Chapter 186 Becoming her true self 1

Chapter 186 Fist of their kind 2

Ira's POV

And then the werewolf smiles gently.

“You bear the mark of one of my pups, Valira,” he says, like we are discussing something as simple as weather. “So I suppose I can say I am your Elder kin.”

My breath catches and I take a better look at him.

“What a shame.” The first male voice says with disapointment. And my eyes widen in interest as that sound metamorphoses into the shape of a man.

His pale skin almost blends into the long white hair that's flowing around him like it is alive. Like it is breathing with him.

Beside him, the owner of the female voice solidifies too.

“A shame indeed,” she agrees with a look of equal disappointment.

Her dark skin contrasts violently against her long white hair, which conveniently drags across the ground and moves as though it has a mind of its own, sweeping and curling without wind.

I close my lips when I realize my mouth is slightly open.

They are… beautiful.

“We know,” the woman says immediately, her eyes cutting straight to me as if she read the thought off my face.

My throat tightens.

“You really don’t know what you’ve done, do you?” the pale man asks.

“You’ve done nothing wrong.” The werewolf says with a comforting tone but it only makes me feel I've actually done something wrong.

“Because you have.” The woman scoffs, responding to my thoughts.

“That mark on your neck gives animals like this,” she says, pointing at the wolf with clear disgust, “the right to our abode.”

The pale sempyr exhales sharply, like the idea itself offends him.

I carefully take a step back. “Where the hell am I… and who exactly are you?”

Silence falls for a beat.

Then the wolf answers first.

“We are your kin,” he says again. “The first generation of what you are.”

The pale man tilts his head slightly. “You could have lived a clean, unstained life,” he adds, “if you had never awakened that beastly part of yourself.”

My chest tightens at the words.

“Are you referring to my wolf?” I echo, confused. “I’ve never even felt it.”

The woman’s gaze sharpens. “That’s because you were unmarked. You were uncorrupted, unbound, unburdened by what you are now.”

The wolf snorts softly, shaking his head.

“They’re just jealous,” he says, almost casually. “Because now you’ll be stronger than a mere Sempyr.”

The pale man’s expression darkens instantly.

“Stronger?” he repeats coldly. “You call it strength to go through bodily agony just to imitate an animal?”

The woman steps forward, her voice slicing through the space. “There is nothing superior about that transformation. It is mere degradation.”

I try to follow everything being said, but the words overlap in my mind.

The sempyrs believe I've made the wrong decision getting marked by my mate because it'll awaken my wolf?

“A beast.” The woman spits. “That's exactly what you're about to become. We've seen quite a number of our seedlings give up their powers to mate with these animals and now you…. But we can't allow that. You are the last of our kind in this part of the world.”

“I didn't give up any part of me. I only sealed my bond with Ruel.” I explain.

The werewolf looks at me with pity.

“You didn't know,” he mutters sadly.

I look back at the sempyrs.

“Of course she didn't know. If she did she never would have accepted the demeaning mark.” The male sempyr hisses.

“What exactly is going on?” I ask, now worried.

“It's nearly impossible for one vessel to house the power of a werewolf and a sempyr. So hybrid children are usually born with one side of their abilities locked. This is done to keep the child sane.” the woman says.

“So my werewolf abilities are locked?” I mutter.

“Were locked. That disgusting mark you carry has unlocked it.” She spits out.

“And because that's the case, your sempyr powers have been suppressed.” the werewolf smiles like it's an achievement.

My head feels like it is trying to split itself apart just to keep up.

The wolf rolls his shoulders slightly, unfazed. “It’s not as bad as these idiots make it sound,” he says.

The pale man lets out a dry laugh. “Not as bad?” he repeats. “How generous.”

I lift my hands slightly, interrupting.

“Wait,” I say quickly. “Please… just stop. Why exactly am I here?”

All of them look at me at once.

“Look, the presence of that wolf in her has made her dumb.” the woman shakes her head while the werewolf glares at her.

The woman’s gaze shifts to me. “Listen, everything you think you are,” she says, “is only half of what you were meant to be.”

“And that is why you would have been spared all of this… if you had never woken the beast in you.” The pale man’s voice turns colder.

The wolf’s eyes narrow slightly. “You would have been weaker, and without your mate's mark, you would never have been able to carry his pup.” he says bluntly.

The woman snaps back immediately. “But she would have been spared the agony of being a beast with beastly desires.”

