Alora stood aside and watched the luna sulk. She had refused to eat or drink since morning and it was already late in the night.
If Hera's plan was to accuse her so she would be punished again, then sorry to disappoint her!! The plan would be unachievable.
She was her personal servant and would be held responsible if anything happened to her including the effects of skipping three meals in a day.
Quickly, she left the luna's chamber to the part of the royal house she dreaded the most. The court.
In that court would she meet the one man who was the architect of her pains in Broln pack. The man she was fated to, but hated her the most.
The man she was free to reject as a mate but couldn't bring herself to do it. It was same man that stole a kiss from her before her sixteenth birthday.
If not the ominous thoughts that occupied her mind, why would she head to the court willingly?
She pushed the door slowly and went in and as she guessed, her nightmare was sitting on his royal seat, his head thrown back and his eyes shut.
"Mate!!" Kylo whispered and his eyes flew opened. He expected to see Hera but it was Alora kneeling before him.
"Mate!!" He felt the elation of his wolf which had always been the same each time it saw Alora.
"Can I feel her?" But Floyd paid no attention to him.
There he sat in dilemma over his failure to mark his luna and all Kylo could do was acknowledge one without a wolf.
Knowing it had been ignored, it quietly withdrew to its confinement.
"Why are you here?"
He was too lazy to berate her and she was too astonished to hear him speak to her in such calm voice.
She lowered her eyes not daring to look at him.
"I'm sorry to bother you my alpha, the luna has refused to eat or drink since today, I'm afraid she might develop stomach problem."
He gazed intently at her, several bizarre thoughts slithered through his mind. "I'll be in her chamber soon."
She rose to her feet and headed to the door. Thank goddess, he didn't reprimand her.
"Holy goddess!! Its so huge!" Kylo barged out, a look of astonishment in his eyes.
"What's it?"
"Is that her wolf?" It giggled loudly. "It smiled at me!!"
Floyd sighed in frustration as he listened to his wolf's elated, but infuriating words.
"What wolf Kylo?"
The atmosphere of euphoria around it disappeared and it muttered. "It has vanished."
"Kylo, she has no wolf, it's an illusion."
Before he met Hera, he experienced several illusions where he would imagine Alora's wolf, but after few years, he shut that part of his mind permanently.
"Yes, it's an illusion."
And with head lowered in gloom, It quietly returned to its cage.
After a while, Floyd headed to the luna's chamber where he met her in a state of melancholy.
He walked over and embraced her.
"It's alright dear." He understood the reason behind her mood.
"I'll get to the root of it." He brushed his fingers on her cheek, then kissed her deeply.
"You're my mate, my luna and I care about you."
His sweet words burst the balls of happiness in her and she revealed a deep blush.
"I love you alpha." Her face was buried in his broad chest.
He kissed her hair and stroked it gently. "Eat, don't starve in my pack."
"I will."
After spending a little time with her, he left her alone.
RIVERVILLE PACK
Standing at his window and staring at his pack was his norm, aside consolations in times of rogues attack or condolences in times of death.
His brain must be grumbling in dissatisfaction for the pressure his incessant thoughts and imaginations that would never become reality had mounted on it.
"Alpha!!"
The loud, tensed voice startled him and he briskly shifted his gaze on the visitor who pushed the door heavily and barged in.
His heavy breathing made speech difficult as he panted uncontrollably.
"Speak!!" Sebastene ordered and he bowed.
"It's Ga..Ga...mma Ma...rco!!" The words were broken by his heavy panting.
"We found him!!"
Sebastene suddenly felt a heavy blow in his heart. It was fierce and came with an excruciating pain.
They found him! He knew what that meant.
He bit his lips and clenched his fists as arrows of grief pierced him from every corner.
He fisted hands tightened and his knuckles cracked. "Marco!!"
His eyes reddened as they held pool of tears about to flow."Take me to him."
With a heavy heart, he mind-linked his beta, then followed the scout out.
When would this cease? Must they wake up to bad news daily?
Chylde who was outside waiting in a somber mood hurried to him the moment he came into sight.
In silence, they headed out with other warriors. After a long walk, they finally arrived the spot, just close to the border between their pack and the vast wood owned by no pack but debarred for them.
He walked over, and squatted near the lifeless body of his lead warrior. The cloud of sorrow loomed over them as they all stared at him in deep grief.
He was not fully transformed before death struck. The body was still human, while his limbs were wolf.
