*Last chapter of Volume 1*
"Wren, Donavan and Mariella are your birth parents. The reason you and I have similar traits and abilities, is due to Donavan introducing my DNA into your own. I found out a few years after the war was over, and hid it from you since then, in efforts to protect you and this temple. The woman I loved for most of my life, was your mother...Just know, everything I did was to keep you safe, Wren," Lord Valen said in a slow tone as he walked out the door. "...My Uncle...?"
Wren stayed slightly hunched over in her seat, while Michael had all but fallen out of his chair. Michael looked over to Wren, and saw she was shaking. He then reached out his arm and lightly touched her arm, startling her and causing her to look up. Her eyes were red and her lip quivered; Michael immediately pulled her into him embrace. "I'm so sorry Wren. I-" "How long have you known?" Michael froze, "Don't lie to me Michael. I know you and Cole went to Takeda's house to find information a few months ago...sometime when I was stuck in the medical ward..." Wren trailed off, waiting for Michael's response. "Wren I...I didn't want to say anything to you before I knew for sure," the silence in the room was heavy. "Why didn't you tell me anything? Don't you think I have the right to know?" Wren pulled back and looked directly in Michael's eyes, but he didn't answer. "Here, I'll answer that for you. You told Cole to lie to me if I asked him about your little trip. I also noticed a block on Cole's mind. He was aware there was a problem with his memory and he came to me for help and I noticed someone with a little spiritual energy put a block on his mind.. How could you do that, I-I trusted you.. and Valen. Why are you both insistent on lying to me? Is it because you don't think I can handle myself?" A tear rolled down Wren's cheek and Michael instinctively reached to wipe it away but she dodged his hand.
"Don't... I need to know; what else are you keeping from me?" Michael hesitated, debating on whether he should tell her and finally gave in, "Remember when i had to turn down that potential intell job with Cadman's unit? Well, I've been summoned by someone for direct protection for an important member of their council. The job is supposed to last 1 year, or until they find their own Tradeland's native to guard her. Th-this person is also..." Michael took a deep breath to try and push through what he needed to say. But after hearing "her" Wren already knew what was coming and she braced herself for his next words. "The person I would guard, is someone my mother and father arranged for me to...marry many years ago...I-I thought with the war and my parent's deaths, that this was over. *SIGH* She has been under the impression that we are still intended to become m-man and wife. The members of her council thought this would be an opportunity for us to meet and reconcile what we once shared..." A few more tears made their way down Wren's cheeks when she heard what he said. She shook her head lightly and moved to stand up from the chair, loosing her balance in the process, and fell to the floor.
"My Lady-" "Don't..." Michael had quickly went towards her to try and stop her from falling, but when he was close to touching her shoulders to support her, Wren brushed him aside, "Do you want to reconcile with her?" Wren said in a quiet, sad, tone and she turned to face Michael, who was taken aback by the look on her face. His heart hurt for her, and for the fact that he was part of the cause for her distress. "I...I can't answer that yet... I have waited so long to share my feelings with you, to have you reciprocate my feelings and for us to be happy, but..." Michael trails off and readjusted his position to sit on the floor next to Wren. "It seems like there was never a time we would be able to be with each other... I lost you during the war, then all of a sudden I found you. I was ecstatic, but when it sunk in, I realized we could never be together due to your position within the council..You were on such a higher level than I was, and I knew I could never catch up with you. I could never been seen as your equal, as someone who could properly take care of you. When I saw you that day... when you fell to the floor and we hugged each other for what seemed like a lifetime, I knew without any doubt in my heart, that what I had been feeling for you all this time was love."
Wren took a deep breath in and gently placed her head on Michael's shoulder. He responded by leaning his head over, so it was resting on top of her head. "You were so beautiful then and even more beautiful with every passing day. I knew you would have many suitors as we continued to grow and mature but I wanted to be the only one, the only man in your life...and *SIGH* I have to tell you something else; when we were separated during the war, I was sent to the Tradelands to study with a well known trainer, that is when I met her for the first time. She was slightly older than me, but I remember being mesmerized by her long blonde hair." Michael looked down to check Wren's reaction, and noticed that she still had a few tears slowly running down her face. He grimaced, but knew he had to continue.
"I found out she was the niece of the man who was training me and we ended up spending a lot of time together... We were both still fairly young but I knew I felt attraction towards her, and slowly your face no longer occupied my mind... We were young and carefree and, later found out she was pregnant. Around the same time, I completed my training and was sent back here... even though I wanted to help her care for the baby. We made plans to visit each other, but we were never able to see each other. About 2 weeks after I arrived back, I received the news that I was going to be appointed as the personal guard for our new Priestess." Michael sighed deeply, "The moment I saw your face, all of our memories and all the time we spent together came rushing back to me. It came back to me so instantaneously that I was suspicious and went to talk with Sir Shoyo about a possible blocker within my mind. It turns out that my suspicions were right, and I knew it must have been her somehow. Somehow her or her Uncle knew my true feelings, and with some sort of poison, managed to block away my memories of you..I am not even sure if the child is mine.."
