“Aleric,” I called out to him and carefully approached.
Immediately, I saw how he tensed up at my presence, his eyes flashing dark for just a moment. I suppose it wasn’t that surprising to think he’d be furious after all this time down here.
However, his words seemed to contradict this first impression, only succeeding in confusing me.
“Aria,” he breathed, almost as if in a sigh of relief, before quickly focusing again.
My eyes narrowed as I looked at him, unsure what game he was playing at. Was this some sort of act?
“You can let her go now,” I said, jutting my chin towards Lucy. “If you kill her, you won’t have anyone to bring you your meals every day.”
But his head moved back in confusion, taken off guard by my blunt response.
“...What?” he simply asked, perplexed by my words.
“I said… let her go or you’ll probably end up starving,” I repeated, taking a few more steps towards him. “She isn’t a part of this... But I g
'Why are you letting her live?' The voice inside hissed. 'She’s a traitor. A rat.' It’d been going on like this for a few days now ever since I made the agreement with Lucy. The original plan had been for Lucy to reach out to her mother in order to uncover Thea’s whereabouts, but something had gone wrong with that. According to Lucy’s mother, Thea hadn’t come back yet from whatever she’d been doing recently. Which caused several dilemmas. The main one being the safety of Lucy’s mother. Someone who apparently was now so scared for her life that she was demanding immunity within the pack for her information. A huge ask considering she was a rogue and it would mean losing an inside connection. Looking at her record, Stephanie Faulkner had crimes of fraud and theft committed against higher-ranked members. And whilst Lucy herself believed wholeheartedly that her mother was innocent, the evidence was stacked up against her.
“NO!” a voice yelled from behind me… …And a wall of muscle quickly tackled me off Cai, sending us both flying along the ground and sliding several feet away. I pushed and shoved against Aleric’s grip but he was putting everything into this. It was almost impossible to free myself. But I had something he didn’t, something to give me the advantage here; my dagger. And, as quickly as I could, I brought it up… Angling it and… “Enough, Aria!” Aleric ordered and he disarmed the knife from me, throwing it as far away as possible. “Enough.” It was over. “Do it then,” I spat, still wriggling in a futile attempt to escape. “Get it over with. Kill me. Just like my parents, Aleric. Is that the kind of ‘help’ you had in mind? Is that how you helped them?” He growled and pushed my shoulders back down again to try and stop me from struggling. “Yes, it is actually!” he said furiously. “That is exactly
No, no, no, no… No, this couldn’t be happening. I’d been so guarded against everyone else that I hadn’t seen the real issue sinking its teeth within me the entire time. “Aria?” Aleric asked again, grabbing onto my shoulders to steady me. But I recoiled quickly away, taking a few shaky steps away.“No, don’t… don’t touch me. I’m… I’m not…,” I said disjointedly, unable to even finish my sentence in my current state. “Are you okay?” 'What if he’s just trying to gain your trust,' I heard her say inside. 'What if he’s lying to you.' 'What if he’s going to betray you again?' Over and over, her voice started to fill my head. All the things she’d told me once before now beginning to overlap until it was the only thing I could hear. As if I were in the middle of a crowded room filled with people shouting. 'You could pull the knife out. No one would
The pack vault. Reserved for only fully sworn-in ranked members and Elders. It was a place where the Winter Mist’s most valuable possessions and secrets were kept, passed down through all the generations. It was my first time coming down here in this life and, out of all the people, I never expected to be accompanied by Brayden; someone who was neither a full ranked member nor someone I particularly liked. I knew he would take this experience to engorge his ego but there didn’t seem to be much choice. I refused to spend my time doing nothing when there was so much going on. Thea or not, I would still make myself useful somehow. The vault was huge and packed from top to bottom with everything one could imagine; books, important documents, items, weapons, heirlooms. A collection more diverse than probably all other packs in the country. Now, considering what I knew about the lineages, I wondered if perhaps our ancient origins were to be thanked for that.
