"Don't be scared little girl," he hissed. "I won't hurt you." He stepped out of the shadows like a phantom from the dead.
Pale skin, sharp fangs, and claws, red eyes like shining rubies with inhuman speed and strength; beautiful but deadly creatures. My breath got caught in my throat and I fell on my butt, clenching and unclenching the grass below me.
"Stay away from me," I shouted. "Trust me you don't want to do this." I put my hand in front of me like a shield. Fear wracked my body and I began to feel dizzy when I saw more vampires appear from the trees.
Teeth bared.
Snarls.
All thrown at me.
"Stay away," I warned once more.
My pleas fell on deaf ears as they approached me slowly but with determination. "Yeah, what are you going to do about it?" a vampiress with black hair snarled at me. "Our lord requires your services and I think it's best you come quietly and we'll call off the attack."
From a distance, I heard the howling of wolves coming in our direction.
Anger, feel the anger of the pack.
Defiantly, I rose and felt my eyes sight sharpening and felt my chest starting to burn like it was on fire, and soon the burning heat spread through my entire body. I felt my heart blazing from the inside and igniting my veins.
Red flames began to erupt on my skin like a second layer. I closed my eyes as I felt the flames cover every part of my from my hair to my toes. Even my hair had turned a vibrant red. "How about we heat things a little bit, hmm?"
"Agreed." With that, the 'leader' charged towards me with the rest of the vampires following at his heel. Just as I was about to throw a ball of fire at the 'leader', a shaggy brown wolf about my height, leapt in front of me and snarled at the vampires.
"Hey, what's your problem?! I had him right there!" I shouted exasperatedly at the wolf, throwing my arms in the air.
The brown wolf turned back and looked at me with his brown eyes to pass only one message across: "Shut up!"
I rolled my eyes and crossed my hands over my chest as I watched the wolf pounce on the vampire, using its claws to tear his head from his body.
I cringed as another vampire bit into his leg and clawed at his fur. I want to help too... As if he read my mind, the wolf turned back and growled at me.
"I wasn't going to anything, I swear!" I said, my arms raised in mock surrender. I was replied with rolled eyes before lunging at a pale beast. Did he just roll his eyes at me?
Three more wolves, one black, one brown, and one with sun-kissed fur, all about my height but about an inch smaller than the first, attacked the rest of the vampires; roaring, snarling and ripping flesh apart. While this was going on, the first wolf crouched in front of me and motioned with his head for me to get on him.
My initial thought was to roll my eyes and stomp away, but considering the circumstance we were under, I gave in and got on his back. And we were off to our home.
❀❀❀
"What the hell were you thinking? Did you know the amount of danger you put yourself in?!" I flinched as Henry yelled frustrated and kept tugging at his hair as he flounced up and down a circular room in the packhouse. "I leave for three days and I come back to this?!"
"I was fine on my own before you arrived and I am strong enough to fight! Am I not to be the Luna anymore?" I snapped back angrily.
"Yes, you are the Luna, but I cannot let you get hurt. You are not trained enough."
Please," I scoffed, "I have my fire powers to help-"
"Even more reason why you are in danger. If anyone finds out you are the red wolf, it will not be safe here for you anymore. You have to be careful!"
"And I was! Why are you even so mad? It's not like I died or anything!" I sighed exasperatedly. He growled when I mentioned the idea of me dying.
"Why are you so damn stubborn!" he growled and tugged his hair even harder, making it messier than it already was. With a frustrated snarl, he roughly opened the door and slammed it shut with a bang.
"Now where do you think you're going?" I called and ran after him. "Don't you dare walk out on me!"
"I'm going to help the warriors. Stay here."
"I don't want to stay here, I want to help," I whined as I chased after him just as he was about to walk out the door of the packhouse.
"No," Henry yelled almost immediately. "It's going to be an ugly fight-"
"But I can fight ugly..."
"Not this time. You, stay here with mom and Jasper and do not use your powers. I'll be back shortly."
Then he leapt into the air and landed on four paws.
"Well, that's bullshit!" I yelled at his retreating figure. Angrily, I stomped up the stairs and up into the game room.
Thinking I could jump down, I opened the window only to be shocked by guards lined around the house. Now, how in fish biscuits am I supposed to sneak out of here?
What about Kayden? a thought popped into my head. Grinning happily, I called out for Kayden. "Kayden, you there? I need help to get out of this house!"
"Here I am," a voice called from behind me making me yelp and jump a foot high in surprise. "You called?"
"Yeesh, you scared me. Anyway, yes. I need you to teleport me to the pack's northern borders."
"But I don't think Henry will approve of that," he said gingerly and sat on a sofa with legs crossed.
