20. Chapter TwentyMelina
Chapter Twenty
Melina
I got in the car feeling numb, wiping my face with the back of my hand. I hated that I cried. It only made things worse. This wasn’t Aaron’s fault. He was doing what was necessary, and my tears only made it more painful for him. It just felt cruel that now that I finally got something I could really call love, it was snatched away. I tried telling myself that this would only be for a short time, but I didn’t know that.
I sighed and looked out the window, my mind racing with everything I would have to do if I needed to go into hiding. “I’ll have to close my business. I guess I could have one of my employees run things, but I don’t have anyone I trust enough to do that. Maybe Lila could help since she has business experience.”
Aaron reached over and squeezed my hand as he drove. “You don’t have to have it all figured out right now. You can close the business for a couple of weeks and then reassess later. Maybe this will all be over before then. Right now, we focus on getting a bag packed and getting you to a portal out of here.”
“We can’t even have one more night together?”
He lifted my hand to his lips, eyes still on the road. He was keeping his expression neutral, but I could feel him now through our bond. I knew he was hurting. My heart constricted with the shared pain. It hurt even more to see him attempting to be strong for my sake. “We can’t even risk one night, Rabbit. Now that we know, we have to act. Taking chances would be selfish on my part now that I know what I could do to you.”
Of course, I understood, so I didn’t argue. Instead, I looked back out of the window. It was dark, and the road we were taking from the more remote village was not lit, nor was it busy. We were enveloped in darkness on both sides of the road, dense forest casting further darkness that I noticed earlier on the ride to the village before sunset. Now, the only light on our path was from the transporter. Even the stars in the sky were scarce tonight, and the moon was covered behind clouds. It felt fitting.
A yellow light flickered in the distance. I leaned forward, squinting my eyes. “What was that?” It wasn’t another transporter; the beams were too high and wide, and it was just one light.
“I don’t know, but it’s in the middle of the road,” Aaron stated, his voice unusually tense.
“What’s wrong?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Not sure. Time in battle might get me a little more cautious than needed.” He glanced over at me. “Keep your seat belt on.”
“I have no intentions not to.”
He kept his speed as we approached the light. “Hold on to your seat. We might have to plow past it if it’s a threat. I’m not saying it is, I just- ”
He didn’t finish his sentence because, at that moment, something crashed into his side of the transporter, toppling the vehicle to my side. I slammed my head against the side of the transporter, and then my vision and mind went black.
* ~ * ~ *
When I opened my eyes, I looked up to see Aaron sliding me out of the transporter window, his hands hooked under my arms. My vision was blurry, and something thick and heavy dripped into my eyes and down my face. The metallic tang of blood coated my lips. I was mostly out of the vehicle now, and Aaron, who looked just as bloodied and bruised as I assumed I was, picked me up in his arms.
I looked around wildly, but there was only the darkness surrounding us, not even the flickering light from before. At least, that’s all I could see. Feeling and hearing were different. The sound of something remotely familiar moaned from the darkness. It sounded like a mix between a bear and a lion, very similar to the attack on my wedding day. I hadn’t seen it before and didn’t want to see it now. I knew enough to know it was large and dangerous. Panic seized me, and my breath began to quicken.
Aaron, whose eyes were steadily surveying the area, began to purr. Instantly, my body relaxed in his arms, although, mentally, I knew we were very much in danger, and he was only doing that to calm me. “What happened?” I whispered.
“Something smashed into our vehicle, and it’s out in the woods, staring at us,” Aaron replied in a steady voice.
I looked off in the direction of Aaron’s gaze and gasped when I saw four large, glowing yellow eyes blinking back at us from the forest.
“Can you walk?” Aaron asked.
My legs felt fine. “Yes. ”
“Okay, I’m going to put you down, and I want you to stay behind me; keep your back to the transporter.”
He carefully lowered me down, and I shifted behind him, my left ankle screaming with a dull pain as my foot made contact with the ground. I kept quiet. We had enough to worry about right now. I’d focus on getting my ankle treated if we got out of this mess.
Aaron lifted a hand, and smoke wrapped around his arm. Soon after, a sword appeared in his palm. It was more military grade. Heavier with a black covering. It would slice through anything, but it could also be used to push out blasts of wind that could tear holes in a body. I’d only heard about those weapons through Yosef and the others. And Aaron had the power to conjure his weapon. Impressive. How had I not known he had any conjuring ability?
It's only for objects I own. He said in my head.
I was startled, still not used to our new telepathic connection. What are you going to do? I asked back telepathically.
I’m going to have to kill it.
It’s one of us. Can’t you just hurt it?
I will try, but it is not my priority. You are.
