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The Longest Month

Mourning was a luxury that I could not afford to indulge in, not even for the loss of my beloved Taj. She would not have wanted me to do so regardless.

Still, I wanted to give her and her bow, her husband, a proper burial. Despite having seen the exact spot where she fell, my scouts kept returning reports that they could not find her remains once the chaos settled. I ordered them to keep searching, again and again, until I grew enraged and stormed out into the village with my bodyguards trailing behind.

Hours went by until day turned to night. I kept turning over bodies and trying to catch even a whiff of my desert rose over the smell of blood, but she had vanished.

At some point I lost myself and could not move. My bodyguards, sensing there was something wrong, immediately surrounded me and pulled me into a cabin on the outskirts of the town away from prying eyes,

Galip was brought in carrying a clay jug, which he immediately filled up with a keg of ale that happened to be in the cottage, and then poured for me. I shivered as I forced myself to sip and Galip immediately nodded at one of the guards, who started building a fire in the stone hearth.

Guy and Laurent eventually arrived and the guards shuffled out. I held onto Galip like a kit might squeeze a doll while sleeping, refusing to let him leave, while my two officers took seats at the table across from me.

"How did this happen?" I sobbed, much to my disgrace. "How?"

"We clearly didn't read our enemy properly," Guy muttered, rubbing some of his raw, scarred flesh. "We walked right into a trap."

"I know that!" I slammed my mug on the table, splattering brown ale across the wood. "But we were so confident! We were so certain we knew what we were doing, so how...?"

"Orange fur is quite rare for a wolf," Laurent shuffled through his papers, ignoring my pleas. "There's only one she-wolf of note in the Alphate's leadership who matches that description."

Laurent slapped a dossier on the table, "Lieutenant Zel of the Western Army. When she was a cub, her village was occupied by the Republican army during Alpha Romulus' war, and she was a slave for much of her younger years until she murdered her master and burned his home to the ground and fled into Alphate-occupied Carpathia."

"Why did you not mention her before?"

Laurent narrowed his eyes, "Because you told us to ignore all commoners in command."

There was no denying that. As much as I wanted to say something back to put Laurent in his place, I was not in the right mindset to do so.

"Joined the army and made her name in the Ransom Wars, an alleged series of operations by Republican spies to kidnap large amount of Alphate citizens and smuggle them through Transylvania and the Balkans, into Republican territory, in the hopes of using them as leverage for future negotiations in case of further aggression by Romulus."

"Did the Doge and the Senate really authorize such a thing?" I asked.

"For the sake of diplomatic confidentiality, even the records I've inherited from them seem to be rather vague and the Senators that were in power back then don't seem to want to be the one to take responsibility and admit it. Which probably means yes, they did," Laurent cleared his throat and continued scanning his claw across the document. "Zel was instrumental in shutting down the Ransom Wars. She burned down whole villages that were found to be even remotely connected to the ransom trade. Another favorite trick of hers was slaughtering a village and setting up ambushes in the town for when the slavers stop by."

I covered my face up with my paw. We could have prevented the events of yesterday from happening but we didn't.

"Her superior has described her as a monster that the foxes created. The tortures her master put her through as a child made her fanatically hateful of foxes, especially fox slavers, and that she is best utilized when a peaceful occupation of an area is not desirable," Laurent sighed.

"Transylvania is not a rich region. Many of the foxes and wolves here, they probably collaborated in the Ransom Wars," Guy muttered. "The Alphate probably loosened her leash, let her raise hell in the hopes of scaring us off, knowing that she'd scorch the earth of the locals who took part in the slave trade. Win or lose, they'll probably deny they ordered her to do the things she did and perhaps they're not entirely lying, but they sure as hell will passively support it."

"And if we take the territory, we're left with a desolate region to support," Laurent added."

"Or a good opportunity to fulfill my promise of gold and land," my grip on my mug finally stilled. "We can give the land to our soldiers. This officer might be thinking only in the short-term but this could be our chance to resettle the area without us having to evict wolven landlords."

Laurent shifted in his seat, tail lashing behind him, "A cunning plan, cold though it might be."

"I didn't order those villagers to be put to the sword, she did," I waved my paw and stroked Galip on the chin. "We can't let ourselves be unnerved, myself included. She's dealt us a hard blow but she wants us to panic and we can't do that."

"Shall we report this incident to-"

"No," I cut Laurent off. "I trust Vito and Livio to proceed as planned without me breathing down their necks. This tragedy is of no importance to them and I feel if we report it they might think I'm too devastated to continue the war when I'm really doing quite well..."

I trailed off and looked around the cottage. It was really quite cozy even if it was smaller than the home I grew up in at Pest. A large bed of straw laid in the corner, looking freshly made just before the battle ruined the villager's lives forever. Something about the smell of dried haygrass tickled my nose.

"Take care of all the preparations, tomorrow we march," I ordered and closed my eyes. "I will rest here until tomorrow."

"Dictator?" Guy tilted his head.

"I need..." I forced a smile, "...a day of rest."

The two officers walked out without any further word and my guards immediately took their post outside the cottage, leaving me and Galip alone.

