Please do read and review! (And don't worry...this is still "Lucian's Respite" not "Raze's Respite"...Lucian is a-coming...he just needs his beauty sleep first.)

Chapter 6: A Brawl of Lycans

The elevator swayed slightly, the turning of greasy wheels in the distance punctuated by the sound of Raze tapping his fingers impatiently against the siding. Exceedingly irritated, he frowned, keeping his other arm steady as he shifted his stance, still balancing the wolf-smelling "woman" whose body (and satchel) now lay slumped across his shoulders. He glared heatedly at the numbers tracking their descent, willing them to go faster just so he could get out of this damned elevator…

Get away from her smell...

Ten more floors left to go.

Earlier during his spat with that damned gateman Helias, the dark warrior still hadn't quite believed the elderly lycan's words. Instead, seething to himself, he had stalked down the tunnel still intent on finishing his interrogation with this youngling who dared cross his orders. Tracking her path within seconds, he had caught up, gripped her potentially bruised arm, and turned her fiercely about so he could demonstrate his extraordinarily powerful gift for roaring…

…only to have her open that mouth of hers in one of the most ear-piercing screams he'd ever heard (even by lycan standards.) A split-second glance between her lips while she relieved herself of sanity…and it was settled.

Human. A perfect set of pearly white teeth that couldn't bite through bone if they tried.

But then later…

…standing in the elevator with such a palpable scent of alpha coming off her skin. Bone, tooth and pelt, he'd nearly been forced to gratify his first instincts, kiss with tongues, fly her off to Paris, and woo her as covertly as possible with blood-wine, satin, and the rarest steak of meat he could find. (Fortunately, having been taught the art of self-control (and wooing) by Lucian himself, Raze had managed to transfer this need to seduce alpha-females into rage, power, and a heated glare.)

In fact…

Perhaps he shouldn't have glared so strongly when asking her name…

…but he'd been so confused…

Perhaps even blinded by her fragrance …and yet…

Even after the girl had fainted, he'd still had to double-check her incisors (noting the attractive slant of her jaw as it lay open) just to be sure she was human. Inspect her eyes (a violent shade of blue) for any sign of recent bites or the ringed iris of a changing lycan. Nothing…not a single visible sign that this woman was anything but what she seemed. A mortal. But the scent…there was no mistaking it.

He scowled, knowing that what lay on his shoulders could only be described as a scientific anomaly. A biological glitch. An experiment, so to speak. Something akin…but far stranger than the mortal Corvin whose trail he followed four years ago. This nervous woman's inner chemistry was impossible…and yet here she was…

Weak-hearted…

Mortal…

…and smelling of the strongest alpha female he'd ever scented in a thousand years.

Raze casually took another whiff…now able to distinguish clearly the subtle nuances that represented the woman's mortal side…his lycan sense not entirely offended by what he found there. Her entire body, pressed against his shoulders, smelling of spice. Cinnamon perhaps. Weighing less than a feather compared to most of the creatures he'd carried in his day. Dark hair…emitting a faint aroma of…

(And not entirely for the sake of investigation, he again sniffed the long waves draped sinuously across his jacket, his nose trying to make sense of it all…)

…Honeysuckle.

His glare became positively beastly. A slight strain of jealousy running along his shoulder-blades.

Indeed, the knowledge that Urith and Aeduin went behind his back in most matters had always served as a harsh point of resentment from the untried lycan leader. Bred on the biting sarcasm of Lucian's force, Raze preferred blunt honesty...truth. Solid maneuvers. In the past, the look in Lucian's eye as he mulled over complicated strategies, while Raze took care of the grunt work.

But this…

If not biological testing, it was obvious the Two of Knots were up to something. Something devious and dangerous to the hoard. Something that vaguely reminded him of a time four years past when a mortal had been Lucian's top priority. An endeavor that had ended badly.

Again, Raze frowned, still tapping impatiently along the elevator wall as they passed the third floor. As usual, he knew Aeduin would meet him in the Great Hall, his wiry frame sprawled on that damned chair of judgment just so he could look down on the new lycan master and sneer...

Belittling his age...belittling his power...

...and with an abrupt snarl, Raze gritted his bitter teeth, passing a solid ultimatum and deciding firmly upon his next course of action.

Whatever they are up to, I will have answers tonight!

I will SEE Lucian, the true lycan master, tonight.

I will question Aeduin, the Second Knot, TONIGHT…

And I will…he would…smell…

…alpha…

Mmm…

She smells good…

Really good… he sighed, shaking his head firmly, trying to rid himself of the scent. No doubt, it might have worked better if he simply let her drop on the floor...but...well no hurries...

