I hear the moment the others catch on to the change of my scent, and they pick up their pace. It’s okay though, my paws fly across the ground, knowing the path they need to take to keep me ahead of the others. We pass through an opening of an ancient stone wall, made up of stacked rocks gathered from the surroundings. It has begun to crumble into the elements, an arch over the opening having already given way to nature, lying scattered on the ground.
It’s easy to tell the area inside of the wall used to be cleared of trees for the most part at one time, their age is significantly younger than the trees on the side I just passed. An image of ground being tilled on my left flashes to mind, children playing in a circle to the right, and just beyond them a group of mothers scrubbing clothing while keeping an eye on the children. How odd, why would I be picturing such vivid events here?
Traveling forward, I head up a hill and just before reaching the top, I see rock formations that appear to be a natural occurrence nestled into the side of the hill, except to my eyes they resemble old foundations to a castle. I almost faceplant into the ground when my feet refuse to take another step. Standing up in my human form, a dress swishes around my ankles, one of my favorites from five hundred years ago. A deep blue which makes my blonde hair and blue eyes pop. The backpack is still there, as well as my kick ass boots.
Dread fills the pit of my stomach. I know this place... and it doesn’t appear the way it should. Reaching for my magic, I bring my hands up before me, with palms facing away, then I spread my hands apart revealing what should be here but isn’t.
Alex
Marcus wanted me to run patrols, but I couldn’t stand being away from my Angel any longer. She’s been forming strong attachments with both Derrick and Klaus, actually Marcus too, although their interactions are more toxic than anything else. Everyone’s building a connection with her and yet I’m getting left behind. So instead of doing what Marcus wanted, I pasted my ass next to her so my charm has a chance to make a sneak attack on her heart. Bitches love wolves.
A pang of rejection stabbed me in the heart when I felt some form of magic snap into place above my head, preventing me from hearing their conversation. I may just be the tech geek around here, but that doesn’t mean I’m stupid. Angel is definitely somethingmore. More of what I can’t quite tell yet, but it’s there, and I’m willing to bet the magic came from her.
Her not being ready to share her secrets with me fucked with my shit for a moment, but it just encourages me to win her heart even more. I found her down in the bunker from hell, and watched the videos of what they did to her body. I know more than anyone some of what she’s been through. I’ll be here for her in any way she needs me, even if it’s being the goofy wolf sidekick for a bit.
She didn’t need to convince me to help her out when she started running away from the other two, I’ll always be on her team! It was a fun game for a while there, until she disappeared from view and her scent trail changed slightly, gaining an animal tinge to it. We stopped playing all at the same time, and focused on getting our eyes on her as quickly as possible.
We finally caught sight of her standing toward the top of a hill. Not sure about the others, but I’m thrown off by the fact she’s suddenly wearing such an old-fashioned dress. Looks damn good on her that’s for sure, just doesn’t match the times now, not to mention where the fuck did she get it?
Just before we reach her, she holds her hands up in front of her and pulls them apart like she’s parting the red sea. She uses her right hand to make a large circle with its movements in a counter clockwise motion for several rotations. Swear Angel likes to make us think she’s a bit crazy. “No! No, no, no! What happened? Why?” Her voice is choked with emotion. This time she uses just her fingertips to make a circular motion in a clockwise direction.
We’re instinctively drawn closer to her. I barely notice Klaus shifting back to human form with his clothes on... something to consider later. He places his hand on her shoulder and Derrick places his hand on her other. Marcus and I both slip up to her sides and lean against her legs. The moment I make contact, my vision of the terrain before us changes. Instead of seeing rocks on the side of the hill, I’m facing a grand castle laid over the rocks, almost like a holographic blueprint.
Laughter sounds from down the hill, and I turn my head to peer behind us and see ghostlike children playing with a dog amongst an entire village of houses. My attention is brought forward again just in time to see her fingers move in the clockwise motion again. The view fast-forwards as she controls the hologram video. Days pass by, individuals moving past us in a blur before she allows the image to play in real time again. People flow out of the castle in a steady stream carrying chests and loading them up on horse-drawn carts.
A regal couple finally comes out, and Angel sucks in a sharp breath. They turn around and the man places his hand on the woman’s shoulder before she begins to chant. The walls begin to cave in toward the center of the castle. Once they’re all crumbled into a giant heap, she begins to cause the stones to break down, plumes of dust filling the air as the small pebbles fill in the space between the larger stones below them. Rich soil is then pulled from the fields on the other side of the village and distributed on top of the broken down castle. Finally, a servant comes up behind her and hands over a package.
