Chapter 33-Azul'a POV
Chaos erupted as soon as I fired that first shot. The sudden influx of shouting was enough to make my ears ring. My hands trembled slightly at the stench of death. I breathed in deeply through my mouth, trying to regain my focus.
But that smell. It roused the beast inside me, taunting it with what it loved the most. It began roaring inside me, viciously attacking my conscious mind in an attempt to escape.
My whole body trembled as I fought it back with everything I had. I couldn’t afford to do this now! Amias needed me. The pack needed me. And damn it that had begun to mean something to me!
They weren’t the cold-hearted bastards I’d made them out to be. They’d just been following orders. Their intentions hadn’t been malicious; they were mere puppets. My mind flashed back to my conversation with Mahina. It seemed like moons ago now and I felt like I’d matured more in this past week or so than I ever could in ten summers.
It was their Alpha. Their old Alpha, I mentally corrected. He was the one at fault. He was the one with bad intentions. He was the one who should be punished. And punished he was. It wasn’t fair for anyone else to suffer for his crimes.
A lightness settled over my shoulders then as I realised that I couldn’t blame Amias. For anything. It seemed foolish now to have even thought to place the guilt on his shoulders in the first place. After all, they’d taken my location straight from his head; Amias would never deliberately betray me like that. What made it worse was that he’d just sat back and taken all of my insults, my accusations. Scolding shame washed over me.
I needed to make it up to him. I needed to tell him how sorry I was. And I was going to start by beating this fucking beast back into submission.
It was a simple enough plan, but the beast had other ideas. Every metaphorical punch I dished out was returned twice as hard until I could barely stand. My head was spinning, my vision blurring, my ears ringing.
My bow fell from my grasp, and it was only then that I realised that despite my inner turmoil, I had continued firing off shots. A cold sweat broke out across my body as I battled the beast with everything I had. Fear overwhelmed me. What if I wasn’t strong enough to defeat it without Amias?
My gaze sought him out just in time to see a huge sandy brown wolf crash straight into him. My heart seemed to catch in my throat before kicking into overdrive as Amias flew through the air and collided with a tree. There was a sickening crack that had bile rising in my throat. When he groaned and sat up, relief rushed through me, so strong that it momentarily kept the beast at bay.
But when Amias grabbed at his shoulder and snapped it back into place, a blistering rage tore through me. How dare they hurt my mate, I seethed.
“Give me control and I’ll make them pay,” the beast whispered inside me. “They’ll never touch what’s ours again.”
For one dark moment, I considered it. I knew what would happen if I let it take over: death. Pure and simple. And in that second, I craved the death of that sandy brown wolf more than I craved the air in my lungs.
But then I shook my head. No, I couldn’t do this! If I let the beast take over, who knew if I’d be able to get control once again? It was a strong son of a bitch, I’d give it that.
I had to get out of here. There was too much temptation. Too much blood. Too much death.
Before I could fully process what I was doing, I turned and stumbled across the clearing and into the forest. My limbs were heavy and clumsy but I continued regardless. Mahina was screaming at me to go back, to not abandon our mate. I ignored her. I didn’t want to leave Amias either but it was that or relinquish the seat of power in my mind. I knew which I preferred. Amias could take care of himself.
“You killed him.”
I froze at the voice. It sounded young, child-like, almost innocent, but there was a darkness tingeing his words that made the beast inside of me sigh happily at the corruption. My legs wobbled beneath me but I kept my balance somehow, using a nearby tree for support.
My eyes landed on a boy who couldn’t have been more than eighteen. His hair was black and matted with mud. There were smears of blood across his chest that told me he’d recently come from a fight. My gaze locked with his then and I was astonished at the utter emptiness I encountered. It was almost as if he’d switched off, like his conscious mind wasn’t there anymore and his body had just continued to act on its own.
