Chapter 3

“Are you mad?” Anastasia said and punched him on his back.

“Shut up!, If you want to get out of here.” he said.

He scaled the wall like it was nothing. Securing her in his arms, he jumped down to the ground effortlessly on his feet.

Shocked as hell, she looked at him. But he was now running with her to the boundary of the kingdom. For the first time, she heard the screams and shouts of the soldiers. The palace has been alerted of her abduction. It was now a matter of time till they found her. They were Fae soldiers.

“I think you better leave me here, Starlight.” said Anastasia.

“They are going to be here any minute.”

The man gave her a feral grin. With one hand holding Anastasia by the waist, Starlight leapt almost ten feet high and tossed her into the air. She suppressed a shriek for fear they would be caught. As the world turned around and moved in slow motion she found she was falling, limbs flailing towards the ground. But before she touched the ground, she found herself over the soft fur of an animal. A massive black wolf was now speeding towards the perimeter with Anastasia on his back. She held his ear, shocked to the core. Her eyes were wide as adrenalin rushed through her body. Her pulse raced like that of a horse.

Starlight was...a WEREWOLF!

He growled and she could feel the vibrations in his chest.

“God!” she breathed.

Starlight raced at break-neck speed to the boundary, jumping over the fallen logs and large ice-covered rocks and twisting around the tall aspen trees.

“Do you know where the bend is?” she asked.

The wolf growled again.

Everything blurred past them and the screams receded. The chilly winds slapped at her cheeks and her hair whipped over her face. Fifteen minutes later, she saw the thick air wall in front of her.

“The bend is on the right.” she said but the wolf had already turned right.

All of a sudden he groaned and tumbled to the ground. She fell down with him, skidding away in the wet mud. An arrow was piercing his leg. Starlight shifted back. He crawled up to Anastasia who was now covered with wet mud, twigs and grass. She rose to her feet and winced as a sharp pain shot through her ankle. She let out a laugh in disbelief and said

“Could it get any worse?”

With a groan, Starlight broke the shaft of the arrow in his thigh.

“Its nothing. Its just a flesh wound. It would just bleed and become okay.” He looked at her as she leaned against a boulder.

“Run.” he grunted.

“I told you this is your last chance!”

“Not without you.” Anastasia said. How could she leave him for the soldiers. They would shred him to pieces and feed him to hungry lions. He was the bravest and most loyal man she had ever met in her life. An asset.

“Damn it!” he said and got up with a limp. Seeing that she was almost hyperventilating, he extended his hand to her. She held his hand and he pulled her up. The two dashed towards the perimeter as they heard wings beating and bowstrings releasing with screams and whistles. The soldiers had closed to only a few meters behind them. Another arrow passed them, missing by mere inches.

“ANASTASIAAAAA!” she heard Nyles shouting from behind amongst other shouts.

“COME BACKKK!”

Anastasia whimpered. How could she leave her maid in this condition. They would kill her too.

She felt Starlight lifting in the air and jumping towards the thick air wall. He had found the bend.

“NOOOO!” Nyles shrieked from behind and her massive wings fluttered behind her just in time to grab Starlight by his shoulders. Together they had leapt out of the bend, landing right into the thick mist that rolled in front of her eyes. As soon as they landed, Anastasia found herself staring into the pale blue eyes of a man, similar to Starlight. She pressed her hand to her mouth and turned around to see the man who was standing right behind her with a bare chest. Was he the twin of this man?

All of a sudden he was covered with white mist, and when the mist exploded, her eyes was looking at the most handsome man she had ever encountered in her life. He was brutally attractive. Power was thrumming from his towering frame. The torso was mud splattered, and when her eyes landed on his lean face, she saw stubble of two days.

His eyes were fiery golden yellow. The man looked fierce and angry as tension radiated off his corded neck muscles. His golden irises flickered a pale blue again.

At six and a half feet he towered her like a dangerous man. Bewildered at this sudden change of event, Anastasia stumbled back, and she was immediately held by the real Starlight.

The werewolf who had saved her from the palace stepped forward and bowed, he wasn't the real Starlight, he had simply taken Starlight form to rescue her.

“I am Macilleus, your Highness.”

Anastasia's mouth fell to the floor. Macilleus? Who was he? Her gaze traveled to Nyles who was dusting her clothes and coughing. She rushed to Anastasia and held her hand.

“Princess what have you done?” she said with her eyes as wide as saucer and her body and her wings were shaking like a dry leaf.

“Let us go back.” she pulled her hands but Anastasia didn't move.

“Don't be insane Princess.” Nyles said.

“The crown Prince is going to kill me. I beg of you, let's go back.”

She looked at Macilleus and shouted

“Take us back you conman! You have deceived us, if you don't take us back this instance, I am going to claw your face beyond recognition!”

Macilleus chest rumbled

“Back off!” he growled.

With a terrifying scream, Nyles attacked him with her sharp claws extended. He simply backhanded her and flew and fell some twenty feet away in the wet mud, unconscious. A woman came right over and tied her hands and legs.

Anastasia knew that Nyles was fine, and this was too important a mission to be jeopardized by her antics. She looked back at Macilleus with a "what-now" expression.