𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 25
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ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ'ꜱ ɴᴏ ɢʟᴏʀʏ ɪɴ ᴄʟɪᴍʙɪɴɢ ᴀ ᴍᴏᴜɴᴛᴀɪɴ ɪꜰ ᴀʟʟ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴏ ɪꜱ ᴛᴏ ɢᴇᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴏᴘ. ɪᴛ'ꜱ ᴇxᴘᴇʀɪᴇɴᴄɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʟɪᴍʙ ɪᴛꜱᴇʟꜰ - ɪɴ ᴀʟʟ ɪᴛꜱ ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛꜱ ᴏꜰ ʀᴇᴠᴇʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴ, ʜᴇᴀʀᴛʙʀᴇᴀᴋ, ᴀɴᴅ ꜰᴀᴛɪɢᴜᴇ - ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀꜱ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏᴀʟ.
(DURING THE EVENTS OF THE CLEARING-
in case anyone got confused;
there's also going to be a whole book about Carmen and Jacksonnn later on)
...Jackson
I stumble straight into the wall rather than walking between the two walls highlighting the route to my bedroom from the stairs. I swear I'm only half blind, but even I can find the difference between walls and hallways. Carmen immediately rushes out of our room as she hears the thump of my body falling to the ground.
I groan as waves and waves of pain drift through me. It feels as though it was ripping apart the fibers of my being and then sewing them back together, only to rip them apart again. I refrain from growling, knowing that this is personal pain, not meant to be felt by my newly acquired pack or mate.
Melanie.
A headache blossoms and my stomach churns just before I turn to my side and let it all go. The scent of vomit permeates the air a few seconds later, and Carmen and I scrunch our sensitive noses. Rather than leaving me to deal with my mess, which is what I silently prefer, Carmen moves closer, wrapping her arms around me.
Violent shudders rip through me as surges of agony spread though my body like wildfire. My baby sister was out there getting tortured and I could do nothing about it. I hate this twin bond and knowledge sometimes. I feels as if I was shot in the shoulder but when I reach up, there's no blood or signs of injury. The next to hurt is my leg and back. This time I growl as my wolf joins me in the forefront of my mind.
'She's being tortured in more ways than one...' My wolf enlightens me, retreating to the back of my mind again as the pain increases tenfold suddenly. Who knows exactly what my innocent little sister is going through? She's a fighter, but even an Alpha may not be able to survive with injuries such as the ones I'm feeling.
Having my mate beside me suppresses some of the intended anguish but it still hurt nonetheless. Melanie doesn't even have her mate with her, asshole or not. "Hey, it's going to be okay." Carmen says as a way to pacify me. My wolf, deciding that the pain was bad for both me and our mate, uses some of his remaining strength to bring a bit of sleepiness to me.
A moment passes and sleep completely overcomes me as I slouch over in Carmen's arms.
...Lucas
An in-explainable, white hot fury had tortured me, a while after the destruction of my office, just as I entered my bedroom. This wasn't the same as my anger at hearing about the Mating Ceremony. Indescribable spasms of torment tore through me not long after as well. It felt like someone took an iron rod, shoved it up my a$s and twisted it around while stabbing my entire body over and over again. A burning fever broke out with my agony and I had crumpled to the ground, or more like my lavish hardwood floor, for the first time in my whole life.
As the pain continues, a sickening realization's uncovered by my distressed wolf, a moment after struggling to find its source. 'It's our mate. She's being violated.' I gasp as the pain now moves on to squeeze the heart that people don't think I have, before more tendrils of anguish travel down through my body. My eye lids flutter shut of their own accord as I clench my teeth to control any whimpers. I'm an Alpha. I'm supposed to be strong for my pack and mate.
My nails extend to claws that I scrape along the floor; my teeth drop down into my canines; hair sprouts along my arms. I instantly know my wolf wants to come out and take the blunt of our misery rather than me but after the loss of our mate, he doesn't deserve it.
