Chapter 19 Ep19
Absolutely nothing
"Who the hell is there?"
"Funny you should mention hell," the deep voice said again, this time on my right side" Since your currently standing in its core"
13
"Holy Crapola" I cursed loudly "Could this day get any worse?"
"You shouldn't say that," the voice said in an amused tone "Usually when Mortals say that, their day either gets ten times worse or they die"
1
"Well, I already experienced one of those options already so..." I shrugged "I'll take my chances"
I watched in horror as a hand surrounded by black smoke reached for my face
Just a damn hand
"Eek" I slapped it as a reflex
1
Well, I tried to slap it away from me but the end results were more of me giving the hand a high five.
11
The voice chuckled
"You're a funny half-breed"
1
"Why don't you say that to my face" I snarled
He chuckled again and suddenly I was face to face with...
RHYS!?
22
I reared my head back in shock
"Rhys?"
He smirked at me
"Hades"
133
I gaped at him
He tapped my chin twice and his smirk grew the size of the Cheshire cat's
"Why do you look like my Mate?" I asked when the shock slightly wore off
"Do I?" he said, making his way to one of the dark thrones "I didn't notice"
"Liar" I snarled
He shrugged and sat down
"I merely chose a face you would be comfortable with," he said in a bored tone "I can pick another one if you'd like"
His features shifted into those of Taylor, Kaden, Sky, and then finally Ethan
8
I flinched
"Oops" he snickered, shifting back into Rhy's face "My bad"
21
I growled at him and he raised his hands up in defense
"Calm down koutávi," he said "It was just a joke"
10
"Jeez, I forgot that mortals were so sensitive" he muttered under his breath
6
"Why don't you use your own face and leave my friends out of this," I said ignoring his stupidity
"Trust me," He snorted "You don't want to see my real face"
2
"Why?" I said, "Is it because underneath that facade you're really ugly and have blue flames as hair?"
44
He scowled and then smirked, leaning back on his throne
"Nah, it's because I'm too sexy"
82
I gagged
6
He scowled again
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
"Why am I here?" I gestured around the room "I should be back home reuniting the wolves"
"I know," Hades said seriously, sitting up straighter "And I can't let you do that"
"What?"
"I can't let-"
I cut him off
"I know what you said" I growled "But I want to know is why you said it"
"It's simple," he said, looking at me like I was a moron "If your kind kills each other then that means I get to collect some supernatural souls, which by the way, are ten times more powerful than mortal souls. The more power I have, the faster I can visit the topside"
14
I narrowed my eyes at him
"You can't just let them kill each other," I said "Won't that interrupt the so-called balance of the world?"
1
He waved his hand
"Whatever happens up there luckily doesn't affect me down here" he smiled, showing teeth "So I don't give a damn if the world goes up in smoke"
2
"But don't you want to go topside?" I said with raised eyebrows "If the balance is off then you definitely will be affected up there"
1
He leaned forward and grinned at me
"I'm not going to the human topside" he smirked
"Where then-" I started but then stopped when I realized what he meant "Oh"
Olympus
39
"Yeah, Oh" He mimicked me
4
I narrowed my eyes at him
"I was lucky that I intercepted your soul returning to your body in time," he said nonchalantly "Or else I would have had to kill you for real in order to talk"
I growled
"Let me go save my people"
3
"No" he leaned back in his throne and gave me a mocking smile
"SELENE!" I yelled for the Goddess "SELENE!"
1
"What are you doing?" Hades chuckled "She can't hear you"
He snorted
"Besides, even if she could, it's not like she could do anything to help you"
"Why wouldn't she be able to help" I snapped "She got me into this mess so why couldn't she get me out of it?"
Hades face became serious
"She can't interfere again," he said "She knows the consequences if she does"
Suddenly Selene's words came back to me
"I couldn't intervene again"
Everything began to make sense
"You're punishing her" I accused Hades "You're killing off her children knowing that she can't do a damn thing about it"
He smirked
More pieces began to click together
1
"It was you who started this whole war," I said, realizing the truth "You were the one who told the Hunters about the Wolf Moon.You led them to slaughter my family...You... "
Hades stood and began circling me
"Those are some pretty heavy Accusations" he whispered in my ear "With very little evidence"
8
I thought back to the stories my Grandpa used to tell me about the Gods and their powers. He used to tell me them so much that they were practically ingrained in my mind.
