CHAPTER 3

           Calix’s POV.

            “Land ho!!” the lookout man hollered. 

            I closed the compass in my hand and brought out my spyglass, a peep through the device showed a town on top of a hill. Tyr, home sweet home.

            “Prepare for anchor!” I instructed the men as I walked down the main deck. “Prepare the lines and put out the fender. I want all hands on deck!”

            “Aye, Aye, Captain!” the men chorused. The sounds of ropes being coiled and sails getting stowed filled the air. My hands clasped behind my back, I strode to the quarterdeck, to Han steering the ship. 

            “How is she?” I asked.

            “She is steady, no worries about her listing or swaying. And according to my calculations, we should be in Tyr in two hours and that’s at dusk,” he replied and I patted his back. Han was my beta and best friend, we have explored the world together. My gaze darted to the gray hump on the horizon, Tyr, my place of birth.

            It's been two decades since I set my eyes on it, two decades since that night which has left a scar on my heart. Exhaling, I glanced about the ship’s decks and saw her, she was leaning on the rail and stared at the sea.

            “Am I interrupting something?” I asked as I stopped behind her. Leia tilted her head and saw me, a smile spilled on her lips.

            She straightened from the railings. “No, you’re not,” she said. Covering the distance between us, I joined her at the bow of the ship. In the silence that ensued, we both stared at the mesmerizing blue before us. I brought back my stare at my cousin and noticed she was gloomy.

            “Home sweet home, huh?” I said, hoping to cheer her up.

            Leia brought back her gaze on me. “I heard they are throwing a welcome party for you.”

            “For us,” I corrected.

            Leia dragged a breath and resumed staring at the sea. “I do not think it's a bright idea coming back to Tyr after all these years” she paused briefly and fidgeted with her fingers. “Coming back to Tyr would reopen wounds, Calix, wounds I am afraid hasn’t healed properly.”

            I fought back the tears as gory images of that night flooded my head. The screams still torment me, but it's the sight of my father's head as it rolled on the floor that has left me reliving that moment over and over again.

            “We dock at dusk.” I changed topics and turned to leave.

            “Have you forgotten how you suffered, the nights you woke up screaming and asking for your father? You want revenge, don’t you?” she asked. “-That’s why you are here, to avenge your father’s death, isn’t it?”

            My hands clenching to fists, I turned around and looked at my cousin. “Like I said, we’re here because our people needs us, moreover it’s been decades since the incident of that night and I’m not that little boy anymore. And what if I seek revenge? That shouldn’t trouble you.”

            “Perhaps you have forgotten how one man wreaked havoc on the whole of Tyr, the people suffered and the town experienced a major set back. What if he strikes back?”

            My eyes changed into green and a loud growl tore my lips. I gripped her neck and pinned her to the railings behind. “Do not ever tell me this again. If he ever strikes back, Alpha Thane or whatever they call him, I will make sure that him and his pack suffer threefold the havoc he wreaked on Tyr.” I finished and let go of her, just as my eyes flickered into its usual brown. Leia coughed on the floor. “I’m sorry.” I muttered and walked out of the bow area of the ship, back to the quarterdeck where I took over the wheels from Han.

            Exactly at the first tinge of dusk, our ship arrived at the port of Tyr. The people came out in masses and welcomed us. Glancing one more time at Leia, I climbed down the ship and walked to the child holding out a bouquet for me.

            “Your Grace, we welcome you back to Tyr, thank you for honoring our invitation. Please, accept these flowers as a sign of our solidarity and unwavering love for his majesty,” she finished and handed over the flowers to me.

            A round of applause rang on the port as I straightened and waved at the people gathered. Tyr is bordered by tall mountains. I feel a pair of eyes on me and when I looked up at a secluded part of the mountain, I find a woman standing there and looking at me. She was wearing a black dress and her grey hair was braided into two like a bull’s horn. 

            Whoever she was, startled as our eyes met and hurried back inside the cave behind her. “Who is that?” Han asked and came standing next to me. He must have seen the haggard lady.

            “I don’t know,” I replied, “Whoever it is likes her distance and doesn’t mingle with the crowd.” I said and looked at my beta. I proceeded to the gathering before me.

            Tyr was just as I remembered, even though it's been two decades since I left, evidence that this town indeed suffered a major setback after that night.

            Once in a while, I’d look over my shoulders to make sure Leia is following through, she’s the only family I’ve got left and it is my duty to keep her safe, even though she can be annoying at times.

            We arrived in Tyr to a banquet waiting for us. There was a lot of dancing and enough booze to intoxicate even the strongest of shifter. Not me, as I laughed at the people wrestling playfully on the grounds.

