Zydan- (Adult content ahead.)“She called me a few minutes ago since she couldn’t get through to you. She didn’t say anything to me either until I noticed something sounded off with her. When I asked about it, she explained what she was feeling. At the time, I thought she had encountered something making her sick, but then I remembered learning about fated mates. I don’t know if I am right, but I can’t think of anything else that could cause a pure-blood, especially someone as special as Lia, to feel like that.”“How far are we from the lab?” I asked as I nearly drove over the shoulder to avoid running into the back of a car blocking my path.“At this speed, we should arrive within twenty minutes. Now I know why Lia insists on taking her bike on missions.” Silica groaned.“Is there a shortcut?”“This is the fastest way there. I will message Jon to hack into the traffic lights once we get off the highway. He can give us a green light back to the Lab.” From the corner of my eye, I saw S
Three months laterAccalia-“How is she?” I asked Emily as she came out of the operating room.“Everything turned out fine. We still need to see what happens when she wakes, but I have a good feeling about it.” Emily smiled as she pulled off her mask and tossed it in the trash can by the door.“Good.” I clapped my hands together, and a broad smile spread across my face.It has been three months since we started with the first test subject. We waited almost a month before bringing in more volunteers. Now, we have a total of twelve turned wolves implanted with the microchip.So far, everything seems to be working out with each one. No one has died, and the ones who have been implanted for more than a month haven’t shown signs of losing control. We have even tested to see if they could shift into wolves without the moon.Up to this point, it wasn’t a possibility. In fact, none of them has shifted at all since they were implanted. I didn’t know if it was a good thing, but I was confident
Zydan-Since I was supposed to be at the Lab tonight, I was in bed when I woke up to the most heart-clenching feeling. Sitting up in bed, I put my hand over my chest and squeezed my shirt in my hand. I knew instantly that the pain I was feeling was coming from Lia.Since marking her, I have been able to sense Lia. I could feel what she was feeling, and it was like she had a beacon on her, so I always knew where she was. For the past three months, I have understood certain things about Lia, depending on her feelings.What I felt now made me feel as if I was being crushed emotionally and mentally. I wasn’t entirely sure what was happening, but I had a basic understanding since she was at the Lab. She must have lost at least one of the test subjects.Bolting out of bed while pocketing my phone, I didn’t bother changing out of my sweats and t-shirt. I dashed out of the room and down the stairs, only pausing long enough to grab my sneakers by the front door. I was about to go to the garage
Accalia-After another two months of failing, we ran out of volunteers. We have been careful not to let anyone outside the lab know what was happening, but the public learned of all the deaths. It was still unknown who had exposed the research, but I didn’t think it was someone who worked in the lab.What was revealed wasn’t anything significant other than there was something wrong with the microchip, and every volunteer we had died. Now, no more volunteers wanted to come forward because they were afraid. I couldn’t blame them, but without any volunteers, I wasn’t going to force anyone, which meant the project couldn’t continue.The microchip has been enhanced, and I felt confident, but without further test subjects, we couldn’t proceed. For the past week, I have had everyone working on the microchip to improve it and run as many tests as possible. Our results were spectacular, and I felt the end was within my reach if we could get more volunteers.“Lia?” Someone said my name, but I i
Accalia-“Who?”“Arielle. She told me she needed to speak with you, and it is important.” My father said.“I don’t want to see her right now.” I groaned.Although I haven’t seen Arielle since her meltdown, I have thought about her a lot. Not because I missed her but because there were moments when I was reminded of the stunts she pulled. Also, I have often interacted with turned-wolves and couldn’t help but wonder how Arielle had been turned.“I think you should talk to her. She said she had something important to say regarding the turned-wolves but would only speak to you.”“Well, I don’t have time right now. The full moon is around the corner, and I have a breakthrough with my research. I don’t have time to travel right now.” I glanced over my shoulder at Zydan, who was currently staring at me with a quizzical expression.“You don’t need to travel. We just arrived a few minutes ago. I am headed toward the lab, but I thought I would give you a heads-up.” My father announced.Groaning
Accalia-“Are we going to wake her?” Emily asked as we rolled Arielle into the operating room.“Lightly. I have to ask her about the information she said she had. Also, I want to double-check that this is what she wants because once we begin, there is no turning back.”“Okay, but what happens if she tries to shift? We can’t afford to do her surgery if she isn’t in full human form.”“Just wake her enough to be aware of what is going on.” I squeezed the railing of Arielle’s bed because I wasn’t sure if my idea was solid.After Arielle arrived and we sedated her, my team and I worked endlessly to perfect the microchip so it could be ready. A few hours ago, we finished it. We ran a few tests to ensure it was safe, but it wasn’t a hundred percent.Every microchip we tested before had been safe, or so we thought, but none of the test subjects had survived. Tonight was the full moon, and we were taking a chance on trying to operate on Arielle when there was a possibility she could shift into
Accalia-While I was on the phone giving out my orders, Emily appeared to inform me that the surgery had been a success. While it was good, we weren’t out of the woods yet. The full moon was still overhead, so anything could happen as the anesthesia wore off.“We need to monitor her around the clock. Someone from each of our teams needs to keep an eye on her stats. Once I am finished with my call, I will come in to take the first rotation. Until I get there, ask one of the tech team members to sit with her until I arrive.” I said as I dialed Eclipse’s number.“I figured as much, so I already have someone tasked with the job.” Emily said before leaving me alone to take care of my side of things.As soon as she left, I called Eclipse, who answered before the ringtone couldn’t indicate the call was going through. “I was just about to call you.”“Is something going on?” I asked.“No, I was just checking in to see if you gained any information from Arielle.”“That is why I was calling you.
