The four of us turned our full attention to the shrine ahead of us. Although the tension between Rem and Rakesh hadn’t subsided, they both put aside their personal feelings of the other to deal with the issue at hand. I wasn’t sure how the other two were handling everything, but it relieved me to not have to stress over the issue just yet.
The shrine was old, hand-carved from marble stone. Etchings had been carved into it, but it had been worn from time and was harder to see what it had originally been. I suspected it was more of the same markings that had been on the doors and entrance to this place. They had placed the candles in a horseshoe shape on the surface of the marble. Within them was some burning sage.
Although these items were important for most rituals, I could tell right away that even if we put out the candles or stopped the burning of the sage, it still wouldn’t stop the summoning.
Kayden looked towards Ra
Thousands upon thousands of eyes stared down at me from the black hole atop the shrine. Even with all of my focus set upon my attempts to hold the ritual back, the opening to Annwn was growing larger. The ground was shaking more, to where small pieces of the ceiling were clattering down on the ground below. Whatever glow I once had was practically gone now, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that was a bad sign.I was feeling drained and knew it wouldn’t be long now before my attempts failed completely. I relayed the news to the three behind me swiftly as the black hole expanded again. There would be nothing I could do to hold the souls back, but with luck, I might still find the strength to stop the ritual from completing fully.Or so I had hoped.A large earthquake rocked the area, causing the four of us to stumble. I couldn’t keep my balance long enough to refocus and the result was disastrous. Souls quickly started pour
My gaze never shifted away from Arwen as he looked down at me still, the silence deafening. Nothing seemed to happen, and I wondered if maybe I had simply misunderstood what he was implying. The ground had since stopped shaking and the souls had all returned at the Gods’ demands. Taking in a sharp breath, I helped Rem stand up again, but my thoughts did not wane. I kept thinking over what Arwen had said to me. The God seemed to at least have the patience to allow me to do that much, but I knew it wouldn’t last long. Anxiously, I finally dared to look back at Arwen. His arms were folded across his chest, as though he was dealing with a schoolroom full of children. Despite who and what I was, he was still far older than I, by many centuries. Many cultures had their own version of Death, but most of them stemmed from the same legends spread over the world, twisted into their own versions. “What… sort of price?” I finally asked, unknowing i
My name is Zach and I was born to a small but healthy pack of werewolves in one of the rural towns of England. We mostly kept to ourselves but of course, there was always the stigma that followed our kind around.My mother, though human, was the destined mate to my father, the alpha of the pack. They had their fair share of issues when it came to people accepting them being together but otherwise, they were happy.That makes me half-blooded though my wolf side is as active as any pure-blood could ever be. Though, unlike the tales that claim we werewolves are savage beasts that only transform during a full moon, we're actually not like that at all. At least, I'm not like that so I assume that to be true for all of my kind.Sadly, not everyone trusts or cares for werewolves and the same was true for my family. I was only a child when it all happened and I only have vague memories of it all truth be told. Well, one day a group of Hunters had found out that my pack
The bus was hot and extremely uncomfortable in the summer heat and I wondered why I had travelled during the day when the night would have been much cooler. I sighed out my nose heavily and then looked out the window. My reflection peered back at me, and my hazel eyes looked exhausted. The bags under my eyes were a clear tale of how long I had been travelling and for how long I had been awake.I glanced at my phone to check the time; it was almost three in the afternoon. I would arrive at my next location soon. I had already visited several large cities in England, including the one closest to where we lived, and I still had found no one whose scent stuck out to me as being my promised soul mate.I was wondering if I would ever find them. For all I knew, they could live all the way over in Australia and I’d never know it.
After a nice cold shower and a quick meal at the restaurant, I took a stroll around the area near the hotel. I had booked to see one of the musical shows tomorrow, but tonight I was free to explore and enjoy the sights and sounds of the afternoon atmosphere. It was still busy and crowded, but at least I didn’t need to catch any further busses or trains to rush to my next spot.To my surprise, there weren’t as many Hunters in the area as I thought there might be. Or at least, I hadn’t run into any. There were quite a few people that didn’t quite smell human, but so far many of them didn’t seem phased by my presence there. I wondered if maybe people were simply used to seeing werewolf tourists in the area, or if they were just too busy rushing to their next destination that they just hadn’t noticed me.I shrugged it off and continued to wander along the streets. I had to admit; it was all rather overwhelming; I h
The night passed by uneventfully. The loud drunkards had thankfully gone by the time my ride on the London Eye ended, and I made my way back over the river. I headed back to my hotel room and laid down on the bed to watch some TV. Nothing too interesting was on, but it made for a relaxing evening. I wondered if it was worth going out again after a nap.I didn’t want to overwork myself trying to find my mate, and even if I didn’t meet them in person, their scent would have lingered around long enough to know they had been around either way. I realised I would need a lot of rest after a long day of travelling and not to mention all the sightseeing I planned for tomorrow.I turned off the tv and got changed into something more comfortable for the night. I then headed to the bathroom to get ready for bed. As a werewolf, I had more stamina than a human, but I soon realised just how tired I actually was. It had been a long day, even if I ha
At the half-time break for the show, I left to grab myself another drink and to stretch my legs a little. The theatre was as jam-packed as I knew it would have been. Not that I had been paying too much attention, but I knew my mate was not here tonight despite the crowds.However, what I did smell was a few other werewolves, a few vampires - which you can tell by their life-less smell which very few can pick up on, and of course, a few other scents that I wasn’t too sure on. However, I assumed they were other supernatural beings. I prayed none were Hunters.I heard an announcement shortly after the quick break that the show would resume soon, so I quickly made my way back to my balcony seating area. I looked out over the edge to the swarming mass below. That was when I felt something that made my skin crawl.Someone was watching me. I scanned the area, but I saw nothing unusual. Had I imagined it? I furrowed my brows in deep thought,
The oldest one of the bunch, a man who looked old enough to be my great grandfather, was lazily swinging a leg over the wall of the park. One of the youngest was crouching down on top of the streetlight, as though something like that was as natural as the moon at night. The others were here and there, some on the ground, some on lampposts, and others on the wall. If a Hunter saw them, they would easily know they were not human.I counted at least ten of them, and I knew right away that they outnumbered me. I knew that even one of these people could easily overpower me if they were looking for a fight. So far, their only actions had been to intimidate me unseen until I had been alone.“What do you want?” I asked, turning my full attention to the oldest. Truth be told, I wasn’t sure what they were, but I hoped he was the leader of the group and was the one I needed to address. I prayed to the Goddess that I was right. I tried to h