-Kaden's POV-
Adrian and Cameron were quick to take their places either side of me as I felt the tension rising all around us.
"Kaden." Adam's voice broke through the rain, and for a moment I thought he would try and stop me, but my eyes quickly met his, I didn't want to fight on his territory without his permission.
If Adam asked me to leave, I would. No questions asked.
He stepped towards me, beside me, in front of me, his eyes finally leaving mine to lock onto the threatening stranger in front of us, there was no emotion visible in her eyes, nor any of the others who stood around like machines, waiting for more orders.
"If you want to get to him, you'll have to go through me first," Adam growled, and it shook the ground around us, similar to the still deafening thunder that threatened to rip through the sky.
"We have no quarrels with you Adam, tell your mate to leave and we will not bother you, it is a simple request," the girl spoke emotionlessly, no hint of anything and I really didn't know what to think, she knows I'm Adam's mate, and yet still asks for me to leave, who the hell is she?
"No. It is not a simple request, Kaden is my mate, he stays. I don't know who you are, and you are on my territory, therefor you are the one who must leave, either willingly...or we will make you." Adam stepped dangerously towards the woman, it was the first time I'd seen even a flicker of emotion on her face, of course it didn't last long, blink and you'd miss it, she forced herself to not visibly flinch at Adam's harsh words, the authority and underlining threat hanging heavy in the air, she was worried.
She knew she was facing a King and an Alpha, was this a bluff? Would they leave now they realised they couldn't get me to leave? Or would they still want to fight? Nothing good could ever come from that, but they didn't leave.
"Very well, then I am afraid you leave us no choice."
I didn't know what to expect, but it wasn't for the people at the back to shift into their wolf forms.
Okay, so werewolves.
Or, for the people at the front to push themselves off the ground, coming to hover in front of us, their eyes shining a vibrant icy blue colour.
Okay...not werewolves.
There was a very thin portal open on the ground in the middle of where they all stood scattered around us, it was almost invisible, especially through the rain but I could see the faint glow of dark purple flashes breaking through the vacant green colour of the grass that previously sat untouched.
Were they trying to hide it? It was possible, after all we would obviously have to close it, as soon as possible, just how much did these people know about us? I couldn't help but wonder...that just maybe...but it didn't seem possible, not yet...it was still early, you can't possibly be that impatient, can you?
I smirked; I couldn't help it.
"Adrian, Cameron, they have a portal open, I want to close it, keep an eye out for the ones in front, I don't know what they're capable of, stick together, you can work with Adam's pack as well. Oh, and protect your future King," I gave orders through a closed off mind-link, just between the three of us, who knew what these people were capable of, after all.
"Sir!" They answered in unison, but still nobody moved. We didn't like to be the ones to make the first move, we didn't fight unless we had to, and until they made their first move, the only defence we had was that they had asked me to leave and I refused, it all seemed quite childish when I worded it like that, but this was on them, for some reason they didn't want me here.
The woman that led the group surprisingly wasn't the first to attack, instead the wolves' charged forwards, and Adam's pack immediately shifted.
"We'll handle the werewolves," Adam rushed out, sending me a look of reassurance and trust, before he shifted too, lunging his body towards the wolf that was racing its way towards me.
They held them off well, we didn't have to worry about the wolves, so we could focus on the others.
"What are you?" I asked with a small smirk, my hands lay inside my pockets, and I wore the couldn't care less aura with pride.
"That's not important, you need to leave Kaden, take your men and leave," she sounded almost desperate.
"What is your name?" I tried, but she just stared at me.
"Who's orders are you following?" I almost yawned, we were both in the air at this point, having a one-sided conversation, she clearly wasn't going to tell me anything, but she never made a move to attack me either.
So, my gaze fell over the others instead, Adrian fought with a man a few years older than him, he looked strong, but his movements were slower than Adrian's, but I could see the look of surprise on Adrian's face, he probably thought it would be an easy fight, but he should know by now, it is foolish to judge the strength of someone you know nothing about.
I didn't know who these people were, or what they were.
Cameron was fighting two smaller ones off, a man and a woman, although compared to Cameron they were probably quite big, Cameron was a hell of a lot stronger than he looked through, so he didn't struggle to keep them at bay, and he never underestimated an enemy.
Adam and his pack fought with the other wolves, biting and scratching, I hoped Adam would stay safe, I'd never seen him fight before, I just hope he didn't do anything stupid, at least I'm here if he did, I wouldn't let them hurt him, not if I had anything to say about it.
