Chapter 3 THREE

Stepping outside, I ran down the now barely lit hallway and the stairs towards the main hall of the house. I was surprised to see that there were no guards in sight as I crossed the hall and went down the hallway leading to the basement tunnels.

Jasper must have taken care of them.

Yeah.

I ran down the hallway and following Leo's directions, I headed right into the tunnel where Jasper cleared out for me. Thanks to my improved sight, I could make out the small hallway going outside the castle.

The tunnel, according to Leo, was meant to take me straight out of the house and into the trees behind it. I only needed to continue going north from there to avoid getting into other packs' area. The only pack whose area I ran the chance of breaking was the SilverMoon Pack. The best and largest individual pack in the Eastern Empire.

The pack was placed right in the heart of the kingdom along the Middle East. But I don't have to worry because my sense of direction was kick ass.

When I caught the smell of trees, I slowed down into a jog and quickly removed my clothes and stuffed them into the bag to avoid breaking it when I shifted into my wolf. The darkness meant that I didn't have to worry about being seen, and the chance of a guard at the tunnel's end was low.

I was shocked when I saw light at the end of the tunnel. I grew wary but relaxed when I caught a familiar smell.

The moment I was out of the tunnels, I shifted into Willow and was about to sprint north when Jasper came out from behind one of the trees.

I stopped as he walked towards me. When he was standing in front of me, he ran his hands through my white hair before kissing the middle of my head.

Cass, and Willow, take care of each other and good luck. He said through the mind link.

We will. You take care too. And look after them for me. I answered. Although I could feel them through the 3St, I would still be more at ease knowing that there was another person who was physically watching them. They're in safe hands. He said before stepping back, Good luck.

And then I was flying through the night, mentally preparing myself for this unknown trip I was going on.

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I was so tired. I have been running for three days now. Or at least I think it has been three days. It was hard to tell when all I saw were trees and rocks and more trees.

It's been two and a half days. It is currently two o'clock or a half.

Wow Willow, how can you tell? Is it your intuition?

Of course, it is! What else can it be?

Really?

Yes! That, and you don't know the meaning of sarcasm.

Hum?

The sun has set twice since we left the house. And it's currently a little further away from the middle of the sky signaling that it is past noon already. Willow said in a flat tone, It's just my observation. How come you haven't noticed it at all??

Oh please, I was too busy keeping my senses out for rogues.

Uhuh, sure you were. She snorted, I wonder how many rogues there could be in a forest behind the eastern empire which runs into deserted and barren lands. She added jokingly.

You know, I'll give that a comment but I'm too busy watching out for rogues. I said haughtily. I could feel her eye-rolling in my mind.

Sure, make up pathetic excuses to cover up your crappy observation skills. She smirked.

I refuse to reply to that. I simply said.

I kept running through the never-ending trees in my wolf form. As a wolf, I was born with a natural love for the color green. But I swear I was gonna lose my mind if I didn't stop seeing green!

I was only happy that I was out of the Eastern Empire land. I could tell because the mind-link relationship I had with my pack, The Royal Pack, got fainter until it felt like it was no longer there.

I knew the link was there, I was just too far away to feel it but it was still unsettling. I was so used to feeling the presence of hundreds of thousands of my pack members that I felt a little empty without the normal looming presence in my thoughts.

The only thing comforting me was the little weight I felt at the back of my mind thanks to the 3St. I could feel my brothers' presence. It was faint, but it was there nonetheless.

As I ran ahead, I saw a dim opening, and before it was an endless stretch of clear field. Or at least it looked so from where I was running. I felt so glad that I would be out of the forest soon. I loved green, but two days of seeing nothing but trees... will surely drive anyone nuts.

You know, a sane person will hate seeing trees, not the color green.

You know I could never hate trees. I love the green and smell of it. And the smell of the forest floor after it rains. That is my favorite smell in the whole wide world. I sighed in pleasure just picturing the smell.

I thought you'd 'lose your mind' if you saw the color green again. She rolled her eyes. And how would you know how wide the world is? I told you the name of the smell is Petrichor.

