Mates

~~Ashair ~~

 

 

"The full moon is upon us now. The worst will happen in two days," Alaric, my youngest brother, said as he stood by my side, staring outside the mansion.

 

"I am dreading that night already, Alaric," my second brother, Athens, said. "It's so sad to think we'd be possessed again!" he sighed as he stood on my right side. Just like our younger brother, he had a cloak on his head covering his face.

 

I didn’t say a word as I watched as my brothers continued to express how bitter they felt about the oncoming full moon. The last one that happened ended in a total disaster, resulting in the multiple deaths of a lot of Lycans.

 

Athens and Alaric are my younger brothers. Athens is after me, and Alaric is my youngest brother. After the great war with the soul stealers, a curse was placed on us, but I could break through the terrible curse, but My brothers were unfortunate. 

 

The soul stealers turned my brothers into vessels, and every full moon, Athens and Alaric transformed into mindless beasts that hunted Lycan souls. To avoid that from happening, I made sure that they were locked up in a dungeon that wouldn’t let them escape, but the last full moon that occurred made them go on a rampage, killing all the Lycans they encountered.

 

 

Even though we eliminated the last soul stealers, the curse refused to be broken, and my brothers suffered great pain and lost their sanity every full moon. I had to watch them go on like that for years. The only time that Athens and Alaric had control over their bodies was when the moon was not up. It could have been much worse if there had been a blood moon. Controlling them then wouldn’t be possible because they would transform into their Lycans and attack our world.

 

 

The last blood moon ended in a terrible disaster, wiping out an entire pack and resulting in a tragedy for all Lycans and the royal family. Ever since that day, my brothers had hidden from the rest of the world, and I had been in charge of royal affairs.

 

To protect my brothers and the royal family's legacy, I tried hard to find a solution to their curse.

 

I had traveled far to other clans hoping to find a way out of the curse, but there was none.

 

In a few words, there was no way out.

 

"According to the astrologers, " Alaric looked at me, but I quickly lowered my head because making eye contact with him when the full moon was near could result in him trying to steal my soul. "The blood moon will return in three months, and to be honest, I don’t want a repeat of what happened years ago."

 

When the blood moon appeared years ago, Athens lost his mate, whom he cherished dearly, and Alaric almost killed me. The scars of his sharp claws on my chest reminded me that I had nearly died at his hands. The wounds won't heal, and it aches badly each time the full moon is up.

 

"We are going to avoid that. That is why we are going to the Lady of Mayfair Tower.'' I reminded them of the decision to solve their curse. Evenugh I had already informed them about it, my brothers tend to pay little attention to what matters most.

 

 

"According to your beta, the full moon is expected to last for a week?" Athens asked.

 

"You heard him correctly," I replied. 

 

Alaric whimpered. "Do you think that old hag will have something to break us apart?" Alaric referred to the lady of the Mayfair tower. She was an old witch rumored to be thousands of years old, even before our father.

 

"If you call her an old hag, how in hell are we supposed to be free from this curse?" Athens asked him. "Do you think that I want to be hidden forever?"

 

Alaric heaved a deep sigh and grabbed my hand. "I understand, but I am saying that Asher has been searching for a way to break the curse for years, but he has not found a way out, and..."

 

Athen cut him off. "I believe something is bound to happen," he said, placing a hand on our brother's shoulder. "it will work well. " 

 

"I hope so," Alaric replied, still with some uncertainty in his tone.

 

The doors to the room opened, and my beta, Devin, walked in with his head bowed. "We are ready for you to depart," he announced, looking at my brother’s back. When they turned, he lowered his head to avoid making eye contact with them.

 

I nodded in response and walked up to him. I tapped him on the shoulder even though he was an inch taller than me at 6’3. My brothers, on the other hand, walked past him without muttering any words and headed outside the mansion.

 

A black limousine was parked outside with two black convoys behind it. Devin rushed to open the door, and we all walked into the limousine.

 

"How many days will it take to get to the Mayfair Tower?" I asked Devin, who was riding in the limousine with us. He was seated by my side and away from my brothers.

 

As much as he was the beta of the clan, he feared for his life. All Lycans feared my brothers for what they could do and called them the beast of the night. 

 

"A day at most, your highness," Devin's replied.

 

"A day’s journey sounds annoying!" Athens complained and huffed. "We must return to the mansion before the full moon happens to avoid getting everyone killed again.

 

 

I ignored him because there was no point in explaining things to him. He always finds a way to argue back. Athens was impatient, and he was the one who had gotten us into this mess by attacking the soul stealers without a plan, so we had to rescue him.

 

 

"A day’s journey isn't bad," Alaric replied. "We have traveled for weeks before, so why are you finding fault in one day’s journey?"

 

 

"Because I can't wait to have control over my body," he retorted, hissing angrily. "I despise that we are all being controlled by soul thieves who no longer exist!

 

 

"That is why I am finding a way out," I finally replied because I knew he wouldn’t stop complaining. As if Athens could read my thoughts, he didn’t say a word after that, and the ride was in silence until it suddenly slowed down.

 

"Is there something that I should know?" I wound down the vehicle window to look outside and noticed several Lycans had gathered around, blocking the road.

 

"Forgive me for the late information, your highness," he apologized before speaking. "The warriors and the Gammas found an unknown woman yesterday at the portal entry."

 

‘’ A woman? How did she breach the portal? ''How come we haven't had any breaches in a thousand years since the fall of the soul stealers?'' I asked.

 

"Your highness, we have no idea what happened, but the gamma will find out soon."

 

"What is the reason for the crowd, then?"

 

Devin bowed his head in apology as he came out of the car, announcing my arrival. "The king is here!"

 

Every Lycan paved the way for me and fell on their knees as I rode between them. I looked to my left and right, and a certain someone caught me by surprise. It was a woman with shackles. She wasn't bowing her head but staring at me as the car passed.

 

One thing that made her stand out from the crowd was her red hair, beautifully braided backward, and her tanned skin. Her dress was different from the rest of us, and when my gaze met hers, I saw fire in her eyes.

 

That wasn’t all, as I felt excited just by staring at her. Even Athens and Alaric turned their heads toward her.

 

She had a sweet smell of rose flowers and also of lavender. I knew instantly that she was a human and also my mate. 

 

"Mates!" Athens and Alaric both shouted at once. The girl looked around her as if someone had called her name, and I knew that she heard my brother’s voice, but since they were hiding their faces from the rest of the Lycans, she wouldn’t see them.

 

"Our mate is stunning," Alaric shouted so loudly that I could have scolded him if we were alone, but because of the beautiful redhead who was our mate, I couldn’t do anything but stare.

 

When we locked eyes, the girl smiled at me. Her eyes didn’t leave mine.

 

‘’bow!’’ I heard Gary, the royal gamma, shout at her, but the girl refused and ran away from him and headed towards the vehicle. She ran to the front of the limousine and spread her arms wide. 

"Please help me," she pleaded, her tone screaming pain as if she had gone through a lot.

Thank goodness the driver had slowed down the vehicle. Otherwise, she would have been sent flying by car. "What in the world is she doing?" I shouted as the car stopped right in front of her. She raised her hands and closed her eyes.

 

Athens shifted in his seat as he praised her." she is fearless!" 

 

"That is not the case." She's just stupid!" I also commented. 

 "Goodness!’’ I heard her gasp and fluttered her eyes open. The most beautiful hazel eyes stared back at me, Athens, and Alaric through the rearview glass. 

 

"Mate!" all three of us said simultaneously, exchanging looks.