Chapter 21 "I'm sorry, what did you just say?" Germaine's eyes were twin orbs of fear as she gazed at Daya. "I said I will take you-" "I know what you said, but why?" Daya rubbed a spot on her nose and let out an exasperated breath. "That is the only way, child. You can never get in unless I take you there. You will not even know where to find them in the first place. You will only wonder around in circles in the forest until you become frustrated and go back the way you came or.something much worse happens to you. And let me just say this - when I do take you there, it has got to be as a hostage because they do not like visitors." She shrugged her shoulders. Germaine's shoulders tensed. "Are you saying that without this plan of yours, I will not get the ork." "You finally understand what I have been trying to tell you." Fear laced the insides of Germaine. The way Daya had painted a picture of the original Dryads was not a good one. If they were as harsh and unyielding as she un
Chapter 22 Germaine pulled at the heavy metal chains binding her hands and stared balefully at her surroundings. She felt with her feet, the odd-shaped ridges jutting from the ground. Hot mist seeped out and heated the dark cell she was locked inside. It was a good thing because she had begun to get cold. She tried to stretch her legs fully but found out the cell she was in did not have enough space for that. Good thing she was not claustrophobic otherwise she would not have been able to stand it. Echoes of clangs of metal rang out from the walls all around, keying her into the possibility that there were other prisoners. At first she had not believed it was possible. It was crazy to conceive that other creatures and beasts inhabited the earth, apart from humans, animals and insects. After the appearance of Storm and Keratin in her bakery as well the vampires, her eyes had gradually opened to the truth. Something strange indeed was afoot. She still did not understand why she was ch
Chapter 23 The noise which began at a dull hum suddenly boomed all around making Germaine flinch. Ever since Storm had told her of the plan, she had felt ill at ease. Her stomach began to heave, like she was going to puke at any moment and her palms were sweaty. She was still bound hand and foot and the clothe across her eyes was still in place. She could sense activity taking place around her. Things seemed to be heating up with the dryads. She wished she could see her surroundings at least. It would help plan her next move. As if her thoughts were spoken out aloud, the clothe around her eyes was removed and she squinted at the sudden brightness. Where is it coming from? She wondered. She did not have long to find out as she looked up to see the sun peering down relentlessly at her. She closed her eyes against its glare and looked down, right into the eyes of the strangest being she had ever seen. Green eyes peered at her from a face that could only be described as full of roots.
Chapter 24 When she finished speaking, she felt a great burden lift off her shoulders and a gentle nudge in her mind. It felt like an encouragement from Storm, even though he remained silent. Surely, he had been listening. The elderly dryad looked pensive. The twigs on his face deepened, if that were even possible. He turned to his counterpart who was still standing behind Germaine, and said something to him. Suddenly, the twine around her hands were removed and a stool appeared. "You may seat." The elderly dryad said to her kindly. Relief poured through Germaine and she smiled and thanked him before sitting. Murmurings rose amongst the other dryads in front of her. "Listen to me, fellow tree spirits. The elderly dryad addressed them, the earthling will stay for the feast. After that, I will decide if what she says is the truth or not." Turning to Germaine, he continued. "If I find out you speak anything but the truth, mark my words, your blood will be spilled directly on the Or
Chapter 25 The first two sips almost made her bend over and wretch it all out because of it's foul taste. The next three sips made her change her mind and drink more of it greedily. The last four sips made her realize she was actually amongst friends. Storm stood in front of her with a smile on his lips which made her think he was hiding something. Keratin stood beside him, but he was not smiling. Kenki was beside Keratin. His smile was from ear to ear. It did not fit well on his face. "Storm!" She was delighted to see him and rushed to hug him, but he put a hand up to stop her. She turned querying eyes to Keratin, who just shrugged and looked disinterested. "What's wrong? How did you guys get here? I thought you said you could not do so unless by magic?" "But that is how we came to be here. By magic. We decided to help you out because we didn't want anything to happen to you."Kenki said, still smiling. It was the first time she had seen a smile on his face. He always wore a sco
