Mantilo was the first to notice that Ezekiel had arrived and he swiftly called it to everyone’s attention with a soft gesture to capture the attention of all in attendance.

“Ezekiel...come in. Sit. As one of this household and this Clans Guardian...be seated before our guests.” Ezekiel noticed that his father seemed unusually solemn, formal and, his face and voice were filled with a heaviness.

Nodding his head, Ezekiel walked up to the table, grabbed one of the chairs and did as he was asked. Cold anger burned in his heart though he took pains to hide it. Just the mere whiff of that scent, musk, made his blood begin to boil.

Ezekiel coughed to expel the foul smell from his throat. It made his fangs gnash and his talons burn to rip flesh.

" And now that we are all here before you,, I believe I must introduce you all over again. My son the final Guardian, his name is Ezekiel. He was busy with matters in the Clan, but now he has returned. Please continue with the discussion at hand so that we can get to bottom of this matter.” his mother said suddenly.

EZEKIEL could tell that she was in full Chief mode. Her normally cheerful disposition was nowhere to be found. Her long curly sandy blond hair had been bound back into a messy bun, while clothing was also formal attire, a long white evening gown that Ezekiel knew his mother had dawned in an attempt to make up for the Healers Garments that she hadn’t been able to find since Ann and Brandon ran off.

Each Healer was given one Healers Garment every decade and the old Garment was burned in the ceremony.

A healers official clothing was a silken hand woven dress created by master seamstresses who presented the gowns to the most skilled herbalists and healers among them. The silvery flowing white gowns were a symbol of true status among his Clan.

Moreover it was customary that whenever his parents hosted a guest or held important Clan related meetings that their mother donned her Healers robes, because just as their Father held an important place in the Clan, their mothers mantle as Head Healer in the clan was her own personal pride and held undeniable significance.

It was clear from the white cotton dress she had put on that his mother wanted to be adorned with her special robes, perhaps because she understood that the Shifters before her were there on important Clan related business.

A part of Ezekiel knew that Brandon and possibly even Ann had no real idea of the significance of the white gown they had very likely taken, but the theft of such an important thing to his mother was just another thing that made h

Ezekiels chest tighten with displeasure and his mood darken ever more.

Knowing that he had to show interest as a Guardian towards the visitors, Ezekiel turned his gaze onto the five Lions.

Out of them all that were gathered only one of them was a female. The rest were males of varying sizes and shapes and even skin tones.

The well built and clean shaven males stood in a semicircle around the female, in what Ezekiel guessed was a protective gesture. The female herself was aged, but not ancient. And had skin as dark as the soils he had tread outside.

Her hair was cut short and was dirty blond, streaked by startling highlights as white as a cloud. She had a tight long face, with wrinkles at the edges of her eyes and forehead. Her stoic face that hinted at a beauty that has faded away was blushed as were her thin lips which sported only light make up.

She was wrapped elegantly up in a blue flowing garment that reminded him of silk, but the shimmer was not the same on the sleeves.

The Lioness before him was was not small or short, but of average build and height, but despite this the lean muscles in her forearms he could glimpse gave away her strength. While her body beneath the garment looked frail and skinny, her bright brown eyes and straight posture told him that she was a Lioness not to be written off because of her visible age.

“Ah, the last of the family! At last! Very well, I do recall being advised that there was one among you that was a Reaver and I see...or its more like I can sense the reports were not wrong.” The woman sniffed shifted as if put off, cool eyes look at Ezekiel and glimmering with displeasure. “Heavens I smell him from here. Strange to see one of his kind still functioning so well...allowed to live past maturity?” The woman scoffed, lowered her chin and cast a hard look at Glen and Mantilo. A look of censure. “What a...perplexing thing for you to have done Leopard queen and King. The way is to halt the speak of the sickness in the Clans but, for you to raise one of them knowing their true danger... its astonishing really. Reckless.” the Lioness said. Her expression spoke more to anger then astonishment. Ezekiels belly curled with annoyance.

