All Chapters of The House of Wolves: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10
23 chapters
Discussions Among the House
'When hunting a wolf in these woods, one must always bring an army.' That is the creed of the hunters who dwell in Volicheus's western lands. But what can one do, when trying to hunt a pack? A pack of vicious, bloodthirsty wolves at least four times the size of any creature to walk the forests or prowl the mountains. The answer is simple...you run. You run and you pray to every god there is to pray too and try to forget that you were ever there and perhaps even regret your own birth. You swear to give up your bow or your blade and perhaps even make an oath to never touch meat again as long as you live. And most importantly, you cling onto the desperate, slim hope that you are not hunted. Thankfully, there was not a single hunter forced into a situation like that on that day. They were far too intuitive to be so foolish as to walk into the woods that day. There are alway telltale signs to indicate the mood of the forest. When flowers are wilting and larks are quiet and rabbits are mee
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The Chariot
The smell of fresh bread. With it, the irresistible temptation to indulge himself. The sensation it brought tempted Alder to drop the wood in his hands and give chase. The market of the people was bustling all around. He saw everything that occurred, and was taken by the feelings which animated this 'everything'. The exhaustion of the workers heaving the boxes and the anger of the fruit seller lady as she smacked a thief. No, it was not apt to call him a thief. He was a boy not yet ready to be a beggar, not truly desperate to steal. Simply poor. But not enough to truly hunger or dream. It was a pathetic existence, but that existence crackled within the spirits of everyone around Alder. But not him. He would become a knight one day. He hadn't gotten many glimpses of them, except when they came to his humble alley to discuss with Aurelia. The older kids understood, but for him big words were not so interesting. Because of that he was different from everyone else in this place. They wer
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Broken Mind
As soon as the chariot passed...Alder ran as fast as he could. He didn't know where he was going, or even what he was really doing. He just ran to clear his head from the confusion that pestered him incessantly.Along the way he stumbled over stray stones and crashed into members of the now dissipating crowd which had gathered to see the chariot. His torn up, rugged shoes which he had worn for the past three years squeaked as he ran, barely clinging to Alder's feet."What is that little boy doing?""Could he be a thief? Morris, where is my wallet?""What an abnormal little brat.""This inconsiderate little..."Alder heard all of these things as he worked his way frantically through the mass of people who to him were...frankly insignificant. Despite hearing what they were saying and catching glimpses of their disgusted faces, Alder's mind was hardly processing any of it, he was too occupied on his own internal conflict to care about what they thought.After all, why should he devote an
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The 'Nature of Nobility'
Seven days. That was how long Ardos had spent cooped in that god awful chariot. Now....the chariot was exquisitely designed and very classy, and on top of that it had it's own quarters built in just for him. The chariot was more like a miniature room in all honesty. And on top of that the servants and bodyguards most certainly had it worse, though they were still sleeping comfortably.He had requested to travel alone, but his father had adamantly denied his wishes and sent him on his way."If you die...the family shall be greatly impacted. After all, you are my only heir, so if you were to die the repercussions would be grave. Additionally...you are to be wed in a month! How could you even think of going alone?""But father" pleaded Ardos, before he was cut off once again."Don't push your luck boy! The fact that I'm allowing you to even travel to that vile city is extremely generous. Now pack your things and get out of my sight."Ardos had been given no choice but to comply and as a
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The Assassin and the Politician
"My mask?" Questioned Ardos. "You mean those odd animal disguises that I see everywhere around here?""Don't play dumb with me" snarled the voice. It had a feminine quality to it, so Ardos presumed that the individual threatening him was most likely a female."You're quite feisty aren't you? What's your name lass?""I'm not telling you you son of a..." The girl paused, grappling to regain her composure. "This is not a conversation, this is not a casual discussion. I am demanding that you give me your mask.""How boring. But fine...let me tell you now, I don't have a mask. I just came to this city, so you'll gain nothing from me."The girl sighed impatiently, before suddenly prodding the knife at Ardos's side even deeper."You're not fooling me. I know you're one of those wealthy shits, even though you wear that stupid cloak of yours. And I know you're not some foreigner...so where is your mask?""First of all girl" Ardos said, pretending to be offended. "I am a noble, not a 'wealthy s