Wren stayed silent and motionless as she processed what he was telling her, "I was so angry at her and snuck away to the Tradelands so I could confront her and her Uncle. However, when I got there, I was shocked by what I saw. The door to his gym was open and I saw her lying on the floor with a large gash on her shoulder. I immediately rushed over to her and tried to help her as best I could. After a few days she was stable, and I found out her Uncle owed people money so they took him and left her for dead. I tried to ask about the child, but she constantly avoided the topic. I began to believe that it was all a lie, just another ploy to get me to stay on the Tradelands, but I could never confirm nor deny that the child really existed. Lord Valen's men found me and I went willingly back to the Islands. When I was back, and I saw your face again, I was so conflicted. I knew I loved you, but I also knew that I had feelings for her as well, and if she did have my child, we would ultimately be together or at least close, for that child's sake."
Michael lifted his head and carefully turned Wren's head so she was facing him, "Wren, when we...in all the time we have spent together, I never and will never love anyone as much as I love you." Wren tried to gather her emotions but the tears continued to roll down her face, "I wanted us to be together for the longest time, and in these last few months, I feel like we have gotten closer than we ever have." He leaned forward and rested his forehead on hers, all the while, cupping her face with his hands. "In the middle of all my chaos, the there was you.. When we first kissed in our "secret" cave all those years ago... I never thought I would have an opportunity to taste your sweet kisses again. Then with the Haruki incident, my wish was granted and I couldn't have been happier. When you accessed my memories on the dock, and that time in your room.." Michael could feel his face heat up slightly as the memories of their bodies so hot as they moved with eachother, flooded his mind.
"*Ahem* We said we would talk about our feelings and..." Michael trailed off, "I just need to hear how you f-" "I've always loved you Michael. I never craved affection until i tasted yours.." Wren finally broke her silence; startled by her answer Michael backed up and Wren lifted her head to look him in the eyes. "I always have and always will love you. I have never felt more at peace and more whole, than I have when I am with you. You are the only person I intend to spend my life with." Wren's serious face was in stark contrast to Michael's, as he was turning more red by the second. "Y-you...you really love me?" Wren smiled sadly, "I only love you Michael..." He was stunned silent as she slowly approached his face; he could now feel her breath and the heat from her body, that was now, only a small space away from his own. "Kiss me," Michael hesitated, but before he could move towards her, Wren closed the gap and locked their lips. Michael immediately melted and pulled her body closer to his own. His hand slowly trailed down her exposed back and around to her hips.
Wren intertwined her fingers with his hair and deepened their kisses, now exploring his mouth with her tongue. Wren broke the kiss and moved toward his neck; lightly nipping, and kissing as she moved. Michael was losing the self-control he had as she explored his neck, then he gently pulled her away from his neck and returned the favor. Wren leaned her head back to fully enjoy his curious tongue. After a few moments she looked up, locked eyes with Michael, and continued their kiss, wrapping her arms around Michaels' shoulders as he lifted her onto his lap. The were both breathless as they were kissing and caressing each other all the while. Wren broke the kiss again, and moved to his ear, then breathlessly whispered, "Stay with me tonight..." before kissing his ear and leaning back to look at his expression. Both of their faces were flushed and Michael's hair was out of place. He looked at her with an intense, questioning yet sad gaze. At that moment, she knew what had to be done, and she smiled sadly before standing up. His hand reached out for hers and she stopped, but stayed facing away from his. "Wren I-I don't..." She paused for a moment, "I understand. I need to leave, so...take care of yourself Michael," She looked down at her hand that was almost completely covered by his. She then lifted his hand and bent down and lightly kissed his knuckles, gave his hand a small squeeze, then walked out the doors.
As Wren left the room, she decided to teleport directly back to Doreen. In the split second it took for her to make it across the yard, she arrived with a small thump in the soft grass. *Knock Knock* After a few moments she heard Doreen's footsteps coming over to the door. "Who tha hell!-Oh hello again-" Without responding Wren walked inside, went over to the dressing room, and changed back into her normal clothes. "Hun, what's tha-" "I need my special order please. It is ahead of schedule so if it's not finished, I will just take it as is and pay you now. I will even pay you more if that's a problem." Wren muttered as she came out and stood in front of Doreen, who was startled but then understood the gist of the situation. "Don't give me that look Doreen, things changed," Wren said as she hung the dress back on the hanger from earlier. Doreen reluctantly nodded and opened a small door and motioned for Wren to follow her down to the basement.