"I get that you want to be with your Keeper, but it is not safe here, you know the rules, you must obey them," the girl sighed, watching the fight beside me.
The rules. I did know them, I knew them so well, the same rules I had projected to others throughout the years, carrying out punishments for those that broke our precious rules, and yet I was no better than them, I had broken one too many rules at this time, and only my close and dearest friends knew about it, maybe I didn't deserve the position I was in anymore, but the people can be the judge of that after I'm done.
She just confirmed that my theory was right though.
My eyes quickly locked on the portal that blended all too well into the grass, even with its dark shade of purple practically glowing, with the darkened sky you would miss it if you weren't looking for it.
A part of me thought she would stop me, there is no way they would let me get this close to their portal without putting up some sort of a fight.
But she didn't move, her lips pursed as I got closer, but I never quite reached it, three people closed in on me then, and that's when I realised, she wasn't here to fight, she was giving the orders...but who was she listening to.
She didn't bother to intercept as she watched on, observing the fight that would clearly break out.
As soon as they surrounded me, Adrian and Cameron were there, fighting their way towards me. They blocked my way to the portal but didn't actually move to attack, it gave me time to think, to plan, and to act.
Adrian and Cameron had their hands full with more enemies by the second joining the fight, but they still tried to reach me, it was almost unsettling how strong our opponents seemed to be.
Adam and his pack were holding up well against the werewolves though, that was somewhat comforting as I pushed forward.
If they weren't going to attack then I would just push my way through, they wanted me to leave, yet made no move to actually remove me, they were almost cautious, though no emotions shone through their stoic masks.
I didn't like it. I wanted a reaction, and I was going to get one.
In the blink of an eye, I shifted my body around them, narrowly avoiding contact as I pushed myself through the air, coming to stand on the other side of them, their reactions were a little slower than mine, but it didn't take them long to catch up, and if they were surprised or irritated, they didn't let it show.
Only seconds had passed before I was next to the portal, retrieving my sword in order to close the open wound that leaked onto the unruly grass.
"Stop," one commanded. I didn't.
My sword thrust towards the portals opening, but again I was stopped, my sword barely a hair length away when a boy swung towards me, his fist clenched tightly, his feet pushing him through the air.
I narrowly dodged, my sword pulling backwards as my body twisted around, avoiding the hits from the boy in front of me that continued to swing, the others didn't move.
His actions were fast and strong, but I didn't let them hit, his moves were predictable and awfully familiar, I couldn't place it, but it was something I'd seen before, it definitely wasn't similar to the way I fight, or Adrian or Cameron, repetitive attacks would only get you hurt in the end, we are trained to surprise our enemies, to never let them know your next move, yet his were almost robotic.
Like he'd trained for years with the same moves that they had become second nature to him, automatic movements, that he could probably imitate in his sleep.
It made things painfully easy for me. I swung us around, manipulating his own movements to match my own, my hand hit his chest with force, forcing him backwards but he quickly recovered, I wanted to test his strength, to see exactly what these guys were all about, but now wasn't the time to be curious. I had to close the portal before we had bigger problems on our hands.
I watched as his eyes lit up and didn't bother to hide the smirk that pulled at my lips, there was something awfully flattering about having someone need to use more of their power when fighting you.
His eyes were also icy blue, not surprising really, but a part of me was curious what colour I would be faced with, they didn't hold the aura of a Soul Waker after all, but then again, neither did Cameron.
The rain continued to soak through our clothes as I threw the boy the ground, another trying to sneak up behind me, but I span around quickly, grabbing a hold of his fist that flew towards me, my hand hit his chest, pushing him away.
It was harder to move through the harsh weather conditions, and even harder to see, but I could feel their movements all around me as the three from earlier once again circled me.
Their attacks kept coming, fast enough to not give me much time to think, or to check on my friends, but I trusted their abilities enough, and know they would call to me if they needed the help, it gave me just enough reassurance to give the attackers my full attention as I continued to deflect their oncoming blows.
I was all too aware of the fact that there was still a gaping hole in the ground, but from what I had seen, nothing, or more so, nobody had come through it yet.
It was unsettling the more time that past though, I didn't like the power that seeped from it, it would draw too much attention, it was a threat.
Shit.
The rain thrashed down around me, as I just managed to dodge another hit.
I was thinking too much.
But...was this their plan? Keep me too busy to be able to close the portal, of course I couldn't let it stay open for too long, it would never end well if I did, and if I couldn't get to it to close it, my only other option would be to surrender, to leave with my friends.
We leave, they close the portal, they would do it, I know they would.
