WolfHeart

by Konstantina P.

  “Until you hit me on the head! What is wrong with you?”

  Danny snorted. “What´s not wrong with her?”

  “Okay, okay,” Jason intervened before the situation escalated. “Let´s try something less nerves-inducing.” He picked up a candlestick from the windowsill and put it in front of Cora. “See if you can light that.”

  The girl glared at him but looked at the candle nevertheless, pursing her lips and squinting at it like it held all the answers of the universe.

  “Maybe she should say some words or something,” Danny murmured after a few moments of ridiculous candle-staring passed.

  “Or move her hands around. Like this,” Ian agreed, making a weird snaky motion with his fingers.

  “Or simply check with the others,” Jason said, rolling his eyes.

  Mark and Lynn -the only people who could offer a solid piece of advice when it came to magic- were at the infirmary gathering ingredients and cooking up their potions, using -apart from what knowledge they had gathered themselves over the years- what little Cora could remember from when she had access to the Magics´ libraries. The young witch had made a promise to herself and she had made sure it was clear to everybody else; she would help the Werewolves thwart the imminent attack, protect them where she could, but she would never hurt anyone, especially a Magic. Therefore, what she gave the two healers were merely protection spells and hindering potions and runes. Although Lynn and Mark appreciated her input -Lynn going as far as admiring her moral principles- it was nothing lethal; nothing even remotely hurtful. Mark had bucked at that but Steven ordered them to make do with what they had. Part of the Alpha didn´t want to further antagonize Cora, but his strongest desire was to not let her have any more blood on her hands; to come out of this ordeal as pure as she always had been.

  Steven knew all the heavy lifting should be done by the Werewolves. He, Jen and Kate had been at the training fields since early dawn getting their small army in shape for the upcoming battle. Kate, in a show of submission that had the Anders´ suspicions rising, had allowed Steven to order her men around instructing them herself to follow the man´s lead during the training and the battle. Jen was not allowed to fight for practical reasons but she had joined them anyway, mentally taking notes to share with her brother once alone. When the sun rose high enough to make the day extremely sweltering, Steven took pity on the men and gave them some time off to cool themselves down while he went in search of his Betas, hopeful they had made some progress.

  “Just, let me try again,” Cora said, dismissing the comments about her incompetence. “And keep quiet! I can literally hear you guys breathing down my neck.”

  “Sorry, your highness,” Erin mocked, causing Jason to cuff her playfully on the ear. She responded with her middle finger which earned her a shove from her underboss. She lost her footing and tumbled over Cora, her flailing leg knocking the candlestick over. Steven´s untimely entry had him witnessing his friend´s graceful moves. One look at him, shirtless and dirty, caused Cora´s desire and anger to flare. Unfortunately, those weren´t the only things that got lit up... Erin felt a sudden wave of heat hitting her face and, before she could fathom what was happening, her hair was on fire. She let out a squeak and started thrashing about, inevitably spreading the fire as the cotton floor-cushions went up in flames in an instant.

  “Oh my God!” Cora crawled towards the blonde Beta not sure what exactly she was going to do, but Steven was quicker. The Alpha grabbed a quilt from the nearest sofa and used it to pat Erin´s head before throwing it on the floor and stepping on it in little repetitive kicks that put the fire out effectively. Once certain the last spark was out, he rushed to Erin who had stayed on the floor panting disbelievingly.

  “Are you okay?” Steven asked her, turning her head around to inspect the damage. The fire had singed her beautiful long blond mane up to shoulder length but she wasn´t hurt otherwise. Steven let out a sigh of relief, his shoulders sagging after the adrenaline rush.

  “I´m so sorry,” Cora whispered, horrified, one hand frozen in the air outstretched towards Erin. Everyone expected the female Beta to throw a fit and Jason stepped in front of Cora to protect her from the incoming rage while Ian walked behind his girlfriend ready to restrain her. She surprised them all though, bursting into uncontrollable laughter, cute giggles that had tears well up in her eyes and made her belly muscles hurt.

  “You did it!” She hiccupped. “You actually fucking did it!”

  The Werewolves turned to Cora who was gaping at Erin like a fish.

