Dominic was thrown on his back uncomfortably, the rope digging into his skin while Valencia lay on top of him. They were both suspended in the air, around twenty feet high and there was no sign of anyone who would either hunt or rescue them.
The alpha tried to sound amusing, “Looks like whoever the hunter was, set the trap and forgot all about it.”
Though even his voice sounded off to him. The heat was rushing to his cheeks once again as Valencia was sprawled against him, her knees bent awkwardly.
“Can we try to get up?” She asked him hesitantly. He tried to stop his voice from shaking, “Not me, I have fallen enough times already. You may do as you please.”
Valencia looked at him with furrowed eyebrows, “You dare talk to your archon like that?”
A ghost of a smile appeared on the alpha’s lips as he countered her, “The archon drove through the forest like a raging bull, crashed the bike in a
They hadn’t moved in the last few minutes and awkward silence was around them once again. Thus, Dominic cleared his throat and asked her, “Are you…okay?” Valencia nodded her head and pulled her hair away from his face. Her fingers brushed his lips and that was when Dominic’s eyes met hers. They were emerald green as always, shining with a fervor that she couldn't quite put a finger on. She hesitated and answered, “Yes” Dominic tried his best to straighten his legs as much as he could and said to her, “the hunter might come early morning to check if any of his snares caught a prey…so…it might do us good to rest a little.” Again, Valencia just answered with a small “Yes.” She didn't say anything else. It was as if her mouth refused to speak. He extended a hand for her to use as a pillow and turned his head away, closing his eyes to fall asleep. Valencia saw the dozen cuts his hands had received all the while when she was jumping around. That mad
The leaves parting on the horizon indicated that there were hycwens coming for them because there weren’t many beasts that tall, not at least, what they knew of. Dominic pulled out the daggers from his inner pockets and Valencia’s eyes went wide. “Why didn’t you use them to cut through the ropes?” She asked him disbelievingly. “We could have been halfway through the Burham mountains by now.” Well, she did have a point. However, Dominic had his reasons. “Had I freed us right away, you would have made me sit on that infernal bike again. I hate it.” He had expected her to be angry or irritated at him for wasting time but what he didn't expect was that a small smile appeared on her face. “What?” He asked her in the same tone and she let out a chuckle. Her laughter was music to his ears and it felt like all the ache and pain had been washed away, making him feel revitalized. However, he didn't let that show on his face. Befo
“I knew it” The archon had said with an excited voice but it got drowned amongst the ruckus caused by the other hycwens that she hadn’t seen earlier. They had reached a deeper part of the forest or someplace they couldn't quite put their fingers on. There was a clearing in the middle and large tree stumps were placed in a circle where most of the hycwens were seated apparently arguing over something. The hycwen carrying the rope trap in which Valencia and Dominic were present dumped it unceremoniously on the ground, sending them crashing into soil and gravel once again. All of the hycwens cackled like the beasts they were, their hideous brownish yellow teeth glinting in the sun. However, what astonished the two alphas was the presence of a person, a human amongst them. It was hard to make out the features of the person because he was wearing a large and oversized cloak that covered him from head to toe. The only thing that made
Dominic had rushed towards Valencia who had transformed back into her human form. He wasn’t sure if she was under the influence of the curse or if she had acted out of instinct. She was lying on the ground, her hair sprawled all over the grass so Dominic gently scooted towards her and turned her face. She was unconscious but alive. Patting her face, he tried to wake her up to no avail. Recalling the potions, Freyge had handed them, the alpha quickly checked his pockets that held one of the many pouches in which he had given him various powders and some vials. Rummaging through his pockets, he found one vial that was named ‘For energy’ and hastily unstoppered it. Holding valencia’s mouth wide open with one hand, he poured the entire contents of the vial in her mouth and forced it close. There were almost a dozen such vials so he thought maybe she needed a more, stronger dose. Hence, he was about to unstopper another vial when the human made a spe
Curious, he turned around to see that the table was beginning to glow in a soft golden light. Or rather the symbols carved into the table were. They began to glow in an ethereal light, one that was slowly seeping into Valencia’s body from everywhere. Now, that they were shining could he truly look at them clearly. They had been etched into the cold black marble and were strangely shaped letters, diagrams, and circles, overlapping each other. Astonished, Dominic only watched in a daze as Valencia was flooded with the light that her body absorbed greedily. The soft light kept seeping into her as the woman kept chanting in utter concentration and tightly shut eyes. As light spilled in the room, Dominic could make out the interior which was empty save the table in the center. There were columns along the cavern walls that also had these odd symbols and some statues. Wanting to inspect them, he inched closer to the columns, and only now did he realize that
Valencia and Dominic did nothing but exchange glances while Mydra let them digest this news. She knew that it was shocking enough for both of them to hear her say everything she had said so far. But after the things she had witnessed, she couldn’t think of it as anything else other than a minor inconvenience. So, while the two werewolves digested the shocking piece of information, Mydra pulled a wooden chair near her and sat down. Valencia looked at her face, she looked old and weary. There were patches of grey in her hair and wrinkles around her eyes and forehead. It had been quite a few days since she had seen her or met her. If she were to recall and strain her memory, maybe she hadn’t seen her in years, the only communication had been a quick call to ensure her niece and nephew’s safety when they were born. Valencia hated politics and administrative stuff which was boring to her, only the thrill of battle and killing the hycwens and securing her t
The archon alpha looked Mydra in the eye trying to gauge if she could tell her the reason. She still didn't know if Mydra had betrayed her but her gut feeling was telling her otherwise. “I will tell you after you tell me how you escaped Trecdor and met this mage.” The sun was almost on top of their heads but the atmosphere inside was relatively cool. Also, now it seemed that both the alphas could see better, or was it a trick of the light? Mydra’s fingers were drumming on the table, she was deciding how much to share and how much to keep to herself. In the end, she decided that she would need some time to completely open up about her secrets. For now, she would only share what they needed to hear. “Trecdor trusted me, he even proposed that I would become the assistant head, a position directly below him in the near future. However, when he sent me to kidnap innocent women who were poor and destitute, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I a
Bidding goodbye to Mydra, they left the cave. It was almost close to evening, they had spent almost an entire day talking to her. “At least, we learned that the Coven isn't in the right hands.” Dominic tried to cheer her up as they walked out of the narrow passage they had walked in. The only difference was that Valencia had been unconscious and lying in his arms. She had even snuggled up to him while he carried her. Dominic tried to shove the memory in the pits of his heart. There was an entire room full of her memories and this one would just go in there, he would leisurely unravel it and revel in the sensation. But for now, he simply followed her outside. The brightness outside was in stark contrast to the darkness of the cave and Valencia only glanced around without commenting anything. Thanks to their werewolf senses, it didn't take them long to adjust to the bright surroundings outside. Mydra opened up the small passage for them to leave