They were just passing the second floor now and soon, he'd be able to get out of this elevator, deposit this "woman" on the marble outside…and storm through Aeduin's Great Hall demanding answers...

But oohhh, so fresh…

So sensual…

So ALPHA…

The dark warrior smirked suddenly and came up with a second ultimatum, noting he still had a little time before he must walk down that entrance hall, pass through the front door and meet the Second Knot in his hall of judgment.

And considering his own past…

…between carrying blood-drenched lycan men pumped full of silver…and casually putting an arm out to catch the strongest scent of alpha female he'd smelled in his life…he'd probably choose the latter twelve times out of ten. Not to mention…you only live life once…and now completely dazed by the power of Reed's aura, Raze closed his eyes and inhaled deeply with a smile…contenting himself with the scent of honeysuckle intermingled with alpha…alpha…ALPHA…

Only to hear a faint, and very dry, cough beyond his left ear.

Followed by a grim stifle of mirth…

…and then wonder of wonders, the obvious sound of someone desperately trying to hold back an extremely raucous outburst of frosty laughter.

(Naturally as is the case in these situations, this laughter is not coming from the object of Raze's voracious affections, now so conveniently draped about his neck. After all. That wouldn't be funny…nor would it be even possible since Reed is very much out at the moment.)

No, indeed. We must face facts.

The cough (and laughter) is coming from right outside the elevator which, of course, has been open for a whole four seconds while the lycan "leader" takes a deep breath of fresh air while unconsciously murmuring "alpha, alpha, alpha" (thus neglecting to listen for the door, door, door.)

And naturally, judging by the depth of Aeduin's amusement…

For indeed, it is Aeduin who stands leaning against a twenty foot pillar before the elevator, snickering under his breath as he smirks disdainfully at Raze…

…it would only be too sad if the Second Knot hadn't gone that extra mile of meeting his guests at the main entrance hall rather than the Great Hall (consequently arriving just in time to witness Raze expressing these first three words of true…lust, we'll call it.)

Though as might be guessed, it is folly to pretend this "ill-timed arrival" is based on coincidence seeing how anyone who is even slightly familiar with the Second Knot, Aeduin Styx, must have realized by now that…

(a) Aeduin and his surveillance camera are in love…hence the Second Knot knows exactly what is going on in all elevators at all times…

(b) the General spends the entirety of his time below ground and knows precisely what Reed smells like since this is not her first visit…

(c) the Second Knot himself is a lycan of alpha caliber…and harbours a certain unconscionable jealousy in regards to certain alphas now in charge of the lycan hoard…

…and, of course…

(d) Aeduin can run very…very…fast. So fast he can no doubt time his imminent arrivals to coincide perfectly with certain statements regarding lust, love, and/or alphas that might bring a certain touch of glacial amusement to his one eye.

Raze opened his eyes.

Aeduin swallowed his snickers…

…coughed again.

And then with a flourish of his arm, he inclined his head slightly, an obvious sneer playing upon his lips. "Alpha Raze…how very kind of you to drop in…"

Desperate to regain his dignity as quickly as possible, Raze growled at the lycan before stepping dauntingly from the elevator into the gargantuan entrance hall of Valhalla's first floor. His teeth bared, the regular tension between the two dominant wolves amplified by the presence of one such as the passed-out Miss Victoria Reed, they both stood glaring upon the stone, their body language suggesting a strong urge to rip each others throats out though current politics dictate they set aside wolven instincts and speak with words.

"What is the meaning of this mortal?" demanded Raze in a voice of growling doom, his arm still disinclined to drop the pleasing scent of honeysuckle from his shoulders.

Aeduin, his single eye trained on Reed, answered calmly as if speaking to a pup of…oh…two years. "She is no business of yours, youngling. Or has your taste in women dropped so abruptly to the race of transience?"

Shadows played upon their faces as the two lycans stared at one another…flames from a hundred torches observing them silently from above and beyond, the darkness of the room mimicking their detachment as the fire showed their rage.

Abruptly Raze snarled, dropping Reed's body to the marble to shove Aeduin roughly against the stone pillar…

…only to be met by a brusque rrooaAARR from the one-eyed lycan who now slammed his grip onto the lycan leader's throat, pushing the younger and much heavier Raze onto the ground where, snapping, he lay pinned for several seconds until the bloodseeker's much lighter frame made it impossible to keep his grasp. Raze, regaining his momentum, immediately flung the one-eyed knot through air and reeled onto his knees to begin stripping himself of all garments while releasing an enormous bellow that threatened to tear off his opponent's flesh if the Second Knot didn't back down. Facing him on the marble, Aeduin…who had landed perfectly on his two solid feet after being hurled twenty feet through the room, also began divesting himself of any clinging fabric that might get in the way of murdering this useless pup of a lycan…his snarls echoing throughout the hall as it became apparent he was faster, if not stronger, than Raze...