  “Shit,” Jason said but there was laughter in his eyes. He turned on his heel and knelt in front of Cora. “What were you thinking about? Right when Steven walked in. What was in your mind?”

  Cora hesitated for only a second before looking the Alpha dead in his eyes. “How much I would like to punch him in the face.”

  “That´s it!” Jason whooped. “He´s your anchor. You just have to channel your anger-”

  “And intense sexual desire,” Erin said trying to sound serious.

  “And intense sexual desire,” Jason parroted, “into power. Here, try this again.” He picked up the candle and held it in front of Cora. “And this time think of Steven.”

  The girl looked at him unconvinced but did what was asked and returned her attention to the candle. She huffed in annoyance when nothing happened. “This is ridiculous.”

  “Think about him helping treat your wounds?” Danny tried and this time a spark almost lit the wick before disappearing into a puff of smoke, making Jason cough.

  “The sex?” Said Ian hesitantly, making both Cora and Jason glare at him as Erin smirked.

  Out of nowhere, Cora felt a rough hand on hers, gently prying her fist open and lacing their fingers together. She looked down at her lap and then back up at Steven who was staring at her, a fond expression gentling the harsh lines of his face. Out of Cora´s control, the candle burst into a tall, bluish flame, so sudden and intense that caused Jason to jump back, nearly burning his eyebrows off.

  “Do you mind toning it down a bit?” The Beta´s voice rose over the roar of the flame.

  “Sure! Any ideas how?” Cora yelled back. She drew her hand away from the Alpha´s and his whimper gave her at last what she was looking for. Feeling grounded for the first time in years, she managed to dim the flame down into a small tongue of light.

  “This is useless,” the witch said, knowing that the Werewolves hadn´t realized she had commanded her power. “Find someone else to help you.”

  Jason put the last flame out with a soft exhale and a huge frown almost splitting his face in two. A chance display of magic wouldn´t get them anywhere.

  24. CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES

  By the sixth day after the council, Steven´s pack was desperate as Cora had still to get her magic under a semblance of control. The Alpha had stretched himself thin between training the Werewolves, strategizing with Jen and keeping an eye out for Kate, half-expecting her to double-cross them just to spite him and Cora. The plan they had come up with seemed simple to conceive if not to execute. Steven´s pack plus Kate were to form teams that would take upon themselves the destruction of the charms, leaving the town magically unprotected. The soldiers would stay behind the stone walls ready to start their advance under the instructions of Joe until Steven could take over. Jen, Moira and John were to remain safe inside the lair at all times, ready to defend it and its people if something went wrong and the others didn´t make it back. The Royals were the Werewolves´ last defence.

  Jason and Mark had to cover the west side of the town and they did a quick job of unearthing and destroying their rune-stone before joining Danny and Lynn south. The redhead had no problem having Danny´s back when they lifted their side of the barrier and two Magics came through testing the waters. Ian and Erin at the east wall were slightly less lucky as a lightning spell left the blonde blind long enough for Ian to receive a deep cut on his thigh trying to defend her. Fortunately, their four friends found t
hem before any permanent damage was done and one of Mark´s power-stripping potions along with Jason´s swift strikes, made sure those particular attackers wouldn´t cause any more trouble. When all of the Betas and the two healers came together, they rushed north, just in front of the town´s main gate where Steven stood, Cora on his left and Kate on his right. A cursory look around told them everything they needed to know.

  Their Alpha had destroyed the last charm, leaving the town open to the Magics on all fronts. Cora had her right hand on Steven´s left shoulder looking straight ahead without blinking, her eyes glazed over. Kate´s claws where out and her arms covered in blood up to the elbow. That explained the nightmarish state of the two dead bodies lying in front of her feet. Everybody expected Steven to have already given the order so that Joe could bring their army out but, as the pack walked as one to flank their Alpha, they realised that was not the case.

  “What´s wrong?” Jason asked as he took his place on Steven´s right side forcing Kate to take a step back. The Alpha had his head tilted towards Cora, listening carefully at the sounds coming from the forest in front of them. Heavy footsteps were approaching, fast, but Steven held his stationary position.

