The Silver Bear's Mate

by Fay Walsh

  “There is something that I would like to ask you, Vicky. Do you know if your family was versed in any kind of magic or the occult? Travis told me that might be the reason why you could wield the knife with such control,” he explained.

  Vicky shook her head.

  “Not to my knowledge. I think I just learned from my own practice of magic and the occult. It was something I was honestly obsessed with for years, like in a very unhealthy way, but nowadays, I just kinda wait to see what happens instead of seeking out the spirits or practicing séances to find out,” she said.

  “That makes sense. Thanks for letting me know,” Sven said.

  He trusted her. He did believe her, and he wondered if maybe her diving into that subject was the reason why she had all this power. He figured it was a subject best left for the future, and best left for another day.

  About three days passed, and Vicky didn’t leave. It was very relaxing to have her around, and for the first time in a very long time, Sven felt happy. He was relieved to know that she was here with him, no matter what they needed to face next, but Sven had a nagging feeling in his body, one that kept bothering him.

  One night, after they made love, Sven laid there, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. It lasted only a moment, but it changed everything.

  Sven saw it happen, and as he saw the sky grow red, he saw a large, imposing figure. It was huge, and it destroyed the land around him.

  The vision then changed from the fighting to Travis losing his head and the figure that was resurrected laughing in response.

  “Foolish to think you’ll win! I defeated all of you,” he said.

  Just like that, the vision went away, and Sven looked over at Vicky, who had widened eyes and a look of fear on her face.

  “What just happened?” she asked.

  “I… I don’t know Vicky. I'm trying to figure out myself just what happened, and what I saw. It was a little scary to say the least, but I definitely don’t like the way that it felt,” he said.

  “Yeah, your aura changed a lot at this point. It was like… like you were dying. It was a bit scary, and I almost thought that I had to get Travis or something,” she said.

  “I think we need to see Travis. I need to tell him. We’re all in danger,” he said.

  “How though?”

  “I don’t want to explain here. It’s better if we talk to Travis about this,” he explained.

  Vicky nodded, following him out of the house and over to where Travis’s place was. He knocked on the door, and moments later, Alana showed up, looking at them.

  “You guys look like you've seen a ghost,” she said.

  “Kind of. Listen, Alana, we need to talk to your partner. There's something going on, and we need to discuss it with him,” Sven said.

  “Very well. Let me grab him,” she replied.

  She called out for Travis, and moments later, he trudged over there. When he saw both of them, his eyes widened, and Sven could tell he knew something was wrong.

  “This is serious,” he said.

  “Yeah. I think we need to talk with Darren about this too. I saw something. He needs to know,” he said.

  “I see. I'll go let him know. Go to the conference room that we were in the other day, and we’ll go from there,” he said.

  Sven nodded, taking Vicky’s hand and heading over there. As they were about to leave, Travis spoke.

  “She’s going to be there too, right?” he asked.

  “Yeah, Vicky was around when I had the vision. She has a right to know,” he said.

  “Very well. I expected nothing less,” he said.

  The two of them went over to the conference room, an anxious air around all of them. Sven didn’t know what was going to happen next, or what Travis would say. It worried him, that’s for sure. He didn’t know what to do about any of it, other than to hope for the best and expect the worst. He sat with Vicky, both of them not saying a word. She knew better than to ask about this right away. He wondered if she was as worried about this as he was.

  After a bit, there was the sound of footsteps coming in, and the door opened up. Sven saw Travis and Darren there, both of them looking at him with expectant eyes.

  “This better be good,” Darren said.

  “It is, sir. I had a vision,” Sven said.

  “Oh, lovely. Of what?”

  “I got a vision. It’s not over. I don’t know the details, but the vision that I got showed me a large shadow, one that was bigger than I ever saw before. I also saw flames everywhere, and it was like it triggered a demon or something. But that’s honestly not the worst thing I witnessed either,” Sven said.

  They all looked at him, and he soon sighed.

  “What I witnessed was… the downfall of our clan,” he said.

  “I know that soon real battle will begin. That's what I saw. Now Travis, what I'm about to tell you might be a little bit surprising, but I had to. I can't lie to you, and you deserve to know. Plus, you’re more mature than others if I mentioned this to them,” he said.

  “Tell me. I must know,’ he said.

  Sven felt a pang of guilt as he was about to utter these words, but he knew what he had to do.

  “Travis I… I saw you beheaded in my vision. Whatever it was that is trying to kill us, and it succeeded with you. I didn’t see anyone else die, but I think it’s safe to say that we do everything in our part to keep the clan safe from whatever is out there,” Sven explained.

  Travis nodded, listening to him.

