Between Two Worlds

Chapter Eleven

Liora

I slowly opened my eyes and was immediately blinded by the bright fairy lights hanging on the ceiling. It took me a few seconds to recollect my thoughts and remember where I was.

Logan’s pack. Got it.

I stared at the lights once more… It still amazed me how wolves, being proud pricks as they all were, also used fairy lights. Since everyone believed they were considered magical objects. And they always stated they didn’t like to involve themselves with any kind of magic at all.

Fairy lights were magical shining stones locked inside some type of special lantern. One that could hold the bright within. The stones were very potent. But other than providing light on the darkest of nights, they were useless. One could turn it off just by touching a hand on it and wishing the light to be out. It was as much magical thinking as it was physical action.

That fact made me want to giggle, and when I did, I felt a disheartening throb in my head.

I let out a groan of pain, holding my head with my right hand as if it was going to be of help with the intense pain I was feeling. There was not much I could do about it for now.

"You are finally awake" I heard a sultry and deep voice coming from my left side.

I turned to look at the owner of the voice, knowing fairly well to whom it belonged.

After looking at Alpha’s face for a few seconds too long (I swear he looked almost relieved on seeing me awake), I made a scowl and turned my head again, taking my attention to my surroundings too, trying to determine where I was.

His face looked tired as if he had just awakened from a restless sleep. Was he here with me all along? And how long was it…?

I was lying down on a white cot inside a small room. The walls were made of pure white stone, just like many of the buildings around the packhouse, and a few others that were spread throughout these lands.

I guessed I was in one of the infirmary rooms.

But why am I here?

"What happened?" I asked the only other person in the room. Kicking myself mentally because I had to acknowledge his presence.

I was pissed about everything that happened a few minutes ago. Wait, was it minutes or hours? Could’ve been days, maybe?

"Oh, it speaks…" he said jokingly.

I rolled my eyes, staring at him with a serious face waiting for a decent answer.

He just shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

"You tell me. I have no idea… you just fainted in my arms, Siren."

I rolled my eyes again, this time more slowly and dramatically. The whole “provoking-the-Siren-thing was getting old.

"You say the word 'Siren' as if it was a curse, but it’s who I am. It would be the same as me calling you 'wolf'. You can keep doing it in a condescending way, but it won’t affect me the way you desire. And you know that. And also, you wouldn’t like it very much if I did the same, would you?" I replied, not really expecting an answer from him.

"I guess you are right, but I won’t stop doing it" he said, being sure of himself.

A proud prick of an Alpha. What a perfect mix for this Goddamn wolf-boy, I thought. But I wouldn’t say it out loud, for obvious reasons.

"Care to please answer me properly?" I eyed him angrily. "What happened?" I repeated myself.

"I already did. I have no idea".

"Maybe I can help with that…" said a third voice coming from the open door to the room.

Both Logan and I turned to face the person who was approaching us cautiously.

"Garren, you got here just in time" said Logan with a big smile. "Liora, meet Garren, our healer. He is the wolf with the most amazing affinity to herbs and healing concoctions I’ve ever seen. You are lucky to be under his care".

"It pleases me much to hear such praise from you, Alpha!" Garren said proudly, puffing out his chest.

These wolves… seriously?

I made a noise of disgust hearing the exchanged pleasantries. Why are werewolves in such need of praise all the f*****g time? Weren’t they secure about themselves? Moon Goddess, give me strength!

Garren gave “the look”. He wasn’t happy with my disrespectful manners. Nobody here liked the way I acted with their Alpha. Yeah, I have to admit I was indeed very disrespectful towards Logan, and he let me get away with it too many times.

I guess that’s why I kept doing it. If I could get away every time, why bother to stop now?

Garren cleared his throat as if wanting to diffuse the tension that was growing in the room.

"As I was saying, I think I have a few answers for you".

After saying these words, he eyed the Alpha as if asking for permission to speak.

Being the perfect brat I am, I beat the Alpha by saying:

"For all means, Garren, please continue…"

He shook his head and breathed heavily, sighing in defeat, like he knew I was a lost cause.

"After Alpha brought you here and I examined and cared for you, I got to the conclusion you were just exhausted. Your power source was depleted for some reason. And when I went to ask what happened, I discovered a few interesting things about what happened in the pack house".

When the healer didn’t say anything else, giving only half an answer, I looked at Logan, as if silently saying “Is this guy for real? Why does he have to beat around the bush all the time?”

"And what did you discover, Garren?" said Logan, humoring the older wolf.

I just rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to him when he started talking again.

"Some pack members told me they got the Siren call. And when I say some, I mean quite a few of them. In a radius of around 30 miles, every wolf felt the pull of your call. And I guess that took a toll on you".

"What?" asked Logan and me at the same time.

"That’s it, Miss Liora. I guess you exhorted yourself without even realizing it. It makes me wonder…" he paused, appearing to be deep in thought. After a few seconds, he looked straight into my eyes. "If you can do that much without even realizing it, what can you really do when you are in total control of your abilities?"

