The Silver Guardian Bk. 02 Ch. 06

Astrid and Bryn led the way, as Dante carefully helped Lily navigate the three levels down to the Bastion and into the Great Hall.

The Great Hall, formerly known as the Count's Hall, was a marvelously grand structure that covered the entirety of the south wing and was large enough to house the entire Pack, six hundred strong. Absolutely stunning were the ribbed vaulting adorned with grisailles depicting the original Champion and his Great Love, and the birth of the Lycan race. The ribbed vaulting and arched windows were supported by eight free-standing red marble columns. Sconce lighting, plus three exquisite and grand chandeliers from Austria illuminated the entire hall. For tonight's festivities, dozens of massive long oak tables and benches filled the Great Hall, with one long grand table situated at the back of the Hall for Dante and Lily and a few others to sit. It had been decided for tonight that Dante and Lily would be joined by Astrid, her mate William, and Bryn as bodyguards and close friends, and the remaining seating would be occupied by the ten Elders of the Pack.

There was a small string orchestra off in one alcove to provide music during the evening. As Dante and Lily entered the Great Hall the whole Pack stood and bowed to them and the orchestra burst into some rousing music while Astrid signaled them to stand in place until it was over. The melody was unfamiliar, but it had hints of Wagner's 'Ride of the Valkyries'. Astrid explained quietly in their ears that the piece had been composed by a member of the Pack in their honor and she hoped they would permit it to be played in future for all their formal entrances. It was called 'Rise of the Guardians'. It was soon finished, about a minute long. They then made their way down the center aisle to clapping and cheering as William joined the procession, taking his place by his mate's side as the Royal Couple was led to the head table. Ancient and grand black walnut and leather chairs, each intricately hand carved with wolves, plus the moon at the top of the chair backs, were pulled out for them by Astrid and Bryn so that Lily and Dante could take their seats. After Dante and Lily were seated the rest of the Hall took their seats as well, with the Elders filing up and taking their seats on either side of the five sitting in the middle. Dante felt it was appropriate to say a few words so he stood, and in his deep rich timbre spoke to the Pack, his words filling the Great Hall.

"Thank you all, and welcome to the first celebration of the original Pack of the Lycan race made whole for the first time in a thousand years! We are blessed to be here with you all! Tonight is for us to feast and to celebrate as we reflect on ancient wrongs made right, and the return of Luna's Light to our kind. Long has this day been in coming, and it is finally upon us all. There are trying times ahead: it will be a long and difficult path that our Goddess has laid out before us. But we will all soldier on, united as a Pack as Lily and I lead you and the rest of our kind into a new era of peace and prosperity for all Lycans who would honor our Goddess and follow Her path! Love, strength, understanding, support and leadership will be given to all who honor Luna, and may our enemies choke on the ashes we leave in our wake, for I shall have no mercy for them. My Pack, I invite you to sing, eat, drink, laugh and dance the night away. Our Pack is made whole. Let the feast begin!"

At Dante's proclamation, the large kitchen staff wheeled in cart after cart overflowing with delectable food, and hand-crafted treats and drinks. Within a few minutes, all tables were piled high with food and drink, and the feast was underway as the orchestra began playing again. Since it was intended as background music, hundreds of conversations almost drowned it out as they played selections of primarily Viennese waltzes and German polkas. But at one point all conversation stopped for a couple of minutes while they performed Shostakovich's Polka, which sounded very strange, yet was clever and immensely entertaining.

The head table where Dante and Lily sat was overloaded with all kinds of food. Roast turkey, rack of lamb, standing rib roast, salmon, shrimp, lobster and a multitude of delicacies and side dishes were shared by everyone at the table as with Astrid's approval (Dante quietly asked) serving bowls and such were passed around in an informal family style. Platinum goblets had been placed before Dante and Lily which were embossed with the seal of the Silver Guardian and howling wolves. Dante's was filled with a remarkable vintage of Pinot Noir while Lily's was filled with non-alcoholic sparkling blackberry cider in respect for her pregnancy.

