76

76

Maverick's POV

The clouds opened up with a light downpour. I looked up at them for a moment and closed my eyes when one drop nearly got into my eyes.

The guards had surrounded the rogue assassin, but he still seemed to have some fight left in him. I had decided I wanted him to talk to me about what Ryder could be planning against us.

If I wanted to do that, I needed to drain him of all his fighting spirit and get the information that I wanted out of him.

He had a gun in one hand and a hooked blade in the other. I wondered why he hadn't yet decided to shoot at the guards and attempt to escape, but I couldn't find a logical reason.

“Who is this person anyway?” I wondered.

“That, my lord, is Mason, one of the most feared boogeymen among the werewolves,” Master Frederick explained. There seemed to be a level of reverence in his voice for the man in that circle.

“He has to be one of the fastest and strongest assassins that the werewolves have ever created,” he finished explaining, and I stared at Mason keenly. There was something about him that I had yet to fully understand.

His snow-white hair dropped onto the dark skin of his face, partially covering his eyes, but he just stood still, looking at the guards with wary eyes.

I wanted to get in there and beat the needed information out of him, but the beast inside me hesitated; I knew what this meant…

My inner Lycan took this man as a threat.

I looked over to the arch that acted as the gateway to the castle and the courtyard, and there I saw a cluster of handmaids.

I stepped in closer to understand what was happening there, though still keeping watchful eyes on the ambush situation.

“Get me some water now,” I heard from amidst them. I finally got there to see Celine.

She was lying on the ground with her head against the lap of one of the maids, her eyes partly closed.

She seemed to have lost consciousness.

“Is she alright?” I asked them as I knelt beside her and felt her face.

“She is fine, my lord. She has just been under some stress, and she has gotten tired as a result, but other than that, she seems to be fine, Your Highness.” I looked at her and felt her skin for a while.

“Your Highness, I think we should come up with a solution to this problem,” Master Blake redirected my attention to the snow-white assassin.

I stood up from her side, looking into the eyes of the handmaids with an untold instruction in my eyes. One seemed to get the message, nodding in response.

We stepped closer to the circle and stood there, watching him keenly.

“We need to catch him and bring him in for questioning…” I had my hands crossed against my chest as I contemplated my options.

I stepped forward to enter the circle.

“Hold on, my lord…” Frederick's voice stopped me in my tracks. I looked over my shoulder to see him and hear what he had to say.

“I would prefer that you allow me to fight this rogue and detain him for you,” he suggested.

“Don't worry, Master Frederick. I think I have this under control.”

“I do not doubt you, my lord, but you have just finished a draining battle with Master Henry, and that would have depleted your stamina and strength to a good level. That man that you have in that circle is no ordinary man or werewolf.”

“I agree with Frederick, my lord,” Master Blake chipped in. “It would be too risky to have you fight a relentless assassin right now, most especially one who has not even had to break a sweat yet. You could suffer great damage… or worse at this point if you take that route.”

I looked over to the man in the circle. We locked eyes, but he didn't flinch or look away for an instant. He most definitely wanted me to fight him, and I felt if I did, I would most definitely be playing into a trap.

But there was that feeling from earlier again. My hands clenched into fists and my teeth pressed into each other in a tight grit. I saw what seemed like a faint grin on his face.

“I appreciate your concerns, and I am glad that I have men like you with me, but I am afraid I will have to deal with this on my own… he will pay for putting her in that state… and I will see to it.”

I walked off, closer to the circle, finally reaching it and taking one of the spears from the hands of the soldiers before entering it.

I stood a good distance away from him, just staring at him in silence, a silence only broken by the sound of the gentle pitter-pat of the rain and the thunder.

“You have invaded my kingdom, you have invaded my castle, and you have sought to take my Luna away from me, snow-white assassin.” He stared at me in silence, a look of indignation etched onto his face.

“But at the same time, I wish to extend a hand of kindness towards you and show you mercy if you would willingly surrender yourself for questioning. I swear on my honor as the Lycan king that I would not allow any harm to come to you if you do so…”

“And what if I don't want to surrender?” he shot back. I looked at him and saw a look of resolution in his eyes.

He didn't plan to be caught, but most especially, he didn't plan to surrender or be taken captive by any means.

“Then I would have to take you in, BY ALL MEANS NECESSARY.” I swung the spear in my hand and squared out into a battle stance.

He smiled and looked up to the sky with his eyes slightly closed.

“I just want to know what Ryder is planning, snow-white.”

“It's Mason… my name is Mason, and who said I'm working for Ryder?” His question caught me a bit off guard for a split second as I contemplated the possibility.

Within that split second, I picked up the sounds of his dash towards me and was able to block his attack just in time. He swung his blade towards me ferociously, putting me on the major defense.

This man was no joke. He had agility and speed, but most importantly, he had technique; he would strike out and parry whenever the first hit was blocked.

I managed to block all his attacks despite the barrage and made it out with only a scratch to my right arm.

I smiled at him as I caught my breath. He seemed to still be fully in control; he wasn't even panting despite having to use twice the amount of movement that I had to use.

“You're Mason; I'll give you that…” I commented as I finally stood straight. I cracked my neck and flexed my shoulders to ease the built-up tension, letting off steam as my body healed up from the strain and the cut to my hand.

“But you're just not there yet…” I closed my eyes, opening them to reveal my fiery red eyes, and released a strong aura that displaced the surrounding air.

“Hope you are ready for me… MASON.” His countenance changed, even if only slightly, and he squared out to a proper fight pose this time. He could sense my killer intent from where he stood, and that alone gave me joy.

I ordered everyone to take a step back, and they got the message and cleared the area as quickly as they could. No one wanted to be caught in the crossfire of my rage… not even me.

I lunged forward at him at a speed that couldn't easily be clocked, striking out at him with a heavy blow from the right. He blocked, but the strike still sent him flying across the courtyard regardless.

He spun from his tumble and managed to land on his feet, but I wouldn't possibly give him the chance to get his balance. I still remembered that he had a gun on him.

I continued with my barrage of attacks, forcing him to lean heavily on his defenses and reflexes. His eyes seemed much wider than they were when the battle started, and I could smell the fear on him.

I struck at him with both the spear in my hand and my bare fist until I had knocked his gun and his blade from his hand before hurling the spear at him and pinning his body against the wall.

Before he could get himself off the spear, I flew in with a punch and crashed into him with it, causing dust to rise.

As the dust settled, the guards and the masters came in closer with caution in their steps, seeking to know what had become of the fight.

“Can someone take this man and lock him up for me?” I commanded, standing over his unconscious body.