Hell, I wasn’t expecting him to say that. I mean, I knew I was inadvertently calling the other wolves. I could feel a few of them “answering the call” when I lost my s**t and started to yell at the alpha. But I had no idea how many were affected by it. I guess I can say even I am surprised by the extension of my powers. Because I truly didn’t mean to do it. It shouldn’t be a surprise though, I can do much worse than that.

"So what you are saying is that she was f*****g controlling all the wolves around the packhouse?" Logan asked, dumbfounded. His eyes were going wide.

"Pretty much, yes" was the healer’s unaffected answer.

"Aww, you warm my heart like this Alpha! Is it worry for me I see in your eyes?" I asked sarcastically.

"You wish! I am indeed worried, and you know damn well it’s not for you. But because of you!" He said dryly.

But I could swear I saw uncertainty in his beautiful eyes. Could Logan be really worried about me?

"You don’t look surprised at all, Miss Liora" commented Garren.

"Should I be? Don’t you think I know very well what I am capable of? I was just so tired from my journey here that I let a little of my control loose and ended up using my powers without intending to do it so. That’s all…" I was nonchalantly talking, as usual.

"Tired of your journey? How far would you have to travel to be tired enough to lose control that way?" Inquired Logan.

"Wanting to get information out of me, Alpha?" I answered his question with one of my own. Leave it to me to avoid giving people answers when I don’t want to.

"Maybe. But I truly want to understand what happened…" he said honestly.

I let out a deep breath. I guess giving him a little bit of information won’t kill me after all. "I traveled from afar. It took me a week to get here".

"A week?" repeated Logan, flabbergasted. "Where the hell did you come from?"

I just shrugged my shoulders, not wanting to give him too many answers.

"Did you travel by foot all the way here?" It was the healer’s turn to ask questions of his own.

"No. I had animal transport for the first three days. Anything else you want to ask?" I spoke ironically with a sour expression on my face, hinting I wasn’t in the mood to keep answering their questions.

If only they knew half of what I was hiding from them. Like where I was these past 7 years. They would be more than shocked. But it was not the time to reveal my secrets just yet.

For a moment, my mind wandered back to the outskirts of the Alfayian Forest, where I parted ways with Killon, my chimera. He got the shape of a winged horse and carried me on his back, but he couldn’t fly. When Killon was an infant, he got badly hurt and I saved his life. But because of the extent of the injuries, his transformations were always defective.

From the Glass Castle to the far end of the Elven forest, it took us three whole days and he was my companion for the entire time.

But he couldn’t leave the forest with me, since chimeras were rare magical beings and were protected by the elves. So I left him behind, trusting he would know the way back. They always do.

Logan’s words were what pulled me back to reality:

"Oh, Liora… I have many questions swirling in my head to ask you!" Logan spoke even though he knew what I meant by my early statement.

But as he opened his mouth to keep assaulting me with his unending questions, he was interrupted by another wolf entering the room.

Save by the bell.

Or maybe not. Since the person was none less than my dear friend Rariel.

"You are awake" was Rariel’s first words. "I guess Alpha Logan can leave now to take care of his business and so can you. Go back to the place you shouldn’t have come from".

I don’t know why, but her words stung me. What a b***h.

What’s wrong with her anyway? Is it really just petty jealousy?

"Is there anything you need from me, Rariel?" Asked Logan with his Alpha voice. I could see the girl slightly recoiling back to the door.

"I just want her gone!" she spoke bravely. She must have a lot of courage to speak her mind like this even knowing that the Alpha was mad at her.

"We don’t always get what we want. Liora will stay until I say she should leave".

"But Alpha— "she started to argue, but Logan just raised his hand and looked at her. In milliseconds she was silent again.

I like this side of him a lot.

"My word is final. You can leave".

"But why? She is nothing but a monster!" Rariel bellowed, trying to make herself heard. It was taking everything she had to go against her Alpha’s order. I could see her whole body shaking.

I guess Logan wasn’t using his real alpha voice. She could not go against that.

"Aren't we all?" Garren was the one who spoke this time.

"She kills without remorse!" she kept going, this time looking at the healer who was giving her the attention she was seeking — She is nothing like us!

"And so do we. We are all killers, Rariel. It baffles me how you take pride in calling others monsters when, in reality, we are the ones who transform into furry beasts. And we also do a lot of killing!" reasoned Garren, making me look at him with new eyes.

He sure has a way of reasoning to make people listen to him. It worked for me.

Maybe it could help not just Rariel but also Logan to rethink our Siren-Wolf situation from a different view too.

"You don’t really mean to compare us to the likes of her!" she spat in my direction. Her face contorted with an awful hatred scowl.

I wanted so badly to laugh at her tantrum-like attitude. But I knew it wouldn’t be the best move in a situation like this.

"Yes, I do. And if this is the only way you think, you should go home and ponder your actions. Everything you once did in the name of your Alpha and to protect your pack. And then maybe you will see that we are all but monsters too".

And so she did. With a grimace, she turned back and left the room, without even looking back at me once. I guess Garren’s words affected her after all.

Goodriddance! You will not be missed, my friend.