“You killed him,” the boy repeated. Something flickered in his eyes, a dark emotion that I had difficulty grasping.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, glancing around for some kind of escape. In my condition, I knew that if I ran, he would catch me with ease. The only other option was to fight him, and given my lethargic state, I didn’t think that would go down too well either.
“Or you could just let me take over,” the beast taunted. “I could crush him like a bug.”
“I’m talking about the fucking arrow sticking out of my brother’s chest!” the were snapped, his muscles suddenly becoming rigid. His blue eyes flashed amber.
I snorted. “You invade our territory and you’re crying to me about a little arrow?” I knew that I should watch my tone but I couldn’t help it. This guy was slow.
Utter fury stole across his face as he stalked closer to me. I automatically went to take a step back but the rain had made the ground slippery. I lost my balance and fell backwards with a cry, my head smashing until the trunk of the tree. I saw stars.
The were’s lips twitched with amusement, like watching my face twist in agony was the highlight of his day. As I scrambled to get up, he delivered a swift kick to my side that had me groaning in pain. Before I could retaliate, he grabbed a fistful of my hair slammed my head against the tree repeatedly, despite my struggles to free myself. Blood dribbled down the side of my face.
Damn it, if my limbs would just fucking cooperate with me then this little pup would be writhing in a heap on the floor. But they were as heavy as ever, the internal war inside me beginning to reach its climax.
“Let me out! Let me out! Let me out!” the beast snarled inside me. Its voice was so loud that a dull headache began to form in my temples. Or maybe that was a side effect from having my head bashed into a tree... A hysterical laugh rose in my throat but I swallowed it with difficulty.
“Amia-“ I began to yell, but was cut off abruptly when a fist collided with my neck, knocking the breath from my lungs. I lay on the ground on my hands and knees, panting, while the were released my neck to skip back a couple of steps, studying my bloody state.
“Your stupid mate can’t help you now,” he sneered, spitting in my direction. It landed an inch away from my right hand. “I don’t give a shit what my Alpha wants. You kill one of ours, we kill you. There is no middle ground.”
He was advancing towards me but all of my muscles were locked into place as I put all of my energy into keeping the beast contained.
“How dare he talk to us like that?” it raged. “He’ll die for his insolence. Die! Let me out, you stupid little-“
I didn’t even know that the were was shifting until I saw a little brown wolf stalking towards me.
“He’s going to kill us if you don’t let me free!” the beast snarled, a hint of fear creeping into its voice. With its fear came desperation; it began attacking me with a new fervour. It took all of my concentration to keep it at bay but I was slipping. I felt like I was about to fall off the edge of a cliff and I was hanging on with a few fingers but the knowledge that I was going to fall haunted me. I didn’t want to become that monster again but I knew that it was only a matter of time before I broke.
I registered that the wolf had pounced towards me but I still couldn’t bring myself to act. I would rather die myself than live a monster. If the wolf could just get to me before it took over, I could die in peace.
I braced myself for pain, for death, squeezing my eyes shut. I could have sworn I heard Amias shout my name and a serene smile twitched at my lips at the thought of him. But the blow I expected never came.
There was the horrible sound of teeth tearing through flesh followed by an awful crack and squelching noise. I opened my eyes slowly and my heart stopped.
Amias lay in front of me, blood oozing from a bite wound over his ribs. He skin was pale, his eyes shut. His chest hardly rose with his breaths, as if even that basic instinct was too much work. The little brown wolf was staring at his body in shock, a sticky redness coating his muzzle.
That was all it took for me to lose it.
The beast roared up within me, taking me over in an instant. I didn’t even bother to fight back. My mind was still reeling over Amias. Oh God, he was so still. So pale. My heart stuttered with dread.
I found my conscious mind back in that shadowy prison, once again chained to the wall. Beside me, I saw Mahina, also in manacles.
She looked even worse than I did. Her eyes were wild and filled with pain. She couldn’t seem to stay still, pacing as much as her shackles would allow her.
