IVORY: The age of Gloarian

Chapter 8

    ‘What about this one?’ questioned Armelia, throwing Eliana a picture she barely glanced at before turning away from it. 

    ‘Nop’ she stated once again, looking back at the file of names in her hand. Scanning through the names, the leader huffed in exasperation, placing it down before seating herself on her office  chair, leaning her head back for a minute’s rest. ‘Why is it so hard to pick out a man that I can proclaim my mate?’ she groaned, causing Armelia to laugh as she sat down in front of her. 

    For the past hours the office had been transformed into a matchmaking site as the two went through the names of every member of the hybrid pack to try and find someone even remotely suitable to be the proclaimed mate of the leader. Eliana hadn’t forgotten her promise to herself about finding a man she could lead with, to avoid scrambling back the devil she called her mate, if the time ever called for it. She was determined to rid herself of the issue, and she would do whatever it took to find a solution. So far, the two had come up with a total of 0 names that matched the criteria for hybrid leader. Eliana wondered how long her search would take, for she was desperate to get this over with. 

    ‘Maybe we need to lower the standards for a bit. I mean, you’re practically demanding a male version of you to come and accept to be your mate, I think that’s a bit unrealistic don’t you?’ she questioned, revisiting some of the old files below her. Eliana simply sighed, moving her eyes to meet the gentle ones of her best friend. She had remembered how ecstatic Armelia had been the very minute she heard of Eliana’s plans, for she knew the woman deserved someone, and someone better than the one the flame had chosen for her. 

    ‘Alright, what do you have in mind?’ uttered Eliana, her hope at the brink of extinction. She had refused to eat until she had a name to go forward with, and was shocked when she couldn’t agree upon a single one. Why was she being such a harsh critic? As far as she knew everyone in her pack was lovely and worthy, but when it came to choosing one, her mind was at a loss with the choices. Perhaps it was because secretly Eliana kept comparing each and every one to her rejected mate. Or perhaps she was reluctant to follow through with her own idea to stay away from her mate. Who knew?

    ‘How about this one? Leron Kiani, he seems a decent candidate.’ She pointed out, shoving a file in her face to judge the poor man. ‘He’s a top guard, good looking, not bad history. His parents worked in your parents council too. You could at least talk to him, see what he’s like?’ asked Armelia, begging to the flame she would just agree upon a candidate already. 

    Eliana looked at the image before her, and to the best of her abilities, put all her judgment aside. She used that moment to have a good look at the man in the picture. With short, brown hair and striking green eyes, Eliana began to see the slight charm his face held. She worried her judgment would return, and so without much thought, she jumped to give the file a final look to try and spot any red flags. When she didn’t she shut the file and faced up to meet the gaze of her best friend, who waited impatiently for a response. 

    ‘Done. I’ll take him’ she announced, not allowing herself the opportunity to back away or give the plan a second thought. Armelia squealed with excitement as she clapped her hands in front of her. With impeccable timing, the door to her office opened, and an exhausted Syllia tumbled in, taking a seat next to Armelia wordlessly.

    ‘I swear as head chef people are supposed to listen to you when you give orders. Why is it that every time I give orders people choose not to listen but when Mioro instructs someone to do something they do it without a second question?’ he finally expressed after a moment of silence. Armelia and Eliana found themselves chuckling at poor Syllia who sat in his seat like a schoolboy in detention. 

    ‘Darling, perhaps it’s because Mioro is a whole foot taller than you and intimidates pretty much everyone in this community’ his mate responded, placing a gentle hand on his leg. Syllia wasted no time in finding the hand that belonged to his one and only and bringing it to his mouth, placing a long, lingering kiss on it. It was an act that caused Eliana the general discomfort she had always felt at the PDA of her best friends, but one she tried her best to ignore every time. 

    ‘If it helps I can fire him and have him transferred somewhere else’ suggested Eliana, knowing full well that Syllia was not as cruel as to wish that. As expected, the poor man shook his head and sank back into his chair. 

