A pained howl rippled through the clear night as the true blood raced through the dark trees. The prince had left his vorst by the road and dashed into the woods after shifting into his wolf. The black beast released another heart-spiking howl as he sprinted toward his destination.
'Why does it hurt so fucking much? She rejected me!' Jae released a cry as his heart was fraught with pain that he did not understand. Why did his fated one's death affect him so much when she had chosen another?
The true blood shifted back to his human form as he broke through the trees and neared the shore of a lake hidden in the forest. Jae kept his racing pace as he pulled his shirt over his head and removed his clothes. The prince kept this place as his hidden heaven and went there whenever he was in pain or needed to breathe. This haven was Jae's destination when he found Syri bloodied and running through the woods.
'Ahh, Syri.' The zeta entered the true blood's thoughts as he immersed himself in the chilled water of the deep lake. Jae closed his eyes as he sank beneath the dark waters and let the cold seep into his bones. The prince felt his heart beat against his chest as he allowed his mind to be consumed by the zeta. The true blood broke the surface of the lake and breathed in deeply as he recalled Syri's warm eyes and bright smile. The prince kicked off from the bottom of the lake and came to float on his back as he pictured the zeta's beautiful face smiling up at him.
Jae gazed up at the star-filled sky as he continued to float in the lake and let his chest rise and fall in steady breaths. He was finally at peace.
Tiny beads of water clung to the true blood's dark lashes as he closed his eyes and relaxed his body before letting himself sink beneath the surface of the lake once more. Deafening silence filled Jae's senses as he sank deeper and deeper into the heavy body of water. The prince's eyes remained closed as he slowly let out his breath in small bubbles that floated to the dark surface. Jae allowed himself to near the floor of the lake before curling his legs and kicking off the moss-covered bottom. It was only a few seconds before the true blood broke the surface and inhaled the night air deeply.
Jae craned his neck as he breathed in the warm night air. The pale moonlight crested the lake in shining silver and shone on the prince as he caught his breath, illuminating the beads of water that clung to his face and neck.
Jae stayed in the water and gazed up at the stars for a while as he cleared his mind of the pain of losing his fated one yet again. Once his heart rate was calm, Jae swam back to the shore and lied down on the soft grass surrounding the lake. The prince did not mind his nakedness as he was the only being for miles. Jae let out a long breath as he folded his arms behind his head and turned his gaze to the sky.
Exhaustion eventually caught up to the true blood, and Jae's eyes fell closed as he entered a deep sleep. The prince's dreams were filled with the laugh and smile of the zeta, allowing Jae to get a peaceful rest. The moon was still high in the sky when the prince woke, indicating he had not slept for long. Jae exhaled through his nose slowly before sitting up and rising to his feet. After snatching his clothes that were scattered in a trail leading to the shore, the prince dressed and entered the dense woods.
Jae's dark hair hung in his eyes as he casually made his way through the forest. His heart was at peace except for the constant longing that had lodged itself in the back of the true blood's consciousness and served as a constant reminder that a certain someone was no longer by his side. The pain of his fated mate's death had subsided, but the ghost of the zeta remained.
Ajax was still where Jae had left him when the true blood returned to his steed. The vorst was patient as the prince mounted him and steered him back toward the castle. The clapping of Ajax's hooves on the ground at the pace of a trot accompanied the sound of the trees swaying in the wind as the prince made his way down the dark road.
Jae estimated his arrival at the castle to fall somewhere near dawn, so he was not rushed to quicken his pace. Instead, he enjoyed the silence the night offered and soaked in the moonlight seeping through the trees.
While the true blood made his way through the dark woods, the zeta was red-faced from the mug of beer he was currently enjoying.
"No, you're lying!!" Bevy declared with exaggeration as she discovered that was the first alcoholic beverage the zeta had experienced. "Nawww," the alpha sounded in disbelief when the zeta shook his head.
"It's hilarious how that is so unfathomable to you," Kip chuckled and shook his head slightly as he brought his mug to the tip of his lips.
"Whaaaat? I was very familiar with beer by the time I was sixteen!" Bevy pronounced in defense of her habit to favor alcohol. A round of light-hearted scoffs and snickers rippled through the group at the alpha's response to the beta. A moment of happy silence passed until Lili spoke up and inquired of the zeta, "So, are you new around here, Syri?"
The zeta turned his warm eyes to the epsilon before nodding his head. "Ae, I was brought straight to the castle upon leaving my hometown."
"Eh? So, you've never been here before? Not even Wendham?" The alpha inquired as she looked at the zeta with wide eyes. Her face was flushed with spirits, but she was still rather lucid. "Oh..." Bevy sounded as Syri shook his head.
"I haven't been out much since I came to the palace," Syri explained shyly, his grip around the slender mug in his hands tightening as he felt everyone's gaze turn to him.