~RichardWhen I returned home from my trip, I stormed up the stairs with every other person following behind as I headed to my room where the supposed corpse of my brother lay. On my way back, i had a lot to think about. It still felt so unreal, almost as if they were all playing a prank on me. This was probably a ploy for them to get me to return back home. My brother was dead? My wife had disappeared with no trace?. There was no way that was true. It was an evil scheme by everyone, including my brother. He had willingly given himself to be used for the prank, i had thought.But as soon as I entered my room and saw my brother still lying on the floor, very cold. I realized it hadn't been a prank. It was real! My only brother was dead!It felt as though my entire world had come crashing to the ground. How did this happen? How could he let himself die this way, leaving me, his only brother? How could he be so wicked?I rent my clothes and growled in pain.I bent down, carrying up his
~AthenaAlpha Sebastian walked in, holding the guard by the neck as he glared at Seline."I gave strict instructions not to let anyone come see her. Why did you disobey me?" he growled.The question was not directed to Seline but to the guard who went on his knees, stuttering through his apology. "I… I am so sorry, Alpha," he said."It is my fault, Alpha. Punish me instead. I forced him to open the door, saying you sent me as I am the only one in charge of attending to Athena," Ms. Seline interrupted, coming to the guard's rescue.Alpha Sebastian released his hold on the guard and tilted his fiery gaze towards Ms. Seline. I was scared of what he might do to her.The guard looked at Ms. Seline and offered a bitter smile in appreciation.To my surprise, Alpha Sebastian's demeanor changed. He sighed and said nonchalantly, "Well, you are right about one thing. Being the only one in charge of attending to her, I can't entrust a task as important as that to just anybody." His eyes darted to
~ RichardAll through the night since I arrived with my pack, every guard has been searching for Athena to no avail. It's as though she has disappeared from the face of the earth. How could this happen? How could she disappear just like that after murdering my brother in cold blood?My phone rang. It was my head of guards from the borders. I answered."Where the hell have you been? I have been trying to get a hold of you to no avail," I growled."I am so sorry, Your Majesty…I," he began."Please, save your excuses. I don't have any need for them!" I interrupted angrily."Did anyone cross the borders or come in between yesterday and today?" I inquired."No, Your Majesty. There have been no movements at all at the borders," he replied."Are you sure about that?""Yes, Your Majesty."I ended the call. I knew that would be his answer even before I asked. The reason I knew this is because there has been no evidence that Athena even threaded the paths leading in any direction.The areas sur
~SabastianMy phone fell from my hand as I was still in a state of shock after the call with Sabrina. Richard was on his way to my pack."Are you that scared of him?" my wolf quizzed."He is the lycan king.""That doesn't answer my question. I didn't ask who he is, I asked if you are that scared…""Of course, I am that scared of him! What do you expect? A man that can kill me without having to do too much, haven't you heard? Our wolf abilities are useless where he is concerned," I growled angrily.My wolf went silent. It must have sunk in, the realization of the fact that we were no match for the lycan king, a discovery I had made recently during a conversation with Sabrina when I had threatened her I would come and fight against the lycan king, waging war against him if it got to that. She made me understand that it would all be in vain as the lycan king had the ability to control powers. I would be unable to use my strength as a wolf if he commands it."I almost forgot that part. Hi
~ SebastianI had been on edge for the past few hours while waiting for Richard to arrive. Despite all the witch did to completely cloak Athena's presence in my mansion, I still felt something was amiss but I couldn't quite place my hand on what it might be."You are not one to be frightful Sabastain! Get a hold of yourself!", my wolf advised."I know! I know! But this is Richard we are talking about, the Lycan king is on his way here and we know how bloodthirsty that breed can be", I retorted."Your fear is what would get you killed! Be brave! You are not the Sabastain I know! Where is the man that is feared and revered by werewolves far and wide? The man whose mere name makes people tremble? Huh? Where is he?", he taunted.I rolled my eyes at his words and run a hand through my hair in frustration as I muttered "Well, I am still him but Richard is…", "Someone the Sabastian I know would stand tall in confrontation against instead of acting like a scared dog! Who are you and what hav
~SabastianI glanced down the hallway leading to the basement and then at Richard."You're right, Your Majesty. She might be hiding down there. Why hadn't I thought of that? We would have checked there sooner, maybe before checking every other place.""Well, let's do that now," he said."We will, Your Majesty. Kindly spare me a few minutes to get some water to drink before we go down there. I am so dehydrated," I replied, making an excuse, hoping he would buy it.He glanced at the witch and his beta. "I could use some water too," the witch chimed in."Well, get some for everyone then," Richard concluded."Alright, please kindly wait inside the hall while I fetch it," I gestured towards the hall.When they made their way towards the hall, I quickly brought out my phone and placed a call to my chief guard. I needed him to go to the special dungeon where Athena was kept and take her away from there.I waited until I was out of earshot from them before issuing my instructions to my guard,