The regal woman opens the small pouch she was handed, and pours the contents into her hand. Holding it out with her palm flat, a strong swirling wind comes through the space, ruffling my fur. The breeze picks up what I can now recognize as seeds, and carries them all about the open areas not covered with trees. The seeds pause in the air, evenly spaced and the moment the woman drops her hand, all of the seeds plunge into the ground.
Water rises out of several wells around the village and water spheres branch off traveling to each of the seeds that were just planted, watering each one. Aside from leaving the village, this woman just erased their presence here, and helped things along by planting what I’m going to assume are the seeds to trees.
She turns around, wiping her eyes, and gives the man behind her a wobbly smile before he wraps his arms around her, stroking her hair as she sobs into his chest. Holy crap, this is sad as fuck. We turn to follow their movements. I lose contact with Angel as we turn and the sight before me returns to the vibrant forest. Not wanting to miss what happens next, I quickly lean against her again. The couple is walking away following a trail of their people, wagons and livestock, until they hit the border of their village, where they pause, casting another spell. Every home in the village begins to smoke, before flames start dancing in doorways, and yet the woman continues her chanting while clutching the man’s hand. When she’s finished, they shift into wolf form and trot away.
Angel slowly rotates her fingers and the view gradually fast-forwards again, day moving into night until we see the sunrise again. She allows it to play, and we watch the sky change colors. “She wouldn’t have just left like this! Why abandon our home for no reason? This doesn’t make sense…” Gazing up at her, she seems lost with her mouth open, tear-filled eyes darting all over the scene before us.
We watch the sky changing colors until it becomes mostly blue, then figures begin appearing out of the tree line. They must get a command to attack because suddenly they’re rushing toward us, looking like the ghost army fromReturn of the King. Not sure I enjoy feeling like I’m right in the middle of aLord of the Ringsmovie.
The horde advances toward us until one man is out in front of all the others, approaching up the center road into the village. Suddenly all of the men following him hit a wall at the edge of the village, falling over dead at an instant. The single man who made it through the wall of death gazes back, astonished at what he sees. Finally, he turns and approaches us, coming close enough for his features to be seen.
What. The. Fuck! That’s Marcus!
Angel drops her hands, releasing the spell showing us an echo of the past. She instantly bends over to shove Marcus in the side, but he doesn’t budge due to his size causing her further frustration. She starts to scream at him at the top of her lungs. “Trying to kill me wasn’t enough, you bastard? Rejecting your mate and betraying me didn’t give you enough kicks in life so you had to go and try to attack my home too? Attack my parents? What the fuck is wrong with you? I gave you my heart, you became my everything! And you threw it all away? For what? What did you get out of it?”
She falls to her knees and begins sobbing into her hands. Her plight—all broken, wailing uncontrollably—breaks my heart. None of the others make a move to comfort her, so the job falls to my shoulders. Knowing she won’t appreciate my attempts at comfort if I’m naked, and I don’t want to waste the time getting dressed, I approach her in my wolf form.
I rub up next to her and lay my head over her shoulder in the best hug I can offer in this form. She doesn’t make any movements to indicate she even realizes my presence, completely lost in her inner pain. Okay, challenge accepted! Pulling back, I stick my snout right into her face and lick the hands covering it. Anticipating her swipe to push me away, I dodge her hand and swoop in. Licking up the tears covering her face, I nudge her a few times with my nose.
“Eeeww, Alex! Do you really think I want your slobber all over my face right now?” Awww her whine is so adorable. With her face uncovered again so she can give me a death glare, I take advantage of the moment and butt my head into her chest making her fall backward. I quickly stand over her and continue licking her face and then move down to her neck until I find a particularly ticklish spot and finally gain some laughter out of her.
Pausing my licks, I pull back and lock eyes with her, staring deep into her soul, letting her know I’m here for her and will always be someone she can lean on. Or at least that’s what I hope my eyes tell her. When the moment delves too deep, I dart a quick lick against her lips. She pouts before shrieking, “Alex! That doesn’t count as a first kiss! Don’t even think you can start kissing me whenever you want!” She wipes her lips with the back of her hand.
Heh, my Angel just admitted she’s thought about us kissing.Don’t worry, I’ll have you begging for a kiss before too long, just you wait, my pretty.
Chapter 15
Marcellus
Five Hundred-ish Years Ago
