"They were supposed to come back to Grandpa's house last night. The last call by Cirrus was around 11 pm, local time," Tul calmly presents the briefing, unlikely fazed by the fact that his mate is missing.
But, only God knows the mess he had inside. He is shattering like a broken glass, silently crying in vain. Yet, he chose to be strong for the sake of his family.
"The Dark Forest is known to have tricky trails, not to mention those tall and huge trees that occupy the whole forest," says Renyu. "I used to go there when I was a kid. Without a guide—the one who truly knows the whole jungle—we can get lost after only half an hour."
"Question."
All eyes on Ezra.
"Go on," Tul replies.
"What did they do in there?"
Tul glances at Sora. The female Alpha sighs heavily. She puts down her iPad and takes some time to answer the inquiry.
"There's a problem with the livestock in that village. One by one died mysteriously; with no explanation. Before that happened, they were acting violently; just like the stud that attacked Pein a few days back," Sora replies.
"Since the livestock were getting fewer, the villagers almost had no food. Vegetables are available, but they doubt consuming them as those livestock used to eat them, too."
"What's the issue anyway? Is this a plague? Or a pandemic?" Ezra demands more explanation.
Tul and Sora exchange looks one more time. Tul then points out to Sora, asking for her help.
"We believe, it's a supernatural cause. The reason why they entered the Dark Forest was to calm the supernatural force in that forest."
Ezra almost dropped his mug. "Supernatural? Like ghosts? Spirit? Deity?"
"Yes."
Ezra goes pale. He is afraid of these kinds of things. The bad news is, maybe, the convoy is probably being kept by a spirit in the Dark Forest. And, he is now joining a briefing on how to save them!
He against an unknown spirit? Ezra never signed up for that!
"The second convoy will depart the first thing in the morning. Who else is aboard with us?" Tul asks Sora.
"Everyone except Caspian, Omega Mei, and Alpha Kawei. They need to stay back, just in case we need the extra assistance. Alpha Renyu will fly the jet for us. Alpha Cabot is waiting for us there, he probably arrived by now as he went straight from the summit that he attended. The venue is nearby," Sora replies.
"I want to come."
All eyes on Caspian. The Omega kept silent all this time, but hearing that his name is excluded from the mission, he feels unfair.
"Caspi, it's dangerous..."
"I'm worried sick about Pein. Besides, you do know how I need her now," Caspian replies; tears slowly flowing from his eyes. "I won't survive in this state if she's gone."
"Caspi, you're pregnant. It's dangerous for you and the cub. If something happens, Pein will kill us for good!" Sora tries to reason.
"Caspian is pregnant?"
A thud came from the entrance of the discussion room. Kawei and Mei shoot a panicked look at their son-in-law. Tul sighs, knowing this news will attack everyone like a wildfire.
"Why haven't you told us, son? How long did you keep it from us?" Mei asks as she runs across the room to check on Caspian. Omega looks at Mei with guilt on his face.
"It's been 12 weeks already. I have no guts to tell anyone because I'm afraid that if Pein finds out, she'll ask for an abortion," Caspian replies; his voice almost inaudible.
Tul shares the pain with the sorrow in his eyes, while Sora shakes her head in disbelief. Ezra can only stand on the side, looking at Caspian with sympathy.
"Thus, for that, you can't join this mission, Caspi. We dare not risk anything. Especially your life," says Kawei. Renyu nods, agrees with the statement.
"But I need Pein the most right now! Besides, I am afraid if something happens and I won't see her again..."
"Put a trust in us, Caspi. We want nothing but the best from them as well," Mei pats his hand softly.
"At least, let me follow the convoy. Please, Omega Mei..." There's a strand of tears coming out of Caspian. The feeling of guilt mixed with worry and scared of losing someone important in his life gathered all over him. Peinaire is his first love, and forever will be his love. If something happened to her, Caspian might lose his life as well.
"Fine. You may join the convoy. But, please, listen to the orders given by the elders. Don't do things recklessly. Take care of yourself and my grandcub," Mei sets some conditions that Caspian needs to follow.
"I promise."
***
From Hua Hin, they take a boat across the ocean to a small island. The white sand and blue sea invite them like an old friend.
"Welcome everyone..." a young female Omega welcomes the convoy at the beach.
"How's everyone?" Sora asks her.
"Everyone is anxious. But, everything is under control by now," the female replies firmly.
"Ah, I forgot..." Sora turns around. "Everyone, meet Bua. She's the assistant for Elder Talay; also my second cousin. Bua, these are the Omegas of Sarin; Tul, Caspian, and Ezra."
"Welcome to the island, everyone. But, let's cut to the chase now. We have something more important to do. Alpha Cabot is waiting for us with Elder Talay," Bua replies politely, although she sounds serious and stern.
The village on the island is in moderate condition; not too crowded yet not too empty. Everyone is looking at the Sarin convoy as the passes by as if they are a group of criminals.
"Ignore the glare. They know nothing except blaming others," says Bua. She continues the journey until they arrive at a huge wooden house. It has an aesthetic feature of an old, traditional house with a nice view—a small pond, a traditional kitchen at the ground level, and greenery all around the house.
Two male are sitting at the gazebo at the side of the house, enjoying tea. One of them is Alpha Cabot, but the other one, they aren't so sure who that fella is.
"Oh. You guys are here?" Cabot leaves the gazebo and welcomes them with a huge hug. As he hugs Tul, the Omega sobs silently.
"Shh... Cir might be a Beta. But, you do know he's unlike any other Beta. He'll be just fine," Cabot gives a caring encouragement.
"Now that everyone has already gathered around, let's take the conversation inside," says the male. He has a pair of hazel eyes. With that pale white skin, he almost looks like a living doll.
"This is Alpha Gun; father of Bua," Sora politely introduced the male to everyone. Tul, Caspian, and Ezra bow to Gun.
"I hope you bring the right reinforcement, Renyu. Things aren't easy, just like the other time," Gun expresses his concern.
"We'll see about that, Gun. I have faith in everyone. This time, we'll seal off everything, once and for all," says Renyu, softly patting his cousin's shoulder.
The convoy ascends the stairs one by one, walking straight into the small hall where they see two figures; praying next to each other. The other one is wearing a red maroon robe, and the other one is wearing a white robe with gold embroidery behind the robe.
"Three Omegas, two Alphas, and one Golden Alpha? This is the best you guys can do?" the figure who wears the white robe speaks up.
Renyu and Cabot immediately bow down on their knee. They fold their legs neatly under their buttocks and lie down. Tul, Caspian, Sora, and Ezra follow the pursuit; though they have no idea who they are facing right now. As Ezra peeks a bit to take a look at the figure, his body shakes in fear.
It's Enigma Young. And he looks displeased