Logan had been waiting for a long time.

He was standing in the part of the woods that faced the border, with a hundred and fifty well-armed warriors. The whole forest was silent and tense, almost as though all the animals were joining in the wait for the arrival of the Rogue King.

He had sent Casper ahead with a couple of other warriors to scan the land ahead and send word when they noticed the arrival of the Rogue King. He had told his beta to wave a red flag when coming to indicate that battle was near. So far it had been four hours since he sent Casper out, and he was feeling as harried and on edge as a father expecting his newborn child.

He was seated on a white stallion, bred specially for the use of alphas in the pack. His hair was packed up in a man bun and he was dressed in black fighting gear. He had smeared black paint across both of his cheeks, as well as all the other warriors that stood behind him. He raised a hand and pulled at the tight material on his neck uncomfortably. He wasn't used to fighting in gear; the few packs fight he had gotten into were fought in wolf form. He knew that at one point in the battle, he would have to change into his wolf form, but he had dressed for human battle anyway.

He turned and looked behind him at the one hundred and fifty men that stood at attention. Fifty of them had changed to their wolf form and stood at his side: twenty-five to the left, twenty-five to the right. He felt like they were not prepared enough for what was coming.

He had made arrangements for the women, children, and old people that were left in the pack before he left for the border. Louve was to stay with them in the underground bunker, protected by some of the warriors from her father's pack.

Logan sighed as his thoughts went to Louve. She had been the best of his friends long before he met the other people in his life. He knew her as much as he knew himself, perhaps even more than he knew himself. She could rule this whole pack singlehandedly, and if there was anyone, he would trust with the affairs of this pack anytime, it was her. He knew that she would have made a great alpha but for her gender. She had also been a good best friend to his mate.

He sucked in his breath almost instinctively as his mind strayed to Aella again. God, how he missed her. The physical and emotional strain of her absence was still on him. He wanted her back so badly. He missed her presence around him so much: her intoxicating cinnamon scent, her laughter that was so captivating, her features that were so regal and haughty in public, yet softened when they were together in private.

And most of all he missed all the time they had spent together. Their intimate moments, the laughter they had shared, even their incessant arguments and petty fights. If she was here, she would have insisted on following him into battle and he would have insisted that she stayed behind. She would have argued that she was a better warrior than him or any other person in the pack. His hard face softened a little as he imagined how their argument would have ensued.

He wondered for the umpteenth time how she was faring. Aella was a strong woman, he knew. She was stronger than she looked; he knew her small frame could deceive anyone into thinking she could be easily taken, but she could hold her own pretty well. He knew for sure that she was in the custody of the Rogue King, as he could not think of anyone else who could have kidnapped her.

Anger grew in him as he thought of what he would do to the Rogue king once he gets Aella. He clenched his fists in front of him, maybe it was to dissipate the anger or maybe to express it, this was followed by him stomping his spear on the ground. The sound of the spear digging into the floor caused the pack to be alert, but he waved his hand up that nothing was going on yet.

Drifting from the thoughts of missing his mate, he thought again about what was left to do or get. He looked back at the troops, a bit far from them all, a bunker was situated to shield backup and for storage of more supplies. It seemed like all was ready, a few more troops he had were going to be arriving if things got extensively out of hand. All was well and it seemed like they had this battle in the bag.

There was a cold silence in the troops as all were arranged and what was needed now was the command of the Alpha or the opposing army to arrive. No one knew for sure what was going to happen to kickstart the battle. Nevertheless, they are all ready for the war. With their face expressionless and their chin up, one could easily assume they were looking to the sky for hope. 

They were, this was going to be a determinant on whether husbands get to see their family again, or whether sons would go back home to celebrate victory with their moms and dads. A soldier could be seen shaking a bit. His face was frowned as he stared forward, but it seemed like he would break into a tear soon. It was later found out that his wife was already giving birth when he left and news was brought earlier on to him that she died during childbirth.

It took a lot of sympathy and care from his fellow warriors to keep him in check. A few other soldiers were affected by one thing or the other and all of it could be seen on their faces. Logan was now relaxed, but a bit anxious. He had made a pact with himself to exhaust all anger he had on the opposing troops. He sighed as he looked further, but there was no existent threat in sight.

He had forgotten all about his uncomfortable warrior vest and was now accustomed to it. His arm still felt uncomfortable resting on so much armor, but it was the least of his worries now or what was in his thoughts. 

He heard his name being called from behind and turned on his stallion. It was Louve, running towards him and waving her hands. She reached him, breathless, and he waited for her to catch her breath.

"Is something the matter, Louve?" He asked, a little worried that something had gone wrong with the pack members.

"Nothing's wrong." She said, staring up at him with the stubborn determination he was so familiar with. "I want to join the battle."

Logan stared at her in disbelief. "I thought we talked this through. You would have to stay with the women and children in the bunker. You're the only one who can Instill calm into them, while the battle is going on. And how do you think Casper would feel knowing I let you follow us into battle, where you would most likely get hurt?"

Louve shook her head, a stubborn light in her eyes. "And I also cannot let my loved ones go into battle while I sit on my hands in some bunker, hoping they return safely. I am a warrior, Logan. I will not be reduced to some nanny for a couple of children and women."

"No, Louve." 

"But Logan—"

"I said no, and that's final," Logan repeated. Then he heard footsteps of someone running and turned back to the border.

Casper was coming towards them, waving the red flag that signified battle. He turned back to Louve, muttering a hurried "Go back to the bunker." before turning back to his beta.

Casper stopped before the white stallion, panting. He bent his head while trying to regain his breath, then raised his head, uttering the words Logan had waited for so long.

"He's here. The Rogue King is here."