"Don't seek the devil in the place which he calls his home" - Mladen Đorđević
•
Sitting on the floor of Valen's shower, icy water pours over Alia's body in an attempt to cool the worsening heat that burns inside of her. Her bare skin is an angry red, lips a twinge of blue as her body's internal temperature drops to a nauseating level. Strands of hair cover her eyes, sticking to her skin whilst her arms are frozen around her knees. Even as her body shivers terribly, not a single chill finds her. All she can feel is a sweltering heat that worsens with every breath.
Unshed tears blur her vision, and she wishes to move her lips to call out to her mate but she can barely breathe never mind say his name. Every inhale is uneven, quick, and she can feel herself becoming more and more lightheaded as the minutes pass.
Why is this happening? Why is she feeling this way? This heat isn't like the needy one she feels when she's with Valen. It's painful, suffocating, and Alia just wants it to stop. She needs it to stop.
A while ago, Alia felt warm in Valen's bed and it was the first indication of her rising temperature. She tossed the covers off of her in an attempt to cool down but the discomfort slowly evolved into something more pressing. There was an attempt to cool her face and neck with water from the bathroom sink, but it was useless. The warmth didn't fade. Instead, she began to sweat. Clammy skin entered the bath again, and hands moved to the tap to pour cold water into the tub. She watched as the water rose around her, and surprisingly, the encompassing chill sated her
for a while. But then the warmth worsened.
The heat of the water clinging to her skin was sickening, and Alia had to haul herself out of the bathtub before her nausea grew. A suffocating pressure lingered around her neck, and it had her reaching for a collar that didn't exist. A ringing sound found Alia's ears just before her vision began to be clouded by black and white flashing stars.
Disoriented, Alia somehow found her way into Valen's shower. Her legs felt weak when the icy water began to pour down her bare body. Every drop washed away Valen's scent and she hated it. If anything, it was as if she threw coals into a slumbering fire, fuelling the flames to life.
Alia tries to beg someone, anyone, for relief, but her mind finds no one. She whimpers, tears sliding down her cheeks. Please, just make it stop.
Instead of easing, the pain shifts, and now it feels as if her skin is covered in blue flames. Alia cries out, voice barely audible, and then she lengthens her claws to take a swipe at her arm.
A large hand latches onto her wrist and pulls her out of the shower before claws can tear skin.
Her knees give out from under her when an arm wraps tightly around her waist, holding her body against a strong torso. It's as if the flames have been drenched by an icy wave, dousing them out of existence and only leaving a lingering ache behind.
Furious curses ring inside the bathroom, and Alia can hear metal crumple before the sound of pouring water stops reaching her ears.
Alia inhales Valen's scent whilst her trembling hands weakly grasp the fabric covering his chest. She can't feel her skin or even the marble tiles underneath her feet. All she feels is Valen's arm wrapped around her waist and the hand that wipes away wet strands of hair from her face.
"What happened?" Valen urges, voice filled with worry. "Why have you done this to yourself?"
Alia struggles to get a word out, lungs quaking with every breath. She presses her forehead to his chest. "H-hot."
"Hot?" He repeats, brows furrowing. "Hot where?" He reaches for a towel.
"E-everyw-where."
When soft fibres meet Alia's skin, she almost sighs in comfort. But then the fibres turn into acid, and it makes Alia bend her body away from the fabric as a scream tears out of her throat. Tears stream down her face as she begins to cry into Valen's chest. She clutches his shirt like her life depends on it, skin feeling as if it's been seared raw.
Valen tosses the towel away and places a hand against the back of her head. "Okay, okay! No towel."
Alia's body continues to shiver whilst she cries, skin resembling ice underneath Valen's touch. He curses under his breath before bending down and sweeping her into his arms. With an arm underneath her knees and another around her back, Valen carries her into the bedroom and sits on the edge of his bed.
"Where does it hurt?" He asks, adjusting her body so she can straddle him.
Alia sniffles in an attempt to calm herself, but the tears continue to fall. She leans forward against his torso, mouth near his collarbone. Fingers follow the curve of her spine, travelling upwards until Alia drops her forehead on Valen's shoulder with a low moan of relief.
"Here?"
Alia nods.
Valen spreads his fingers and brings up his other hand to caress her wet skin. "Does this help?"
Leaning further into him, Alia closes her eyes and moves her arms around Valen's waist to hold onto his lower back. She nods again.
Normally his touch is warm against her, but now his palms sate her pain and remove any sensation of heat from her soul. She can finally have a moment of peace, and it's all because of her mate's touch.
Water drips down her back, but she doesn't feel the chill of the air on her wet skin. She doesn't feel the cold of her internal temperature even when she knows it's there.
