Strategically, Samira made a great move. She was not part of Kiril's pack anymore. That meant she could not enforce an Alpha command on her ever again.
There was also the fact that Angel, now her Alpha, didn't have any interest in being one.
He would gladly surrender his alpha powers to her if asked at the right moment. That had to wait a bit because he was still associating the power with Michael and he was quite reluctant to her plan to murder Kiril together.
She could play the grief chord and convince him to give up a power that was a reminder of what he did. In any case, Angel was a friend and an ally, he just needed some preparation to follow the only right way.
Oh, Goddess! I start to sound like Michael and that isn't a good thing. But no, I am not like Michael. I just want back what is rightfully mine and my daughter's. I don't want to harm Mila and I would never want to harm Erik's child.
Now in Erik's former pack house, she finally felt better. It was good to not be forced to be in his proximity anymore. She wanted to enforce that she hated everything about him but the one thing that she hated most was the way she felt when she saw his hand on Mila's shoulder.
It was horrible. She felt like being bewitched, intoxicated, utterly, and unavoidably dumb but full of such maddening desire she could barely think of anything else.
This must be some fucking spell but there is nobody that can cast such magic unless it's the Moon Goddess. But the Moon Goddess is Mila and she would never do that to me. Samira, focus! If he's dead you will not desire him anymore. Plain and simple.
What was also plain and simple was that she didn't want to live with them anymore. Samira decided to go by the house, get her things and make Kiril sniff the fact that she wasn't part of his pack anymore. He would hate it and she would rejoice in it. Or would he? Maybe he would not even notice or care, having eyes only for freaking Mila.
So powerful as he was and looking so pathetic trying to win over a girl that was clearly in love and pregnant with someone else.
She had to hurry, it was soon going to be full moon.
When she reached the house and got out of the rental car she could smell them both. Almost boastful she entered her former room and packed the things she bought into a suitcase.
"You are leaving?" Kiril was leaning against the door frame.
"Yes. And guess what, you cannot command me to stay," answered Samira with maybe too much pride.
"I was not planning to," said Kiril flatly. There was no measure of how much it irritated her.
Her blood pressure rose within seconds.
"Too busy to care about anything else that trying to fuck Erik's, baby mama? Big bad alpha and all still you are following her around like a lost puppy to maybe get bread crumbs of her attention. And surprise surprise, even if Erik is gone she still doesn't want to be with you. "
She expected him to say something awful back but the only thing he said was "just go", not one word more.
And with those sad two words, he blew down her wanna-be triumph like a little house of cards. The whole three days of the full moon, Samira kept mussing over those words, getting annoyed just to conclude how much they actually hurt her, how much it hurt her that he didn't care at all.
It were awful three days when wild dreams were plaguing her, dreams of death and destruction, or sadness and loss, and among them was one that didn't follow the pattern but followed her into the waking.
She was standing on a shore, her favorite spot on the coast of Morocco. The sea was burning in yellows and reds of the dusk and from the almost crimson water, two very familiar figures were emerging.
"Erik?"
"Yes, cousin. And I have brought someone."
"Dahiru. My love." She wrapped her arms around him and it felt so real.
"You have to look towards the future, my love. You are not like this, angry, vengeful, bitter... The woman I know is always kind and never takes pleasure in other's pain. She always stands for justice."
"Samira, I need you to take care of Mila."
The dream was cut short by a loud thud against the wall.
Freaking Katharina. Even if she didn't like it, it made the most sense to keep Katharina with her, not close to the others where she could hurt Ju, Dasha, or Mila.
As short as it was she couldn't let go of the dream so she decided to drive once again over and this time talk to Mila properly. Mila was not the enemy. Or so she thought until, shortly after she entered the damn house and a shockwave of power hit her.
The first person she saw was Kiril. Getting over herself she even managed to articulate a civilized "we need to talk" before the shockwave came.
