need sleep, but she refused to go and rest.’ I nodded as I took in what was being said, and remembered how dad was when Madison had healed him.

‘She will bounce back, give Peggy a little time, get a coffee or some sweet drink for her; my dad bounced back really quickly once you healed him, Peggy, has Zeek died or is he still in pain?’ I asked carefully, not wanting to cause her any more pain.

‘He is still suffering, how long does it take for those to die?’ she sounded like she wanted to cry. This was her mate we were talking about and though he betrayed her, Peggy would still have feelings for the father of her pups.

‘That varies. We cannot really say. This is a modified version, so maybe longer than the original, and it also depends on how much he drank. We are working on an unknown factor. They should never have tried to change it. The part that they want to work on is the part that is the main toxin. You can’t replicate it or remove the lethal part. I have a potion made with natural plants that does exactly what they want, but it has flaws, like it can be washed off.’ Madison replied and I interrupted Madison before she continued on a different tangent.

‘Peggy, we have seen some that have suffered for hours, and some that killed themselves, others lingered longer, and some lasted only a little while. Even with the original, it came down to whether they drank it or washed it. We cannot truly answer your question with any accuracy.’ I answered tenderly, feeling for her loss and the fight she must be going through to stay strong.

With that answer, Peggy burst into tears, and between Madison and myself we gave her hugs and rubbed her back. I mind-linked one of the Blue River men, Wayne. I made good friends with him and trusted him. I asked him to get a sweet drink for Peggy and gave him a little bit of information on what was happening. He was full of sympathy. Having gone through two lots of burials so far, and we look like we are going to be doing it again, but with how many, did Gladys give everyone, including herself, the potion or just a few to be trailed on?

Wayne arrived with a jug and glasses full of sweet water and some cakes and pasties. Just to be sure, he nodded and left the room, leaving us to work with Peggy and try and help her the best we could. I had asked Madison about getting the daughter but Peggy refused to let her go there, or to let her daughter come to us, saying they were in the safest place in the pack caves and would not allow that area to be reopened until all the fighting was over and done with. We had no choice but to go along with her wishes.