AMETHYST: The rise of Tetra

Chapter 24

    ‘No one in this world is going to separate me from you’ the words of the Alpha had surely been comforting to the woman he loved, though they were not quite accurate. As much as the Alpha had thought to himself that he would succeed in his mission to rebel against the rules of the Warmecks, and spend the time with his mate he very well deserved, it wasn’t until the door to Eliana’s chambers was blasted open and an intimidating figure stood right ahead, that the two realised just how much they had messed up on their very first night on unknown lands. It took the pair no time to come to the conclusion that the woman standing in front of them was no doubt the commander of Warmecks: Paulina Stem, and the compromising position they were in had been enough of an indicator that the consequences would not be pleasant. Silence had been the initial point of contact of the immortal pair and the harsh commander, who did nothing but look at the pair with a neutral expression, one she soon decided to break with speech. 

    ‘Eliana Genova and Razaar Solonov, co-leaders of Hybrids and great Alpha and Luna of Gloarian. Pleasure to meet you, I have heard loads about you, I am Pulina Stem, commander of Warmecks’ she began, slyly informing the two that she had expected such a thing to happen in the first place. No matter how hard Razaar would try, he would not be able to get one night of peace with his mate, because despite sneaking in successfully, it was an obvious fact that the pair wished to room together, and that was unacceptable on the territory there were. Eliana had sensed the dislike her mate felt towards the situation, and despite feeling it too she remained polite, knowing that that was the only way to go with the powerful commander. Getting off her bed and putting some unwanted distance between her and Razaar, she walked bravely towards the commander, who sneaked a peek at Razaar from the corner of her eye. 

    ‘Pleasure to meet you Miss Stem. I do apologise for the sight you’ve just had to witness. I’m afraid my mate and I are still getting used to the rules around here’ stated Eliana, keeping herself stern as she did so. Razaar joined her side not too long later, 

    ‘Yes, I can see that. Though the rules are clear, Miss Genova. Mates get one day in the month where all rules will be exempt, that day happens to be a certain distance away, so I recommend Mr Solonov that you return to your assigned room for the time being. I hope the rules are clear to the two of you now, and I expect that you will stick by them. I will let the pair of you get some rest tonight, and tomorrow we shall discuss the details of your stay and training’ she responded, waiting for Razaar to reluctantly go past her before exiting the room herself and closing the door behind her. 

    Eliana released a breath she had not even noticed she was holding in, and cursed herself for allowing Razaar to come to her in the first place. As much as she wished to spend the nights with her mate, she had accepted that this would be her new normal until they returned to Gloarian with triumph and a lack of hierarchy.  

    The next morning had been equally as awkward as the night before, and as the couple advanced to Paulina’s office after breakfast, they dared not to grab each other’s hand or even look between each other in front of the intimidating commander. 

    ‘Please, take a seat’ instructed the woman, and as they did they realised the stunning views that surrounded the office of the woman, including the water pit at the far end of the room, decorated with flowers all around. They were pulled back to their reality only when she continued ‘Remo here has informed me of the upcoming war that we must prepare for. Now, I assume that you have gathered the rest of this planet to join us in this war?’ She asked, her tone the scariest out of all leaders they had faced. Eliana nodded, and Paulina continued. ‘Very well, we will commence with your training immediately then. I will split it up into several parts. I’m sure Remo has already informed you about a thing or two regarding your training, but I will go over it with you once more. Because you will be facing the Vermillion, we will master your training against every species of the strongest 6. Starting with the Doirekh’s, then the Vermillion Witches and finally the strongest of them all, the Vermoca’ before she could proceed any further, Razaar squirmed his eyes trying to make sense of her statement. 

