Chosen: Book 2 A Realms of the Otherworld Book

by Jana LaPelle

  Through our bond, I hear Ashlinn, “Hello, mo grá. I've missed you so much my handsome Elf-Man. Dagda and Danu are here with me as well as Jasmine and Garrik. I know that you're upset, but I promise that I'm okay. I need you do as I ask so that Tarron will have the witches drop the wards to let you and everyone in. You need to instruct everyone with you to move across the boundary of the property once the wards are down as quickly as possible. As soon as everyone is inside, the wards will be going back up. Can you do that for me Alaric? I need to be with you, but you have to do this first. Please, Alaric can you instruct your men?"

  I know that she can see me, and my anger at not being able to get to her due to the wards is coming off me in waves as I respond to my kindred, “Ash, I will do as you have asked. But from here on out there will be no more barriers between us. I have missed you mo grá. We have much to catch up on Ashlinn.” Turning to my men and our druids, I say, “As soon as the wards are down we are to move inside the boundaries as quickly as possible. The wards will be erected again as soon as we are inside. Turning back toward the direction of where I know Ashlinn to be I say to the thin air in front of me, “Now, Ashlinn. We’re ready.”

  I quickly mount Tempest. As the wards begin to come down, it looks as if I'm staring into a mirage as the air starts to ripple, the scene changes as an enormous manor comes into view. I only have eyes for Ashlinn as I urge Tempest forward and he takes off, straight toward her. I'm off my mount before he comes to a halt. I race towards her. Her smile lights up her entire being, she is running toward me, all that long beautiful hair dancing in the wind behind her. Before I can even process what she is doing, she has launched herself right into my arms, and I clasp her tightly to me breathing her in as I feel our bond fully click back into place. Our binding marks flare to life at being reunited again.

  I feel her warm tears as she buries her face in the crook of my neck clinging to me. I hear her whisper, “Please forgive me, I’m sorry, I’m so very sorry for what has taken place here.”

  I pull back, and my concern is palpable as I ask, "Ash, what are you sorry for?"

  "I kissed Tarron. I have betrayed our kindred bond. I'm so sorry, can you forgive me?" She is all but begging me as tears trace down her face, and my heart and soul feel the agony that she has put herself through over that minor transgression, something that I was prepared for in the event that she was taken.

  I place her back on the ground and gently pull her face up to meet mine as I say, "Ashlinn, you have done nothing wrong, and therefore there is nothing to forgive. I love you, and this child that you carry." I cup her face in both hands and lay a gentle kiss on her forehead while wiping her tears away with my thumbs and ask, "I trust that you are both unharmed?" I shift my focus to her belly and place my hands there as I notice the ever so slight roundness that was not there before and I kneel to kiss her modest baby bump.

  Ashlinn cradles my head in her hands and runs her hands through my hair as she says, “We are both perfectly fine. Better now that we’ve been reunited with you.” She smiles as she reaches down to pull me up for a kiss. For a moment, I become lost in her. Her touch, her scent, the very feel of having her back in my arms again soothes my soul until I remember the reason for this reunion. I pull out of our kiss and switch my focus. I have tamped down my anger toward my once best friend long enough. My barely contained rage is about to burst forth from me as I pull away.

  "Mo grá, I need for you to stand back, I have some business that needs tending to. Know that I love you and there is nothing that you need my forgiveness from. However.." Turning away from Ashlinn I see the target of my anger, and before I have a chance to think about my next action I have shifted, and I'm bounding toward my nemesis.

  (Ashlinn)

  “Noooo! Alaric. Stop!” I’m yelling as my kindred has sat his sights on Tarron. I could feel his anger and rage boiling just beneath the surface of his emotions, but I thought it was contained for the time being. I was wrong. Alaric's seamless shift is faster than any that I have seen before, and his panther quickly leaps toward Tarron. In mid-leap, Alaric takes his original form back and tackles the incubus to the ground. Before they even hit the earth, Alaric is pummeling him, as punch after punch connects with Tarron's face. I see Tarron move from beneath Alaric at a blinding speed attempting to avoid the attack. Alaric actually hits earth as his last punch lands, clearly missing his adversary and his fist connects with the ground causing the skin over his knuckles to break open. Alaric shifts and is on Tarron in a heartbeat, and the skirmish continues. True to his word, Tarron does not fight back. He takes punch after punch that Alaric delivers, all the while trying to evade Alaric. I can no longer allow Alaric to indulge in his anger.

