Hey guys!, I'm back again for another update. Let see if I can keep them coming:). The picture above is Adam. The song is Let Me Down Slowly by Alec Benjamin
A flood of power filled the room in a tidal wave of coursing smoldering heat, the alphas becoming overwhelmed and hyper aware of their surroundings. Aston appeared between the vampire queen and his mate, his eyes glowing brightly like smoldering coals, his presence becoming very oppressive within the confines of the office. He was greeted by Bianca with cold eyes and bared fangs, a deep hiss reverberating throughout their surroundings menacing as she started to back away. Nicolai had become all but quiet from behind Aston, the feeling of his power washing over his mate unaffecting him. In the background, a deep guttural growl escaped the throat of the wolf alpha adding to the possible threat, Aston knowing that both of his comrades had not expected this.
Aston's eyes never left the icy stare of the vampire queen before him, his unwillingness to back down as his tiger roared from deep inside him, the beast awaking from its soothing slumber. A loud thud hit his ears in the midst of his actions, out of the corner of his eyes seeing Adam falling to his hands and knees in submission, the beta visibly fighting the suppression of the power. The beta coughed as if he were choking on the power that poured from Aston like a waterfall, the energy from the tiger pressing Adam metaphysically further into the floor.
"What is the meaning of this!" Bianca hissed, trying to fight the onslaught of heat that enveloped her, "Where did you acquire this type of power?!"
Aston did not answer, just continued to stand defensively.
"Seems like you have a lot of explaining to do, mi gatito" Ransom snarled angrily, "You and this lion of yours!"
Aston felt Nicolai slowly calm from behind him, silently knowing that his power had calmed him from attacking Bianca and starting a war that neither had wanted. A strong gripped his shoulder, the feeling of his mates presence like a ghost at his back yet the lion was within an arm's reach.
"ANSWER ME, ASTON" Bianca screeched, her eyes switching between the two felines trying to find an answer.
"The answer to your question is that this power that you feel is all mine" Aston answered.
"I can fucking tell, but where did you get it?"
"Nowhere."
"What does that even mean, Aston?" Bianca snarled, baring her fangs once more, "Power like this doesn't just appear out of thin air."
"Would you believe me if I said it did?" Aston replied, his face remaining blank as his stance became neutral.
"You expect us to believe that this power has been with you all along, mi gatito?" Ransom interrupted, making sure to get a word in.
Aston continued to watch Bianca, his eyes unwavering, his stare visibly making the vampire angrier at the act of defiance that hid behind the tiger's hazel eyes.
"Explain. Now." Bianca demanded.
Aston sighed looking at his dear friend, her body tense from his stare and the evident irritation evident from the wolf alpha behind him.
"It started the day that I met Nicolai, me and Rhea were coming back to the compound and my tiger suddenly became restless during the drive. At first the power came slowly before filling the entirety of Rhea's car like a sauna, it made her choke and almost submit like Adam is now. The power even spooked my guard detail of the compound, they had surrounded the vehicle faster than I had ever seen before", Aston explained, feeling a slight squeeze of reassurance from his mate, "It even scared River. The moment that he instructed us to open the window of Rhea's car is when it was able to calm down, but it released itself again after I met Nicolai. I had gotten angry at Ephraim and brought everyone to their knees, Nicolai was the one to teach me how to control and reign it in."
"Why is he unaffected by it?" Ransom inquired.
"Exactly! How is he not struggling like we are?" Bianca bit out, glaring at Nicolai from over Aston's shoulder.
"He held back. I guess he didn't feel the need to go all out." The tiger replied, looking at Bianca with a small grin.
The vampire's brows raised into her dark brown locks, a look of shock spreading across her face as she made the realization; Nicolai was just as powerful as the tiger alpha had become, if not more. Aston finally looked away from his friend, his eyes locking with the red daggers of the wolf apha that had been behind him, seeing the disbelief that danced beyond his irises. Rage was another emotion that slowly started to seep into Ransom's gaze, the wolf starting to lowly growl in frustration at the fact that the lion before him was not what he had expected.
"What is that supposed to mean, mi gatito?" The wolf alpha closed his eyes, opening them to show the evident anger and hurt within them.
"It means that destiny doesn't seem to make mistakes, I guess you could say that the universe made him to be by my side for the rest of my life. Him alone" Aston replied, his glowing hazel eyes sealing the wolf's hurt with a stern gaze.
The power still circulated within the office, evidently starting to make the wolf alpha and vampire queen start to quake from where they stood. Their faces starting to give away in the effort to stay on their feet, both of them not wanting to tarnish their pride by submitting to the two felines.