    ‘How is the Vermoca the strongest of them all? I thought the Vermillion Witches-’

    ‘Then you thought wrong’ interrupted Paulina, not caring about the rage it fired within the Alpha who as always detested all sorts of disrespect that he had received only on Tetra. ‘Clearly you are misinformed, and have no idea what you are really up against, for that reason before diving into training for each species you will receive a theory and practical lesson about what exactly these creatures are capable of doing before you begin training physically and mentally. Mental training will come later, about the same time you will learn about the Vermillion Witches. It has come to my attention that you, Miss Genova, have already had an experience with the capabilities of the Vermillion Witches?’ She questioned, and waited for Eliana to bob her head up and down despite already knowing the answer. ‘Well then you would understand how crucial it is to train mentally and protect yourself against what they are capable of. It may sound terrifying, and perhaps it will be so too, but torture training, as terrible as it is, is something all Warmecks must go through to toughen up. We need to be ready against the worst of the worst, and if you will train with us then you must do it our way. Results are guaranteed, but you must remain strong until this is all over.’ She spoke, no emotions in her tone whatsoever. The glance that followed between the pair reminded the commander to release the reminder of rules against mates on her territory, and warn the pair of what would happen if they broke the rules again. ‘Just a reminder that on this territory your initial priority is training and looking out for the wellbeing of Zaleon. I understand that you are new mates, and that you have been through quite a lot, though you yourself know how crucial it is to train and get ready for the battle to come, so I expect you will maintain your distance and follow the rules as they are released. You will get to spend time with each other, though as mentioned that day has not arrived yet. I will forgive your acts of rebellion last night, because I know you are unfamiliar with our rules, though ensure it does not happen again or the consequences will be severe’ the words that came out of her mouth had now begun haunting the couple that -since they arrived- had only been hearing the sin it was to love their mate, the way the flame had entailed it to be. What these people had against love was a mystery they could not solve, though the mention of it had raised a question in the mind of the Hybrid leader she could not stop herself from asking. 

    ‘I understand that, and I apologise once again, Miss Stem. I do want to ask, however, how will our training work? Will they be separate? And who will train us? Remo informed us that you run separate trainings for males and females and I was only wondering what the scenario would look like for us’ Her question, however desperate, had been necessary, and Paulina ignored their need for togetherness, focusing on the answer. 

    ‘On Warmeck territory males and females train separately, that is true, though your case happens to be rather unique, Miss Genova. I understand that you are immortal and that the two of you hold a certain power that no other Ivory has?’ She questioned, having caught onto the details that neither Eliana nor Razaar had revealed to her. The pair nodded in unison, and so she continued ‘So I have decided that it will be best if the two of you train together, only so you can learn to fight with each other, not against each other. Regardless, the rest of the rules remain, and as for who will train you, I will train you myself. My assistant will work with me should I need to attend to any other responsibilities, though for the most part I will be the one carrying out the training’ she responded, clarifying the image to the couple. Before they could proceed to question or add anything, she carried on. ‘Now, before we start training, I need to test your physical strength, and determine whether it is worth it to train you or not. If you pass, then I shall train you. If, however, you do not possess the power and spirit that I am looking for, then we will not train you. Rest assured, the Warmecks will take part in this war for that is our responsibility and purpose on this planet. Though I would much rather think that the immortal person and member with special abilities would like to train to protect their people with some guarantee. I expect you will prepare well for the fights’ she added, initiating the process of pressure on the pair’s heads. The couple suppressed the panic within them, believing in their authoritative side as they kept their calm, and understood that neither could despite the damage they would suffer. 

    ‘Who would we be fighting against, exactly? And when?’ Posed Eliana, preparing herself for what was to come. 

    ‘You will be fighting yourself first, then you will fight the Warmecks. I understand that you have never fought against one of my kind before, so I will give you the day to prepare, the training grounds will be yours. Tomorrow at daylight we will test your abilities, and decide your fate then’ she revealed, leaving the pair stunned in their seats. It had all been escalating too quick, though, what had they expected?

