Chapter 24 Echoes of Betrayal;
Elly gripped Eva's hand tightly as they moved through the pitch-black void, their consciousness alert yet unable to see ahead, advancing without direction. She called out fearfully:
"Eva, are you still here? I'm scared."
Eva responded with a calm but determined voice:
"Yes, I'm here. Try to feel my hand. We must never separate from each other."
"Okay," Elly said. Then she asked curiously:
"So what are we looking for now? What do we need to see?"
Eva's voice trembled with concern:
"Even though I've seen my past memories, I can't understand why I defied Kael for Joe. That day, when Kael wanted to kill him, while I felt Kael's rage, I simultaneously felt Joe's fear and anxiety. As if he was feeling remorse about something. Joe's pain pierced me as if it were my own. It hurt me so much, Elly. I can't figure this out. I can't make sense of it."
She swallowed hard. "Kael is my greatest love, my mate, and the only person I want to be happy with. Why did I do that to him? We need to understand. Maybe then I can convince him again." Her voice now held a desperate hope.
"Maybe I can prove that I love him madly..."
The moment she spoke these words, the surroundings gradually brightened. The dark void vanished and was replaced by a bright, warm spring day.
Eva and Elly stood hand in hand in the garden of Eva's mountain house. But this... was a different time period. The house was new, its paint gleaming, the garden filled with vibrant flowers.
Elly looked around in astonishment, then at their hands, then at Eva. A faint purple light emanated from their bodies. As if they were ghosts.
"But..." Elly muttered. "You're not here! This can't be your memory!"
Eva responded in a calm voice, her eyes locked on two little girls in the garden:
"Rose women are connected to each other, Elly. That's why we say Rose women are timeless. We are all bound to Homay's light."
Elly nodded, but the strange tone in Eva's voice unsettled her. As if she were speaking from centuries ago.
Eva's eyes focused on the two girls playing in the mud in front of the mountain house. They both resembled each other. Long ash-blonde hair, slender builds... But one was slightly bolder, laughing with heartier giggles. The other was calmer, more withdrawn.
Eva's brows furrowed. Her face froze.
Elly asked curiously: "So which one is your mother?"
Eva didn't respond. Her eyes were locked on the girls, as if trying to solve a puzzle. "I don't know, I only know her name. Alayra!"
Elly asked, "Why was there never any information about your mother's sister?"
Eva's face was ice-cold. Her brows furrowed. Her voice came out cold and sharp:
"My mother didn't have a sister, Elly."
Elly looked shocked. "But... there are two girls here!"
Just then, the mountain house door opened. A young woman emerged. Eva's grandmother. But now she was very young, her hair was black, no wrinkles on her face.
Mother Rose's hands were wet, she wiped them on her apron. She called out with a smile:
"Girls! Come on now, you'll starve to death!"
The moment Eva saw her, her eyes filled with tears. Instinctively, she wanted to run and embrace her. But Elly held her hand tightly.
"You mustn't let go of my hand," Elly said in panic. "I still feel the dark void. I'm afraid we'll be torn apart if we let go of each other."
Eva nodded. She was right. But her eyes were still on her grandmother. That warm smile, those loving gazes...
Eva took a deep breath, trying to hold back her tears as she called out to the energy surrounding them:
"So, Homay's light, my mother had a sister... is this what you wanted me to learn? What happened to her?"
No answer came.
Then suddenly, like watercolor mixing with water, the images blurred. Colors merged, the world spun, and in an instant they found themselves in the forest.
Eva looked around. The air was cooler, approaching evening.
Elly whispered: "What should we see now?"
But there was no one around.
Then they walked toward a rustling sound coming from behind a tree. They approached slowly.
And they saw.
A slender, beautiful woman with long ash-blonde hair was passionately kissing a man. The woman's hands were in the man's hair, their breaths coming in broken rhythms as their bodies pressed together.
Just then, a crackling sound was heard. The woman flinched, quickly turning her head toward the sound.
But the man grabbed her chin and turned her face back to him. In a harsh, authoritative voice, he whispered:
"Alayra! When I'm with you, look at me!"
The woman laughed and caressed his face. "I'm sorry," she said softly.
Footsteps began approaching from the direction of the sound. Eva and Elly focused in that direction too.