“He’s dying Azula!” she burst out as soon as she saw me. I sucked in a breath, her words like a physical blow. “He’s dying and it’s all our fault!”
“He can’t be,” I whispered. The words were weak even to my own ears, the denial more for my benefit than hers. I’d only just started to accept Amias; he couldn’t die now! There was still so much I needed to say to him. I never even told him I liked him. He’d never know...
Unable to face by thoughts any longer, I focused on the screen, needing to know what was happening with my body.
“You’re going to pay for that,” the beast said. It used a tone that I had never used before. It was dark, dangerous; the hairs on my arms lifted. Goosebumps emerged.
The beast lifted an arm and the little wolf began to levitate, hovering in the air. It whined pathetically, its eyes darting around in panic. Its legs flailed as it rose higher and higher until it was level with the tops of the trees.
“How dare you hurt my mate?” the beast yelled, fury devouring every word. Its hand clenched into a fist and all of the wolf’s legs bent at unnatural angles. A whimper burst from its chest. The sound was music to my ears. Amias was dying because of this little runt. He deserved this and worse.
“How dare you even think to hurt me?” the beast continued. It muttered something under its breath that I didn’t quite catch. The words had barely left its lips when the wolf’s body began to spasm. Its amber eyes bulged and its tongue stuck out almost comically. Constant whimpers were torn from its throat as it writhed in utter agony. Mahina and I shared a grin, all shred of our humanity gone as we watched our vengeance unfold. No one hurt our mate and got away with it.
“You come to my territory, attack my pack and moan about the death of your idiotic brother?” it snarled. It lowered its arm slightly and the body moved down in sync, stopping when it was level with the middle of the trees. The beast flung its arm to the side in a careless movement before bringing it back to its original position, repeating the process over and over. Each time its arm moved, the wolf did too. It slammed into the tree trunks so many times that I lost count.
The beast laughed when it finally got bored of its game. It relinquished its hold on the wolf, allowing it to just fall to the ground. I winced as the crack of breaking bones filled the heavy silence. Wait. Silence?
Sure enough, everyone had stopped fighting to gaze at the beast in morbid fascination and horror. The beast seemed to laugh harder when it realised this, turning towards them all to do a quick bow while the wolf lay whining on the ground in a heap as the healing process began to take place.
“I hope you all enjoyed the show,” it said, its voice mocking and dramatic. “Now, for one final trick...”
The beast began to circle the wolf as it had done to me earlier before it stopped rather abruptly and began chanting.
“Ring of fire, fulfil my desire,” it whispered over and over until a huge ring of fire appeared out of nowhere, hovering in the air in front of the little brown wolf.
“And now, gentlemen, for the final event!” the beast announced, grinning evilly. “This little wolf will jump through this ring of fire!” The wolf raised its head in horror but even that looked like an effort to it.
When the wolf made no attempt to get up, the beast stormed over to it and grabbed it by the scruff, hauling it to its feet. It seemed that they had only just healed from being brutally broken; the wolf wobbled like a baby deer standing for the first time.
“If you don’t jump through that fucking hoop, I’ll tear out your intestines and feed them to you. Do you understand?” The wolf whimpered, nodding once. The beast released it and stepped back, eyes narrowed into little slits.
The wolf gazed up at the ring of fire. It hovered quite high, a little bit above its head. It would have been a difficult jump to make had you been in peak condition. This little runt was never going to make it...
The wolf skipped back a couple steps, glancing around nervously before it sprinted towards the fire. At the last second, its back legs pushed off the ground, propelling it up into the air. It sailed towards the ring, twisting so that it entered through it upside down before spinning back around again, landing on its feet on the ground. Almost immediately, it collapsed, resting its head on its paws. I couldn’t help but notice that some of the fur on its back was singed.
The beast stared at the wolf for a moment in shock before clapping slowly. The sound was eerie in the quiet. The rain had stopped at some point so it was the only noise for miles around. Even the birds weren’t singing, knowing better than to break this morbid afternoon with their happiness.
