From The Ashes.

Chapter 49

I bolted for the gate. Zak must have mental linked the guards because by the time I got there the gate was open wide enough that I could slip through the small crack in the middle. It didn't occur to me that this was the first time I'd been beyond Fortitudines walls since I'd entered but it hardly seemed important right at this moment. My feet were uncomfortable in the snow but I didn't let that slow me down as I ran around the wall, heading for where I had seen the man. 

I used the fairies light as a guide as it seemed the three orbs had yet to leave the man who had now collapsed onto the snow. As I drew closer, I realised the silver, blue and red orbs were actually tiny humanoid creatures with fluttering wings. The silver one looked younger than the other two but had an intricate crown sitting atop her silver hair. I skidded to a stop beside them, resting my hands on the mans cheeks as I silently pleaded for him to open his eyes.

"Sir, sir you have to wake up!" The mans eyelids shook but didn't open as his hand reached out for me, wrapping around my wrist as tight as he could get it. I got the feeling he wanted to tell me something as my eyes ran over his wounds. There was a hole in his head, like something had punctured his skull, and blood poured from the wound. More worrying, however, was the wound on his side, like something had taken a massive chunk out of him. I knew he was a werewolf because a cut on his arm that seemed different from the others was attempting to heal quickly but the two major wounds weren't healing at all. Which meant they'd been inflicted by another magical creature.

A strange language that almost sounded like singing made me look up and I realised the fairies were arguing with each other, eyeing me with distrust. The silver haired one was still pretty close to the man and I, watching us with a concerned twist of her lips even as her two companions kept their distance. I remembered the way Mr Durvis had used fairy dust to stop my burn from hurting before. Maybe, they could help?

"Please, can you help him?" I asked, desperately, gripping the mans hand as I prayed for him to pull through. Again, the fairies began to argue and the red one even tried to physically pull the silver fairy back but she struggled away and fluttered down in front of my face.

"I only speak little of your language." She started, her expression twisting as she tried to remember the correct words. I nodded to show I understood, desperate for her to continue. "We can not talk to werewolves." She whispered, regret flashing through her silver-grey eyes. I swallowed, a pain burying it self in my chest. I had chosen the werewolves but...

"I'm not a werewolf." The fairy blinked at me in surprise before fluttering closer to my face, studying me closely. Then, I heard the little tinkle of a fairy gasp as she flew away from me.

"Human!" She exclaimed and I nodded, looking down at the man as he started to cough. The silver fairy looked like she was thinking for a moment before she flew down so she was hovering above the man. She took a deep breath, and then started to twirl in the air. I was about to ask what she was doing when silver dust began to rain from her, covering the man from head to toe in a glistening substance. It was a few silent moments before the man coughed again and his eyes flickered open.

"The pain stopped..." He mumbled, his dark eyes wide with surprise. I nodded, keeping his eyes on me so he didn't see how badly he'd been injured.

"Fairy dust. You've got to keep fighting okay? You've been injured pretty badly, helps on it's way, I promise!" But even as the words left my mouth, I knew it may already be too late. The man was slipping, his eyes starting to focus on the sky above me. I swallowed, torn between begging him to stay and figuring out what had happened to him. Was this another attack or a freak accident? I gripped his hand as I heard the crunch of several people running through the snow towards us. It turned out I didn't have to make the choice as the man suddenly looked at me, desperation in his eyes.

"Please, don't let them suffer! I walked all the way here, hoping to find someone, that was all I needed to do before I went. My pack, my family, please, don't let them stay there like that." All the blood drained from my face at his words. What had I said just moments ago? That tonight would be a good time to attack because everyone was off guard? It had never occurred to me that it might have really been happening, just not to us. What horror had been happening while we were dancing and laughing?

"Who?" I asked, more desperate than I had intended. I had to know, he was fading and quickly. I wasn't sure he'd still be here when the footfalls I could hear joined us. "Who are they, where is your pack? What happened?" The man swallowed heavily, tears slipping down his cheeks and mixing with the blood covering his face. I bit my lip, trying to stay strong for the stranger dying in front of me. Trying to stay strong for myself.

"We never had a chance. Cervus never had a chance. We should never have invited them. We should never have opened our walls." As his last words left his mouth, suddenly he exhaled deeply and his eyes glazed over. For a moment, as Zak collapsed next to me, I wasn't sure what had happened and I started shaking the mans shoulders as though that was supposed to bring him back. It took Zak physically prying my hands away from him for me to stop as tears streamed down my cheeks.

No, I wouldn't allow it. I wouldn't allow his life to leave just like that! It was wrong, a scene from a horror movie. This just didn't happen in real life! This wasn't reality! It couldn't be that easy and simple to die! It just couldn't be! Zak pulled me close to him, trapping my hands against his chest when I tried to reach for the man again. It took me a several moments to tear my eyes away from his face and look up into the eyes of Llewellyn, standing above us with a stone face.

"What happened Teranika?" He asked and I swallowed and I tried to keep myself from sobbing.

"He said, they shouldn't have invited them, that they should have never opened their walls. He said not to let them stay there like that, his pack, Cervus." Llewellyns eyes opened wide and he kneeled down beside the man, pushing the hair out of his face as he smeared some blood away from his lifeless eyes.

"Alpha Karlien." He muttered, sadness in his voice. I swallowed, looking down at the man who'd lost his fight. No wonder he'd lasted so long, no wonder he was so concerned about his pack. He was an Alpha, just trying to do one last good thing for the pack he'd lost. A sob finally left my mouth as I gripped his hand in mine. It wasn't fair. Who did these people think they were? How dare they think they had the right? Llewellyn looked up at us and looked around at the people I could feel standing around us.

"Hana, go inside and tell the others to double the guards on duty. Cervus has been killed. I want the rest of you to head to Platien and bring the members of Cervus here. We have a duty to perform." There was a mumble of words and then a myriad of crunching sounds as the others ran to do their jobs. I didn't watch their retreat. I just stared at the man in front of me. I knew that there was nothing I could have done to help but I still felt like I should've done something. 

Llewellyn must have known what I was thinking because he rested his hand on my shoulder, making me look up.

"It's okay, Teranika. I made Zak tell me everything he saw before we came out, just in case it was some kind of trick. If you hadn't been able to see Selene, the chance of us finding him around here, of learning about Cervus so early was quite slim. You've given him the chance to deliver his last message, his last plea. I'm sure he's very thankful to you." I nodded, unable to speak as the tears clogged my throat. This man had dragged himself through the forest, refusing to give up until he got some kind of help for his pack. No matter how he'd been in life, his last act had been one of pure strength and love.

Zak helped me to my feet as my fingers slipped from the dead mans. I didn't want to leave him but my feet were starting to go numb and Llewellyn needed some time by himself. Zak also wanted to go to Cervus and help the others bring back the victims. I swallowed, following him back to Fortitudine.

"Can you help the others keep a record of who we bring back?" He said, his voice emotionless. I nodded, my chest hurting. I'd known, when I chose the werewolves, that something was going wrong in their world. But, it didn't seem real until now. Suddenly, the weight of my choice was pressing down on me. I had not only chosen them but I had chosen their fight. And the horror of it was more than I could ever imagine.

I had made my choice. Now, it was time for the consequences.

AN:

And FIN!

Question:

What do you guys think of this ending?