Accalia-“Can you understand me?” I asked the wolf.The wolf nodded her head, before tilting it to the side as if studying me as well. Smiling, I reached out to place my hand on its head. She reacted, but not as I expected her to. Her eyes closed and she lifted her nose to press against my hand.“I can connect with her now. She wants me to tell you thank you. She felt trapped and now she could finally feel normal again. Amy vows to allow her life to be in your hands and is willing to devote herself to you and our mate.”My smile softened. I understood what she must be feeling. “Can you shift back?” I asked Amy.Amy nodded slightly and pulled away from my hand. A few seconds later, Arielle was sitting on the bed. Taking the blanket, I covered Arielle’s naked form. Tears flowed down Arielle’s face as she looked up at me.“I didn’t realize that shifting could be painless.” Arielle whispered.“It was painful before because it was forced. Now, it will be easier since you and your wolf won’
Accalia-“I already told you that whenever you are ready, I was willing. All you need to do is say the word. I know you wanted to wait to become Alpha Queen, so there is no rush. I will wait until you are ready.”My smile widened. “I am ready now.”Zydan’s face paled, and I wondered if he had second thoughts about marrying me. “Wait. Are you serious?”“I have never been more serious.” I nodded. “I realized that while I was going through all my memories again, I have always focused on what mattered to me and what I wanted. I thought I was making the right decision by waiting until my project was complete and becoming Alpha Queen before marrying you again. I now understand that when I get married was never important. Even if I am married, I can still abolish the marriage law for the future generations.”“Then when do you want to get married?” Zydan smiled, and excitement sparkled in his eyes.“Now.” I stated bluntly.“What about the wedding?” My father asked when Zydan threw my covers o
Accalia-Ow, my head, I thought as I started to wake up. Opening my eyes, I took in my surroundings but didn’t recognize where I was. I was lying on a large bed with a dark purple comforter and black sheets. I also wasn’t alone in the room.The person sitting on the edge of the bed was looking at his phone and not me, so I tried not to move. I didn’t recognize the man, so I didn’t want to make sudden movements until I knew the situation. I was oddly familiar with the man and the room but couldn’t remember anything.“Good, you are awake.” A voice I didn’t recognize spoke as someone I didn’t recognize walked to the side of the bed where the man was sitting.“How are you feeling?” The man, who had been preoccupied with his phone, quickly turned on the bed to look at me.Without a word, I slowly sat up and flinched when the man tried to help me. He took his hand back, but the look in his eyes was filled with pain. Sitting on the bed, I rested my back on the headboard and continued looking
Zydan-Rolling to my side, I avoid Shaw’s attack, but it takes a moment for me to get onto my feet. My ears rang from the hit he delivered when I put myself between him and Lia. Once I was on my feet, I prepared myself for another attack.A sudden burst of energy erupted around me, and it took me a moment to understand that it was Lia’s wolf. Since I was between her and Shaw, I witnessed the moment Shaw was hit with a small lightning bolt. It zapped him but didn’t seem to do any harm.When Shaw’s attention moved past me, I realized she had only used enough of a shock to get his attention. Turning my attention to Lia, I witnessed her transformation into a black wolf with the most captivating violet eyes I have ever seen. It wasn’t until now that I realized this was the first time I had seen her wolf.More than that, Lia’s wolf, Akira, had purple streaks of lightning swarming her as if caressing the fur on her body. The power that rolled off her was nearly ten times more intense than in
Accalia-Staring at the computer in a trance, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It has been two weeks since I sent Arielle and the other test subjects out. I thought it would take more time to determine the results from the final phase, but the indicators on the screen didn’t lie.The full moon was three days ago, and every test subject had maintained excellent results. I could have ended the final testing a week ago, but I put it off until after the full moon. I wanted to be sure there weren’t any issues. For the first time since I began the project, I felt as if a lot of pressure lifted from my shoulders.“Is something wrong?” Emily’s voice pulled me from my trance.“We did it.” I mumbled without taking my eyes off the computer screen.“Seriously?” Emily asked and then shoved me to the side so she could look at the computer. “I don’t understand this stuff, but the indicators are the best I have seen.”“We did it.” I repeated as if I needed more confirmation.Suddenly, I jumped out of my ch