  “Send five men out,” the Alpha said under his breath, loud enough for his uncle to hear him. The gates behind him opened and five Werewolves came out, Steven noting with relief that Joe wasn´t among them. He needed someone he could trust implicitly inside to guard his back.

  “What´s wrong?” Jason repeated urgently but it was Cora who answered.

  “He´s speaking inside my head,” the girl said and tightened her grip on Steven´s shoulder. The man growled, sensing her discomfort, and ignored her burning handprint. “He´s coming alone. He wants to talk.”

  “There´s more than one pair of footsteps,” Ian pointed out.

  “His personal guard. Just to be safe,” Cora repeated what the voice inside her head was telling her.

  “Jason, take the wolves and spread out,” Steven ordered his second. “Lynn and Mark you stay behind me. Whatever happens, make sure she stays safe,” he pointed at Cora. The two barely had the time to nod before the girl let out a gasp.

  “They are here.”

  At the edge of the forest appeared Larson with ten of his men and a polite look on his face that did nothing to ease the pack´s suspicions. Even if there wasn´t the stench of his rotten soul, using their friend as an unwilling mouthpiece was enough to justify their mistrust.

  “That´s close enough,” Steven yelled when the Magics were at three hundred feet from them. Larson and his men stopped moving and the King threw his hands up in compliance.

  “I am here to make you an offer,” the psychotic man said.

  “Release her and we can talk,” the Alpha said, his tone commanding. Larson waved his right hand around and Cora´s posture seemed to melt as she let out a sigh of relief and her knees gave way. Steven didn´t move, eyes always on the enemy but knowing he could trust his pack. As a testament to that, Mark was right by Cora´s side to hold her upright until she regained her footing.

  “Speak your piece.” When Steven spoke again Larson´s facade slipped for a mere second, his lips quirking flippantly. Before the Alpha could work out the source of it, the Magic King´s mask was back on leaving the Werewolves more on edge.

  “I started this war because I wanted revenge,” Larson admitted, “but too many of my people have paid the price.” He was canny, having faith in that the best lies will always hide a speckle of truth in them. The fact that the first thing out of his mouth the younger Werewolves heard was an admission of guilt was also a huge advantage, making them pause for a moment and listen. But Steven wasn´t fooled. He had found himself on the other side of that trick enough times in his battle-filled life to know when to see through it.

  “I want this to stop. Before I lose any more of my people´s trust,” Larson continued with another truth; caring about his kingly status rather than the people that had gifted him with it.

  “So what do you propose?” Steven asked, feeling Cora´s anxiety next to him rising.

  “I will take my army and leave your kingdom. If you return my daughter to me.”

  Cora looked at Steven waiting for his response. She hoped he would make the right choice but it was not her place to speak yet.

  “Not happening,” the Alpha said and his Betas nodded their heads in agreement.

  Murmurs rose from inside the town at their Prince´s blunt dismissal of the olive branch and Larson knew that, if he played his cards right, he could cause an altercation between the two remaining standing Werewolf families.

  “I forget that I am speaking to a love struck fool,” the Magic leader said. “Is there a Queen here to properly negotiate with?”

  “The Queen surrendered this role to me. Trust me, she agrees when I say that your daughter goes nowhere with you.”

  “I was afraid you would say that,” Larson said with a -seemingly disappointed- sigh. “But come! This is a family matter. Let´s get rid of the strangers.” He lifted his right hand and tongues of flames made their way among the Werewolves, bypassing Steven´s friends and scorching the five soldiers that had come out of the gate under Steven´s order. Cora had no time to react. The men´s agonized screams rose high before disappearing into a purple cloud of smoke. Not even their ashes were left behind. It seemed like both Larsons had an affinity for fire.

  Jason and the others ran back to their Alpha´s side, blocking Cora from the Magics´ view. Even if they couldn´t do much against the onslaught of ethereal, untouchable enemies like flames and strange winds, they would sure as hell try to defend their own.

  Kate, silent for too long for her liking, reminded everyone the reason she was a wild card. “Give her to them. How many of our men have to die to see that she´s bad news?”

