Chapter Four
Alyssa trembled, her arms stiff on the windowsill as she watched the Shadows invade the town. Hatred and fury pulsed in her heart, along with the disgust and overarching sense of helplessness that came with a Shadow invasion.
The amount of them astonished her. The southern lands might have one or two stalking the humans in wayward villages – but dozens, perhaps even hundreds of the cursed things swarmed the town.
She wanted her blade. The stupid thing's weapon quality allowed it to chop at Shadows. It cost more than she could make in four lifetimes.
Which happened to be why she stole it.
The terror in her subsided when she saw the werewolves fighting the monsters in the streets. Actually fighting. Not dying.
“Huh.” Alyssa paid attention to the individual fights.
These werewolves are quite something. By the sun, the werewolves held their own against the Shadows. They tore into them with fang and claw, doing the thing her incredibly expensive weapon did. The way the werewolves fought as well suggested a commitment, a practised ease to something done many times before.
Veterans at fighting the Shadows. Warriors of the claw.
One thing for certain, however, punched past her focus. The Lunar Wastes held more Shadows than Alyssa had seen in her lifetime. That scared the absolute crap out of her.
Heart hammering, she studied the werewolves. Her mind reflected upon the map with the Fractured City in the north, the Lunar Wastes, the empty stretch of land after that before it rolled into the south.
Little information came about the Lunar Wastes, other than the fact that, well, it was a wasteland. A fragment of the thing it used to be. A century before, the maps showed it as a place of beauty, a land fairer than the south, with fields, lakes and rivers, glens and mountains.
Before the endless winter howled across the domain, and shrouded it forever. Before the Shadows consumed the life there.
That was a lie, then. These werewolves are living, and fighting. They're not starving or thirsty, and by all means, their town is thriving.
Against her will, Alyssa found herself admiring the werewolves, excited by the idea that her planet did have defenders against the darkness. Her thoughts drifted to Kain. Would he be fighting? Would he be amongst the others there, ripping into the corrupted flesh?
She bit at her thumb, heart and mind racing, zapping with new possibilities, buoying her from the former drag of despair that infested her system. How had she never heard of the werewolves in the Lunar Wastes before? Why did no one in the south mention about these natural defenders against the Shadows?
Her sword instructor's words echoed through her mind.
Ain't no defense against them, little girl. When they turn up, you gotta hide, pray and stay silent, and hope they don't catch you. Least they don't need that many people before they're sated. Least it might be weeks or months between attacks.
She didn't believe him for a second. Everything had a weakness. They just didn't understand the Shadows enough to figure it out.
She thought she'd been so smart, discovering the sword, with the strange bone handle that the Shadows hated. It'd been wasting away in a moon cursed museum, out of all things. Gathering dust! Used for nothing but prying eyes!
A waste of talent and potential.
When she'd killed her first Shadow, weeks after stealing the stupid thing, she had convinced herself she was ready. Ready to find her brother.
Ready to put an end to it, once and for all.
Then, it turned out there was an entire sodding race devoted to killing Shadows.
She watched in mounting excitement as she saw werewolves winning their fights and plunging into new ones. A wake of bones and rotting blood crusted the snow-laced ground. Her heart sank when she saw one twitch on the ground and die. She pressed her palms against the window, completely glued to the action, so much that she didn't notice the old man come in, until he was practically breathing down her neck.
“Do you hate Shadows, child?” The elderly man with the distinct yellow taint to his eyes regarded her in amusement. She flinched. Then, swallowing the lump in her throat, she nodded in answer.
“Me too, child.” He indicated the warriors, locked in battle with the monsters. “Every single werewolf here has been trained from birth to fight Shadows. It is our purpose. A purpose we will hope you share. I have noticed the... admirable quality of your sword. It is covered in werewolf blood, adorned with the bones of a powerful witch. Where does a young woman find such a thing?”
Alyssa examined the old man for a moment, detecting no ill intent in his expression or his demeanor.
“She steals it from a museum.” A little bit of truth couldn't hurt, right? It wasn't like the museum guards would be casually walking into the Lunar Wastes and asking questions for its whereabouts.
He chuckled at that. “Good. A waste of such power, otherwise. I am Raitan. One of the council leaders of the Lunar wolves. You are Alyssa Malgrave, correct?”
Alyssa nodded. Blue lightning forked through the streets, electrocuting the Shadows there, completely bypassing the werewolves. “Holy suns! What in the world was that?”
“Our resident witch,” Raitan said, a smug smile upon his lips. “You hang witches in the south, yes?”