~Sabastian"You heard him! Open the gate," I reiterated Richard's words to the guard, doing nothing to mask the fear in my voice.The guard, who was already afraid, opened the gate with trembling hands. Richard barged into the dungeon."Athena was here! She was here! I am sure of it!" he growled, scanning the area with fiery eyes."How is that possible, Your Majesty?" I said, falling in step beside him. "If she is as powerful as you say she is, then she can't possibly have been here. This dungeon has been empty for over a month now," I explained."I know what I am saying, Sebastian. I am no fool. I smell her here!" he glared intently at me.I frowned and furrowed my brows, thinking of the best possible excuse to give as to why Athena's scent might have been there. Just as the idea hit me, to my surprise, the witch spoke, taking the words right out of my mind."Athena was here, Your Majesty, but that was weeks ago. I can smell her scent faintly."They all fixed their eyes on me, hoping
~SabrinaRichard was holding out pretty well on the outside, trying to act strong and brave, but I know his heart. I know how broken he was on the inside despite his tough exterior. This was my time, my opportunity to draw closer to him and use comfort as a guise to get what I want. I needed to cement our relationship by being available now that he was in his most vulnerable mourning state.The past couple of days, I have been trying to do just that, but he keeps pushing me away. On one occasion, he had actually flared up and shut the door to his office in my face, saying he wanted to be left alone. He said if I wanted to be of help in any way, I would be out there trying to help hunt down Athena, who was the cause of his turmoil.I scoffed as I left his office. Help hunt down Athena? When I was the one who helped her escape in the first place? How ridiculous. Despite his continuous attempts to push me away, I would keep pressing on until I finally got what I wanted. Earlier today,
~AthenaA feast was being held at the mansion with the whole pack in attendance. The gardens were filled with people from the resettlement area while the king, his dignitaries, and elders were in the great hall dining. There was plenty of food and drinks for everyone.It has been one month since I gave birth to my three little warriors. On the day i gave birth to them, my life changed completely. I felt a kind of inner peace that I had never felt before as they were laid beside me on the bed. All the pain I experienced while birthing them suddenly disappeared and was replaced with an unspeakable kind of joy.I had thought I was going to have just one kid. Throughout my pregnancy, I never went for an antenatal checkup even though Richard had suggested it a few times. I was very healthy and strong, so I didn't feel the need to go…maybe if I had, the doctor would have found out I was going to have triplets.My father and stepmother arrived a day after hearing the news, and my stepmother
~RichardSitting at the head of the dining table, I looked to my right and left at the two most important people to me in the world... One was heavily pregnant, looking like she was about to pop any minute, and the other was infectiously cheerful tonight because he had made a bold move, disregarding his fears, and it paid off big time.A few months ago, per my advice, James had told Nuella about his strong feelings for her. To his utter shock, she had revealed she fell head over heels for him from the first moment she set eyes on him in that dungeon. Their relationship blossomed quickly. I saw my best friend become the best version of himself. Nuella completely changed him and made him so much happier than I had seen him in years. I was eternally grateful to her. Fast forward months down the line, James told me he was finally ready to make that big move. I was so happy for him, and here we are now.He asked her to marry him, and she accepted his proposal. Two young bloods specially
~AthenaIt was a Monday morning. Richard drove me to the hospital after I complained about being sick. He left me in the care of the doctor as he had an important errand to run with James."I will be back in two hours, love," he said as he kissed my forehead.After he left, the doctor asked me what exactly was wrong with me, and I told him the symptoms I had been having for the past few days. I had kept them to myself as I didn't want to trouble Richard or anyone else. Today was quite different, unfortunately. I felt very lightheaded and weak and was unable to get out of bed until Richard came to my rescue and insisted on taking me to the hospital himself.The doctor took a sample of my blood and left.After a few minutes, he came back, a bubbly smile stretching his lips.I sat upright on the bed where I was resting, wondering why he was looking happy."Queen Athena, I bring you good news," he said cheerfully. I narrowed my eyes at him in surprise, as I thought of what good news he c
