Bound By Legend

CHAPTER TWENTY: WHITE AS THE MOON

LEORIC

My fascinating, beautiful, bleeding heart of a mate is going to be the f*****g death of me.

How do you protect a woman that faces danger on all sides, from enemies that play in her face and hide in the shadows–but also runs straight into danger to help others with no regard for her own life?

“Are all doctors like this?” Koda pouted in my mind. Reverie and Kamari didn’t even seem to remember we were there next to them as she fussed over Uma and her injuries.

“This is going to feel weird, Umie.”

Uma’s body felt oddly heavy in my arms. I hated it. She was normally so lightfooted, aloof, and seemed to float on air and merge into the shadows–yet right now? She was like a weight, a weight so heavy it felt suffocating as the panicked emotions shot down the mate bond from Kamari.

“No, just ours, apparently,” I answered him.

“She didn’t listen. She never does.” He groaned.

“We tried to tell her it was a trap. She already knew and raced toward it anyway.” I wanted to shrug, but didn’t want to disturb Uma.

Despite our obvious displeasure, we were both well aware we were in awe of her. Reverie and Kamari–like nearly all wolves–were one and the same. They scented trouble and sprinted toward it, without any reservation. We were also well aware, if it was something that would take her from Rhiannon she wouldn’t risk it. Everything they did was calculated, precise, exactly what you would need, ten steps ahead.

I could feel Koda swell with pride inside of me as he took note of my thoughts. “Our mate is strong. Brave. Beautiful.”

I smiled and took her in as the fabric of reality seemed to bend around them, her eyes began to glow as she surged her energy forward with the Spiritweave. Kamari opened the mate bond to show us what she was seeing as she jumped into the mental space of Uma. Reverie’s anxiety heightened as Kamari’s focus sharpened when they discovered Uma’s systems had begun to shut down. Kamari recruited Reverie’s soul into the bloodstream with her. The two of them bounced along the darkening bloodstream. They traveled through and siphoned some of our energy to carry them through Uma’s trauma to the root of the poison.

In a dark corner of Uma’s mind, the poisonous coils wrapped around Devoe’s massive panther form. He was anchored to the ground of the mind space and his life force faded with every passing second.

“No, Uma, you are not allowed to die, you hear me!” Reverie called as her hand raced over the trauma within Uma's body. She clutched the poisonous smoky tendrils as they tightened further around Devoe. I felt hopeless as I watched from the outside, Reverie and Kamari yanked and pulled, unable to tell the difference between panther and tendril.

“Devoe. Old friend. Don’t you dare leave me,” Kamari ordered. Her Luna Calm energy stretched across the place as she attempted to calm herself and Reverie. All the while, the two of them worked together to subdue the tendrils. Her immense pearlescent coat shone in the darkness. She placed her paws on what I assumed was Devoe’s chest and pushed. “Devoe!” Light exploded from her.

The tendrils disintegrated, Devoe was free at last. The poison? Gone. A shockwave of power rippled through the mindstream dangerously. Kamari grabbed Reverie’s spirit and yanked her onto her back. The two of them rushed through Uma’s mental warscape, healing the trauma from the battle and poison as they went.

Reverie pulled back for a second as she saw a section that was darker than the rest. “Kamari…”

“We can’t. That's not what we are here for.” Kamari answered immediately.

“But she needs help we can’t–” Reverie tried to argue but Kamari was stronger as she launched back towards the exit.

In seconds they were out just in the nick of time before they could get sucked into anything deeper.

Our mate-bond snapped shut. Uma sat up with a start, her injuries healed. “Goddess, what the f**k?!” Reverie almost collapsed next to her, but Devoe was faster.

Before Uma could gather herself, Devoe pushed to the surface and caught my mate before she could fall to the ground. Uma steadied them both as I helped them to reposition so Uma wasn’t in my lap anymore.

Uma looked down at her side and cried out in shock, “Reverie! That was f*****g bizarre!”