I was the one who had pushed her into leaving anyway. It was my fault and I have to own it. If this was the Goddess's way of punishing me for my mistakes, then so be it; I'll take it all. My phone rings somewhere around my room. On my bed, where I had left it a few hours ago. I gnash my teeth, hitting the floor with my closed fists a few times before slowly rising up to my knees. Who can it be?
I shove my wolf to the very back of my mind and limit his agony to close to nothing, absorbing it as my own. Jake resists the unnatural change but, a few seconds later, and I win the mental battle with him. I put my hand on the small decorative table beside my bedroom door, and with shuddering breaths, I lift myself up.
A guttural growls rips through me as my hands latch onto my hair, tugging it. I can almost hear a wailing- a reflection of someone's suffering- but I dismiss it as a figment of my wild imagination. My phone stops ringing. I thought the bond had been broken since I hadn't felt Melanie through it for a good few days. Barely balancing my weight on my two oddly shaky legs, I manage to hit the edge of my bed as I fall, knocking my iPhone off of its corner and onto the ground beside where I lay.
If Melanie was being taken with her consent, the pain would've still been there for me, but less since she'd be feeling nothing but pleasure. With the tripled amount of misery, it was obvious that this was involuntary. "SON OF A BITCH!" I roar, twisting around to punch the floor beneath me. My fist goes straight through the floor, revealing the fixture beneath. My phone starts going off again. I pick it up.
"Lucas? Jackson's collapsed, he's unconscious. What's going on? What's happening to him?" My sister's worried voice is the one of the only sounds in my room, other than that of my heavy breathing.
"M-Melanie's hurting." I pant as an unusual liquid floods my eyes. A droplet of it falls onto my phone screen and I realize what it is. A tear.
"What are you o-" Abruptly, the door to my bedroom swings open, slamming into the wall. With dark eyes, I raise my head up to glare at the person who had disrupted my torture and throw my phone at him. He dodges it and I realize Carmen had still been speaking.
Jeremy stands still, eyes taking me in, his hands on his head as if trying to stop something. "Y-you're r-r-reverberating your p-pain through the w-whole pack, Alpha." He stutters, groaning with me as another wave of despair cuts through the cells of my being and echoes onward to my wolves.
"F-fuck!" I hiss, wishing it would all stop. I feel a pressure being exerted on the side of my neck and my vision blurs. Before my head drops back down onto the floor, I see Jeremy above me holding a needle and then I finally fall unconscious.
The last thing I distinctly heard is, "Ready the warriors. We're going to war!"
*~*~*~*~*
"We'll rush in from this section of Caine's territory. It's the least guarded from what our scouts have told us." Jeremy's voice drifts into my mind though a confusing tunnel of sound. "There are two guards placed by this large tree and we can have our stealthy warriors knock them out. They clearly weren't expecting any sort of attack from us."
"What about our Alpha?" Another voice pipes in and I recognize our head warrior, Jamie. I still don't open my sensitive eyes, knowing the light would hurt them.
Jeremy hesitates before replying, truthfully. "Let's just say when he gets up, nothing will be able to stand in his way to his mate." Even though I'm no longer unconscious, I don't want to get up and give input right now, because I know the moment I open my eyes, blinding white light will hurl itself at me and so will the rage to get my mate back and give Caine the torment he deserves. Then I remember Melanie might not have enough time before Caine obtrudes again. It was common for newly mated couples to go at it a few times ever day before satisfaction comes around.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR? YOU'RE LUNA'S BEING TORTURED," I roar, sitting up immediately and I rip the IV cord (why do I even have one?) from my arm and face my hospital room (why am I even here?). Then I realize, said hospital room's moving. I must be in one of our ambulances. I ask for the time and I'm pleasantly surprised to learn it's only 3:23 pm; it's before the mating ceremony.
