Chapter 11.
"You'll never pull this off." London spoke behind me as I walked swiftly through the corridors of the pack house. "You'll be captured or worse."
"Nothing's worse than being the reason for more deaths." I dead planted, walking past curious looking pack members.
"It's war Penelope." She scolded, shaking her head sadly at me. "You can't save everybody."
"I have to try." I huffed before walking into my bedroom and towards the closet. Lucian had a back that I could pack, something light and durable.
I don't know how long I'll be gone, or what my plan is, but I'll just have to wing it. There's no time to sort out a strategy, the best thing is to track down a witch and take it. If witches are in Canada, then they can't be very far judging by how fast they got here. A plane won't drop witches in from the sky, it's too dangerous to risk someone getting hurt. I'm too important to their cause on ending the power wolves have.
"You're just like your brother."
I began packing the required clothes I would need, and began loosening the straps so I could carry it in wolf form. It would take too long to go on foot, and shifting was the only option. Once when the sun sets, I'll be able to sneak out a lot easier. The extra patrols start tomorrow morning, and the entire Scout team is unorganized and everywhere. Tonight is my only chance to get out without being spotted.
If I succeed, I'll be able to get home before the sun rises and will be able to put a witch into the jail cells before my parents wake up. London has been living with my family for a few years and knows the sleeping pattern my dad has. He may be Alpha, but even he takes off days.
When I looked at London, I noticed how she was looking sadly at the ground. She was twiddling with a necklace she was wearing, something that no doubt was a gift Clayton gave her. I sighed, and continued to pack the last of a few day's clothing. After noticing London hadn't packed yet, I spoke up.
"You should pack, we'll be leaving in less than an hour." I explained to her, zipping the duffel bag tightly.
"I can't go," London told me guiltily. "I'm pregnant, and it's dangerous for a pregnant wolf to shift."
"I can't go alone, I'm new at finding people." I told her desperately, worried I wouldn't be able to save the pack.
"You're not going alone, I asked someone to help." After she spoke, the door opened to reveal Savannah carrying a heavy looking bag in her arms.
"Hey Penny." She greeted nonchalantly before dropping the bag on the bed. "Witches aren't hard to find, and if they're close we'll be home before midnight."
Savannah pulled her long black hair into a high ponytail before looking at me with her bright green eyes. She seemed excited to be leaving the pack, and I half wondered why that was. Oliver taught me that pack members hardly left the pack, and when they did it was usually based on an Alpha's order. However, she's willing to leave her injured Alpha, Lucian, and my own pack just for this.
The hour went by with Savannah explaining her well ability to track people, and that finding a witch simple enough to capture was perfect. She told me the basic nature of witches, and how they spent most of their time outside. This made us believe that the witches were most likely at a camp, and would have their tents in a large clearing to detect any enemy.
This was the hardest, and taking a witch without getting seen was bound to be tricky. When around a threat, witches traveled in small pods. They are stronger in pods, but if we manage to get them separated they'll weaken. That had been our strategy in the first battle.
Once the sun was down, we said out goodbyes to London and snuck through a window. Savannah went first, her entire body blending into the night with black clothes. She landed on the ground with a small huff, and beaconed me to jump next. I gripped the windowsill tightly, fearing I would break my leg or kill myself.
"Let instincts take over." London had said to me before she went to distract my friends and family. We couldn't risk one of them entering my room and notice I was gone.
I jumped, the wind howling and whistling in my ears as I fell five stories. When the dirt ground got closer to me, I listened to the instructions Savannah had given me and landed on my feet without a problem. I placed my hands on the ground to steady myself, and when I felt like I wasn't going to fall over I stood up. Savannah smiled at me before turning and running towards the woods.
We both shifted soon after, both out paws sinking into the white snow below us. I looked up at Savannah's unique looking wolf, her short fur mixed with red and brown. Her form looked slim, and her ears were long and pointed something completely different to Lucian's blonde wolf.
She sniffed the ground a few times, her new form snorting when a dusting of snow would travel up her nose. Her body was high but her head remained low, she would occasionally look around to make sure we weren't being followed. If we got caught, how know what my father would do. He would no doubt lock me up in my room, and Savannah would surely be punished. I would never forgive myself if that happened.
I continued our fast pace, my long fur wiping with the wind while Savannah remained in front of me. She would stop to sniff a tree, or examine something that a witch must've dropped. As we got further into the woods, I was beginning to feel the temperature drop drastically and my body began to shake. My nose first got cold, and the pads of my feet were shriveling and shaking as we walked on the snow.