My eyes quickly found my friends, Adrian was clearly getting annoyed, while Cameron held strong, anyone looking at him wouldn't be able to read into anything, but I'd watched him fight long enough to know that when he was nervous, you could catch him subtly glancing to the side once in a while, it was almost passible, seen as a defence to keep an eye on everything going on around him, but I knew the boy better than that.
Adam was still in werewolf form as he pushed a wolf to the ground, baring his teeth at the threat, his friends worked to protect their Alpha, while also holding off the other wolves.
I had to do something.
Fast.
Quickly deflecting an attack, I watched as more eyes lit up around me, their movements increasing in speed, their hits getting closer and closer to landing.
Three pairs of icy blue eyes flashed through the downpour, sources of light breaking through the consuming darkness.
Soul Wakers...but not?
Like Cameron?
Were they broken?
No, they wouldn't have the strength to fight, Cameron only held so much power before he met Gabriel, and that was only because he was a Soldier.
So, what then?
But if they were Soul Waker's...then that meant...
I stopped, my hand raised in command, their attacks second away from landing.
Then everything stopped, I forced them to the ground, the pain evident on their faces as they were forced to kneel before me.
That was the power of a King.
But I wasn't their King, I didn't have much time before they would be able to break free of my power.
My actions had caught the attention of the others, the leading woman watched me in fascination but still made no attempt to stop me or help her people.
I locked eyes with Adrian, a silent message passed between us, before finally my eyes found Adam.
"Protect him," I ordered, Adam stared back in curiosity, it was almost like he could sense I was about to do something stupid, maybe he was right.
Maybe I was stupid, maybe I had a death-wish, or just maybe I was influenced by the overwhelming feelings that rushed through my body every time his eyes found mine.
But I didn't let myself dwell on the anxiety's, I didn't even let myself think twice about what I was doing before my feet were moving, and I was falling through the open portal.
-Adrian's POV-
I didn't know exactly what he was thinking, but from the look in his eye I could see he had a plan, and he needed us for it to work, what I wasn't expecting was for Kaden to spontaneously jump through a portal that none of us knew where it would lead to.
Like...the fuck?
"Adrian!"
My sword hit against my opponents as I forced my attention back onto the man that had kept me fighting for way longer than I wanted to admit. He was strong and annoyingly determined, the guy just didn't know when to stop.
The King's little show of dominance had stumped everyone for a while, but it didn't take long for them to regain their senses, he just needed a little bit of time, huh? And now he clearly needed a little more, but this time it would be up to us.
The three Kaden had been fighting wore off the King's effects quickly, but to my surprise they didn't try to follow him, they appeared to be caught up in their own private conversation. Yeah...I don't think any of us expected Kaden to do that.
I'm sure he knew what he was doing though, and even if he didn't, I had enough faith in him to know he'd figure it out, we just had to do what we could from this side.
I angrily swung my sword at the man in front of me, the blade grazing his shoulder, a hiss was pulled from his lips as he launched back, away from me.
Bastard.
Cameron had his own problems, and was dealing with more of the Soul Wakers? Werewolves? Fuck if I knew.
I was impressed with how well Adam and his pack held up in a fight, they didn't seem to have much of a problem, and were keeping them off quite nicely.
"What do we do?" Cameron's voice cut through my thoughts as I once again swung at the idiot in front of me, who dodged my attack and went for his own.
The clanging of metal echoed through the forest, but the rain made fighting ten times harder, and the fabric clinging to my skin only ignited more of my infuriation, I love the rain, but I hate fighting in it.
"We have to buy him time," I told Cameron, trying to observe the area while dodging each oncoming attack.
Our swords connected as he used his forced to push the blades closer towards me, my teeth clenched. Fuck, he's strong.
A growl pulled my attention away for just a second, my eyes finally tearing from my opponent at the sound of distress.
Adam lunged at one of the guy's Kaden had previously been fighting.
Shit. I have to protect my future King.
My eyes lit up with power, my hands pushed forward with the blade, creating some distance between us, before pulling back ever so slightly to force my blade back into his.
I didn't give him time to recover, my sword clashed against his at a shattering speed, breaking his grip on the weapon, it fell to the floor discarded, and it would have been so easy to send him through with my blade, but for some reason, Kaden didn't want us to kill them, that much he made obvious.
So, instead I used my power to throw him into the nearest tree, hoping it would knock him out of commission for a while.
I sprinted towards Adam, my knees skidding against the ground as my blade clashed with the one heading towards the wolf.
The grinding noise echoed around us. I was so close to Adam, I could practically feel his fur grazing against my skin.