  “Alaric! Stop! Please! I beg of you. He isn’t even fighting back.” I feel weak in the knees as I take in the scene before me as Alaric continues the onslaught. I send as much as I can through our bond to gain his attention. I feel someone come to my side and look up to see Tolin and my guard. I’m quickly throwing myself into his large muscular frame.

  Tolin's arms come around me in a brotherly hug, and he holds me close, and I hear, "We missed you, Little Bit. Shhh… Now. You know this needs to be done.”

  “Make him stop, Tolin. Tarron is now our ally. He needs to stop.” I say into Tolin’s chest.

  “Ash, Alaric by rights could have Tarron’s head on a silver platter, and not one person here would object to that. Taking someone’s kindred is a crime punishable by death. You would be wise to let him work through his anger.” Tolin advises as I bury my face in his chest not wanting to watch the beating going on behind me.

  I hear Alaric’s proclamation, “You will suffer greatly for what you have put her through.” As I hear his fist, connect with Tarron's midsection. "No amount of punishment will ever right the wrong you have done to my mate," Alaric grinds out as he continues his onslaught. I turn to see Alaric deliver a right uppercut jab to Tarron’s jaw that sends him flying backward. The muscles in Alaric’s arms and chest flex and bunch at the action. Alaric stalks toward Tarron as he climbs to his feet, intent on continuing the beating.

  In frustration, I hear Alaric grit out between the blows he continues to deliver to Tarron, "Fight back. Damn you. Fight back. You son of a bitch!” I turn to see Alaric lay off of Tarron as Tarron moves more quickly than I can track.

  "Listen Alaric. I was wrong. I know that now…”

  “Damn straight.” And he lands another blow to Tarron’s face and with a sickening crunch; I know he’s broken Tarron’s nose.

  Tarron stumbles backward as blood rushes from his nose. Before Alaric can pounce again, he moves in the blink of an eye ten feet way before saying in raspy, nasally voice, “I should never have enacted the blood contract, and for that, I'm truly sorry." Tarron ducks and moves away from Alaric's oncoming attack. His face has taken quite a few blows and is bruised and bloody. "We have reached an accord, Alaric, we now have a common goal. I know that you are beyond angry with me, but I want us to work together in this. I will do whatever it is that I must, to move passed this." Tarron says, hands up in a submissive gesture. I know that does not come easily for him, he is as much an alpha male as Alaric.

  Alaric pulls back and looks at Tarron pointedly and says, “I’m not sure you understand the depth of my anger towards you Tarron. You. Took. Her. From. Me. You refused to even have a civil conversation about it. Your intentions toward my kindred, my mate, would have made it so that we both suffered a lifetime. She's carrying my child, damn it! I'm not sure that I can ever forgive that transgression. I know I'll sure as hell never forget how it felt to know that my once best friend had so little respect for me that he would take the one thing in all The Realms that would bring me to my knees! I can't even look at you without wanting to pound your face into a bloody pulp. You say you're sorry and you want us to work together. But sorry doesn't even to begin to cover it. What I want to know is why the change of heart, Tarron? You had her in your clutches, I felt the darkness
take hold with vicious intent, and for a moment I shared her agony. She was so close to giving into the pull. Why back down?"

  "Alaric, it was something that she said to me that triggered what I can only describe as a sense of wrongness. In the end, I had to be willing to give her up in order to save her from losing her soul to the darkness that was binding her to me. Once that decision was made, I was able to see more clearly what my path could be if I only embraced all of whom I am. I'm drawn to the light I see shining from her, but I know now that she and I were only ever meant to be friends. We have made peace with that. All I want now is for the two of us to align so that we might protect her by any means necessary. I know, it's a lot to ask, and we may never be friends again, but I would like to align The Horde with your army." Tarron says expectantly waiting for Alaric's response.

