Kongpob
Nothing. They'd searched the entire night for Arthit and had not found him or Xia Yu Ping. Kongpob was afraid. It had rained the entire night and they would be harder to trace. He had tried several times to mind link with that mongrel but he could not sense him. Arthit never had that ability so it was impossible of him to trace him.
"You would have no trouble tracking him had you mated with him already."
"I am not nor will I ever force something like that on him. Respect his wishes Moon. I won't tell you again."
"Did I ever say we should force him? Had you been kind to him from the start he would be ours. But you've caused him to harbor no feelings of love towards us."
Kongpob did not reply. Now was not the time to argue with his wolf. When morning came and Kongob grew more restless. Arthit needed the tea. He would be in pain and afraid. Hurt.
"Is it true? Is there news of the Prince?" Beam had rushed in with Kit and Rome. All three were in tears.
"Did you find anything?" Prince Korn as well as King Forth had gone out in different search parties in search for both Xia Yu Ping and Arthit, as their forest was so large it would take weeks to search the entire thing. This only made Kongpob more worried. But as he looked at the three Omegas and Forth he could not control his rage.
"Don't you dare ask about him as though you care! You cut ties with him just yesterday."
"That's not what I intended-" Beam began but Kongpob cut him off.
"Whether you intended to hurt him or not is not the problem here. But we went out because of you." Kongpob spoke. Tears were falling down Beam, Rome, and Kit's eyes.
"When he comes back I want you to stay away from him. You are no longer needed by his side."
"Don't you think you're being too harsh," Byul spoke up as she walked in with her parents, Jae Ha, Ming, Wad, Aim, Bright, and Prem.
"No. But all this would have never happened had you not stirred up trouble." Kongpob snapped at Forth.
"I know... I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize to me. If anything happened to Arthit it will be your fault."
"I know..." Forth spoke quietly.
"We caught one," Byul spoke up.
"He was badly injured. Arthit stuck a sword in its eye. I didn't think a little lamb like him had it in him."
"Did you find-"
"No. But that rogue will talk soon." Byul spoke coldly.
"Take me to him," Kongpob spoke.
"Your father is already interrogating the rogue. He asked you not to be involved." Jae Ha spoke up. Kongpob ignored him and made his way towards the dungeon they had in the castle he ignored the calls of his men and Byul. By the time he arrived down at the dungeon, his mother was waiting for him. The screams of terror from the man caused his mother to flinch but she held a tight grip on his arm.
"Go back. Or go out in search of him. You do no good here."
"I want to know why," Kongpob questioned.
"He will be here when Arthit comes back. He will come back."
"This is all my fault I should have never taken him to Beam's... I should have never brought him here in the first place." His mother is quiet for a really long time before she sighs.
"You can't kill him. This is about Arthit." With reluctance his mother allowed him to go inside where his father and Aim's father held burning red melted silver that had been melting under a fire and then poured it on the wolf. It burned past his skin as though it was nothing but air. He screamed in pain and agony.
"Why come here? Your master knew that this would be dangerous?" The other wolf was already completely mauled. It was clear that he had a battle and despite putting up a good fight he had lost. Half his face was oozing in blood and his left eye was completely gone. What was strange was the fact that he was not healing. He looked completely... human.
"This one doesn't transform anymore. His healing is not like ours either. I cannot sense his wolf." Aim's father Black spoke. The man that was tied to a chair laughed.
"Our King gives us strength but there is a price that we pay. We can only shift with his power and lose our wolfs without him."
"How is that possible?" King Suthiluck questioned.
"Dark Magic. I've heard rumors about this, years ago from old tales but I've never seen it" Black spoke up. The look in his eyes was that of both fear and wonder. The other wolf laughed weakly.
"You have only won because our King has allowed you to do so for now."
"What is this game that is being played? Why do you come after MY mate." Kongpob and Moon both spoke. The man began to laugh.
"Your mate?... Did your mate not abandon you?... Every surrounding Clan speaks of the little Omega you have enslaved."
"I did not-!"