3
"I would have little evidence considering the accused can turn invisible and shape-shift at will" I hissed at him
His eyebrows raised in surprise and he gave me a slow clap
"Colour me impressed"
4
Suddenly, his face morphed into Julian's
"What better way to become a God" he mockingly said "Than to kill a God"
He scoffed
"Poor fool didn't even know what was going on until the last second when your Wolf was ripping him apart"
1
"You were him the whole time?"
1
"More or less" he shrugged
I snarled and lunged for him
Before I could even make contact with him, three men emerged from the shadows and held me back.
I yelled, scratched, and punched them as hard as I could but, no matter what, they never released go.
Their grip didn't even loosen
"You imprisoned my father for nine years" I lunged again but the men jerked me back "Nine FREAKING years!"
"Now to be fair" Hades held his hands up in defense "That was all Julian's plan. Not mine. I only got involved when you were added to the equation in Texas"
1
I shrugged the men off me and they returned to the shadows, their keen eyes tracking my every move.
"All this because she took one lousy soul from you" I sneered "Think of how many billions of souls you've gained since then. I mean, I heard people can hold grudges for a long time but you definitely take the cake"
11
He gave me a dark look as the vein in his forehead began to throb
"It wasn't her soul to keep" he sneered right back "It.Was.MINE!"
He began to pace
"SHE MADE ME LOOK LIKE A FOOL!" He roared, smashing his fist into the marble wall "It's bad enough that my brothers made me the fool when they gave me this God-awful position. I didn't need some insignificant Goddess like her adding more fuel to the fire"
11
"You Gods sure do have a problem of letting go of the past," I said through gritted teeth "You need to let go and move on. Not wallow in your own self-pity"
4
"And you Dimitriou's have a problem with keeping your mouths shut" he growled in my face "Never knowing when to keep their almighty opinions to themselves"
He moved away from me and walked to his throne, waving his hand as he did.
Immediately, a giant stadium screen popped up and I watched in horror as one wolf after another fell at the hands of their brethren.
From what I could tell, it looked like almost all the Hunters were eliminated and the Wolves were fighting amongst themselves.
Just like Selene predicted
I scanned the screen for my friends and noticed each one of them battered and Bloody.
Kaden has an arrow sticking out of his limp left arm as he fought with his right. Everly's blonde hair was so bloody that it looked like her natural hair color was red. She staggered on her feet as wolves took turns punching her. A battered Matt struggled against four wolves who held him back. They laughed and hollered as two other wolves began to shred an unconscious Mia's clothes apart.
12
My heart plummeted to my ankles when I realized Taylor and Rhys were nowhere to be found
"Thank your creator" Hades whispered in my ear "She did this to you. She caused this pain and suffering. All because she couldn't leave well enough alone"
2
"Please" I begged, tears streaming down my face when I realized that wolves began surrounding Rhy's Packhouse.
Sky's panicked face was momentarily visible through a bathroom window before she disappeared farther into the house.
"I'll do anything to stop this" I whispered, choking on a sob when I saw wolves bust in the house
"Anything?" Hades asked
22
I nodded
Before I even finished nodding, he spun me around and gave me a wicked grin.
"I'll let you go," he said "On one condition"
5
"Anything," I said in desperation when I heard muffled cries coming from the house "Just name it!"
"I want a favor," he said, sitting on his throne "One that I can collect at any time, at any place, or from any one of your people"
23
I looked at him in uncertainty
"What could I or any of the other wolves offer you that you don't already have?" I questioned "I won't let them suffer from a deal that I made"
5
"That's for me to know and for you to find out," he said cryptically, essentially ignoring my question"Tick Tock Kassiopeia. I might have all day but it seems like your friend's time are running out"
5
I bit my lip, outweighing the Pros and Cons of owing the King of the Underworld a favor.
Was I willing to risk the lives of some poor unfortunate soul to save my friends?
3
The answer was clear
I was willing to risk everything
2
"One favor and only One person," I said "And it has to be during my lifetime. The deal's null and voids the second I die"
15
"Do you really think you should be making demands of me when your friend's lives are in my hands?" he sneered
"And do you think I really am such a fool to agree with a favor that has so many loopholes" I sneered back "I can't have you killing me the moment I agree with your little bargain? My Mom taught me better than to leave any loose ends behind"
4
"Fine" he spat "We have a deal"
2
As quick as lightning, he grabbed my hand and slashed a blade through it.
