•|•|•"The sea is no place for a wolf."•|•|•[KAYOS]Vaeln was here.2 weeks before he was intended. His scent was strong as I pushed the doors of my study open, my eyes falling on the Light Wolf, a hardness in my jaw I couldn't quite get rid of. Vaeln was a menace if I ever had one. He was the reason for the noise he had blasted throughout the court with a bloody horn. He sat across my desk, staring at me with an amused smirk. The longer I looked at him the more irritated I got. "Will you not speak-""What are you doing here?" I growled, gaze hardening.His lazy smirk dawned into a chuckle."Sit Kayos. Standing there makes me feel so goddamn uncomfortable." He grinned, turning in his seat for a moment, "Offer me a drink or something. A decade-aged wine is what I would prefer."I stared at the obnoxious Arc, trying to stop my anger from reeling its ugly head. "I was unaware it was my duty to make you feel ...comfortable." I gritted through my teeth."I am your guest. Therefore
•|•|•"What do you know of the endless pup?"•|•|•[Kayos]A dark tent-covered cage sat in the Hall room beneath the castle. There was no light in any crevices except the candles that were carried by six of Vaelns men, who guarded the cage on all four sides, standing as still as statues.My ears stretched noting that whatever creature that was trapped here was so silent, it could not be breathing. It must be dead, for it had no heartbeat either.Master Gregory stood a little ways behind us, and Mother stood beside me, whilst Vaeln approached the cage. It was large I registered, judging by the size of the cage, big enough for a Full-grown wolf to roam freely.- An Alpha wolf to be exact. My ears sharpened at the sound of a hiss and grunt from the depths of the covered cage. It was alive. No heartbeat, no breath- but alive. Either it could mask these things or it simply was something diabolical.Scratching sounds followed, rough and hard against the silver bars."I will warn you," Vae
•|•|•"The stories are real Dula. The nightmares father used to tell. The beasts are coming. The villages have disappeared. There is darkness in the air. Do you not feel it?"•|•|•[KAYOS] The human girl trembles before us. Her hair is thin, long, and stringy, a fade-off from the color of the earth. Her scent is strong, a musk of sea and land, salt and dirt. Her sunken eyes remain glued to the stoned floor she kneels on, eyes darting all over the place. Her heart is a hard pound within her. I know what she feels. It is a pain that calls out to my very being. Releasing a hunger in my wolf. She is in a foreign land amongst beasts that could rip her to threads in a breath. Perhaps that is why she fails to breathe normally as one would. Instead, it is a harsh wind against her dry torn lips, her hands shivering in her tattered lap."She can speak," I state, head tilting slightly, taking in the human."She has not spoken a word." Vaeln counters, starting at the small creature. "She w
•|•|• "The Monster is the Wolf." •|•|•[Shade Shadows]"He is simply- insufferable.." I whined, stacking up more books, "Does he truly not know how to say goodbye?" I huffed, my gaze landing on Diane.The beady-eyed bird only tilted its head, watching me intently, as I sighed, stacking away, "he will have to learn. I will have to teach him," I huffed, making sure the spines of each book aligned, "truly insufferable."Diane cawed at this, ruffling her feathers.I glanced at her for a moment, before pausing, "I guess he is busy. I can not expect more from him, he has given me enough. A friendship with a keffer..." the words trail off and a small smile appears against my lips, a warm feeling drawing within me, "he is the first you know-" I huff, gaze trailing back to the bird, "outside of AMA and Vale-"Diane caws loudly and I chuckle-"And of course, you, my pretty little diamond," I gleamed,
•|•|•"There will be no fraternizing with the Guards. You are slaves. Do not forget."•|•|•[Shade Shadows]The slave quarters are filled with whispers and rumors. Everybody is talking about the horn, the visitors that arrived. I walk in quietly, and no one pays much attention to me as they gossip away. My body is tired and all I wish to do is sleep. There will be more to do tomorrow and so I curl up on my mat and shut my eyes. I wish to drift off immediately but my ears remain open, listening to the words of the slaves around me.They talk of the visitors and the cage that came with them in their midst. Some say they heard growls and hisses coming from beneath its dark covers and a shiver crossed my spine.I can not deny I am also curious about these new visitors. I know there is some sort of ceremony taking place in a few weeks, that is why the tribunal has been called, and that is why there will soon be a h
•|•|•"Amidst fleeting moments, her memory wanes like a delicate sunset, yet the cherished years we've woven remain etched, timeless, within my soul's embrace."-Xiirian•|•|• [KAYOS]The world is nothing but a graveyard of water around me. The water is cold, ice cold, but I revel in the numbness of it all.I do not feel the cold. The cold is home. The numbness is solitude. And the blurry vision of the space above me is dreamlike. Perhaps if I stay here long enough reality would fade or simply cease to exist. I stare upwards for minutes beneath the waves but the vision above me remains. Finally sitting up, the water sloshes around me as I take breaths of air in replacing what I missed, my hands pushing my wet locks from my face, breathing harshly until I settle back in the bath, the dimness of the room around me leaving a hollow feeling within me.The shadows move across my walls and I lazily tu