Reverie’s eyes overflowed with tears as she all but tackled her friend in a hug. I pulled away for a moment to give them some space, my eyes drifted around the field. Koda’s eyes zeroed in on every single piece of evidence.

“The gun. The body. The treeline. Everything about this stinks.” Koda commented.

“There on the back of his neck. The same sigil as Delilah.” I replied mentally.

“It can’t be a coincidence.”

“It is not.”

I immediately mind-linked Merrick, my Beta. “Mer, how is Rhiannon?”

His response was immediate. “Currently riding the Lana the Lion, adorned with a sword and shield as she chases Alfred away from her not so secret, secret base. What happened? Is Reverie alright?”

I let out a sigh of partial relief. “Double the guards, high alert. I have now seen the mark of Crescent Asunder twice.”

“They’re back?!!? Why now? Have they discovered Rev?”

“Targeted her, yes. But I don't think they know the truth. Delilah bears the mark.”

“Of course she does. I’ll dig into it, Alpha. Send me everything to my phone since I know you eliminated the threat. Rhiannon is currently on top of the secret base with a war drum–a real one.”

I laughed and sent him all of the information I’d gathered on my journey thus far.

Koda laughed inside of me, “Wait, when did we get a lion?”

I shook my head and smiled, “Clearly since we’ve been gone…”

I focused back on the women.

“Reverie, are you good? You are pale.” Uma asked after her eyes finally focused on my mate.

She did look pale and exhausted. Anxiety crawled up into my throat. Does Spiritwalking shorten her lifespan? Healing everyone’s trauma like she does? I had always known it was a dangerous game to play. Always a potential for getting attached to that trauma, or lost within, or even sucked into the mental prison of someone else. I made a mental note to start researching her powers more seriously–for such an immense power must require a cost. Nothing that powerful was ever free.

I shoved the emotions down, unwilling to think like that, but the thoughts wouldn’t stop. I wondered, if someone were to enter Kamari, or Reverie, in the way of a Spiritwalker, what would they find? Does a Spiritwalker take on the injuries they heal? Or, does healing those injuries sap their energy? Make them weaker?

I shook my head and willed the negative unknowns away. I did not want to be buried in the what ifs at that moment. My gaze scanned the area again in search of evidence. I took some photos.

Uma cracked some sort of joke that made Reverie punch her in the arm, then hug and kiss the spot as she apologized profusely.

Something in the atmosphere shifted. “We need to get out of here.”

I sent a mindlink to my hidden bodyguards. “When we vacate, bag and take the evidence, get it sent to Merrick immediately.” Their acknowledgement was fast.

Reverie helped Uma to her feet. “Are you alright?”

Uma nodded. “I think so? I will need to return to Shadowspine.”

“Just in case.” They said together with a nod.

Kamari showed through her eyes. “We need to gather our dead. Treat our wounded.”

I looked at her in exasperation, Koda joined in with a growl. “You just healed Uma. That took a great amount of energy. You can’t be serious.”

I looked in her eyes and knew she was.

Had already known she was before I even asked the question.

She planted her feet, crossed her arms. Kamari at the surface, “People need my help. For as long as I have life in my lungs, I will be helping them. At the end of the day, until I leave, this is still my pack.

Uma sighed. “It’s no use, Leo.”

I ran my hands through my hair, and pulled at the ends like I wanted to rip them out of my head, then paced for a second. “I swear woman, you are going to be the death of me.”

She smirked. “We need to keep you on your toes somehow.” Kamari’s eyes glowed through hers even more. “But for the record, not only am I doing this because helping people is my calling, but i am more than f*****g pissed.”

As she stormed off, there in the rising sun I saw it. A small piece of her dark brown hair–had turned white like the moon.

My heart thundered in my chest. “Koda?” I said aloud.

“I see it, Leoric. Wolves’ hair turns grey when they become Elders..” he replied.

“Not white like the moon…” I echoed the horrifying sentiment.