   ‘Will we be fighting in our human forms or our animal forms? Are we allowed to use our powers of nature?’ Asked the Hybrid leader, getting more and more worried about fighting the Warmecks. She hoped to the flame that their abilities would come to use, and could only hope that the Warmecks would not figure out their secret: that Razaar was, in fact, immortal too. Paulina had yet to show a reaction at the news that she was immortal, though the thought had not bothered the commander who had faith in the training her people had. Immortal or not, the Warmecks were prepared for anything and everything.  

    ‘You can fight in whatever form you wish, use whatever powers you’d like. As long as you can defeat one of your opponents, I have no issue with what you do’ revealed the leader, not making things any better for the pair that were now genuinely terrified of what would happen. They had never before experienced the temor of fighting, knowing that they were strong enough to defeat whoever came in their way, whether that be Ivory or Amethyst, though for some strange reason, the thought of fighting a warmecks had been insanely unsettling to the two of them, who simply by observing the lifestyle of this kind had picked up their immense strength. As they pondered upon the thoughts, Paulina stood up, ready to show them to the training grounds where they would spend the rest of the day tirelessly preparing to fight the Warmecks.

    Grontica had already demonstrated that the Hybrid leader was more than capable of protecting herself, even against her own mate and the great Alpha of Gloarian, though with the nerves that built up in her system, would she be able to beat him again?

    ‘This is where you can train, should you have any doubts or questions, you know where to find me’ she informed, taking her leave, and leaving behind a guard. Remo had been present at the sight, and advanced towards the couple to utter his final words before he too, would take off to fulfill his duties and responsibilities. 

    ‘Good luck preparing. I will leave you with one tip, prepare for anything and everything. Warmecks train to fight against all species on Zaleon, they know your strengths and weaknesses inside out. They’ll be anticipating any and every move, so my suggestion will be work on your defence. Maybe then you’ll be able to catch them off guard and strike’ his words had only added more pressure onto the couple that moved further into the training grounds, and stood there for a brief second wondering what to do. As always Razaar disallowed his mate to feel the slight discomfort she had been, and so he grabbed onto her hand for some comfort, before the protests began.

    ‘You are here to train, not to mate. Focus on the task my commander has given you’ the guard spoke harshly, pushing the Alpha over the line and finally triggering him through. As he began taking a step forward to come face to face with the guard, Eliana stopped him, placing a hand on his chest that she retrieved rapidly. 

    ‘He’s not wrong. We have to train, there’s not way we are going to win against the Vermillion if we can’t defeat the Warmecks’ her words, no matter how true, were like an annoying itch on the back of the Alpha he could not reach, and so he agreed and nodded, commencing the training process with his mate in a way he never before could. 

    For countless hours the pair circled each other, sparring, attacking and defending to the best of their abilities, switching from one form to another and using their new found powers of nature. It had been enough to bring each other down with ease, though the smirking face of the guard that stood by had signalled that they were perhaps nowhere close to being ready to face the Warmecks in the fights the next morning. 

    By the time dinner approached, and the pair were forced to bid each other farewell, Razaar only hovered around his mate for an extra moment, having his final words with her before the fights would take place. 

    ‘We do our best, and ensure that no one finds out about our secret’ he began, only getting an unsure nod out of his mate, before he continued with the only other thing he could say, and he hoped it would calm her down. ‘I believe in you, I love you’ his words had been uttered closer to her face than to the guard’s liking, though they ignored it for the brief second they had with each other. 

    ‘I love you too’ she whispered to him before they parted ways with a hopeful smile, one that they carried with them the rest of the night.

    Upon arriving at the food hall, Eliana spotted her only Warmeck friend, and approached her smiling figure instantly with her food in hand. 

‘Heard you got into some trouble last night’ she began, smirking as she wiggled her eyebrows and played with the utensil in her hand. 

    ‘How do you know that?’ Questioned an embarrassed Eliana, wondering how word had gotten around so fast. At that moment her eyes lingered around the room, and she noticed the giggles and laughs that surrounded her everytime a member glanced at her. 

