It was the day of the coronation.
The wedding had taken place the day before and the newlywed omega bore her bonding mark proudly for the world to see. She wore another stunning gown for her coronation as queen and the entire court sat in attendance. The royal family still seemed a little on edge, but less so than yesterday.
The throne room was done up in beautiful red and gold draped fabric, the royal colors apparently, and Ryedir was back in his military style outfit while Kari was adorned in yet another fanciful tunic-breech outfit.
He could feel the tenseness of his alpha. The entire line of succession was in one place and he was wary of something happening. Jaid had been organizing extra guards who were outside of the capital’s influence, but the omega could see just how concerned both alphas were. Ryedir had muttered something about it being too easy with no a
Screams of pain echoed off the walls to be matched by yells of panic. The soldiers surrounding Hanzenleapt forward at his command to be met by the few loyal guards that had remained inside the throne room.The nobles at the edges of the room shrank back even more, not a single one stepping forward to defend their king or new queen. It was odd to him that they watched such a conflict yet did not step forward to help in any way, but he had no time to ponder the reasons.Armored bodies surged together in the center of the room and Karihad difficulty making out who was friend or foe from this distance. A small knife whizzed past his ear and lodged itself firmly in an enemy’s throat with a meaty thunk. Millicentstepped past him armed with a dozen more knives twirling around her hands as she let them loose with deadly accuracy. Ryedirstepped around Karias well, drawing the sword at his hip and leap
Ryedirstill slowly stalked forward, power and anger radiating from his being. No one else moved. The silence only broken by the dull thud of Ryedir’s boots hitting the stone floor with each measured step.The commanding aura that surrounded him blanketed the room and smothered all sound. It was like everyone held their breath as they waited for his actions.He looked truly magnificent in that moment and Karifelt a surge of pride that such an alpha had chosen him. His raw power was so apparent and yet he had chosen Kariand let him pick in return. Used his willpower to hold back, to show Karihis real self with nothing in the way.Ryedirhadn’t done it particularly well, of course. Karineeded far more explanation than the stubborn man had given him, but he could see the truth in his actions now. It was never more obvious than in the way he had tried to protect Kar
Karislept for the better part of two days, only waking when Ryedircame and hand fed him light foods. He had used far more of his power than he initially realized. It had been far from running out but the fight went on for a surprising amount of time. Minor cuts and scrapes that marked his unprotected skin had been carefully treated by Ryedirbut had now mostly healed. He drifted in the comfortable space between sleeping and wakefulness when he noticed something disturbing his blankets. A familiar scent washed over him andheblinked his eyes open owlishly. “Rye?” “How are you feeling?” Ryedirasked softly as he pulled more of the blankets away from Kari’s frame. The omega didn’t reply, his brain was oddly sluggish and he struggled to process exactly what was being asked of him. “You’re nesting,” the a
Karilay dozing on a puffy clean towel that lay over the destroyed sheets of the large bed. Ryedirhad cleaned them both off once the last vestiges of heat had finally gone from the omega’s mind. They had been able to eat and drink a little in between the clutches of heat but it hadn’t been enough to sustain them properly so Ryedirhad gone in search of food. Having completely lost all sense of time and with his body aching madly, Kariwas happy to lazily wait for his mate to return. His doze was interrupted by the return of his alpha carrying a large plate of something that smelt absolutely delectable. Raising his arms like a child, the omega made grabbing motions in the general direction of his alpha, too worn out to be bothered about being independent right then. He could gripe about following his own mind and not his instincts tomorrow when he had eaten and slept. &nbs
Aderynsighed as she made her way through the thick forest. It was lush and green at this time of the year, a beautiful, warming sight. But her favorite was still the icy beauty of winter. The glittering snow would coat the trees in a breathtaking white and the world would wait the coming of spring with a gentle stillness. The lush warmth that surrounded her had been comforting as a child but now she viewed the world a little differently. She was biased, but a mother always was. Aderynheld back tears as she approached the lake. Previously she had only come here in winter when the teeming forest life lay sleeping and the surface was covered in a layer of ice. It was Kari’s favourite place to be and he would always lose track of time. So, she would come out and just watch with pride as her son skated across the ice or built giant fortresses for him and the other childr
Kari prayed that he would get there in time and urged his horse faster. They galloped at full speed, careless of the debris scattered over the track they followed. If he got there in time without laming the horse, it would be a miracle. He only hoped that his squad, well soon to be ex-squad, would reach the town of Ilwe shortly to start the evacuation. They had received the command from higher up in the army that morning that they would retreat and leave Ilwe to the enemy. That alone was shocking enough without the order to leave without evacuating or warning the people. It wasn’t some tiny village either, there were hundreds if not thousands of people living there, but it was so far from the capital that apparently, no one from further inland cared what happened to the people there. Kari would be damned if he leaves the people there with no warning of the impending doom. The horse skidded suddenly and he gritted his teeth
Karilet out a breath he hadn’t known that he had been holding. Nerves and apprehension made themselves known, and he kicked Asterforward before they had time to paralyze him.He made his choice hours ago, and now it was time to face the music.The horse bounded forward and Karicould hear the blood pounding in his ears along with the muted drumming of Aster’s hooves on the grassy carpet underneath them. He pulled on the reins, slowing to a halt in the middle of the field and watching the flurry of activity as the enemy soldiers tried to figure out what he was doing and what was going on. It was rare for a lone person to approach such an army, especially one clearly from the Aithyeanfront lines.He waited.He had time after all. All the time in the world, really.The more confused they were, the longer they took, the more time he brought for Ilwe.
Karididn’t know how long had passed since he had started this fight, it could be minutes or hours.The chilling fog of rage still burned within him, blocking out the screams and cries and the sight of sickening crimson. He kept lashing out again and again, large geysers of ice in the distance and ice shooting from his hands at close range.He was blind and deaf to the death around him. But the soldiers kept coming and he was flagging. How long?How long had he been here?How much time had he brought?Not enough. Not yet. More.I need more. The little pool of power in his mind’s eye was nearly empty and he watched as it visibly drained. He pulled, mentally willing all the moisture, all the power from the slick rocks at the bottom. All the moisture from the blades of grass at the edge of the pond