And you said us people and eye-rolling. You do it most of the time too! Plus I just meant that I'll basically lose my mind. I said The last part was also symbolic. And Petrichor. or whatever is such a lot.

Probably picked it up from watching you lot. She said, eye rolling again. Sure you did. And aren't you worried you'll cross into BlueMoon territory?

Pushh, please! I have a kick-ass sense of direction.

Really? When you lack a sense of observation? She deadpanned.

I told you, I was keeping an eye out for rogues. And one can't have it all. I said, rolling my eyes at her just as I stepped into the opening. Rows of open fields met my eyes. The place was clear with no trees in sight and stretched far and wide.

Using my improved sight, I saw a cover of trees. From what I could tell, it seemed to be about three miles ahead. Roughly.

See Willow, it is a no man's land. There are more trees just three miles away. I grinned, Trust my sense of direction would ya?

You are awesome at a great number of things but direction isn't one of them. Need I tell you of the numerous times you got lost in the mall?

Well, how was I supposed to know that the sign meant to go my right?

Because there were so many rights to choose from huh? Willow snorted but before I could answer, I caught a whiff of something nasty.

Rogue! We both growled and just then, I saw something flash from my peripheral vision. Turning towards that direction, I saw three dogs approaching me.

Two of them were in wolf form while the other was in his human form. One was a dark wolf and the other a red wolf.

"My my, what's a beautiful thing like you doing here all alone?" The person asked. He stood at about 5ft8 with greying hair, a crooked nose, and dark eyes.

I growled in answer before taking my stance. The guy only chuckled in amusement before taking a step towards me making me snarl louder. "You don't smell like a rogue." He said, "Wanna have some fun? I'd like to add you to my collection." He smiled evilly making a shiver of disgust run down my spine.

There were about ten feet between myself and the wolf. In the blink of an eye, I closed the distance and lunged straight for his throat and without thinking twice, tore through it.

My wolf has always been a bit different from regular female wolves. Although female wolves weren't as strong and huge as the males, they were still big nonetheless.

Willow was a lot more slim and lithe than any other female wolf. Her body was light and joined with its slenderness, it made her more quick, fast, and lithesome. Her snow-white hair was thicker around the neck and tail while the one around her back and stomach was smooth. Her nose was narrow and a bit raised with a black head. Her ears were long, ending with peaks, and her head lean and firm.

But my favorite feature of hers was her eyes. The sclera which was typically white was pitch black. The eye color on the other hand was much like mine. A deep cerulean blue. I always turned heads when I walked into a room both because I was a princess and because of my looks.

But Willow was on a whole other level. She would probably stop a magical fight by just standing in the middle of it all.

Will you stop boasting and concentrate?! Willow snapped as she sprang back from the rogue after his body stopped moving.

My bad. I said sheepishly, But I was praising you. You get more guys than I do. I added.

Yeah, cause I can easily walk into a restaurant in wolf form with my wolf partner for a date! She snapped, You better get your head back in the game!

Sheesh, no need to get snappy about it. I mumbled but she just ignored me. I watched as the two wolves became confused for a few seconds before their confusion turned into shock as they took in the dead body of their friend.

Snapping out of whatever daze they seemed to be in, they snarled at me with a threatening look in their eyes. I sneered back at them as I crouched lower. The red wolf charged at me, lunging low at the last second before sinking his teeth into my foreleg.

Pushing him off, I quickly sank my teeth into his throat before slicing at his stomach. He immediately whimpered as he fell to the ground.

Just then, I felt the other wolf about to land on me but thanks to the fact that I hadn't had anything to eat except for an energy pill, I had been running for two days straight without rest and the silver in my blood, my reactions were slow and I couldn't move away in time.

The brown wolf landed on me making us hit the floor with a loud bang before pinning me down. Thanks to my lithe body size and weakened state, I couldn't push him off. Usually, I used my thin body to my advantage but now it felt too small for that.

He sank his teeth into my already damaged leg while still holding me down. I tried to push or even wiggle away from him but to no avail. He only sank his teeth in harder making me wince.

No good. We're sleep-deprived and have a system filled with silver not to mention that hip injury that's taking its lovely time to heal.