His growl was almost deafening, but I didn't take my eyes away from the threat in front of us, my back to the wolf, usually the thought would put me on edge, but I had to trust him, now more than ever.
It didn't take a genius to figure out he was trying to talk to me, but I didn't speak werewolf and probably never would.
I forced the blade back of my opponents, trying to get to my feet so I could see what the problem was, before more growls echoed behind me.
Cameron appeared beside me, sending the man in front of us crashing to the ground with back breaking strength.
"They're trying to close the portal!" He shouted over the rain.
My head snapped towards the opening in the ground, the werewolves were stopped from getting nearer by our opponents, not even being able to get close enough to attempt to stop them, they were preventing us from getting to the portal, and there in the middle was one of the men Kaden had been fighting, his sword embedded into the weak spot of the portal, and I watched in horror as it started to close.
-Cameron's POV-
We have to do something, but can you even reopen a portal that is already in its mists of closing? It isn't our portal, we didn't make it, and none of us even knew where it led to, that was the bigger problem here.
The portal could lead anywhere, and if it closes, who's to say it can be open again by us? What if Kaden won't be able to get back?
The thought made me feel sick.
Damn it, do something, Cameron! Your King needs you!
He gave you everything and you can't even keep a stupid portal open for him.
I pulled at my hair, trying so hard to remain calm as I took in everything around me, suddenly more noticeable than it was a second ago.
The rain only got louder, the shouts and growls, metal against metal, thunder, lightning, gravel under shoes, hisses of pain.
"Cameron!" Gabriel.
My eyes found the pack house, not for the first time since the fight started, and I'll be damned if it's the last.
"Relax baby, you've got this."
"I don't know what to do," I told him, using his words to calm me down.
"Yes, you do. You always know the right thing to do or say, it's just one of the things I love about you. You're so strong, and kind, and caring, I don't think there's a single thing I don't adore about you. I don't even think you realise it, but everything you do is out of love, it's so rare and pure, you stun everyone around you without even knowing it, you are incredible, my love. And you can do anything."
My breathing calmed as I let Gabe's words sink in, he really thought too highly of me, he was my better half, but I'd do anything for him, and I would do anything for the people I care about.
My eyes lit up, immediately illuminating the area around me, breaking their way through the clouded rain as I stepped up to the portal.
I shook my head, smiling brightly as I thought about my keeper, his encouraging words sparing me on, and on, and on.
"I love you," I told him, forcing away anyone that even dared to try and stop me.
"I love you more."
"Impossible," I laughed, lunged forwards and knocking the man holding the sword towards the ground, I created a shield around myself, blocking myself in as my hand gripped tightly to the blade that buried deep into the closing of the portal, and with every ounce of power I had in my body, I forced the portal to remain open.
-Adam's POV-
My heart jumped into my throat the moment I saw Kaden jump through the portal, but does everything he did have to be so damn hot?
I swear every time he speaks a shiver runs down my spine, he was daring and confident, and I had to force myself not to stare in awe at everything he did.
But right now, I was freaking out, I couldn't feel him anymore, that was the problem, where the fuck does this portal lead to?
The temptation to jump through after him was overwhelming but I had a feeling no one would let me, if I damn acted faster, jumped through when he did, the only time we were able to, but instead my mate is God knows where with God knows what.
I bit at the hand that swung towards me, my teeth sinking into the skin, drawing out a yelp of pain from the attacker, I'm not even sure I was fully paying attention anymore, my anxiety was through the roof and my wolf wasn't helping.
Cameron was somehow keeping the portal open, which only helped a little to ease my worry, he looked like he was in pain though, like the action was taking everything in him to do. Maybe it was.
My restlessness fuelled my fight, wanting to take my anger out on anyone and everything. We all fought together now, less spread out and more gathered around the portal. Nobody could get near Cameron, there was like an invisible glow around him, nobody could touch him, and I didn't know if that was his power or something else, his glowing orange eyes were soul shaking though, like the hypnotising feeling you get when staring into a fire, dangerous but pretty.
But my mind was quickly replaced with glowing golden eyes, eyes I wanted to get lost in until the only colour I could see was gold.
I growled loudly, the sound shaking the nearby trees as my soaked fur clung to my skin. I can't believe something like this could happen on my territory, can I not even keep my own mate safe? I so desperately hoped this wouldn't push Kaden back.
I didn't want him to run from me, I wanted him to run towards me, the trust me, to use me, to fall so deeply in love with me that the thought of ever leaving was painful.
Because trust me, I was already there.