Alyssa bit her lip. Yes. Southerners were a little finicky when it came to magic they didn't understand. It might have something to do with the fact that only women could learn magic, and the south still hadn't gotten over the idea that magic did not necessarily mean evil. “I'm guessing that's also a slight waste.”
Raitan nodded. “Indeed.”
The werewolves snuffled around the snow cobbled streets, scooping out the remnants of any Shadows unmarred by the forked lightning. Then, one by one, they morphed back into their human forms, brushing themselves off and stretching in the new wave of dusk approaching. Alyssa resisted the urge to jump up and down in sheer excitement.
Dozens and dozens of Shadows. Annihilated by a smaller, succinct force. Routed in a way the humans in the south couldn't do, without special weaponry at their command, or the rare witch. Her mind flashed to Kain. He must have fought in this. Was he alright? Would she see him again?
Raitan cleared his throat. “I met your brother, Alyssa Malgrave.”
Now this seized Alyssa's attention like a fish on a hook. Her eyes bulged as she inspected the werewolf. “Are you serious?”
He nodded tiredly. “Erlandur Malgrave. He came through the Lunar Wastes three years back. He sought werewolf guides to take him to the Fractured City. We obliged, because we too, wanted to know.” Raitan let out a deep sigh.
“What happened? Did they make it?” Alyssa suspected she knew the answer, but wanted to hear it from the werewolf's lips. Her heart prepared itself for disappointment. Her hand clenched into a fist, and her breathing slowed, almost stopping.
Raitan's grizzled face twisted into a frown. “We do not know. Anyone we send to the Fractured City does not come back. It does not stop us from trying. From believing.”
“Just because they don't return, doesn't mean they're not alive.”
The old werewolf gave her a scornful smile. “Child. The Fractured City is where the Shadows come from. If they do not return, you can guarantee the Shadows have consumed them.” He stared out to the dismal streets of his hometown, observing the warriors taking themselves to the houses, informing the cowering civilians that all was safe.
“We can't penetrate the city, but we can hold our own in the Wastes. The snows protect us. Our strength protects us.” His hand slid to a pocket in his fur robes. “I come here to you for one thing, though. Erlandur told me that if I ever find some 'stubborn little brat' called Alyssa Malgrave around, I am to give her this.” He reached into the pocket and pulled out a small ring, set with a sapphire – the same color as her eyes.
Erlandur's ring. Alyssa took it in wonder, holding it tight. “Thank you.”
“I hope your brother is well. As do I hope for my warriors. But I do advise to not let your hopes get up too high.” He patted her on the shoulder, before giving her a bow, and departing from the room.
Alyssa turned the ring over in her hand, before slipping it onto her thumb. Too big for any other finger, it fit snugly there. Even with the continued absence of her brother, the fact that he had reached this very town, alive, and left her this ring in anticipation that she'd actually come – filled her with more happiness than she'd felt in a while.
He knew me, after all. She chewed her lip.
The Fractured City is the source of Shadows.
They had to come from somewhere. Alyssa knew that. Just like how a way existed to defeat the Shadows, a way obviously existed for them to be born. An origin place to perhaps discover and torch to cinders. She didn't think the City was the birthplace, though – just something that had answers. It was why her brother departed. It put an ominous twist onto Erlandur's journey.
Anyone who enters the Fractured City does not return.
Mystery upon mystery. Questions she desired answers to. She rubbed her finger over the sapphire, picturing Erlandur once more. So near, yet so far.
Soon, brother. Soon. If you are still alive, keep living for me. I'll find you.
A few hours later, Kain returned to the residence, where Alyssa found herself with a delectable steak oozing with pink inside. She gave the werewolf a smile, saw some of the scratches on his face, and inquired about the raids, asking if this was a thing that happened often. Kain, weary but pleased at her questions, confirmed the raids that happened, all the while giving her an incredibly penetrating stare. It made Alyssa's heart race a little faster. The werewolf who had saved her from a cold, numbing death always seemed to have a question upon the tip of his tongue, but he withheld it at the last moment, as if the idea brought him great discomfort.
Honestly, Alyssa didn't know what the werewolves expected of her, but they certainly wanted something. No one casually saved another person unless they got a deal out of it. She didn't believe in true kindness.
Something intrigued her about the dynamics of the people around her as well. Alyssa couldn't help but notice that there seemed to be no female werewolves. At all. Every male here possessed different shades of yellow in their eyes, and an animalistic essence about them, barely covering the power that lay beneath their skins. The females, however, all looked and acted human. And a fair percentage of them had children, or were pregnant.