“Do it again,” the beast commanded suddenly. The wolf’s head snapped up, staring at the beast in disbelief. “Give me that look again and your intestines won’t be the only thing you’re eating,” it warned. The wolf lowered its head in submission almost immediately, hauling itself to its feet. I could practically hear the mental prep talk he was no doubt giving himself.
It cast a nervous glance up, shutting its eyes briefly before it began to run up towards the ring again, at the last second jumping up just as it had the first time. It would have made it through the ring no problem if the fire hadn’t suddenly jerked down.
The wolf collided with the flames head first. It yowled in agony as the fire immediately raced over its fur. Seconds later, it crashed to the floor, the flames still devouring it. It rolled around on the ground, desperately trying to eradicate the inferno but it was no use.
The beast muttered something and the flames slowly turned an inky black. It looked unholy, unnatural and yet somehow strangely beautiful. Gasps of horror sounded from our spectators but the beast paid them little heed, greedily drinking in the sight of the wolf burning alive. Its howls of pain seemed to excite the beast all the more.
I knew that I should feel bad for the boy. I should help him, even if he’d tried to kill me because after all, nobody deserved this treatment. But I just couldn’t. He’d hurt Amias, possibly even killed him and would do the same thing to me without a thought. Why should I show him mercy when he’d showed me none?
For the first time, the beast and I were in accord. With a smile on our face, we watched as the wolf burned, until it was reduced to nothing more than a pile of ash. Soon even that was gone, blown away by the wind as if it was nothing more than a leaf, not the remains of a person.
“If you’re not with us, you’re against us,” the beast announced quietly, staring around at the people watching. I recognised some of them as pack members, but there were some that I knew belonged to White Falls. They began shifting uncomfortably, backing away slowly. As if that would save them.
“Our enemies don’t deserve to live. They deserve to burn.”
The beast clicked its fingers and the ring of fire, which had turned black too, exploded outwards. There were shouts of panic from White Falls and Tenebra alike as they tried to cover themselves from the flames. Tenebra needn’t have worried. We were on the same team. The fire left them unscathed, creeping over their trembling forms like water.
White Falls weren’t so lucky. As soon as the flames touched their skin, it raced on to discover more, leaving no part of them untouched. It didn’t stop until there were little piles of ashes everywhere. Their screams seemed to echo in my head.
And there, amongst the chaos of noise, was a voice I never thought I’d hear again.
“Azula?” Dad yelled.
***
For some reason, I really dislike this chapter >.< I don't know what it is about it that i don't like, the whole thing just doesn't seem right to me.... Is that just me?
Well anyway... I didn't realise it but I think that this is actually the second last chapter! o.O As in the next chapter should be the last chapter of this book :O HOLY SHIZZ BALLS! And I'm aiming to get that written by tomorrow since I started writing it exactly a year ago and wanted to finish the first draft in exactly a year since I thought that'd be cool :P
So anyway, what did you think of the chapter? Azula went a little bit mental o.O And Amias is still dyingggg :'( AND HER DAD IS BACK!
Urgh, I really hope I can get the chapter written tomorrow. I have a French student staying with me for a week so it doesn't leave a lot of time for writing since I'm often taking him out and showing him the sites. OMG though, it was so sad, we went to the zoo and his wallet got lost/stolen and then when we found it, it was wiped clean of money. I felt so bad for him, he's only 13 as well :'(
No, stop being depressing midnight. Baaaaad midnight *slaps wrist* I'm going mental from sleep deprivation. It's only like 1am here but I walked up 96 steps in the train station (it's more than it sounds, believe me!) and then walked all the way round the zoo and then walked to and from the train station and I'm just totally zonked. So yeah, I'm gonna go sleep now (:
Night night don't let the werewolves bite. Mwhahahahaha, I'm so punny >;D