I am on an island. The air stirs on the waves, swirling over and around, rustling the trees in the jungle that stretched behind my back. Rows of palm trees are planted on my left with ample greenery full of pine trees and Indian Rosewood, and to my right is a fall that never ends. I am with a serpent who looks down with nothing but satisfying contentment in her orbs. A manly hand strokes my head. Snapping my head, I come face-to-face with someone I do not recognize. He is a bluehead male—tall, extremely pale and lean with a witty smirk on his face. The duo beams at me with parental affection. For a moment, the time stills as we look at each other. The couple’s smiles broaden the longer the time stretches. ‘Mommy?’ The words fly out of my mouth. Instantly, my palm cup over my mouth. I mumble the word one more time in disbelief. I have never used it aloud. At least, I do not remember using it aloud. My shivering gaze flickers over the female who nods at me with unshed tears
The Previous day— The clock had rolled off to four when we hit the road for the grand procession. The engagement was a spectacular, magical occasion with crowds cramming outside The Phoenix resembling a herd of directionless sheep. The roads were blocked throughout the city with vampires, witches, grim-reapers, ghosts, and even the fairies scattered in a confused heap at the marvellous entrance awaiting the long-due arrival of the First Son (His ugliness) and his soon-to-be bride. (A charming princess) A wave of excitement washed over the city. Tiny flags waved over the countless heads as the audience hooted, aligning with the rhythms of saxophones, trampolines, and bands of the elite Army. There were keepsake wedding souvenirs everywhere, studded brooches, wedding cards, decks, ribbons, aroma candles, figurines, calendars, cups, t-shirts, belts, bras, condoms…condoms? People are gonna put his face on their d**k. Granted, he the prick is an upset dick himself. Seriously? I giggle
‘Could be a past love. He couldn’t be clinging to your pseudo name at Tiffany’s. Could he?’ Ella trailed off thoughtfully and almost immediately a piercing sensation went through my heart as if someone had stabbed me with a sharp knife. I want to use the same knife to stab Ibhaan’s existence out of the goddamn world. Should I ask him about the woman? I wondered. Damn! Don’t tell me he is already cheating on the horse voice before the wedding! Oops! And here I thought the wolves to be better if not superior in that department. It’s unacceptable, immoral, unethical, and wrong. It…hurts. ‘You have not let him shove his dick in any of your holes for almost what…three weeks now? Shouldn’t you be the one responsible?’ Ella proposed rationally and I couldn’t help but defend my toes like a wounded gorilla or an equally fierce version of a resembling creature. ‘I did!’ I shrieked, balling my fist to the side. ‘Besides, ain’t it his duty to stay loyal to the she-wolf he is going to comm
Ibhaan’s Head: ‘When it’s going to end, huh? I might as well become a skeleton here. It’s unedurable Alpha. Help me! Help. Me.’ Kavish groaned, rolling his eyes. Miraculously, he reciprocates the smiles thrown his way when internally he could be a screaming mess for all we know. ‘True, what’s the point of dragging it so long when it will only last no more than a day?’ Subhaan deadpanned, nibbling on the crispy starter. His deep blue eyes search the massive hall for the familiar face of his mate who has been stolen away by some international delicacies. Adrian, the only non-Alpha in the group, meanwhile plays with the tissue—moulding it in some eccentric shape like he always does. ‘Two whole keynote speakers droning monotonously about the all the pseudo-accomplishments of barely their FS. Nothing sexier than shrimp cocktails and an hour and a half of speeches on eternal love. Esh! Can you find anything more fascinating?’ Gusteau, Subhaan’s ever so silent and genius Beta, grunts
Lizzian’s Head: What happened after the car ride? The side of my head throbbed like hell yet it does not stop me from travelling down memory lane. ‘You looked cute when you were jealous.’ Ibhaan had whispered in my ears out of nowhere. He was with the UN delegates and I was chatting with the Viscount of Shaach-eero. I could not retort or spit tequila when the royals were around. Only disguised glares had to do the business. Is the air of Shaach-eero intoxicated to get in the head of Alpha, the brat? When I looked over his shoulder, I could see a she-wolf who was undergoing the same torture as I was. Subhaan was not any better either nor were Sunny and Adrian. The Alphas were clinging to their mates like a fucking lizards. In anything, they were worse. It wasn't that I did not want to save Huine. I tried. He just did not leave when I politely expressed my desire to talk to his mate to avoid Luna Arin's perpetually long family. Yes, seven freaking siblings! Can anyone imagine s
Whatever scattered memories my brain has recollected are enough. Like seriously, it’s ENOUGH to want me to dig a grave, find a coffin and nail me inside it. Rather, I’d set myself on fire. I buried my face in a pillow and muffled a yell that erupted from the depth of my heart. Did I do all of that? ‘You are still having self doubts? Seriously? Well…no, you did not do it, sweety?’ ‘I did not?’ I clung to Ella with hope. Maybe, she’d remember something I do not. My heart stops beating in anticipation for a moment. ‘Nope! No, your doppelganger ascended the earth to especially create your drunken catastrophe and humiliate the shit out of you, Bitch with capital B!’ Ella snickers sternly. A permanent expression she has seemingly opted for… forever. I groan aloud. ‘Shut up, Ella! Now is not the time.’ I roll my eyes and nibble on my nails. I squeeze my eyes to erase the images of last night that flash in a loop. ‘What the hell had gotten into my head? Mother Earth, I beg you to