Hmm... It didn't take long for Alyssa to put two and two together. “Kain,” she said, fixing the nervous werewolf with her sternest glare, “I have a question or two for you.”
“Ask away. I'll be happy to answer – as long as it is nothing awkward.” His handsome face crinkled into a smile. Her stomach gave a funny lurch, not prepared for the sudden attractiveness of him. Curses, this man was handsome. It did some peculiar things to her internally.
“Are there any female werewolves?”
Kain made a sucking noise with his teeth. It looked as though she'd instantly targeted his weak spot. “Ah, no. There are none.”
“Why not?”
He gave a tiny shrug. “I am not sure, to be honest. It's always been the way of things. Only males can be born with the power. Which means if we want to have more guardians, then we need human women.” He then paused. “However, the other thing that is valued are human witches. Which can only be female.”
Alyssa considered the exchange. Somewhere, despite the obvious gender divide there, balance got achieved. She also saw another immediate issue. Despite there being human females in the town – there weren't that many. An awful lot of male werewolves patrolled the streets, and not so many women.
“Am I in danger?” Alyssa played idly with her fingers, trying not to betray any signs of anxiety.
Bafflement popped up on his face. “What do you mean?”
“Will I be allowed to leave?”
Kain considered her a while. “No,” he said eventually. “We will... want you to pair with a werewolf. Human females are far too valuable to release out into the wastelands, when they stumble into our midst. We usually take the time to introduce you to our ways, grow a little accustomed to our culture, our people... but we don't let you leave. So it can be a... bad experience for one who does not take to our ways.”
Alyssa's mind raced with possibilities. Apart from Kain's blunt admittance that in light of her rescue, she was also now a prisoner, she found the idea of becoming part of a culture that dedicated itself to slaughtering Shadows appealing. Very appealing.
Would I end up with Kain, perhaps? I kind of like him. It did give rise to another matter, though. If they didn't let her leave, how could she continue searching for her brother?
And would they let her fight, or would she be too precious to waste in battle? Her anger flared slightly at the thought. She wanted to fight. To use that sword of hers to hack at the Shadows.
She certainly didn't train for years just to sit around and do nothing.
“Wait,” she said, realizing something else Kain had said. “Why do you say 'usually'?”
Kain sighed, appearing deeply uncomfortable. His eyes took on an apologetic note as he said, “Our Snow Witch wants to find out if you have any aptitude for magic.”
“Is that possible?”
“Yes.”
Something in his tone suggested otherwise. “What's the catch?”
“You, ah,” a lump in his throat bobbed nervously, “need to have sexual intercourse with a werewolf. That unlocks the magic.”
Alyssa's jaw dropped. “You've got to be joking me.”
Kain exhaled, his yellow eyes narrowing, as he tapped the top of the table with long fingers. Alyssa downed the rest of her steak, which was now cold, rather than hot and dripping.
Judging by his body language, nope. He was serious. Sex. With a werewolf. For witchy powers. She found the meat tough and chewy, and spat out the gristle after a moment of incessant chewing.
Sex. Okay, then. Now was as good a time as any to test the waters.
“What happens if I refuse?”
Kain looked as though he wanted to be anywhere but there at the moment. His cheeks flushed crimson. “You... will not have a choice. Our Snow Witch is close to expiring. We need a new witch, and none of the women here have an aptitude for magic. You are untested. And, um. You have two days – to either complete the test with me, or be forced into the test with someone else.”
Holy suns. A slight sense of horror infected her heart, along with a tiny dosage of intrigue.
Doesn't sound like I have a lot of options, does it? I can't leave and go into the Lunar Wastes alone. She took a sip of clear, mineral water, pondering. And regardless of my personal opinion or not, they need me to stay because they need women. And they need to find out if I have magic powers. By having sex with me. How the suns does that even work? Magic sperm or something? What?
She lingered far too long on that particular detail, before searching her mind for a possible better solution. One where she might escape and search for her brother in the Fractured City. Which also happened to be the origin of the Shadows.
One woman with a sword wouldn't be quite so effective there, given the amount of Shadows that had invaded Lunehill today.
“It doesn't sound like I have much of a choice. But, you must know this. The whole reason I'm here in the first place is because I'm searching for my missing brother. He passed through this town. He took some of your warriors with him on the way to the Fractured City. Perhaps you remember this event?”
Kain's brow creased in thought as he sifted through his memories. “I believe I do remember a human male passing through here. He was looking for recruits. He did not share much detail of his mission, other than to say he suspected he had found a way to more effectively combat the Shadows. You can't imagine how that kind of idea ignites the minds of our beleaguered warriors, who feel that there is only so much we can do with what we have.” He smiled wanly at her as he gathered the plates and placed them in a tiny, cluttered sink. “I did not realize that man was related to you.”