            Soon, the children were sent away and the scenery turned sensual as a dozen of skimpily dressed ladies stepped forward and danced under the moonlight. Soon, some men joined them and they kissed and fondled. Han who was seated by my righthand, chuckled and joined them.

            Leia dragged a breath. “I will like to retire for the night,” she said and jerked to her feet, just as a middle-aged woman stepped forward.

            “This way, My Lady,” she said and led Leia away.

            “Family can sometimes be a pain in the as$,” someone said and I tilted at the voice. It was him, my father's best-friend.

            “Mr. Westley!” I jerked to my feet. He bowed and straightened as I stepped forward and pulled him into a hug. “It’s so good to see you.” I said as we straightened.

            “Sorry I was not around to welcome you, I went to inspect the crops at our farmlands.”

            “You’re still a farmer after all these years,” I said.

            “Of course, farming is the only language I understand. You should come around and see for yourself, the crops are growing bountifully. This may be out best season yet at agriculture,” he said.

            We sat down as a maiden served him his food. If it wasn't for Mr. Westley, I wouldn’t have left the shores of Tyr. The morning after the invasion, he’d single-handedly written to my maternal colony and the next morning they were here to pick me up. A prince of two very different kinds.

            While my father was a werewolf, my mother on the other hand was a lycan. A lycan queen who’d fallen in-love with a traveler she met in Cathena while on a business trip.

            A lot of people confuse werewolves and lycans, but these are two very different kinds with the later being more powerful. This was the reason my father separated from my mother, he couldn’t endure her dominant traits and ended whatever it is they had, shortly after she realized she was pregnant.

            As it is in the world of shifters, if two different kinds meet and produce a young, the young shall take after the traits of the dominant shifter. Hence, if a werewolf and a lycan mates, their young one shall be a lycan, and if a werewolf and a human should mate, their offspring shall become a werewolf even though addressed as hybrids by the society.

            Mr. Westley ate his food while I moved my gaze to the adults dancing in the arena. Han was dancing with a red-haired and waved as our gaze met.

            “Who is that?” Mr. Wesley asked.

            “That’s Han, my beta.”

            “Let me guess, he’s a lycan?” he asked.

            “Yes, Han was the first friend I made when I arrived Nirian, his father was a chef in my mother’s castle. We have become inseparable over the years and after I took over as alpha, I made him my beta,” I explained and glanced at Mr. Westley. The man smiled and nodded.

            “Even without you telling me I knew he was your beta, I can almost smell the alpha-beta bond between you two. Such a bond is priceless and should be cherished,” he said.

            “Thank you.” I said. We resumed staring at the people dancing. Mr. Westley downed glass after glass of wines and laughed heartily. I glanced at the man, and wondered what sad life he must have lived without a mate. That makes me wonder if I’d suffer the same fate as him after going this far in life and yet not being able to find my mate.

            What if I’m mateless? What if I belong to the 1% of the shifter population who spend their lives alone without anyone to call their own...

            Reaching for my glass on the table, I downed its entire contents and jerked to my feet. “I would like to retire for the night,” I said. A woman walked to Mr. Westley and whispered something to his ears.

            He smiled. “It seems they have a surprise waiting for you.” Mr. Wesley emptied his glass and lurched to his feet. “Come with me, My Lord.”

            The walk from the arena to the castle was a short one. While at the gates as the guards raised the portcullis, I waited for the moment the scenes of that night will flash my head and torment me, but they don’t. Instead, the gates come open and a smile spills on my lips. Perhaps it is the sight of the renovated castle and the fact that it's been two decades since that fateful incident.

            “Alpha Calix!” I heard my name from behind.

            We turned around and sighted my beta running from the distance. Han puffed. “One minute you’re at the table, one minute I turn around and you are gone,” he said.

            “I’m sorry, Han. I was exhausted and wished to retire for the night. Mr. Westley here has decided to show me my place of rest, I didn't want to bother you.” The two exchanged a handshake and when I looked further, I saw the red-haired hiding behind a carriage. I smiled.

            “Go ahead, Han. I will see you in the morning,” I patted my best friend and headed inside the mansion. 

            Why do I feel the maids pouring colorful petals on the floor as I walked down the hallways of the castle, is not the surprise Mr. Westley is talking about?

            We arrived at the last floor of the castle and Mr. Westley stopped before the second door. “Have a good night,” he said, turned and left. Curiosity rippling my expression, I pushed open the door before me, and what I see leaves me grinning from ear to ear.