The first batch of the serpents started to crawl out of the lake in numbers—the green and black long, thick bodies slithered towards the Werewolves Realm as though they had awoken from a slumber. It was as if they were looking forward to being satisfied with the food that was awaiting them. They twisted like roller coasters on the ground with no tracks.

While some marched ahead as the serpents, some shape shifted in human form. An army consisting of serpents and shape-shifters forged ahead in the dark of the night eager to swallow, in a frenzy to kill.

​​

On this side of the town, Ziu changed his plans slightly.

The General stood in front of him shaking inside. "Keep a unit of soldiers ready with their modern artillery to ambush a place inside the forest of which I will give you the coordinates."

"Which place?" asked the General. He couldn't imagine how many protocols he was breaking.

Ziu wanted to kill any werewolf that would try to escape the siege laid by the serpents. He had to set up the perfect trap. He gave the General the coordinates and created a portal for the soldiers.

The militia stepped out of the portal and ran as far as they were ordered to. Upon stationing themselves, they assembled the rifles in less than thirty seconds in the dark. They were supposed to fire on any wolf in its human or natural form. Everything was under control, perfect. No one could circumvent the plan.

Ziu smiled at the faultlessness of his strategy. He would ambush them when they were least prepared. He would fry them when they would try to run out of their territories. His brothers and sisters would eat them up. He couldn't wait to hear the news of their deaths. Impatiently, he broke into a fast-paced strut and went to the shelter where the tank had exploded.

As the serpents neared the wolves' packs, they could see dim lights of the houses turned on in the distance. The leader held his hand up and hissed. The entire group stopped behind him. He made signs in the air for them to split up. A group slithered its way to the South, which was a long way. Most of those in the crew shape shifted to traverse the forest speedily to reach that end. Another other group headed North, while the rest of them followed the leader.

The leader smiled remembering how he killed the spies. There was no way the werewolves would even anticipate this attack. Slowly he led his team to the territory with confidence. If it had been for him, he would trap them alive and then imprison them for personal feast to be devoured when need be.

In the next half an hour the group reached the outer edge of the Blue Moon Pack, the pack that belonged to the Supreme Alpha. They stopped about fifty meters away. The leader sneered. He strained his eyes and ears to look at the territory. There was loud music coming from somewhere and several lights were on. The town was alive. He signaled his crew to move forward. All of them shape shifted into human form and tread on the soft grounds.

They stepped inside the territory. In order to kill the unsuspecting werewolves, the serpents entered the houses quietly. The leader kept on moving ahead and then suddenly something about the place hit him. Although the music was playing in the distance, there was an unusual quiet. The quiet was like cold icy drips on their skin. He stopped and strained his ears. When he had visited this place last, the streets were livelier. They were not like this, like an empty toy town. He turned around and saw his team coming out with strange expressions on their faces.

"What's wrong?" he asked quietly.

They shook their heads and shrugged. The group of serpents moved forward into the pack's territory. A gust of cold wind passed through the maze of brightly lit houses making the windows sway beating against the walls. The streets smelled fresh of the home-cooked food. The gardens were neatly trimmed. An occasional roar of a bear in far distance could be heard easily. Everything fitted so well, that it was odd.

"Check into the homes," barked the leader.

The serpents started entering the homes one by one.

---

The group that had traveled to the fringe of the southern territories entered in hoards. They systematically raided the carefully ordered territories and homes. The houses were destroyed and contents thrown out on the streets. The furniture was shattered, papers strewn across, glass smashed and gardens wrecked only to find werewolves. They were desperate.

The team that had headed to the North met the same fate.

---

The leader of the group became frustrated. He instructed his rhumba to charge the town with no inhibitions. And that is what they did. They destroyed whatever came in the way and razed it down in the flames. They ransacked the houses, shops, and everything that came their way and set it on fire. This action continued until they came to the east of the town, where the territory ended.

But there was no one to be found. Not a werewolf in sight. Not a wizard with them. Not a single shape-shifter. It was as if the town was just an illusion.

Suddenly the night became more chaotic. The riflemen present on this side of the territories carried out their orders. Rifle shots broke and hit the serpents who had infiltrated. Seeing this sudden attack, the leader became mad. He was told that the humans were the allies. Then how come they were shooting? He raced towards them to inform them that they were firing on the wrong targets, but the moment he ran, five rifles aimed towards him and shot him brutally.

In the night, one could see the massacre that was happening inside the forest with red fiery lights emerging every now and then across the entire length of the werewolves' territories. The only exception was that the enemy was killing its own.

The Supreme Alpha had evacuated all his people to safe locations, hours back.

As Dmitri guided the last batch of his people to one of his safe haven, he heard the gunshots in the distance and smiled remembering the letter Adrianna had left for him.