Bringing Emily out! Meet me in Phoenix at five. Bring the other two. My phone chimed again. Reluctantly, I opened it to find a text from Sierra. I read it as I slip into the dress and walk past the mirror. It has already been way past Ibhaan’s deadline and I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if the door slam opens and he drags me out of the hotel. We are going to be heeding in an hour. Your favourite jerk is lurking around in the lobby. You’ll have to dodge past him unnoticed. We are forbidden to contact you or come near you. Arrogant Alpha took a good half an hour lecture of your staff. Lily is crying inconsolably. He has fired her. Be quick. The text follows promptly. Details, please. I revert with sweaty palms. The three dots wiggle on the screen, making me chew on my fingernails in anticipation. The past flashes before my eyes when Dhairya used to control every freaking second of my life. I have gotten used to independence so much that I wouldn’t mind snapping anyone’s neck int
Ibhaan’s Head:The world outside oddly resembles my mood. It’s gloomy, drizzly and sad. However, it is bearable unlike the agony deep in my heart that is compelling me to bleed or just die. Arin has gone too far. I ball my fist to the side and heave out a long breath before I bring the cigarette back to take a drag. ‘Where is Thomas?’ I ask Adrian who eyes the burning stick in my hands before looking at me. Luckily, he keeps his mouth shut. I don’t think I would have handled had he decided to lecture me about the combustion of lungs and duh!I am pissed and at least to say already done. Adrian gestures to the private space behind us. Of course, it’a state owned hotel. The First Person, Thomas would be surrounded by his legal hawks. I could see him screaming at his solicitor at the top of his lungs while the little army from his political campaign shuffled through piles of papers. ‘Did you sleep a wink last night? You look like crap.’ Adrian rubs a hand over my back. ‘What’s the poi
Did I follow the instructions and stayed glued to my spot like a little sweet girl? Well, to answer it…Has the earth turned upside down and the wolves become vegetarian? Have the Draculas stopped sucking blood and have witches become even a cent lesser annoying crapping rainbow? Has the moon wobbled its way to become a satellite of Mercury instead because it can’t absolutely tolerate the face of the earth and the faces residing on it? Nope. Nix. Naah. Nada. None of the sorts happened. Then would it not be a great offense if I stayed put on the spot near the itchy, annoying bushes that shiver for no apparent reason while whining amorous sounds loudly pleading for more and deeper? Don’t ask me why? I neither have the answer nor wish to peep around the bushes to figure it out because I already know and so do you. It simply does not make any sense to me. Why would somebody want to do it in the open? Since when snakes have become so rakeless and bold? Does it to you? Perverts
Lizzy's Head:The sunrise is dazzling as the Alpha and I walk hand-in-hand along the seashore to meet the informer at the designated spot for the meeting.Dhariya is alive. Of course he’d be. Bitches don’t die that easily. The moment I heard all about it. I have been numb as if somebody had pushed me a tank full of iced water and closed the opening shut. It’s suffocating and vaguely overwhelming. All this while he had been alive yet he made no efforts to find me. What a son of a bitch!? A slow breeze flirts with my blonde tresses, sending them flying everywhere to the north. ‘He must be here any minute now.’ Ibhaan mumbles, checking his smartwatch for the seventh time. He leaves my palm and rubs it all over his arms. Ibhaan hasn’t been himself for my Lord knows how long! I couldn’t understand how he’d been dealing with the admin, especially after knowing his worst enemy and his wife is breathing anywhere near him. How had he reacted when he’d known his Luna to be someone who h
‘Emperor Dhairya is alive.’ I was told and surprisingly, I don’t care. I know it’s the worst news to know that your worst enemy (the Chatali’s worst enemy maybe) is breathing, seething, and ready to attack yet my mind cooks up better content to focus on. ‘Alpha, how was the meeting with the Lycan?’ Kavish asked me as soon as I walked in. To my utmost dismay, he was not sitting alone. The ‘Bastards Of Chaitali’ were already there with him. Munching on my snacks and chatting animatedly about some irrelevant and probably very stupid current affair. I had entered my study with such anger and irritation that Kavish preferred to be quiet but the ‘Bastards’ did not. I knew even with Kavish the peace will be short-lived. Being the Beta of the Taksh Pack, he had to gather courage and ask his Alpha, aka me, about the meeting so he could instruct his new favorite Himanshu to record it in the miserable book of Minutes. It’s not casual when the Lycan summons someone at urgent notice including
