Devious

CILLIAN’S POV
I was wrong, the cliff was higher than I thought. I saw it immediately I took the leap but it didn’t matter, the fire was spreading. Before I landed more houses would have caught fire.
There were a lot of people outside screaming, calling for help, staring, dreading. People were definitely trapped inside.
The whoosh of air across my ears was enormous as I descended with the speed of a bullet. With my head down and body vertical, I kicked back and accelerated my body, falling even faster. I felt like a meteorite.
There was no time. I analyzed the scene in seconds, deciding what strategy to use In order to make sure there was minimal damage to the people.
I could see some of them emptying buckets of water on the fire to no avail.
The blue house was the biggest of the three and it was where most of the people gathered.
“Somebody save my baby!”
I heard a wolf scream in desperation and I knew exactly what to do.
Moving my body a little to the right, I navigated smoothly to make sure I landed where I intended to.
Someone saw me dropping from the sky and pointed. There, for a second, everyone seemed to forget the fire, smoke and danger and they all looked up to my figure in full wolf form falling.
“It’s the prince!” Someone yelled in relief immediately I landed.
“Thank the goddess!”
They all cheered amidst their situation.
I ignored them, closing my eyes and focusing my mind on what was in front of me.
When my eyes were open I could see through the building. There were three figures in three different rooms and they were all stuck. The front door was jammed, as were all the doors in the house.
“Call for help immediately.” I told the wolf closest to me.
She nodded and ran up the other direction, some went with her.
Then I kicked the front door with force and it flew off its hinges. The people around took steps back. The heat coming from inside was blistering.
“It’s too dangerous, my prince.”
I didn’t bother to look at who made that comment, I just dived in. And they all screamed.
My skin was thick, I could withstand the heat but the other wolves inside wouldn’t be able to tolerate this for too long, I had to be fast.
The smoke inside was so much that I had to use my wolf sight throughout.
I approached a door and sensed someone behind it. I broke it down and saw a little girl coughing hysterically. She looked totally worn out
With the help of alpha speed, I went in and brought her outside in microseconds. The people there clapped like this was a show. Typical.
But this was just number one.
I zoomed inside again, knowing there was no time to waste, and rescued an old lady from the kitchen. She had inhaled so much smoke that she was unconscious…but alive. When I brought her outside, I could see the royal ambulance coming from far away.
I blasted back inside for the last time. The house looked like it would be coming down any second now, but I would rather die than leave one of my own to die in a fucking fire.
I scanned the house for the last person. I couldn’t see anything. My eyes were tearing up, having been filled with smoke.
Basement
It was a low mumble. More of a growl than anything but I heard it loud and clear. I found the basement door soon. I tried it, It was jammed badly.
I kicked it and it flew open but also falling was a part of the ceiling above me. I dodged, but some concrete fell on my back. I growled and shook it off.
I saw a figure curled up on the floor and I feared he was dead. I listened hard and caught the sound of his frail heartbeat. It was very slow but at least it was still beating.
As I grabbed the little boy in my arms, the ceiling outside the door fell and blocked our exit. The house was coming down.
Fuck.
The only exit was through the windows. I looked down at the kid in my arms, he had passed out.
The house shook again, trembling like a dying whale, and more parts of the ceiling were coming down now. Turning back was practically impossible at this point.
I grabbed one of the fallen concrete and threw it towards the window hoping it would work.
It did. The window shattered into pieces immediately the rock made contact. I wrapped the kid in my arms and dived out just as the room caved in.
The fire fighters had taken care of the other places which didn’t have people inside. I turned to look at the collapsed house behind me. I had come in the nick of time.
I had to know what exactly happened, so I approached one of the villagers.
“What happened here?”
“My prince.” He greeted, falling to his knees in supplication.
“We are forever indebted to you. I don’t know what we would have done if you hadn’t arrived.”
“Rise and speak to me.” I patted his shoulders.
“It was those foreigners, my prince. They have been causing trouble ever since they first stepped foot here.”
My stomach wrenched, but I kept my cool, urging him on.
“What do you mean?”
“They came here last week, claiming that this was their land and that we should either move out or pay them a commission for staying here.”
He paused to see what I would say.
“Go on.” I urged him.
“Um, we obviously refused to pay them a dime because it was just plain ridiculous. Then all of a sudden this happens. I thought they came seeking peace? I just can’t…” He sighed bitterly, unable to finish.
I patted his back.
“We’ll get to the bottom of these.”
“Thank you so much.” He said with a quivering voice, dropping to my feet.
I lifted him to his feet and enveloped him in a hug.
I thought about what I had just heard.
This was bad
****
“How are they doing?” I asked the nurse who had been taking care of the three latest patients in the infirmary.
“Oh.. my prince.” She bowed, perhaps not expecting to see me.
“They all sustained minimal burns. I have applied an ointment to make it heal faster.”
I nodded.
“Also there is a lot of smoke in their system. I will prepare a tonic to flush it all out, then they will require rest.”
“Make sure you do what you have to do to make them better. Take as many helpers as you want.”
“Yes, my prince.” She bowed.
“They are so blessed that you came in at the time you did.”
I was lost in thought. Recalling what I had heard earlier;
“They have been causing trouble ever since they first stepped foot here.”
I had seen the flames, they weren’t normal. I smelt the traces of aerosol in the smoke. It was planned.
I summoned one of the guards and had him send for Killian immediately.
“What the hell happened? You look like royal shit” Killian asked when he walked into the hall.
I turned to see a mirror beside me. I had been so focused on saving the wolves that I forgot I was also in the midst of burning flames. My face was filthy from the smoke and the sleeves of my top had been burnt off..
“There was a fire in the village down north.”
“Well, I can see that. But what kind of fire does this kind of damage?” He stared at me, knowing very well that we could handle the heat of flames.
“It wasn’t a normal flame, it smelt off. This was a planned attack from the rogues. They had been making threats to the villagers.”
Killian was silent at this. Then I saw the anger well up in his eyes. He banged his fist on the table and got to his feet.
“You knew this and you still didn’t rip those bastards to pieces?” He growled, his eyes flashing menacingly.
“I called you because I didn’t want any rash decisions to be made. We need to get to the bottom of this.”
“When will you learn that these bastards only understand one language and that it is violence. You have to hit them harder for then to back the fuck off.”
I sighed.
“You saw how easily these people took Rosalind the other day. They are getting stronger and more confident, we need to thread carefully as we don’t know the extent of their power yet or even the source.”
Killian didn’t say anything. I continued.
“They will be expecting to get a response from us, I say we lay low and wait. Let’s see what exactly they are here for. When they show their hand, we strike them when they least expect it and put an end to all this nonsense once and for all.”
He nodded, beginning to see where I was coming from.
“Why waste money on endless war when we could just watch them from afar and cut them at the knees when they least expect it?” He smiled.
“You surprise me, Cillian. Maybe you are just as devious as me.”
“I think I need a shower.” I said scratching the dried blood off my back.
The doors of the hall opened and a messenger entered.
She bowed.
“I bring news, Prince Cillian.”
“What is it?” Killian asked impatiently.
“Bastien, the brother of princess Rosalind is awake and well.”