  “I see. Is there anything more you can tell me,” he said.

  “Not right now sir. I don’t have much else, but I think Vicky needed to hear this too,” he said.

  “Yeah. I'm sticking around by the way. I want to stay here. You all make me feel welcomed, and I'm happy to help in any way that I can,” she said.

  “Very well. So you do know a bit about magic and the occult, right?” Travis said.

  “Yeah. I didn't get any other information, other than the aura that Sven had,” she said.

  “Really now? What aura?” Travis asked.

  “It was like… like he was dead. I don’t know much about what is happening, Travis, but I think we should stay on guard until we can figure out exactly what it is that’s going on,’ she said.

  “I see. Very well then. I guess this is the decision we’ve made,” Travis explained.

  “Correct,’ Darren said.

  “Yeah. I know this potentially puts everyone in danger, but we just have to be on our guard,” Sven said.

  “Yeah. There is a big risk here. We don’t know what we are up against. Normally, I’d say let’s just ignore it but you weren’t wrong in the last couple of instances. I trust you, and I know that you're telling the truth, Sven. For now, I think we should all stay in the same location and not venture out too much, unless we’re going to our jobs. There is trouble brewing somewhere, but I can’t figure out where, and that's what annoys me the most about this,” Travis said.

  “You’re telling me. I hate that I don’t know either,” Sven said.

  “Well, your job is to keep her safe. She has powers, more than my mate, and more than Darren’s mate. You might be onto something, Vicky, and while it is very strange for a human to know all of this, you don’t really know for sure yourself, so I believe it’s just coincidence,’ he said.

  ”Yeah. I want to help you, sir. I think it may benefit all of us. I know that I'm not strong, but there is something about me that is different from the rest, and I don’t want to stay here without assisting you with this, which is part of the reason why I'm sticking around too,” she said.

  “Very well. Thank you for that by the way. You’re a good person,” Travis said.

  Vicky blushed, and Sven thought it was cute. However, he did want to talk to Vicky about something once this was all over. She wanted to stay here, and a part of him wondered if that meant living with him. He would figure it out later.

  After they all agreed to keep watch over the
area and everyone safe and near, they parted ways. Travis looked at Sven, and Sven looked back at him, wondering what the alpha wanted.

  “Sven, keep her safe. I have a feeling the enemy might want her. She’s powerful,” Travis said.

  “Indeed. Should we tell anyone else about this?”

  “No. We need to keep them out of the loop for as long as possible,” Travis said.

  “Got it. Thanks, Travis,” Sven said.

  “You’re welcome. Anyways, I gotta get back to Alana. See you around,” he said.

  He walked back, and Sven felt happy that he told someone about the vision that he had. He was happy that Vicky was safe, but he did feel apprehensive about the future. However, there was something else that he wanted to ask Vicky, and when they got back to the house, he turned to her, blushing as he uttered his words. However, as he was about to do so, a force attacked, pinning Vicky to the ground.

  “Ahh!” Vicky cried out.

  “Vicky!” he screamed.

  The figure came out, bloodied and looking at Sven with a smile on her face.

  “Pleasure to see you again Sven,” she said.

  “Laphy...”

  “Isn’t it funny how things happen? I expected this to be a heartwarming experience for all of us, but now, I get to see all of you die by my hands. And I even brought a little present as well,” she said.

  In her mouth was a sword, one that glowed a bright yellow color, and when Sven stared at it, he immediately jumped.

  ‘But...”

  “It’s over, Sven. It really is,” she replied.

  She then lunged at Sven, but before he was attacked, Vicky held the knife up, parrying her attack.

  “But… how?” Sven said.

  “I had it on me. Stay back, Sven,” Vicky said. She brandished her knife and

  Sven watched as she started to fight Laphy. They each dealt blow after blow, every single one of them getting closer to their vital points. Could Vicky win? He thought she killed Laphy, but it was probably just a mere wound.

  Vicky saw the sword coming at her, and she blocked it, but the force of the blow was enough to send her back.

  Laphy laughed, moving forward and then holding the sword at her neck.

  “I can’t wait to see all the blood,” she said with a snarl.

  Laphy slashed at Vicky, and as Vicky tried to run away, she felt it graze against her hand. She screamed, but it was like there was no sound coming out. She needed to win. Sven was trying to help, but she looked back at him.

  “This is my fight. She’s got a means to kill you. I think… I think I know how to kill her,” she told Sven.

  “How?”

  “Come closer, but not too close,” she said, skirting away as the knife cut her a second time.

  She saw Sven amble closer to her, and Vicky smiled.

  “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay. You need to come here and help me grip the knife,” she explained.

