Chapter 142 The throne of bone
Chapter 142 The throne of bone
Ophelia's POV.
“I want the queen's blood.” The Dread Wolf's words echoed inside my head.
It wanted my blood…
I looked at Kai, who looked just as confused as I was.
“Why hers?” Eve asked, lowering her hand.
The Dread Wolf didn't respond to her. It kept its glowing eyes fixed on me instead.
I swallowed hard, feeling my heart pound in my chest.
“You won't get even a drop of her blood.” Kai said to the creature, tightening his fingers around my arm to pull me closer to himself.
The creature tilted its head slightly, “Her blood is what I seek.”
“Allow me, Kai.” I quickly pulled my arm from his grasp.
“Ophelia…” Seraphina uttered my name with concern.
I sighed softly, pulling a small blade from Kai's belt to step forward. I scratched my palm with the blade slightly, wincing as drops of blood began to form.
“Here!”I slowly extended my bleeding hand to the Dread Wolf.
After staring at my bleeding hand, it finally moved, taking one step at a time before approaching me. And despite its terrifying size, I forced myself to remain still.
I felt a strange sensation when it licked my blood off my palm with its tongue.
“Ow!” I gasped and stumbled backward, Kai catching me before I could fall.
“Ophelia! Are you okay?” He asked.
“Mhm…” I hummed in response.
By now, the Dread Wolf had gone completely still, only its eyes glowing brighter. It growled deeply from its throat, a section of the ancient stone wall starting to move.
We all stared at the opening, which revealed a dark passage. The path was open, and just before we could move, the Dread Wolf spoke again, “Your mother stood there.”
My mother?
“Yes!” It responded to the voice in my head. “Your mother, Celeste. Morwen offered her a choice to serve, but she refused. So she was killed for it.” It added, my mother's face flashing through my mind.
The creature slowly lowered its head again, its nose twitching as it sniffed the air around me. I soon realized what it was doing, smelling me.
Its expression changed when it lifted its head, “The little one.” It said,
“Luna?” I froze
It might have detected traces of her scent on my clothing.
“The little one does not belong to your bloodline alone.” It stared at me in the eye.
“What does that even mean?” I gave it a puzzled look.
“Something older sleeps in her.” The creature moved closer to me, its words making my body become cold. “Be careful of what you choose to awaken.” It added with a serious warning.
Luna was only a baby. My baby.
So what could possibly be sleeping in her?
“Tell me what you mean!” I demanded.
But the Dread Wolf simply turned his back on me.
“The path is open. You may proceed.” It said.
“Wait!”
But it didn't stop. It disappeared, silence returning to the valley. Damien started walking toward the dark entrance, while we followed. As we ventured deeper into the ruins, I reached for Kai's hand to hold it tightly.
None of us spoke, till a harsh grinding noise broke the silence. I turned around, my eyes widening as I watched the entrance close.
“Kai…” I spoke his name in a whisper, fear tightening my chest.
He looked back too, seeing the stone entrance seal itself shut. As a final heavy sound echoed through the passage, we suddenly realized we were trapped.
“What do we do now?” Eve panicked.
“Kai?!!!” I uttered his name.
But he remained silent, staring into the darkness ahead of us. His wolf snarled inside of him, its sound carrying a clear warning that none of us could ignore.
There was definitely something waiting for us in the dark…
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Kai's POV.
“Kai?!!!”
I sensed fear in Ophelia's voice when she uttered my name. I turned toward her, but my wolf was already growling inside of me.
“Stay close to me.” I said to her, her fingers tightening around mine.
Damien moved ahead of us, carefully examining the dark passage. Seraphina stayed close to Ophelia, while Eve trailed behind us. She walked at a normal pace, simply taking her time to look around.
We found ancient symbols carved deep into the stone, covering both sides of the walls.
“Wait!” I slowed my steps.
And everyone stopped, their eyes fixed on me as I moved closer to one of the walls. The carvings were strange. There were wolves, humans, and creatures that looked like both.
“These are hybrids.” Seraphina said quietly.
“Why is it carved here?” I posed the question with a frown on my face.
Eve moved closer to study the symbols with a change of expression, “Because this is where it all started.”
“What do you mean?” I looked at her.
She pointed at another carving, which showed several hybrid wolves standing before what looked like an army. They weren't being worshipped or controlled, but chains were carved around their necks and weapons placed in their hands.
My jaw tightened as she traced another symbol with her fingers.
“These are weapons.” She said, her words making Ophelia leave my side to move closer to her.
“Weapons created by whom?” She asked.
Eve looked at her, “Morwen!” She said.
And there was a brief silence among us. I looked at the carvings again, realizing they weren't created to live among wolves as equals.
They were created to fight, obey, and kill.
We continued to go deeper into the temple. Whereas, I loosened my grip on my weapon.
“Do you feel that?” Seraphina asked.
I nodded.
Eve suddenly stopped walking, her eyes widening, “She's here.”
I turned toward her, “Who?”
“Morwen!” She swallowed.
As the air around us suddenly felt heavier, Ophelia moved closer to me. We walked forward until the narrow passage finally opened into a massive chamber.
We stopped at the entrance, my eyes slowly adjusting to the strange light filling the space.
Then I saw her, Morwen, seated at the center of a chamber made of bone and crystal.