All Chapters of Marked By Pain, Crowned By Power: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Seravyn POVI noticed the seriousness in her eyes and straightened, noticing what my question had done.When she took a bit longer to say a word, I coughed, realizing I may have gone too far. “You don't have to say it though, it's not in your place to tell me.”She smiled slightly. “You are right, it's not in my place, and I won't say it either,” she replied.I nodded even though my heart ached a bit at her response.We sat in silence afterwards, with me just sipping down the tea as Lirvae just watched her hands.Then she smiled after a while again. “Zoriven wasn't always this… reserved, there was a time when he didn't have to keep his shoulders so high,” she started.“What happened?” I asked.“She happened,” she replied almost immediately.“What?” I choked out and she just laughed. “Don't worry, can't say more, but there's certainly more to Zoriven,” she replied.I remained silent for a while, not really sure what to say or do.Then, after a while, she smiled and pulled me up by my

Caelrix POVBut I knew better than to just go jumping into things.“Alpha, we can't just go out searching those places, especially Sun Flower Pack, that's practically suicide,” one of the men said.I hated to admit it, but he was right. I looked on the map on the table that already looked like a battlefield.“Scouts, leave us,” I instructed with my head bowed over the map.They shuffled amongst themselves a bit before they all hurried out.The room was left with myself, Exovyn, my beta and one of the few wolves I truly trusted, standing to my right. Then two senior guards that have proven both their abilities and loyalty, stood to my left, all awaiting my orders. The weight of the night pressed down on all of us.“As I've said, we have four main zones,” I continued in a low voice. “The dark thicket on the northern ridge, dense and good for hiding if she’s injured. The abandoned ruins near the old border, loads of shelter and likely a rogue retreat zone. Blackthorn Lake,” I paused wit

Caelrix POVMy fingers tightened around the rogue’s throat until her eyes bulged even after her words.The world narrowed down to the heavy pulse beating under my grip and the red haze clouding my vision.The thought of her doing this to Seravyn, the thought of them outnumbering her and playing around with her lit up something in me.“Next time, you face off with someone your own size,” my wolf cried out in me.I squeezed harder, feeling the life leave her.“Alpha, let her speak,” I heard Exovyn’s voice from beside me and realized I had lost myself a bit there.I released my grip around her neck a bit and stared into her eyes darkly. *Speak.*She gasped with her claws still scraping uselessly at my wrist. “We… we attacked her. The girl in white. It was just another play time, just having fun. Easy prey for the pickings, nothing more.”My blood boiled up in my veins as her voice burned through my ears. I slammed her harder against the crumbling stone. “What happened to her?”The rogue

Seravyn POVI turned to Lirvae and she was staring directly at me with widened eyes, probably expecting an answer right about now.But truth is, I'm scared, scared cause I'd never actually been on a horse before.It always looked dangerous and I never really liked animals to start with, so that didn't help my cause..But Lirvae’s eyes burned into mine as she clapped her hands together again. “So? Horse ride through the western meadows at dusk? The trails are perfect right now—wildflowers everywhere, the river catching the last light. It’ll be fun. What do you say, Seravyn?”I hesitated, flicking the wooden staff around a bit in my hands as I gave it a serious thought. My body ached in a good way from the day’s efforts, but the idea of riding a horse, something I had never truly done before—sent bolts of nerves running through my tummy. I glanced over at Zoriven, he was just a short distance away, watching me with that steady, patient expression that somehow made the world feel less

Caelrix's POVMorning light filtered softly through the heavy velvet curtains of the Alpha’s chambers, painting the room in warm strikes of gold and amber.I stirred slowly as I came back into the feeling of the familiar weight of Thessaly’s body pressed against my side. Her leg was draped over mine and her arm laid fully across my chest with her fingers lightly tracing idle patterns even while she slept. I hope she is.Her scent filled the space between us, pretty nice if I want to be fair.I lay there for a long moment, staring at the white ceiling above, listening to her steady breathing. The events of the previous night lingered at the edges of my mind like shadows I couldn’t quite walk away from. Thoughts of the search, the rogue’s confession. The confirmation that Seravyn had been taken in the direction of Sun Flower territory.It wasn’t exactly the raging storm it had been yesterday, but a quiet, persistent thought that just refused to fade completely. A reminder of the choi