"So, you're telling me that he was going easy on me when he had his little outburst? That there is more to that display that he had just put on? For what?" Bianca sneered, not moving in order to stay at level with the others, her eyes looking to the twitching body of Adam with pity, "What other secrets are you hiding from us, kitty cat?"
"He was the only thing that I had kept from you, both of you, and I didn't expect everything to turn out like it just did. Nicolai is my mate, and I expect the both of you to accept that about him" Aston explained as he placed his hand above his mates, giving it a slight squeeze, "I just hope that you both can realize that this was not meant to hurt you or start a war, it was something that I hoped could benefit both your group since you are my dear friends."
"But we didn't want to just be your friends," both leaders stated in unison, their voices almost a whisper as their faces crumbled in defeat.
Nicolai growled into Aston's ear, his displeasure with what his friends had just stated bothering him once more, his power slowly creeping out to join Astons'. Aston looked at his mate with hard eyes, the lion meeting his stone gaze with a slight surprise, his body tense at the look that he had received. Mentally it shocked the tiger that he had reacted so quickly to Nicolai's emotions in that moment, they were not fully bonded so it was something that was enigma to them and the rest of the room. Before they could question it, two bodies rushed into the office at the blink of an eye, startling the occupants with their sudden appearance.
"What the fuck is going on!?" Rhea roared, her eyes glowing a bright blue, claws ready, and fangs bared ready to strike.
Four pairs of eyes gazed upon the two tigers that had burst through the doors of the office, their eyes glowing and hands fully transformed into claws to defend themselves. Aston made eye contact with both the heads of his security, his face still set in stone, a face that he had never before made at them. River looked at him with confusion and apprehension, the dark skinned man starting to feel the power that seemed to circulate within the room, the energy starting to leak out of the double doors and into the hallway.
"Asto-" Rhea muttered before her eyes widened, her body started to finally react to the pressure of the energy within the office, her legs starting to shake from the strain and instant resistance to the feel of it.
River's eyes bulged slightly as he fell to one knee, his body starting to crumble at the feel of Aston's power engulfing him and his beast. Both of the tigers started to choke at the feel of their alpha's overwhelming power, Aston looking at them with slight empathy that they had to bear with his display of dominance towards the other leaders. The tiger's eyes switched yet again to the crumpled form of Adam, the sympathy becoming slightly greater towards the younger man, the strained face of the beta drenched in cold sweat starting to take its toll on Aston. The tiger looked away making eye contact once more with Bianca, her body now slightly lower from the strain of his energy, the muscles of her body starting to show tension from the resistance.
Aston had made up his mind.
"I'm going to reign in my power now."
His hazel eyes watched the vampire queen react to his words, out of the corner of his gaze seeing Rhea and River finally be brought to their knees from the presence of his power, Aston finally looking back at Bianca for confirmation. Mentally he had marveled at the fact that he had caused this type of reaction with just his newfound power, his tiger mewling softly rubbing itself along his skin from within. He had not transformed in any aspect during the altercation, yet he stood before his friends and his still standing mate in obvious awe of himself.
Aston stood still in his human form in front of the occupants of the office, his mind swimming with the endless possibilities of what could happen after he returned the energy from their surroundings into his body. Using the method that Nicolai had taught him, the tiger focused from within his inner world, treating the presence of his power like an extension of himself. He pulled at the energy, metaphorically pulling at the thick blanket of power with his hands, treating it like an actual throw blanket to be bundled up for storage. His tiger lay lazily at a distance from him, its eyes watching him manipulate the power that they both shared, the feline's tail twitching back and forth in boredom as he watched his vessel.
The room slowly became lighter, the power discreetly dissipating from the area around the group, the energy seeping into the alpha in the middle of the room. Aston felt another reassuring squeeze from his mate on his shoulder, his soul swelling with a silent pride as he used Nicolai's teachings to reign in his power. The others in the office slowly started to return to their normal selves, their bodies releasing their tension and their legs finally coming back to life so that they could fully stand. Aston slowly stepped back to lean into his mate, his face still neutral, watching his friends carefully take in the couple before them.
"How long have you been containing that power, mi gatito?" Ransom finally spoke, stretching the muscles of his body, "It is quite nasty."
"Nasty is a fucking understatement, wolfman" Bianca strategically answered, carefully trying out her speech to make sure that it was no longer weakened.
"Like I said it manifested the day that I met Nicolai, so you could say I've been like this for about the last 6 months" Aston chuckled.