  Sven listened, but that didn’t mean he would be able to do so easily. He moved over there, moving towards the knife, but Laphy then cackled, stabbing Vicky in the leg.

  “How pathetic! You fight his battles ‘cause he can’t fight his own. How cute,” she said.

  “Ahh!” she screamed out.

  “Vicky, please!”

  “Sven, don’t, you’ll die if that knife touches you. Just come over here. I have an idea,” she replied.

  Vicky was serious, and while Sven hated to see her get hurt, he knew he was in the range of her knife. He followed her words, dashing over.

  Vicky closed her eyes, hoping she could win, but then she felt a hand on the handle of her knife, gripping it with her.

  “Sven?” she said.

  “Hey. Let’s finish her off. Together,” he said to her.

  She looked at him, immediately turning red. He then moved upwards, taking the knife and with his help, they both leaned forward, stabbing her in the heart. Vicky helped brace him, even though she was coughing up blood from the attack. Sven kept her strong though, holding her arms. It was a deep wound, and she even cried out, but Sven watched as she fell back, blood pooling out of her chest.

  “I guess… this is it,” she said.

  “It is. It’s over,” Vicky said.

  “That’s so funny. The fact that you think you can beat me. You won’t win. The prophecy will come true,” she said.

  “How much do you know about the prophecy?” Sven asked.

  “Enough that you don’t need to know the details,” she said with a smile.

  Vicky and Sven both held the knife, the power of both shifter and human commingling together to form a different kind of power. Vicky knew why Laphy had come back to life, it was because she was a part necromancer. The fact that she could manipulate her body to live on.

  “We need to figure out a way to kill her. She’ll just revive herself, like last time!”

  “I know, but how?” Vicky asked.

  He saw Laphy getting up again, and despite Vicky stabbing her in the heart multiple times, she was tenacious. Sven never encountered an enemy like this before, let alone one that could regenerate. He looked about, when suddenly, a voice interrupted them. He looked out of the corner of his eye, and he noticed Alana, Lisa, Travis, and Darren there, each of them ready to fight and in their shifter forms. However, Alana had something in her hands, and she then threw it over to Sven, crying out.

  “Here!”

  Sven caught the bottle, looking at the contents.

  Alana had given them both a vial of something, and when Vicky held it in her hands, she realized it was holy water.

  “Dip the knife into that,” she said.

  Vicky looked at Sven, and Sven helped uncap it.

  “You need to deal the final blow,” Vicky said.

  “No. We are doing it. Together,” he said to her.

  “But what about-”

  “Vicky, I can’t do it alone. I’ll help keep your body balanced and braced. But we need to do this together, in order to get rid of this damn necromancer.”

  He looked over at Vicky, who was ready to argue, but then, she nodded.

  “Alright,” she replied.

  They both held the knife there, the shining dagger glowing in the light. A little sparkle of holy water trailed down the side of the knife, and when Vicky saw the hue it possessed, she knew immediately what to do. She would have to kill her with this, to put an end to it. Sven would help her in whatever way he could, hoping that the knife wouldn’t touch.

  As he saw Laphy resurrecting herself, Vicky let out a cry, plunging the knife into her chest and holding it in there. Laphy let out a bloodcurdling scream before finally dying. She felt the pain this time around. Sven could tell that this was the end, and she wouldn't come back to life.

  “You did it,” he told Vicky.

  However, before Vicky could even look down, Laphy started to slowly fade away.

  “Jesus,” she said.

  “Yeah. It’s her fate I guess,” he said.

  “Yeah. Anyways, we should probably get back,” Vicky replied.

  Sven nodded, and he moved behind Vicky. They looked back at the others, and Alana quickly tended to Vicky’s wounds, which thankfully weren't deep. Sven looked at her, and when he felt the footsteps behind him, he turned.

  “Oh, Darren,” he said.

  “You two need to talk about the future. It’s not my place, but I see it in your eyes,” he said.

  “I will, Darren, thanks,” he stated.

  Darren walked away, and soon, Sven was alone with Vicky. She hobbled back, and finally, they got to the house. He could see the look in her eyes, the desire to explain something, something that she wanted to say before they were interrupted.

  “What do you want to tell me?”

  She moved back, and after a brief second, she sighed, turning to him and speaking.

  Chapter 20

  “You want to stay, right?” he asked.

  Vicky looked at him, realizing what he was ask
ing.

  “You mean with… you guys, right?” she asked.

  “Yeah. You mentioned it to Travis, but I was a little surprised myself,” he admitted.

  “Yeah. I want to. I realize that being with you is nice. I don’t feel like I'm lying when I say that I love you and that I want to be with you. It’s relieving in all honesty,” she admitted.