The Future Alpha's Forbidden Love

Chapter 7 : Wise but Ridiculous

“ I am Stelline. The first ever Alexandrite Phrynge and the wisest one.” The intellectual voice announced, her voice dripping with leadership energy.

“ I am Gerina. I was chosen by Stelline.” The owner of the most melodious voice Lysabel has ever heard proudly stated.

“ I am Ruther. I was neither chosen nor did I wish to become this. Gerina died, and the stone called to me.” A shrug followed the reveal, as if the most dangerous stone in the entire world on which Salvantine depended, calling out to him was just daily entertainment.

“ Can the stone do that? I am not sure if I read it in the book.” Lysabel's brows formed a bunch, crinkling her forehead. Confusion with a hint of disbelief knocked against her rib cage.

“ Not everything is in the book, Girl. Get used to being shocked. This is the beginning of your confusion,” Ruther snorted as he commented.

Fury strangled Lysabel’s throat. She could feel her veins around her temples tighten with suppressed rage.

“ Then why do we read the book? Why do we bother at all to know about those cursed stones and Phrynges if we are misguided and blindfolded to knowledge?” Lysabel shouted at the thin, empty air. Realizing she was talking to no one in particular and that the book, which was the sole reason for her brother's death, didn't have enough information, she slapped her palms on the floor and rose to her feet. Hammering of her heart was all she could hear in the quiet room. She needs to get out of the confined walls. She needs to go back home.

“ This is ridiculous!” She gritted out and ignored the voices.

Pushing the door open, Lysabel stepped out of her prison and into a cold, gray corridor where rows of steel doors stretched on either side. Remembering that Archelaus said the study was beside her room, she reached the door to her right, which was the closest. Twisting the ball knob, she listened to the intricate latch mechanism clicking and turning. With a snap, the door opened. Staring at her knuckles, she observed them stretching and pulling thin and pale as her grip tightened on the doorknob. She waited for blood to slowly surge back, flushing her knuckles with deep, furious red. Only then did she hold her breath, open the door wide, and step into the room. Her eyes surveyed the clean metal floor, hesitating to meet the eyes of disapproval, disappointment, and astonishment.

“That was quite a stunt you pulled out there.” Lysabel’s eyes shot to Alpha Rendell the moment his voice reached her ears.

“ Alpha Rendell.” She mumbled, offering him a bow, her hips aching with the bend.

“ So? Want to tell me what happened back there? And above all, how did it happen?” Alpha Rendell’s steps were firm but thoughtful. He paused four steps away from her, and a deafening silence followed. The steady fall of his black combat boots was the only tether keeping Lysabel from slipping into the void.

She didn't know what response would satisfy the Alpha. Where thoughts were supposed to be, emptiness brimmed. The words she needed clung to the shadows, refusing to rise as her lips parted in vain.

“ You should simply tell him that you don't know what happened. You saw a glow, and suddenly you were shifting,” Gerina suggested in a gentle whisper, not wanting to end the conversation with another headache.

Lysabel pulled her bottom lip in with her teeth, scrambling desperately for words other than Gerina’s. Whether it was because of the voices or because of the transformation, her mind was desolate.

Knocking a brow up in question, Alpha Rendell crossed his arms over his hard chest.

“ I don't know. I think I have been chosen.” Lysabel shrugged her shoulders. Hearing that, the voices shook their heads.

“ Only one Phrynge is chosen from a family. And we all know that Anzer was the chosen Alexandrite Phrynge. “ Luna Beatrice’s caressing voice filled the study. “ It is highly unlikely, or I should say totally impossible, for you to be chosen, Lysabel.”

His chest slowly rose and fell as he stared at her. Alpha Rendell never showed any emotion similar to weakness. He was the epitome of strength and bravery. But as Lysabel witnessed the space between his brows creasing with worry and his pupils dilating with possible terrors, she felt guilt clawing at her ribs.

Tears pricking the edges of her eyes, her gaze found Archelaus’s amber orbs. He was leaning on the wall, his back pressed into the cold surface, shoulders slumping under the heavy weight of defeat. His empty, unwavering gaze was fixed on the grey ceiling as if it held all the good memories of them.

His heart skipped a bit when he felt the weight of Lysabel's gaze pressing down on him, begging him for a glance. He tore his eyes from the cold, empty ceiling, forcing them toward her—slowly, reluctantly. When their eyes met, Lysabel's stomach twisted and turned as she observed him. Messy hair, disheveled clothes, and reddening corners of his eyes were proof enough for her that he didn't wash or even see his face in the mirror after the transitioning ceremony. And she knew he came running here after the ceremony was over. A sickening tightness churned in her heart. She should have told him the truth. She should still reveal the truth to him.

Stelline advised in a tender tone, “ He is better off not knowing.”

“ You two can resume your staring contest once this serious conversation ends.” Alpha Rendell’s voice rose a bit higher than before. The firm line of his lips was slightly curling downward with each agonizing second.

Lysabel's gaze snapped towards the Alpha. “ I'm sorry.” She murmured, deep lines etched on her forehead. “ I… “ Wetting her bottom lip, she continued, “ I want to fulfill Anzer’s dream. He didn't get to live it. And I just want him to be proud of me when I become the strongest Phrynge of all.” Her voice broke, tears welling up in her eyes. Pressing her lips, she avoided the Alpha's eyes. A lump — heavy and unrelenting, rose in her throat. Heat radiated off of her face as she tried to gulp. Her nose burned along with her eyes and ears. She realized that if she shed a single tear, the rest would fall uncontrollably and refuse to stop. That could not happen, at least not in the room where everyone could witness it. “ I thought he would want that.” She cleared her throat and muttered, “Excuse me.”

Turning, she was about to leave the room when a deep hum rippled through the space behind her. Whirling towards the sound, Lysabel quickly wiped off every little hint of breakdown from her face. Alpha Rendell was in front of Lysabel in a quick move while Archelaus was beside her in a blur of motion, shoulders squared and jaw tight. Anger burned beneath his skin— dark and lethal.

A violet portal had appeared right inside the study, hovering in mid-air. Santiz and Iora, who had been silently watching their daughter until now, moved to block the intruder’s path, curling their fingers into tight fists. Luna Beatrice stood just behind them, her eyes narrowing, every ounce of her attention fixed sharply on the portal.

“ Who can it be?” Archelaus muttered in a low voice, a quiet fury rolling off him.

His question was answered when Alpha Landon stepped through the portal, cladded in all black. The floor seemed to tremble beneath the heavy thud of his boots, the sound daring anyone to threaten his presence. Rolling his shoulders back, he flexed his fingers and stretched his neck. Greeting everyone in the study with a pleasant smile, he snapped his finger, and the portal spiraled into a vortex, then disappeared entirely.

A low gasp resounded in the hushed room despite Luna Beatrice’s desperate attempt to silence herself by pressing her palms against her lips.

His smile stretched into a wicked grin, steeped in delight. He simply revelled in the shock and confusion on their faces, his chest swelling and chin lifting with unshakable confidence. His eyes swept over each of them before settling on a pair of chestnut eyes, wide with curiosity, peeking out from behind her guardians.

Alpha Landon inched closer to Santiz and Iora, who were quietly watching him.

He drew a slow breath through his nose, his gaze hard and steady. “ I am not here to harm her,” he said, each word measured and edged with a quiet promise.

“ Yeah? Then why are you here?” Archelaus’s voice rolled through the concrete walls, an unspoken threat lingering in the air.

Alpha Landon locked his eyes with the future Alpha of Xandire Kingdom and stated, “ I am here to get her to safety.”