  It was a big mistake, as Larson´s eyes landed on her the moment she opened her big mouth. “Oh look! I forgot one!”

  Another flame appeared out of thin air heading straight for the Baman Alpha. Cora yelled “No! Stop!” and pushed past Ian, throwing herself in front of Kate. The fire bounced off her back, leaving her unscathed where the Werewolves had been obliterated, and went out completely, leaving behind a panting Kate plus five more Werewolves and two Humans horrified by what had almost happened.

  “How did you do that?” Erin whispered.

  Cora ignored her and looked straight into Kate´s eyes. “Stop contradicting Steven,” she said to the stunned woman.

  “Remarkable,” Larson marvelled, drawing everyone´s attention. “But not as remarkable as this!” He snapped his fingers and every nearby object turned into a Magic; trees, stones, birds, butterflies... Everything, during the time the barrier was down, had somehow found a way to crawl closer to town. All of a sudden, Steven and his friends found themselves facing hundreds of their enemies, all looking straight at Cora, not a care for the town behind them.

  “You see, before you managed to shut us down, our experiments had already told us what was the gene that makes you people shift. All we needed after that was a little manipulation of that particular trait. Besides, let´s face it. You are men who turn themselves into wolves. That´s magical itself isn´t it? It would be pretty ironic to turn my men into wolves too but, alas, they came out too wild to control. Plus, they have no mind of their own. Just now I had to turn them back myself. Otherwise they would happily live their lives as whatever. They respond only to me. And pain, I suppose.”

  “He really likes the sound of his voice,” Danny murmured making Erin snort. “Can we attack now?” Cora threw them a scolding look for trivializing the situation and turned her eyes on her father, cataloguing his every move.

  Steven gave the signal for Joe to lead the men out in the open. The heavy gates behind him were lifted and the Werewolf army marched out, neatly aligned and deadly calm. For every dozen of Werewolves there was a Human armed to the teeth with potions and the duty to protect their charges at all costs; to keep them fit for fighting. Ev
eryone knew they were outnumbered, no more than two hundred Werewolves and Humans total. Half of their men had remained behind to guard the Queen and the civilians and, if the worst came, do their sad duty and fight the last battle above the dead bodies of their friends.

  Joe reached Steven and surrendered his command, the men immediately breaking into factions; that part was well rehearsed. Jason led his men to the right, Danny and Mark with him, while Joe brought his segment left, Erin, Ian and Lynn among them. Steven kept the middle, Cora always within his reach and, of course, Kate and her men. Once the army had formed a semicircle around the Magics, the Werewolves started shifting, a roar rising in the air in answer to Steven´s mighty one calling them to stand with him. The world froze for a few precious seconds but then, accompanied by Larson´s manic chuckle, the Magics attacked. A variety of colours painted the atmosphere with traces of spells, potions and raw power that could be considered beautiful if not for the death toll they were leaving behind.

  Joe and Jason tried to circle their opponents and attack from behind, enclose them in a tight ring and divide their attention. But the Magics wouldn´t stop going for Cora, not caring what was happening to their men bringing up the rear. Steven´s men were getting the brunt of the attack and diminishing in exponential rhythm, forcing his friends to pull back in a desperate attempt to reach their Alpha. Every single soldier knew that if they gave Cora up the slaughter would end, but no one was willing to betray her. Steven´s men were loyal to a fault and even the Bamans had just witnessed the witch saving their Alpha´s life. A gesture like that deserved much more than their spilt blood according to their code.

  Larson, who hadn´t moved a muscle since the battle started, eyed the field in sick satisfaction. Steven and Kate were fighting back to back, cut off from the rest of their men but in perfect sync, the movements coming back to them naturally after having each other´s back for so long during their engagement. Cora was kneeling at their feet making sure no one saw her casting protection spells whenever someone got too close for comfort. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a Magic kid -no more than fifteen years old- standing frozen in the middle of the battlefield. Ian was about to cut her through and Cora would sooner die than let that happen. With a whispered incantation, the Beta found himself on his back and the teenage girl was transported into the safety of the forest, alone yet unscathed.