Savannah suddenly stopped, her paws digging into the snow while her ears twitched. Her head snapped to the right when something moved, and then to the left when the same thing happened. We were out of my pack's territory now, and unmarked territory was something everyone should fear. Rogues roamed and would kill without any mercy here.
She continued her jog, but was more cautious as we continued our journey. An owl hooted above us, and a crow cried drastically from a branch before taking off. When anything made a noise, we would both stop moving and get into defense mode. Oliver had taught me a lot about fighting in wolf form, and it had become second nature to me.
I nudge Savannah when I noticed a pair of tracked and she walked over them to examine it. It looked as if someone was being dragged, and the two pairs of footprints proved that. She sniffed the place, and growled. It was clear now that she had caught a scent of witches, and however was being dragged needed to be saved.
To my surprise, she shifted and went through her bag to pull on a pair of warm clothes. I did the same and basked in the warmth the woolen sweater gave. She bent down and ran her hand along the tracks and looked up to see the tracks continuing.
"We walk from here." She said softly, and stood up to begin walking. I stood beside her, watching as she seemed to be in deep thought.
"What's wrong Savannah?" I asked her, noticing her scrunched eyebrows.
"The scent had not only popped out of nowhere, but it's too fresh. They should be right here if they had ran at the normal rate a witch would." She whispered, as if the threat would pop out from behind a tree.
"Would that be them?" I pointed at a small campsite that the witches had just started to set up.
"Get down." Savanah hissed, pulling my arm towards the snow, my face smashing into it as she did so. "Keep quiet."
We watched as one man and one woman set up a small tent, no conversation occurring between the two. The man was large, his shoulders wide and coated with muscle. The woman was the opposite of him, and seemed to be covered in more coats than actual skin and bone. Both seemed to be unhappy with the other, though the woman looked more insecure than upset.
A muffled scream was heard, and all of us snapped our heads to the moving body on the ground. The man grunted before leaving the woman to work on the ten by herself. She huffed, but continued to keep it stable with the metal rods and sticks attached to it. The sound of a foot coming in contact with a body was heard, and the man finally spoke.
"Keep quiet, if you're found then we're both dead." The man growled before turning to the young looking woman. "We'll camp for the night, the faster we get to Ayana, the better."
I was right, Ayana is here in Canada. She's no doubt looking for a way weak spot in our pack if these people are going to her. Perhaps we can follow them and end this war easier and faster.
"Their camp isn't too far, we don't have to stop." The woman's voice was soft, but with my enhanced hear I could hear her fine.
"It's too cold to travel by foot, it's better to stay warm and rest by a fire." He turned, no doubt to gather wood for the said fire.
"You are such a selfish man." The woman whispered softly. "Why do I love you?"
The man had long disappeared, and the witch was left by herself. He was probably close, and taking the woman could be hard. I looked back over at the body on the ground, a groan escaping from them as they winced on the ground. Whoever the person was had to be important if they were being brought to Ayana, and any enemy of that witch is a friend of mine.
I took a step forward, my body moving uncomfortably against the snow. "Penny, what are you doing?" Savannah hissed.
"Helping whoever that is." I snapped tugging my arm loose from the hold she had on it.
"London and I have been over this with you, you can't save everybody." She turned to look at the person before looking back at me. "It's a lost cause."
"We need allies, Ayana can send more witches to attack our packs and then what?" I peered back to look at the solemn woman. "We won't even have to kill her, just grab the person and run."
"Witches are unpredictable." She tried to reason, and I shook my head at her. "For all we know she already senses us here."
"It's a quick grab, I promise we'll be able to get away." Something was telling me that the person on the ground knew a lot, and their Intel could help up out.
"If we die, this is on you." Savannah huffed.
"The Moon Goddess plans to kill me when I'm near a hundred years old, no one's going to interrupt that." I grinned confidently before skimming my body along the snow.
Savannah was right beside me, moving on her forearms and knees as she kept herself low to the ground. I copied her, and I noticed that the woman still hadn't noticed us. The woman was too busy ranting softly about her husband that she probably thought we were moose or rabbits.
We weren't far from the man, and he seemed to finally notice us. Savannah gasped, and the man's eyes widened hugely as they locked eyes. The man began thrashing his body as he shook his head desperately at her.
"Malcolm?" She asked, tears coating her eyes and threatening to fall out.
My eyes widened as I noticed the resemblance. He may have grey eyes and blond hair, the completely opposite of each other, but their facial structure was very close. It was like looking at her twin, though this man looked to be in his late thirties maybe more. They were cousins after all.
"We're going to get you out of here." She whispered with high spirit, and grabbed his beaten body carefully.
