-Kaden's POV-
I was half passed out on the wolf packs couch, listening to the low hum of everyone's voices as they talked around me, half blocked out by the heaviness overtaking my body.
How long had it been since I got here? I couldn't tell, I could still feel Adam's thigh underneath my hand, creating the only bit of warmth in my body, why was it so cold?
"Kaden?" I heard Adam call my name softly, pulling me back to reality as I forced my eyes to open and the pain hit me all at once.
I winced, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.
"Sir, are you okay?" I heard Cameron's worried voice as whispers erupted around the room.
"I'm-okay," I forced the words out, feeling the heaviness between each one. "My body and mind are exhausted," I admitted.
I didn't have much choice, I could feel myself weakening, slowly on my way into unconsciousness so my body could heal, I needed them at this time.
"You should sleep," Adam told me, his hand falling onto my arm, casting more heat into my body. I unconsciously sought out the heat source, my body moving closer to my Keeper.
"We should take him home," Adrian said, and that is why he is my right-hand man, he knew what he had to do, and he gets the job done, no matter how long it takes.
Unfortunately, I was too weak at this point to contribute, I had to leave my trust in them, and try for the love of God to stay awake for just a bit longer.
"He can sleep here," Adam frowned, his eyes finding mine, his fingers squeezing my arm in reassurance.
I did want to stay with my Keeper, but I also needed to be in my own quarters, it was not wise to be exposed when in such a vulnerable condition.
"He will be safer in Galtolga," Adrian tried to convince him.
And with what energy I had left, I forced myself to rise from the sofa, not liking how shaky I felt on my own legs.
"We don't have much choice. Soul awakening is something I have never successfully done before, I will need to check in with my doctor to see the damage," I sighed, unaware of how broken my speech was, the words practically mumbled into the silence of the room.
Then when I took a step towards a random direction, definitely having no idea where I was heading, everything went black.
-Adam's POV-
My heart stopped when I saw my mate falling towards the ground, his eyelids fluttering shut as the room stood in silence.
My wolf reacted before I could fully understand what was happening, sweeping our mate up between my arms, and cradling him against my chest like he could break at any minute.
"Shit!" "Kaden!" "Sir!" Everyone reacted at once then, a clear panic spreading throughout the room as Adrian raced towards me.
Kaden's face was pressed into my chest as I held him up, an arm gripping tightly around his waist while the other held onto his shoulder, at any other time I would have enjoyed this, but I was becoming all too aware of how cold the boy in my arms was.
"He's freezing," I announced to anybody listening.
My wolf was practically whining at this point as I willed myself to think, panicking wouldn't help at a time like this.
I picked my mate up bridal style, I had to lay him down somewhere, get him warm.
"Adam, we need to get him to a doctor," Adrian's words cut through my distressed thought process, and I nodded. Yes, we need to get him help.
"Okay. Kaden said my doctor, does he have his own? Like we have a pack doctor," I asked, holding the boy in my arms closer to my chest, the sinking feeling of having to let him go not sitting well with me or my wolf.
"Yes, we have one that works close with Kaden, he treats us when we're injured, but you have to let us take him..." he said the words hesitantly, but I knew I couldn't be selfish and argue, not when my mate lay practically lifeless in my arms.
"Yes...okay," I breathed out the words, gently placing Kaden back onto the ground, and in seconds Adrian and Cameron were by his side, wrapping his arms around each of their shoulders as they supported him.
"Thank you, Adam...and I'm really sorry about this, I promise I will keep you updated as much as I can." Adrian sighed before he and Cameron escorted my mate through a portal and out of sight, and it took everything in me to hold my wolf back and not follow after them.
Zach and Gabriel followed behind them, wishing us a solemn goodnight, and then they were gone, the room falling into silence.
"Are you okay, Alpha?" Someone asked but I wasn't paying much attention, I needed to run.
"I'm fine," I answered quickly before pushing my way through the pack door, shifting, and sprinting off into the woods.
*
The next day came with no news from Adrian or the other boys, and my restlessness continued to grow, my wolf constantly on edge, which only made me feel even worse.
I didn't get a wink of sleep, but I forced myself to shower and get to school anyway, hoping I would see one of the boys there and find out how my mate was doing.
First class was luckily with Uncle Tom, so I wouldn't have to worry about participating or paying attention, and I would be able to speak with Adrian more openly once the other students had left.
And when I tell you that hour ticked by so painfully slowly, I was practically clawing at my desk. Cameron had been there from the start, busying himself in his work, but the feeling in my chest only grew heavier when I saw the two empty seats next to him.
One was Kaden's of course, I knew he wouldn't be in school today, but where the hell is Adrian?
Half an hour past before finally Adrian came strolling into the room, apologising profusely, and looking damn right exhausted.
He didn't look like himself at all, the boy was usually so full of energy, so happy to just be here, but today it was like a dark cloud was following him around.
I swallowed down hard, not being reassured by his presence at all.
My claws dug even deeper into the desk, most likely leaving marks but I didn't care, I didn't take my eyes off of Adrian as I tried to decipher what had happened.