  I pull out of Tolin’s arms and look around. For the first time, I see the division amongst us all as I walk up to the two males who are still very much caught up in a visible battle as they stare each other down, steamy puffs of air rising up above them as they catch their breath. I slide my hand into my kindred's, and I feel our binding markings begin to tingle, and I wait for Alaric's response.

  “Tell me Tarron, how can I possibly ever trust you? Your actions over the last several years speak volumes as to the male you have become. You too easily gave into your anger and your sense of entitlement. Why should that have changed in such a brief period of time?" His anger is still barely contained, and I attempt to soothe him with my touch alone.

  "It was my time with Ashlinn. She helped me to see the male that I should be and not the one that I had become. In the end, I had no choice but to do the right thing." Tarron pauses as he looks the two of us over, standing together as a united front, as he continues, "If I continued down the path that I was going, I would have pulled her down with me, and that was not an acceptable outcome. Ashlinn deserves far better than that. The Realms need her. I needed her. She was the key to saving me from myself. Do you think it is easy for me to discuss this with you in front of my people? To lay myself bare before you all? I’ve made mistakes, and now this is me fixing my mistakes. I know that I will have to earn your trust Alaric. I know that it will not be an easy thing to do. I know this.” Tarron concludes.

  I decide to chime in at this point as I address my handsome Elf-Man, "Alaric, you, yourself said that actions speak loudly. Tarron is finding his way back from a very dark place. He summoned Dagda so that he could help me. All I know is that he has been kind, thoughtful, and protective since coming around and even before. Those are his first actions since turning over this new leaf. They should count toward earning our trust. All I ask is that you talk with your uncle before making any rash decisions. I understand that, for you, all of this is still so very fresh and like an open wound, it will take time to heal. I have had that time in the last several days. You have not. I know you're still angry, and I know you want to crack his skull in, but I know that we'll need Tarron and The Horde in the war to come." I pause to allow my words to sink in before continuing, "Look at me, Alaric. I'm okay. We… we’re okay. Isn't that all that matters in the end? This was meant to be, as is the alliance between us and the dark fae. The Horde needs change, and The Realms need for us to take The Morrígan down. We can only do that if we stand together as a united front. Alaric look around you, you can see the visible divide between us. It's up to us to bring about change. There was never anything for me to forgive Tarron for, don't you see? This was meant to happen. There is a higher power at work here, and we must fix the divide within Faerie." I say resolutely, waiting for my kindred's response.

  I feel it the moment Alaric backs down. He sighs heavily, as he pulls me in and wraps his arms around me and says, "You make a compelling argument, mo grá. I will talk with Dagda. I just need to have you by my side. I'm not sure that I will be able to have you outside of my line of sight for some time so get used to having a permanent shadow for a while." He kisses the top of my head as he changes his focus to Tarron and says, "You and I have much to settle between us. I cannot as easily put all of this aside, but if we are going to work together, we have to find some way around this. For now, I chose to hear you all out. I cannot allow my personal feelings toward you and your actions dictate what is best for all The Realms. So for now, I will agree to a truce of sorts until we can come to an accord, one that will be mutually agreed upon by us all.” He pauses as he looks around, taking in everyone around us before continuing, “For now, Tarron, we are at your mercy, we are all tired, and none of us have slept in days. If you don't mind, we will need to set up camp so that my people can get some rest."

  "Alaric, that won't be necessary. I have set aside more than enough rooms to accommodate you all. The manor is quite large, and we should all be able to lodge there with no problems. I assume that you will want the majority of the day to spend with Ashlinn. So might I suggest, that after our evening meal, we gather in the study? That is if you think you will be ready to continue this discussion." Tarron says in a rather nasally voice. I can see evidence that he is already beginning to heal as the two continue their somewhat civil discussion on moving everyone indoors.

