Chapter 32: Shroud

Elias

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I tried to climb up with all my strength, but the ground was swallowing me downward.

“Avabella!” I shouted in our mind link. “I think I’m in a quicksand!”

She cursed and was plainly flustered. “But I can’t see you!” She sounded frustrated searching for me but couldn’t find me.

Half of my body was now being buried in the icy ground. If I moved, I would sink further down. Damn it!

I heard her murmur some enchantment, which made the fog grow thinner. I saw her just a few meters away from me. She saw me when she slightly turned her body in my direction.

“Elias!” she breathed. In a second, she was already in front of me. But when she reached her hand out to me, she was caught in another magical quicksand and the shroud was veiling between us once more. It grew thicker until we couldn’t see each other again.

“Avabella!” I called out her name in panic, not only for myself but especially for her.

“I can’t move, Elias!” she told me.

I let out a profanity in my mind, which she could clearly hear by the way. “How about your powers?”

“I-I think it’s suppressed by this quicksand. I don’t know!” she said, groaning in frustration.

“What’s happening? Are you okay?” I was terribly worried of her safety that I wriggled in the quicksand, which was sucking me more. Now it was up to my neck, making me nervous that I howled. I hoped that everybody would notice our absence. I tapped in Thibault’s mind and told him we were at the pond.

“I can’t see any of you, Alpha Elias. The fog is so thick!” Thibault answered. I heard him howl, presumably letting the others know of our predicament.

But as seconds ticked by, Avabella and I were drowning in the quicksand. Merde!

“Sangye! Can you see her?” I asked Thibault.

“No, Alpha Elias! The red Alpha King is calling his wife,” he responded.

I could hear their howls and some yelps and whines. I could only assume that the fight between us and the rogues was not ending yet. Just how many were the rogues sent here?

“Alpha Elias!” It was Sangye’s voice, crying.

“S-Sangye? Where are you?” I asked her and I noticed that Avabella was quiet. “Avabella?” She didn’t answer. Damn it! Was she already drowned in the quicksand? My heart trembled at this thought. I tried to climb again but my head was starting to be buried too. “Avabella! Mon amour, come on! Answer me, please!” But she didn’t answer. I was getting more and more nervous.

“Alpha Elias, help me!” Sangye wormed into my mind again. She was clearly crying.

“Damn it, Sangye! Can you use your powers right now? I need to get out of this damn quicksand! Avabella’s in danger!”

“No, Alpha Elias! I can’t! She’s taking over my body!” She sobbed.

I suddenly went still from struggling. My head reeled like I was spinning around. “Avabella!” She was in serious danger. But no matter how I called her through our own mind link, she just wouldn’t respond! I wondered what was happening and I was getting sick of being petrified that something had already happened to her without my knowing it. “Sangye! Who is it? Who’s taking over your body?”

“I-I don’t know, Alpha Elias! I’m scared!” she said, crying. I could only imagine her crying face right now, making her eyes go tinier and chin trembling.

I let out a series of expletives in my head for being so helpless right now. I had to do something. I took in a deep breath and moved my limbs up to get out of the quicksand. Damn it! The icy quicksand seemed to grow bigger, and I was already buried deep until I was wholly swallowed by it. I could feel my body being sucked by an invisible force. I could only close my eyes, afraid that my eyes would be hurt. Ironic. I would possibly die right now as darkness swallowed me.

I wondered how far deep the quicksand was, as I was still feeling myself being sucked by it. My body was gripped by something invisible. It was hard that I could barely breathe.

Wait, I could still breathe? Wasn’t I supposed to be suffocating by the icy sand right now? I reluctantly opened my eyes. When I did, it was dark but I could clearly see the water around me. Did I end up down the pond? But how deep was the pond?

Nothing made sense to me right now. My thoughts went back to Avabella and I called her again through our mind link. Nonetheless, I heard nothing from her. Just plain silence. And there was Sangye’s crying, reaching out to me. Damn it!

I willed myself to transform into my human form since my wolf form was no use at the moment. It was weird but I tried to swim in the air, not the water, although it was surrounding me. Clearly. But I couldn’t escape.

“Whoever you are, I’m so going to tear you in pieces!” I gritted my teeth as I spoke those words.

When the invisible force stopped sucking me deep in the water and beyond it to somewhere, I found myself in a glass cage. The place was brighter somehow with its red glow, and I noticed mirrors around me that I saw my reflection in every single one of them. I kicked the glass cage, but I couldn’t break it with my strength. My shoulders, fists, knees, and feet hurt, but the cage didn’t even have a scratch or a small crack. Dull thuds sounded in my every contact with the glass.

I breathed in deeply before I transformed into my wolf form and tried to break it with my powerful paws. My sharp stalwart nails could not break it either. The gritting scratches sound I created made me wince. Merde! It didn’t work at all.

“Avabella! Sangye!” I called them out in my mind but there was no response. “Thibault? Matthias? Yanick? Andreas? Anyone?” There was no reply from them, too. I was getting more and more anxious and angry as seconds passed by. I transformed into my human form once again and punched the cage in a bone-breaking strength. I broke my knuckles, alright. I growled loudly but not in pain. Only in frustration!