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Obtaining the Seventh Mask
Aurelia couldn't help but to think about the man named Ardos. Their discussion had lasted a mere thirty minutes but even now, two hours later, it remained plastered within her mind.The two had discussed a variety of topics. From their respective backgrounds, to their roles within the city, and even more personal family related matters. He had been the one primarily asking the questions, and there were points when the conversation even felt like an interrogation.But strangely, she didn't particularly mind that. She didn't needed someone to vent out too anyways, and while she had been hesitant, the unexpected conversation had provided some much needed relief. Additionally he was a good listener and when he did share things about himself, was very transparent in doing so.What stuck out to Aurelia most though, was the way he spoke about his dreams. It reminded her of her brother and the way he asked her questions about the stories she told him, only in this case it was far more eloquen
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The Game Which the Thieves Play
Every time Aurelia had stolen a life, she'd looked at herself in the mirror. She expected herself to turn into a monster, for the blood on her hands to soak her entire body and transform her into some demonic, malformed creature unrecognizable as a former human. But every time she looked, all she saw was a girl. A regular girl, with dark skin and black hair with frosted white tips. A regular girl whose hands shook constantly when she was afraid, who was only fourteen years old.A sister, a daughter, a child, that was what she saw and this sight was what saved her. But so was her code. Her promise to never take a life unless she was ordered to had been her salvation. Like a thread allowing her to hold hope for herself, that maybe she could be more than an assassin or a thief. That maybe she could be accepted for her skin tone and eye color and all the features which she was forced to hide, and which differentiated her from those up top.It was these characteristics, which drove her to
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Ravens and Horses
In the city of Corvachia, three primary markets exist. The Merchant's Market, for the elite in Bayrond's square to trade the most lavish and exotic of materials, the Raven's Market, for weapons and poisons and other mysterious substances, and the Commoner's Market, for those forced to live in between the two ends of the city. The Commoner's Market provides basic living materials and is very simplistic in nature, perfect for the small majority of individuals not rich enough to live in Bayrond's Square, but who have enough to prevent them from needing to go to the Raven's Market.There are also those who don't have enough to sustain themselves in a stable manner, but whom also choose to not make their money in the underground, and instead keep themselves going on the meager jobs that can be found in the dwelling areas of the commonsfolk. Most of these individuals are children who settle in the alleyways and form small communities there to survive. The abundance of these groups has grown
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Just Another Dead Man
Elesett Álmodozó was a knight. He was a man of average height, with dark skin and almond shaped eyes. His irises were onyx black, his hair was curly and his face was dotted with freckles. What was most impressive about him, was his musculature. He had a sculpted body with glistening abdominals, pulsing triceps, and a sturdy back. However despite how physicall imposing he was, he made for a rather poor fighter.He was hesitant to swing a sword and in single combat was quite ineffective. There was a running joke amongst his squad that he was the perfect of example of why to not judge a book by it's cover. Their latest task, had only solidified the truth behind that notion.Before them, lay a sub-human of the Dalkyvith kind. The creature ran a small pub and was quite well liked despite his appearance. He had a bloated belly and stubby legs meaning he couldn't move very well. He was six times the width and three times the height of an average human after all. His skin was red and warty li
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Birth of the Golden Lion
Following the discussion, Ardos strutted around Bayrond's square and even some of the surrounding areas of the city, attempting to observe it more closely. He noted the elaborate bridges stretching across the canal, the geese which fluffed their feathers and chatted in their strange tongues as they drifted across the water's surface, and even a couple boats cutting through the man-made river. The boats carried a variety of spices and artifacts from distant lands, catching the eyes of many. It was a much needed distraction for these people, who often found themselves looking at Ardos. He simply had a presence, one which shone from amidst his cloak. It was quite frustrating indeed. Funnily enough however, the boats, despite their size and grandeur, never actually left the city...nor even the square for that matter. They were created solely for the purpose of showcasing the variety of materials merchants often collected from distant lands. Despite its wealth of merchants and businessm
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