The Lost Lycan Empire

CHAPTER 21: Beginning

7 years later,

"Good morning, love!" I greeted Levi enthusiastically. It's been a long time since we had a moment to talk and bond. Mondays to Saturdays are duty weeks, and he has to travel to five empires and walk around for reports and submit them to me on Saturday. He also makes sure to find out if there is any mistreatment of the lower ranking wolves in the empires.

"Good morning," he said softly as he hugged me, his face nestled in the crook of my neck. Every Wednesday and Friday, Samuel, Alistair, and Aiden visit me. Those two days are our official bonding times every week. Alistair has found his mate in the eastern empire during the coronation of the new legionnaire. He was on cloud nine, quickly signing up for residency in the east. Conveniently, Aiden also found his mate a year ago. She was beaten and bruised, shackled and imprisoned in the basement of her parents' home. Aiden was oblivious that it was the first time I had seen him mad. The same day, he transferred her to the south residency, where Aiden and Alistair stayed after my crowning. They said Olympus never felt like home; the south was the home of their late father, and so they decided to reside there with the approval of Brody.

Samuel found his mate, and she was a warrior in Brody's empire. He said that it must be the reason why his wolf was urging him to go back to the south. During our bond days, he complains about how much more stoic and expressionless his mate is. He even cursed Brody one time for training his warriors so hard they became statues. The latter just laughed it off. So for the whole year, I did not hear anything from him because, according to him, he was busy strategizing to claim the love of his life. No doubt, after that whole year, he came prancing into Olympus with his mate in his arms.

I smoothed his hair back as I cradled his face in my hands. He looks so tired and drained.

"Lovey." He said, laughing quietly as I covered his whole face with kisses. Levi has been such a good mate. Never did he raise his voice at me, even when I did. I felt bad and it was the last time I shouted ever. His face full of pain terrified me that day.

"Stop that. That was 6 years ago, love." He said as he eased my eyes to look at him. He must have felt that in the mate bond.

"I am still sorry. That was immature of me." I said. Every time I remember that scenario, I can't help but apologize. The first two years were a little rocky for me as a newbie empress with no mentor to help me through the path. I became short-tempered and easily triggered by everything and everything. When I vented my rage at him that day, I swore I'd never felt life punch me so hard in the face. He's so precious.

"Thank you for staying." I said. I was completely insufferable at that time, and I could barely look at anyone in Olympus without lashing out at them. The majority was because Reina was redeeming her full Lycan power, and her animalistic behavior was overpowering my rationality.

"I love you." He said, and right before I realized what was happening,

"Stop tickling me! Levi! " I said in the middle of laughing and punching his chest while his giggles filled the whole room. Oh, to be in love.

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"Why do you want to meet them?" Levi asked as we drove through the busy streets of Batangas, in the Philippines.

"I don't want to meet them. I just want to see them. " I was born a human and I had a family once upon a time. Selene admitted that the mist jumbled the minds of everybody that met me before I became a werewolf. To put it simply, the Torrey before the shift was virtually unknown to the rest of the world. It was hard because, in my eyes, I knew it was real. They were real. My family was real. It was like a lost piece of me that would never be completed one way or another.