529- The Silence Before the Storm's Truth
POV Thalyndra Moonclaw:
The forest was strangely silent, as if holding its breath along with me. The trees, tall and dense, rose around us, creating a green canopy that filtered the sunlight, leaving the environment in twilight. The ground was damp, the smell of earth and wet leaves filled the air, and the few gusts of wind that passed between the trunks made the fallen leaves move gently. Not a sound of birds, not a crack of a branch. Just the heavy silence, as if even the animals knew something was about to happen.
Anton was right beside me, his eyes fixed ahead. Myrion hummed softly, one leg resting on a high root with his knee slightly bent, and one hand on it. His posture was relaxed, showing he felt no concern whatsoever about the meeting that was about to take place. Edric and Vladren stood with their arms crossed, as focused as Anton.
Edric did not allow Aurelka, Lunara, Lana, Lyris, or Celindra to be present as well, for their safety. According to him, the more people there were, the more he would need to worry.
"They're two minutes late," Myrion commented, plucking a leaf from a low branch and shredding it with his fingers.
"Maybe they gave up," said Vladren. I laughed.
"They never give up," I affirmed, convinced.
A branch snapped a few meters away, putting us on high alert. Claps sounded from behind one of the distant trunks, and then, a man emerged, staring fixedly at me with a smile on his face.
"My sweet Thalyndra, you are already one of us and can't even perceive it, you even recognize our way of acting." He bowed in a reverence. "I am Severian, one of the leaders of the Mercantes."
He had thin, white hair, but which must have once been blond. White skin with marks that showed the passage of time, the weight of the centuries he carried on his back. His green eyes were deep and... familiar. He was tall, with broad shoulders and a thin body. He wore elegant clothes. A shirt, dress pants, polished shoes, and a black overcoat. Around his neck, a silk scarf. The Mercante ring, different from the others, was not on his pinky finger, but on his index finger.
Anton took a step, moving even closer to me.
Severian noticed the movement but ignored it, walking toward us in calculated, carefree steps. I noticed the presence of other Mercantes, at least ten, but they all remained hidden behind the trees, at a safe distance for them.
Myrion looked in all directions, calculating and identifying where each one was, anticipating the slaughter he was eager to happen.
"I am nothing like you," I spat, with hatred. He arched a white eyebrow.
"You are much more than you can imagine." He stopped right in front of me, a few meters away, and crossed his arms. He looked at Edric, nodding in a silent greeting. "It's a pleasure to finally meet the leader of the Eldoria."
"I, on the other hand, cannot say the same," the alpha retorted with a growl. "You invaded my lands, hurt my pups. They are only still alive because I allow it."
Severian gestured.
"But of course, and we are grateful for that." He scratched his hairless jaw and sighed. "In fact, I would like to apologize for this misfortune. Your pups were never in our sights, hurting them was never in our plans."
Edric let out a bland laugh.
"Dear Severian, if, at any moment, my pups had been in your sights, we wouldn't be having this conversation, you would already be dead," he murmured, smiling with contempt.
Severian clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth and uncrossed his arms.
"Yes, I understand."
"Are you going to talk all day or can you give us the honor of ridding us of your presence once and for all?" asked Myrion, sounding bored.
The Mercante smiled.
"You must be Myrion, I've heard a lot about Edric's youngest pup, so impulsive he's almost irresponsible, not to mention arrogant."
Myrion placed a hand over his heart and opened a shrewd smile.
"I'm glad my qualities are a topic of gossip among you, you fucking Mercantes, but you forgot the main one: highly deadly and very impatient."
Ignoring him, he turned to Anton, observing him from head to toe.
"And you must be the firstborn, future leader of the Eldoria. I've also heard a lot about you. Untamable, audacious, bloodthirsty, and protective. A little less impulsive than your brother, but just as deadly."
Anton made a noise in his throat.
"I'm wondering what you want here, you know all these... qualities of ours, and yet, you risk your life approaching us in a friendly attempt at an agreement," Anton commented.
Severian looked at me.
"I'm here for Thalyndra, of course."
"What do you want with me, you bastard?" I hissed through my teeth, my nails turning into claws and my fangs elongating.
He ran his hand over his shoulder and made a face, as if he didn't like my insult, but said nothing. He took another step.
"You belong to us, the Mercantes, not to the Eldoria. After so many attempts to bring you back home, I decided to come personally to deal with this." He looked at Edric. "In the most civilized way, of course."
"Go back home? Are you, by any chance, crazy or just a lunatic? Your men almost killed me."
He let out a sigh.
"I'm very sorry about that, in fact, we are grateful to the Eldoria for saving your life." He huffed, seeming irritated. "Omar was a bit... impetuous. If you hadn't killed him, we would have, because he disobeyed my orders to keep you safe."
"He didn't like hearing about Silas's death," I commented, observing him.
Silas said he was from Mercante royalty and Severian was one of the leaders, so there should be some connection between the two, and I wanted to know what it was.
The Mercante clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
"Now I can better understand what led my head of the guard to have such a reckless attitude."
Myrion took a deep breath.
"I can only remember his screams as he burned to death, it was like music to my ears," he mocked.
Severian showed no reaction to the information, as if he didn't care about Omar's death.
"Anyway, Omar raised Silas, he was one of those responsible for his training, that's why they developed a strong bond." He took another step. "By the way, Silas was my son, but I'm not upset about his death. I always made it very clear that he should be smart enough not to get caught. He just found the consequence of his reckless actions."
I was in shock.