Most of the preparations were made within that meeting. Or, at least, right up until I could start to feel the medication begin to wear off. After which, we all agreed I should be moved back to the packhouse until everything was arranged since that would be easier to defend.
For obvious reasons, I wasn’t privy to any information regarding the move. It was all to be kept completely secret from myself, and even Aleric wouldn’t know exactly where until it was time to go. Cai took on the responsibility of choosing the location to ensure that there would be no chance of Thea finding out beforehand, preparing envelopes for us both; one for Aleric, to be opened only when we were leaving, and another for myself, for in the event of an emergency occurring.
I was nervous, to say the least. How could I not be? So much was riding on just theories. But I had to believe that it would be correct. I needed space to be able to work on fixing myself; both internally and externally. An
1… 2… 3…. In… and out. I sat outside in the fresh air amongst the trees, breathing carefully as I focused on clearing my mind. I’d been working on these techniques over the last two weeks, and it was coming along nicely. Or at least, it seemed that way. How well it held up when it came time to actually use it, I couldn’t be sure. However, I’d definitely been getting better. Creating distance had seemed to have worked a little since every day that passed, I felt her presence a tiny bit less. Almost enough to make me wonder if it was possible to just wait it all out until I was completely free of her. The only thing was that, unfortunately, at the rate I was going, that might be maybe months or even years away. Something we probably didn’t have time for, much to my disappointment. Settling for just strengthening my mind would need to be enough in the meantime. But… there were also some downsides to my improvement too…. I got up from the ground
His free hand immediately found my waist, pressing me against him, and his lips enveloped my own. It was like we’d both been starving as we hungered for the other, everything happening so quickly. A response probably resulting from how long the two of us had been holding back now. It didn’t take long for my body to then find the wall behind us, his hands supporting my weight as I clung to him. With one of my arms around his neck, the other was grabbing at his chest greedily, feeling his body against me. Constantly wanting more… and more… almost as if an insatiable desire was moving me forward. And though I was giving myself over to my yearnings completely, I’d never felt more in control than I did in that moment. That there was not even a shred of doubt in my mind that this was exactly where I needed to be. “I want you,” I moaned against him, repeating the words he’d wanted me to admit. Because I was hungry for so much more than just this. He’
I woke up with a long, satisfied stretch in bed, feeling more content than I had in years. The last few days had all blended together so much that I could barely keep track of time anymore. Was it a Tuesday? Morning? Night? I didn’t know. All I knew was that my last week had been spent with Aleric, living and breathing every moment he could spare for me. I continued to stretch, trying to wake up but, as I did so, I suddenly felt a pulse of pain emanate from my shoulder. Something I’d been ignoring the last few days despite my actual purpose in coming here. Well, if it gave another reason to stay here a little longer, it couldn’t be all that bad, right? I sighed. I didn’t want to leave. Of course, I didn’t. It was so easy to ignore all my impending problems waiting for me at home, choosing to just live inside my own little bubble instead. I was happy here. Actually happy. Something I hadn’t felt in so long. Given everything I’
“Aleric…,” I cried, feeling completely useless. This wasn’t good. This was really, really not good. And worse, even on the small possibility that this wasn’t Thea’s doing, there was no chance she didn’t already know by now. Either way, I was wasting time being stuck inside this vision. I needed to get out. Now. 'Wake up.' I slapped at my cheeks, wishing more than anything to break out, but it was no use. I wasn’t really ‘here’ so there was no physical pain trigger. A snapping sound then came from somewhere in the distance, and I immediately looked up towards it. It sounded like someone had stepped on a branch further into the woods. I wasn’t the only one who noticed either as Aleric also detected something, walking cautiously towards it. It didn’t leave me many options in what I could do next… I had to follow him. We walked for maybe a few minutes, deathly silent the entire time, before a clearing came
It was the most difficult decision I’d ever made. Sacrificing someone in order to save myself. I felt sick even thinking about it… but I didn’t have a choice here. And not just that, but I also didn’t have time to digest it further if I wanted to escape safely. On the off chance that Thea had people lying in the wait to catch me, I gathered only whatever I could pack quickest, ripping open the emergency envelope with my location and beginning the long drive home. And whilst I had taken the time to retrieve the ring, I unfortunately couldn’t risk wearing it. If I were suddenly ambushed, then I needed to be ready to fight. One critical blow to my body and I would be instantly dead in seconds without my natural healing, something the ring would prevent. It meant I needed to work even harder to keep Thea out of my head, despite everything threatening to overwhelm me. 'Calm. Composed.' 'Everything was fine.' We were two h
I sat atop a tree, looking down at those who would be fighting for our survival today.Any minute now we’d be leaving, shifting and beginning our journey to the camp near the Silver Lake pack. With this many people, it was agreed that going on foot would be best, knowing that travelling via roads added more time and allowed for a predictable ambush.And there was no denying we had many people. After the final count, we numbered around two hundred strong warriors ready for battle today.…Ready for war.I sighed, the wind gently catching in my hair as I stared at all of their faces. I wouldn’t forget what they looked like this time. No, this time I sent our men to war, I would remember them all, committing their appearance to memory and fighting alongside them to the end.On this day, I wasn’t Ariadne Chrysalis, the former Luna of the Winter Mist. Always hiding behind my desk as I allowed our people to die without qu
…Dead?No… that couldn’t….I could feel my heart racing at hearing her words.Why would she have done that? Why do something before….Unless… unless she expected me to rush into war regardless of whether she used him as bait. Because she knew I wouldn’t have any way of knowing he was alive and would assume that I would come for him blindly anyway.'It’s just another move made to hurt me.'During our stay in the cabin, I’d always avoided the topic of Aleric marking me. I hadn’t wanted to tie him to me knowing I might not be long for this world, and I didn’t want to put him through feeling that pain upon my death. But I hadn’t anticipated for the reverse to now become detrimental to me. If only I’d actually done it, I would have known the minute it had happened and saved everyone from rushing in to save him.So then, was he actu
“Aria?” I could remember it so clearly now. The way Cai had feebly tried to cover the wound on his neck, bleeding profusely as the ground simply absorbed it. I’d grabbed his hand and cried into it, stroking his hair as he died. As the light in his golden eyes slowly faded. And then there was Aleric as his wolf, walking away from his body with blood around his mouth. It wasn’t because he attacked him. No, it was because he was giving us privacy. A chance to say goodbye. Naturally, the blood would have been Thea’s from when Aleric bit her. So then, what even happened to her? In this vision, does she finally perish for good? Or… or does she merely escape? …Is there a way to avoid his death and still win? Confliction swirled around me inside, making me want to throw up. In this vision, I’d seen a world where Thea was absent. A battlefield gone peaceful with her presence now silenced. Was it worth taking the chance that Cai’s sacrif