Everyone jumps at the sound of my voice and tilt their heads slightly in submission when they feel the force of my wolf behind my angry words. But more so because of my sudden alertness.
Then a flurry of events occur in which I end up thinking back to how we had been formulating strategies before, and I get all of my allied Alphas on a conference call.
"We'll be there by the time you attack." They concur as soon as I state the fact that I'll be going to war in less than two hours with the cause of my sudden decision. They understand that this matter required immediate attention and they dispatch their warriors with urgency as well. Caine's castle is far.
'Can you contact her wolf?' I inquire and Jake shakes his head solemnly.
'Her wolf's retreated to the very back of her mind because of the assault.'
'Wouldn't that leave her more vulnerable?' I worry, taking a hold of my aching head. My wolf nods, a gloomy glint in his eyes. 'We need to get to her NOW.'
After re-accessing our situation and reminding all of the warriors present of our plan of attack and entry point, the other Alphas and I provide our wolves with a motivational speech.
They had all arrived as early as possible (it only took an hour-long wait in which I took control back from Jeremy), having left when they received my almost-desperate call. Now, we were all preparing to go to war. In another half hour, we would be invading Caine's territory.
He's not going to know what hit him. With a wolfish grin, I transform into my large, ebony wolf and all of my soldiers follow suit. I tilt my head back and howl at the blazing sun, shining overhead.
Soon, we're bounding through the thicket, with blood-lust filling our minds and bodies, toward the despicable creature who had the guts to torture an Alpha's mate.
My mate.
I tease the edge of Caine's boundary, debating on where exactly to attack. His castle rises from between the depth of the forest, calling me forward and to my mate in pain. My wolf aches to bound across the border and rip out the hearts of all of our enemies on his way to our mate. He's currently bound by a very thin tether as my own patience wears thin.
I could smell the rogue filth that traveled through this area. I can tell they weren't prepared for a full frontal attack. And that's why I chose to lash out at the first row of enemy patrol wolves. Soon, the rest of my allies and my own warriors were racing into enemy territory behind me, our wolfish bloodlust making itself more apparent than ever.
After we pass all of the surprised rogues, the more experienced soldiers begin to emerge from the depths of Caine's land. One deformed rogue in my otherwise straightforward path to Melanie is all it takes for my wolf to finally completely take over. The rest of the rogues turn to a blur of blood and limbs as we lose count of our kills, until Jake and I reach a set of double doors in the west wing of the palace. With one last roar, we burst through the door and half shift to ensure I'm still armed with my sharp claws and harmful canines.
My eyes zero in on the frail and very naked figure laying in discomfort on the bed, the disgusting hybrid standing lazily over her. Tiny growls escape me as I watch him extend his own claws so the tips rest on Melanie's neck, marking her vulnerability. He must've been informed. So much for a quick grab and go.
"Look what the bitch dragged in!" Caine exclaims, sleazily running his other hand down my mate's chest. "Come to save your whore?" I raise my chin slightly and puff out my chest, nostrils flaring with annoyance and anger. Narrowing my eyes on the crimson scene before me, I take a whiff of the stale air, permeated by the scent of Melanie's blood.
I will make him bleed, the same way he made my mate bleed.
"She's no whore if she had to be forcefully taken," I retort, my eyes falling back down to my broken woman and then to the sh#thead that did her dirty, "Just looking for a person to maul, that's all."
Knowing that I couldn't blindly attack the big shi& right now because of the hold he held over Melanie, I begin accessing my options. None of my other wolves were close enough to help me, and anyway, Goddess forbid if anyone else saw my bare mate. Caine raises an eyebrow. "And those rogues you killed weren't enough?" The slob gropes her as I stand, helpless, watching as my mate flinches and groans and tries to move away. She's barely conscious, her eyes lolling back every now and then.