His mother spoke back, tilting her head and smirking to flash the edges of her fangs. “Why thank you, but I don’t find it astonishing at all. I love my son and see no reason that I shouldn’t but I thank you for the high praise.” his mother said back in a clipped frosty tone.

Glens face didn’t change but Ezekiel did sense her fight not to hiss or bare her fangs fully at the visitor for her rude words about him. Bonsa raised an eye brow then glared at Ezekiel directly.

“Yes, well either way? I am still quite surprised that he wasn’t here to greet me two days ago. Very rude behavior, but that is in the past now I guess. Once more I will introduce myself to the late comer if I must.” The woman sighed and waved a hand about as if frustrated.

Ezekiel heckles stood on end, he chafed internally at her hoity tone and cavalier attitude with his mother.

Ugh Who the hell is this lady! Why is she talking to us like were children...and why is everyone letting her do it!

With a graceful wave of her hand across her face there was a shimmer, and a flash.

Blue lights seemed to crackle over her slim fingers, and in a small shower of sparks, the insignia on her face seemed to dance forth into clear view, like a mirage had been dispelled from before his eyes.

The woman’s eyes brown and critical narrowed as she sniffed and seemed to dislike the scent she captured from him because she snorted back out softly and shifted aside as if to dispel him essence.

It was a common reaction from other Shifters whenever they came across him, so Ezekiel ignored it, but what he couldn’t ignore was the sudden glimpse he caught sight of the large gilded insignia inscribed and pressed into the flesh of her far right forehead like a raised tattoo made of gold.

The insignia and the blue flames gave him chills down his spine.

A part of Ezekiel was struck with instant understanding, but another part of him, the wild side he could barely keep in check, just got more annoyed, and even more unhappy.

“Hello Ezekiel, Guardian of the Leopard Clan. My name is Bonsa and these men besides me...” she continued indicating the male Shifters around her “are my escorts. I am High Elder assigned by blood and bond to our King in the heavens. As of two days ago I have been sent here on official business by my Kings and your Masters. It would behoove you to know that in my presence you are before the eyes of those greater and...”

“Jesus!” Ezekiel rolled his eyes. “Okay, your important! I get it lady. High Elder. Can we Just skip the fucking blow job and tell me what you want lioness?” he sneered at her.

Ezekiel knew he was being disrespectful, but he had a lot of reasons not to be a charming guest or a particularly happy person.

Anywhere but in that room surrounded by the smell of Lions would have been better. But suddenly Ezekiel’s eyes were drawn to his mothers and fathers glares. But even more so then Mantilo Glens gaze gave him pause.

Glens posture full of anger warned him. With a dominant hiss that scratched at the more primitive side of his nature she reprimanded him for his behavior. Her green eyes flashed like the sun.

For a moment Ezekiel felt like a cub once more with his mother’s thick deadly teeth clamped around his small skull lovingly carrying him away from whatever mischief he had put himself into.

Quelling his own displeasure Ezkeiel rumbled back and chirped, he acknowledged her anger by also looking down. He got the message. His behavior wouldn’t be tolerated. Especially where an Elder was involved, because once an Elder got involved it was no longer about the individual, it was about the ramification for the entire Clan and Ezekiel both understood and had witnessed this before.

In fact Ezekiel actually knew just enough about Elders that he should have been shaking in fear in his seat. Not popping off at the mouth.

Ezekiel knew as much about Elders as just about any other Shifter in the village who attended the local high school and had had Shifter History shoved down their throats.

As a teen Ezekiel had been taught that Elders spoke for the Kings of their race the Dragons. Also his people believed that Elders were messengers and judges for the Dragons that sat unseen on high somewhere beyond the clouds. Never felt. Never heard. Honestly the idea of Dragons had seemed quite fake in Ezekiels own mind because of their absence.

But despite that it was told that Elders were hand chosen by the powerful and unseen beings themselves, to go where the Dragons could not or would not travel. The reason was not known.

No one knew if this was all true or conjecture because Ezekiel much like other Shifters around the world had never actually seen a Dragon in the flesh in their lifetime. Most Shifters hadn’t seen a Dragons since the creation of the Sacred Laws nearly fifteen hundred years ago and many Shifters even doubted their existence or power all together.