Perhaps it was a bit grim, taking refuge from reality in a place so place to where my beloved was killed but at the time I didn't even consider that fact. The cottage was in a different world and as far as I was concerned, for that day there was nothing that lurked outside.

Today I could pretend I was never Marco the Dictator.

"Slave, have the crops been tended to?" I wrapped a finger around Galip's collar and pulled it gently, until the wolf turned his head to face me. He lowered his ears and tucked his tail behind his rear in submission.

"Yes, Alpha."

Galip was a bit nervous, it cast a bitter tinge on his sweet scent. No doubt he was a little concerned that I had gone mad in the wake of Taj's death but I merely wanted to pretend we were master and slave in an ideal pastoral romance.

"Good slave," I leaned in and licked him on the tip of his nose. "And did you do that other thing I asked?"

Galip flinched sharply, which brought a smile to my face. He was always so cute when he was afraid he was about to get punished.

"I'm sorry, Alpha, I don't remember..."

"Hm..." I tucked another finger around his collar and tugged, choking him slightly. Just enough for him to feel it but with no harm done, after all, this was just a little game and he did not actually forget one of my orders, "...that's no good."

I chugged the rest of my ale down and placed the mug atop Galip's head, "Pour me another, slave."

Galip slowly reached up, careful not to jolt the mug, and picked it up before grabbing the jug.

"And pour one for yourself!"

"Master, forgive me," Galip bowed his head as he shakily poured, "but I'm not much of a..."

"That's an order, slave!"

Galip stopped pouring just before it reached the brim, leaving only a small bit of foam at the top and began pouring a cup for himself. I took a sip, it was lightly carbonated, but it tasted heavily of oatmeal and warmed up the belly well. A bit of foam stuck to my nose when I lowered the glass and I tapped Galip's nose with mine, smearing the foam on him playfully. This caused Galip to spill a bit of ale from his cup and I laughed at my slave's adorable clumsiness.

How did the Kutlars create something so precious?

Outside, an imaginary blizzard howled, making the warmth of the cabin all the more inviting. So powerful was my mind that I shivered from a chill that rolled down my spine, even ignoring Galip was panting from the heat of the fireplace.

I leaned in, licking the inside of his maw, caring not that I was acting like an affectionate wolf. My tongue rolled over the roof of his mouth and across his fangs before our noses connected and we both began lapping at each other's lips.

I reached down, finding his cock already exposed and as hard as stone.

"I want to reward you, slave," I whispered before nipping Galip on the snout like a wolf. "For years of service..."

My pads rubbed on Galip's shaft and the wolf immediately whimpered. Like a good, loyal slave, he quickly wrapped his paw around my cock and began stroking it to return the favor.

Our lips met and we began licking passionately. At one point, Galip almost nipped me on the snout but a quick growl and a firm bite from me made him reconsider. His tail wagged the entire time, enjoying a show of dominance from his Alpha and I enjoyed his adorable attempt at asserting himself.

Galip spurted without much effort. The wolf was very easy to please and I knew exactly what he wanted. It was more difficult for me as it grew a bit difficult to imagine ourselves in a fantasy world while bad memories swelled in my brain just like my knot.

Still, my slave was an expert at pleasuring his vulpine master and his pads massaged my cock until I could take no more of it.

"Aaaaaah!"

Galip lowered his face and began lapping at the air as cum shot out of my cock, eagerly devouring my essence. We were one, master and slave.

Panting, Galip helped carry me over to the hay bed and we collapsed atop it, my wolf hugging me against his chest.

Writing now, I realize how vulnerable I was. Galip could have overpowered me and chocked me from behind and I would have been helpless to resist. Instead he comforted me, rubbing my fur and giving me the occasional lick before we dozed off together.

I lost him once and I got him back. One loss is not the end of the world.

I had to be alone with my favorite trophy to realize that.

We continued up the pass, encountering nothing but desolated fields and pastures as we march onward.

Most of the villages we went through were empty and we had to slow down our march to inspect them every time very carefully. Our foe was waiting for us to get careless and spring upon us, there was no doubt about it. Still, it delayed us and allowed them to be one step ahead of us, as the faded boot and hoof-prints in the dirt indicated.

We assigned more soldiers to scout duty and had them fan out the area but they uncovered very little. One time they managed to surprise two wolves hiding by a hill outside of town but they had swift horses and fled before they could be caught. I can only imagine the carnage they could have summoned upon us if we hadn't found them.

At the very least we were scaring them off and pressing on, but it was hard not to feel uneasy knowing that cold, yellow eyes were watching us from the shadows and waiting for us to screw up.

One afternoon we spotted smoke on the horizon, which had begun to be boring, which I imagine is unthinkable to those not versed in warfare.

A group of scouts had returned and were reporting to Guy. I thought I knew what they would tell Guy, the same-old, same-old; but when Guy rode his horse towards me, his eyes were more grave than normal since he got his burns.

"I would like to request command and full autonomy over the search of this village," Guy leaned towards me and whispered.

"Why?"

"Dictator," Guy lowered his voice even more, "there is a trap and it will be sprung if you go there."

I curled up my snout, "How so?"