Aaron cocked his head to the left as we heard approaching footsteps. I looked to see two floating orbs illuminating the path of three Fae. One female with flat, thin brown hair and violet eyes led the way. She was short and petite with pale skin. There was something almost frail about her. However, those eyes, hollowed underneath, were intense, glowing nearly as bright as the orbs. She had absolute power. The two others behind her seemed to be male, and although they were taller and more prominent, they didn’t seem to exude the magical strength of the female. They flanked her as if they were her protectors. All were dressed in earthy green or brown. It was hard to tell under the dim lighting.
“Sorry for all of this,” the female Fae began. Her voice was higher than I thought it would be. Perhaps she was younger than she looked. “We meant just to stop you, but my pet over there doesn’t know her own strength.”
“Who are you?” Aaron asked, his eyes still focused on the beast in the darkness.
“Of course, our names. You can call me Soren.” She pointed to a male to her left, he was bald with stern, entirely black eyes. “That’s Oran.” Then she pointed to the other male on her right, a purple-haired Fae with a long braid down his back. “And that’s Eben.”
I hadn’t expected her to give names. Naturally, I didn’t believe they were their real names. “You’re behind these beasts that keep appearing,” I stated more than I asked.
She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Yes, but I think you knew that. You didn’t just come from that closed-off village without learning that someone is creating these beasts from Fae.”
“We didn’t learn your identity.”
She shrugged, smile still in place. She was very unbothered by us. Then again, she did have the upper hand despite her weakness. It was probably that overexertion of her power that made her so physically weak. “It wouldn’t have mattered. I’ve been underground for quite some time.”
Aaron snarled, an unfamiliar animalistic sound escaping his lips. “You’ve already done your damage to me. Why attack us?”
Oran stepped forward, and I lifted up my hand. My attack magic wasn’t strong, but it was something. I was never helpless.
“You know too much,” he spat.
“Someone was going to figure it out,” Aaron replied.
“Later, but not now. We have more to do.”
I shook my head, confused. “Why? Why kill innocent people? We didn’t have a choice in getting married.”
The beast in the darkness gave a startling howl. It sounded as if it were in pain. It. Was that the right thing to think? This had been a Fae. A female faerie. She was hurting. Had she killed her partner like the others? I balled my other hand, a heated anger simmering in me. Maybe it didn’t matter why this Soren was doing this. It only mattered that she was cruel and needed to be stopped. Of course, I was only making assumptions that she was the one with transmutation magic. For all we knew, she was just part of this group and not the one with the magic or even the leader. They could just be members who tracked us to stop us.
Soren lifted a hand toward the darkness where the creature, the changed faerie, howled. Immediately, the pained faerie quieted down, and her four eyes seemed to lower. Well, that answered that. Soren had to be the transmutation power holder. How else could she quiet the creature with just the raise of her hand ?
I looked back at Soren with renewed hatred. “Why?”
She had the audacity to give me a pitying look and glanced past me to Aaron, who was still on high alert. “You can relax for now. She won’t hurt you.”
He snorted, side-eyeing her with his sword still clutched in his hand.
She shrugged. “Very well.” Her eyes moved back to me. “You ask me why? How sad. It should be obvious, but perhaps you have allowed this Nodoorian, as handsome as he may be, to cloud your mind. Have you not forgotten the many atrocities they have done to our people? The killing, kidnapping, and destruction? And now our leaders, who won the war, determined that we should further suffer by forcing us to marry these barbarians! They cared nothing about our wants or the pain we’ve already endured. You, yourself, were kidnapped and imprisoned by them, and after all of that, they forced you to marry one.” She glanced over to Aaron, a look of disdain covering her face.
I understood her feelings. It was one I shared before I opened my heart to Aaron. That didn’t mean I believed that what our leaders did was right. I had been blessed to get paired with Aaron, but I knew not all matches were as equally amicable. I had to assume that our leaders had either not received enough volunteers or the volunteers were not compatible. Perhaps that was too kind to think. Our leaders weren’t so thoughtful.
Soren smirked. “I can see the wheels turning in your head. You think your pairing was wonderful. Why would we want to harm you? It all turned out great. This only tells me you have a limited understanding of the situation. These pairings aren’t about compatibility. They are strategy. Your husband is a ruthless killer of our kind. Why would our leadership want him? Why would his leadership offer him? You are of no importance. No offense.”
I shrugged, unbothered by her words.
“Have you ever even bothered to think about why our leaders would even want this term in their truce?”
Aaron shifted beside me. “To end future divisions. If we are entwined as one Fae kind, war will not happen between us again.”
Eben scoffed at him. “So, they can control those unions to do their bidding. They are building new families of power to create future division. They picked those who they could control easiest and had skills they could use to group future families of use. They didn’t care if those they matched were compatible or even good beings.”