But Ezekiels Clan and many others still respected the Dragons rule all the same.

Because if something truly didn’t exist? It couldn’t put people into exile or execute entire families for treason or track down the Hunters that poached Shifters furs for money....and the Dragons Elders did all of that that in the name of their Kings who they said resided in the clouds above.

So in the end it was simply best to believe them. Or pretend to believe. Either way the Elders were a force none could deny. If nothing else Ezekiel believed in the powers that the Elders had and the fear they have instilled in Shifter society.

In fact Ezekiel had personally seen them bring the wrath down on one unfortunate Hunter, that had plotted to attack their entire village. And he had never gotten over the memories.

Long long ago now, a rogue Hunter had tried to poison the Leopards entire water supply. Back when. Ezekiel was a boy most of the water flowed in from the greater lakes to the other side of the Villages near the mountains. The ruined waters kill over a dozen of thier Clans men and as a Child Ezekiel recalled his fathers fury. He remembered the wrath of the Clan Head as he hunted the Hunter and took the invader down for good.

The intruder was stopped, and for his crimes he was given to the Elders for punishment.

Late that night four or five tall silent figures, in long graceful black and blue robes decked with large terrifying blades and sporting eerie glowing powerful eyes and bright blue vibrating bodies had appeared as if they had materialized from the very air itself...like angles.

The tall shadows had smelled of nothing familiar to Ezekiel back them...and the tall beings seemed to walk out of the scariest dreams and into the real world to Ezekiel. To the boy he thought the Elders were malevolent. Like burning blue demons from hell itself.

The five Elders exuded a power that made Ezekiel want to cry and hide into Walters strong arms (which Ezekiel had) as the Elders marched past and silently walked off into the Mansion and spoke to his parents who had the Hunter locked up in the basements.

Ezekiel didn’t remember their faces because of the long cowls they had wore and also because he had been much too scared to look into their burning blue mystical gazes for long, but it had happened so long ago he knew he wouldn’t have been able to recall it now even if he had seen them clearly, but he vividly remembered what the Elders did next.

The blue and black clothed figures took the would-be poisoner of Ezekiel’s Clan bound in their powerful mystical blue magic’s they ripped him screaming out into the fields.

The Hunter whimpered for mercy as they drug him off screaming, begging, pleading and defecating. Off he was swept into the shadows of the trees. Ezekiel remembered the stench of that mans unbridled terror clogged in his young nose, the gut twisting smell of flesh burning and blackening as the powerful Elders simply touched him and his skin seemed to blister from blue malignant broiling hot energy they controlled.

Ezekiel also remembers that he sensed the fear simmering around him, even from the rest of his family. Even, his older brothers and parents, as the Hunter was taken and he was never seen again. And neither were the Elders. Almost as though they had vanished off the face of the earth back up to the paradises or hells that created beings such as them.

Suffice to say Ezekiel knew better then to be treating these visitors so rudely, he knew better then to invite the wrath of the Elders and the last thing he wanted to do was cause a scene.

Still averting his gaze from his mother in difference to her Ezekiel hissed, and bowed his head low to High Elder Bonsa in respect.

“Forgive my words High Elder. Im sorry. I am...not myself today, please continue.” He said slowly. “I will refrain from speaking out of turn again.” Ezekiel forced himself to amend.

“We will see.. ” Elder Bonsa frowned in the face of the earlier interruption. She seemed to be searching for her train of thought. After a moment or two of silence she continued.

“As I was saying.... I have been sent here by the Dragon’s Council. They have anonymously come upon some information concerning this Clans actions and it is believed that the Leopard Clan have violated one of the Sacred Laws. A grave offense that must be rectified. My duty here is to get answers to the charges” Bonsa told him.

Bewildered and shocked Ezekiel stared at the Lioness.

It was undeniable at that point that Elders were mostly responsible for mitigating Wars, calming disputes and most important right then; The Elders were responsible for passing down judgement on any Clan that the Dragons felt were in violation of the Sacred Laws.

Any Clan guilty of committing vile treason against the Heavens...an offense punishable by death.