"What happened?" Sorrow had thickened his voice that it came out hoarse and husky.
"No idea alpha, we found him during our patrol."
Sebastene inspected the body and noticed there was no injury, no scratch, no blood.
His eyes and mouth were wide opened like one who was traumatized before his death.
"He's 48." The curse was death at fifty and he had two more years before completely swallowed by the curse.
Aside from that, those who died at fifty were all in their full human forms and appeared to be in a peaceful sleep, not the horrific death before them.
He rose to his feet and moved away from the body, his face thick with lines of uncertainty.
"Let's return alpha." Chlyde, tapped him on the shoulder and he nodded.
The death was strange, the place he died was strange too. What exactly happened? Or had their life span been reduced to 48 and in partial transformation?
"Take him back to the pack." He turned to leave but a scream from a scout halted him.
He moved his gaze to see the scout rolling a small bottle with a long twig and covering his nose with his hand.
"Wolfsbane!!" Sebastene took quick steps away from the scout and others followed suite. He smelt it! He sensed it!
"It's covered!!" The scout explained when he saw the fear on their faces, and then, the wave of relief washed over them.
"What's it doing in our pack?" Who wanted them dead to bring such hurt to them?
He looked steadily at the bottle, then at Marco's lifeless body, his brows creased.
Did someone use wolfsbane on his gamma that he couldn't transform fully, them died?
Several thoughts prowled through his mind, he moved his gaze on his beta who shook his head in confusion.
Suddenly, his eyes momentarily widened as he recalled his last conversation with Marco.
He wanted him to use the wolfsbane and protect their pack which he opposed.
He recalled Marco was adamant and evidently did as he threatened.
"Goddess!!" He mumbled, rubbed his forehead and let out a breath.
He didn't need any other clarification for Marco's death, the truth was bare before him. The goddess struck him for being in possession of the forbidden liquid.
He wagged his head in sadness. " He didn't heed to my warning." Then ordered the body to be returned to the pack.
Quickly, the scouts carried the body back to the pack.
"Dig the ground far away from here and bury that shit!!"
Speedily, the scout with the forbidden bottle left to do as he was instructed.
In his unsettled mood, returning to the pack with them was a bad idea.
He needed to clear his head, understand some issues especially why Marco would go against the goddess, how he got the wolfsbane and how exactly he died, so he ambled away with his beta.
"You know, he confronted and insulted me several weeks ago, because I opposed the use of wolfsbane."
Sebastene explained in a voice kept to a minimum.
"What!!" Chlyde's eyes widened in incredulity. "Why?"
Sebastene shrugged, his hands up.
"What else? Protect the pack, wade off enemies, then he challenged my authority when I refused."
Bitterness rose in him and writhed his face. "I don't blame him, I have no strength of an alpha."
Otto felt severe pain in his heart when he heard the sorrowful voice of his alpha.
"Don't say that. You have the strength of an Alpha."
But his encouragement was like a fallacy to Sebastene who shook his head from side to side in disagreement.
"How many alphas can I challenge Chylde?"
"And how many alphas can't be challenged dude? Every alpha is strong in his own way. It's better to be an alpha of a cursed pack than one who fell into the hands of another and became his slave."
Sebastene squinted his eyes thoughtfully. Chlyde was right. Every alpha had an alpha who was stronger than him.
"I wonder how he died?"
Chylde shrugged. "Should that bother you? Only the goddess knows how she took his life."
Sebastene nodded in agreement. " Yeah, only the goddess knows. I hope others learn from Marco's mistake. The goddess isn't one to be trifled with."
Then in silence, they strolled. Only when they arrived the river which was the boundary did they realize how far they've gone.
The moment he gazed at the river, a menacing feeling crept into him and an icy- cold hand ran through his body. He sensed danger! He smelt death!
"Let's leave beta!!"
He pulled Chylde's arm, but before they could take a step, a great number of rogues dashed out from the other side of the river, peering their hungry, blazing eyes into their shuddering body.
Shifting to their dwarf wolves was useless as they stood no chance against one of those evil-looking, tattered wolves.
Should they run? It was as useless as shifting, since they couldn't outrun the wolves. So it was death for the alpha and Beta of Riverville pack.
Sebastene's stomach clenched as he watched one of the wolves leap over the stream.
Goodbye to the world of curses. He shut his eyes, and Chlyde took his hand.
It would be good if they died together, then reappeared in a better pack in their next lives.