Separate Ways!!

**Nora's POV**

"Ornith", I whispered, facing the man in skin and flesh who dominated my dreams through years. My mind was cloudy and foggy, unable to differentiate between dreams, visions and reality. One logical side of me was scared of Ornith, coaxing me to run away and hide somewhere, but the other side of me wanted to touch him, to feel him making sure if he was real.

His eyes locked on me, turning into midnight dark orbs as if his serpent was struggling to creep out of his body. His muscles were rippling, straining and jerking, his veins bulged through the ridges, and his jaws twitched to the point of protruding out from his skin. His serpent form was desperately fighting with him to surface out of his body, but the magical powers of this place were not allowing him to transform into his three-head serpent form.

"Ornith", I screamed his name as my peripheral vision caught a glint of something cutting swiftly through the air. He snapped his arm to the side before I could even blink. Gasping, I find Ornith holding the tip of the sword inches from his face, blood leaking his arms as the sharp edge of a sword cut through his skin.

The attacker struggled to push the sword further but was failing miserably. My mouth opens with shock, slow to process what the hell just happened. Ornith's sharp instincts already saw it coming, despite that his gaze never left mine. He resembled a dark God that embodies death and destruction. Ornith plunged his knife directly through the side of the attacker's face. In through one cheek and out of other, the blade caught between his teeth. The man screams, blood pouring from his mouth, gagging. I was on the verge of passing out.

Ornith closed on the distance between us, taking a step behind me wrapping his arms around my waist. His touch was pure fire, burning through my skin and engulfing my core into heated flames. He leaned on me, his warm breath fanning my ears, "I'm going to fuck the shit out of you!". His words echoed through my body like a haunting chill. My heart flew into my throat, beats escalating to the point of ripping it out of my body.

Before I got any chance to act and compose myself, he gripped my arms and dragged me forward, whistling to his flying bird, "Hawke". The enormous creature flew towards us; Ornith climbed on it, forcing me to do the same.

"What…What are you doing?" I stammered under his grasp.

"Ssh…you can't escape me this time, my kitten," He snarled, leaning into me, holding the column of my neck. His hot breath ignited a spark of tingling sensation through my flesh, with my body juices dripping through in between my thighs. I was shocked by the way my body was betraying me.

"No…No…No…Ronin!" I screamed, looking around desperately. Ronin was still fighting some attackers. The moment he heard my scream, he rushed towards me. Ornith whistled in the air as if giving signals to the other Viridian Clawz. Soon, the group flew over from the sky, pouncing on all the attackers one by one. Their body fell on the ground with life-less eyes facing the sky. The carnivore birds went ahead, tearing through their flesh and plucking out their eyeballs. The floor looked like the site of a bloody massacre once the predatory birds finished off all of the attackers. They caught up Meghan, Liam, Sypha, Zach and Rorik in their sharp talons, flying low to the ground, awaiting further order from Ornith. Ronin was still running to me, but soon the space behind him was dominated by a huge Viridian Clawz. Ronin dodged its claws by slumping low on the ground. My eyes caught Ornith inserting an arrow into a mechanical gun, aiming it straight for Ronin.

"NO!" I screamed, pushing his hand away in a violent snap. He lost his balance, and the loaded gun fell to the ground.

"Fuck! Stop messing around!" He hissed, gritting his teeth. Ronin ran at us and jumped, drawing out his sword. Ornith was quick to remove his sword to aim for Ronin. Their swords collided. I couldn't help the little shrieks that came from me as I watched on in horror. They both were indulged in sword fighting, successfully dodging each other's attack.

"Oze!" Ornith shouted at the Viridian Clawz, which was trying to grip Ronin. It whipped its head in our direction and then came gliding near us, making horrible snapping noises as its monstrous teeth gritted.

"Ronin!" I screamed, but it was too late as the predatory bird moved at an incredible speed and swooped down to pick up Ronin in its claws, suspending him mid-air. Ornith's bird Hawke took the lead, and soon the others followed behind it.

