Blood and Chains

To Be Found

“Oh my!” Flynn hadn’t stopped laughing since we left the Giggling Goblin’s Alehouse. “I didn’t know you were so gullible.”

I rubbed my forehead. “I am regretting my decision to pair up with you.”

Flynn's laughter finally subsided, and he wiped a tear from his eye. “Come on, princess, don't be like that. I did it all for your own good.”

I shot him a glare. “For my own good? Almost killing me with that Veil of Roses was for my own good?”

Flynn's smirk faded, replaced by a solemn expression. “Look, I didn't think it would react that way with you. I just wanted to make sure you were prepared for the challenges ahead.”

I let out a frustrated sigh. “Prepared? And how did almost dying prepare me finding my brother?”

“I mean you know what death feels like now.”

“I don’t need to know what that is like.” I barked. Flynn didn’t know how often I got to the point of death growing up.

“I’m sorry,” he said seriously. “But now, you’re not hungry for at least a week. That means we can run around looking for your brother without having to stop for your hunger.”

“What about your hunger?” I asked.

“What about it?”

“Aren’t you going to be hungry?”

“I can pick up anything or go weeks without food.”

“What a weird werewolf.”

“Not…” he paused for a second. “a werewolf.”

“Then what? Eli seemed sure you were a wolf.”

“There are many kinds of species that are wolves.”

“I know a lot of classifications that have wolves. There are Lycan, werewolves, Skinwalkers, hellhounds, some fox spirits, and I know that there are “gods” that are animals.”

“Why did you put quotes up on the gods part?”

“Because they are just overpowering, long living creatures. Nothing is truly immortal.”

“What makes you say that?”

I looked at him, his eyes were turning golden. “Gods were something humans saw, and when bad things happened, they started offering things to the gods, which didn’t always result in good things. Some of the stories are similar, some are wild.”

“Which ones are wild?” he asked in a serious tone as we walked through the woods.

“Hmm.” I thought about it for a moment. “I think the Norse are some of the wildest. Not including the native stories I’ve heard.”

“Why the Norse?”

“Oh come on, a snake that will devour the world? Egypt also has something similar to it.”

“Maybe Egypt stole it from the North.”

“I doubt that. Egypt has been around for eons.”

“So has the North, just quieter.”

I shook my head. “Whoever made it, it is impossible. Then there is the wolf who will devour the king of the gods but somehow got tricked into being a slave. If he is trapped, which is sad, if he can kill the king of the gods, wouldn’t he bite through the chains?”

Flynn laughed. “You don’t know much about that story huh?”

I blinked at him. “Of course I do.”

“Who is the king of the gods?”

“Zues?”

Flynn laughed harder. “Wrong crowd.”

“He is the king of the gods.”

“But not of the Northmen.”

“Thor.” I blurted out. “There, I told you I know it.”

Flynn rubbed his chin. “Well, it isn’t exactly true.”

“Who is then?”

“Odin.” He said plainly, looking forward.

Just like that, the conversation ended, and we didn’t discuss the gods again. Just like that, the conversation ended, and we didn’t discuss the gods again. Lost in my own thoughts, I barely noticed when Flynn came to a sudden stop, causing me to bump into him. His hand shot out instinctively, steadying me before I could stumble to the ground.

“What's wrong?” I asked, my voice tinged with annoyance at being disrupted from my musing.

Flynn’s eyes were fixed on something in the distance, his body tense with anticipation. “We're being watched,” he whispered.

I followed his gaze and saw a pair of glowing eyes peering at us from behind a nearby tree. They were an intense shade of red.

I crouched down and before Flynn could reach to stop me. I was gone. I may be the forgotten princess, but I still knew how to hunt.

I made a quick grab at the base of the neck. I pushed down with my full force, the body flayed and let out a scream. They reached behind them and tried to claw at me. My knee went into the small of their back. I heard a small crack, and then silence. I knew I hadn’t killed them if they were a true vampire like they smelled.

Smell…this smell was familiar.

I quickly got up. “Zion?” I yelled. Flynn came running over, and looked down at the body in the mud.

“Did you find another one of your toys princess?”

“He isn’t a toy!” I snapped.

Zion groaned.

“What is he then?”

“He’s…” I couldn’t bring myself to say what he currently was. “My best friend growing up.”

“You definitely slept with him.”

“No.” I hissed. “There isn’t anything going on like that between us. There is more a chance I would marry you than him.”

“Who said anything about marrying?” He eyed me up and down. “Are you asking me to marry you?”

“Fat chance.” I snapped before looking over to Zion’s limp body once more.

Another groan was heard from him.

“Zion why are you following me?”

“I thought you might need some help finding your brother.” He still was face down in the mud so his words were a little muttered.

“I don’t.” I said, pulling him up from the mud. “Go home Zion.”

“Zel, I thought,” he trailed off.

With a sudden jolt, Flynn lifted his head and turned to face him. His eyes darted around, scanning the area with an intense focus. It was a look that Tracker's from years before had worn - one of alertness, trying to count and identify every person and sound around them. In response, I turned slowly in a circle, attempting to sense any presence or movement nearby. At first, all I heard was the faint rustling of leaves in the wind, but then I noticed the eerie absence of other sounds. No buzzing insects, no gurgling water, not even a creak from the trees. The stillness was unnerving and made my skin prickle with unease.

My gaze met Flynn's and he gave me a single nod, indicating the trees off to our left at a forty-five-degree angle. Without hesitation, I stealthily made my way in that direction, taking care not to go in a direct line. Instead, I circled around to their left side, keeping myself hidden from view. With a mental command, I extended my sharp claws to their full length, ready for any potential threats. I focused on keeping my eyes their natural brown shade, not wanting to give away our presence with the tell-tale red glow. I moved like shadows through the underbrush, my movements fluid and silent as I closed in on my target.

As quietly as I could, I took a step closer, until I was behind them. They were crouched down, wearing all black. Zion was still in the same spot we left him. I gave a quiet smell, vampire. But not a vampire I recognize.

In a split second, I cover their mouth with my hand and drive my razor-sharp claws deep into their stomach. The force of my attack pierces through their entire body, leaving a gaping hole in its wake.

“Shh.” I whispered. Their body went limp.

My eyes followed the lifeless body as it dropped to the floor. I quickly wiped my bloodied hands on my pants, trying to rid myself of the metallic scent that would surely alert the others.

Without pausing, I sharply changed direction and ran to the left, scanning for a new target. Out of nowhere, I found someone lying on the ground.

Instead of attacking them like I did with Zion, I jumped on their back and stabbed them similar to the other one. This one unfortunately made a grunt before he died.

“They found us!” someone yelled.

“Kill them!” Another screamed.

The trees thrashed violently, their branches whipping like tendrils of fury. Blood-curdling screams echoed through the air, drowning out all other noise. The sickening sound of flesh being ripped and torn apart filled the air, until suddenly everything fell silent. The stillness was suffocating, as if even nature itself had been stunned into silence by the gruesome scene.

Flynn came walking out of the trees with no shirt on, and blood all over him. He wiped his face with what looked like the remnants of his shirt.

“Shit.” He huffed.

I ran out to him, “What happened?”

“I killed them.” He stated.

“I heard that.” I gave him a deadpan look. “I meant with your shirt.”

“Oh, one guy ripped it before I could kill him.”

“Oh.” I simply said. In the pale light of the moon, I finally got a clear view of him, and I couldn't help but admire his incredibly toned physique. He appeared rather ordinary under his shirt, maybe with a hint of muscle, but now that I was seeing it in person, it was even more impressive. His body could be described as nothing less than godly by most standards.