Chapter 1. Secret Artefact

Remilia's POV.

I squatted silently as I listened to the tail end of a conversation that filled me with feelings of utmost betrayal. I remained motionless as Eryndor – Alpha Eryndor, also known as my lover – sold out his pack. He said his goodbyes to the rogue he was talking to and waited a few minutes more for the man to leave. The crunch of his feet on the dry leaves of the woods alerted me that he was about to leave, his act of treason complete. I stood just as silently as I had waited, and just when he was about to walk past the tree behind which I’d been hiding, I stepped into his path, my expression blank but with enough traces of anger left. 

The fleeting look of shock that crossed his face told me he now knew that I’d heard if not all, then a good part of his conversation with the rogue. He recovered quickly. “Remilia”, he said, “what brings you here?”

I fixed my gaze on him. “What just happened, Eryndor?”

“What do you mean, Darling?”

The intensity of my glare increased. “You’ve been selling out Nightborne. I heard your conversation with that man.”

Eryndor walked up to me and took me by the arm, trying to steer me back home. I pulled away from him, scowling. “How could you? Eryndor, you’re our alpha. How can you give out pack resources to such a man?” My voice was rising. 

Eryndor’s eyebrows pulled together in a slight frown. “You don’t know what you’re speaking of, Remilia. Let’s go home and never mention this again.”

“No!” I spun around to face him. “No! I trusted you! The pack trusts you! And this is what you do when our backs are turned?”

He sighed, bringing a hand up to rub at his brow. “Yes, Remilia”, he finally said, sounding angrier than he was a moment ago. “This is what I do. It doesn’t hurt anybody!”

“Except your pack members”, I sneered. “But I guess the fat additions to your pocket makes for a good compensation.”

“It does!”, Eryndor snapped. “You heard correctly. You’re not wrong. What are you going to do about it?”

I returned his stormy glare with a frosty look. “I’m going to the Council. This has to be brought to trial.”

The look on Eryndor’s face should’ve been enough to scare me into submission. We might be mated, but he was still my superior. I held my ground. “You will do nothing of the sort”, he growled, stepping in close and gripping my arm tightly. 

I twisted it out of his grip with some difficulty, stifling my wince. “And how will you stop me?”

Eryndor growled slowly, his eyes flashing a deep black, and I knew his wolf was close to the surface. “Think carefully, Remilia. I’m willing to overlook your behavior so far as a result of our bond, but take one step in the direction of the pack house and I’ll have you brought in and tried for treasonous accusations and disloyalty.” He sneered. “Whom do you think the Council is likely to believe? Their Alpha? Or you?”

I scoffed. “You can bluff all you want. You and I know what will really happen.”

Eryndor’s eyes narrowed. “Try me, Remilia.”

I whirled around, walking in the direction of the pack house. A large body slammed into me, sending me sprawling painfully to the ground. 

I scrambled into a sitting position, twisting around to face the man I mated with, who was now standing above me with hatred apparent on his face. He took a step towards me, raising his arm, and like a bolt, I shot to my feet, my warriors training instinctively kicking in as I danced away. 

Eryndor attacked and I blocked unsurprisingly powerful blows. He laughed as he batted my punch aside with a careless sweep of his hand. My skirts tangled around my legs, making motion difficult for me and he took advantage of that, landing a blow across my cheek that sent me staggering backwards in pain. No matter how trained, a common werewolf woman was no match for a fully trained, ruthless alpha. Blood flooded my mouth from a cut in the inside of my cheek and I moved backwards fearfully as Eryndor advanced towards me. “I warned you, Remilia. You should know better than to cross me.”

Until that moment, I had made an effort to ignore the nagging voice at the back of my mind. The one that urged me to put an end to this once and for all. 

I shook my head as I retreated, my cheek swollen and my lip bleeding. My arm ached where he had handed a blow. “Stop this, Eryndor. Please”, I begged. 

Eryndor shook his head. “Oh, but don’t you see how well this would work out for me? Dead from an accident in the woods…no one would question much. I can’t have you going around muttering.” 

“Stay away from me, Eryndor”, I said. “I’m warning you. You aren’t the only one with secrets.”

“If by some miracle you leave this place alive, Remilia, I’ll add that to your list of offenses in preparation for your execution. Threats against your Alpha.”

“Eryndor…”, I said in a warning tone, the voice in my head getting louder by the minute. I saw it in his eyes – the moment he made his decision. He charged, canines extended, eyes dark. I held my hand out, feeling mist and black smoke gather, forming into a cool length of metal that sang against my skin. 

The Sword lengthened as if from thin air and I hefted it, the weight gleaming black metal comforting in my hands. I slashed in the direction of Eryndor’s lunge and he twisted, barely managing to get out of the way. He tumbled to the ground behind me and leapt back to his feet, his eyes fixed solely on my weapon. 

The black length was double-edged, ending in a sharp point that seemed to catch the light when it moved, despite its color. The hilt was solid gold and cast in the shape of small wings sprouting from either side of the grip. It was a majestic weapon. 

Eryndor’s eyes widened. “NightSword.”