The approaching figure was a woman who closely resembled Alayra. The same hair, the same build. But this woman's face held more power, more determination. And on her chest... there was a glowing purple seal. It was different from Eva's seal, shaped like a triangular roof.
Elly whispered: "That must be your mother's sister."
Eva responded silently: "Yes. But they both feel like strangers right now. I don't understand. Besides, I can't have a father!" she said.
Elly didn't understand Eva's words but didn't question them.
Alayra turned her head from behind the tree and saw the approaching woman: Ilayra.
She panicked and pulled away from the man's arms, running toward her sister.
"What are you doing here?!" she shouted, but her voice was trembling, frightened.
Ilayra looked at her with cold eyes. "I came looking for you!" she said in a harsh tone.
From Alayra's attempt to compose herself and her anxious body language, Ilayra understood something was going on. She asked with stern eyes:
"Who was there?"
Just then, the man behind the tree emerged and walked toward the forest.
Ilayra quickly ran and pushed him. The moment she saw the man, her gaze hardened even more. She shouted furiously:
"You bad blood! Caleb! What are you doing here?!"
Caleb looked at her with a wicked grin. Young, muscular, self-assured. "You're making too much of this, Ilayra," he said casually.
Ilayra lunged at him and grabbed his collar. Alayra tried to hold her back, pleading, "Stop! Ilayra, please!"
"She's a Rose woman, Caleb!" Ilayra shouted. "She can't be with filthy blood like you! Stop clouding her mind!"
Caleb shook off the hands on his collar with a snap. He was strong. Ilayra staggered. Caleb got right in her face, then with a swift move, yanked at Ilayra's collar.
The purple triangular seal appeared. It was glowing, alive.
Seeing the seal, the wicked grin on Caleb's face widened. Jealousy and rage burned in his eyes.
"Your sister is being crushed in your shadow, Bearer of Light," he snarled. "You'll give birth to the prophesied seed while your sister rots alone at home. Without being with any man. Spending her life protecting you. Is that fair?"
Ilayra's lips trembled with anger. But she didn't respond. She just looked at Caleb, pain and helplessness in her eyes.
Then she turned and left.
Caleb watched her go with a triumphant smile.
Alayra immediately ran after her sister, grabbing her arm and pulling her close.
Ilayra's brows were furrowed. Then she turned to Alayra and shouted angrily:
"What do you think you're doing?! That man's family killed Eva, the representative of light! They killed a Rose woman! Just to gain power! They betrayed both the wolf race and the Rose women! The Ancient wolves have remained cursed for centuries because of his lineage. How can you be so foolish?!"
Alayra also shouted violently, her eyes tearing up:
"Why do you get to carry Eva's seed?! Why do you get to be the mother of a savior while I'm just a Rose guardian?! Why not me?!"
Ilayra's eyes filled with tears. Her voice broke:
"I didn't choose this, Alayra! I was born this way!"
Alayra shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Ilayra continued:
"Hunters are everywhere, hunting our kind every day. We need the wolves. If I don't give birth to that seed, the Ancient Alpha can't be freed! Only a handful of Rose women remain. Who will protect us, Alayra?!"
Her voice trembled as she continued:
"I wish you could carry it instead of me! I wish I were the guardian!"
Alayra shouted with furrowed brows:
"I wish! I deserve to have a family, to be a mother! I want to fall in love!"
Then she turned and walked away into the forest depths.
Elly was shocked. Her mouth hung open as she watched what unfolded.
Eva tried to make sense of it all with tears in her eyes. Her voice trembled:
"So... Ilayra gave birth to me, not Alayra? Is this what I'm supposed to understand, Homay's light?"
There was no answer, but from the way the world around them was once again cloaking itself in chaotic colors, they understood they hadn't learned everything yet.
Just then, images flashed rapidly.
Now they stood before the Ancient Willow Tree, Eva and Elly still holding hands tightly.
Alayra had opened the passage of the Ancient Willow Tree. She held a dagger in her hand. It gleamed like silver but contained a dark energy within.
She handed it to Caleb.
Eva's brows furrowed, her voice turned to a scream:
"No! What have you done?! Alayra, why?!"