"They speak of how you mistreat him. There are rumors that you rape him and beat him every single night. Punishing him for his brother's sins. You have had your fill of the little pest. No matter what you do that mate of yours will never come back to you. Our King has the force to submit that Omega fully. Something you have not been capable of doing. It is time a real Alpha takes him off your hands so the little mongrel can fulfill the duties he was created for."
Angry Kongpob and Moon both raised their fists ready to attack him for his filthy words. How dare anyone covet Arthit for such cruel intentions. Both his father and Black had to hold him back as the other man laughed through his pain. Suddenly a black mist began to surround the bleeding wolf man causing everyone to take a step back in caution. His eyes became pitch black. He did not become untied but it was as though he became a puppet. His body stopped bleeding and all the wounds at once healed. There was a smirk on his face.
"Do you care for him cursed one?" The voice had suddenly become darker an echo sounded in his voice as he spoke. The air itself appeared to shiver with his words. Evil had arrived.
"Do not make me laugh. I will have him for the purpose that you are not man enough to use him for."
"I will never let you take him. Arthit is his own person and you have no-" Laughter filled the room before the other wolf spoke.
"Person? He will be my breeding dog. Only when he has fulfilled his purpose and has given me the heir to My Kingdom shall I return him." Kongpob's heart squeezed.
"Don't you dare touch him you-"
"Acheron. King of Darkness. Leader of the Red Moon Clan. Where I pass there shall always be a trail of blood to write my name in. I am your God."
"The Moon Goddess is our only God." King Suthiluck spat out and the man smirked.
"If I cannot be your God or your king then you will meet the same fate as the others who did not bow to me. But do not fret cursed one. I have kept the little lamb under your eyes. What's the fun without the chase? This is my last and final warning. Next time I shall come for him you will not get him back. Unless you'd like his ashes." Once again dark mist surrounds the body leaving it and with it killing the wolf's body instantly as it succumbed to its wounds that began to bleed once more with such a force it was as though the entire body had drained and there was now a river of blood.
The dark mist was coming towards him but before it could engulf him in it Seer Achara walked in with the wave of her hand white light appeared making the darkness disappear.
For a moment, no one spoke. Kongpob was still shaken as his father spoke up.
"What was that?"
"Acheron. I'm afraid he has finally awakened."
"Acheron?"
"The wolf I told you about. The one that caused destruction the one that attacked the village and destroyed the Omegas family."
"How is that possible?"
"Wolves can sometimes reincarnate if the goddess has given them a second chance. Acheron is a special case."
"How so?" Kongpob questioned.
"He never died simply left his human vessel. He had been bound to it and trapped because the Moon Goddess had cursed him."
"Why?"
"He gave away her child. Cursed him to the earth and bound his soul to suffer."
"Why?"
"Because she would not marry the Sun to him but allowed the Moon to have him."
"What does Arthit have to do with this?"
"Bound and cursed... Arthit is the reincarnation of the Moon Goddess's child."
"Kongpob!" It was Wad that rushed into the room along with Aim.
"We found them. In a cave. Xia Yu Ping is in pretty bad shape. Arthit is being taken to the sick wing too."
Kongpob did not care about anything else all that he cared about was seeing Arthit and knowing that he was okay.
Arthit
One second he was with Kongpob and the next he was being flung on Xia Yu Ping's back running away. He wanted to stay with Kongpob. Despite everything that happened between him and the Prince he knew that the man kept him safe when it mattered. Still, he feared for the Prince's life. From behind he and Xia Yu Ping he could hear the pounding of paws against the dirt, they were more like horses instead of wolves. Arthit knew they were coming for him.
"Don't worry Prince Arthit I will protect you with my life if I have to." Xia Yu Ping spoke up to him. Arthit could only shake his head. The last thing he wanted was for someone to die because of him. Why did this continue to happen?
There were five wolves. How had they gotten across the lands? Arthit didn't know but he was afraid. So afraid.
"Hold on!" Xia Yu Ping took a large leap as he avoided a large tree trunk that had fallen. Gasping Arthit could only shut his eyes and grab on tighter to the very large wolf. Ahead of them, there were two wolves coming their way, there was one in the back and another from behind, one on the left and another on the right.