The wolf looks at me again. “We have been waiting for you,” he says, his expression shifting slightly. “And finally,” he adds, “Cristal gets to speak to you.”

Cristal.

“From this day forward,” the woman harshly cuts in, “whether you can handle it or not, you will be given your full strength.”

The pale man’s voice quickly adds, “And we will not allow that wolf influence to dominate what is ours.”

The werewolf’s head snaps toward them. “You could kill her if you do that,” he says sharply.

The woman doesn’t even blink, looking like she can't be bothered.

“Then that would be better than watching our seed bond more with a foolish wolf than with her own aura,” she replies. “Blood comes before everything. Even your pathetic mate bond.”

The pale man nods once. “Exactly.”

The wolf’s eyes turn fierce. “This is why we never get along,” he bites out. “You are shameless. Completely heartless.”

The woman’s eyes flash. “And you are no better,” she fires back. “Your kind has done more harm than ours ever has. Do not stand there pretending to care.”

The wolf steps forward slightly. “But she is fragile,” he insists.

The woman’s response is immediate. “Even more reason she must be hardened.”

The female Sempyr lifts her hand and everything else happens so fast I barely grasp it.

A large ball of fire strikes through the air, hitting my chest.

My body folds as the force throws me backward, a brutal pain sinking into my chest and cruelly spreading through my veins, my bones, my flesh.

A blood curling scream tears from my throat as the pain threatens to take my life.

My hands fly to my chest instinctively, scratching, clawing, trying to tear the fire out of my own skin as I keep falling into what feels like an endless pit.

My ears pick up a faint sound.

“Ira! Ira, breathe… fuck!”

“Help! Someone help!”

It takes me a second to recognize it underneath my own screaming.

Ruel?

I claw at my throat when breathing gets insanely hard.

“Ira… Ira… Valira.”

My head jerks slightly at the name. Something in me reacts to it. Like a thread pulling tight inside my chest.

“Follow my voice, Valira,” someone says urgently. “You need to wake up.”

I struggle harder when I feel cold hands press against my face.

They are icy. Almost unbearable against the fire burning inside me.

But I cannot pull away. The burning deepens and I gasp, trying to escape it, still the hands stay steady, holding me in place.

Another pair of hands grabs mine, firmly stopping me from scratching my own skin raw.

My brain registers the difference in this touch. The warmth.

It feels comforting in a way that cuts through the chaos even as my body trembles.

I reach for it blindly, partly aware that I am no longer falling, desperate for more of that feeling, believing it is the only thing keeping me from breaking apart completely.

“I’m here, baby.” Ruel murmurs from a distance. “Please wake up.”

My eyes snap open.

Burning blue eyes stare into mine. There's no iris. Everything is simply blue, yet a fiery kind of blue.

“Breathe, Valira,” Bukasvad says softly, his gaze holding my soul.

I obey without thinking.

The hands holding my hands squeeze as tears spill down my face.

I feel a faint tremor in Ruel’s touch, like he is trying not to break. I can't take my eyes off Bukasvad but I reach for more of Ruel with my hands and he squeezes harder as if telling me he's here.

“Can you hear me?” Bukasvad asks carefully.

I nod weakly.

Only then does Bukasvad blink.

“Ruel,” I choke out, suddenly finding my voice.

Ruel comes into view immediately.

His face is pale, his eyes filled with fear.

Bukasvad shifts back slightly as Ruel pulls me into a hug.

For a moment, his touch comforts me but then the pain returns.

My chest flares again, worse than before.

“Ruel…” I choke out, more tears running down my face.

“Ira, what happened?” Bukasvad asks quickly. “What did you see?”

I swallow through the pain.

“I… I… they did something to me,” I whisper. “My chest hurts badly.” I gasp.

Bukasvad steps closer again. “What did they do?”

I look down at my chest, but there is nothing there. Not even a mark. But the pain is real.

My body trembles.

“Maybe we should have the doctor look at her,” Alpha Davan's voice startles me.

I hadn’t noticed them there.

Granny Bel is beside him, Arabella and her mate too. Some maids and guards are also hanging around, all looking worried.

Bukasvad's voice cuts in before anyone answers.

“If this was done by the Primordial Sempyrs, then there's nothing anyone can do to help her.”

I follow his gaze to the mark only now actively forming on my chest, up to my neck, like thorns intertwining.