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Trinity
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After we all got some rest, and Talia came to practically demand that we allow her to be a part of the battle, it was time for me to open the doors to the other territories. I knew that not everyone was comfortable with travelling through the dimensional doors, or whatever they were. I knew that we weren't going from one dimension to another when I opened them, but I sort of felt like we were walking in another one, a different and much smaller dimension, whenever we travelled like that.
I opened the doors to all those that were willing to come immediately. We didn't know how many Ancient Ones and Jaegan that there were going to be when the battle began. Talia's vision didn't show how many people there were, and it didn't even show how many Ancients were there. The only thing that she knew for the total number of people was from the voices. And she had said that it sounded like there were at least a hundred of them.
I also didn't know how easy it was going to be to fight against these Ancient Ones. Were they going to be harder to kill than most other people that we fought in the past because they were the equivalent of the Gods? Or were they going to be more like the supernatural beings more akin to humans? Had the loss of their magic over the years been enough to make the enemies that were less of a threat?
I didn't really think that the last part of that was going to be true. For one thing, if they weren't a threat to us, then they would not have been able to successfully kill so many of my people. Yes, it's true that it was the human Jaegan family that was killing them, but they wouldn't have been able to do that if it weren't for the Ancient Ones. I knew that these people were a threat to us, and that was all that mattered to me. And whether there were only a hundred of them that attacked us, I was not going to face them with less than five thousand men and women. I was going to make sure that we had all that we needed to annihilate them completely.
.....
The first doors that I opened went to the surrounding areas. Riley's pack, Trevor's pack, Bryce's pack, even my brother Carter's pack, they all sent a handful of their warriors to fight with us. I made sure to tell them all that they needed to keep some of their warriors behind. We were told that the battle was coming to us, but there was no telling if that was a trick or not. It could very well have been a ploy to make the other packs vulnerable. They needed to defend their own lands as well.
I opened the doors to the lands that I visited while investigating the murders. The packs in Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England, Australia and all of the others. They all sent some of their warriors as well. They were happy to be getting the chance to avenge those that they had lost. I knew that they would want to be here for this, that was why I offered them the next slots available.
When I opened the door to Wales and found that they had all gathered for the trip here and were clamoring for the chance to come through it and into the land of the royal family. I think that they were the most excited about it because they were the ones that Reece and I, as well as the others, had stayed at the most when we were gone.
“Cadwal?” I called out when he rushed through the door.
“Queen Trinity!” He exclaimed excitedly. He didn't drop to his knees and bow to me like he did the first time that we met, but he was still looking more than a little reverent as he stared at me. “We are here to help you, my Queen. And we are looking forward to getting justice for our people who were murdered.” He put a hand over his heart and bent at the waist. It wasn't a full on kowtowing or genuflecting, but it was a sincere sign of respect nonetheless.
“Thank you, Cadwal.” I held my hand out toward him and encouraged him to straighten up so that he could shake it. “I am happy to have your assistance.” I nodded at him. “I would like to catch up with you after the battle is over.”
“As would I.” Reece nodded at him, and I knew what that was about. He was going to talk to him about Westin.
“Wonderful.” Cadwal grinned and blushed. I knew that he was happy that the King and Queen were showing such interest in him. He would probably brag about this later.
The others continued to pour through the door as the time went on. I couldn't leave all of the soldiers and their leaders just standing around, so I sent them to the barracks that were at the back of the property. This was where the other men, those that were being formally trained by my higher ranked soldiers, lived while they were staying in the compound.
The other Alphas and Coven leaders that joined us stayed near Reece and I. That was fine, they were the ones that were in charge and therefore needed to know when to call their men. Not to mention, we would be having a meeting once everyone had finished arriving.
I knew that several of these people were coming when it was very late at night, or likewise very early in the morning. They weren't the most well rested, but they were able to make do with it at the moment. They were ready to fight, and that was all that mattered.
Hopefully, we still have two or three days until the battle starts. That was the time frame for Talia's other visions. Three days. That was how long she had had after each vision before the Jaegan acted on the images that she had seen. This most recent one, as different as it felt to her, should follow the same time frame. I hoped anyway. There was just no saying, especially considering that it was not the same type of dream or vision that she had had before.
We stood around in the courtyard of the castle as the others arrived steadily. Reece, Vincent, Shawn, Dietrich, Shane, David, Riley, Landon, Trevor, Athair mór, Carter and Noah were all there with me as the steady stream of men and women arrived to help us out. They were directing the people to where they were supposed to go. They were helping me to guide these people even though, as their Queen, it was my responsibility. That was fine though. Hadn't I been told many years ago that I needed to let others help and to do their fair share of the work? If I tried to do all of this myself, I would probably mess up and send the soldiers to some random location as they tried to come through the door. Nope, delegate and accept help, that's what I needed to do, and I was making sure that I did just that.
“I think that is it for now.” I nodded as the two dozen doors seemed to be done with their stream of warriors. It had been steady at the beginning. Then it became a trickle that was slowly pouring through the doors, and now it was like someone had turned off the faucet altogether. No one was coming through at all anymore. At least, I didn't think that they were.
Just as I started to close the doors, there was someone that started to yell.
“Wait! Wait! I am coming too.” A boy, and that was all that he was, yelled as the door started to fade.
“Huh?” I looked at the door that his voice was coming through. It was the one that was in the south of England. It was connected to Nigel's office in Wolfhamm.
“Arthur!?” The man yelled back at his office as a boy of sixteen burst through to our side.
“Hahh. Hahh. Made it.” Arthur was grinning as he looked around. “Oh wow, a real castle.”
“What the hell are you doing here, Arthur?” Nigel growled at his son.
“I want to help.” Arthur was looking all around as he spoke. “I am a warrior too.”
“You're sixteen.” I countered his words.
“Yeah, and that makes me a man in most cultures.”
“Not in ours.” Nigel was angry.
“I want to help.” He got angry and argued with his father.
“I told you not to come here.”
“I don't care.” He stood his ground, and was toe to toe with his dad. “I am old enough to make my own decisions. And I want to be here. I want to help the King and Queen. It's my duty as a man and a wolf.”
“Arthur!” Nigel was about to yell at his son.
“Don't worry, Nigel.” I put a hand on his shoulder. “He can help.” I gave him a meaningful look. “Arthur, when the battle starts, I need some men and women to protect my younger children. Will you be able to do that?”
“What?!” He looked shocked. “I wouldn't be on the battlefield then.” He was heartbroken.
“Not initially, but if the fighting breaks past us, you will have to fight to the death to protect Princess Zaley, Prince Zachary, Prince Zander and Prince Zayden. And you will be protecting them along with Princess Rika and Prince Reagan. It is a major thing that I need to make sure is staffed properly. Can I count on you to protect my children?” I knew that this arrangement would satisfy Arthur's need to show that he was a man, and Nigel's need to protect his son.
“Yeah. I can do that with no problem, Queen Trinity. I will protect your children with my life.” He put a hand over his heart and bowed to me. Was that a gesture that the people of my kingdom had gotten together and discussed? Did they talk about the proper way to bow to the Queen if they ever met her in person? I didn't know for sure, so I wasn't really able to rule it out.
I was about to dismiss them all when there was a sudden and frantic voice in my head.
'Queen Trinity!?' Kiernan, one of the two scouts sent to look for the Jaegan, sounded panicked and worried. I wondered briefly what it could have been about, but I didn't linger on the thoughts for long. I could just ask him what was happening.