"I'm sorry Prince Arthit." Before Arthit could know what was happening Xia Yu Ping proceeded to toss him off his back launching Arthit across the forest. He landed on his shoulder completely scrapping the skin off and there was a definite snap on his arm. A scream left his lips but soon it was muffled by the horror he felt when he saw five wolves attacking Xia Yu Ping. He wanted to help, but he didn't know what he could do.
"Run! Now!" Xia Yu Ping shouted. Scared Arthit stood up and ran when the wolves turned to him, there was no way he would be able to outrun them. Ignoring the pain that he was feeling he still tried to run. Only one wolf chased him while Xia Yu Ping tried his best to fight off the rest of the wolves.
"Don't run little pest." Arthit's heart was shaking in fear but he took off running. He didn't know how he managed the strength as he rushed across the woods.
"Oh come on little wolf. You don't think you can outrun me?" There was something in his voice that terrified Arthit. There was a large pain in his chest as dark mist began to surround him. Somehow this felt familiar and he let out a scream when it tried to engulf him in.
"The..s..." There was a voice. Muffled, distant; hard to hear.
"The sw-'" He could hear it in his head and after a moment he realized it was the voice of a female.
"The sw-....ord! The-s-..rd. two" Realizing what the voice was saying he reached for the sword just as the wolf lept onto him.
"Soleil..." His eyes were pitch black and when he sniffed his neck Arthit trembled as he realized what he was trying to do. Mark him.
"You smell so... good. Just as I remember. That face..." He gnashed his teeth at him. Finding his strength Arthit raised the sword up just as the wolf wanted to bite. Gasping when he felt blood fall on him like a river Arthit pushed away when the wolf began to howl out in pain. The mist itself left the body hovering above the wolf who collapsed on top of Arthit. He had not realized he was screaming until the wolf's body was removed from him. He was about to throw a punch when he realized it was Xia Yu Ping. He was in his human form. There were more than a few bleeding wounds on him but his entire right arm looked completely damaged. Arthit gasped and sat up.
"We need to go. Now." Xia Yu Ping spoke, despite the fact that he was struggling he was trying to keep his duty. Arthit knew that he needed to help him. So he did, he helped Xia Yu Ping stand as soon as he did the dark mist began to surround them.
"Ru..." Again the voice in his head was muffled but Arthit knew that they needed to run. More so when Arthit realized it wanted to go inside Xia Yu Ping.
"No. You can't harm him." Arthit thought. He knew that they needed to get to safety. This was unlike anything that Arthit had ever seen before yet he knew it wasn't anything good. He thought of seer Achara and all that she could do. He had no doubt that evil things were also possible. A howl from behind them made them realize the wounded wolf had woken up and was getting ready to attack. With nowhere to go, they had no choice, up ahead was a waterfall.
"Can you swim?" Xia Yu Ping questioned Arthit who frantically shook his head.
"Then don't let go of my hand." A gasp left Arthit's lips as he was pulled off the cliff towards the running waterfall. When they fell it was as though a rush hit him and all seemed to pause. The fishes down below, the wind, the Earth itself; it all stopped. He suddenly felt as though he was the only one in the world. There was throbbing in his chest as his heart pounded. From a distance, he saw her. A wolf, she was beautiful with deep ice blue eyes a perfect black nose, and fur so white it resembled the snow.
"Hide. Un... mo..ing. You must....eep h...im alive." He didn't have to ask her because at that moment, he knew who she was. His wolf.
"Your name..." He managed to say.
"S..ine.." Again he could only hear muffled words that faded in and out. He was not sure what she was saying but he remembered what Moon called him at times.
"Sunshine." There was a look of surprise in the wolfs's eyes, care, sadness, and love. So much love, the motherly kind that Rome, Kit, and Beam had described to him as Omegas. He smiled at her despite the pain and fear he had felt. He reached out to her but he could not swim and she simply smiled at him.
"I am here. Always here." They were the only words he heard clearly but they were enough. As she vanished from his side he gasped when the current began to take him but Xia Yu Ping whose hand he still held helped him to the surface before his body completely gave out and the wolf fainted.
