I TOOK A deep breath.
I must admit. I was scared. My eyes were starting to feel hot, but I hate the thought where these people would see me looking weak at the last minute of my life. I didn't mind looking like one. But I 'mind' if they were my audience. They were undeserving of it.
The other bulky guy pushed me forward. I had no better choice but to walk toward the altar, where the old woman looked at me as if I was some sort of treasure. That might be a good feeling, considering if the one looking at me like that was my type of woman; or at least, my future husband.
When I reached the altar, the old woman's smile widened. She raised a hand, caressed my cheek— or at least tried to. I wouldn't let a weird stranger touch me. Still, that didn't diminish her smile at all. On the contrary, her smile almost reached her ears.
"The bloodling," she said, breathless. My existence seemed to excite her. "I never thought I would encounter such a being in my lifetime."
I scoffed. And here I was standing, surrounded by beings I didn't know existed until days ago. What were they, anyway?
Vampires?
Witches?
Undead?
Well, they were certainly not the last ones since they didn't know what Yasha was.
"We shall begin."
I heard a man speak from behind. I turned around and saw Brittany beside a brunette guy. He was tall. Bulky as well. There was nothing interesting about him except his glowing eyes. They looked like a pair of crescent moons.
When Brittany inserted her fingers into his, I quickly deduced that this was Brittany's beloved Wallis.
Now, I couldn't help but be tempted to ask— she was sacrificing me for this kind of man?! I didn't even see anything special about him!
"Of course, Alpha," the old woman slightly bowed. And without any warning, she took my arms, cut my wrist, and pulled it near a chalice— not a single drop wasted.
I felt dizzy. I thought I was going to faint. But the elderly woman suddenly wiped the wound, and to my astonishment, it healed.
"We only need a little portion of your blood," she whispered. "The rest of it should be mine."
I shivered.
The elderly woman then tightly held the chalice, smelled my blood, and dramatically raised it. "Behold!" she shouted. "The blood of the purest human! She will become the catalyst for our pack's strengths! With this ritual, not only our beloved alpha will be free of a vampire that 'fate' viciously paired him with! Our pack shall receive abundant blessings for the union of Alpha Wallis and her bride!"
Instantly, howled filled the area. I trembled as I looked around. They sounded sinister, enough to raise every hair on my body. And in a second, I heard the sounds of tearing. Then, I was startled when a massive black wolf suddenly jumped out of nowhere!
The humans I saw earlier were gone. They were replaced by these humungous black wolves, howling as if their lives depended on it.
I gasped.
Werewolves!
Right! Why didn't I think of them?!
I looked for Brittany and her partner, pondering whether she was also a wolf. I did see her. But she was still standing with her two legs. Her beloved Wallis was also in his human form, but his eyes and razor-like teeth told me he was far from being a human.
I suddenly remembered Yasha's words, 'Wolves and mermaids hunger for your flesh'. Are these creatures going to eat me after the ritual?!
My dearest! Let me be dead when that happens!
"The ritual will begin!"
I let out a sharp breath. The sudden temperature change weakened my knees. I had to get myself together not to fall. Then, I heard the elderly woman chant, uttering gibberish. What language was that?! And to my astonishment, I saw a black line coming from my blood, connecting with the ingredients lying on the stone table.
One thing I had to admit in this bloody journey of mine— knowing the supernaturals and seeing magic performed in front of me were magnificent experiences before death. It was like I had to die to protect this secret, for it to remain unknown. Dramatic, yes. But what can I say? I had to think of something worthy of my death.
Once upon a time, I thought of dying in the Bermuda Triangle— to unravel its secret before I die. Even if I couldn't reveal what horrible things lying underneath that ocean, at least, I died knowing. Although that didn't happen, this event was still something similar— or maybe more intriguing than the Bermuda Triangle. Now that I was thinking about it, I couldn't help but muse that mermaids were perhaps the cause of all the unsolvable mysteries that happened in that ocean. I would love to know that. Unfortunately, I had no chance. Today was going to be my death. Once this elderly woman was done unlinking the 'mate' bond, it was my turn to be drained of my blood and eaten.
Imagining my flesh torn apart and ending up in these werewolves' stomachs made my scalp go numb.
Anyway, I had been rattling nonstop, and the black lines were already connected to those ingredients. Brittany and Wallis were standing below the stairs, looking like a stupid couple. The pearls and fan-shaped thing shone brightly, and my blood was turning dark. Other than that, nothing happened to Yasha's heart. Or was that normal?
However, upon seeing the frown coming from the elderly lady, I was certain there was something wrong. Her voice got louder, and the fire from the torches around us blazed even more. Yet, there was still nothing. I could tell her temper rising as her chants became forceful. Wallis seemed to notice that something was amiss as he began frowning as well.
Hmmm…
I hope they fail.
It took them a long time before Wallis finally reacted. "Elder, what is happening?"
"I don't know, Alpha," the elderly woman replied, panicked.
"The blood moon will fade soon. We have to finish the ritual!" he growled. I almost felt the ground tremble.
"Unfortunately, you can't."
All of us stiffened and slowly looked at the owner of that voice. It was familiar. And I was right!
"Aseyana!" I called out. What was the girl doing out here?!
"Tears and scale of a mermaid— check," said Aseyana, gradually walking toward us. "The blood of the bloodling," she looked at me, "check." Then, sneering as she turned her gaze at the elderly woman, she continued, "But the heart of the sacrifice is wrong." She raised her hand and the heart turned into ashes.
My eyes widened. Aseyana was a— what was she?!
"The heart! How dare you!" Wallis shouted. He was seething in anger. "Kill her!"
Before the werewolves lunged at Aseyana, the latter raised her hands and then closed them tightly. The werewolves instantly howled in pain. Even Wallis began screaming in agony.
"What are you doing?! Witch! Cease this at once!" Brittany shouted.
However, Aseyana only ignored her, stepping into the stairs as she ascended to the altar.
"I'm sorry I'm late," she said, looking at me.
"Can you save me?" I asked hesitatingly. Frankly, if she couldn't, there was no need for me to implicate someone.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw the elderly woman raise a hand and opened her mouth ( to chant probably). But before she could utter a word, Aseyana raised a fist, and blood began to flow from the elderly woman's orifices.
"Yes," Aseyana answered. "I'm capable of saving you."
"Ah! Witches against witches. I hate the fact that witches can only be countered by their own kinds!"
"Wallis!"
Aseyana and I snapped our heads towards the other new arrival. My eyes twinkled when I saw Yasha standing at the bottom of the stairs, alive and certainly kicking. But my smile turned into a grimace when I noticed where her other hand was.
"Shame," she said, taking her hand out of Wallis' chest. The latter fell to the ground, showing the beating heart in her palm. "Second-chance mates are only applicable to me, not the other way around."
She smiled.