Chapter 3 | Another Forbidden Love

Elise did not know a lot of werewolves and she was barely acquainted with other beings other than Gustavo, a few dwarves, and her own kind. One of those few werewolves she knew because of social status and popularity was standing in front of her – using an old door as support, wounded and was barely keeping his eyes open.

“Save her,” Alpha Cliden pleaded. “Please. Save us.”

“I’m sorry, you came to the wrong place,” Elise responded coldly. She was about to close the door when the alpha suddenly kneeled, his eyes tired and desperate as he looked at Elise with a begging expression. However, she was a stubborn witch and her heart was too broken to feel mercy and compassion. With a stone-cold glance, she ignored the alpha’s desperate plea. She tried to close the door for the second time, but she stopped on her tracks when the alpha moved aside.

Elise’s eyes widen in surprise as the alpha revealed a wounded, pregnant woman behind him. Elise recognized her right away. It was the heiress of Bardovia, Vampire Crown Princess Viansel. As Alpha Cliden caressed the face of Princess Viansel, Elise could not fathom how two most important beings from two disputing kingdoms came begging at her feet. With Alpha Cliden’s eyes pooling with tears while looking at Princess Viansel, whom, even in pain, has glistening eyes that showed affection for the werewolf in front of her, Elise suddenly remembered them – Gustavo and their baby. As she realized the two’s relationship, tears cascaded down her pale cheeks as she was reminded of her past filled with memories of their forbidden love. Her cold heart was melted in compassion, and she could not ignore it any longer.

“Take her inside, alpha,” said Elise. “I’ll try and save both of you and your baby.”

Alpha Cliden carried Princess Viansel in his arms as he uttered continuous thanks for Elise’s kindness. He laid her down on a small bed at the corner of the cabin. The pain in Viansel’s eyes reflected Cliden’s worried ones. As the alpha sat on the chair beside Viansel, he tried to mask the pain from his wounds, deep and covered in blood from the arrows the vampire guards had struck him. Viansel held his hands, silently telling him that everything would be alright.

Elise immediately charmed a painkilling spell to help the two relieve the pain from their wounds. She got more bondages and she helped them wrap their wounds with it. Elise uttered a few more spells and Viansel began to feel a lot better. Cliden recovered well from his injuries, too, with the help of a little magic.

A satisfied smile crept on Elise’s lips. It reminded her of her first dream – to become a Healer like her parents. She wanted to be one so badly that she spent most of her time studying herbal medicines and healing charms with her parents in Moldengork. Had it not been for Elise’s forbidden love for a vampire, she would have been one a long time ago. Nonetheless, she had no regrets. For when she fell in love with Gustavo, she knew her dreams have changed. That was to build a family with him and live happily.

“May we ask for another favor, Elise?” Cliden asked her, his voice rough and husky from being out in the cold for a long time.

“Anything for you, alpha, and for her highness,” Elise responded.

With a deep sigh, Princess Viansel spoke. “I heard that with the help of magic, it’s possible to give birth to a premature baby.” She paused, contemplating to go on with her next words. Alpha Cliden tightly clutched her hand, assuring her that everything would be fine. “Can you…do that to me?” she asked hesitantly.

Elise shook her head, worried at the princess’ request. “But princess, that’s too dangerous! I’ve never performed such magic before. I’m not sure if I can do the spell right. I’m afraid you might…no. No, no – I’m sorry, princess. I can’t do it.”

“Though I’m in the Immortal World, I might die, right?” Elise nodded at the princess’ question, confirming the latter’s exact thoughts.

“Let’s not risk it, Viansel,” Alpha Cliden told her, trying to convince her to withdraw her choice of giving birth prematurely using magic. “Let’s just… run away.”

“Aren’t we running away already? Cliden, our families are looking for us, thinking that we’re killing each other. We don’t have much time left before they find out the truth between us. They mustn’t know about us and our baby. You know Mungrells aren’t supposed to be born. They will kill our baby!”

With tears pooling his eyes, Alpha Cliden hugged her tightly as if it were the last time he could.  “I can’t risk losing you. Life will be meaningless without you,” he whispered in an agitated tone which silently broke both of their hearts.

As Elise watched both of them cry on each other’s shoulder, it tore her heart apart. The alpha’s words hurt more than a thousand daggers combined to kill her and sharper than a two-edged sword meant to pierce her. She knew better than anyone how life had turned into a misery after she lost everything she tried to protect. Despite the doubts forming in her head, she decided to do it. She could not bear watching the two suffer in a forbidden love. She had enough heartaches already, and watching the two lovers cry rivers of tears made her heart break all over again – a hundred times worse.

“I’ll do it,” Elise declared after a while of silence filled with the couple’s sobs. “I’ll do everything in my power to save you. I’ll be responsible. If I fail, then grant me a death wish, or punish me for a lifetime – an eternal misery for an immortal like me who cannot die in this world.”

“If you fail to save her, do what it takes to kill me. It’s better to die than to live a lonely life. I give you the consent of taking me to the Mortal World to kill me.” Elise shook her head, disagreeing with the alpha’s terms. “This is an order from the alpha, you have no right to disobey,” Alpha Cliden said authoritatively.

“Then, if I die, you’ll have to raise our child,” Princess Viansel added. “That’s your punishment – you’ll have to raise a Mungrell. This is my royal command.”

The thought of failing to save the princess’ life and having to kill the alpha and to raise their child as the consequence weakened Elise and at the same time burdened her. How can a mere witch take away the lives of two significant beings from two powerful kingdoms? The dispute between Zaldigore and Bardovia had been going on for decades ever since the first Mungrell was born. With another Mungrell born from a werewolf and a vampire, the dispute between these kingdoms could probably never be resolved. Moreover, murdering a royal blood equates to eternal torture. It’s more than a crime and Elise’s life would never be enough to repay it.

Left with no choice but to obey, Elise nodded her head in defeat then bowed to them as a sign of her loyalty. “I’ll accept my fate and I’ll serve the both of you ‘til the end.”

With one final sigh, Elise held up her wand and waved it in the air. Nervous and worried at the same time, Cliden tightly clutched Viansel’s hand as he silently prayed to the moon goddess to save his only mate. Though their love was forbidden, their love was true and sincere. With this hope in mind, both of them want to live and be happy together with their child.

“Avindylus Taigosousa!” Elise yelled the spell in a powerful voice. She held her wand tighter using both of her hands; the spell was too powerful to control. Viansel screamed an excruciating pain. The magic, being too powerful, caused pain even to an immortal. Cliden tightly held her hand and for the first time, his touch did not assure Viansel of her safety.

Only a minute was left before the spell ends, and so Elise held onto her wand a little longer despite the struggle. With ten seconds left, the magic spell was about to end. Unfortunately, a large wolf suddenly barged into the cabin which alarmed the sleeping bats hanging on the cabin’s ceiling. Surprised, Elise dropped her wand. The spell was cut short and Viansel lost her consciousness due to the pain of her supposed delivery. Agitated at the turn of events, Elise quickly got down on her knees to find her wand. However, with the hysterical bats flying to-and-fro, she could not see where her wand had landed.

Meanwhile, Cliden tried to stop the wolf, but he was too weak and injured to fight against the savage animal. The huge wolf attacked him and he went flying across the room, his vision turned blurry due to the impact. He got up on his feet and as he was about to launch on the wolf, he saw a familiar moon anklet attached on the wolf’s ankle. It was the same anklet as he had on his ankle. Alpha Cliden stopped on his tracks as things slowly dawned to him.

He finally recognized who the chaotic wolf was.