[ SHADE SHADOWS]I am ready for the day. I am ready for the day.I repeat the same words relentlessly even as I march after Madam Catherine towards the red door. This time she does not leave me by the door, she freezes as if caught by time a few feet away and stops.I stop behind her, confused, glancing at the red door. She turns sharply, clearing her throat, "Hurry now, the master awaits."My eyebrows arch together, as she walks passed me with a nod, leaving me alone in the hallway.That is rather strange. Master. Not masters. My fingers went cold, and my heart thudded from within me as I turned round to the space she had disappeared from gaze batting the length.What if she knew? Could she? About the Master and I? I shook my head. How could she? She never entered the library, not even once- I paused to think this through-Not even once.My gaze shot back to the red door, remembering the words of the guards that night. Why were they afraid to enter it? Madam says it is the m
[Kayos]It's been years since I walked these underground halls buried beneath the court. I am alone with a singular lamp to light my way. It is not needed, I can see quite well in utter darkness and yet, light is the best company.Alchest screeches above my shoulder and I roll my eyes. It is as if the shadow is connected to my emotions.I tread the secret passages and stop before the large wooden door. It is barred with numerous locks and chains of which I have no key.When I was younger my father brought me here. I pause the memory. It is the few I remember of him.He opened it as I am now. My gaze travels to Alchest and he moves as a shadow blended into the darkness around, with ease into the smallest crack in the door. I hear the locks click open the chains fall and the door swings open before me. I see Alchest scamper in the shadows inside the dust-covered room.Once again I am taken back in time to memories. My father is by my side. I was not more than 7 summers old. He had liv
•|•|•"What worries you most when you look at him, Gregory? For me, it is that I can not remember the last time he smiled. —Oh, Selene, I can not remember the last time my son smiled."•|•|•[SHADE SHADOWS]I am quietly cleaning.I think my mind is simply vacant at my discovery. That he does not care as much as I do.Petty things, yes, but it is only because I have a glass heart that I behave this way.I have discovered that it easily cracks. You see it was born alone in a land where souls are birthed in pairs.Sighing, I look down at the books littered on the floor. My ears straining slightly for sounds. Part of me believes the master still lingers. At least I wish to believe so.I swear, I hear whispers sometimes but when I turn there is nothing but a stream of dust in the empty row.Not even Diane's flutters can be heard.I did not mean to scare her off too. But she would return I was sure- even though it feels like it has been nearly a half hour since the dust settled.Falling to
•|•|•"To be bonded to another is a gift, Pup. In truth, there is no greater gift for a wolf, and there never will be."•|•|•[SHADE SHADOWS]My hand tightens against the ladder as I lean out to slide a book into the slot. It takes a bit of stretch but it fits. My gaze runs through the spines of the neatly packed books on a now dust-free shelf.Dragging the ladder with me to the next empty shelf, I find the easiest way to pack books is to stack them up like a tower near the ladder for easier packing.I do all this whilst in deep thought.If only I could say I think of ways to escape. If Vale has managed to get the red yarn or find a solution to our Night Wolf problem.These thoughts are what should be on the mind of a slave who is planning an escape but no-I think of none of these things. Instead, I think of words, of stories that aren't mine but are painfully familiar. I think of death, of shadows, of colors painted on a canvas. I think of a pair of wolves, the sadness that has la
•|•|•Selfish Beings! All of them! Them and their goddess. May Chaos reign forever, in this life and the next. •|•|•[KAYOS ADREN PRIME]"Are you nervous?" I do not spare Vaeln a look at a remark so ridiculous. My gaze remains glued to the heavy oak double doors closed before us. "I only ask, because you pause..." Vaeln added, leaning toward me slightly, "Usually when one is before a door, they—open it..." he hints.Selene cannot be this cruel that I have to endure this torment, is she?I have no desire to explain to him that I take a moment, for I have to calm my wolf. The realization that the woman that we are to call mate is behind these doors distresses him, for he knows, whatever she is, she is anything but. I turn to him blankly, "This is none of your concern, Vaeln.""True," He grins, "It is more of an interest to be honest. I'm very interested."I stare at him. I do not speak again. He is much too aggravating and inconsequential for me to spare another second of my atten