Chapter 26 "It's a unicorn!" One of the guards exclaimed, wonder coating his voice. "But - there has not been a unicorn in this forest in the past one thousand years." The second guard said, as if speaking to himself. The elderly dryad took two steps towards the creature, the Ork pressed close to his chest once more. "Every thousand years, a unicorn appears on its own in the forest. It comes with good luck and good tidings." He stepped closer to the creature with a reverent awed look on his face. Lifting one of his hands, he petted its head. It was a massive thing, all white and beautiful to look at, it's long horn glistening. It's flank rippled with energy and the hair on its body was blindingly stark and white against the darkness of the forest. It was too beautiful for words, even Germaine was spellbound, and she too moved forward, wanting to be close to it, but something stopped her. She spied a chain hanging snugly around its neck. She was certain she had seen it before. Wh
Chapter 27 Two men and a woman stepped out of the golden halo and into stark darkness. The forest was alive with various types of creatures, yet, it was as silent as ever. Not even a leaf rustled. One of the men's eyes seemed to be the only bright thing in the darkness. They glowed with a green incandescent light as they observed the surroundings. "She is not here." Keratin said, turning to look at Storm. "I grow more fearful that something might have happened to her. When was the last time you communicated with her?" "Just before we were transported here." Storm said, his eyes glowing brighter. "Surely, you should be able to speak with her now." Lady Lucia said, a hint of impatience tinging her voice. Storm fixed his green gaze on her, and she visibly shrank from him. She did not want to be the recipient of his gaze or even his anger, especially now that she knew he was channeling the moon goddess. "Brother." Storm addressed Keratin. "I suggest we turn into our animal forms and
Chapter 28 "So, lady Germaine, tell us about earth?" Gilga asked as she worked on Germaine's hair. "Are the men comely?" One of the girls working with her, giggled, but she continued. "And is there magic? What special skills do people have there?" Germaine felt the attention of the other four girls peak as they waited for her to reply. They were making her look suitable enough for the send-off ball the chiefs were given her and the others who were going in search of the talisman. She figured talking about earth was the least she could do. She cleared her parched throat, wondering how she was going to word what she had to say. They had been working on her for the better part of twenty minutes, if her assertion was correct. "Well, earth is beautiful. It's got a sun like here in Rim, it's divided into different countries, and it's got a very organized system with some countries more organized than others. About the men. . ." She shrugged. "Yeah, some are handsome, others, not so mu
Chapter 108The young lady lying on the cot opened her eyes but could not understand what was happening.Who am I?Where am I?People came and peered at her from above, expecting something from her. Recognition, maybe, but she didn't know any of them. They always left with disappointed looks on their faces. Amongst them was a man who sat with her for a while. He was very handsome with bright blue hooded eyes and long straight hair. She itched to run her fingers through his hair knowing fully well it would feel like a silky curtain.He always held her hand and spoke to her but she didn't understand a word of what he said. He had a sad look on his face which she longed to wipe off but she could not because she could not move her body.She had dreams of a man with a scar on his face telling her to wake up and come back to the living because there were people who waited for her and wanted her alive. He also said
Chapter 107 Germaine ran toward the table but unfortunately, she never made it there. Just as she was a hair's breadth away from it, a hand reached out and snatched up the talisman. "This never gets old, I tell you." In front of her stood a smirking Rage. He had on a long black cloak with a hood covering his head. The concentric lines on his face glowed eerily, adding to his otherworldly look. There was a terrible fascination about him that Germaine could not place. She could not tear her eyes away from his face. She tried to move, but it seemed she was stuck to the spot. She could not even turn her head. Her eyes tracked his movement as he walked past her. "So predictable, Lucia, and so disappointing." He chuckled darkly. "You did exactly what I predicted you would." Germaine heard a whimper and realized it had come from her. "Did you think that I would leave something so precious lying around if it were not a trap?" He chuckled darkly once more. "So stupid, my child." Germaine he
Chapter 106The bubble Keratin and the others traveled in smelt of Ash and smoke. It lasted a few minutes but to him, it seemed like a lifetime. A lifetime of being away from Germaine. He had been mostly chatty, deliberately keeping his mind busy so as not to ponder on his missing mate and how they would go about rescuing her.He had brainstormed with Storm and the others and concluded. Rage had taken her, thanks to the revelations from Storm after channeling the moon goodness. They knew she was being held in Tirria.The issue they had was how to get inside the headquarters of the Magedom - the glasshouse, undetected. That was where Dilla came in. Having once worked inside the glass house as a mage, he designed a detailed map. He even knew the times the Mages had their meals and also when they would gather for training. The only issue was Rage who had taken over. He was a wild card, one they had to be wary of.