'Mine!' My wolf hisses possessively while attempting to break free from my control. As if sensing my turmoil, Melanie's pained eyes snap to meet mine. She, almost drunkenly, glances down at her hands, then to Caine's back turned toward her momentarily, and then to me and my claws. It takes me a couple more seconds and for her to repeat her odd looks for me to figure out what she's suggesting. The plan seems ridiculous but seeing as it's the only one we've got, we might as well try our chances.
Stupid, I know. But there's a 50% chance that I'll be able to accomplish what I came here to do. "They were easy." I shrug, flicking an invisible speck of dust off of my unclothed shoulder. "I prefer my victims to be more challenging."
The hybrid growls, lips pulled back into an ugly snarl. I already know what I'm going to do with him. And especially his own family. "I can assure you, I'm not."
Melanie brings out her claws and swipes a deep cut into Caine's arm after realizing his diversion while being angry. His first mistake. With widened eyes, he yelps and instinctively turns away, his back to me. His second mistake. I fling myself at him, half-shifting in the jump, claws deeply raking his back and contributing to the splattered blood on the ground and the bed. Caine falls down to his knees beneath me, my claws still firmly lodged in his back and ready to displace his spine.
"GO! Downstairs, by the front entrance!" I roar at Melanie, before my eyes widen at the idea of her running around everywhere naked and bleeding, I add, "Grab some clothes too; you won't be able to shift. I bet there'll be some pervs out there." My mate winces as she gets up but manages to still flip me off before escaping the room. It's good to know she still has her fire in her.
Using my distraction to his advantage, Caine flips me over his shoulder, harshly ripping my sharp nails from his back. I land on the cold, hard floor, all of the air rushing out of me. I get up onto my feet quickly as Caine groans and stumbles as he attempts to stand.
"Are you still sure you're not as easy as the fuckers that you 'rule'?" I taunt, circling his bleeding figure. With injuries like his, healing would be out of the question for at least a couple of weeks. That is, if he survives that long. He lunges at me without any sense of aim and I dip to the side as he falls on his face, trails of red pouring from his injuries. I promised I would make him bleed.
"Honey, you don't stand a chance against me." I growl, crouching to poke my finger into one of the cuts I had made. He roars, forcing his stomach further into the ground as the blood flow doubles. "Not anymore when I have everything I need." I bring my foot down on his back, using my weight to hold him down.
'Boys, I got who we came here for. She should be out front. Secure the perimeter, this war's as good as over.' I link my pack. 'Let the other pack's wolves' know.' I lean over to grab Caine's hair in a tight vise.
"Lights out, bitch," I hiss before roughly bringing his head down on the hardwood floor and effectively knocking him out. I ask two of my pack members to take Caine's still-alive-and-breathing body out of my face and into my dungeon as I go to find his family.
When I'm returning down to the main floor of the massive structure, I notice my mate sitting idly and quite awkwardly at the end of the stairs. Melanie seems to be in deep thought as I approach her so I take the time to access her small figure. She's in an unfamiliar hoodie with leggings and when I take a whiff of the air, I'm relieved that it's new clothing and not from Caine's closet. Her hair's still tousled but more tame now and she's hugging her tiny body with her arms. Her eyes are sunken in and dull and her legs are positioned weirdly as she's sitting hunched over. What exactly did that bastard do to her?
Melanie finally looks up and meets my gaze. There's a million questions in both of our eyes but I push mine to the back of my mind as I sit down beside her. There are a lot of things I want to say but I'm afraid of saying the wrong thing or doing something that will drive her away from me again, so instead, I say, "I have to deal with his family. Walk with me?" She nods and we both get up together, me cringing at how much of an idiot I must've sounded like. There was so much I wanted to say to her when I would see her again, but of course, I can never get it right.
We walk, silently, sometimes almost bumping into each other, and sometimes with too many inches of space between us. We can't seem to walk straight. Both of us are stuck in our own separate thoughts but I still notice the slight limp in her footsteps. Frowning, I pick up on Jorge's scent. This was it. Part one of my revenge. The scent of blood thickens around the two of us and I'm suddenly thrown off, unsure where it's coming from. When I glance at our surroundings, I realize we're below the main floor and Melanie looks as disturbed as me, if not more.