And when the bell finally rang, I couldn't have jumped up from my seat any quicker.
Adrian made no move to leave his seat, instead remained staring down at his desk as Cameron gathered his things beside him, and the classroom quickly emptied, leaving just my pack and the two boys.
My wolf wanted me to march up to Adrian and demand information on my mate, but from one look at the boy, I couldn't do it.
"Are you okay?" I asked instead.
"Yeah...just tired," he waved me off, trying so hard to force his usual smile but it didn't last long before he gave up, pushing back the hair on his head with a heavy sigh.
Zach and Gabriel bustled their way into the room, Zach instantly falling into his Keeper's arms and for the first time I'd seen that day, Adrian held a genuine smile on his face.
"I missed you," Adrian mumbled against Zach's neck, holding him as tight as he could against himself.
"I missed you too, babe," Zach sighed, his arms wrapping around Adrian's neck.
I let them have their moment, it felt wrong to interrupt them no matter how much my hands hurt from having to dig my nails into the skin on the palm of my hands.
"Adam?" My eyes found Adrian again, not caring that we were already late to our next class, Tom would write us a late slip anyway.
"How is Kaden?" I finally asked, trying not to sound too desperate, but something told me he already knew exactly how I was feeling.
"He's okay, he just overexerted himself, his body and mind are exhausted, so he needs time to rest and recover," he told me, though it sounded like he was repeating somebody else's words, probably the doctor that was tending to my mate.
The breath that left my lips was one of pure relief and I finally felt my shoulders sag, I didn't realise how rigid I must have looked, but the relief of knowing my mate was okay almost had me smiling. Almost.
"Can I see him?" I dared to ask and didn't like the look of guilt and hesitation that crossed his face as he outwardly cringed.
"I'm sorry...I really wish there was a way I could let you see him but there just isn't," his hand ran through his hair again, he looked incredibly stressed.
"Who takes over when Kaden is out of commission?" Michael asked, refusing to meet my look of defeat.
"That would be me," Adrian smiled gravely, holding onto Zach like he was a lifeline, and at this point he might just be.
"Shit, man. Are you okay?" Everyone could see he was struggling, but I guess it was nice of Luke to ask, I just wish there was something I could do.
"Yeah, I'm good. I just don't know how he does it, and on his own as well. I have the advantage of having my Keeper by my side and I'm still struggling," he laughed humourlessly.
"He has you and Cameron by his side, that's how he does it, you work well together," I smiled, and I didn't miss the grateful looks from both boys.
"Thanks, man. I've never had to do this before though, of course I've been trained for it, but it was more of a precautionary thing, I never thought I would actually have to do this, you know?" Zach held his Keeper tighter, trying to be of some reassurance.
"If you need anything from us, don't hesitate to ask, we will do what we can to help." It was the least I could do.
"Thanks, I just wish he'd wake up already," he sighed.
"What do you mean?" My voice rose but only by a fraction, still he caught it.
"Shit," he whispered, avoiding my eyes. "He-uh...he hasn't woken yet," he finished hesitantly.
"Since he passed out?!" I all but shouted, and I couldn't stop myself from pacing along with my wolf. Shit!
"He's okay! The doctor is keeping an eye on him," he tried to reassure me, but it didn't help much.
I need to calm down.
I need to see him.
"You can't wake him?" Tom asked, the concern coating his words heavily.
"We've tried, nothing has worked yet. The doctor said he will wake in his own time when he is ready. What Kaden did...he's trained in the art of soul awakening before but never to this extent, to pull off such a powerful move he needs his full power, and without being one with his Keeper he doesn't have access to that full power," Adrian explained.
"He would need to be mated with me," I thought aloud.
"Right, and he's not yet for obvious reasons, so to go to such extent means that Jupiter wasn't messing around. It was a last trick up his sleeve kind of thing...Kaden's smart, he would have only done it if he needed to...if his life was in danger."
Shit. Jupiter was really going to kill him...? My wolf whined as I tried to hold back his anger as well as my own. What the fuck does that mean for him? Was he still in danger? Would I even be able to protect him from a fucking God?!
"Calm down, Alpha. We don't know anything for sure yet." Tom's voice calmed me but only slightly, he was right, nothing was set in stone just yet.
"So, what do we do?" I asked, not having much hope for an answer, but I needed to do something now, going about my day like everything was normal was clearly no longer an option, I doubt my wolf would even allow it.
"It's like a game of chess," Cameron finally spoke, his voice soft and thoughtful, almost like he didn't mean to speak aloud.
"Right. Wait, what?" Adrian turned to his friend in confusion as everyone stared along with him, making him blush as he looked away, his hand clenched tightly in Gabriel's.
"A game of chess, Kaden made the first move, but he knew he was making it, he just thought he would have more time before Jupiter made his move. He caught him when he was the most vulnerable..." He looked at me. "When he was with his Keeper. Kaden wasn't prepared, when we were attacked at the pack house, none of us thought for a second it could be Jupiter attacking, not after everything that's been going on with Amelia."
"Who's Amelia?" Michael asked, but Adrian shook his head, telling him it wasn't important, maybe not right now, but I felt like it was more important than he was letting on.