1
I hissed at the burning sensation and tried to yank it away from Hade's death grip. He refused to release it, gripping it tighter so that more blood pooled in the center of my palm.
2
When he deemed it enough blood, he held my hand against a piece of parchment and chanted foreign words.
2
The parchment glowed before disappearing into thin air.
Hades released me and gave me a farewell salute.
"What a pleasure doing business with you koutávi"
11
"Kiss my a-" I started but was cut off when everything in Hade's realm began to fade and blur.
Rhys
My Wolf and I were chasing the lunatic Hunter through the woods when I received this excruciating pain in my lower abdomen.
The pain was so intense that my Wolf and I ended up tripping over our own feet and face planting in the dirt.
The pain grew more and more intense until I couldn't handle it anymore and shifted back into my human form.
I looked at where the pain was affecting me and found that skin was turning gray as dark veins started to appear.
"Shit" I groaned "Kassi"
I heard a click from above me and when I looked up, I was face to face with the barrel of a gun.
"I'm going to take great joy in killing you" The Hunter sneered "Putting you down like the dog you are"
"You should have run when you had the chance" I snarled, wincing when the pain began to burn
The Hunter laughed and pressed the gun to my forehead
"Have a nice trip to hell" he said, placing his hand on the trigger.
Right before he got the chance to press on it though, a grey blur tackled him to the ground.
The Wolf jumped off him quickly, narrowly missing the bullet to a shoulder, before biting down on Hunter's leg and cleanly tearing it off.
The Hunter screamed in agony, clutching the remaining piece of his non-existent limb.
The wolf shifted and I watched in stunned silence as Taylor began stalking slowly towards her prey. 1
The scared Hunter was now crawling away from us.
"SOMEBODY HELP" The Hunter screamed into the foliage of the forest "FATHER HELP ME!" 1
"No one's going to help you," Taylor said, her voice devoid of any emotion "They're all dead"
"Taylor..." I said calmly, trying to stand up on my own as this pain began to intensify
She ignored me, instead choosing to grab the Hunter by his neck and throwing him against the farthest tree.
He moaned in pain as his head snapped back hard against the tree
"Do you know what happens when one twin dies?" She said calmly, squatting down to Hunter's eye level 5
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
She turned her head toward me and I flinched when I saw that her once light and happy jade green cat eyes were gone. Instead, in their place, were glassy eyes void and vacant of any emotion.
She was looking at me but at the same time, her glassy eyes told me she really wasn't focusing on anything at all.
She turned her attention back to the Hunter who was now looking at her with fear.
"It feels like all the life was taken out of me," she said in a monotone voice "My breath was stolen, the ground shook underneath my feet, and I felt a pain so excruciating that it almost was like I was being skinned alive" 32
Her hand shot out and she gripped the Hunters neck
His eyes bulged out and his face started to turn purple as he clawed at her hand. He even managed to break the skin but as much as he tried, she wouldn't release him.
I heard a sickening crack and watched in horror as Taylor finally released the Hunter who was now clawing at his own throat struggling to breathe.
"You took my brother from me" she snarled "The one person that I loved more than anything else in the world" 23
She grasped one of the Hunters arms and ripped it cleanly out of its socket.
Blood squirted everywhere and on everything, even on Taylor but it was like she didn't even feel it.2
She didn't even care 16
"You took the person who understood me better than anyone else in the world, the only one who knew me better than I knew myself" 1
She clawed Hunter's face to bloody ribbons
The Hunter tried to fight her off but he soon realized that it was a wasted effort and gave up, accepting his fate.