    ‘So what have you girls been up to anyways? What is all of this mess?’ he finally asked, noticing the stacks of files in front him. Slowly, he peeked at one, opening it up and instantly seeming confused at what was going on. 

    ‘I am looking for a suitable candidate to proclaim as my mate to the community’ revealed the leader, taking her best friend completely by surprise. His eyes widened as he stared at her in disbelief. 

    ‘Oh. Why?’ he asked, earning a thigh slap from his mate and a glare from Eliana. The naive Syllia had always been protective of someone he considered his sister, and after the incident with her mate, he had stretched up the protection to a whole new level. Knowing she was mateless had settled well with him as there was no one to disappoint her next, but throughout this entire thought process the protective man forgot the one thing that made having a partner so special: love. He had forgotten that Eliana too, needed someone to love and embrace the feeling that he had gotten so used to with his own mate. And so his questions didn’t seem to faze him the way it did his wife and best friend. 

    ‘Don’t you want Eliana to be happy?’ questioned his woman, glaring holes through him. Syllia thought about it for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. 

    ‘I want you to be happy, not hurt. I don't want you to go through another Razaar phase. I think you’ve already had plenty with him being here, especially with his own proclaimed mate.’ He completed, his mind fixed on his thoughts. Eliana had come to understand the nature of her best friend, and so his words didn’t shock her one bit. She had remembered just how much she needed him after her rejection and just how much he had done for her, and it was something she would never stop appreciating. It was for that reason that the leader had kept her calm as her best friend revealed his opposing thoughts. 

    ‘I get that, and that’s even more reason why I should proclaim a mate. I’m never going to get that feeling of loving a real mate, and nothing could hurt me more than Razaar’s rejection, so I think it’s best to find myself someone now. Especially with Razaar being here in case he tries something. I just want to test it out, at least for the duration of his stay, if after he’s gone things don't work out, I’ll be more than happy to put an end to my experiment. In the meantime there is no harm.’ She discussed, seeing no change in the expression of her best friend whatsoever.

    ‘Eli, I know that you want to find someone to take the pain away from the situation you're going through, but are you sure that this is the way to do it? Just because-’

    ‘That is not why I’m doing it’ she interrupted, a wave of anger catching up with her at his words. ‘I’m not doing this just to take the pain away. I’m done with that pain and I don’t care if Razaar has a proclaimed mate. I’m doing this because I don’t want him trying to get me back, and because I think it is worth a shot to see if I can find myself some happiness. You have been blessed by the flame to have your own mate, a privilege that I do not have, so don’t attack me if I try to find even the slightest bit of happiness in my life Syllia.’ She argued, her anger now taking the best of her. Of course she understood where her friend came from, and perhaps part of it was even true, but that didn’t stop her from defending herself from having to acknowledge those thoughts. 

    Syllia shared a glance with Armelia, who simply sat silent at the words released by her friend, before he took a deep breath and faced the leader of the hybrids. 

    ‘If that’s your reason, then go ahead’ he commented, having no choice but to do so. Deep down all three knew that Syllia was most certainly against this plan, but then again, they were addressing the leader of the hybrid community, friend or not. The couple had known Eliana’s temper by now, and knew better than to mess with it, so they continued the merry path of exploring the life of Leron Kiani, a man that very soon, was going to be acquainted with the brave Eliana Genova. 

    The timing had been convenient as it was the day of Zaleon New Year, a day of celebration and fun, a day where no one worked, and everyone enjoyed the luxuries they could afford. A grand party would be hosted on the grounds of every location on Zaleon, be it Gloarian, Tetra or Crest. Zaleon New Year was a day of laughter and cheerfulness around the entire planet of Zaleon. It was a day where everyone came together to socialise and relax, and it was the day that the courageous leader was going to approach Leron with a tempting offer to join her at the top. 

    She had dressed up into her formal attire, and set off into the party that had already commenced, knowing full well her mate and his Luna would be there. But with her new goal in mind, Eliana set out in search of her new target across the grounds on which the hybrids celebrated. 

