Reborn as the Lycan's Mate

Chapter 4. I Smelled the Most Wonderful Thing in the Universes

Morrighan POV

So here I was, crouching on the edge of this small lake, with a babbling brook nearby. I was minding my own business — no, not the bathroom business, not when my tummy was far from full and my thirst far from truly quenched. I can’t recall when I had my last meal. After all, those b**t**ds love to feed us wolfsbane. I’ve had enough of that for years. When the guys at home had shipped me out, they probably hadn’t realized that, from the frying pan and into the fire, I had unwittingly fallen into a major slave trade operation.

Ah, well, enough of that. I need to get out of here… but I don’t know what territory this is.

Since I’ve had my partial fill for the night, I had been thinking of looking for a spot to huddle and sleep, like maybe up on the nearby trees just in case wild creatures bigger than me or my wolf would appear. It wouldn’t do me any good to stay on the ground while I rest. Who knows what feral creatures are hunting out there tonight; with that meal I took my bloody smell would’ve probably reached for several kilometers around.

But first, I had to have a drink. I was thirsty. Perhaps I could get to that babbling brook and have a sip or two. Once I found it, I went ahead to whet all the parchedness.

A placid lake was no place to grab a quick slurp, but I checked it out, anyway.

Besides fish, I could sense no dangerous predators in the water. There was still no moon in the sky, but the stars had fully popped out. From a distance, I saw some forest herbivores watching me warily as I drank from the brook while facing the lake. It seemed years since I tasted water this clear, and I was tempted to get into the water and just remove every filth I got for these past months.

That was when it hit me.

Paul was unfamiliar with the sensation. My wolf Fenris, on the other hand, had been antsy for a while now, even when I was feeding. Now, my wolf spirit was jumping and yipping with joy nonstop. I knew what it was, and I could sense it coming nearer as the smell, which I had then tried to ignore. Yet, the more I tried to take no notice of it, the more it became more vivid.

The aroma was familiar yet foreign. The combined smell of mint, pine and cedar, and spring water enveloped me, embraced me, and cajoled me. It gave a warm and welcoming atmosphere that drove Fenris to howl that forbidden word.

My body, however, was divided. Instinct told me to hold still, to trust the unraveling of things, and to remain in control. The other part of me, however — that one that suffered for months — told me to run. I could feel a dull throbbing pain in my stomach, my shoulders, and my back, and it was not related to my wolf’s happy yips and howls.

Involuntarily I shuddered, my knees weak as I slowly stood up, like deer suddenly caught by road lights.

“Mate.”

—

Orion POV

“No one left alive,” my Gamma, Ted, approached me, handing me a long charcoal gray overcoat with a fur collar, black trousers, and black moccasins. I had left my clothes on the balcony.

Nearby, my backup, led by Beta Duke, grabbed sports shorts from hidden hollowed sections of nearby trees. Part of our discipline was putting up hidden stashes on our hunting grounds. We had easily transportable capsule clothing at the final stages of its design in our Technological Office, so I hope to get the team some as soon as the final touches and production were finished.

“Check all the tracks.”

“Roger.”

The squall had been short and lasted only for less than an hour. We traveled fast over several hills and down the plains below, where the raid had fallen, away from my family and our guests’ awareness, but close enough for me to coordinate with my men.

Despite all scent of mud, fallen branches and leaves, and all the mess that the storm had stirred out here, there were two increasing scents that nagged both me and my Lycan spirit With tracking being my strongest forte, however, only one thing was left for me to do.

The smell grew stronger as we approached.

By the time I got to ground zero, more than an hour had passed, and the sky was pockmarked with stars. Here, however, a fog had begun to settle.

I looked over my men and the wreck that was before me. It was a scene direct from hell. Bodies and body parts intermingled; rogue wolves, a couple of rogue Lycans, some were-creatures of Goddess knows what, a couple of humans, and the rest had been wolves… probably Omega or slaves. Accompanying the grisly scene was an overbearing stench. Burning flesh, singed fur and hair, and the ever-familiar metallic tang filled our noses.

And something else. Something more ghastly and unearthly — a distinctive smell that would make any Delta or Omega LYCAN shudder.

For regular wolves, this would be unbearable, and would even bring them to tears. For us Lycans, it was unnerving. Our youngest newly-minted member, Mateo, could not help running deep into the woods. I had been scrunching my nose when I arrived, but now I had to rub the bridge of my nose to zone out the distant puking sounds.

“Omicron,” my Beta Duke grimaced as he spat. “But it’s faint.”

“It’s long gone,” I said with a growl. It was dark out here, and the moon hadn’t appeared yet, but my Lycan vision allowed me to see my Beta c*ck an eyebrow in surprise.

“Think it came with that lightning?”

I kept silent as I was not sure… and to keep myself from growling once more The slight whiff had been temporary, and it was slowly clearing up from the air around us.

The smell of the legendary wolf class was one of the two things I picked up back in the Castle. Though it would normally make any wolf whimper and flee, Ophois, instead, paced excitedly.

He came, Ophois said matter-of-factly, but I could sense him walking to and fro… happily?

He…?

Then it hit me.

Just as the Omicron smell continuously lifted, I could make out another scent, one that seemed so familiar and welcoming. It was the second whiff I picked up back on the balcony, more than an hour ago. The one that pushed me to grab my coat from Duke and hurriedly jump over the rails down below.

Roses, gardenia, honey, and citrus. Just like a perfect afternoon tea with an old and dearest beloved. Someone I’d wish to spend my whole life with.

Duke, I growled.

Yes, Alpha?

Stay here and oversee the investigation and clean-up.

Where are you going?

I’ll be back.

“But dude —” my Beta voiced out, but I ignored him.

Growling, I broke into a run, heading toward the darkness of the forest, oblivious to everything but the scent.

—

It took me a while, about thirty more minutes before the faint whiff of her became even clearer. I had been zigzagging the whole time, not bearing in mind which part of the forest I was now, with Ophois and I actively seeking her. A couple of times we found some half-eaten forest prey, but the scent became consistently clearer.

Hurry, Ophois urged. She’s near. I can feel her!

—

It’s her! Mate! Mate! Mate!

My wolf Ophois howled and jumped for joy. I could feel the exhilaration, as I stood at the edge of the water, staring at the creature before me.

She was the most extraordinary thing I had ever seen in my entire life. The moon had just risen, and before me, bathed in mystical moonlight, was a creature of legendary proportions.

Like a nymph, she knelt by the nearly-still waters of the lake, drinking. Small — even tinier than my mother, she seemed frail like glass, exquisite and ethereal in dirty rags, soot, and mud. She had ashen hair, loose and swaying gently to the gentle wind that played in the forest. Her eyes were purple diamonds, her skin like rich rare porcelain I only see in the Far East, her lips like ripe cherries. She was bathed in roses, gardenia, citrus, and honey. The perfect mate for an eternal afternoon.

Get her! Mate! Mate! My wolf, Ophois was over the moon.

I don’t know how long it was, but I suddenly realized I forgot to breathe.

“Mate,” I called out to her, wincing inwardly as I realized it sounded more like a growl.

—