"He'll never get to meet my Mate" She ripped the other limb away from his body "He'll never walk me down the aisle" 39
She dug out his eyes from the sockets
"We'll never fight over the T.V. again" she started to cry as she tore the Hunter apart even more "He'll never watch his nieces and nephews grow up"7
I staggered my way toward her as fast as I could
"Taylor," I said softly, gripping her shoulders "He's dead"
She shrugged me off, growling at me to go away
"He doesn't deserve the privilege of dying yet" she snarled, lunging at the bloody and unrecognizable remains of the Hunter
I took in our surroundings and Jesus, it looked like a scene from a horror movie with blood, guts, and limbs everywhere. 1
"Taylor" I gripped her shoulders more firmly "He's gone and not coming back. Let's go before his Hunter buddies show up"
"There are no more Hunters," she said emotionless, just sitting in front of the bloody corpse "Kaden and I killed them all after Ethan... died"
She flinched at the last word and I stared at her in silence
"We still need to get back," I said softly after a moment "The others need our help" 2
The pain in my abdomen increased so much that it brought me to my knees once again
"Argh" I cried out when the pain became too unbearable "Something's wrong with Kassi"
Taylor finally looked at me before wiping away both the blood and tears from her eyes
"I already lost my brother" she growled, helping me to stand up "I'm not losing my sister too"30
"Something's seriously wrong" I cried out as she tucked herself under my arm and helped carry my weight.
She cursed
"The bond between you two is stronger than we thought," she said, readjusting her grip
I blushed23
"But we haven't..." I huffed, turning my head as I felt the heat rising up to my face "You know...Mated yet" 7
"Yeah, well" She made a face "Kassi and the rest of the Dimitriou's seem to be exempt from the norms of our society" 3
I gave her a humorless laugh "You're telling me"
She was about to take me back to the battlefield when I stopped her.
"Go right," I said through gritted teeth as the pain made my knees tremble
"Why?" She asked "We came from the left"
"Go...right" I wheezed out as my vision became hazy with black dots "Just...trust...me"
~~~
Kassi
My whole body was on fire 1
Or...
At least it certainly felt that way
"Make it stop!" I cried as the intensive headache and burning sensation grew worse and worse
A cold wet nose landed on my cheek as a wolf gave a little whine
I shrank away from the wolf and when I opened my eyes at its second whine, I saw my wolf staring back at me, her vivid violet eyes locking with mine as she stared into my soul. 1
I sat up quickly, as much as my body would allow, and faced her
She whined again, her paw scraping the dirt beneath our feet
"Take me to the Pack House" I pleaded "They need my help"
She lowered her huge wolf head and I climbed on
"Thank you"
We got to the Pack House in no time and I climbed off my wolf before running into the house at the sound of a blood-curdling scream.
I ran up the stairs, my wolf following behind me to make sure we wouldn't get ambushed
When I was at the top of the third-floor landing, the screaming intensified and there was shuffling coming from the attic.
"Damn attics" I hissed under my breath before making my way toward it
My wolf beat me to it though, smashing her huge body through the door and lunging at one of the attackers.
"STAY AWAY FROM MY SON YOU BASTARD!" The sky roared as she jumped on the back of a medium-sized Wolf who was snarling at an extremely small wolf who was staggering on his feet.
Tristan 9
The wolf tried to shake Sky off but she held on tight, gauging the wolf's eyes as he tried to shake her off. 3
"I'll kill you for touching my son!" Sky snarled, digging her fingers deeper into the wolf's eyes 3
The sky was readjusting her grip right when the wolf shook again and the force of the shake managed to send her flying across the attic space.
My Wolf killed the first attacker and was already fighting with the bastard that hurt Sky
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
"Sky!!" I hobbled toward her as fast as I could, narrowing missing the clashing of huge canines "SKYLAR!!"
She was unresponsive and wasn't moving but I nearly cried in relief when I felt her pulse skip underneath my fingertips.
She was still alive, just unconscious 1
A whimper came from the right of me and I snapped my head toward the sound.
Tristan was there looking at his mother with tears in his green little wolf eyes. 2
My heart broke at the sight of it and I nodded for him to hide behind a crate
"She's okay bud," I said softly, trying to carry Sky to where her son was hiding "Just sleeping right now" 1
I stood when I situated both mother and son and managed to throw a sheet on top of them to hide them from view.
It wouldn't stop the wolves from sniffing them out but it would sure buy me some time.
"Stay here and protect your Mom buddy" I whispered "I'll be back"
He nodded and gently put his nose to his mother's forehead whining softly when blood at her temple started to ooze down the side of her face. 1
I recovered them with the sheet and pivoted when I heard a growl behind me.
When I turned to face the Wolf stopped growling and I could sense his hesitation.