    For the flame it had been a mysterious joke how the only two members to have disrespected it in all of Gloarian were the very pair that had been rejecting each other since the beginning despite the lack of reason and desire to. It had taken the flame time to sculpt out these pairings, and the one of Eliana and Razaar had been one of the most prideful projects of the flame. A project that retaliated on the flame with a burden that the poor flame had to endure and tweak. 

    And so as the flame would have it, before the leader’s eyes could fall upon the striking green ones of the man she soon hoped to call mate, they ended up dropping on the calm, brown ones that happened to actually be her mates. Alongside, stood Eiva, with a grin that extended all along her face. As rehearsed, Eliana mirrored their actions as they approached her. 

    ‘Eliana, I just want to say thank you for letting us spend the New Year here. This has been such an incredible celebration, everyone in your community has done such a wonderful job’ she began, looping her hand into Razaar’s arm before continuing ‘Razaar and I haven’t been able to spend quality time like this on New Year’s in ages. Back at the pack house, we’re always in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly so we barely get a moment to ourselves. So we truly appreciate a change of scenery for once’ she finished, staring at Razaar with an admiration that no one else had ever had before, for the scary Alpha. The man smiled as he looked down at his proclaimed mate momentarily before refocusing on the gaze of his true mate. 

    The truth was that from the moment the leader had stepped out of her cottage and into the lands of celebration, he had been incapable of keeping his eyes away from her for she looked absolutely breathtaking. The bedazzled Alpha had spent the entire time sneaking peeks at his mate who so desperately had been in search of another man, that Razaar had been completely unaware of. Had he known he would have probably emanated a few growls of fury before perhaps doing something rash and unreasonable. 

    Eliana returned the smile before intending to mutter a quick word of thanks and proceeding to exit the conversation with the pair she wished no longer to engage with. The plan, however, hadn’t been as simple as Eiva had found herself rambling on about a topic of little interest to the leader, clueless of the desperation of escape that lay within the woman she spoke to. Razaar, on the other hand, had noticed the unease that Eliana conversed with, and had just about intended to figure out the intentions of his mate, before the leader herself intervened the words of the naive Eiva.

    ‘I hate to be rude, but do you mind if I return to this conversation in a while? I’m so sorry, I’m just looking for someone and I was hoping to find them before they left the celebration. I hope that’s okay?’ said Eliana, feeling somewhat bad for having interrupted the proclaimed mate of the Alpha. 

    ‘Of course!’ Eiva surprised her by exclaiming, completely neutral about her interruption ‘go ahead, I’m sure we can carry on this conversation some other time’ she encouraged, watching Eliana gladly dash off and out of her site after having delivered a polite smile to the Luna of Gloarian. 

    While Eiva had been completely and utterly unaffected by the incident, Razaar had spent the next few hours of her absence trying to piece together who exactly it was that his mate was so desperately trying to find. His fists had clenched up at the thought of her looking for a member of the male species, after all, why else would the woman be dressed so formally? At that moment, the Alpha wished nothing more than to leave Eiva’s side to go look for his real mate, and figure out what she was really up to. But he was aware of the suspicion that would cause, and so the arrogant Razaar Solonov was stuck on the visible grounds of the celebration with a woman he had no real love for by his arm. 

    Eliana’s search had taken her to the place where the guards had grouped up to hang out, drinks in hands and wasted faces. The leader did her best to keep a low profile, but her presence didn’t go unnoticed by everyone around her, who one by one bowed their head to their leader in passing. When none of the faces rang a bell, the woman retreated from the mysterious spot, and made her way back to where she originally came from. 

    Where could he be? She wondered, thinking of the several possibilities where the mysterious man known as Leron could have been present in. It had only then occurred to her that he was a top guard, a member of the group that Armelia was part of, and perhaps he had been socialising with her best friend that she had been avoiding since morning this whole time. Eliana had not taken Syllia’s criticism well, and within his agreement could sense his disagreement, and so she thought best to steer clear of her friends until she had done some digging of her own.

