Chapter 20 The Ancient Bond;
As time passed, Eva's condition worsened. Her body was fading like a dying candle flame. She writhed in dreams, murmuring incoherent words.
Grandmother Agnes knelt down, holding an earthen bowl in her hands. Inside were dried herbs, purple crystals, and a strange-smelling mixture. The moment she lit it with a match, purple smoke rose. Like incense but much denser, almost appearing alive.
Agnes placed the bowl at Eva's bedside. The purple smoke danced over Eva's pale face, as if enveloping her.
Elly watched anxiously. She couldn't help but ask:
"What exactly will this do? Can it fix her condition?"
Before answering, Agnes removed the wet towel from Eva's forehead. She checked her body temperature. Still ice cold. As she brought a new warm towel and placed it, she spoke:
"The only thing that can fix her condition," she said, her voice tinged with worry, "is for her to regain her powers and reconnect with her ancestors."
Elly's face fell. "But how? She's not even conscious right now!"
Agnes looked at her. In her tired eyes was both compassion and uncertainty.
"Rose women are timeless, they find their way like water," she said slowly. "I hope she reaches her ancestors."
Elly sank to her knees, holding Eva's cold hand.
Just then, something happened.
A mark on Grandmother Agnes's left wrist, hidden beneath her long-sleeved shirt, suddenly began to glow.
Light seeped through the shirt fabric. A bright, silvery blue radiance.
Agnes froze. Her breath caught.
Elly noticed. "Grandmother!" she cried out, immediately pointing to Agnes's wrist. "Your wrist!"
Agnes raised her arm trembling. She pulled up her shirt sleeve.
There, on her inner wrist, was an ancient mark in the shape of a crescent moon. It had been there for years, faded and motionless. But now...
Now it was burning.
It was emitting silvery blue light, as if alive. Pulsing.
Agnes's face filled with fear mixed with awe.
"He's here," she whispered.
Elly's eyes widened. "Who's here?" she asked, her voice trembling. Then she suddenly understood. Grandmother Agnes was currently the only living guardian. "The Ancient Alpha?" she asked.
Agnes only nodded in confirmation. Yes.
She quickly stood up. Her legs ached but she didn't care. She walked toward the window, pulled the curtain aside.
And she saw him.
Outside, through the falling snow, beneath the moonlight...
A massive wolf stood.
His reddish-brown fur created a striking contrast with the snow white. His muscles taut, his stance majestic. His eyes... those amber eyes were glowing.
Agnes's breath caught.
"My God," she whispered, her voice mixed with admiration and awe. "It's really him..."
Elly immediately came beside her, looking out through the glass. She saw him too.
Agnes continued, her voice trembling:
"Before... I had only heard his voice. I hadn't seen him. This... this..."
"Magnificent," Elly whispered, completing the thought.
Agnes looked at her, then back at the wolf. "Yes," she said softly. "Truly magnificent."
For a moment they both froze, just watching. Snow was falling. And that massive creature stood there, motionless, waiting in front of Eva's house.
Then Agnes collected herself.
She took her shawl, threw it over her shoulders. She walked toward the door.
Elly turned. "Grandmother, what are you doing?"
"I'm going outside," Agnes answered simply.
"But... it's dangerous!"
Agnes looked at her. In her tired eyes was a softness.
"He's an Ancient Alpha, Elly. If he wanted to kill me, he would have done it by now. Besides..." She looked at the crescent moon-shaped mark. "The guardian's seal is calling me. I must answer him."
She opened the door and cold air rushed in.
The snowfall was intense. The wind whipped Agnes's shawl, plastering her gray hair to her face. But she didn't care.
With slow steps, despite her knee pain, she advanced through the snow. She descended from the porch.
Kael stood there. His eyes locked on her.
Agnes approached about ten steps. Then... with her elderly body, she sank to her knees.
The snowy ground was cold but she didn't care. She bowed her head. Respectfully.
"Ancient Alpha," she whispered. Her voice was almost lost in the wind.
Kael lowered his large wolf head. A response. A sign of recognition.
Then his voice began to echo in Agnes's mind. Deep, growling, but so powerful...
"What is the Rose girl's condition? Can you save her?"
Agnes swallowed.
"I'm sorry, Ancient Alpha," she said trembling. "I'm doing everything I can but... the ancient bond is too weak. The Rose witch's spirit is drifting!"
There was a moment of silence.
Then Kael roared in agony.
The sound was so powerful, so full of pain that Agnes's ears rang. The ground trembled. Snow fell from the trees. It echoed from the mountain peaks.
That cry, that roar... spread throughout the entire town.
Lights came on in houses. People looked out their windows. Some trembled with fear.
Tears streamed down Agnes's face. But she didn't move.
Kael's voice echoed in her mind again. This time harsher, more agonized.
"How much time do we have?"
Agnes stammered. She didn't know. She truly didn't know.
"I don't know, Ancient Alpha," she whispered. "I truly don't know. I'm just..."
"You need to give me an estimated time!" The voice was mixed with anger. With pain.