A sudden chilling scream echoed through the air. My breath hitched in my throat.

"Hawke! Stop and turn around!" Ornith commanded his pet bird. It was the scream of the bird, 'Oze', which has caught Ronin by its claws. It let out a warning cry to Ornith.

"Fuck!" Ornith muttered. I saw blood oozing out from the neck of Oze as it went down along with Ronin. My eyes landed on the dark figure which had attacked Oze. It was Vena holding the gun which had fallen off from Ornith. She was aiming directly at Oze. She took a second shot at Oze's tailbone, causing it to twist its body violently, jerking off Ronin and flinging him towards the ground. Oze smashed into the side of the tree. The wood splintered as if a bulldozer had just taken it down.

Vena plucked out an arrow from the dead body of an attacker and tried to take the third aim on Ornith with a smirk on her vile face, but Ornith was quick enough to fly out of its path missing it by mere inches. The smirk on Vena's face made me believe that she missed the hit deliberately.

"Shit! Shit!" Ornith snarled, taking a double look towards Oze's lifeless body. He whistled to the remaining birds, who were getting restless and awaiting Ornith's order. They turned around and flew in the opposite direction, and the realization hit me like an arrow piercing straight through my heart.

They were leaving Ronin behind!!

"No! Ronin!" I screamed, twisting and squirming in Ornith's hold. I walloped him on his face with the edge of my elbow and bit him on his hand, drawing out blood in between my lips. He was caught off-guard for a few seconds, and luckily, Hawke was just a few feet above the ground, so I took a chance and jumped off.

"Wait!" Ornith screamed behind me. I rushed towards Ronin but didn't make it too far before Ornith caught me back around the waist, pulling me back and stopping me from getting to Ronin.

"No! Let me go!" I screamed, but the hands gripped me tighter until my ribs hurt, "She will kill you! Damn it!" He shouted at me.

"Please save Ronin! Don't abandon him!" My screams turned into pleading sobs. "Please! Please! I will do as you say. Take whatever you want but save him, I beg you!" I sobbed. His angry face softened a bit, overflowing with indecipherable emotions. I don't give a fuck what was he thinking. I want him to save Ronin. He grabbed my chin, forcing me to look into his dark Orynx eyes.

"Listen to me and listen good. Ronin is a lost cause. Vena owns him now so that no one can save him from her, and you don't even want to think what he will be going through when Dark Prince lays his hands on him." Ornith spoke.

"What will he do to Ronin?" I asked with a trembling tone.

"Just pray that Ronin dies soon and if not, then he will be the-" He trailed off, trying to read my emotions.

"He will be what-?" I asked with my patience, snapping, tears overflowing through my eyes and panic unfurling in the pit of my stomach. I didn't even realize that I was clawing at his arms. He holds a breath before replying, "*He will be the new Dark Prince*." I squeeze my eyes shut. "NO!" I scream through a ravaged throat. Tears sprang to my eyes as I gripped his arms, "We still have time; we can save him!" I was choking with dread.

"We can do nothing. It's perilous to go near Vena. She is not what you think of her. *Forget Ronin; you will never see him again*." He replied and grabbed me roughly by the top of my arm, and yanked me closer to him.

"Hawke", He called his pet bird. It swooped near us. Ornith forced me on it. It took us away high into the sky along with other birds, and soon we were crossing through a liquid glass-like barrier. It looked like a portal to another realm.

I tried to turn my face around to take a last look at Ronin. Ornith loosened the grip on my face allowing me. Ronin was on his knees with Vena pointing her weapon on his temple, whereas my pet, Crizal, was lynching on the face of dead Oze.

"*I promise you; I will come for you. I will do all in my power to break this barrier, and nothing in this world would be able to stop me*." I screamed at Ronin before the barrier shut down on me, separating us into two different worlds.

I lost my consciousness and drifted to the vision of my past when I met Ornith for the first time as Rebekah.