The hammering in my chest began again. As we began walking back towards the cabin, I could feel his eyes on me. He was watching my every move trying to test if I would lie, or if he could trust me with telling him the truth.
It was a truth that I was unsure of. I mean, Is it really the truth if there are still holes to be discovered? Technically, it would be my truth, but I'm not too sure if it would be the truth.
All I know is that I have to get out of here. There's still the duty of me having to report back to my alpha along with the duty of trying to figure out the answer to all these unanswered question. My mind sometimes would still wander to the Luna Bound I had helped in the woods. What if there were more like her?
His eyes were still on me. They were glaring with the await of my answer. His question still doomed in my mind and left me only to ponder, "What are you?" Is saying that I'm only ordinary even possible anymore? The evidence could all just be some coincidence, but then again, is it bad for me to wonder if it's not?
"I'm a she-wolf. That's the only fact I truly hold," I answer before looking off into the dark sky. The specks of light littered it as if it were bright freckles grazing upon a young girl's face. I didn't feel his eyes glaring at me any longer, all I could focus on was what was above me.
"Ena, you're going to do really big things. I know you will, it's embedded into you. And you may not feel it now, but one day you will show the world what's it like to lead," my mother told me as she wiped a tear from my freckled cheek. I smiled at her words before vowing to myself that I will do anything to make her proud.
"I know, mama," I responded.
He started walking down the trail. My eyes finally moved from the night sky before they fell on him. The first thing I noticed was that he was in front of me, and my hands were not secured by anything. I could easily just attack him from behind and then run. Run away from here, away from this. Go to answer the questions that seemed to have hidden answers.
Just as I was preparing my escape, he turned around. His silver eyes were staring into the depths of mine. He paused his walking as if he were waiting on me, so I disappointedly continued walking until I was directly beside him. From there, we continued walking side-by-side.
"What did Elliot say that you agreed with?" I asked finally allowing the question that's been nagging at my brain to resurface.
He didn't say anything for a while. Alpha King Sir. just kept walking with a much slower pace due to my legs not being able to keep up. He was very tall, it was obvious that he towered over my build. All werewolves are tall, it's apart of our genes. Alpha King Sir. on the other hand, he was a giant.
"Actually, it was more of what you said," he spoke. His deep voice flushed into my ears like the wind pushing past the leaves on the tree. The slight chirp of grasshoppers also made its appearance as we walked. It was a beautiful sight and sound, if only it was more of a beautiful predicament.
"What did I say?" I ask.
"Elliot does act like a celibate," he said with a small smile coming onto his face. Just as it appeared, it disappeared.
With that, I stopped my walking and pointed directly at his lips. "You smiled," I said with a smug grin on my face.
"Stop," he ordered with much more authority. The affect was small, but it wasn't as powerful as it should've been. I stopped the teasing, and decided to just settle with a small chuckle. He looked quite confused and angry. Clearing my throat, my enthusiasm finally sobered up as my hand came up to salute him like a solider.
"Xena, who are your parents?" He asked before tugging me to continue walking on the trail. My mind went into the depths of my memories as I tried to remember the name of my mother and father.
"I don't know," I tell him truthfully.
"You're telling me that you don't know the names of your mother and father?" He asked. It sounded kind of foolish to me, too. Actually, it's not foolish. There could be many possible explanations for why one doesn't know the name of their parents.
"No. My mother died trying to get me to a pack. My father died trying to give us more time to get away from whatever we were running from. I do not find any of this your business, but I know that you won't give up asking if I do not tell. So, I'm saving us both the trouble with the truth," I state.
I watch him not even try to say another word. He was fixated on the trail we were following to take me back to the stupid dungeon where they plan to kill me, or torture me.
"You do not know what your parents were running from?" He asks. Shaking my head I try to come to some sort of conclusion. I try to think back to all the times I could remember my mother, but nothing gave away even the slightest clue of what my parents were so scared of.