Aaron had mentioned to me that his leadership expected him to become powerful in society to help their people through the union. This wasn’t surprising. Most groups wanted power or access to it to ensure they were protected. Further, with Prinathians living in Nodoor, they could keep an eye, in a less formal way, on the people. And vice versa. It was all politics, but not unusual.
“Nothing they’ve done is as cruel as what you are doing,” I stated.
Soren looked to the darkness toward the now quiet beast faerie. She had the decency to at least look forlorn. “We must do what we need to in order to ensure the survival of our kind. Mixing with the Nodoors will be our downfall. They will taint our blood, our minds, and our way of being. Do you think all of the deaths from the unions are of my doing?”
I frowned. I’d assumed nothing else once I learned they weren’t coincidences.
Sensing my confusion, she sighed, still looking away. “Of course you did. I was one of the first waves of those forced to marry almost a year ago. And my Nodoorian husband beat me to within an inch of my life. I would be dead if Oren hadn’t found me when I ran out into the night. He took me to the resistance.”
I glanced at the stoic-faced Oren. His body was rigid, most likely ready to pounce if we made a move. With those black eyes, I could not imagine what he was thinking, and he did not speak. Still, I had learned something. These weren’t the leaders, but she was one of the power sources. A big one. The fact that they let her out to do anything other than kill was interesting. Then again, wasn’t she here to do just that to us?
“Once I healed, we went back to my so-called husband and killed him while faking my disappearance. I was no weakling. I knew my power but never used it for evil or much at all. It was safer that way. I’d have been used as a disposable pawn for the court if they knew.” She chuckled to herself. “Turns out I was going to be disposable anyway. Eben, his sister, was forced to marry a Nodoorian, who used her like a toy and then killed her. They say it was by accident, but we knew better. And they just covered it up. It was only when our journalists started seeking information about the disappearances that these unions got attention. That Fae who were selected started to run away.”
She gave me a pointed look as if she knew that I was one of those Fae who had tried to run off. I had no clue about others. Our court had done such a good job of information control. However, they couldn’t control everywhere.
“So, you started transmutation to gain attention,” I surmised.
She nodded. “It was the only way. Change one partner into a beast and have them kill the other. The court tried to cover it up, but more people were seeing the patterns. They didn’t know it was a transmutation, which was good. It left me too vulnerable since that power is so rare. But conjuring is another thing.”
Aaron swore under his breath. I could feel him practically vibrating with anger. It felt like a thick blanket of heat, almost suffocating and it made me dizzy. “Why not kill them some other way or even send them to another realm? Why do something so vile as to have the partner kill their spouse?” he shouted.
Soren waved a finger at him playfully. The bitch. “And themselves. But we don’t kill all of them. Some join our resistance, and others we help escape to a different realm or land. The others who are more unwilling, we kill. Or once they kill the other, they get so distraught in their twisted mind that they kill themselves. If I let them.” She looked over to the beast faerie, and I guessed she was one of the Fae not allowed to kill herself. “Not only is transmutation more terrifying, thus scaring the masses from agreeing to these unions, but it’s something they can’t prevent. Unless you hid in a cave forever, anyone around you with such magic, stranger or friend, could get to you. I don’t even have to be close or have any direct access. It’s draining but useful. Keeping them alive after changing them can also be a challenge. Sadly, they only last a day.”
I had no doubt that doing such magic would require much energy. It would explain why there weren’t more beasts and more attacks. I shivered thinking of how much worse it would be if she had the ability to easily change others. Did she have a limit? Would this eventually kill her if she kept going?
“How did you get to me?” Aaron asked in a low, strained voice. He was hunched forward now, his grip on his sword looking less controlled.
I glanced at him and noticed his breathing was heavy, and he was blinking as if something was stuck in his eyes.
Are you alright? I asked telepathically.
No. I’m feeling sick again. I can’t teleport you far enough out of danger, but I can give you a start. I just need to put down this beast. He replied in my mind.
What was he saying? Did he think he could hurt me now?
Soren took a step forward, Oran holding her elbow. She was physically weak, but she had enough muscle around her to keep her strong. She studied Aaron briefly, eyes cold under the dim lighting. “Not feeling so well? Yes, that can happen. It takes time to do the transmutation now, with my magic spread so thin. So, you’re very lucky to have this extra time. But the change is happening, and that’s what you’re feeling. There could have been any time that I got to you. When I visited the firm where you worked. Perhaps in the kitchen of a restaurant you went to. We have fighters from all walks of life who give me access to places. Maybe it happened when you were walking down the street. I can’t recall.”