...As Wren was walking away from the seamstress shop, duffle bag in hand, she made a detour to visit Han, their weapons expert, before returning to her room. *CLINK! CLANG!* As she walked closer she could hear the sounds of Han working in his blacksmith shop. "Han, do you have a moment?" She called out as she walked through the tall doorway, to see a thin but muscular man only a head taller than her, pounding a hot piece of steel into the desired shape, with a large hammer. He looked up and nodded once he saw who was standing before him. "Why are you out at this time of day Madame?" He walked over to a bucket and quenched the hot blade, then put the hammer away, and went to clean his hands. "Eh, I got caught up with some unexpected business. I didn't realize how late in the day it was until I walked out of the temple." She set the duffle bag down and walked over to the weapons wrack he had near the entrance. "What can I do you for Madame? I don't mind the visit, but something seems to be troubling you." Wren chuckled softly, "Nothing can get past you, Han. *SIGH* I need my lovelies. Also a good spear if you have a spare." Han nodded once more, "As you wish Madame. Give me a moment to retrieve them for you," He responded with a smirk as he walked over to a small room just off the main area of his shop.
...As Wren walked back to her living quarters she looked up at the star-filled night sky. The subtle *Clink* from her weapons hitting against one another and her duffle bag, were the only other sounds she could hear on the clear night. "What can I do..." she said quietly to the stars as she continued walking. Once she reached her residence, she felt the tears welling up in her eyes once again, *SNIFFLE* *HICK* she was now doing her best to suppress her full sobbing, but after closing the door, she fell to the floor in a defeated heap, ignoring the weapons and other items that fell onto her body. *SOB* *HICK* she couldn't get her body to stop sobbing and shaking. She was now curled into a ball hugging her body tightly as she continued crying. She always considered herself a strong person and tried to keep her expressed emotions to a minimum in front of others, but she had reached her breaking point today. *HICK* *SNIFF* what do I do.." She whispered sadly as she was still curled into a ball as she tried to calm herself down and was now just sniffling and shaking. "Valen, Michael...I'm sorry." After a few more moments she managed to calm herself, wipe her tears, and walk over to the far side of her room.
As the night turned to day, there was a strange emptiness in the temple. *Knock Knock* "Madame? Lord Valen requests your presence in the meeting room...Madame?" Amber, who was sent to fetch Wren, was nervous when she didn't get an answer and decided to open the door to check, but found no one in the room. "Madame?" She walked around the small room, but saw no one. As she was about to leave the room, she felt a slight breeze and turned around to see the window was open. Her eyes grew wide in shock as she turned and ran out of the room. "Watch where you are going Amber, you almost knocked me off my feet. Tell me what the problem is," Lord Valen requested. "Madame...she wasn't in *COUGH* She wasn't in her *Pant Pant* room, there was some blood on her desk and a letter...I feared-" "Ravi! Summon Michael to my office at once." Without waiting Lord Valen teleported to Wren's room to retrieve the letter, then back to his office to wait for Michael. After a few moments Michael appeared out of breath, "What is it-" Lord Valen held up the letter that had a Kalina Clan Blood Seal, preventing it from being opened. "It's from Wren. It needs a few drops of our blood to unseal." Michael's stomach sank and he slowly walked over to Lord Valen who had a sullen look on his face. After making a small cut on their finger and unsealing the letter they began to read...
*Wren's letter to Michael and Lord Valen* "I intend to keep this short as to not waste your time. Both of you hurt me, by keeping things from me, lying, and not allowing me to make the choice to move forward. I can't forgive you, at least, not right now...I can't say I'll stay safe, or even that I will see you soon, so don't try and look for me or follow me. Both of you were never really good at it anyways. I didn't want it to be this way, but you left me no choice. To Valen; I would have loved to know I was your real blood, even if it meant finding out the horrible truth about my father. I wish you wouldn't have deprived me of that knowledge. To Michael; Be good to her and the child... See you when I see you, Wren." Both of the men sat in silence with the letter now flat on the table top. "What do we do Lord Valen?" Michael's eyes were red and Lord Valen just shook his head, "I wish I knew Michael..." They both sat back in their seats, pondering on how things could have been different.
**Authors Note; Whoa, can't believe Volume 1 is done! I want to thank anyone giving my novel a chance; hope I didn't disappoint. I will be doing some minor updates on previous chapters (if its major, I'll let ya know) and hopefully I will have all of that done and can start Volume 2 in January. I will also be catching up on the *Side Story* "novel" so when I start Volume 2, everything should be up to date and they should progress at the same time. Anyways thanks a bunch for reading & can't wait for Volume 2 :) Take care and stay safe reader(s)