Instinctually she followed Kiril and watched full of concern how he hurried over in the middle of that strange power vortex.
"Mila. Stop, please!" said Kiril grabbing her face. Somehow this was affecting him way less than everyone else.
It had been a mistake to approach the source, because unlike him, she could feel the strange magic crashing on her like a taifun on a shore. It took her breath away and made her sink to her knees. Mila had to stop or she was going to faint.
"Samira, what are you doing?" said Kiril frowning. His fangs elongated almost unwillingly.
"Make her stop, or I will," she said and her fingernails became claws. Mila needed to stop because Samira could barely breathe.
Angel stared at her frightened as if he knew that she was taking drastic decisions in her mind.
"She is hurting all of us. She is hurting my baby," growled Samira.
Despite the two alpha powers, Angel also sunk to the floor. There was no good solution to any of it but one thing was clear in her mind: she had to protect her baby.
And there it was again. That conflicted look on Kiril's face when he saw her summoning claws. It looked like he was battling with himself.
"Samira!?"
A thick ice wall blocked her attack. The damaging power was disappearing slowly. He had frozen the whole damn entrance and now they were fleeing.
The power dissipated slowly and they could breathe again bit by bit.
"Was that why Michael wanted to get rid of her?" asked Samira expressionless.
"I suppose. But please don't tell me you agree with him now," said Angel desperate.
"No, I don't. But I understand where he was coming from," said Samira. She didn't want to but she did. Mila was very dangerous wether she wanted to be or not.
"Where are you going?" asked Angel.
"Away. It's dangerous here. You should come too," she said addressing him and Ju. She had taken a strange liking to that poor girl and Angel was her friend. Her friend that was very important for her future.
"No. Ju stays with Master."
"Well, suit yourself. Angel?"
"I stay too," he answered absentminded watching her preparing to leave.
One could not save the ones that didn't want to be saved but Samira felt sorry for Ju and she was a bit irritated with Angel.
"What the hell happened here and where is Mila?" Dasha was standing in the doorway looking frightened.
"She took off with Kiril after almost killing all of us. Where were you?" asked Samira rudely.
"For a walk. Shit. Bomb baby is in action again. It was only a question of time."
"I suppose you don't want to leave your friend."
After that, Samira turned and left.
She ran for hours trying to put her thoughts in order but not even the exhaustion helped.
Fear for her baby made her act irrationally but at the end of the day she acknowledged that she had been wrong.
Mila was just a frightened girl that likely didn't know what to do in regard to anything and wanted to protect her child too.
Several hours later the screams of her consciousness became too loud. How she loathed that. She wouldn't never be able to be a villain, her consciousness was too loud for that.
After looking several minutes at the phone, she pressed call.
"Dasha. Where is Mila? I need to talk to her."
"Hey there. Here with me. Kiril dropped her off and left with Angel."
"Where to?"
That is odd. What is he planning?
"Girl, do you really think he told me? Plus I am kind off drunk."
"I need to talk to Mila. We have to try to find Erik."
"Sisters, hate to break it you but he's dead. However, if they raised from the dead his girlfriend maybe you can do some woo-doo and bring him back too. My self deprecating friends, I reming you however that you are both pregnant. You are very-very pregnant and Mila's baby just freaked the hell out of you."
"I know. I... Plan to make a tea to put her kid to sleep so that it does not hurt me. Just put Mila on the phone."
"Look. I'll talk to her. But I reserve her the right to say no, okay? If she agrees, we will drive over. See ya."
Everyone would have to gain if Erik could be brought back. He would get his pack back, he would give Kiril a run for his money, and put him in his place. Mila would have her lover, the baby a father, the world a better Lycan King and Kiril... Would have nothing. As he deserves!
Samira went out and searched for herbs. She was hopeful. Mila could decide against it but somehow she knew deep in her heart that the girl would go for it. She loved Erik. They both did. Erik had that talent to make himself loved. Even Kiril liked him to some extent if he went to search for him in the underworld voluntarily.
