The Elemental Huntress

Chapter 7 - Werewolves Suck!

ELIRA POV

I ran, as fast as my legs could carry me, all the way back to my car. I got inside and it hit me, the realisation of it all. The strange things I'd been experiencing this past week, and now this. Tonight, felt out of my control, and I hated it!

My body was still hot and tingly from being around Killian, Alpha Killian. My mind giving me flashes of his eyes and body, the feeling of his touch and the sound of his voice. He represents everything that I hate, everything I despise!

And I sucked his d**k!!!

"What.

The.

Fuck.

Elira!!!"

I said to myself. But I couldn't help it, I was drawn to him, I wanted to taste him, I wanted his hands on my body.

But why?

I was seething now. How is this possible? What the hell do I do now?

When he spoke to me through his wolf, and claimed me as his mate, it changed everything. In my head I was screaming "nooooo", but before I had time to respond, I was also claiming him as my mate in return. At the time, it was as though somebody else was responding and not me.

I cannot believe this!

I came back here to finish off a damn rogue and ended up fighting a small pack, meeting a handsome stranger, finding out he's a notoriously ruthless Alpha, making myself c*m, sucking his d**k and then claiming each other as mates..? That water sure was some magical s**t! I am screwed. Literally screwed!

A Werewolf Huntress mated to a Lycan Alpha.

Yep, I am absolutely screwed!

I need to tell Rhydian about my theory, which now I’m sure is true. I need to update Willa on what's happened tonight. I need advice, asap!

I am scared to tell my friends that I'm mated to an Alpha, and Killian of all.

What would Rhydian think of all of this? I had thought I was crushing on him, but now that I've been around Killian, I realise that connection must mean something else. What the hell is going on with me? Willa will be proud of me if anything. She's our little vixen. They're like my family and I don't want to lose them. I can't lose them. I must tell them everything if we are all going to figure this out together.

Time to head home and sleep. Hopefully, I won't see Killian in my dreams again.

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The next morning, I woke up with what felt like the world's worst migraine.

The light beams coming through the curtains to my right, made me feel like someone had shoved a knife straight through the middle of my brain.

After washing up in the bathroom and getting dressed for the day, in my usual combat boots, cargo pants and a tank top of one if my favourite bands, The Ramones, I headed to the kitchen.

Willa was in there, with some s*x pistols playing through the speaker while she cooked breakfast. It had been a while since I'd seen her make us breakfast, so I was a little surprised. We made eye contact, and she gave me a knowing and accusing look. I gave her one right back, and I noticed a sparkle in her eye appeared.

"Gee, you must really like this guy. Look at those blushing cheeks." I taunted her and gave her a wink. I hadn't prepared myself for her response, as I had totally forgotten about my plan to update her when I got home last night.

"Aww, I'm touched, Elira. Pity I was waiting all alone once I got home, to tell you all about it. Looks like someone has a lot to tell me about this morning."

She grinned at me as she raised an eyebrow. I looked like a hot mess.

"Woah, are you OK?" Willa looked at me with concern.

"You got any ibuprofen or something? My head is killing me." I tried to hide how much pain I was in; things were beginning to get a little blurry.

The next thing I knew, everything went dark.

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WILLA POV

Last night had been wonderful, and I couldn't wait to tell Elira all about it. Except she never showed, the knock on my door never came. I heard her come home around midnight, but she never came by to catch me up on how the conversation went with her and Rhydian.

I got up early to make breakfast so we could catch up before classes started. As soon as I saw her, I knew. Something happened last night, something big!

We teased each other for a bit, and then suddenly her eyes were glowing. She looked like she was in a lot of pain, but she didn't say anything. Something in my gut was telling me that she wasn't OK. I looked at her sternly and asked her if she was ok. She simply asked me if I had any ibuprofen on me. Before I could respond, she collapsed, knocking her head on the counter on the way down, knocking herself out. She was bleeding from her forehead. I was shocked. Where did this come from? I knew I had to get her to the hospital as quickly as possible.

I scream for help, hoping Rhydian would hear me. He had just woken up and seemed a bit confused when he came running out of his room. "We need to get Elira to the nearest hospital! Her eyes started glowing again, and then she collapsed, hitting her head on the way down. She knocked herself out. Right before it happened, I could tell that she was in some extreme pain. Something is seriously wrong, Rhydian; we must help her. NOW!"

He looked at me dumbfounded and then sprang into action. "OK, you get the car ready, and I'll grab some important stuff and bring her out to you. Let's move." He was already chucking on a t-shirt and hoodie as he answered.