I know. Shift back. I'll have more of an edge in human form. I'll use the surprise of my sudden shift to do my signature move. I said as I winced from the sting coming from my leg.

What? No! That's crazy! You'll be exposed if that doesn't work. We have more of a chance to hold on this way.

Then I guess I just have to do it right. Holding on is only stalling the unavoidable. It's better to end him now.

But it doesn't seem like he's trying to kill you! Besides, your human body gets poisoned straight with silver. You'll be weak and won't be able to heal as fast when you shift back!

I know that! If he's not trying to kill us, then he's planning on taking us with him. You're most likely the only white wolf in the world Willow. We might have rolled around in the wet bush to hide our fur but for how long until it washes away? We can't risk our name. People will find it strange if a white cat is reported to have been seen.

Don't forget, that Princess Cassie is the only white wolf within the whole Eastern kingdom. There's sure to be a ruckus not to mention a straight hint to where Lunatic could find us. I said firmly, We can't risk it, Willow. So many things are on the line. I added softly.

But-

Trust me. I said firmly. I heard her sigh before letting me to shift back, taking the wolf above me by surprise. Just as I was about to shove a hand through his chest and grab his heart in my trademark 'one kill' move, we heard a thundering growl sounding from in front of us catching us both by surprise.

Looking towards the forest that was three miles away, a huge black wolf was running towards us at a frightening speed. Just when the wolf was almost fifteen feet away, I caught the most pleasant and toe-curling smell ever.

It smelled like my two favourite things in the whole world; the scent of the forest floor after it rains and vanilla. I couldn't help but take a deep breath. I could also feel Willow getting restless at the back of my mind.

When the wolf was less than seven feet away, he suddenly froze and sniffed the air before his eyes snapped to mine and I was met with the most fascinating pair of green eyes I had ever seen. They were the right mix of chocolate milk brown and a forest green. I could see golden specks moving in their area making them all the more enticing.

MATE!! Willow growled making my eyes widen in shock. I knew there might be a chance of me meeting my mate but I never expected it to be this soon.

My mate was a big black wolf with raw natural power rolling off of him. The power he exuded was so great it felt as mind blogging as Leo's. He most definitely was an Alpha.

Mate! It's really our mate! Look, his power is so amazing. I would surrender to his control and let him have his wicked way with me! Willow purred making me gasp in shock because one, she just purred and she never does that, and two, what she just said.

What?!? I almost shouted but she just hummed away in pleasure. She doesn't even know him yet and she was already like this?!?

My gasp must have snapped both of them back to their senses because, in the next second, the weight pinning me down was gone as my mate lunged towards him. Without missing a beat, he cut his throat open, killing him quickly.

Turning towards me, he looked at me with a jumble of feelings swirling in his eyes. The most obvious being fear and joy. I watched as he changed back to his form making my jaw drop a little.

He stood at about 6ft2 with black hair that curled around his neck and face and looked to be in waves on top of his head. His eyes were the same black as his hair. It was full and long, arched a little at the end. His eyes were the same beautiful shade of green as the wolf. His nose was long and straight with the tip raised a bit. His lips were a pale pink with the lower lip bigger than the upper. His jaw was sharp, strong, and carved.

His face was the right mix between beautiful and sexy. It was like the god of beauty, Apollo, himself had taken his sweet lovely time to carve out this perfect male model.

Oh, my goddess!! He's so beautiful. I want to mount him right now!

Willow! I gasped, we don't even know his name and you're thinking about that?! I screeched.

Mate now. Names later. She growled.

I couldn't help but sigh at her state. She just met him for goodness sake. I trailed my eyes down his strong and firm chest, down to his jaw-dropping mouth-watering tight eight pack, and down to the very noticeable V-line and... I quickly removed my look as my face turned red.

Hmm, yummy. Why did you stop? I wanted to see that thing be-

I put up the mental block without a second thought as my face burned redder. I could feel my mate's hot gaze on my body and I realized with a startle that I WAS NAKED!!

I almost screamed out loud as my hands instantly covered my lady bits. I heard my mate growl making my head snap toward him only to see dissatisfaction in his gaze. Just as he started towards me, we heard a shout and turned towards the direction of the trees ahead.