Eva's hand had gone numb, she almost reeled from the pain she was experiencing. But Elly held her hand tightly, struggling to make her presence felt, and held her breath. She was trying to process what she was seeing, but only one question echoed in her mind: "What was Caleb going to do with that dagger?!"
The image suddenly changed and they awakened to a dark night.
Flames engulfed everything. Hunters were everywhere, and in the center of this hellish scene stood Caleb with demonic eyes. The silver dagger in his hand. On the ground lay dozens of Rose women and townspeople as corpses. Covered in blood.
At that moment, Elly was trembling with fear. Eva's pain was too much. She had collectively felt the pain of all the Rose women. In front of Caleb lay a lifeless body.
It was Ilayra's body.
Her eyes were open, her gaze empty. The purple seal on her chest had dimmed.
A deep pain settled in Eva's heart. She screamed with a piercing cry:
"NOOOOO!"
Both identities within her were suffering. Tears streamed from Elly's eyes too.
Eva fell to her knees, while Elly still held her hand tightly.
"Was this it?" Eva shouted. "Damn it, how could she do such a thing?!"
But it wasn't over.
Just then, the image shifted again.
This was Kael's cave. The Ancient Alpha and his pack were still in deep slumber.
Alayra knelt, prostrating herself at Mother Rose's feet. She pleaded with tears:
"Mother, I'm sorry! Please, let me carry Eva's seed! Let me fulfill the prophecy!"
Tears streamed from Mother Rose's eyes. Her voice trembled but there was anger on her face:
"You don't carry the Mother Nature seal, Alayra! The seal's bearer died because of you! You are the murderer of your sister and all the Rose women!"
Alayra continued pleading:
"Mother, please! Let me give birth to her!"
Mother Rose's lips trembled:
"Your body can't handle this, Alayra. Even if you give birth to Eva, you'll die."
Alayra wiped her tears. There was determination in her voice:
"I'd rather die than let all the ancient races' bloodlines become extinct, mother. Let me. What I did can't be undone, but let me at least give Ancient Eva a chance," she said.
And she bowed, pressing her forehead to the ground.
Mother Rose knew this was the last thing they could try.
A little later...
Alayra walked naked into the Sacred Oasis Lake.
Mother Rose crouched on the ground behind her, drawing a runic seal. Purple lights rose from her hands and eyes.
Alayra entered the water. Calm, fearless.
Mother Rose carefully placed a glowing purple seed from a small chest onto her naked body. On her belly.
The seed spread across Alayra's stomach in purple veins and took root. Alayra groaned in pain. But she made no sound.
The seed entered her womb and Alayra's body was suddenly pulled into the water.
Mother Rose sobbed.
Soon after, a baby with pale white skin and ash-colored hair rose to the water's surface.
Grandmother approached her. She gently lifted her from the water. She caressed her face while crying.
"Welcome, representative of light. Welcome, Eva," she murmured.
But fate's game wasn't over.
Just as she turned her back, a baby's cry rose from the water.
Mother Rose turned her eyes and saw the male baby with jet-black hair and silver eyes.
She shook her head in fear:
"No, no! You didn't do this! Alayra!"
She gently placed Eva on the ground and picked up the other baby.
And so that day, Joe was born!
A hybrid where bad blood merged with Rose blood.
Eva and Elly stood frozen, hands clasped tightly.
Tears streamed from Eva's eyes.
"Joe..." she whispered. "You gave birth to him in the oasis?!" she screamed as they were pulled back to reality. They found themselves on the Ancient Stone.
Elly was in shock. What had happened was beginning to weigh heavily on her mind.
Eva growled to herself in pain:
"You entered the sacred oasis with the seed of bad blood! How could you share Homay's lineage and power with him!"
Elly asked quietly:
"So... what happens now? Is Joe your brother?"
Eva raised her head. "No, he cannot be my brother!!" she snarled. Her eye vessels were bursting with rage.
Elly understood it was the Ancient Eva speaking. She calmly stepped back.
Eva's purple eyes blazed with determination. A deep rage consumed her. Centuries ago, she had given up her love for the Rose women. She had imprisoned both herself and Kael in years of exile. But had the Rose lineage answered her sacrifice by becoming a sister-killer and betraying their own bloodline?!
"Nothing matters anymore! I just want to see Kael," she said as tears streamed from her eyes. "I need him!"