I ran to get the car ready as soon as possible. I had this strange feeling as the hairs on my body stood on end. What the hell is happening in this town?

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RHYDIAN POV

I grabbed my backpack and quickly shoved my laptop inside. I was going to need it for investigating while waiting at the hospital. I can't waste any more time. As soon as I had packed the bag, I ran over to Elira and picked her up.

I gently put her in the backseat of the car and told Willa to step on it. She didn't need any further encouragement. We looked at each other, both concerned and wondering what this meant.

I knew I needed to contact her parents, so I quickly dialled the number. Angie answered after the third ring, "Agent Landon speaking." I quickly filled her in on what had happened so far, leaving out the glowing eyes and weird behaviour the last few days. It turns out that both Richard and Angie were on a separate investigation in Romania. It was some big corrupt Alpha take-down operation, and they couldn't leave just yet.

I reassured them that I would get to the bottom of what was happening and keep them in the loop. That seemed to satisfy her mother enough. We said our goodbyes, and that was it.

It didn't take long for us to get her to the nearest hospital, but as we took her through the emergency doors, I could tell right away that this wasn't just any type of hospital. This was werewolf territory, and we had blindly walked right into it!

I could smell their scents, and it was as if my own wolf was beginning to stir. Something I had only experienced once in my whole life.

Our wolf is with us from birth, but it only shows itself to us when we are mature enough to shift for the first time and eventually find our one true mate. It happens when we are 17 years old. Let's just say that Angie and Richard helped me not have to deal with mine at that time.

I got the feeling that Elira was not going to like this one bit when she eventually woke up. Right now, we were out of options.

Willa and I were instructed to sit in the waiting room while they assessed Elira. Asking us for as much of her history before taking her away. Now that Elira was in capable hands, I could relax a little. I took a seat as far away as possible from the others in the waiting area, and Willa followed. She looked at me with worry and I returned with the same look.

"Did you see Elira last night? Did she talk to you? Willa asked me with a look of hope on her face. "No, she didn't, I never saw her return from school at all. I was studying some ancient texts before having dinner and heading to bed. What did she need to talk to me about?" I was a little confused by Willa’s question and hoped she had some answers for me. I had a strong sense that I knew what was happening to Elira, but I still couldn't bring myself to say anything as it would mean I had to come clean about myself, my own secret.

"Well, Elira and I had a chat the other night about all the weird stuff that's been happening with her. We have a theory, but she said she wanted to discuss it with you in the hopes that you might be able to help her figure it all out." Willa seemed worried as she explained to me the nature of their conversation. "She told me yesterday that she was going to discuss it with you once she got home yesterday. I heard her arrive home late last night. I just assumed she had spoken to you and then gone out somewhere afterwards before returning home. But if you're saying she never spoke to you, then where was she all night?" I was now very concerned and wasn't quite sure how to respond to Willa.

"That is very out of character for her, to not communicate her plans at all. Usually, when she goes out hunting or patrolling, she will always take one of us with her."

I was beginning to understand that something big was happening right now.

"Exactly, and this morning she looked like a hot mess, complaining of a severe headache, and right before she fell, her eyes were glowing." Willa was beginning to feel frustrated.

"It's not the first time either of us have seen her eyes glow now, is it? Tell me Willa, what's the theory you have about what's happening to Elira?" I was curious to know if they were right. "We both think that Elira has been showing signs of being a Werewolf!"

There it was. The same concern I had been having was now becoming much more of a reality through the validation of both of my closest friends.

"I think you are right, Willa; she has been showing too many symptoms for it to be anything else. Something is going on, and I've been trying to figure out a way to talk about it." I hoped that Willa could see the genuine concern in my face.

She gave me a hug, which helped the anxiety a little. "How is this possible, Rhydian? How the hell is one of the greatest Huntress' in history, a werewolf? Do you think Angie or Richard knows? Is it possible that one or both are werewolves also, and that's how Elira is? She was born this way. How can she be 18 years old, and never realised that she has a wolf inside of her?" Willa had so many questions, and all were valid, but I had no idea how to respond to her, not yet anyway.

"Does it bother you that Elira is a werewolf?" Willa was being genuine with her question, but it still took me by surprise. I tried not to show it as I opened my mouth to answer her.

"No, it doesn't. She's still the same person. She's still the same girl who saved me from myself all those years ago with you by her side. You both saved me, you know that. I was miserable at Moonlight Tech until the two of you arrived, it changed everything and we have been inseparable since." Willa frowned at my answer and then gave me a hug. I had never really told the girls about what it was like before they arrived at Moonlight Tech.