"I think it's me not you." She finally murmurs, meeting my confused gaze. What's her? "The blood?" She confirms looking at the rocky flooring and kicking a rock away with her foot and crossing her legs. How much torture did she have to endure? I'm glad she didn't have to deal with the Mating Ceremony.
'You idiot, I clearly remember telling you how she'd been violated.' Jake hisses in my mind and my eyes widen with the reminder and more waves of fury. Caine's life is on a very short timer now. I stay silent, knowing I will definitely say something wrong with how I'm absolutely fuming right now. We keep walking and finally come across a room where I ask Melanie to stay outside so she doesn't have to see me tear apart his whole life.
*-*-*-*-*
"His warriors?" I inquire, my mind repeatedly returning to getting Melanie checked up and safe.
"Mostly dead or they've escaped except for a few being transported to our cells." My beta replies as he reassesses our situation and glares at the unconscious hybrid body in front of us. A pack doctor strolls over to evaluate any injuries on us.
"Is there any chance of a surprise attack from the leftovers?" I ask just as my mate appears in my line of vision, being led forward to me by another pack doctor.
"No." Jeremy, realizing I need some time alone with Melanie, turns to leave to talk to our allies about the situation. I stop him for a minute.
"Any sign of the witch?" An unknown feelings rips through me and it takes me a moment to recognize it as fear. Not for me but for those close to me. With a sad look, he shakes his head before joining our allies. I shake my own head as if I was shaking away the thoughts going through it. Then, I swivel around to the woman chosen for me by the Moon Goddess.
Understanding the fact that Melanie probably wouldn't want to be anywhere near the man who had brought a lot of harm to her, I turn away from Caine and lead her to a large oak tree a few yards away.
"Hey." I murmur, letting my eyes roam over her thin, frail frame. I cross my arms over my shirtless chest. "How're you feeling now?" Dark green eyes tear away from my bare chest to widen at the sound of my voice and a small smirk graces my face at her natural reaction to me. The mate bond, apparently, has only grown stronger with our separation.
"Better, I guess." Her voice is only a soft, hoarse whisper, only to be made out if one hones their ears in, specifically. She seems to be more shy and a lot quieter than before when we were walking together.
"Good." The feeling of fear ripples through me again with the thought of Melanie having no reason to stay with me. After what I had done, I would be extremely shocked if she did stay. My thoughts were all astray, yet all of them revolved around the weakened and tormented she-wolf in front of me. "So this is it, isn't it?" Waves of sadness envelop me as the awareness of this probably being goodbye is identified.
"What?" Her eyebrows are drawn together as a cute, confused look takes over her face. She hadn't thought about it yet, had she?
"After everything, I don't think you would want anything to do with me." I mutter, looking at everything but her. I can't be seen, hurt, in front of my pack. It would make me look weaker than what they must already see me as.
"You're right. But this time, how about I make decisions for myself instead of you making them for me?" She snorts, softly, turning away and crossing her arms over her chest too. My eyes widen at her bluntness before they turn down in anguish. She breaks the delicate silence. "You have a LOT of explaining to do." Her fiery gaze turns to my shocked one. "A#shole." Then she grins at me, her eyes twinkling lightly and she turns to walk away from me.
A smile. A flicker of contentedness. A feeling of peace.
Hope.
Her words bring a smile to my own face as I realize she hasn't completely given up on me and the mate bond just yet. But then Melanie stumbles as she's walking and she falls forward just as I use my werewolf speed to catch up to her and manage to catch her in time. Her eyes are closed and a serene look graces her features. Her entire body is limp.
Been a while. But it's good to be back after being hit by the train called Writers Block. Long chapter. Any thoughts?
This is probably my longest chapter yet.