Everyone at the table dug in, although Dante and Lily also took advantage of the occasion to begin getting to know the Elders sitting with them. Well over an hour later once everyone had finished eating, the tables were moved out of the way and the dancing began. Lily and Dante started it off, showing off their skills to the delight of their Pack, although some of their normal moves had to be limited to accommodate Lily's gravid state. Once their initial dance was finished, the Pack joined in and the celebration continued long into the night before Dante and Lily finally retired, Lily exhausted from her pregnancy catching up with her.

They began heading towards the exit, but Astrid plucked Dante's sleeve to get his attention and shot him a look clearly saying, Not so fast, Buster! So the Royal Couple waited semi-patiently while Astrid waved Bryn over so they could be escorted upstairs with proper decorum.

***

Dante and Lily slept in after the long night of celebration, as did (to be fair) most of the Pack. They were just beginning to stir when they heard what was becoming a familiar knock at their door. They rubbed the sleep out of their eyes and threw on their robes before going over to answer it. Of course it was Astrid at the door. She acted as if she were the only one besides themselves who had access, but in truth any of the Hellhounds had clearance to come and go, since they had the duty and privilege of keeping the Royal quarters impeccably turned out. Astrid had assigned herself the job of serving as principal escort/bodyguard for the Royals partly because everyone knew she was the most bad-ass of all the Hellhounds so was the most qualified to protect them, but also because she loved looking after them.

"Good morning my lieges, we have breakfast waiting for you in the living room, and we need to get you up and running for the day. At Noon we're holding the Pack Bonds ceremony, then after that Lily is scheduled for her checkup with the Pack Doctor."

Dante and Lily both yawned before Dante responded.

"Good morning, Astrid. Thank you for the wakeup call and for breakfast; we'll be right down."

With that Astrid excused herself, and Dante and Lily put on some comfortable lounging clothes before making their way down a level to the living room, where Astrid and one of the kitchen staff (who Astrid had escorted up) were laying everything out. The selection was one of Dante and Lily's favorites, consisting of Eggs Benedict and hash browns with bacon, since both Dante and especially Lily this late in her pregnancy ate a small mountain of food at every meal.

As they ate, Astrid briefed them on their upcoming day, explaining that while they were in residence at the Castle, not only would she be their chief bodyguard, but she'd also assigned herself to act as a personal assistant for them, especially as they acclimated to life here. Not only was Astrid the head of the Royal Bodyguards the Hellhounds, but she was the General in charge of their forces, with Bryn, Hilde and Freydis her top Lieutenants. She took her orders directly from Dante and Lily, and otherwise was in overall charge of the security and armed forces of the Pack. Her mate William was already carving a place for himself in the Pack as an electronics expert, and as a Beta in their forces reporting to Astrid herself. She had a wicked gleam in her eye at the mention of William reporting to her, and Dante and Lily couldn't help but chuckle at some of the things she would surely put him through on occasion. Lily couldn't restrain herself from making a quip about William getting revenge in the bedroom, and that she might have to buy him a small whip to help keep Astrid in line. Astrid just licked her lips and smiled broadly, then went on to explain how the Pack Bonds ceremony would unfold.

"Once you two wrap up your breakfast and have a chance to shower, I'll have a few of the Hellhounds join us in your suite to outfit you in your ceremonial garb. All our soldiers will be wearing their military best, while the civilians of the Pack and the Elders and children will be in their personal best. Dante, for you we have specially constructed armor that our finest smiths have been working on since we learned of your and Lily's existence. We'll also have your standard weaponry laid out for you. Lily we also have armor for you, though due to your pregnancy your breastplate cannot be worn, so as a temporary measure, our best smiths have forged a titanium bodice that covers your chest and back but leaves your stomach free. You also will have your personal weaponry fastened to you just like Dante will. Several weeks after you give birth, we'll do your final fitting of your breastplate to match the rest of your armor. At formal and official functions of great importance, this is what you each will wear. Think of it as your Royal Dress."

Dante and Lily's eyes bulged a bit, not having remembered this little item of what they were to wear for official functions. But when in Rome... or Germany in this case.

