Bloodbound to the Beastly King

Thorne paced around the room angrily, his jaw clenched tight. The two men in the room stood still, waiting for his orders. Suddenly, he stopped, turning to them.

"Caelum!" He called, and the beta stepped forward, ready to take his orders.

"Double the warriors. Triple them for all

I care. Search every nook, every cranny, every hole in the realm and bring Carter to me." He gritted out through clenched teeth.

"I'm giving a royal decree. Seize everything Carter owns. His pack, his estate, his houses across the realm, his business. Every single thing he's ever done. I want it stripped bare. Take every single thing he has to fall back on. Those he stated in his pack's documents and those he thinks he's hidden. His daughter's lands, the business opened in their names. Take everything from his family." His voice was cold.

"Throw his people in the dungeon. Break them. Torture them until they confess where their Alpha hides."

"Including Victoria and Freya?" Caelum asked.

Thorne's gaze darkened, "Every single blood of his. Everything that bears his name and carries his blood is to be treated as a traitor. Especially his daughters. If they can't account for their father's whereabouts, they'll rot in the deepest pits."

Carter nodded, "As you command, Your Majesty."

Thorne's gaze shifted to the head warrior, who then stepped forward, "Your Majesty, I have the men scouring through the area. We will find the Lord soon."

"I don't want soon. I want him found now!" He barked, and the man nodded. "Forgive me, My King, but what about the alpha?"

Thorne's gaze narrowed. "Which alpha do you speak of?"

"Alpha Radek, Your Majesty. He is dead. What shall we do with his body?" Normally, they didn't need to seek the king's attention on what to do with dead bodies, but this—this was Radek, a traitor. The head warrior couldn't just carry out orders without the king's approval.

Thorne's jaw tightened. For a second, he stared at the table as if weighing a hundred punishments at once. Then he looked up, "Sever his head. Mount it on Obsidian's gates. Let every eye that crosses those walls see. Let them know who happens to lowlives traitors." He spat out.

"Have Carter's face drawn and scattered through every corner of this realm. I want a bounty on his head so heavy that even his own allies will turn him in for coin. No one will give him shelter. Let him see how it feels to be hunted."

The head warrior bowed then stepped out of the room. Caelum turned to leave but paused, "The woman who was with Carter." He began, drawing Thorne's attention.

"I hear she's a witch. She must've cast the spell on Adina that day."

Thorne nodded, he thought of it too. The witch must've been in the palace, and he didn't know… too busy trying to catch the beast. They must've cast their spell on Adina then.

"Those creatures that fought for Carter…" Thorne began… "Do we know what they are?" He asked.

Caelum shook his head. "Not as of yet."

Thorne hummed, turning to the windows. He had an inkling of what they were, but… they didn't quite look it… he was at a crossroads, but it didn't matter. Once Carter was found, all of this would be done for.

________

"What?" Thessara's voice boomed through the room. "What do you mean you swallowed the core?" She blanched.

Adina winced from how loud she was being. "Thessara…"

"Lay down flat." Thessara ordered. Adina sighed, staring at the woman. "Thessara."

"Adina!"

"I'm fine, Thessara. I know it's scary, but honestly, I'm fine. I don't feel bad. It's not affecting me. I'm fine." She repeated for the third time.

"I— you don't understand how powerful this is, Adina. Your body, it's just— You already hold Virelya's powers and yours. Adding the core to it is a death sentence. I have to check and be sure—"

Adina nodded, holding onto the woman's hands. "I know, and you will, but not now, please not now." She squeezed her eyes shut, taking a deep breath. "I don't want more bad news, Thessara. I just— I just want a moment of peace."

Thessara's lips parted open, she stared at the woman in front of her and sighed. "Fine. I'll let you have your peace now, but.. child, you will need to let me check on you. The core—" she paused, shaking her head. She didn't want to scare her, not after all she's been through already.

"I'll check you later, alright."

Adina nodded, throwing her legs off the bed, ready to get up. Thessara's eyes narrowed seeing this. "W-What? What do you think you're doing?" She blanched.

Adina smiled sheepishly, "I want to check on Kora and Mason."

"Adina, they're both fine. You need to rest more and—"

"I've rested well enough already, Thessara. I brought them into this mess. I need to see them for myself and know they're okay." She argued.

Thessara stared at her for some seconds then nodded. Somehow, she couldn't find it in herself to say no to Adina.

"Alright, I hear you. But I'm coming with you," she huffed, adjusting her robe as she walked after Adina. The young woman's steps were unsteady, but she clearly wasn't going to rest—too stubborn for her own good.

They rounded the corner and came to a room guarded by two warriors. The men bowed, opening the door.

Inside the room, Mason lay on the bed, his arm bandaged and chest rising evenly. He was awake, propped on his elbows, glaring daggers at the girl beside him.

He must've sustained quite an injury if he couldn't heal himself. His gaze shifted to the door where Adina stood, and he smiled, sitting up.

"Don't-" Adina rushed out.

Mason rolled his eyes, "I'm okay. I swear I am. Kora here kept insisting they bandaged me." He gritted out, glaring at her again.

"Because you needed it. Your arm was going to fall off if I didn't ask them to. You can just say thank you." Kora huffed out.

Adina's gaze shifted to her; she too had been fighting back there and sustained a few bruises.

"My arm wasn't going to fall off. I'm a werewolf, Kora. I will heal normally. This is shameful."

Kora gasped as though she'd been struck. "Shameful? Oh Mason, you really are ungrateful. I should've just let your arm rot." She spat out.

"Ungrateful? First, it's gamma Mason! And… You nearly did with the way you tied the bandage," Mason shot back, lips twitching despite his words.

Kora gasped even harder, "How— You— Can—"

"What? Cat's suddenly gotten your voice, you gargoyle."

"Gargoyle!" Kora screeched.

Adina pressed her hand to her mouth, laughter spilling before she could stop it. Gods, after everything, hearing them argue like this felt almost surreal. "You two," she shook her head, tears prickling her eyes. "You saved me. Both of you."

Kora's face softened instantly, a smile

making its way to her face while Mason grumbled under his breath.

"We'll do it all over again." Kora mumbled, walking to Adina and hugged her tight.

"Yes, let's not," Mason said behind.

Kora stiffened; she snapped her head to the man. "What? You don't want to save Adina again? Is that what I hear?"

"I'd rather she's not caught up in a madman's nest. Carter is clearly demented and the witch?"

Kora rolled her eyes, "It just sounds like the gamma is scared of a little—"

"Finish that sentence, and I swear to the gods I will—"

"Gods above. This is worse than fucking torture!" Thessara's voice echoed through the room. In their haze of arguing, they didn't notice the woman.

"T-Thessara." Kora stuttered, face heating up.

Thessara stepped forward, arms crossed over her chest. "You both just went through one of the most troubling times of your lives, but you'd rather spend the freedom you've got bickering?"

Kora and Mason looked away, while Mason grumbled lowly. "I've gone through worse, but…"

Thessara's eyes narrowed, and he kept quiet, looking away. Thessara shook her head, "You are both insufferable." She glanced at Kora, and her brows raised. "Try patching those bruises on your face. You spent all that time arguing over bandaging Mason; you forgot to patch yourself. Must be one hell of a dislike you have for him." She grumbled.