We got back to the castle after burying three hundred and eighty-four bodies. Jasper held the gear, I carried Kaida on my back, and Eclipse carried something important to each of our fallen friends. He put them in a bag. I wanted to keep them all around the castle: to decorate. More like a remembrance but either way it works.
Kaida understood death, she understood it and it kinda worried me. The child watched guards murder her mother infront of her eyes and she had to stay quiet or they'd do the same to her. She was a survivor, and possibly stronger than me. But at the moment I was giving her a piggie back ride. And for the rest of her life she won't fight, she won't die by the sword. She'll stay in the safety of the castle and I'll guard her with my life.
The way I wish I'd guarded everyone else.
We got back to the castle at around noon. It worked for our schedule since the party started at 6. It gave us time to settle in.
I walked behind everyone while Jasper led the way. I wanted to make sure nobody was left behind. Joey walked beside me seemingly just keeping me company.
"How much have you told them?" Joey asked.
I looked over at him and shook my head, "Not a lot. They know a lot about me already."
"No, they know murderous Carla and assassin Carla," Joey corrected, "They know nothing of you unless you told them."
I shook my head, "They don't know anything then."
"Good," Joey answered, "That's how they get through the game board and overturn the table."
"Game?" I asked.
"Sometimes an Alpha will purposely let a challenger win so they can prove their strength by killing the standing Alpha."
"Wonderful," I sighed, "Any more surprises?"
"Don't trust Jasper so much," Joey added, "He's not as innocent as he seems."
"Yeah neither am I," I responded.
Joey grabbed my arm and stopped me.
"You are kind. You are caring. You are not a murderer or a monster. You are the last Hena. Every Alpha in that castle is going to try to win your love to repopulate Henas."
"I don't like anyone like that," I answered.
"Carter and Liam were Alphas," Joey answered, "Hence why they were so strong."
I just nodded.
"Just don't fall for the tricks, the moment you have a daughter you'll have the same fate as Shalom Hena."
"We'll talk about this later," I said with an urging look. We started walking again.
"Carla please just don't do something stupid when you get in the castle. Murder is murder, whether you have a good reason or not."
We walked through the gates.
"Don't worry, I'm not gonna kill him, I'm just gonna hurt him really really bad."
I handed Kaida to Joey and jogged up the steps into the castle.
I walked down the main hallway into the lounge area: a large room with couches and a fireplace.
Donte was reading a book on one of the arm chairs.
He looked up for a second and then lifted his head.
"Hena are you alright?" Donte asked as he put the book on the coffee table.
"Don't give me that bullcrap!" I snapped, "how did you know?"
Donte looked to his feet and then back up, "Jason contacted me, asking for help from our soldiers."
"And you didn't tell me?" We could've taken soldiers down to help my people!"
Donte took a deep breath, "I am not allowed to make any decisions while the challenge is waiting."
"Break the freaking rules then! I would've relieved you of the punishment!"
"What's done is done."
"What's done is three hundred and eighty four new graves. Thirty-two were children. Six of those children were born on the island I came from. Most of the deaths were my friends. Three of those were my children from the future who came back to save my life. They killed everyone in Lionsville, including the humans!"
"I'm sorry Hena," Donte sighed.
"No, you dont get to say sorry. You could've stopped this and chose not to," I growled. I grabbed a vase and threw it at him. "How could you do something like that!"
Donte caught the vase and gently set it down on the end table.
"Please breathe Hena," Donte said, "Calm down so we may speak peacefully."
"Peacefully?" I scoffed, "You threw out me being peaceful with you the moment you told me not to go home. You knew what was waiting there. You could've told me after you got the message and I could've gone there and saved everyone!"
"You wouldn't survive against Jason," Donte explained.
"I can and I will, because after I find out where he is, I'm going to make him feel every heartache he has caused, what it feels to be tortured the way he tortured Axel. He's going to feel what it feels to have all your blood come from every pure in his body like he did with Carter. And then after I stop, I'm going to rip his heart from his chest so he feels what I felt when I walked onto that massacre."
I grabbed the lamp and chucked it, "It's all your fault! Four hundred and seventy-eight people are dead because you didnt tell me your crap brother was about to march an army into Lionsville!"
Donte rushed to me and pinned me against the wall.
"I wasn't the one who murdered his girlfriend, I wasn't the one who slaughtered our kind for money. That was you, you are the reason he is targeting you, the reason he hates you."
Valerie.
"Hannah killed Valerie! I didn't pull that trigger!" I argued as I swung my fist.
Donte grabbed my wrists in one hand and my throat with the other.
"Calm down," Donte said in a low rumbling growl.
I tucked my legs up and used all the force in my body to force my legs into his stomach.
He doubled over and let go of me.
I went to land a punch when he turned and rushed towards me. He grabbed me around my waist and slammed me into the floor. The air in my body left and I gasped for air.
He pinned my arms and legs to the ground.
"Stop fighting me Hena," Donte growled.
"Donte!" Joey screamed.
Next thing I knew, Donte was slung off me. I rolled to the side and started coughing. The lack of air in my lungs made it extremely hard to breathe. Cause, you know, there's no air in them.
A roar sounded. A roar like one I'd never heard before.
I looked up. Scales. A large beast, as tall as me if I stood up, as long as a car not including the tail, stood above me. It was growling and roaring at Donte who looked absolutely terrified. The green beast had two horns coming from infront of its ears, as well as a small one above its nose. It's eyes were a gorgeous green color. Its claws were easily longer than my entire hand. It had large green wings that folded on it's back but it was using them to cover both sides of it, protecting me.
"What the heck is that?!?!" Donte screamed.
It roared again and I heard heavy footsteps run. The room went silent and then the beast moved. It got off from above me and pulled its massive head down to me. It seemed concerned as it gently nuzzled me.
I looked at the beast in fear, but something about those eyes looked familiar.
Eclipse ran over and helped me stand. Joey and Jasper came too but they didn't say anything.
"Carla are you okay?"
The beast growled at him.
"I'm not gonna hurt her," Eclipse informed it as he held me up.
"I guess we know why her mom named her Kaida," Jasper stated.
I looked at them, "What?"
"Kaida means Dragon."