‘He said that?’ The familiar voice gasps in astonishment. It has to be a response to something the other soft mumble has said. And I’ve heard it before. ‘Yes.’ The aforementioned one, reply. Its punctuation is shaken a bit. I could tell it was said with a nod at another moment. ‘I would not have believed it if it were not for my own ears. It was Alpha Ibhaan and Alpha of that...I don't remember the name but he was a wolf from some pack. I saw him at Huine’s party. A whore for a wolf, I am telling you...he tried to hit on me. I cannot even tell you the thing he asked. He...he...I think we are doing it for nothing. This cannot happen. Wolves and ser-’‘It must!’ The familiar voice is firm with determination. She is not very pleased with what has ever been told to her. On anything, it was very upset as if it had been gravely offended. ‘I don’t care if he did something so...ugh! I don’t care. It is none of my business. What matters...what matters is that he does not get to know it until
‘They are coming?’ I informed my mate, forgetting all about Suzan in a moment. ‘Who?’ She grumbled irritatedly. Her mood swings have become a fresh concern but I’d rather ignore them. ‘My friends.’ I told her. And there were the last words we’d exchanged before my friends arrived in the Empire. In the evening, when they finally came—‘Come out, Bastard. I’m waiting.’ I inform my friend, Adrian on the phone after I park my car outside his hotel. I just do not feel like going inside to pick him up and go through the security scrutiny for that rascal. After all, he is the shitty piece of werewolf ever inhabiting the plant. ‘Coming.’ I growl into the phone and I do not need a gypsy to interpret his adventurous night in the mystical land. ‘You asshole, you did not get up yet. Did you?’ I clutch the steering wheel tighter, gritting my teeth. I knew it. I knew it was a bad idea. What was I even thinking in the first place?It is Sunday morning, and we have to go inspect some facts to r
It somehow personifies the restless deep with me. I’m careless of the uncertainity of future or of what would become of my territory and the Empire or whether I’d be recognized as a Lycan, or whether my mate truly is an Empress in disguise that is, if she is—I’d be tantalized at the turns of events for it’s nearly impossible for destiny to be so on point. Very often my own thoughts surpise me! I couldn’t believe never once I thought of what might have actually become of Arin and whether the captured Serpent knows anything for whom my mate is ready to wage war. ‘She knows something.’ Kavish had recently grumbled his annoyance. ‘It’s just that she is so devoted towards her mistress and the Empire that she’d rather die. And I fear their Emperor ain’t dead too.’ And from that day on, there is always a new revelation concerning the Empire and its rulers. Some even claimed that they had spotted Emperor Dhairya lurking around and I all but want to giggle like a school girl at their excl
Anxiety is the worst of chronic disease if it exceeds the threshold. In a way, it’s like sugar. It’s pleasant if in moderation but the moment it overloads, it’s gonna yell disaster. Moreover, the way it gives rise to desperation. It’s almost scary. My feet have grown a mind of their own. I no longer have, what do they say? Control? Precisely! I do not have control of my feet, my brain, my heart, and my body. Emotions, you say? It keeps dragging me back to the Empress’s palace behind the castle, looking down the tiny hill.The white marvelous colossal building with a fence of Deodar, Peepal, and maple trees has a magnet while my body seems to have an accelerated amount of iron. The natural laws do all the remaining work and I find myself strolling near the fountain outside the entrance at every chance I can get.There is something about the place that has captivated my heart. Or it could be the owner? Nope. Not the owner, but a portrait of the deceased owner. I just can't seem to
The Official Gazette Of ChaitaliEXTRAORDINARY PART-II OF Section 45Published By AuthorityNo. 55, Head Of The State, Parliament of Chaitali,Ministry of Parliament and Administration(Department of Ruling Activities and Conducts)NOTIFICATION UNDER THE CONSTITUTION OF ChaitaliAlpha City, May 3, 2022,In regards to the Preliminary Evaluation conducted on April 28th, 2022, the following results have been declared by the Committee of Evaluation, specially formed for the occasion.We have conducted the Preliminary Evaluation of the compliance of numerous statutory provisions and adherence to good corporate practice by the Administration of Chaitali (Herein after being called ‘The Pack’). The Preliminary Evaluation was conducted on the matter which provided us with a reasonable basis for evaluating the conduct of Alphas and their mates at the decision-making level as well as their understanding of statutory compliance with the law of the land and expressing our opinion there. Based on
Then, there was silence as…mum… well silency silence of a special silence. Arin stopped dead in her tracks, shuddering slightly. Even from a yard's distance I could hear her ragged breath. Sweat beads glistened everywhere on her face, neck, bo—everywhere. The wrath of the moments before subsided when the possibility of deadly events sunk in. ‘Damn it! I could have died.’ I was startled. The shot was ear-piercing enough to vibrate the walls of the castle. In less than two minutes, Shantanu was at my side and Himanshu and Siera were at Arin’s side.Himanshu had an impressive speed for an omega while Siera took her own sweet time, strolling near the igloo-shaped tree, huffing and puffing for every breath. I made a mental note of it. She was evidently unfit to protect Luna at this rate. ‘Alpha? Luna? Are you alright?’ Shantanu hurried once over to the guards. His flashy new fully-loaded toy is out immediately.‘Drop your weapons now!’ He commanded. ‘¡Señor! No era mi intención ofend