Chapter 404

404 Questionable Hobby... and the Frightening Revelation of a Seven Year Mystery

“What do you find so funny, Cirrus?” the new Queen asked the prince. Despite all she’d heard about the king’s brother in his former state of glory, she still felt uncomfortable around him.

His calculating gaze and the fact that he always seemed to be thinking irked her to no end.

“Oh, nothing is funny. I have just never seen my little brother look this threatened before. Before you jump to conclusions, Hamedale, I did not create this to weaken werewolves.

That was just a fact I happened to stumble upon during my tinkering with the peculiar flower,” the prince replied, waving off Hamedale’s angered state as nothing more than a misguided tantrum.

“Then what were you looking for?” the king asked, allowing himself to calm down, regardless of how hard it was. It was getting even harder to deal with his brother. Cirrus had completely ceased listening to anything his brother had to say anymore.

“I was trying to find something to cure me of my weakness. You... obviously don’t know what it’s like to have all your strength sapped from you. I hoped to find something in the moon lotuses that could help me regain my lost power,” the prince started his explanation.

“Oh, I know something. You could train your body back into shape. When was the last time you looked in the mirror, Cirrus? You’ve not only lost your power but your physique as well. You look smaller than I’ve seen you in a lifetime,” the king tried... ‘Who looks for strength in a plant? This is getting out of hand...’ Hamedale wanted to scream at his brother.

“It’s nothing like that, little brother. I was weak long before I started...” looking at his wrist, he started comparing it with that of his brother, grimacing at the staggering difference in girth, “-shrinking.

I knew there was something else involved in my abnormal weakness, so I was hoping to find a way to reverse it with the spark of the goddess’s power that resides within the flowers. Instead, I found that the flowers only work as poison the moment they are plucked and juiced. It was frustrating.

.....

I tried isolating the different compounds but only came up with different versions of the poison. I planned to destroy that information after telling you about it so that you might pass a law or something that stops that from happening,” the prince continued his explanation.

“Adding different things to the compounds also yielded different results. Some were disappointing while others were nothing short of magical, but all weren’t within the normal scope of what plants should be able to do.”

The king finally calmed down and leaned back on his throne, rubbing his temples while listening to his brother’s explanation. The fluency with which he explained his work and the terms he used as well, spoke volumes of the amount of research and effort he’d put into this work... and yet, something turned within the king’s stomach. Something was wrong with all this... but what was it?

'

Hamedale took a look at the second roll of parchment and started skimming through it. When the prince noticed this, he decided his initial explanation was enough and went silent as the king perused through his findings.

This next document, however, was much more peculiar than the first. It held contents as gruesome as they were despicable. King Hamedale squinted and blinked, hoping the works, as well as the crude drawings, would change into something else, for he couldn’t believe what he was reading.

After a short moment, Hamedale came to terms with what he was reading, continued further down with the writing, and chose to hold his tongue till he was done reading it all.

“So, you found a way to transfer the power of a royal to another werewolf,” the king surmised when he was done reading the disturbing details on the parchment.

“Yes, I was not happy about those findings either, but the more I researched, the more I found answers. Knowledge can be addictive once you get a hold of a rare piece of it. I couldn’t stop until I’d discovered it all in detail,” Cirrus shrugged, rolling up the scrolls and tucking them under his armpit.

The prince continued, “Of course, I only made that research in case there was ever a king that didn’t have an heir. We wouldn’t want the bloodline to end abruptly because one of our own was unable to find their mate.”

“First of all, that won’t happen and secondly, I’ll be taking those scrolls... along with all the research you’ve been conducting,” the king ordered solemnly, staring at the ground with a stern expression. A drifting myriad of emotions flashed through his sapphire orbs as he struggled to come to terms with what his brother had been spending his time on, “Seven years, brother!”

“What are you going to do with my research?” Cirrus tensed up.

“I’m going to destroy it, Cirrus. It’s far too dangerous,” Hamedale replied, holding his brother’s gaze.

“You will do no such thing,” Cirrus furiously approached the king.

The king stood, towering over his older brother, “There will be no further discussion on this matter. I will cover up what you’ve done and take responsibility for having made these ‘discoveries’, then I will burn it all to the ground before we have another war on our hands.”

Cirrus balled his fists in frustration but sighed. He knew how weak he was. Seven years was a long time... Long enough to pound the bitter truth of his weakness into the depths of his soul.

There was nothing Cirrus could do against the king even if he wanted to and going against Hamedale would be considered an act of treason. His hands were tied, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

“You’re entitled to your opinion, but I made the final call. From now on, you will accompany me when I go visiting the other packs. This... this brooding you’ve been doing is not helping you. You’re only hurting yourself,” the king tried reasoning.

“You know nothing, Hamedale, nothing,” Cirrus barked at the king. It was the first time the king was getting some kind of reaction from him. In the name of progress, this was good.

“Then please, Cirrus, enlighten me,” he yelled him, “I’ve been waiting to hear what you have to say for seven years.”

“I already met my mate, Hamedale. Seven years ago... I met her only after the goddess had robbed me of all my strength. I almost died... just looking for her,” Cirrus admitted, a burning rage burning in his eyes. This reaction... this anger, bothered Cirrus a lot. For a woman that he barely knew... barely met and never got the chance to really have a conversation with, to have this much of an effect on him.

Even now... after seven whole years.

“That day... seven years ago,” a look of recognition sparked through the king’s eyes, “Why didn’t you tell me? I could have helped you look.”

“Oh, no, Hamedale, you don’t understand yet. She can’t be found because she’s hidden from me by powers we cannot go up against. Trust me, Hamedale, I tried. The planet itself wouldn’t let the two of us meet,” the man continued arguing.

The king went silent for a moment, his mind going momentarily blank. Imagining his life without his significant other by his side was next to impossible. The image of his brother when he’d returned from his... ‘trip.’

“That time you left with Rana...”