Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109329 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
“We face a large threat. Mages have attacked and decimated several packs thus far. Some of you are still troubled by smaller contingents. They nearly took down Kingsley’s pack on his home soil with a spell we didn’t think possible. Fighting them off came at a great cost, but we persevered. We’ve forced that group of mages back. For now. They are not gone. I need to warn you, and I hope you will keep this to yourselves—we’ve had a few territory breaches by mages within the last few months.”
The gargoyles shifted. Their wings fluttered and a murmur rose up. Shifters looked at one another.
“My mate has always been a target,” Austin went on. “She will always be a target. In helping Kingsley, I’ve made myself a target as well. These mages haven’t been able to take anything, and they haven’t done any damage. We think they are assessing. Learning. They’re spooked away easily. You won’t be able to see, hear, or smell them.”
“Then how do you know there was a breach?” a gargoyle called.
“We found the trail outside the boundary line before they took the potion to make them disappear. We have revealing potions that are very powerful, thanks to my mate and her magical partner, but they aren’t powerful enough. The only way you’ll know they are there is if you feel their presence. Not everyone is trained to do that—now is a good time to learn. So please, watch yourself. There hasn’t yet been any violence. It doesn’t mean there won’t be.”
“If one of them attacks us,” another gargoyle called, “how will you know it was a mage and not someone else? I don’t want to get blamed for something a mage did.”
“Because you don’t know how to do magical spells,” Austin told him. “And they don’t have claws and sharp teeth. The damage won’t be hard to gauge.”
Gargoyles laughed, pushing and jostling the guy who asked the question.
“It is no secret that I called this conclave with the hope of inviting more packs and cairns into the convocation. I hope to further unite us. We’ll be here all week to talk, answer questions, and get to know each other. It’s also a great time for different magical beings to meet and hopefully establish a connection. Gargoyles tend to stay on their lonely mountains. Shifters isolate themselves with family and close friends. These smaller groupings are easier to take down. It is when we share information, when we help each other, when we stand united, that we can withstand a tyrant.”
He paused to let that sink in.
“Let me introduce—”
A loud voice rang out, cutting him off, the tone dripping with arrogance and privilege. Armendale.
“You speak of a threat to you, and say that you are a target. I can see how our falling in line will benefit you and your new territory, but I fail to see how it will benefit those of us with large, established packs. Forgive me, Kingsley—yes, hello, I noticed you there. Well, it was hard not to with Austin’s pack yelling out to you earlier.”
Now the shifters showed a bit more reaction. Some were delighted Armendale was trying to take Austin to task, and others were wary or frustrated, thinking this would discredit Austin. Still others didn’t react at all, and those were the people who’d already seen what the convocation could do.
“But your pack does not have the size and history and wealth of a pack like mine. We would be much harder to take down.”
Austin huffed. “Spoken like a man who has no idea what is going on in the world around him.”
The glint drained out of Armendale’s eyes. His body relayed his sudden, angered wariness, especially with Austin staring directly at him. If this kicked off in a challenge right now, Austin would handle it, no problem. Better sooner than later. He knew his complete confidence in the outcome showed in every line on his body.
Baa, baa, black sheep doesn’t give two shits about beating up the posh prick waving his wealth around in place of his small dick.
Austin put up his hands. “I am not going to beg, Armendale. I’m not going to try to convince you. Any of you. Jess would’ve always been a target, yes, but in doing all this, I’ve put an X on our backs. I’ve increased the danger to us tenfold. That isn’t for my benefit. It’s for yours. All of you, gargoyles included. Because when they are done wiping out the shifters, they’ll need someone new to pound on.”
He put his hands down, smirked, and looked away from Armendale so the other shifter wouldn’t be forced to challenge to save face. In Austin’s loose demeanor, he was showing his lack of concern either way.
That had to rankle.
“There are enough people here with stories to tell,” he continued. “With horrors they’ve lived through. With horrors their friends and family didn’t. No, a big pack and lots of money and all sorts of privileges your family passed down to you won’t help.” That was a not-so-subtle dig. He hadn’t wanted to instigate a fight but…here they were. “A top-heavy team—fighters with lots of power and fighting skill—won’t help you. Drex learned that the hard way. You need magic. We aim to get more of that. What we have now is not enough. I’ll speak more on that as we move through the week. For now—”