Zydan-Upon returning to the lab, I watched helplessly as Lia became busy again. It wasn’t like before. This time, it was as if she needed to keep herself busy in order to survive. Every time I tried to approach her, she would move on to her next task.When the volunteers Darnell sent to us arrived, it took away more of her freedom. I tried to help her, but there wasn’t much for me to do. Everyone was working hard to speed up the research results. Over the course of three weeks, we went from only having Arielle as a volunteer to having twenty more.We tried to see if the results from Arielle’s implant would be the same without the full moon. After the second volunteer was implanted and was able to shift and have the same results as Arielle, they continued implanting more volunteers. I couldn’t begin to understand what was going on with Lia or why she was pushing herself too hard, but I knew I couldn’t do much to help.I had a feeling it had much to do with the pressure she was under a
Accalia-“Forgive me! I didn’t know.” The man who had greeted us when we arrived said.Shaking my head, I smiled and turned to face him. “It has been a while since I have been here, and although my identity is no longer a secret, not everyone knows who I am.”“I still should have sensed you.” The man kept his attention on his feet, with his head bowed.“I was severely injured recently, so my wolf is resting.” I stepped forward and placed my hand on his shoulder. “Seriously, it is no big deal.” I dropped my hand when he lifted his head.“Well, now that you are here, I will report the most recent developments. I assume you were at the Kenyon residence?” He asked, and I nodded in response.“The members who went after the attackers just reported back.” The man continued as I turned to open the office door so that we could discuss things in private.He stopped talking long enough to sit on a chair across from my desk. Instead of sitting, I leaned against the desk, resting my hip on the edg
Zydan-When the fire finally started disappearing, I was overjoyed. No longer feeling the need to keep spraying the house, I rushed forward to help Lia. The fire wasn’t completely out, but the majority of it was, other than a few small areas. The biggest issue now is the smoke.As I ran toward the house, I saw a group of people gathered, anxiously looking at the house. It looked like they were all inside the fire, meaning Lia had helped them escape. Looking around, I hoped to see Lia, but she wasn’t in the crowd.“Where is Lia?” I asked the couple huddled together, leaning on each other for support.“She went inside to save my son!” The man said, who I recognized as Darrion Kenyon’s father.“She is still inside?” My eyes quickly moved to the house, and fear plunged into me, nearly suffocating me.Even if the fire wasn’t as bad, it was still dangerous. With how many she had already saved, I assumed her wolf was reaching its limits. I tried to sense her, but the signal was weak. Without
Accalia-“What is going on?” I asked as I glanced at Zydan.“I don’t have time to explain, but we need your help. We are under attack!” Darrion yelled, and not even a second later, I heard a crash, followed by the call being disconnected.I rushed into the lab and quickly informed Emily that I needed to leave. “What is wrong?” She asked.“I don’t know, but I believe the Kenyon family is under attack. Darrion called me, and it sounds urgent. Due to their distance, I have no choice but to go myself. Can you handle things until I return?”“Don’t worry about things here. I will take care of them. We have more than enough staff.”“Thank you!” I turned away from her to talk to the tech team and saw Jason.Although he wasn’t always in the lab, he was the one person I knew who could handle things on a technical level until I returned. I barely took two steps before he yelled out to me.“Don’t worry, I got it from here. You take care of whatever you need to.”Nodding my head, I turned to leave
Accalia-“Arielle told me what happened with everyone after I fell asleep.” I twisted in my seat to look at Zydan.“I admit that I have let my thoughts run wild. There are times I feel as if I am not worthy of you. I feel I haven’t contributed enough when I see how hard you work. If I had done more, you wouldn’t be working yourself so hard.” His focus remained on the road as he spoke.“You know, I couldn’t do half of the things I can do if it weren’t for you and everyone around me.” I smiled as I took his free hand in mine.“You are the future Queen, the leader of the Renegades, and in charge of a project that can change the world.”“My identity doesn’t define me. I might be the future Queen, but that has much to do with who my parents are. It isn’t like I came from nothing and worked my way up to that point. As far as being the leader of the Renegades, you have a huge part to play in that.”“What do you mean?” Zydan glanced in my direction briefly before focusing on the road.“When I