The Unwanted Wolf

“He’s getting back up,” Mark said, looking behind me.

I glanced over my shoulder, trying to give Reyland as much healing as possible before pulling away. “Just a second longer,” I said.

Mark kept looking back and forth behind me, and then he changed into his wolf and started growling. I knew I couldn’t keep healing Reyland, so I hope what I did would be enough for now. I let go of him and turned back to face Xavier. He was limping towards us, a large burn mark in the middle of his chest. He looked worse for wear, and I knew he was struggling.

I stood up and held my hand up in defense. My hands glowed with anticipation. “Just give up before you die.”

Xavier glowered at me. “Who are you to tell me what to do? I am the Son of B***d and Magic, Prince of Shadows, King of darkness! I will take what I please from whoever I please. I will never give up.”

He lifted his quivering hand to throw a tendril of dark magic at me. I went to block the attack, but a purple lightning bolt hit the dark magic and redirected it before I had a chance to touch it. I looked over and saw Cain standing at the edge of the forest. Xavier looked over at him, but Cain shifted closer and hit Xavier again, knocking him to the ground. Cain looked ready to kill Xavier.

“Wait!” I shouted, stopping Cain before he could attack Xavier again. “Don’t kill him!”

Cain’s jaw dropped. “Are you absolutely mad? If I kill him now, we can be done with this prophecy once and for all!”

“I want to try to save Jori. He’s not part of the prophecy. The Son of B***d and Magic was only using him. You owe me for everything you’ve done to me.” I kept my voice firm and steady. When I first saw Cain, there was a moment of panic that he would try to hurt me or be on Xavier’s side, but when I saw him attack Xavier, there was relief that flowed through me.

Cain raised his hand, making my heart jump. However, instead of attacking him, Cain created a time bubble around him. “He won’t be able to move while I have him contained. I’ll give you a few minutes.”

I looked at Xavier and Jori, hoping I could find a way to save Jori. Currently, the body’s eyes were completely black, telling me that Xavier was in control. I could hear Jori’s plea on repeat in my head. “Kill me.” He had begged me to kill him, and I could only imagine what it was like to be a prisoner in your own body, hurting the people around you without being able to do anything about it.

I took a step towards Jori, and Mark grabbed my arm, holding me back. “Are you sure about this?” he asked. His grip was firm around my arm, and I could feel his fear seeping through his veins.

I understood his hesitation. Getting close to Xavier could put me at risk, but I had to try. “I can do this.” I sounded more confident than I felt.

Mark nodded and let go of my arm. I walked forward, approaching Jori’s body. He was lying on the ground, frozen with anger filling every crease in his face. I didn’t know how to get Jori back in control of his body, but if Xavier had implanted his dark magic in Jori, maybe I could expunge it with light magic.

I looked up to the moon and felt the moonlight filling me with power. I reached through the time barrier and pressed my hand against Jori’s chest. I imagined the power of moonlight moving through Jori’s veins. I could see the magic moving through his body. It swept through the dark magic in his cells, pulling it out as it moved along. I continued expunging the dark magic until I couldn’t feel it anymore.

I felt light headed when I pulled back, and I knew I had used too much energy. My body wasn’t used to using magic to this extreme, and I was sure I was exhausted from my time in capture, too. As I stepped back, Jori’s body twitched, and a sudden burst of dark energy exploded from his chest. A cloud of dark energy floated in the air above Jori, and I knew Xavier was no longer controlling Jori’s body.

The cloud lingered for longer than I felt comfortable, but then it whooshed into the air, disappearing completely. I looked over at Cain, who was staring at me, unblinking.

“It’s over. Release him,” I ordered. My voice was barely above a whisper, but it was commanding and confident.

Cain dropped his hand, releasing Jori from the time capsule. I moved to Jori’s side and checked his pulse. It was slow, but it was steady. It was covered in wounds and bruises, but I didn’t have the energy to heal him. From what I could see, he didn’t have any fatal wounds, but he was unconscious.

I looked across the battlefield, seeing Mark watching me closely. Finally, I could be with him again. I gave him a small nod to let him know I thought Jori would be okay. His body relaxed a little, but he continued staring at me. It was too long since we had been together, and I knew he felt the effects of this as much as I did, but I didn’t know what was going on in his head at that moment.

I couldn’t stand being away from Mark a second longer, so I stumbled to my feet and began running towards him. The second he saw me move, he started running towards me as well. I threw my arms around his neck, and he grabbed my waist. We kissed, both just as desperate as the other for the touch. I never wanted to let go, now that I had him back. Tears poured down my face as I was finally connected with my mate again.

The sound of several sets of feet echoed through the forest, catching my attention and breaking the k**s Mark and I were sharing. I looked over and saw Rie, Scythe, and Mason emerging from the forest, changing from their wolf forms to their human forms. As they ran over to us, they paused to look at Cain, unsure of who stood in front of them.

“Arrest him,”Mark ordered. “That’s Cain.”

Cain’s eyes went wide. “I saved her. How dare you!”

“You took her from me and put her in danger in the first place,” Mark growled, tightening his grip on me.

I hissed, noticing there was a pain in my side. I must not have felt it before because of the adrenaline.

Ginger appeared in front of us. “Stupid boy!” she instantly scolded Mark. “You could have gotten yourself killed. You should have at least brought me if you were going to insist on these shenanigans.” She paused and took in the scene for a moment. Her eyes lingered on Cain and then narrowed. “I don’t think so.”

Cain tried to use his magic on me, but Ginger lifted her hand, stopping him in the middle of whatever he was trying to do.

“I’m assuming this one is to be taken captive?” Ginger asked.

“Yes,” I said confidently. I didn’t care that Cain swooped in and saved me at the last minute. That was not enough to redeem him. I looked at the others. “Reyland and Jori need medical attention. I’ll explain everything later.”

Mason nodded. “We have others coming shortly. They’ll be able to help us with all of this. It’s good to see you alive, Adira.”

I smiled, my body starting to feel shaky. “I’m happy you are all here.” A wave of nausea washed over me, and I could tell something was wrong.

Mark grabbed my arms to hold me steady. “Adira, what’s wrong?”

I squeezed my eyes shut tightly. “I think I might be injured.” I reached down to my side where there was a growing stinging. When I lifted my hand, there was b***d on it.