There was only one choice. Only one that would allow me to salvage what little I did have left. I’d already burnt bridges, destroyed faith… ruined any chance of having the life I used to so desperately crave. I couldn’t necessarily fix what I’d already done but I once used to believe that more bloodshed wasn’t the way to solve the past, and that was probably still true now. Even if Thea made it harder to see things that way. No, I needed to save him… even if it proved more difficult than worthwhile. Calm down and think. I needed to consider this very carefully. There was always a logical explanation for these things when analysed, some sort of strategy. She could mess with my emotions and how I perceived things, but she couldn’t change the hard facts. They were there if I just focused enough. I just needed to push past what I felt I needed to do, and concentrate on what the situation was actually telling me to do. I needed to
“My last words?” I asked, my breathing heavy. “Yeah… I guess I have something to say.”Or at least, I have something to do.“Fuck you,” I spat.And with that, I grabbed the blade firmly within my one good hand and pushed it backwards with all of my strength in one quick movement. Strong enough for it to fly right into Thea’s face, sending her straight to the ground.I waited a moment to make sure she was down before proceeding to throw the sword into a corner as far away as possible. With two injured hands, it was impossible to wield it so removing it from the field entirely was better.I didn't waste time after that though. Somehow, even though I was still weak, I then slowly managed to get back on my feet. I had to use the wall to support me, pressing against it until I could stand on my own unsteady legs.However, my legs were probably the least of my current issues. After
…What the hell is this? I should be dead. I know I should be. I’d received a lethal blow to my shoulder with silver. No one could survive that. And yet… And yet I couldn’t help but notice that, if I were dead, then the Abyss smelled oddly like a hospital room. A new renovation they must have added since the last time I visited. Everywhere in my body ached, everywhere felt… cold. Except for one place. My hand. My right hand felt warm compared to the rest of me. So, if I’m not dead… then what sort of intervention had Selene done this time? Was this the same year or had she brought me back to an earlier time? Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me if she had just sent me on my way without even telling me. After all, I did try to kill her the last time we met face to face. That probably didn’t instil a desire to catch up and chat. Though how many times could she do that without completely destroying herself? I’d seen the way Se
A week. I lasted a week before I started to get restless, wondering how much longer I’d need to wait before my body could finally cope again. But surely a week was long enough, right? Enough that I would be allowed to begin what I wanted to? And so I quickly grabbed the clipboard at the end of my bed, the one that was for my medical chart, and flipped the pages over to start writing on the blank side. …And I closed my eyes, concentrating as I gave myself over to the old side of me that knew how to effectively strategise an enemy. It took several hours over the course of three days before I finally finished. To be safe, I only worked within small windows every day, choosing to do so between when I would get another dose of pain medication and when I would need to let myself sleep. This was something delicate and I knew I needed to be at my most relaxed for it to work. By the time I was done, it was an in-depth timeline of
I held my breath the entire time the phone rang, hoping that the plan would work. Everything was hinging on the next few steps being successful and I knew just how slim my chances were at pulling this off. With every ring that sounded, my heart clenched a little bit more. I waited... and waited... and waited... …And, to my immense relief, I seemed to be in luck. For now, at least. Because it seemed there actually had been some benefit in my abrupt escape from Ashwood, all those weeks earlier. In my haste to run away, I’d left all of my belongings behind in a suitcase. A suitcase conveniently located inside Kieran’s room. So, with no other way to contact him, it sure did seem like good fortune that my old burner phone just so happened to be left in that very pile of belongings. I’d assumed Kieran had stashed it somewhere close yet safe after I’d left. My hope was that it was now in his room or a place he’d still be able to hear it vibrate. …And I’d been right. However, whether
“…Clarissa… can you wake up now?” I asked, several hours later.The sun had set and risen again, but I still remained at her bedside.My head was feeling woozy, having not slept at all, and I was beginning to think that maybe this was it.…Maybe she really wouldn’t wake up.But as I tried to fight off sleep, I couldn’t help but wonder if it was my fault. I shouldn’t have yelled and pushed her past her limit when I knew she was already unwell. My anger and frustration had gotten the better of me, and it seemed I was now seeing the price of that.…Even saying things that I hadn’t entirely meant. Things I wished I could take back.‘*“Have you seen flowers like this before, Rheyna?”*’ I swore I then heard Clarissa ask.But when I sharply raised my head up to look at her, hoping to see her awake, I found myself somewhere else.…I was in a field.An incredibly young and energetic-looking Clarissa was seated on the ground before me, amongst thousands of overgrown white flowers. There was pin
It was dark by the time we made it home, having spent the whole day with the Hidden Moon talking.After my conversation with Jax, the two of us had returned to the camp and the topic of war wasn’t broached again - much to my relief. I went through the motions and enjoyed my time meeting the Hidden Moon members, but all the while dreaded the conversation I would need to have once I returned home with Clarissa.She had been worn out to her limit, I could tell. Being out of the home and needing to be so alert for so long had taken its toll on her. Her face was paler than normal and her coughs were more frequent. But even though I was concerned for her, I couldn’t help but still feel salty over her behaviour. Especially at her attempts of overruling our initial agreements.“I’m going to bed…,” she mumbled, starting to shuffle her way there.We’d only just stepped through the door when she announced it, not even bothering to justify herself about today.“No,” I simply said, making her paus