Aaron snarled, and I touched his back, hoping it would relax him just as his purr helped me. He straightened slightly, but I could still see he was unwell. Sweat was dripping from his forehead, and he clutched his stomach with his free hand.
We both need to teleport from here . I said in my mind.
We won’t make it far. And we need to separate . He replied.
“Run!” he shouted in his alpha voice, leaving me no room to argue.
My mind blanked of any other thought. I had to move. I had to run. My sneaky husband had commanded me, and I had to listen. I ran in the opposite direction as he ran toward the beast. I didn’t look behind me; I didn’t have time to waste slowing down to see. I was already moving slowly enough with my injured ankle.
What felt like a mighty wind lifted me in the air, tossing me to the ground. I cried out as my already bruised body crashed to the hard surface. Eben walked toward me, a hand extended in my direction. I couldn’t let him get to me. I struggled to my feet and kept moving forward, as I was commanded. Only, this time, I clapped my hands, encasing my body in a protective ward against further attack.
Movement brushed past me, and I gasped as Eben appeared in front of me, a laser rifle pointed at me. I didn’t see weapons on them earlier. Perhaps he conjured it like Aaron? Not that it mattered. I couldn’t outrun a laser, and my magic ward could only hold up so long.
He tilted his head, frowning. “It doesn’t have to be like this, sister. You are one of us. We will spare you if you join the resistance. We could use someone with glamour talents of your caliber.”
The sounds of weapons clashing and firing along with the beast roaring competed with Eben for my attention, and I struggled with all my might not to turn around and look. To help. Aaron was a good fighter; I knew that much. But it was three against one, and even with Soren weak, she had power, especially with the beast.
“I’m not joining you. Especially if it means killing my husband.”
Eben pffted, face a mask of disgust. “Do you love that killer of our kind? He will slice you up with his very sword if you ever displease him.”
I thought of the many times I had tricked and annoyed Aaron. I knew better. “You know nothing about him!” I shouted before blasting him with magic of my own.
I only had the element of surprise on my side, and I had successfully sent him sailing back on his butt, the gun slipping from his grasp. I raced to it, but he jumped in my direction to tackle me to the ground. Only, he bounced off my ward instead, falling back down .
I grabbed the gun, but if I was going to use it, I had to drop my ward. I didn’t think twice as I fired at the same time, he flung a dagger I did not know he had at me. My laser went through his chest, toppling him to the ground. At the same time, the dagger sliced into my stomach. I screamed as searing, hot pain shot through me. Still, I kept the gun in my hand, firing once more at Eben, who now lay motionless on the ground.
I felt sick, the contents of the day’s earlier meals threatening to return, but I held it in. I had never killed anyone or anything in my life. My mind cracked into a confusing puzzle of emotions. Fear, shock, hurt, exhaustion. However, I didn’t have the time to decipher the many thoughts in my head. Sharp pain radiated through my body, bringing me back to my more urgent circumstance. I looked down at the dagger protruding from my stomach and pressed my lips tightly together as I pulled it out. Sharp pain threatened to cause my legs to give out on me. Heated blood poured out, and I quickly applied pressure to the wound, letting the coolness of my magic heal me.
I turned around. Aaron told me to run, but I had to help. His order had dissipated from my mind, which allowed me to refocus on him. It also meant he was not in control if his alpha order didn’t linger on me.
I noted quickly that Oran was now dead on the ground. Soren knelt beside him but very much alive and seemingly unharmed. I looked for Aaron, but I didn’t see him. Limping back toward them, panic rose in my stomach.
Was he hurt? He couldn’t be dead; I would have felt it in my soul.
Bestial sounds from the dark forest on my right paused me, and suddenly, two large creatures tumbled onto the road under the light of the floating orbs. The four-eyed creature jumped on top of the other. Under the light, I could now see just how terrifying the Fae creature in the forest truly was. She was humanoid and unnaturally tall, even taller than a Fae. Her head was similar to a bull’s except for the eyes and the razored teeth. Her body was covered in red, hardened skin, enlarged by thick muscle. She had four arms that dripped with thick black claws. Her feet were black hoofs, much like a horse. Several rows of red horns adored her head like a grotesque crown, and a thick red tail whipped around to wrap around the neck of the other creature.
The other creature was equally tall and wide, except it was deep green with scaled skin similar to a snake. On its spine was a length of long, sharp, black spikes that went up its neck and over its skull. Its head was similar to a reptile’s but still humanoid, although I could not see more from my angle. Where had this second creature come from?
I let go of healing my wound, needing both my hands to use the rifle. I spun around, searching, but I did not see Aaron—just Soren, the other male Fae dead on the ground, and the two beasts.
My mind suddenly screamed in horror, already knowing the truth.
Aaron had changed into a monster.