"Once you're ready we'll escort you to the Hall of the Moon, where the remaining sixteen of your Hellhounds will come first; they're your most loyal and capable servants and guards, and they'll be bound to you before the rest of the Pack is. After that will come the Pack Elders, and then the rest of the Pack will cycle through. There are just over 600 Pack members, so pace yourselves; it will take a significant amount of time. Only one drop of blood from each of you for each wolf will do, especially with how many members of our Pack there are and how precious your blood is. After the ceremony is completed, you may retire for a while, I suggest you take it easy in your living room and library, and then it will be time for Lily to have her checkup. I just dumped a lot of information on you both shortly after you awakened, so would you like me to repeat anything, or do you have everything down?"

Dante and Lily checked with each other through the bond, assuring each other they were good before Lily responded.

"We're all set. We'll wrap up breakfast and then we'll shower and wait in our suite for you and the other Hellhounds. Let's get to it."

***

After their shower, Lily and Dante returned to their room wearing their robes and put on their underwear. Just as they finished doing that, Astrid knocked on the door before entering with Hilde, Bryn and Freydis, who were carrying their ceremonial garments and armor. They all bowed to their King and Queen before Astrid spoke.

"We all wished to be here for this moment, as the companions who've been with you since our first meeting. It's time, my King and Queen. Let's prepare."

Freydis and Hilde helped Dante into his fitted leather pants which were heavy since they were adorned with platinum-embossed wolf's claws running down the sides with Celtic knotwork interspersed here and there. He next stepped into his boots, also heavy with steel and platinum plated full gauntlets that Freydis buckled for him in back; they fit perfectly. Hilde helped him into his silver and black tunic, which fit snugly around his arms and torso to provide a visual accent to his armor and to protect against chafing. Next they secured the platinum-plated solid steel breastplate around his chest with his hand-carved seal on the breast and angel wings on the back, plus a stylized lily near his neck representing his mate. They then secured his pauldrons to his breastplate to cover his shoulders; they were embossed with wolf heads complete with fangs. They then attached a bracer to each arm with triangular ridges in a pattern that almost looked like a spine. They then slipped his platinum-plated steel gloves lined with black leather onto his hands, and finally strapped Twin Moons on each of his hips and strapped his tanto blade to the underside of his left forearm's bracer. (No way would he be shifting while wearing so much armor, so his weapons harness was omitted.) When he was ready, they sat him down and pulled his hair back into a high ponytail, securing it with his wolf's head ponytail holder, and extracted the moonlight-silver strand from his temple to drape down the side of his face. Onto that they threaded two platinum wolf's head hand-carved beads plus a third bead carved to look like a lily, the three beads representing his two unborn children and his Great love.

While Dante was being suited, Astrid and Bryn prepared Lily. Bryn helped her into her heavy black leather pleated war skirt. It hung down just past her knees; each pleat ended in an arrow point, and to it was attached a strip of platinum-coated steel to protect her and to accent the garment. Astrid helped draw her tunic over her head and belly; it was black with emerald green accents and was fitted close to her skin, accenting her armor, but also serving to protect her skin against chafing just like Dante's garments. Bryn next helped her step into her knee-length boots. They were covered in vertically ridged strips of steel with emerald green plating. After that, Astrid and Bryn helped Lily into her modified breastplate that was steel and coated in a beautiful emerald green. It covered her ample breasts, and also wrapped around her back. On her left breast was a hand-tooled lily, and up near her neck was a duplicate of her mate's seal. On her back, once again matching her mate, was a pair of hand-tooled angel wings. Upon her shoulders they attached her pauldrons which like Dante's, were embossed with snarling wolf heads complete with fangs. They then attached her bracer gauntlets with arrow-pointed plates wrapping around her forearms with lilies hand-tooled into them, again in emerald green. Her final items of apparel were her gauntlets. These were much daintier than Dante's, but equally protective. They were made of black leather covered in emerald-green-plated steel that allowed her full movement. Finally they strapped her twin daggers to her hips in custom tooled leather sleeves with platinum accents. Astrid sat her down so she and Bryn could weave her hair into an intricate braid down her back before teasing out the moonlit silver streak at her temple, freeing it to hang down, framing one side of her face. Like her mate's, around it they threaded three hand-carved platinum beads. Two wolf paw-print beads for her unborn children and a final bead carved into the likeness of a ferocious wolf for her mate. Astrid and Bryn then took some time at Lily's vanity to adding the final touches to Lily's makeup before both she and Dante were ready.