The tea was brewing on the stove. Wolfsbane, a tiny bit of magic silver but also chamomile, linden and her own blood, to steer the magic so it would do what she want it to do.
"Just sleep, not kill," she whispered in the pot.
After that, she went to the basement to check on Katharina.
All the days before, while she was again chained to a wall she had been angry, but not that day. That day, she just looked out the window, resigned.
Captivity and hopelessness can break anybody it seems, even the awful and the... risen dead.
"What do you want, Samira? Stand and laugh at me again? This used to be my house. Mine and Erik's. A bit of it still smells like him."
No, that wasn't it. Samira was thinking about what Erik would feel if he saw her. What he would feel if she and Mila would be in the same room. If he would have to choose, whom he would chose.
Samira smirked.
"I was happy when you died. I was happy that Erik got rid of you."
"Go fuck yourself," said Katharina baring her teeth, but she did jump up as she usually would have done. She was broken.
The doorbell rang just in time when she was back upstairs.
"Give us the damn tea, before something happens, Samira. By the way, a lot of shewolves followed us here. I guess Kiril commanded them to not leave Mila out of sniff or so."
Samira handed Mila a cup.
"Is it magic? Your magic?" asked Mila shilly.
She looked pretty despite her pale complexion. Pretty and kind.
Samira nodded and Mila drank deeply. She was so trusting it gave Samira mixed feelings.
"Dasha, I don't know if it's a good idea for you to stay."
"I am not going anywhere. Bomb baby likes me and Erik likes me too."
"As you like."
Samira had thought nervously for hours about how she was going to do that. They had to open a gate to the strange place Kiril had shown her.
So far she never thought that the worlds she sometimes traveled to in her dreams were real, but after that experience she knew they were. The past experiences also showed that if she tried, she could open a portal to physically travel there. Which was... Something. And something nobody else could.
Now the creepy, dark place wouldn't have been her first choice but that was where Erik supposedly was, even if she didn't find any trace of him there the past time.
"I tried this before. With Kiril. And Erik wasn't to be found but this time I hope he will because you will be there. You are mates. If you are there he will sense you."
And you are a damn goddess that can get us out if shit gets ugly.
They sat down in the middle of a circle made of candles, bones, flowers and spice. None of them were essential though, they only served as amplifiers.
Samira took Mila's hands and focused on the place Kiril guided her to.
It took a few minutes but then the wooden floor and walls disappeared and were replaced by a dark gravel ground and mist. It was cold and the atmosphere was as ominous as she remembered.
This time she was more prepared, calmer and more focused.
Shadow figures were around them but they could not see or sense them. All was going smoothly, now they only had to find Erik.
"Mila, call out to him," whispered Samira.
Mila didn't react.
"Mila?" Samira opened her eyes. Mila was looking dead pale. Her eyes were open in shock and she was trembling.
"There is so much pain. They are all horrible and hurting at the same time. Here is all the pain in the world."
"That's why we have to find Erik and leave. Focus."
It felt a bit wrong to push her but it was for Erik and ultimately for herself too.
"Erik?" whispered Mila faintly. "We are here for you. I, Samira and our child. Come to us and please do not hurt us."
Why would she say that?
Samira wasn't sure it would work but to her surprise, as soon as Mila voiced the words, the wind started howling and the shadow monsters stated acknowledging them. There was no Erik whatsoever but a hell lot of shadow monsters.
When they first touched her, Samira felt like her soul was being torn apart savagely and ruthlessly.
"Erik! Come on! We can't stand this for long!"
The only thing that happened was that the shadows gathered more and more, feeding on their energy.
She concluded in the end that Kiril had been right, Erik was not there and the endeavor was dangerous and futile.
The shadows were merging slowly into one huge ominous shape that was engulfing both of them.
"Here is only pain," whispered Mila. She looked even paler and hurting.