It didn't go unnoticed by me how he decided to walk me back to the dungeon at a time none of his pack members around. I am actually appreciative of that. Based on experience, any person who had to live within our dungeon were expected to be talked about and hated on. It meant they've come onto our land and broke a huge rule that we've created in our pack. Only thing about me is that I don't think I've broken any rule.
"I can remember hearing screaming as we ran," I told him as the memory pounded into my mind. He looked over at me in deep thought.
As we continued walking, he was still silent over the matter. The walk back to the dungeon was quite long. I couldn't stop myself from wondering, how exactly did I manage to get to the doctors in time before death consumed me? My eyes wandered over to him, it had to be him.
"Could it had been a pack?" He asks. I didn't really have an answer to that. All that I was aware of is that my mother and father had to have been running away from something.
"If it was a pack, then what pack and why?" I ask him with raised brows. He narrowed his eyes in thought. We could search for answers over and over, but nothing would make sense. This is why I stopped because there is no answer.
Finally, we made it to the dungeon doors. He opened it up and pushed it open for me before allowing me to walk in. "Why are you being so nice to me?" I asked, noticing how I wasn't being dragged in like Incredible Hanes had done to me. He also wasn't looking down at me as if I was a piece of gum stuck on the bottom of his shoe.
"Something tells me you aren't a boundhunter," he answers before taking me down the stairs and back to the cage. Sometime while I was held in the hospital, they must've fixed the gigantic hole Incredible Hanes made out of anger.
He opened the latch and pushed open the door for me to get in. After reluctantly walking in, I sat down against the wall and wanted to punch myself in the eye. "I've never felt more like a werewolf until I got inside of my brand new beautiful home here."
He didn't say another word before walking up the stairs and out of the dungeon. I sighed in frustration as I laid myself out on the thin sheet. My mind wandered over to my mother once again to try and piece clues together that'll help me understand this whole situation.
"We have to protect her no matter what, Gerald," my mother growled out. Through the crack of my bedroom door, I peeked out to see my mother standing in front of my father. Her stance was austere and protecting.
"I don't see how we can birth one. You're not a Luna, and I'm not an alpha," my father spoke.
She shook her head as a sudden loud knock sounded from outside the door. My mother quickly grew this stone cold look on her face as my father seemed to want to drown in fear.
"There's a lot you don't know about me. I know someone who can help, my goal is for her to survive until she accomplishes her purpose," she tells him in a whisper. If it wasn't for my great hearing, I probably wouldn't had been able to understand everything she was saying.
"How if she has no one to guide her?" My father asked.
"Gerald, she's too powerful to need guidance. We have to go find the boy that can help keep her hidden," my mother told him. With that, the whole entire house exploded. My mother and father came running towards my room where they grabbed me as fire began to swim through the house.
I gasped as the memory stuck itself into my mind. If I thought I had a million questions before, I have a trillion now.
"Xena, get up! Get up now!" Elliot shouted out as he started to open up my caged door. I shot up like a madwoman as I stared at him in question.
"What? What's happening?" I asked right before he tore the door down and immediately grabbed ahold of my hand. My mind was screaming out at me to find answers because the amount of confusion that had found its home nestled between my brain was starting to pain me.
"King Adonis found out that there is no Alpha Javier, he believes you've been lying," he tells me as we dash out of the dungeon. My heart beat started picking up the moment I heard the loud powerful growl echo it's way through the forest. Birds flew away and the atmosphere in the RoyalBlood pack seemed to get a lot more murdering.
"Wait, but how? I don't understand. I haven't been lying! I've only said the truth!" I exclaim. Elliot casts me a sad look.
"Ena, the whole pack knows you're here. From what they heard, you're a ruthless boundhunter who killed Luna's. They're all out to get you. I'm going to stay here and keep you safe, but you must run. All of the guards are out plotting something against you so now is the best time to go. Don't stop," he instructs me. Tears begin to pour out of my eyes as he lets go of my arm. Nodding my head, I whisper a small 'thank you' before darting out of the forest.