    ‘We are strict about mates, but we can have friends, you know. People talk, and word travels from one room to another pretty quickly, and before you know it, everyone knows, including the males’ she revealed, only bringing a tint to the Hybrid leader's cheeks. 

    ‘That’s fantastic’ whispered Eliana to herself, carrying on with her meal without paying much attention to the revelation. 

    ‘Hey, don’t worry about it, tonnes of people try to sneak out to meet their mates at night, it’s normal. They aren’t laughing at you because it’s funny, they’re laughing because it’s cute and relatable’ spoke Tiria, attempting to cheer up the Ivory leader, and succeeding. 

    ‘Do you have a mate?’ Posed Eliana, and Tiria shook her head instantly. 

    ‘No, and thank god I don’t. If I did, I wouldn’t be taking the separation well. Right now I’m focusing on my training, after that I’m happy to meet my mate and get married straight away, so I don’t have to go through the distance’ she revealed, earning a chuckle from Eliana who knew the feeling of separation well now. With that her thoughts shifted towards the upcoming fights, and she wondered perhaps her new friend would help her figure out the key to winning a fight against her kind. 

    ‘Can I ask you something? How do we win a fight against the Warmecks? Razaar and I have been training all day to the best of our abilities, and I still feel like something is lacking’ she revealed in confidence, starting to accept Tiria as her friend. The woman chuckled, facing the leader with a smile of sympathy. 

    ‘You don’t, my friend. I hate to be this blunt, especially because I really like you and would really like to be your friend, but I’m afraid I don’t want to lie to you. Warmecks train their entire life for this kind of stuff. The upcoming war that has been announced to us is exciting to us, not worrying, because our entire life revolves around fighting. I learnt how to fight against Ivory in my first year of training, and I’m in my 4th and final year now. My only recommendation would be to hold your defenses. Warmecks are sturdy and quick to determine your moves. If you let us attack and hold your defenses you might have a better chance of winning. Even then it would be tough’ she revealed, mirroring the words Remo had said to them not so long ago, and it was with those words that the Hybrid leader had lost all hope of winning the upcoming fights, and wondered what it would take to get Paulina to accept the two under their wing and train them as they desired. Noticing the discomfort she had caused, Tiria decided to add to her words ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pressure you, honestly, I just thought you should know-’

    ‘I understand’ Eliana cut off, slightly worried. ‘Don’t worry about it, I appreciate your honesty. I think I’m going to go get some rest now to prepare for tomorrow’s fights’ she said, abandoning her food and taking off to the small chamber where not even her mate could come and comfort her. Her only hope of comfort now was herself and the flame, and despite trusting the flame, she wondered how much would go wrong. 

    Leopold still had a few answers he had yet to reveal to the pair, though his only wish was for the greater purpose to not get in the way of their training, for they had to defeat the Vermillion. They had to defeat the enemies that the flame had created to satisfy Leopold’s own need for vengeance. They had to fulfill their greater and only purpose, and only then would the flame rest in peace, or so he thought. 

    The night was as terrifying for Razaar as it was for his mate, and no doubt it was a sleepless night, one that drained them even more, even if they had wished not to be. 

    As hours went by Eliana had begun considering her options if they failed to defeat any Warmeck, knowing that she would not return to their lands with her head held in shame at not being able to be the strong leader she had always been. She knew Razaar felt the same way, and together they needed to figure out a solution of what they would do if they failed the first round of obstacles. 

    Paulina had been a lot harsher than they had expected, and one way or another they would have to face her and appeal to her to train them. They were leaders in their own zones, though on Warmecks lands they were nothing but inferior, or so they felt like it. No matter what, the pair would have no choice but to sink lower to bring themselves to the top, though it was a step they were willing to take to be able to protect each other, their truth, and most of all, their people and their planet.