After taking a minute to weigh out his options, he shook his head and took an intimidating step toward me. 3
Right when he was about to lunge, a familiar black wolf headbutted his side and knocked him into a pile of broken crates.
Rhys immediately shifted into his human form, panting harshly as he clutched his side. 12
The other Wolf shifted too and cried out in pain as a piece of a broken crate stuck out of his side.
My Wolf curled around Rhys and licked his cheek when he continued to pant hard. 9
I made my way toward them
Rhys tried to straighten up when he saw me but he gritted his teeth and doubled over again when the pain became too much
"Don't be macho" I teased, sitting down next to him and brushing the hair away from his eyes "I like you just the way you are"
"Damn" He coughed out a laugh before groaning "And here I thought I had to wrestle a shark to win your love" 12
I cupped his cheek and stared into his pretty Grey eyes "No shark wrestling for you"
He gave me a strained smile before checking me over from head to toe
"Are you okay?" he asked
I shrugged, breaking our gazes "More or less"
"Did you..." he gulped and took a deep breath "Did you die?"
My eyes snapped to his
"How did you...?" I trailed off when he removed his hand from his side.
Like mine, his abdomen was tinted grey with dark veins arising from a circular wound mark.
I lifted my shirt and he gasped when he saw our matching marks and the blood oozing from my bullet wound.
"I know because I think a part of me died too," he said quietly "Or at least, experienced something similar to death like you were" 3
I was about to question him more when a loud groan came from our left.
I stood and made my way toward the enemy wolf.
When he saw me walking closer, he flinched away "If you're going to kill me, just do it already"
I squatted down to his level and looked him dead in the eye
"Why did you hesitate?"
He blinked at me "What?"
"You hesitated" I stated "When I turned around, you hesitated before lunging at me. It was like you were debating whether or not you should do it"
I stared at him harder but he avoided my gaze
"You even growled at me when my back was turned, making sure that I knew you were there," I said "Why would you do that?" 1
"Not all of us had a choice" he whispered
"What do you mean?"
"Most of us were forced to fight with the Hunters" He grimaced when more blood started to pour from his wound "They took our Mates and children from us and locked them away. The only way we could get them back as if we fought alongside them" 1
I raised an eyebrow at his words
"Are you sure?" I said "Because I saw more than one wolf take pleasure in hurting my friends"
"Yeah well," he hissed out, "I said most of us were forced. The ones that weren't probably loved torturing their brethren"
"And how do I know you're telling the truth?"
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
"Layla" he panted out 2
"What?"
"My Mate's name is Layla," he said "She and my unborn daughter were taken along with the rest of my Pack" 4
"I thought they only took women and children?" I cocked my head to the side "Why did they take your whole Pack?"
"Most of my Pack members consist of women and children," he said through gritted teeth "My Wife and I take in battered women and orphaned children"
"And they kept you alive?"
He nodded "They only took me and my nineteen-year-old son Beckett" 6
"I believe you," I said leaning over him "And I'm sorry"
He gave me a confused look
"Sorry for what..." he trailed off when I yanked the protruding piece of wood out of his side
"OW!" he howled in pain, moving away from me "OW!"
I discarded the piece of wood and wiped the blood on my tattered clothes
"Don't be a baby" I smiled "I'm sure you've been through worse"
He grumbled and sat up, his wound stitching slowly back together.
Rhys walked over to us, with the help of my wolf, and gave the man a wary look. 1
"I never got your name?" I asked
"Leo" he sighed "Leo Turner" 50
"Well Leo" I smiled at the older man "I promise to help you find your wife and Pack"
He avoided my gaze, his cheeks tinting pink
"That would mean the world to me Princess"
A throat cleared from behind us
I turned and found my best friend standing awkwardly in the doorway next to a guy I've never seen before. 10
"Beckett!" Leo gasped before slowly making his way over to the guy
Beckett gazed at a miserable-looking Taylor for a couple of seconds more before making his way towards his father. 25
"Hi dad," The guy said in a deep and pleasant voice "Glad to see that you're safe"
Taylor made her way to us before collapsing into my arms and crying. 2
I soothed her
"We're going to get through this Tay," I said with tears in my eyes "I promise you"
She continued to sob and while I comforted her, I couldn't help but notice Beckett staring longingly at Taylor. 4
My eyes widened in realization
Oh shit1
Taylor found her Mate 38
At the worst possible time 27