  About that time I realize that we are being surrounded by a crowd of people and I turn looking for Lexie. She's elbowing her way through the tall males. She breaks free to throw her arms around me in a tight hug. Somehow or another, Jasmine has suddenly reappeared after being MIA for days. She is hovering just above Lexie's right shoulder, and as I return Lexie's hug, I see that Jaz has a rather handsome male sprite with her. I wink at my little friend, and she blushes furiously, all the while clasping her new friends hand in hers. So much for her crush on Camoryn, I think before saying to Lexie, "I missed you." I hold my best friend close. Lexie goes to pull out of the hug, but I can't seem to let go just yet, as I whisper, "Thank you. Your charm saved us all. This might have played out rather differently if it hadn't been for your insight and the charm you cast on my talisman." I pull back to look at her beautiful face and smile. "See? I knew that we were meant to take this journey together."

  Lexie's chin goes up defiantly as she scolds, "You've been keeping secrets, Ash. I knew there was something off with you that night. Why do you always feel like you have to do these things on your own? I just wish you had of confided in me."

  "First of all, I wasn't alone. Jasmine was with me, and she was a rock star. I'm not sure how I would have made it without either of you. You both played an integral part in what needed to be done. I never sought to deceive you. I just knew that you and Danu would have done anything in your power to keep me at the Glenndale Lock and that was not my path. We're a team. We may not always be together, but we are a team none the less. I love you, Lex, please don't feel like I don't trust you because I trust you with my life." I impart with sincerity.

  Lexie sighs heavily, as Declan comes up behind her and she says, "Okay, Ash, you're off the hook. This time, but we are seriously going to work on your need to run off and save the world on your own.”

  I sense that Alaric and Dagda are talking as I feel myself lifted off my feet from behind as my father asks, “How’s my baby girl and her peanut?” He flips me around as if I weigh nothing and wraps me in a huge hug. “Are you getting enough rest? Are you eating enough? You aren’t starving my grandchild, are you? I was worried about you Ashlinn." He says as he gently puts me back on my feet and I see that he and my mother have been reunited once more as she stands by his side smiling at the two of us.

  "I'm good. Father, I have a surprise for you." I say looking around the crowd on the lawn, and I see that my Fab Five have moved to the back of The Horde that is in attendance. "All of you guys, come with me. You need to meet my Horde Sentries. I have nicknamed them my Fab Five. Come on.” I urge.

  I hear Tolin say, "You didn't give your Guard a rad name. I'm not feeling the love, Ash."

  I snort as I say, "You and your brother have your own nickname, TNT." I'm marching across the lawn on a mission. Thos
e five think they can get away from me. They have another thing coming. As my group makes its way to my five, I proceed to say, "Garrik and Dorlan were assigned to me while I was here and they are both Fomorian. Garrik was amazing and never once broke his cover until after the contract was voided. Camoryn is a satyr and has the best sense of humor, Khatar is a dark elf and is so serious, but he's kind and thoughtful. Then, Father, there is Nym and he and I kind of bonded." About that time Nym turns toward us, and my Father stops in his tracks.

  “Nym? Is that you? My dear boy, we had no idea where you ended up. You really need to get in touch with your parents they have been worried sick about you." He looks between us, and he asks, "You said you bonded, what do you mean? Is Nym one of your protectors?”

  "Yes, Father. I almost instantly felt safe with him, and he has been very protective of me. I just thought, after I found out we were cousins, that it was a family bonding, shifter, thingy." I say, looking at him quizzically. About that time Alaric comes up behind me and wraps me up in his arms. "Alaric, this is Nym he's my cousin, he's Rhespen's nephew."

  Rhespen looks between us as Nym inclines his head toward his uncle and I sense that there is more to the exchange. I look at my father questioningly as he says, "Ashlinn, Nym's shifter side has officially appointed himself you and your child's Cerberus, your protector. He will be relentless in protecting the two of you. This occasionally happens, it is more common that the mate takes that role, but where you were separated from you mate, Nym took on the responsibility. You are forever in my debt, nephew. You will forever be tied to Ashlinn and her young. Your sacrifice is admirable."

  “What do you mean sacrifice?” Alaric and I ask at the same time.