…and then…

"Yaaawn…"

Urith, who naturally couldn't be bothered to get her rest when she wasn't tired in the slightest, stalked yawning into the hallway. Eying the two alphas (who were almost completely naked now and still engrossed in transforming in the loudest, most domineering way possible,) she stepped into the center of their marble battlefield and raised her extremely toned arm into the air, as if to say "Excuse me, I have something dreadfully important to say…"

As a short explanation of this…beside her natural sensuality, Urith, by her own right, was also a brand of alpha-female, and as such, did not need gunshots or much fanfare to receive a mild shade of focus from two lycans currently embroiled in a battle of testosterone. (Though it must be noted, her brother was far more interested in how best to throw her out of the way rather than admiring her scent or attractive figure…)

Naturally, for several seconds, no one (perhaps not even the reader) had time for Urith's "dreadfully important statement" seeing how two alpha lycans on either side of an exciting battle were still roaring their battle cries, snarling their throats, and pelting their colossal furs (Raze turning to a lovely shade of black upon final transformation as Aeduin exhibited for lycans, readers, and judges everywhere…a fairly unusual ivory coloured tint, which no doubt would receive an overall score of 9.5 next to Raze's slightly lower one of 9.0 based on the 0.5 penalty for having started the fight in the first place.)

But still standing in the center of their extremely loud battle field, Urith continued waving her arm persistently…

…and finally, after having received some attention and a slight measure of silence from the two warriors punctuated by the occasional growl…

Urith simply yawned once more…

Pointed at Reed…

…and left the room, being more concerned now with finding lunch.

Unfortunately, this simple and quite obvious mode of communication left both alphas (fully transformed now) not only mildly confused but also trying to reason within themselves what on earth had come over Urith. (Ironically, both alpha males were finally agreeing over something for the first time since they'd made their truce three years ago.)

But this was quite serious…was she jealous?

Going mad? Asking for attention?

What could it all mean?

For it was already obvious they were fighting over Reed (or what Reed's scent represented)…

…so why on earth would Urith take the time to break their fully-transformed lycan roaring match just to point at the little shivering heap of a mortal woman who now sat curled in a corner, mewling to herself after having woken to the roars of two insanely large monsters trying to rip each other's throats out…

Ah.

Perhaps the reader has caught on already…

Nonetheless, it still takes several more seconds for the lycans, cloaked in their rage, to reassess this image enough times to realize that the "woken" part might have a slight hint of consequence in regards to their current eight foot tall, fur-covered, tooth-sharpened forms…

But to their defense…

Aeduin (the older and wiser of the two) does manage to swallow sheepishly…

…and Raze (the younger and much keener to impress of the two) even has the grace to turn a sickly shade of…well, black…on his fur-covered cheeks before gulping.

Or at least he tries to gulp…

But seeing how he is still in his werewolf form, this gulpish attempt is merely translated as a blood-wrenching snapping of teeth, evoking yet another tremor of shivers from the now screaming "Miss Victoria Reed" (who is no doubt considering how best to end her own misery, after having fruitlessly pinched her arm enough times to bleed a way out of this living nightmare.)

After all…

These creatures cannot exist…they do not exist. Her dreams…her logical sense of all that is certain in the world…that portion of mind limited to "not wolves", guns, and hunting…

The incessant voice of doom speaking in her head at odd hours…

…why it's as if she's going mad!

And with a final ear-piercing shriek from her lungs, Miss Victoria Reed takes it upon herself to pass out (yet again) rather than continue screaming at two monsters who still have not had the grace to disappear.

Though once more in their defense (the lycan alphas, that is)…

They themselves were a tad unsure as to etiquette regarding such a sensitive matter. After all, she did smell like an alpha female…but at the same time she was mortal, so of course, they didn't want to frighten her…but seeing how she was already half mad on the floor now, the only question was whether to lope from the room, knock the woman out, or just transform back into the two strapping young naked men they once were several moments ago.

In other words…completely flabbergasted.

And if two fully-transformed alpha lycans could gulp, would gulp, or had ever been known to gulp at a particular time in history (not including two warriors looking sheepishly at the floor after a lycan master shoots a hole in the ceiling)…

…this was definitely that time.