"Yes, but technically Henry didn't say anything about a wizard helping me, did he?" I nudged his elbow. "Please..." I gave him my best puppy face.
"Okay, first of all, stop that; you look like a discombobulated and convulsed cat. Secondly, if you get into trouble, blame it on yourself. If you get killed or injured, Henry is going to be as mad as hell. Third, if you show even the slightest bit of your fire, you will be killed. Are you willing to take this risk?"
Right now, Kayden looked as serious as he could ever be; so serious, that I began to have second thoughts. But my mind was made up. I only hope that I do not screw this up for all of us.
Though I was not the Luna yet, I still felt some kind of obligation to the pack and all the wolves. Like it was my duty to keep all the wolves safe-it probably was.
"Yes. I am willing to take the risk for the pack."
Before we left the packhouse, I grabbed a spear and sheathed two swords on either side of my waist. Kayden cast a spell on me that masked my scent and kept my emotions in check. "Don't want you blowing up the whole place," he noted. After retying my hair in a ponytail, I was ready.
"Oh my God, you look so badass, girl," Kayden commented. "My baby's growing so fast. Seems like only yesterday she was learning how to walk and now she's saving the world..." He sniffed and wiped a fake tear off his face.
I rolled my eyes and flicked his forehead, earning an 'ow' from him. "Can we go now?"
"As you wish." With a snap of his fingers, he teleported us to the middle of the fight. His eyes narrowed when he took in the fight. "Strange...The vampires do not seem to be burning in the sunlight and some of them have two different coloured eyes. Something is wrong. Chloe, I don't think that..."
Alas, I had already joined the fight and began to attack with my spear, jabbing, piercing, and stabbing flesh. Balancing the tip of the spear in the ground, I lifted myself and kicked at a vampire's face, dislocating his jaw.
Jabbing the butt of my spear in the gut of another vampire, I twirled around and used the sharp tip to slash the face of a vampiress. "You bitch!" she shrieked and pounced on me, scratching my face with her claws. Others used that as an opportunity to lunge on me, some snapping at my neck and another pulling my hair back
I felt a vampire bite into my left leg, making me yelp in pain. Remember your training, Chloe. I pushed the tip of my spear into the guts of a vampire and cringed when the blood splattered onto my face.
Unsheathing the two swords, I sliced off the hand of the vampiress grabbing my hair. Turning to the one that scratched my face, I said in a cold voice, "Have a nice life," before cutting her head off like it was no biggie.
I saw Evan amid all the blood and gory and ran towards him since he had not shifted yet. A vampire blocked my path, but this one was not like any other I saw.
This vampire looked like it was half-wolf, half-vampire. One red-eye and one brown, fur covering its body while he stood upright and stared at me with a murderous gaze. One full minute passed as we gauged each other's stances, waiting for the first strike.
Unable to take it anymore, I ran towards him. He dodged to the right, thinking I was going to attack him-I had something else in mind. I ducked down, sliding underneath him and sliced where the sun does not shine with one of my swords.
"Pleasure doing business with you," I grinned with a mock salute as he writhed and squirmed on the ground in pain. Leaving the wolves around me to handle it, I continued running, occasionally stabbing and severing anyone who stands in my way.
Covered with blood, filth, and mud; but I didn't mind as long as Henry doesn't see me, I'll be fine.
Another weird vampire stepped into my path. Oh, for the love of pancakes... I aimed and threw the sword. It whizzed through the air and stabbed him right between the eyes, the force pinning him to a tree.
He got pinned in front of a familiar brown shaggy wolf. When he turned around, my breath got caught in my throat and I gulped.
Henry.
His eyes shone vividly with various emotions swirling around his golden orbs, the most prominent was anger and it was directed at me.
He growled lowly at me and began to walk towards me. I'm gonna get it now...
Unfortunately, a vampire with a sword was about to pounce on him as soon as he let down his guard and I acted out of instinct, throwing myself high above Henry, I pushed him to the side.
Alas, I did not act fast enough and the sword stabbed my hip. I cried out in agony as I felt the sword cut deeper into my leg. My leg felt heavy and my body was suddenly shutting down. I suddenly felt the need to sleep. Just one quick nap...
I heard growls and snarls but they all sounded so far away. A pair of arms picked me up and cradled me to a very naked chest. From the sparks that erupted on my skin, I knew it was Henry.
My jellybean.
I coughed and gasped for breath
He was naked-as naked as the day he was born-while he lifted me to his chest. I winced in pain when I felt my hip brush against his bicep. "Chloe, stay with me. Don't you dare close your eyes,"
"But I feel so tired...just one...nap...promise..." With that, I dozed off into the dark abyss ignorant of the pleas of the man that I called a mate.
Why did I leave the packhouse?
Why am I not a normal human being?
I am sorry, Henry.