TWO: THE WOLF HE MET
949 Words
Her pulse thundered too loud in her ears. The suppression magic surged, locking down, pressing in from all sides. Her limbs went heavy. Her thoughts slowed, dragged under by something vast and merciless.
This is how they erase you.
This is what Princess Ember's cold realization cut the moment, without killing her. No need for blades, no blood, just to push her out, from immortal world in silence, and with nothing..
Ember clenched her fists, nails biting into her palms. Somewhere, deep inside of her, that last fragile spark trembled, and held.
“I will come back,” she said again, though no one could hear it now.
The darkness pressed closer.
TO THE MORTAL WORLD;
After two months, floating in the air.
The impact came.
The world slammed sideways. Princess Ember's body lurched violently, thrown against the capsule’s inner shell. A deafening crack split the silence, followed by a roar that swallowed everything, metal screaming, stone shattering, something massive colliding with unstoppable force. The shattered lights emitted a blinding flash that seeped through the cracks, while the capsule continued to rotate.
It fell to the ground..
Only the surface of the capsule turned upside down, and torn. While Princess Ember inside, couldn't tell what was happening outside, and where she fell.
She has no idea, what kind of world this is.
Pressure crushed her into the floor, her breath ripped away as gravity twisted and snapped. The suppression magic flickered, but that was just for an instant, then the spark inside her flared.
The crash split the forest in half. Snow erupted into the air, trees snapping under the force as something massive tore through the Carmana Mountainside.
Then the silence followed.
It seems like a ripe fruit fell into the ground, and that's the end of its connection from the tree.
Then...somewhere... A wolf lifted its head.
This wolf is big, black as night. It's eyes burning like silver.
Bright Braxton.
By this time, he had been tracking his prey. Instead, he hears something, up above the mountain. At first he was confused, until he decided to check it out.
Then, Bright found something else.
Something wrong. A smoke curled through the frozen air, unnaturally against the stillness of the mountain.
Bright moved without hesitation, his massive paws silent against the snow despite his size.
Every instinct screamed danger, but instinct had never ruled him. Not anymore. Because trust got him killed. He had learned that lesson well.
When he reaches the highest part of the mountain. He finally saw the wreckage and confirmed, that it is not made by any human hand.
Bright’s lips curled back, exposing sharp white fangs.
“What the hell…”
The structure pulsed faintly, half-buried in ice and stone. Then, a sound of hiss. The capsule door released something icy air, that was some kind of mysterious to Bright eyes.
At this moment, Bright was stunned.
Even in the distance, the scent hit Alpha Bright first. He knew it is not a human, not a wolf. And not anything that he had ever known.
It was… fire. And something dark and older. His instincts recoil, and lean closer at the same time.
Then he was surprised to see a hand that emerged from the smoke. It's a pale skin and it shaking. Then he saw a woman come out, but she fell on the ground. She was coughing, experiencing it hard to breathe from below.
Alpha Bright wondered to himself, where did she come from? and what was she doing inside that mysterious rock?
Bright caught her, before she hit the ground again.
He didn’t know why. Maybe instinct push him, or maybe stupidity.
The woman in his arms looked fragile, and breakable.
Her skin glowed faintly against the cold, her silver hair spilling over his arm like silk. Her lips were parted slightly, breath shallow. She is not dead, but she is closed on that.
Bright frowned. "Great,” he muttered.
He found himself entangled in a situation he desperately wanted to avoid "trouble".
He should walk away from her. In fact, he had every intention of doing just that, it was part of his carefully crafted plan. He had vowed to maintain a life free of attachments, to steer clear of any risks that could jeopardize his carefully constructed existence. Saving strangers was not in a line that he had drawn for himself, and yet here he was, drawn to someone who exuded an intoxicating mix of power and mystery. The very essence of her presence was a siren call, one that smelled like power and secrets.
His grip tightened unconsciously.
The girl fingers twitched weakly against his chest.
And then.. her eyes opened. There are many words on it, a sadness like a wood that already burned. But like something that had survived destruction.
Princess Ember weakly stared up at him, disoriented, but aware enough to recognize danger.
“Who…” her voice rasped.
Alpha Bright locked his gaze to her with a hard expression.
“Someone who should walk away, and leave you here” he said flatly.
Her hand tightened weakly in his shirt.
" Please…don’t.” she said. Barely a breath.
But it held something unexpected. Not fear and not her weakness. It's a command.
Alpha Bright’s jaw clenched. He hated that, he hated her already. Hated the way his instincts refused to drop her. Hated the way that something in his heart reacted. A "connections". Alpha Bright felt it.
“You’re going to regret this,” he muttered.
Though whether he meant her or himself, he wasn’t sure. Then he lifted her fully into his arms. And carried her down from the mountain high.
- Writer