Two hours went by, and the Doctor finally came out to speak to us.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Krishner." Willa and I both nodded as he introduced himself, both of us looking hopeful but worried.

"Elira is in a deep coma, we have run some tests to see if we could find the cause but from what we understand, it’s her wolf that's keeping her from waking up." Dr Krishner informed us nonchalantly, as if this was normal.

It was Willa who spoke up first. "Her wolf? What do you mean? Elira is human. She is a Hunter!" Willa and I had both suspected it, but hearing this werewolf Doctor tell us that her wolf was preventing her from waking up was not what we expected him to say. "I'm sorry for the confusion, that's actually the more important issue. We believe that some kind of Witchcraft has been used on Elira from a very young age. Something powerful enough to keep her wolf dormant. We don't know what has triggered her wolf after all this time. There is, unfortunately, no way for us to find that out at this point in time."

I was shocked. Witchcraft? What did this mean for Elira? What about her parents? Did they know about this? So many questions were running through my mind, I felt that Willa was likely wondering the same as me.

We thanked the Doctor and asked him if we could go in and see her. He told us we could visit for another hour. Before the visiting hours finished, only one person could stay with her overnight.

What a sight to see, her lying in the hospital bed. She was fast asleep, tucked into her hospital sheets, hooked up to a monitor. Elira was always the one with the plan. I was the one to keep her in check and make sure she always had the facts. It broke me to see her look so vulnerable. She looked like a normal teenage girl, something I know she wished for herself many times.

Willa and I hugged for a moment, both feeling the sadness envelope us as we realised the weight of what this all meant. I wondered if now was the time for myself to come clean about my own secret? I decided against it. Right now we had to help Elira. My secrets could wait, a few more days wouldn't hurt and I really wanted to tell both the girls together. Rip off the band aid so to speak.

"Willa, why don't you head on back home and get some rest? I'll stay for the first shift in case she wakes up; I'll call you if there are any updates." Willa looked tired and didn't object to my proposal. She gave Elira a kiss on the forehead, whispered "I love you" to her and went out the door.

I got settled in the cot the hospital provided me, next to her bed. I removed my laptop from my backpack and turned it on. I was on a mission to follow up this witchcraft lead. I was going to investigate what the hell was going on. My laptop whirred as it started to boot up and load. I wasted no time in beginning my research.

The next morning, I awoke by Willa tapping me on the shoulder. My neck felt stiff and I realised I must have fallen asleep doing my research. "Hey, sorry I must have fallen asleep by accident." I informed her. "Don't worry about it, I can see you started your research already. Did you find anything?" Willa was curious about my findings.

"Unfortunately, no, not yet. I'm going to head home and wash up. . I think I'll continue my research there. Maybe my books will also help?" Willa's response to me was an eye roll, my books were a whole thing, the girls often teased me about it. They are more important now than ever.

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WILLA POV

I had just said goodbye to Rhydian when my phone pinged. I look down and see a message from Otis. I had completely forgotten about him. He was concerned about me, as I had missed a whole day of school and was unfortunately about to miss another one.

I smiled at the message, feeling comforted by his concern for me, but also frustrated at the fact I was going to have to lie to him.

Shortly after, a nurse came in to check her vitals. She didn't have any new updates, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

It was around lunch time, I was coming back from the cafeteria, when I noticed a weird light coming from Elira’s room. I rushed to see what it was, and I noticed that it was her. Elira was full blown glowing. She was lighting up the room and it was like nothing I had ever heard or seen before. I knew a lot about Werewolves, it was my job to know after all, and I was certain this wasn't part of it. I buzzed for the doctor to come right away, hoping he could shed some light on what this glow was, or what it meant. I sent a photo to Rhydian to update him in case this new-found situation could help in his research.

As I looked up from my phone, I felt him, I saw him.

His crisp short dark hair, menacing dark chocolate eyes, stubble around his chin and jaw, ripped muscles peeking through his plain dark blue T-shirt, black jeans and boots. He was about 6"1 and was staring at me like I was his next meal!

As we locked eyes, my heart was pounding, going a million miles an hour, I was panting as if I'd just come back from my morning run and I felt a sweat start to break out on my forehead.

I felt a little frightened of what was happening to my body, as I stare this man dead in the face. Not willing to show him any sign of my uncertainty.

"MATE"! He breathed at me. Almost like a growl, as if he was claiming something other than his destined soul mate.

I frown and take a step back, suddenly feeling confused and lightheaded. Before I knew it, I had almost hit the floor if it weren't for the brooding man catching my fall and carrying me away in his arms.