"Alpha...! What...happened? You... suddenly...shifted...and ran off." A guy with baby blue eyes and brown hair said as he panted with his hands on his knees.

So he is an Alpha...

"Rogues." My mate replied in a deep and slightly husky voice making me shiver automatically, "Why the hell are you panting like that?"

"I...ran...after you."

"And that's why you're panting like you ran here from Sweden?" My mate asked bluntly making my lips twitch.

"Some of us normal wolves don't have monster-level stamina." The guy answered, having caught his breath.

"Some of us normal wolves wait thirty minutes after eating three whole chickens." My mate said making my eyes widen in shock.

Thr...three chickens??

The guy only grinned before his eyes snapped to my surprised ones making his widen.

"Wa...wa...what??!" He stammered in shock. I didn't blame him. I would respond the same if I saw a totally naked girl lying on the floor amongst three dead bodies.

I instantly pushed further into the ground wanting the earth to swallow me whole and save me from this mortifying situation. My mate growled at the guy making his open mouth snap shut and my eyes moved from mine to his.

I saw their eyes glaze over and I knew they were mindlinking each other. Whatever was said shocked the guy because his eyes snapped towards me with disbelief written all over his face.

I let out a whimper of discomfort due to his relentless gaze as I tried to move from his sight only to wince in pain from my two wounds.

Instantly, my mate's gaze snapped towards mine before his eyes scanned all over my body, darkening when they caught sight of my source of pain. The wound just above my ankle on my left leg was bleeding heavily from the two big holes thanks of the rogues' canine.

My thigh wound on the other hand looked purple and the skin around it was sickeningly pale compared to my white skin tone.

"Shorts." My mate said and quickly, the guy threw him a piece of material. He quickly slipped it on before walking towards me.

Bending down beside me, he looked at me quietly for a second or two before saying, "Shirt."

I was confused for a second before I saw him reach behind to grab what I thought was the shirt.

"Can you sit?" He asked. His voice came out controlled and measured as he looked at me with the same calm look in his eyes.

It was a huge difference to the feelings he showed a few minutes ago.

I nodded before pushing myself up and turning so that my back was facing him. I saw his hand stretch towards me, giving me the shirt which I collected.

After putting the shirt on, I turned back towards him only to meet the same calm look which made me frown.

"Who are you? You don't smell like a rogue." His rich voice said making me shiver.

His question threw me off. I didn't think about the story I was going to tell the people I met until I finally trusted them enough to tell them my truth.

He's our mate. Just tell him the truth.

I don't know Willow. He isn't responding like a mate should.

Meaning?

Look at his controlled look. There is nothing there. Only a strange peace. It's like he's talking to a human stranger and not his mate. Isn't he supposed to not be able to stop touching me?

Maybe he's not a loving person in public...

The calm and controlled gaze?

Maybe he's nervous.

I just sighed and looked into his eyes only to see that he was waiting for me to answer.

Just then, I felt a little lightheaded when suddenly, a sharp pain sliced through my head making me scream a little.

My heart started beating fast and my breath shortened. I saw the worried look in my mate's eyes making me glad to see something other than that calm gaze on his stunning face.

Another wave of pain tore through my head making me shout out loud again. Thanks to me being a white wolf and our strong bond, it seemed I not only noticed my family's pain but I was also able to feel it.

What is happening to them?! Willow cried out.

I don't know!! I said hoarsely. The pain was so intense. Add that to my already hungry, sleep-deprived, and silver-induced body and you have the right recipe for system overload.

"Alpha! What's wrong with Luna?!" The guy asked in a worried tone. I didn't hear my mate's answer because I was stuck on something the guy had said.

Luna.

That was right. My mate was an Alpha so that meant I was a Luna. What do you know, I ended up in a similar situation to that of a queen.

Leo would grin when he found out...

I felt my head grow heavier and my awareness started to fade away as the pain and tiredness overwhelmed my senses.

"Little mate..." I think I heard vaguely but I was too confused to figure out the rest.

"Hold on..." I heard a familiar voice say before I slipped into the dark embrace of my unaware mind.