“Avabella! Avabella! Where are you? Sangye?” I shouted on the top of my lungs. But my voice merely echoed. Still, I didn’t give up. I keep on calling their names until my throat felt dry and voice became hoarse. “Avabella! Avabella…” I slumped, sitting on the floor, holding my head.

I heard a woman laugh, which made me stand up, confused. The sound was neither Sangye’s or Avabella’s… or anyone I knew. It was unfamiliar. It was kind of tinkling and high. But I must say it sounded sexy. And yet, nothing was sexier than Avabella’s voice and laugh. Even more so whenever she moaned as I plunged into her body over and over again. That was my own personal song. Her song for me. And nothing could compare to it.

I looked around but I couldn’t see anything.

She laughed again. “Welcome to my realm, Elias…” she said in an alluring voice, prolonging the “s” of my name. She had that distinct old Scottish accent, which I picked up easily.

I turned to the left and there she was—a sheer specter, gliding toward me. She was dressed in a white flowy thin fabric that didn’t actually cover her gorgeous body. I could clearly see the peaks of her perky huge breasts, the curve of her small waist and round hips, as well as the V of her center, down her flat stomach. Her face was radiant, like an angel. The smiling lips were red as cherries. There were freckles across her nose and cheeks. But I loved no other freckles but Avabella’s, especially the ones on her back and chest.

The specter, who seemed to be in her late twenties, blinked. Her blue eyes were framed by thick dark lashes and eyebrows. Her wavy hair was long and red like flames. She was pale as a ghost. Well, she was literally a ghost from what I have observed. But how could she have this kind of power that trapped me here? She was not supposed to be in the world at all, was she? She should’ve gone to the spirit realm already. But then again, she must have some kind of goal, which was the reason why she was doing this to me.

“Who are you? Where is Avabella? And Sangye? Did you do something to her?” I slapped the glass hard, leaving my hand tingle and vibrate.

She giggled with that tinkling voice of hers. “Sangye’s body is mine, Elias. So is Avabella’s.”

I froze when I heard it. I could even feel something run down my spine while my heart skipped a beat before it shook. I caught my breath in my throat, and I slowly blinked, staring at her. I slightly shook my head.

“No. No!” I said. I followed her when she glided around my glass cage while giggling.

“Aww… You don’t know me, Elias… If you only knew me, you’d never doubt me.”

I snarled at her. “You can’t do that to them!” Avabella was strong… and even Sangye. Maybe… maybe they were just afraid at this moment, but I knew they’d come back to their senses, clear their heads to find a way to get out of this and kick this specter’s round bottom for good.

She laughed again. “Want to know my name, Elias?” Her wide smile was seductive, but I wasn’t in the least seduced at all. If it was Avabella before me, even without saying or doing anything, she would’ve been successful, and I was one happy puppy.

“I’m not interested. What I want to know is why you’re doing this!” I bellowed.

She glided closer to me. She was so close that it was only the glass that separated me from her. I couldn’t catch a scent from her. Maybe because my prison was sealed. Still, I could breathe normally. It was a wonder. Alright, it was magic.

I saw how her clear blue orbs change into stormy ones. Filled with loathing.

I snorted and snickered, stepping backward as I didn’t leave my eyes from her face. “I think you have some issues, right? Let me guess… Do Andrin and Luana ring a bell? Or maybe Egzon and Elin do?”

She hissed, making her eyes glow red.

“Hmm… and let me guess… you were a vampire before you died,” I added.

An evil smile tore her beautiful face. She went around the cage to face me closer again. “I wonder how you guessed these? Hmm… Was it because of Avabella because she saw my puppets’ memories? That was quite laudable of her to penetrate their darkness. I actually didn’t expect your mate can do it when the Vampire Queen wasn’t able to. Ohh…” She rolled her eyes, but she smiled after that. She glided and twirled her body like she was dancing in the air, her feet invisible. “She is the strongest one! I want to own her body, too!” She giggled again.

Damn it! This specter was enjoying this. I should keep her on edge, so she couldn’t think of anything but me. I knew I had to distract her somehow… while I waited for Avabella or Sangye to clear their heads and do something for us to get out of here.

I tried to call them in our mind links but to no avail. It was upsetting. I really wanted to know how they were doing.

I laughed at the specter. “Whoever you are, you can never own anyone’s body—be it Sangye’s, Maria Adriana’s or my Avabella’s. You’re nothing but an annoying ghost!”

She screamed in vexation, which rattled my glass cage and the mirrors around us. Some of the mirrors broke but the broken pieces automatically reversed as if the mirrors didn’t break at all. I could only stare at the magic she was showing off to me. That made her smile at me widely like she won.

“Your pack is diminishing in number, Elias. The vampires are also turning into skeletons one by one. Do you want to see?” She waved a hand, and the mirrors showed the scene of my mansion like it was a TV set. The mansion was absolutely being ruined as my pack fought against the formidable rogues. Then I saw a group of enemies heading toward the eastern tower, where my reanimated family was detained.