Because of all the armor it included, their formal garb was heavy enough to incapacitate almost anyone else, but the two Royals were able to manage walking. Not completely easily, but easily enough that wearing it for a few hours wouldn't exhaust them. Dante and Lily walked in front of a hanging tapestry depicting a battle scene and posed regally side by side while Astrid took a few pictures.

"I'll have the best one of these printed and framed for you two to hang somewhere. You both look so powerful and regal, just like the true Alpha King and Alpha Queen that you are: royal, majestic and awe inspiring. This formal battle gear, while impractical in a real battle given your unique abilities, will be perfect for the Pack and for official occasions. Now let's make our way to the Hall of the Moon."

***

Dante and Lily stood before the altar in the Chapel as the sixteen as-yet-unbonded Hellhounds in their polished red armor and gleaming weapons stood at rigid attention in front of them in a semi-circle. Astrid, Bryn, Freydis and Hilde flanked the Royals, two on each side. Lily spoke to their highest ranking guards.

"Hellhounds, you are our most trusted and loyal guards, set above all others that you may be the principal ones to protect and counsel your King and me. We shall rely on you, at times to the fullest extent of your formidable abilities, but we shall also be with you, to love and support you, come what may. We ask for your eternal loyalty and absolute trust in all situations. You are our spear and shield against our enemies, and our last line of defense; you must not fail. We require that you be fair and just at all times, and that you serve with honor and distinction. You eight wolves and eight she-wolves are the pride of the Royal Pack, and you must conduct yourselves as such. Do not disappoint yourselves or us. I say all these things to you not in reprimand, but with love and in full confidence that you're up to the task.

"When we call your name step forward and kneel, and you shall receive our blessing to form the Alpha and Pack Bonds."

Dante called out their names one at a time.

"Dane Frigard"

Dane stepped forward and kneeled before his Alphas. Dante removed the gauntlet from his left hand and handed it to Bryn, who was standing on his right as Lily duplicated his action, handing hers to Astrid on her left. Dante drew his tanto and ran it across his palm, as Lily did the same with one of her daggers. Consecutively they formed their hands into fists above Dane's mouth and a single drop of blood from each of them fell into his mouth. In the backs of all three of their minds they felt the Alpha and Pack Bonds snap into place. Lily spoke her command.

"Rise Dane, and begin forming a rank at our backs."

With that, Dane got to his feet and went to stand at a midpoint behind Lily and Dante. Dante called out the next name and they repeated the ritual through all sixteen Hellhounds as the newly bonded Hellhounds gradually formed a new semi-circle behind their King, Queen and the four highest ranking Hellhounds. Ritually this symbolized their King and Queen's trust that these soldiers would never betray them and henceforward they would guard their backs. (Unsaid was the fact that Dante and Lily had not yet learned the names of all their Pack members, and Astrid was silently feeding them the information through the Pack Bond. Once each new Pack member's bond was established however, names were no longer an issue: it was as if everyone was wearing prominent name tags, and many other personal details about them were immediately apparent.)

"Asta Havard"

"Balder Aze"

"Bodil Estur"

"Calder Gonnor"

"Brenna Osmond"

"Destin Rabec"

"Eirika Ozouf"

"Einar Varanger"

"Fell Iyver"

"Gunnar Turgot"

"Gyda Turgis"

"Halvard Hastain"

"Hella Néel"

"Hammond Anger"

"Iona Harou"

When this stage of the ritual was completed, the sixteen Hellhounds were lined up in a semi-circle behind Dante and Lily, with their most trusted General and Lieutenants Astrid, Bryn, Hilde and Freydis flanking the Royals. At that time the ten Pack Elders, wearing floor-length academic-style robes in royal blue, entered the cathedral to stand before Dante and Lily. Again, Lily was the one to speak to them.

"Pack Elders, you are the keepers of our history and our source of wisdom in the Pack. You five men and five women shall be trusted to counsel us and to help us guide the Pack as we continue to grow and walk our Goddess' path. Your duty is to help raise the next generation and to teach wisdom and patience to all members of the Pack through careful consideration and thought. You shall keep records of our deeds, continuing our written history as the Order of Fenrir leads our kind into a new era.