I helped grab his arm that was bleeding profoundly, and dragged him alongside of Savannah. Once she shoved me off of him, I realized she wanted me to untie his feet and allow him to move. While she dragged him in the direction we came from, I helped unbind his legs and arms. Malcolm grunted as I tried to help him carry himself on his legs.
"We can kidnap a witch later." Savannah told me. "Right now, we have to help my cousin."
I nodded in understanding and watched as she let go of him behind a tree so he could stand. His legs wobbled as we helped him lean against a tree, a groan escaping his lips. I pushed my short copper hair out of my face as I looked at the direction of the couple's camp. When I didn't catch a sight of the man or the woman, I began to worry.
"Come on Penelope, we have to go." Savannah hissed before helping her cousin walk.
"Penelope?" Malcolm mumbled, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears as he winced in unbearable pain. "As in Celia's daughter Penelope."
I nodded. "You know my mother?"
"We'll talk about this when we're safe, yes?" Savannah growled before nudging Malcolm to go on.
I looked behind me again in concern. Where were the two witches? They wouldn't just let Malcolm go if they were going to bring him to Ayana. He had to be important, and from what Savannah had told me from before, something was off about him. She had told me he got involved a lot with witches and had tried to help my mother. Maybe he knew something about me being the next Moon Goddess.
A bolt of green came barreling at us, and I screamed for everyone to duck which they did in a flash. The tree besides us exploded, and we all looked up from the debris to see the two witches standing there, the man with a blue glow encircling his hands. The woman was looking at us with menacing eyes, a glare coming from both of them.
"You're both dead!" The woman shouted. "We need him, and if you give him to us we won't kill you."
"Run." Savannah told me, and we both turned around and bolted from the direction we came.
Bolts of blue and purple came firing at us, and we had to duck and change directions to avoid being hit. Malcolm was limping, Savannah struggling to help him move around but was clearly failing miserably. We can't be far from the pack border now, all we need to do is survive a little bit longer.
I was running on a fallen log when a bolt of blue had hit it and caused it to move like a see-saw. My body went flying forward, and I screamed as I spun in the air. My back hit the ground with a painful thud, and I groaned in pain. I looked up to see Savannah and Malcolm hadn't noticed me get hurt, and I struggled to get up and follow after them
A hand went around my throat unexpectedly, the woman's eyes wild and dangerous. She squeezed, causing me to lose the ability to breathe. I was lifted in the air, my hand gripping her hand and clawing at it for her to release me, but she didn't budge. I kicked at her stomach, which made her lessen her grip and cause both of us to fall to the ground.
"Bitch." She hissed, clutching her obviously bruised stomach as she stood up. I only groaned, the pain in my back seemed to double as I connected to the ground again.
She went on top of me so she was straddling me, and began to send punches my way. I screeched, pulling her face away from me and tugging her oily hair. A ball of blue seemed to glow from her hand and I moved my head just in time to avoid it from beheading me. She huffed in anger, and a green orb appeared in either one of her hands.
I grabbed her wrists, and began directing them away from me, but it wasn't working. In less than a few seconds she would no doubt kill me. My brain went into overdrive to think of a way out of this position. My entire upper body could be used, which may be an advantage. She wasn't holding me arms down now that she was preoccupied to kill me.
I reached for her head, and without thinking correctly, I twisted it to the side. A sickening crack escaped from her neck, and her final breath left her body. It went limp, her body leaning onto me and crushing me, the orbs in her hands disappearing into nothing. I wiggled out from under her and scooted away from her.
My knees instantly went to my chest as I realized what I had just done. I couldn't hear a heartbeat, and she wasn't breathing. Her eyes were wide open and her mouth had formed an 'o'. A sob escaped my own when she looked like this, completely limp after being wild not ten seconds ago.
'Penelope?' I practically screamed when heard his voice in my head, and tears welled up in my eyes after hearing the concern and cautious tone in it.
'Lucian.' I mind-linked back, my hand clutching my chest as I held back the need to throw up.
'Where are you? Please tell me you're all right.' He practically begged, and by now the tears were falling down my cheeks.
'Lucian...' I trailed off, trying to find a way to tell him through my mind. Instead, I tried to send him an image of what I was seeing and what I was feeling. 'I killed someone.'
______________________________________________________*(A/N)*
Hey guys! Early update I know, but I thought I owed it to you guys! Next update will be Sunday, I promise!
So she found Malcolm, but what now? Penelope killed somebody, how will she cop with that after not wanting anymore death because of her?
Please vote and comment, it makes me super happy!!! <3 how are you liking the story-line so far?
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