“Why are you still being so moody?” she asked me, speaking as I carried her on my back.Between her behaviour towards Kieran and whatever plan of Clarissa’s this was now, I was certainly more quiet than usual.“I’m not,” I mumbled, continuing to walk.I’d agreed to go to the meeting, if only because I’d been the one to request that my cousin come here originally. As Clarissa had said, it would have been rude to make him come all this way only to then ignore him.“Are you being like this because of this morning?” she asked, sounding concerned. “Or did something happen last night?”However, after she’d gone and organised this without consulting me, and after she’d treated Kieran so terribly, I really wasn’t in the mood to put up with her questioning.“I thought you said you didn’t care what happened between us?” I snapped back, quoting what she’d told me in the kitchen. “So stay out of it.”And she was instantly quiet after that.I continued to walk into the nearby forest for some time,
“You made a promise!” Clarissa yelled. “The morning is here now, Kieran. Time for you to make good on your side of our agreement and leave.” “I’m not leaving until I know Rae is okay,” Kieran argued back. “You saw her yourself. She was passed out cold last night.” “And why would that be, huh? Care to share?” “As if I would know why, Clarissa. Stop thinking that I have some ulterior motive here to hurt her.” “Fine. Then if you won’t leave, consider our deal brok—.” “Woah!” I quickly yelled, rushing in to stop her. “That’s enough.” Their heads both swiftly turned to look over at me, relief evident in both of their faces to see me awake. “Rae!” Kieran greeted, moving towards me. He quickly touched my face, examining me as if I were a hospital patient. It warmed my heart to see that he was so worried... but the new sensations brought by his mark were making it hard for me to focus. It was as if everything I’d felt for him before had been heightened tenfold. ...This might take a l
“Aria…? The….?” my voice trailed off, almost as if I were in disbelief. She simply smiled at my reaction though and nodded her head. “I’ve been watching you for a while now,” she continued. “You’ve been through so much. I’m so sorry you’ve had to experience any of this. I know better than any how unpleasant it can be.” “You… how can you be here?” I asked, still confused. “Here? You mean in the Abyss? This has been my home for many years now. I learnt how to navigate its plane and break free of my memories back when I was alive. Not like Selene is around to keep tabs either. Finding you before Clarissa revives you was the difficult part though.” “…Then why are you here? Why did you try to find me?” And she then looked up at the stars above, a longing in her eyes. “…Because I felt it was time I intervene,” she said. “I swore to stay neutral but, with every death you endure, my heart breaks a little bit more to watch. How many times will this be now, Rheyna…?” Her eyes then met m
“Found you,” Kieran said a little while later. After talking to Zac, I’d climbed up onto the roof, hoping to think and reflect by myself for a while whilst Kieran had a shower. The storm was currently only in the distance, it hitting the hardest during the prior conversation. Now, all I could see was the brief flashes of lightning amongst the clouds. “Interesting spot,” he mused, looking around. “I usually sit here to keep an eye on things,” I replied back quietly. “I can see why. You’ve got a good view of the forest… with the added beauty of the sky.” He then looked over at me with something in his eyes that caused my cheeks to burn a little. Apparently, he didn’t even need to speak or touch me, simply his presence and gaze alone were enough to send shivers through me. I stared at him for a moment, a longing inside my chest, but still couldn’t quite work out why he’d stayed. After everything he’d learnt about me, after everything I’d done… somehow, he hadn’t given up on me. …H
“Allison…?” Kieran repeated, warily. “How could Allison have that sort of capability?” Clarissa had been explaining everything to Kieran for quite some time. Everything from her connection with Selene, to what triggers the end. …And also about me. He’d been quietly taking it all in so far but after Clarissa had finished talking, he finally spoke up, albeit he seemed to be slightly dazed. An understandable reaction. Clarissa shrugged. “She devoted her whole life to her faith. That sort of connection is incredibly difficult to sever. It just goes to show the potential that even those without our lineage abilities can possess.” “And… Rae…,” he said, slowly turning to me. “You’re… a Saintess now? How many times did you say…?” “This is the seventh timeline…,” I answered. “Though I don’t have any of my memories.” Or, rather… I had just one. Clarissa hadn’t gone into too much detail regarding my previous involvement with him, thankfully, but he still understood that it was mostly… u
“I… Rheyna Knight… of the once lost Silver Mist Pack,” I started, my voice barely louder than a whisper. “Hereby reject y—.” …But I wasn’t able to finish the sentence. Because I’d been wrong… so wrong. I could see that now. I didn’t recall that prior timeline memory to prepare myself for the pain I’d feel upon completing the rejection. No… I’d seen it as a reminder. A reminder of why I shouldn’t go ahead with it. And as his lips came crashing down against mine, immediately cutting off my words, this newfound realisation seemed so obvious. Why hadn’t I seen it sooner? It was as if something inside completely broke down the second he reached for me. Now all that was left was this connection drawing me to him. It was so incredibly strong, almost impossibly so. Like this was something I was meant to be doing. I didn’t have the resolve to resist him, instantly kissing him back. There was an urgency in my response as if I’d been starving for this. To just feel the sparks and desir