Agnes raised her head. Her eyes filled with tears. She looked into those amber eyes.
"Four hours... Maybe, five hours," she murmured.
"Keep her alive until I return," Kael said.
His voice was like a command. Also like a plea.
And then... Kael turned. In one movement he ran into the forest. He disappeared within seconds. Only his snowy tracks and the sound of the wind remained.
Agnes's knees collapsed. She sat down, in the snow. She brought her hands to her face and cried. Could she now protect the one she once failed to protect?
In the desolate forest, the Ancient Alpha was running. In pain, searching for something to keep Eva alive.
Because if Eva died... Kael would completely lose his human side...
Shortly after, inside the mountain house:
The purple smoke grew, began to curl over Eva's face. Its scent was strange, jasmine, wild rose, and something burning. Eva's breathing slowed, went deeper.
Elly watched anxiously. "Grandmother, is something happening?"
Agnes looked closely at Eva's face. Her eyes were blinking rapidly, pupils moving frantically beneath closed lids.
"She's fighting," Agnes whispered. "She's crossing into the world of the ancestors."
When Eva opened her eyes... it was different.
She was no longer in the mountain house. There was no cold. No pain. Just a dim forest stretching out with endless calm.
But this forest was different. The trees were bigger, older. The leaves were bright green, as if in a dream. Sunlight filtered through the branches like golden dust.
Eva stood up. She looked at herself, her body was light, as if not quite real.
"Where is this?" she whispered.
Then she heard a sound.
Footsteps. Running sounds. Someone was approaching.
Eva turned and saw.
A woman came bursting through the forest. She wore a long, flowing dress—tight at the waist, the skirts billowing, the fabric heavy and embroidered. Clothing from centuries ago. Her hair was long and disheveled, ash blonde... just like Eva's.
And her face...
Eva's breath caught.
That face... was her own.
The same nose, same chin, same lips. As if looking in a mirror.
The woman was breathless, running. Looking back as if someone was chasing her.
Eva took a step forward, reaching out.
"Stop! Wait a minute!" she called out. "Who are you? Why do you look like me?"
But the woman didn't answer. As if she couldn't see Eva. As if Eva wasn't there.
The woman kept running. She passed by Eva.
Eva began running after her.
"Hey! Can you hear me? Please stop!"
But the woman didn't stop. She was panicked, as if being chased by a predator.
Then... it happened.
A shadow appeared in the air.
Eva looked up and saw. There, a massive wolf leaped as if gliding from the sky. His brown-reddish fur gleamed in the sunlight. His muscles tensed, his claws extended.
He was falling toward the woman.
Eva opened her mouth to scream,
But then the wolf... changed.
In the air, while gliding, the wolf form transformed into human.
Within seconds, a man appeared. Naked, muscular, bronze-skinned. The wind whipped through his hair, reddish brown.
And he fell upon the woman.
But not harshly.
He opened his arms, caught her. Wrapped his body around hers, protectively. When his feet touched the ground, he stumbled slightly but held the woman firmly. He had prevented her from getting hurt.
And then... he passionately pressed his lips to hers.
Eva froze. Just stood there watching.
The woman... the woman who looked like Eva, laughed. A joyful, free laugh. She wrapped her arms around the man's neck and kissed him again and again. Small, playful kisses. On his lips, his cheek, the tip of his nose.
"You turned into a wolf!" the woman laughed. "That's cheating! I don't accept it!"
The man looked at her with a warm smile in his eyes. Then he held the woman's chin with his hand, tilted her head back, and kissed her lips with a bite.
"I didn't want to waste even a second catching you," he murmured, his voice deep and growling.
Eva slowly, as if hypnotized, moved toward them.
She wanted to see the man's face. She needed to see.
She took another step. Then another.
And then... she saw.
The man's face turned, tilted slightly to the side. Sunlight illuminated his features.
And Eva's world stopped.
That face...
Those amber eyes...
That smile... It was Kael.
Eva staggered forward, lost her balance. She fell backward and from where she sat, in shock, continued watching them.
Kael... and that woman... They loved each other.
The woman laughed again, ruffled Kael's hair. "You catch me every time. I have no chance against you."
On Kael's face was that warm, soft expression. The same expression Eva saw when he looked at her.
"Because you belong to me," Kael whispered. "And I will never give you up."
The woman hugged him, buried her face in his chest.
Eva's eyes filled with tears. But she didn't know why. Was this happiness? Sadness? Longing?
"Is this a dream?" she whispered, her voice shaking. "Am I imagining this?"
She looked around. The forest was so alive, so real.
"But... where is this? Why do I feel like I'm in a memory from another time?" she cried out.
There was no answer.
Then... She felt a touch. A cold, real touch.
Eva's eyes trembled.
Grandmother Agnes's aged hand touched Eva's face. Gently, on her forehead, her cheek.
Eva's eyes were closed but her facial muscles were moving. As if struggling with something. Her lips were moving...
For Eva, fighting between reality and illusion, would Kael be able to reach her before it was too late?