Page 34 of Wolf Burdened


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"Natalie," I said under my breath.

But she only growled. The sound that bounced off the walls was like nothing I’d ever heard before.

She ran forward and pushed against the second barrier, baring her fangs as her claws broke through. Fate and Heldon stepped forward, both of them placing their hands on the barrier. I watched in silence, stunned that it took both of them, their faces twisted with strain, to contain Natalie.

Finally, she flew back onto the ground. She started screaming, and her body shook violently. Rumir and I rushed to the outer barrier.

Seeing her like this broke my heart. My eyes burned with tears, and my wolf clawed like mad at my insides.

“Help her,” Rumir said in a low voice. “Help her, please.”

"Lucian!" Natalie screamed, and I went still. “Rumir!”

The gods stepped forward, seeming very surprised that she'd spoken. And even more shocked that, unlike before, these cries had come from the Natalie we knew and loved.

Rumir and I slammed our hands against the barrier while Natalie rolled onto her stomach, her claws scratching at the ground. I felt so helpless watching her suffer like this, but at least now I knew my mate was somewhere in there, fighting for control.

“Natalie! We’re right here!” I yelled. Then I turned to Fate. “There has to be something you can do! Do it!”

“How is she still conscious?” Zeus said to no one in particular as he stared at Natalie. “She should be consumed like the others. How is this possible?”

“She’s not a carrier of the virus anymore. She’s becoming one with it,” Fate said. “If she can fight it, she can gain control. We might have just been handed a solution to our troubles.”

“A solution?” I asked. “A solution to what?”

Wow, their level of selfishness was unbelievable. They didn’t care about Natalie. They just wanted their problem taken care of. Although to give her her due, Hekate did seem a little worried about Natalie. But the others? They just looked intrigued. Especially Zeus.

Rumir suddenly punched the barrier, causing it to ripple. Fire shot from his mouth, weakening the protective wall even further.

Zeus tackled him. “She might kill us all!" he shouted.

Without thought, I ran forward, grabbing Zeus by his horns and throwing him off Rumir.

A whip made of lightning bolts appeared in his hands. “Do you think we don’t want to help her? To help everyone who’s been infected so far? There is no cure that we can create! We’ve tried! This virus can infect gods, too!”

The barrier suddenly fell. Natalie lay unconscious on the ground. Rumir and I ran by Zeus, but when we got close to her, we saw that she was enclosed in a transparent red cocoon that looked almost like a bubble.

Rumir reached out to touch her, but the surface rippled. Then, a tentacle of sorts lashed out at him.

We both stepped back when several more appeared, waving in the air, waiting for someone to get too close.

"In other souls and animals, the virus has a singular job—to corrupt them." Hekate stopped at Rumir’s side. "So far, there has been no cure. But Natalie seems to be fighting back. It’s as if the virus no longer sees her as just a carrier to help pass it on to its next host. In other words, it seems to like her and has obviously decided to remain in her."

“But it’s growing and evolving inside her, becoming something else—something more powerful," Fate added.

“So she won’t die?” Rumir asked.

Fate shook her head. “In truth, we don’t know. Everyone who has been infected has died eventually. The virus destroys the soul," Hekate answered. “But if Natalie is fighting against it, there might be hope for her.”

"So there is nothing we can do. We just have to trust Natalie to fight?" I grumbled, and Fate nodded.

"Yes," she answered as I crouched down, watching Natalie sleep within the cocoon.

“What else are you not telling us?” Rumir asked the gods. “Where exactly did this virus come from? Which realm? Is it so powerful that gods are at risk now too?”

"When she wakes, we'll tell you everything," Heldon said, putting his hands up when Zeus was about to object. “It’s pointless to try and keep secrets now, Zeus. Look at the girl. We have to tell them the truth because she might be the answer to fixing a mess that not even we gods can.”

"And what if she becomes yet another problem?" Zeus asked.

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