Her body still shakes against Valen's, breaths quick and uncontrolled. The sound of each inhale is the only thing she can hear, but it fails to distract her mind from her mate's presence. When her forehead drops onto Valen's shoulder, he removes his hands from her back and takes hold of her hands instead. He guides her palms to his abdomen, sliding her fingers underneath his long-sleeve to touch his skin. She doesn't protest, fingertips weakly tracing every defined ridge of his muscles.
Alia can feel her energy slipping out of her, and before she can succumb to her fatigue Valen whispers, "Lean back." And she does.
He grabs the hem of his top and swiftly pulls the uniform off, torso bare to her slowly opening eyes. Her hands barely get the chance to move up to his chest before his arms are around her again, pulling her flush against his chest whilst her legs wrap tighter around his waist. Alia's hands grasp his back as she closes her eyes, serene in his arms.
Valen shifts on his bed, and just as he lifts the covers to warm her back, slumber takes her.
"It's considerably rare for a Fated female to experience Heat."
Christian sits in his local office in a town on the other side of Rosía, Erisos. He converses with a medical researcher who specialises in the ways of the Mate Bond and the intricacies of Chosen and Fated Mates. Dr Matvey Sokolov sits on a brown leather armchair on the other side of Christian's desk. His fingers subtly brush against one another as he answers his Gamma's questions.
Matvey continues, "It would require five to seven days of no contact between the female and her mate, which is an extremely unlikely occurrence when Fated are notorious for having the urge to continuously touch each other from the moment they complete the bond."
Christian leans back in his matching leather armchair, off-white walls surrounding the pair. "How about with Titled wolves? Do the circumstances differ?"
"Of course," Matvey answers. "The strength of the bond is linked to the dominance of the male. A Titled man is undoubtedly more dominant than an Untitled, so the time required to initiate the Heat would be shorter."
"How short?"
"It would probably need a day or two, at least." Matvey's blonde hair is dishevelled, indicating multiple runnings of his fingers through the short strands. Freckles are scattered on his cheeks and nose, whilst his bright blue eyes are filled with knowledge unknown to most. A white shirt covers his torso whilst navy dress pants cover his legs, shoes a shiny black.
"If experiencing Heat is rare, and it's not an integral aspect of the bond, then why have it? What's its purpose?"
"When Fated mates complete the bond, the male goes through a phase of experiencing possessive and territorial primal feelings towards their female. It normally lasts a week, and the severity reduces as the days pass, but this Heat is in place to return the male to his mate after he stays in public for too long. It prevents violence towards other men in the Pack, which normally ends in beatings that are not under the male's control. This, along with the primal need to populate the Pack with strong offspring is the reason for a shorter timeframe amongst Titled."
"How has the female fared?" Matvey asks, frowning. "Untitled females would experience some sweaty discomfort, and Titled females may need to strip from their clothes and shower a few times to keep cool. But you mentioned previously that she was in some pain. How much pain?"
Christian rolls his shoulders, eyes minutely squeezing shut as his mind is invaded by Valen's voice. "A significant amount," he relays. "She was found hypothermic and screamed after feeling the warmth of a towel."
Matvey's eyes are wide. "Gods," he whispers. "I assume her mate has returned to her, yes?"
Christian nods.
"Good. He must stay with her until they can resolve it. Ensure they do not stop touching each other or the effects of the Heat will return instantaneously."
"How does one resolve it? Does it fade with time or must something be enacted?"
"The only way to resolve an episode would be through sexual intercourse. If they are away from each other for the same duration this week, then another episode of Heat will be initiated, and will thus need to be resolved."
"Will it ever stop initiating?"
"Only when the male's urge to kill dissipates. But again, just the touch of hands will prevent its reoccurrence, so ensuring that they're close to one another is vital in its prevention."
Christian stands, hand motioning towards the door. "Thank you, Matvey. Your knowledge is as invaluable as always."
Matvey stands and bows his head, hands pressed at his sides. "Of course, Gamma. My expertise is at your disposal at any time."
When the door closes, Christian sits back in his leather chair with a sigh. He runs a hand through his hair as he recounts Matvey's words. His voice is quiet inside the still office, "I don't think your urge to kill will fade anytime soon."
Valen's voice sounds inside the Gamma's mind, 'It won't.'
"Then you must stay by her side. Ensure you have physical contact every hour at most or this Heat will return."
'Where she goes, I go. I will not have her suffer through this again.'
"Good," says Christian. "I will test your primal urges again in six days. Until then, I will have to insist that your mate stays away from the Training centre. Her sparring will set you off and you may end up killing half of the men inside. They are all prospects for the upcoming Trials and are my wolves no less, so their lives must continue to be lived."
'What about Alia's training?'
"You may spar with her if she requires a wolf to spar with. But you will not aid her in her abilities nor will you implement any of the training you impose on my Warriors."
'Fine.' Then Valen's presence slips out of Christian's mind, causing the Gamma to rub his temples in an attempt to ease the growing headache.
•
Kind of a filler but things will pick back up next chapter.