Liam's eyes slowly opened, and his vision was very blurry. He tried to stand up, but his body was burning hot from his fever. He groaned as his arm scrapped against what seemed like cement. Where was he?
"You are awake... Good. Sorry that it's not the best, but at least it's cool enough to keep your fever down. It's very hot upstairs, mate." A voice echoed slightly distorted, yet vaguely familiar to him.
"Devan...?" He managed out weakly, a rough hand gently moving what seemed like wet hair off his sweaty forehead.
"I won't hurt you... I promise. I don't know what the wolf told you... But I'm not like my kind." He said softly before Liam frowned. What was he saying?
"What wolf... What are you talking about... Devan, I don't understand." He said as he slowly managed to focus on what was in front of him. But all he saw was darkness. No light came into the room.
"Sorry Liam... I can't let you see me. Thankfully, you can't smell me either." He said as he sighed loudly. It seemed like he was debating something inside himself.
"I'm not too sure what you're trying to say, Devan." He said as he put a hand on his hot forehead. It was pounding pretty harshly.
"It seems you're unaware of everything... Weird. I thought she would have told you. Well, that's all for the best. Try to sleep some more." He said as Liam felt a sting on his arm.
"What are... you... doing..." He said before his eyes became heavy, the sounds quickly vanishing as he fell back onto the hard pillow behind his head.
-
Devan sighed as he injected the sedative into Liam's arm. He wished he didn't have to keep himself hidden from the human. It's not like he could eat him. He wasn't a shifter. He sighed and gently petted Liam's cheek, his heart racing a bit as he watched the boy sleep peacefully.
"I don't know what it is that attracts me to you... But I will figure it out little human." He said as he stood up and walked out towards the forest. He was starting to get hungry.
He groaned as his bones slowly cracked, being the creature he was, shifting became more and more painful as he aged. A scream escaped him as his spine repositioned itself to match his animal. Now, finally shifted, Devan looked at himself. He could see the fur looked oily, and his skin was already showing signs of rotting. A low growl escaped him before he dashed through the woods, looking for his next meal.
-
Narcia refused to stand, her hands trembling as she looked at them. She could see blood on them. Liam's blood was on her hands. Her mate's blood. She closed her eyes tightly, unable to bear the sight. She knew it wasn't truely there, but at the same time, it was her fault that he got caught up in this. She shouldn't have left him alone. How stupid was she to leave a feverish, delirious man alone!?
"We will find him, Alpha. He is my friend too now, I may not have known him long, but I won't let our friendship sink before it even left the port!" He said as he lifted her up, looking dead serious.
"He's... He must be dead by now..." She sobbed out, her inner wolf crying out for their lost.
"Shake that idea out of your head! He isn't dead until we find a corpse! Got it!?" Matheo yelled at her, making her tremble at the idea of finding Liam's corpse. Perhaps he was right, Liam could easily be out there, still breathing. That thought gave her inner wolf strength again, Mia howled as Narcia smiled in synchronization with her wolf.
"You are right. We have to try and at least find him." She said as she closed her eyes and linked to Tammy.
Narcia: Tam, I need your help.
Tam: Hey alpha, it has been a while since you used the mind link. What do you need help with.
Narcia: Liam, he has been kidnapped. I need all available pack members to start inspecting the premises in search of a rotting smell.
Tam: A-A rotting smell..? What does that have to do with Liam?
Narcia: It seems a Cannibal is on Campus. He took Liam. I will head to the pack to inform my father of the situation.
Tam: Alpha... You will have to tell him about you and Liam.
Narcia: I know... But for now, I just want to find him alive.
Tam: Alright, I will do what's necessary, alpha.
The link disconected, and Narcia turned to face Matheo. She smirked as he smiled back, putting his hand on her shoulder before giving it a supportive squeeze.
"Let's go home." He said as they both nodded, ran towards the forest, and undressed. They put their clothes in a bag hidden inside a tree trunk and shifted quickly. Mia, Narcia's wolf, was a dark silver, with hints of white into her fur. All her extremities, her tail, paws, ears, and her muzzle were black. Matheo, on the other hand, was a deep blue, darker than the sea, his chin and chest was white all the way to his underbelly, it also went along the inside of his back legs.
They both sprinted through the woods, howling in unison as they raced to their pack's land. They were situated just outside of her old town, so it took a good hour for them to make it there. Narcia arrived first, being the bigger wolf of the two. They both shifted back to human and changed into clothes that were hidden in the large trunk in front of the main house that belonged to her parents.
"Alright, time to face this." She said to herself as Matheo patted her back, both of them walking inside the house.
"Darling! Oh, my beloved daughter... How has University been?" She said as her mother embraced her tightly, causing her to chuckle.
"It's okay for the most part... Is dad here?" She asked as her mother nodded and pounted towards his office.
"Is something the matter, sweetie?" Her mother asked as she sighed, nodding sadly. Her father quickly rushed out of his office when he smelled his daughter, picking her up into a tight hug.
"Oh my dear, Narcia! Welcome home baby, how have you been?" He said as she rolled her eyes.
"Dad, I only left like a week ago..." She said with an annoyed expression as he chuckled and put her down.
"Can a father not miss his little girl?"
"I'm not a little girl anymore dad, I'm the future Alpha after you. Remember?" She said with an eyebrow raised and her arms crossed.
"You will always be my baby girl whether you like it or not." He said with a smirk as she rolled her eyes.
"Um, I apologise for interrupting, Alpha. But we came here with an urgent matter." Matheo said as Narcia looked down at the floor with sadness. Both parents worried at the seriousness Matheo was speaking. He was always such a light-hearted person, after all.
"Oh dear, what happened?" Her mother said with a hand to her chin. She worried something bad was going to come out of their mouths.
"I... Found my mate." Narcia said as both her parents eyes widened.
"Oh my god! That's terrific! Who is he? Or she... It can be a she... Is that why you're so sad? Sweetie, whatever it is, we support you." Her mother said as her dad's face sterned. He could tell something worse than being lesbian was why his daughter looked so destroyed.
"It's that human... Isn't it..?" Her dad asked as her eyes widened, looking up in shock at her father.
"How did you -" She started before he burst into laughter and hugged her, petting her hair softly.
"Sweetheart. You clearly have loved that boy for ages, I remember your destroyed little face when we told you he was human. I had a feeling you two were connected deeply... It's never heard of, a shifter mated to a human. But there's a first to everything. We will gladly accept him if he promises to keep the secret." He said before giving his daughter a kiss on her cheek.
"I was hoping to get an alpha shifter by your side... But we can accommodate. The pack will be with you." Her dad said with a smile, making her feel more comfortable about the whole situation.
"Thank you... There's just one more issue now." She said as she gripped onto her dad's sleeve, his eyes showing concern as he watched his daughter start tearing up.
"Liam... He's m-missing... He was kidnapped." She managed out while trying to keep herself from crying. Her mother and father both looked at each other with confusion before Matheo moved forward.
"The worst part is... It's a cannibal who has him." He said as the room became dead silent. Both pack leaders looked petrified as their worst nightmare became reality.
The monsters were back.