"I can't tell you," said Guy. "If I tell you, I fear the trap will be sprung."

"I can't make a command decision without good intelligence and you are withholding information from me," I growled. "I can delegate, Guy, but I can't do it blindly!"

"I can't think of any other time when I would make this request, Dictator," Guy narrowed his eyes. "But believe me when I say it: you must stay back and let me take care of this. Do not go to the village, do not get any scout reports, don't do anything until I get back. I will take full responsibility if anything goes wrong."

Snorting, I looked off into the distance at the black smoke. Even from this distance I could smell the charred flesh and fur.

"On your head be it," I nodded. "Do as you please."

"You won't regret this."

Anxiety wracked my stomach as I saw Guy ride away and give commands to a unit. I had no problem with delegating before but to do so without knowing the full reason? Guy was also the officer I trusted the least and only kept him in my company because of that rather than sending him off with Vito or Livio. He saved my life, true, but only because he had a death wish and one that he failed to have granted despite all odds.

Gods, he's not going to rush into a trap to die honorably, is he?

An urge to rally my own force to assist came over me. My hide chafed and itched under my armor and I couldn't scratch it. I really wished I hadn't quit opium, I could have really used a hit right about then.

A sharp chirp rang out in the sky. Guy was announcing he had made contact with the enemy and the distant rumbling of battle commenced.

I should be there.

The orders to assist rang across my tongue but they didn't leave my mouth.

Logic won out over my emotions. If Guy failed, I would have a good reason never to trust him with a command like this again or he might die and I would be rid of him. If he succeeded and illuminated me about his vague warnings successfully, then it would have been all worth it.

Rushing in to help would, at best, piss him off and let him know that there was no point in offering his opinion.

So I stayed still, ignoring the cries of battle off in the distance. I sniffed the warm afternoon air and brushed my paw along my horse's mane.

"It's easy being a horse, huh?" I said idly. "Just have to do whatever your owner tell you to do and you get all the hay you can eat."

My horse grunted. As to what the equine was saying in response, I could not say.

I would be like my horse today. Sit all pretty and let someone else do all the hard work of shoveling shit. The world didn't fall apart when I took the day off and enjoyed myself with Galip in that cottage, it certainly wouldn't if I let Guy take the reins.

Eventually the cries of battle began to die out in favor of victorious yips and yowls.

"Come now," I said to no one in particular, but the lower officers around me immediately began paying close attention. "Lets go see how they're doing."

A party was assembled around me, escorting me down the mountain path leading into the village.

The devastation was much like the others we had seen but it was softened by the precious sight of Alphate solders lying in the dirt while foxes looted their corpses for valuables. A scrawny fox archer was tying a wolf's wrists with rope, sneering down at the wolf, enjoying the thrill of having captured a noble wolf and no doubt anticipating his share of the ransom.

It was only a small party of wolves that Guy had vanquished but it was a welcome victory after our initial failures.

I rode through the town, passing a fox who was trying to chisel out a golden fang from a dead wolf's mouth using his dagger, eventually finding Guy leaning against a tree in the town center, panting.

There was freshly disturbed soil just a few feet away from him along with several filthy shovels.

"Congratulations are in order, it seems!" I announced as I dismounted my horse and landed on the soft dirt road.

"Sir," Guy saluted, "the enemy is totally routed. No one escaped."

"You're certain?"

"We used a decoy to attract their attention and then flanked them, forcing them into the village center and had them surrounded. None could have escaped."

"The commander?"

"She wasn't present, sadly."

I sniffed, "Are you going to tell me why you requested me to stay out of this one?"

Guy's ears lowered and his eyes slowly turned to the soil.

"Taj's remains were on display."

I felt a pinch inside my heart and grabbed at my chest. Only now did the soil in the ground look like a grave to me.

"We put her to rest, Dictator," Guy said slowly. "I'm sorry."

"I need to see her."

"No, Dictator."

"I NEED TO SEE HER!"

I grabbed one of the shovels but before I could sink its spade into the dirt, Guy grabbed it by the shaft and stopped me.

"It is better that you remember her as she was, rather than what the wolves did to her."

"What are you saying!?"

"The desecrated her body. They wanted to anger you, to hurt you, and catch you in their trap."

"The trap is gone!" I shrieked.

"They can still hurt you and I ask that you trust me once again," Guy slowed his voice down. "Do not disturb her grave.

Guy released his grip on the shovel and walked away without a word.

I stared down at the grave while my guards waited for the order.

I put down the shovel.

Later, I would invite a fennec soldier to join me and Galip for drinks and I would hear all the details from him.

Taj's head had been crudely sewn back onto her neck and put on display in a pillory at the village entrance. Her body reeked of wolf urine and a dead, feral wolf was fastened atop her back, making it look like it had mounted her.

Guy was right. I would have fallen for that trap and let my anger get a hold of me. Even just hearing about it from the fennec was enough to force me to send the soldier away and refuse all further visitors for the night while Galip comforted me.

The Alphate commander clearly knew my weaknesses and if I were to succeed against her, I would need to let others make up for my failings. With Taj gone, there was very little else that she could take away from me but I could not let my guard down.

I could not get comfortable.