Of how Ezra met Noel EZRA"I'll help."My eyes flicker down from the balcony towards the ground three stories below, at the sound of a delicate voice. It's the distinct voice of an Omega, soft and weak in the winter wind. An Omega, still out and wandering like a fool when there were only ten minutes left until the start of the Blood Hunt.He smiles at one of the lower-ranking, elderly wolves in the Shadow Pack, reaching out with both hands to slip the heavy load she carries onto his own arms.Nine minutes, now.Does he not understand that—"I have to go really soon, because of the Hunt." The golden-haired omega whispers, and my brows furrow as he quickly asks her where she stays. She points at the edge of the small houses near the Center Palace.I expect him to make an uncertain expression. There would be no chance that he would make it to the Forests in time for the brutal warriors to not find him."...okay!"My eyes ripple as I watch him hurry ahead. Even still, he continues to lo
Special Spinoff: Blaise and Christian OneShot"Perhaps I am the oasis.""You come to find sanctuary in me, but I am really the mirage who tears you apart."________________________________BLAISEI do not know the time.The seconds fall through my mind, like sand pouring through a torn cloth. Hours and days mean nothing to me.All I know is the sun.It tears down at me, filling up the skies with its light and heat. The sand glows a deadly gold, the shade of the eyes of a cobra before it lunges at its prey.I'd run out of food a long time ago.My canteen of water is down to its last drop.I'm going to die here.The cloth around my mouth and nose is already full with sand. I taste it everywhere— on my lips and in the air I breathe. I feel as if I'm losing my ability to speak, with each step I take.Every step I take.I just want to give up.For what was I doing this for? It was painful, more than words could ever describe. I wanted to rest. Give up, and let the sands bury me in their ar
BLAISE The dress makes me feel unlike the Omega that I really am. The Gathering is massive. It feels even larger than the year before, and even the year before that. Held on the Peaks of Azareth, the Gathering included thousands of wolves from all the Packs that were scattered across the Mountains and Forests of Ilea. Even the Packs who lived secluded, holed up in the most reclusive of places showed themselves at this time, once a year during the Gathering. The Peaks of Azareth was a gorgeous clearing that stretched out for miles on end, covered with grasses that stayed dark evergreen throughout the entire year. A thin sheen of white snow covers the grass, frosting it with a layer of ice. In the center, there lays a ring of tall stone pillars rooted into the ground. Ancient figures and characters mark indecipherable lines down the rock. Circlatrix. The Alphas are already there, with their mates. All the other members of the Pack are forbidden to come in, between the tight
BLAISE A small part of me had hoped that maybe the Alphas and their mates would be somehow different. That maybe they would act the regal positions they were at, that they would be somehow different than the maids back at the Packhouse that had once threw curses straight in front of my face. That maybe they would at least have the courtesy to not show it so directly in front of me. But Christian had warned me for a reason. And I realize that they are not above it in the slightest. The moment I enter the Circlatrix with Christian next to me, I feel the atmosphere tighten up like a noose. The silence deepens into ice. Several sharp gazes are thrown around. Corners of lips upturn, in displeasure, surprise, and scorn. I keep my head high. I scan the small crowd, comprised of the most powerful wolves in all of Ilea. There are multiple Packs. However, only the most powerful Five are chosen to attend the Gathering every year. We are the last ones that had arrived. Christian lead
Her eyes directly meet mine. And I see a feline smile upturn her scarlet lips, covered by a thin chiffon. Then as if she had clearly wanted me to see, her gaze slides over to Christian next to me. Christian doesn’t see. But I do. I see her run her gaze down his body in the most lustful way that anyone who would’ve seen her would know. But as if she’d cast some spell, no one knows. She gives me a deep, meaningful smile. I can practically hear her voice. He does not belong with you, ugly Omega. She is not the only one who looks at me this way. Practically everyone has their eyes fixed on me, like a ring of predators surrounding a weak prey trembling in the center. But I am not prey. I take my place next to Christian. And as if he can sense the shift in my aura, Christian gives me a knowing, amused look. His eyes always roam back to mine, every ten seconds. It’s as if nowhere else he looks pleases him.And after what seems to be an eternity of heavy silence, full of flickering
BLAISE I look out the frost-colored window. That girl. She hasn’t come today. She had always come, eve up uh ry day for a week now, to knock on the door and ask for any Packhouse leftovers with her head held high. At first, I’d seen the maids threatening to throw her out to the dogs. That had been the first time I’d truly used my power as the mate of the Alpha, to literally give my order to the Head Maid to give the girl what she asked for, every time she came. She was doing this for her family. And I thought it was right that she be rewarded for her bravery. She had come every day after that, happily skipping out with a basketful of the day’s leftovers. Noel had sometimes even pitched in, to give her a handful of chocolates that he somehow always had in stock. But this is the first time that she hasn’t come skipping. I watch the maids throw out the leftovers, biting my lip as I turn back to the window. I had asked for them to keep it until now, but it was getting
"He wants to kiss and kill me at the same time."Blaise and Christian Special: VAMPIRE______________________________BLAISE How perfect.I wish my daughter had someone like that as her husband.What a beautiful man.Of course the women's whispers start up the moment he enters the hall. Age doesn't matter, not when it comes to the flawless Christian Shadow with his flawless personality and looks.Not wanting to deal with all the noise, I move further to a more quieter place.But even then it reaches me."Oh my goodness, Christian!" An elderly woman claps her hands, her smile all the way up to her ears. "Have you thought about what I said yesterday? About the blind date— my daughter is a very pretty thing, I promise you!""I'm sorry, Mrs. Lee." He says, voice dipped low. "Rin has an appointment that day at the children's hospital."Rin.It was that small boy who always appeared with him at the weekly gathering.The woman gasps softly."Poor boy!" She coos, bending down to the dark-hai
And I've never felt this much of my instincts before. I can feel the danger with every word he speaks, like he wants me to feel that way. He wasn't human. He wasn't normal.And I think...I think that he really might kill me."...yes.""Good." He smiles, voice pleased. And then the force holding me dow suddenly releases, making me pitch forward and nearly trip on my own feet. But I catch myself, and the moment I'm free I turn around to look at him.He just stares down at me, almost as if daring me to run.Bastard.When he knows that I wouldn't try and run, he smiles again and taps his fingertips on the back of his pale hand."Don't look at me like that, Blaise Ara. What I'm about to ask you isn't difficult at all."My fists clench.Yeah, right. This @&$$8 was probably going to ask me to cut my own hands off or something like that—"I want you to bring me someone every week, to the addresses I give you.""...what?"His smile grows deeper. "I know you heard me. The end of each week is t