"Jupiter caught us all off guard, but Kaden must have suspected something while we were fighting, there had to have been a reason he blindly jumped through the portal." He paused then, the cogs turning away in this brain.
"They've been playing this whole time..." he whispered, before clearing his throat and addressing us again. "Kaden decides to fight for his mate, making a statement to Jupiter that he wasn't going to back down, we should have known by the rain-the storm-the weather changed so drastically, it had been raining all day, it got worse the closer we got to the pack house, it was a warning! It was right in front of us the whole time and we had no idea!"
Everyone was too busy taking in the newfound information, clearly shocked how we could have missed it, but we weren't looking for it, that's why.
He continued: "they tell us to leave, Kaden refuses, but they don't back down so Kaden goes to confront him, stepping through the portal with no idea of what would be on the other side. But this is Kaden were talking about here, he doesn't do things without a plan. So, what if that was his plan from the start, to offer Jupiter a Soul Awakening in exchange for his blessing, or part of it anyway, like a peace offering."
"But Kaden knows he needs his Keeper for that," Adrian frowned.
"Yes. But Kaden brought back Jupiter's mate, it is impossible to resist our soul mates, he would have done anything to see her again...at least, I know I would if it were me. So, Jupiter puts an end to the war between Soul Waker's and Werewolves and he gets to be with his mate again, not permanently of course, but he'd probably take what he can get."
"That smart son of a bitch. Of course, he would use his mate against him, that's exactly what Jupiter has been doing this whole time anyway, he was going to turn the tides back around on him." Adrian messed up his hair-clearly a habit he did when he was stressed-as I tried to understand everything.
"But Jupiter didn't play fair..." Zach hummed in thought. "And if he didn't the first time, who's to say he won't again."
"We need to wake him up," Adrian concluded, then all eyes fell onto me.
"You said I can't see him," I frowned in confusion, what could I do from all the way over here?
"Maybe you could bring him here?" Luke suggested.
"No, too dangerous, he's unconscious, he has no way of protecting himself and we don't know if this will actually work," Adrian shook his head.
"But his guard will keep him hidden," I defended.
"He doesn't have his guard up, he never does in Galtolga, and he can't reactivate it when he's asleep."
He doesn't have his guard up?
"There is...one thing," Gabriel spoke, but didn't look too confident in his own idea.
"We're open to ideas, Gabe. We're pretty desperate here," Adrian chuckled.
"It's just...I heard Kaden talking once about a visitors pass, it's under very rare cases, and I don't know all the details, but it allowed someone different from us to visit Galtolga under strict guidance, and only while accompanied by the King, I think they had to swear to secrecy...I'm really not sure," he didn't look too sure, but it was something.
"I've ever known it been done once, and it was under very special circumstances," Adrian cringed.
"With who?" I asked, trying not to get my hopes up, but it was hard.
"With me," Cameron spoke, his eyes unfocused, and me and my pack seemed to be the only ones confused by his words.
"But you're a Soul Waker, aren't you?" Michael asked, not so sure anymore.
"I am, but at the time I didn't know I was, I thought I was human...or maybe I was just in denial about it. I was forced into our world out of my control, Kaden said as long as I was under his guidance it was fine, he sorted everything out for me."
"Yeah, and it took weeks, I can still remember the paperwork," Adrian groaned. "However, it could work, since I'm acting King, I would be able to do it, I could draft up a visitors pass, but we would need to keep you hidden. The only thing I can't do is take you there myself, that would get me into trouble. But if you 'accidently' stumbled into our world I would have to take care of things." Adrian smirked, while everyone else looked nervous.
"Let's do it." I was more than eager to see my Keeper, I just had to find a way to wake him up.
Adrian created a portal, and I went to step towards it, but his hand fell onto my shoulder, holding me back.
"Uh uh, accidently, my man. You can't just walk through like I invited you," he shook his head.
The confusion was obvious on my face, did he want me to stumble through or something? It's not like we were being watched. Honestly, I think it was more to avoid giving them a guilty conscience.
"Sorry man," were the last words I heard my beta say before he and my pack were pushing me through the portal.
Bastards.
My back hit the floor as the air left my lungs, an overwhelming sense of sickness and disorientation spreading throughout my body. How the hell do these guys just come and go through these portals like it was nothing? I felt like I just caught a ride on a tornado.
I groaned, trying to will the room to stop spinning as I forced myself to my feet, gripping onto the wall for what stability I could find.
It didn't take me long to spot my mate laying in a bed on the other side of the room, and everything else was forgotten.
In a few long strides I was by his side, my hands instantly finding either side of his face as I took in his appearance.
He was pale with light beads of sweat coating his forehead, he was breathing loud enough to hear, his chest rising and falling from underneath the blanket that covered him from his chest down.
My wolf finally settled, and I felt myself breathe, he wasn't awake, but he was okay, and I could see that now, not one hundred percent, but he was breathing, and for now that was enough.
I sat down in the chair next to his bed and took his hand in mine, feeling the coldness of his skin against my warm fingers.
Now I just had to wake him up.