Chapter 105Not again.Germaine stared balefully at the iron cage she was trapped inside. She could not believe her shitty luck. For the second actually- the third time in her life and a short space as well, she had been kidnapped. She closed her eyes and pondered on how she got herself locked inside a rusty-looking cage.It came to her in an instant.Rage had appeared out of the blue and of course, she goaded him. He didn't like that at all. From one moment to the next, everything went dark and when she woke, she was behind bars in a rusty cage in an empty room. She cursed Rage and her rotten luck. There was no way out of this except to bargain. She knew that would catch his attention.The question though, was what would she bargain with?She sighed as she opened her eyes. A dark pair of eyes stared back at her and she let out a shrill scream. The person staring at her looked fearful as if she would be caug
Chapter 104Keratin had experienced Germaine shutting her mind to him before. It hurt him when she did it and when he could not read her thoughts. However, there was a grave difference between shutting down the mind link and not getting any reading on the person's thoughts.The latter is what he experienced.It was a blank canvas. She was there, but it was silent. He had experienced this same thing before her. The day she was thrown into the sea while on the vessel by one of Rage's men. It was a horrible feeling, one he did not want to experience again. As he lifted his sword and sliced off the neck of the last creature, he knew something had happened to her and his heart sank.He looked around, assessing the damages. Apart from one of their warriors who had been taken down, they were relatively alright. Storm was fine as well as the other warriors. He sighted Dilla and Zar taking stock of the damages. Galieel
Chapter 103 Germaine gave up after struggling endlessly to bring forth her powers. Her breaths came out in fast short bursts.Hot tears of frustration pooled in her eyes but she quickly blinked them away. She released a harsh breath when she remembered what she had read in the tome back in Dilla's house. She was referred to as a savior.She - a savior?Ha! They must have mistaken her for someone else. She couldn't even help herself out of her situation, so how was she to help any of the others? For once, Keratin was silent. Up above her, the ground trembled and rumbled. She didn't need to be told that he, as well as the others, were fighting for their lives.Fueled with a sudden fierce determination, she focused on her breathing.When cornered, do not try to use your powers because they won't work.But why?Because you would have unknowingly locked them up. Powers run with your emotions, so if you are ca
Chapter 102Germaine breathed in deeply but just before she came back to her surroundings, she perceived Keratin's thoughts once more. Each one was a precise string of logic. He would maneuver to the right and attack with his claws while he would give way for other warriors to flank him. he would remain in front, leading, always keeping her safe by blocking her from harm.Even his warriors were not spared from being shielded by him. What she found confusing was when she saw how he would change to a human and attack the creatures with his sword, cutting off their heads if they got too close or crowded around them.How possible was this? Would she still be on his back or would she fall off?A skilled werewolf can change from animal to man, and back again within the twinkling of an eye. Of course, you already know we can divide into many parts of ourselves. And, no, my love, you would not fall off when I change
Chapter 101This is really happening. Germaine said to herself.As she stood staring at the creatures still high up in the sky, she could not help but feel a thrill slither down her back. She could not for the life of her, understand the excitement she felt at that moment. Inside of her, her powers flowed to her fingertips, ready to come out at the slightest urging.She could barely focus on what Storm was saying. He was giving a speech but it made no sense to her because all her senses were on the figures fast approaching in the sky. Nevertheless, she forced herself to listen to him as he reeled out instructions. The only instruction she would follow was to maim and kill the enemy."- and so the female mates will sit on the backs of their wolves."Say what?She put her hand up. "As far as I Know, the only mated female here is Amelia."Storm's lips twitched. Whether in amusement or anger, she could not tell. Wha
Chapter 100Keratin ran as fast as his warrior-legs would carry him. His thoughts which had been scrambled, became clear and centered on just one thing alone. Germaine. The mate bond sang in his veins and the call for protection was too strong for him to ignore.He tore into the tent where the females were and zeroed in on his mate sleeping soundly. He took some seconds to admire her sleeping form before striding forward. He knew what he was about to do was wrong. He knew he should blow the whistle which would alert everyone about the impending danger, but not yet.First. . . he needed to get his mate to safety.Not wasting any more time, he placed his large palm over her mouth and her eyelids fluttered open. It was entrancing to watch her blink away the fog of sleep blanketing her eyes and the myriad of expressions that moved, lightning-fast, across her features. He understood the fear he saw but it soon gave