The leaders stared at the tiger with inquisitive eyes, silent emotions running amok from behind their irises, all them quietly deciding to keep their distance. Aston watched as River and Rhea stared at him with irritated looks, their displeasure radiating from their placement behind Bianca's lithe form. Rhea's deep blue eyes boring into Aston's hazel ones, her visible frustration pointing directly at her alpha and best friend from across the room. A small amount of movement caught their attention in an instant, Adam had pulled himself up from the floor with a slow and steady breath, his face still coated in sweat.
"Adam, you good?" River broke the silence.
The beta looked at his comrade, his dull eyes looking lifeless as he made contact with River's dark eyes, his body no longer shaking under the weight of Aston's power.
"Never better" He hesitantly answered, "Thanks for reminding me that you four are on a whole other level."
Adam's eyes now snapped to Astons', his stare defiant yet it seemed to unphase the tiger, the tiger's neutral face slowly cracking into one of sympathy. Aston had felt guilty that the beta had fallen victim to their power showdown, one of which had been one sided with him being the main assailant.
"I really am sorry, Adam. It was either we duke it out with you involved or shutting the situation down before it even started, and I chose the latter. I hope there's no hard feelings" Aston apologized, gazing upon Adam with sincere eyes.
"I understand why you did it," Adam replied, "but a little warning would be great next time."
"Oh, of cour-"
"If you're going to apologize to Adam, then where are me and Ransom's apologies?" Bianca interjected, her words cutting off Aston's reply, "An apology for shoving that power of yours down our throats and almost making us submit to you!"
"If you hadn't insulted Nicolai none of this would have happened, you were the one that was being out of line, Bianca" Aston fired back.
"It's your fault, mi gatito, for bringing him before us now instead of sooner" Ransom pointed out, his now sky blue eyes making their appearance once more.
"My fault?! This wasn't going to be easy regardless of the fact if I had done this sooner rather than now. Due to the fact that both of you harbor not so subtle feelings towards me is not my fault, it is also not my fault that I was unable to return those feelings. I can't tell either of you how to feel, but both of you need to accept this" Aston explained, gesturing between him and Nicolai.
His two friends gave him blank stares, the feelings becoming fairly obvious as they continued to leave his explanation unanswered. Nicolai growled silently from the lack of answers, his body slightly tensing in irritation that the two leaders would blatantly disregard his mates feelings on the matter.
"Until he has marked you in more ways than one, mi gatito, you are still fair game" Ransom antagonized, his face splitting into a grin towards Nicolai.
"Oh?" Bianca spoke up surprised, "Now you have my at most attention, Ransom."
Aston felt his mate start to get worked up again from their words, Nicolai's body slowly becoming very domineering from behind his back, the lion's growl never stopping. The tiger alpha rolled his eyes, he knew that their words were to get underneath the lion's skin especially since they were talking about him, but what also worried him was the hidden undertones to their words. Their feelings towards him had not faltered, not in the slightest.
"But what if all I want to be is marked by Nicolai? In many more ways than I could handle" Aston chided, a smirk forming on his face as he felt his mate start to peacock from his back.
"Is that a challenge?" two pairs of eyes suddenly locked on the tiger.
Aston cockily grinned in spite of his two dear friends, mentally knowing that his words had struck a chord within the two leaders; he had them right where he wanted them. They were still his friends, in his mind's eye, but that did not mean he did not know the politics that were used to keep the current stability of their friendship in place.
"I would never challenge the two of you to something that I know, personally, you both could rise to" Aston's words working their magic on the two leaders watching him and his mate, "But he is my mate so..... the possibilities are endless."
Nicolai chuckled at the words that his mate spoke. The tiger hoped that his mate had not realized that the words he had used were like a double edged sword, that in a way he had self-incriminated himself. Aston knew Bianca and Ransom better than the current occupants of the room, that the words that he had used would come back to haunt him later.
"Sorry to interrupt what ever in the fuck this flirting is right now" Rhea coughed, their eyes snapping towards her and River, "but I have elders and council members about to make their appearances, so I suggest getting yourselves together before they chastise your goddamn ears off. Because as much as I enjoyed this little power trip, yeah Aston I'm looking at you, I would really like to deliver a fist to Catherine's bitchy face. Am I understood?"
"Gods this woman and her way with words, I've missed her" Bianca grinned, flashing the tigress her fangs
"Agreed" they all muttered.
Rhea really does a way with words does she hahaha. Stuff is certainly getting spicy, let's see what's in store when everyone finally shows up for everything. The Gathering is a pretty long event, so it's going to be many chapters. Please vote and leave comments!
Xox
Sival