“Many don't,” Alyssa muttered. Her brother was fire and blazing ideas. She was the cool calm to his fancies. “I never discovered what it was my brother planned, either. It was good enough though for him to leave me in the family home, abandoned and without any support.”
The more she talked with Kain, the better she felt, especially with the additional time she needed to process events about now. She contemplated escape, before allowing her thoughts to shift to the good looking man in front of her.
Her saviour. “The only reason why I'd allow myself to be 'tested' is so that if I get it, I can use the power to find my brother. Or if I can somehow get a promise out of you that you will let me fight when the Shadows come, and let me continue the search for my brother. And not turn me into one of your breeding mares.”
Kain's eyes seemed to light up at this announcement. “I will help you find your brother, when things are settled. Can you fight?”
In response, Alyssa stood up, and beckoned Kain over to the street outside, now devoid of Shadows, and bustling with normal life again.
“I'll demonstrate. Try and pin me to the ground.”
Dubious, Kain did as bid, and to her relief, he didn't hesitate or doubt her word. He just came straight at her. She barely avoided the bull rush, twisting and spinning as he turned. Then, with an agile jump and grab, she swung her body over his, and, using the momentum and force gathered from the movement, she yanked him off balance, and with adjustment, he slammed into the ground, the air whooshing out of his lungs.
Just because she couldn't fight the swirling snow that flaked around them, didn't mean she had let herself get sloppy in the absence of her brother. She sprung upright, leaving him there wheezing.
Kain growled admiration, as the other werewolves and humans glanced at them in curiosity. “Not bad, human. Perhaps... perhaps you can help with the defenses, with that sword, after all. Perhaps...”
He got himself up as well, brushing off the snow, and tilted his head in interest at Alyssa.
She chewed her lip for a moment. If she had witch powers... and could conjure things like that forked lightning, her effectiveness would likely shoot through the roof. She walked back inside, followed by the werewolf.
She then started promptly taking off her clothes in the kitchen.
“Whoa,” Kain said, his eyes suddenly dilating. “Why are you stripping?”
“Why do you think? So you can take me. Time and magic waits for no one, right?”
“Shouldn't you be protesting this more?”
“Why? What's the point? It's obvious what my options are, werewolf. Come.”
Alyssa tugged off her shirt, exposing her braless chest to the world, and proceeded to take off her boots, pants and panties. “I don't want to screw you with all your clothes on. Let's at least make something enjoyable of this,” she said, grinning impishly at the werewolf. Truthfully, she wanted to see what his body looked like under the robes. She wanted to feel it brush against hers above her. Already, her mind projected the images, the sounds and sighs, and she shivered.
Kain gasped quietly, before ripping at his clothes, tearing them off as Alyssa pattered to the bedroom. Her rational, logical mind slowly became consumed by thoughts of lust and passion. Hard to stay focused when the body of the werewolf revealed itself before her – a perfect chunk of muscle, soft chest hair and noticeable abs. Arousal stormed into her brain, invading her body.
She wanted that werewolf, and wanted him now. His erection twitched into being, hard and long and huge, and she examined it in fascination. Wetness pooled between her thighs.
When he joined her on the bed, his lips finding his, the lust took a dizzying spin into confusion. She liked the kiss. She reached for his lips, craving the contact, the intimacy. Her hands ran over his naked body, fingers curling into his fur, traveling his flexing muscles.
He groaned as his erection buried into her core, eliciting a groan from her throat, and her toes to curl. The smitten werewolf thrust into her wetness, and he groaned at the feel. She moaned, amazed at his powerful thrusts, the thickness of him inside her, and how it filled up everything.
She clutched at him and clawed at his back as she felt the beginnings of her orgasm grow, before sighing release as the climax rippled inside. He came shortly afterwards, and they lay side by side in the afterglow, staring at each other with wonder.
Alyssa certainly wouldn't mind some more of that. Tentatively, she caressed his face, wanting to memorize the werewolf's features, his sounds, his sharp man stink and his rough but smooth skin. Satisfaction throbbed.
“So. How do I test for magic?”
Kain smiled. “You don't have the gift. If you did, then some sort of magical glowy thing would have happened during the sex. It didn't. So you're a normal human female.”
“Oh.” Alyssa felt slightly disappointed. “Shame.”
“I suppose so,” Kain said, wary. His hand ventured over to her face, and started stroking it too. “Big shame.”
“Isn't it?” Alyssa replied, before rolling into him and capturing his lips with hers again.