I let Onyxia take over as her memory was a lot more keen than mine. She raced through the forest, following the exact places we were before. We went based on what we memorized before Hanes had taken us.
I tried to stay strong to give Onyxia more power and strength, but my mentality wouldn't stop breaking down. "It's okay, Ena. You're always so strong, it's okay to let it out," my wolf told me.
Her words struck something inside of me as sadness surrounded me. When we finally made it out of the pack lines, the sounds of the whimpering pack members could be heard. Their howls of sadness and withdrawal echoed possibly through the entire nation.
"Alpha? Alpha Javier?" I tried to call out, but I received absolutely nothing. Onyxia followed the path we once came from where I had killed the two boundhunters. She stopped briefly to smell the area, the stench of their boundhunter blood still littered the air. Quickly, she raced back to our pack.
"Alpha Javier!" I cried out, begging for some type of response. Onyxia continued running, and searching for the pack lines. No matter how much we ran, and searched for that specific smell—we couldn't find it.
"Ena," a voice called out to me. Onyxia stopped momentarily, looking for the source of the sound. Finally, my wolf's eyes landed on the familar young boy who looked more heavenly than before.
I shifted, no longer caring about the clothes that were no longer on my body. "Atlas!" I cried out, feeling more at ease. My mind didn't think to question what he was doing out here all alone. All that came to mind was where the pack was at.
"Where's Alpha Javier? What's happening? Where's the pack?" I asked him. The young boy walked up to me and handed me clothes. I quickly placed it on as I began to look around.
"There is a lot you don't know. Things that we have all been keeping from you. We wanted you to grow up as a normal wolf, which is why we changed everything for you," he spoke, but it only sounded like a riddle. My eyebrows knotted in confusion as I looked down at him.
"Walk with me," he stated. I followed him all the way back towards the spring. Confusion was present on my features. It seemed like something that would never pass—confusion.
"Look at your reflection, Xena. Stare into the water and just see yourself," he told me.
"Um, why?" I drawled out suspiciously. I'm not sure if he was aware that the king and all of the Royal pack were after me, but it didn't matter. Without a pack, and only a little boy, I'm sure I was just going to die regardless.
I bent down next to the spring. The light that reflected from the sun to the moon that grazed upon the water looked absolutely beautiful. My eyes finally met me, my face, my hair, my own eyes—me.
Before I could do anything, a force pushed me into the water. Water immediately began to flood my lungs as the spring was a lot more deeper than it appeared. My eyes began to close as I felt my body slowly feel different.
"Do it, Atlas! Do it now!" My mother called out as she pushed me towards the little boy.
He looked down at me as he nodded his head. "I made a promise with the moon goddess to protect their queen. Although, this spell won't last forever. At a time when the humanity of wolves need her, she will have to act. She will need to grow up as a wolf, if we take her in, she cannot know we are magic. We will treat her like a wolf and she will behave as such until the time is right. As you know, Reyna Astor, every wish has a consequence. You and your husbands life, in exchange for Xena's," Altas told them as he placed his hand on my forehead.
"Mommy, I'm scared," I cried out.
There was a loud sound banging against the door again, only this time, voices could be heard. "GIVE US THE LUNA!"
"I'll do whatever it takes," my mother told him. Atlas nodded his head before closing his eyes.
"She will have no memory of this moment. All she will remember is you telling her to go to a pack," he states. Suddenly a ghost left my body as my eyes closed.
"To the queen."
- • -
Whoop there it is! Here is a much needed update of Luna Bound. The wait was extremely long only and I am deeply apologetic because of it. You guys deserve faster updates, and I swear I will bring it to you.
I love writing this book because I have the whole plot already prepared and it's just going to get even more crazier. Can't wish for the next update, I love you babes.
Much love,
—xx lee
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