•|•|•How does one know this is their bonded, AMA? Is it only by scent? Am I therefore doomed to never find love?•|•|•[KAYOS ADREN PRIME]I stare at her as if a ghost. Curled beside me like a dream, the only word fit to describe this vision of her.Quiet as she sleeps, I am struck motionless, simply watching. Immobile at the weight of her presence. Her scent is sweeter than the flowers that the endless grows to calm me, so much so, even they seem to tilt in a feeble attempt to touch the light coils of her hair, despite the non-existent breeze. It knows. The endless knows. She is something altogether different.Hearing her voice was one thing, but seeing her in all her beauty, in these fields of peace is —ethereal. I can not blink for I fear that if I do, I risk losing a second of all that is her. I am breathless at the thought, breathless at the pure desperation in the notion. I have kept away from her for four days, told myself I must see her soon, but in truth, I have been h
•|•|•This bond we share, Adeline. No being can break. Neither men nor gods.•|•|•[SHADE SHADOWS]********In the market. *******Xirrian states.*******************My fingers shake even as I write this. I cannot contain the excitement coursing through me. It is relief and emotion much too intricate to simply describe.I found her. I found her—I found her.My beloved. All that I am, all that I wish to be. All that is. I have her in my court this very moment. My wolf, my being, aches to be with her, but I must account for the moment. If only so that it is raw and genuine, and if only to give her space.I confess I feel I have suffocated her already. It is as the Mage Wolf predicted. The market is where I found her. In the cold streets of Thal, in the region of the Ice Wolf. It has been 2 years since my encounter with the mage.It is hard to describe—the emotion...The bond is far stronger than I ever perceived. Ah, it flows through me like a river, laden with all the good thin
[SHADE SHADOWS]•|•|• Who else wields magic? Is it only witches?•|•|•A mage Wolf.I study the lines on my open palms, staring at my hands momentarily. My gaze shifts to the pages of the book, picking it up, tracing over Xirrians words, again and again as if they could eat me alive.The dead flower blooms in his hand. My head leans back against the shelf, taking deep breaths in until my heart steadies, and then my eyes lift to the open window watching the rain as the memories flood my mind. Her curse is worse than mine. I feel numb.I do not recollect the first time I found out what I could do. I've always had it. It isn't something that I just figured out. Even after I lost my memories, my power didn't feel abnormal.I thought everyone could do it.Though I don't remember how I discovered I had this power, my memories remind me of the first time AMA did. It was a discovery for her, but for me, although I held no recollection of who I was, or had been, the action was natural an
•|•|•She is not a mate, She is a witch.•|•|•[SHADE SHADOWS]Barnabas is right. The sun refuses to shine by the morrow, and the world is dark. And it stays for three days. At least, I think it has been three days. I can not tell. The hours seem endless.Perhaps I could count how many times Madam has awoken us but she has not been to our chambers. The last time I saw her, she had called AMA's true name. Now, guards bang at our doors when it is time to wake. If I am to count to that then it is four.Four days have passed. It feels like a fever. I pump on mindlessly. My thoughts are filled with pages and lonely words. I have not opened Xirrians journal since. It is far too emotional that reading those pages has wedged me into such despair that I can not bring myself to read another page.But even though I do not dare to read, his words have haunted me, night and day. I can not get it out of my head. Perhaps it's because there is nothing I can do to distract myself. I've been lone
•|•|•I have stared at stars, I have prayed to gods, near and far of all circles. But even they haveturned a deaf ear.•|•|•[SHADE SHADOWS]Liston, the guard keen on getting me into trouble, stands before me. Though his face is visiblycalm as one would expect of a guard, there is a warm glimmer in his eyes, and his lips tug upwards,dimming slightly when a set of Guards matches passed.I turn from him, taking sharp breath in before closing the crimson door behind me and I feel hiseyes follow my every movement.When I turn around, I catch his gaze resting on the red door before snapping back to me, and heopens his mouth to say something, but a voice interrupts his speech."I'll take her from here."My gaze lands on Madam Catherine as she walks firmly towards me.For a moment, Liston seems hesitant, but he steps aside, a short bow before the madam.His gaze strays to me one more time, a tightness in his jaw, before taking his leave.I watch his figure disappear in the hallways and
•|•|•A new age begins, and the cycle repeats.•|•|•[KAYOS]The Portal creaks with haunting whispers as I walk through. The shadows his my true name, enticing. Their voices are cold and wistful. They pull at my robe, and tug, grazing my feet, until I walk out and the whispers fade behind me, the portal closing.Only one shadow remains glued to my side. Alchest climbs up to my shoulder. I glance at him momentarily, my gaze shifting to our surroundings.It is as I thought. A blood bath.The narrow hallway lined only by torches spans a good length and in it lies the carnage left by the creature. There is no death, however. It seems this creature wasn't out to kill. Instead, there is an array of bodies writhing in pain. Slashes and marks. Aid has come to them, and healers are trying their best to do what they can. It is clear they were caught in prepared, however, it is a lesson well learned.Despite their pain, as soon as my presence is known, groans grow quiet, and shivers across th