"Xia Yu Ping! Xia Yu Ping!" His wounds weren't healing. It was odd, as though his healing was not working.
"Cave..."
"I can't carry him. I'm too weak."
"Faith.."
"Come on. Please you have to help me. I can't do this by myself." Arthit began to plead with the weakened Alpha. He lifted up his head trying to ignore the pain in his own shoulder. He was now missing a piece of his tunic and continued to bleed from his wound. He ignored it as tears fell from his eyes. He hated being like this, he hated himself for his weaknesses. Everyone always saved him, everyone always protected him, and now they were dying for him. He thought of the Prince and how much he was disliked by him, yet in the end, the pity that he felt for him had been stronger. Now the Prince himself might be dead too. All because of him. He tried to lift the larger man up only to sob as he fell unable to carry his weight.
"Please. You have to get up. You have to.." The tears that fell down Arthit's cheeks fell down to the unconscious man who finally fluttered his eyes open. He was burning up.
"Prince.." Arthit didn't allow him to finish instead he wiped his tears with the back of his hand and did his best to smile.
"You have to get up. We need to get to safety."
"Don't cry Prince. This is nothing." Arthit was no fool. He knew that this was serious. He needed to do something about the bleeding. They wandered around the forest looking for a place. Xia Yu Ping was in and out but in between Arthit realized the man's wolf was keeping him strong and alive. They made it to a cave. One that was covered in vines and was hard for anyone to see. It would make do for the night but Arthit knew that they would have so many troubles. There could not be light, which meant there would be no fire to keep them warm.
Looking at Xia Yu ping's wound, Arthit knew that he needed to do something to help the healing process that had slowed unnaturally. He set the man down on the cold cave floor.
"I will be right back."
"No.. You can't leave. It is my duty to protect you even."
"You can't stop me. I won't be gone long. I just need to find yaro flowers to stop the bleeding. I'm hoping it will help your healing process." With that in mind, Arthit took off into the woods by himself. Despite his heart racing with fear of being captured deep down, he knew that he would be okay. He thought of the Prince and as he pressed a hand to his heart he said a soft prayer for the man. He was good. He was not the kindest with words but he was still a good man despite all that happened between them.
He found his way through a bed of flowers hoping that somewhere along the way he would find the Yaro flowers. He ignored the pain in his own body. He knew that at the moment he needed to be stronger.
The sun would go down soon and he needed to prepare things before the night would take their light. A sudden pain came to his chest and he realized that tonight there would be no brewed tea for his pain. Taking a deep breath, he did his best to get himself out of his head and fully engaged in his task.
He searched for what felt like an eternity until finally, he saw some yellow yaro flowers. He picked as much as his arms could carry. Silently he thanked the goddess and promised her that he would plant more yaro flowers in exchange for taking what he had. By the time he had managed to get back to the cave, the sun was almost completely gone and Xia Yu Ping's fever continued to increase. The bleeding has stopped but the wound was yet to close.
"His body is doing something. But it's not healing fast enough." Ignoring his own pain Arthit pounded the flowers against the rock in order to get the needed effect and once the smell began to overtake the entire cave he used as much as he could to patch up the man who winced in pain.
"I'm sorry. But the last thing you need is for these wounds to get infected." Arthit spoke to the other man who had opened his eyes and looked back at him trying to control his pain.
"You should let me die Prince Arthit. You must not be so kind to me and give me hope." Silence lingered between them for a moment before Arthit spoke.
"I cannot let you die for me. But I also do not wish to give you hope. I have said so before-"
"The Prince. Can you love him?"
"He loves my brother," Arthit replied softly.
"You should hate him for everything he has done to you."
"Hate is something that I don't have time for."
"And Love?"
"I just want peace and good friendships. I cannot offer more than that to anyone." Looking back at him Xia Yu Ping reached out to Arthit's wound. Despite his own pain and reluctance, Arthit let the man heal his wound up too only to wince at the pounding in his chest. This time his ears began to ring in a way that made everything around him go silent.
"Suns..." This time it became clear. It was her, Sunshine. His wolf was fighting against the pain. That void that came in and out now became muddled against her strength. Yet, Arthit feared what it meant.