It had been a bad, futile idea and now Kiril would be able to scream in her face a big 'i told you so'. If that would be the only issues though. The bigger issues was that Samira couldn't visualise the gate they came through anymore.
"Shit. That cannot be."
"Samira, they are trying to swallow us and Erik is not here!" she screamed. This scream was however more for the loss that she finally acknowledged than from pain.
"Mila, the gate is closed. I cannot bring us back?"
"What?! You said you did it before."
"This time it's different. This time they see us and don't want us to leave. Mila, you are a goddess, you can breach space and time. Bring us back!"
"I cannot! I cannot use magic! Samira, please!"
There were a lot of things that Samira was feeling: rage and anger toward herself and the world, disapontment towards Mila that was pretty useless in opposition with what she imagined and a lot of fear.
"Mila, I am sorry to break it to you but if you don't know how to use your power, this is the time to learn. Think of what you want and bend the world to get it. This is how magic works. It's a lot about willpower. It's how you became a goddess in the first place so just do it!"
It was the worst idea of the century, concluded Samira, when the air started to get thinner and she felt deep cramps in her abdomen and wetness spreading on her legs.
She focused again on finding the thread to their world. Why was this so different from the first time? Why did the creatures see them now?
"Mila, my water broke and we have about five minutes left till they swallow us whole. For everything you have dear, get us out of here!"
Samira was cursing herself for everything what was happening. They were going to die and it was her damn fault. Mila was not a warrior and couldn't act under pressure besides everything else, seemingly.
But then Mila's eyes became dark blue and shiny and a thunder-like power wave slit the space open, showing their world.
"Mila you, did it!" said Samira in awe.
"I will not die here, so neither is she," said Mila. Samira wasn't sure who she was talking to because this voice was not trembling.
The shadows were howling in pain around them. Mila grabbed Samira's hand. In seconds they were back in Erik's pack house but the thunder-light was still there, breaching the worlds and breaking everything around them, starting with the structure of the house.
"Mila,close the gate or they will follow us here!"
One huge shadow creature was hurrying towards the breach.
Dasha was staring frightened at everything while the earth was quacking and the light gate extended to the moon in the sky above them.
"Don't, please don't!" screamed Mila. The light became even brighter, then with a strange wave of power the gate closed.
Samira, jumped up, grabbed Mila and Dasha around the waist and jumped with them up out the window right before the house collapsed.
"Mila? Dasha? Please, please say something?! I am so sorry! I just wanted to bring Erik back. To at least have someone back. Please don't die!"
Dasha opened her eyes.
"Good lord... I thought that was it."
"It's okay. We are both fine, but you aren't," said Mila pointing at the amniotic liquid that was spread all over her dress.
"I think I need to lay down."
"Do that, because the baby is definitely coming," said Dasha.
"Dasha, we need to help her. Hopefully I can do that until they come for me."
"Who?" muttered Samira.
"The other gods. I used a lot of magic and I guess now they know where I am." Mila was looking at the sky and then Samira saw it too, the huge violet moon.
However after the adrenaline shock was gone, Samira felt quite deeply, very worldly contractions.
"Well, Samira. You are pretty dilated. It might be quick," said Dasha.
The next instances passed like in a dream. The pain, the fear, the whole pushing mechanics till the one little scream that would define the rest of her life pierced the air.
When Dasha laid the squeecking little creature in her arms Samira whispered. "You are the one I need." And it was quite so. That little creature was the one thing that she needed to make it all worth it. Not Erik, not Dahiru and certainly not Kiril. She had feelings for all of them but none compared to what she felt for Sarauniya. Just sublime adoration.
"Fucking bitch! We finally meet, Milena!"
Katharina. Oh shit!
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Long, overdue, complex and complicated.
Opinions?
There isn't very much of this story left but I cannot estimate how many chapters will be. It also happens that the story seems to make decisions i didn't intend for me. 😂