~RichardThe effects of the war have taken their toll on my kingdom these past few weeks. It will really take a long time to get over all that has happened, all because one silly man thought it was wise to avenge the death of his wicked, soulless brother.All the men who surrendered during the war have been put to good use rebuilding my pack, which they helped destroy. They have been allotted different duties in the pack. Some were sent to farms to become laborers and help the people in rural areas till the lands, plant crops, and harvest them. Others were sent to labor in building infrastructures, some of which were destroyed during their attacks with explosives, and so on.As for Alpha Gerald, after keeping him locked up for a week, I set him free, along with his men. He cried in appreciation, and we signed a peace treaty to seal the fact that we had now become allies.Today was the day of the scheduled meeting with the elders, and I still had no clue what they wanted to discuss, a
~AthenaToday, my father and his Luna will come to Black Knight Pack for my mother's burial, which is tomorrow. When he called and told me he would be coming with his Luna because she wanted to see me, I didn't know how to react to the news.All I said was, "Oh… Great.""She is a good woman, Athena. You will love her," my father had said.She was supposed to be my stepmother, but I was feeling quite nervous about seeing her.It has already been two weeks since the war was fought. Nothing is the same anymore. There is great grief all over the pack, in the resettlement area, and even in the mansion. Scores of people had lost their lives. I heard Richard and James discussing the other day, and they mentioned that the death toll had risen to 600 as bodies were still being found in different places. The only good thing about this fight was the fact that more people from the enemy pack had died. For every one lycan that was killed, four werewolves were killed too. So the ratio was 1:4, wh
~AthenaI was so tired but also excited about the fact that I had finally been saved by the two most important men in my life. If only my mother were alive to witness this moment, then my joy would be complete.It seemed as though the war had come to an end. Everywhere was a bit too serene. I didn't ask any questions on our way home as I was too tired to do so.When we got to the mansion, I was surprised to see a whole lot of people in front of it. They were scattered everywhere, sitting on grass and from the way they were being loomed over by some men wielding guns, I just knew they had to be from our enemy pack. We were about to make our way inside when three men from the crowd spoke one after the other.They were begging Richard to set them free. When the first had spoken, I felt a familiar dread curl up at the pit of my stomach. I brushed it off. No way! It just can't be.The second person spoke, and I still brushed it off. However, when the third person spoke, I felt that famil
~RichardI rose to my feet and ran a hand through my hair in frustration. Where has Athena gone? Why wasn't she in the cave as she was supposed to be?"No! She has to be there! I told her to stay there until I come," Alpha Kendrick bellowed in denial as he got to his knees, peering into the cave."Athena!" he screamed, his voice laced with pain. I could imagine how he felt as a father, and that was because I felt even worse. I didn't want to give in to my fears, though."Athena is safe, wherever she is," I internalized, trying to be positive.I checked the ground for fresh footprints that might belong to her, footprints I could trail to her new location, but I didn't find any."Athena!" Alpha Kendrick called out in shock. I immediately spun around."Come to me, my child," he added, extending his hands.With my heart in my mouth, I rushed towards him and went on my knees, peering into the small cave.There she was!She looked so frail as she staggered. I immediately rushed into the cav
~RichardHearing that Rebecca was dead was a very hard pill to swallow. Her death was especially painful because she had just made peace with her daughter, and they both needed time to create long-lasting, happy bonds. The moon goddess should have allowed her some more time, for Athena's sake! I sighed.I was looking out the window as we drove through the woods when my eyes suddenly latched onto something…someone…No! It can't be!I ordered the driver to stop the car, which he immediately did."Richard, what's the problem?" James asked, and I ignored him, rushing out of the car and towards the body lying on the ground, my heart racing rapidly.It was her! It was Jessica!"Fuck!!!" I screamed into the air, raking my hand through my hair in frustration as I sank to my knees, clamping my hand over my mouth as my body surged with emotion and pain, finding expression through the hot tears streaming down my face.I hardly ever cried, but for some reason, I couldn't help but do so at the go
~KendrickI was almost at the territory of the Black Knight pack when I got a call from Alpha Scott. My heart had been very heavy since receiving the second call from Athena informing me of her mother's death.All through the night, I had relived the years we shared, recalling pleasant memories from our past that I haven't seemed to let go of after several years. She was the first woman I ever truly loved, and I have never loved any woman as much as I loved her. Now she was gone. She didn't deserve to die.I answered the call from Alpha Scott and found out that King Richard was there with him. From his questions, I realized that he didn't know anything about Athena's whereabouts nor what had happened there.I told him I had some bad news, and his first inquiry, as expected, was about his wife. He wanted to know if she was okay.I paused, trying to find the best way possible to break the news about Rebecca's death to him."Alpha Frederick! Are you there?" he called out at my silence.