    Nevertheless, her best friends had a love for her that Eliana was incapable of recognising. In the next minute, the very voice she had been so determined to hear had appeared right behind her, courtesy of her best friends.  

    ‘Miss Genova, my name is Leron Kiani, I heard you were looking for me’ the leader turned around, a grin plastered on her face as it dawned upon her just how good looking the man was. A blush tinted Eliana’s face as she walked slowly towards the man who may or may not be taking a position right next to her. 

    ‘Leron, it’s so good to meet you. Do you have a minute to take a walk with me?’ she suggested. The confused man simply nodded as he followed her in the direction of the cliff Eliana usually visited. ‘So, how has guard duty been lately?’ she began, deciding to ease into the conversation. For poor Leron, however, the mere mention of his job made him uncomfortable to the core, as he began wondering that perhaps he had messed up in his professional life at some point. 

    ‘It’s going well, thank you. Is something wrong?’ he blurted, unable to carry on blindly into the conversation. It was a question that had made Eliana realise what the poor man might have been going through, and one that made her laugh at the sheer stupidity of the situation. 

    The two had been blushing like teenagers as they approached the hill where Eliana would normally sit by herself. 

    'Yes, of course. I’m sorry I know this is all too random. I was actually hoping to discuss something else with you. This may sound very forward but I do need to ask: do you have a mate?’ she posed, waiting patiently to receive a reaction from the handsome Leron. As she had warned, the guard had most certainly been taken aback by the question brought up by his leader, someone he looked up to.

    ‘I do not’ he blatantly stated, unaware of what else to say. Her intentions had suddenly started to become clear and for a brief moment he was unsure of what to say or feel. 

    ‘Right, I see. I’m going to be up front with you. I’m looking for someone to be my proclaimed mate and take their place next to me in leadership. Is this something you would be interested in?’ she questioned, destroying the entire aspect of love through her words and actions. The stunned Leron stood silent for a minute, before his mind found a take on the matter. 

    ‘Miss Genova-’

    ‘Please, call me Eliana’ she interrupted, attempting to ease the tension.

    ‘Eliana, I would be honored to be your proclaimed mate, but aren’t you going to wait for your mate to take that place? It is his right after all, and it would be very wrong of me to take that right away from someone who was born for that position’ he simply commented, causing a little disappointment to flutter within Eliana. Why had she been expecting another result? What did she think was going to happen? 

    Eliana found herself cursing herself at not having prepared well enough for the interaction. She had been so buried in the thought of getting rid of her mate that she had forgotten to think of the severity of the question she had been posing. Why would someone else miss out on the chance of being with their mate to be with a leader out of contract? As the realisation hit her, she found herself trying her best to smile despite the dismay. 

    ‘I believe I don’t have a mate, nor will I ever have one’ she stated, mostly to herself, but words that Leron had caught on to. To say he was confused was an understatement, he was beyond confused. Why was his leader offering him such a position and saying such pessimistic things? Unfortunately, the riddle had complicated itself just a tad bit more when the loud growl of a possessive Alpha erupted from behind. In the darkness, Leron could barely make out the features of the person hiding in the shadows, but Eliana knew exactly who it was, and she planned on releasing her emotional stress on the man that constantly got in the way of her happiness. ‘Leron, why don’t you go and rejoin the party? I will come find you to discuss this another time. I would appreciate it if you kept this conversation between us’ The guard didn't have to be told twice, as in the next minute he disappeared from sight. 

    ‘So that is who you had to go find eh? You’re more of a challenge that I thought mate’ he spat, emerging from the shadows. Eliana glared at the man who had made her life hell and advanced furiously towards him.

    ‘I am not, nor will I ever be, your mate. You lost the right to call me that the minute you rejected me. Now, you live with the consequences. You have will stop intervening in my business-’

    ‘Or what?’ he interrupted, stepping close to her, an expression of challenge on his visage. ‘You going to run back to little goody-two-shoes back there?’ he mocked, violating the rules of his rejection completely. 

    ‘Oh I will, and I will make him mine in a way that you will never be able to.’