Page 17

T hey are under attack.

The door opened and Degar stuck his head in, "We are under—"

"I know." Wolfariane's other halves already stretched out and prowled inside him, waiting for action. In long strides, he began walking out of the room, sparing Ismena a glance, "Do you have a backdoor here?"

Fear gripped Ismena badly, she was barely aware of anything else since she heard those shots that wouldn't stop. She stared into space, her body trembling.

When he didn't get an answer, Wolfariane turned, walked back to her and shook her firmly, "Snap out if it, Female. This is not a time to break down, do you hear me!?" He asked authoritatively in a calm tone that is in contrast with the loud commotions of their environment.

"Yes, y-yes..." Ismena was trying her best to get herself under control, but it was proving so hard. Her ears are ringing. I'm going to die today.

"Look at me, Ismena." His hand palmed her cheek, lifted it up so her brown-eyes will have no other choice than to meet his.

She looked into that deep blue eyes on a face that screamed powerful...dangerous, and a deep feeling of safety filled her. This man can protect her. He can keep her safe.

"Listen to me and do everything I ask you to do. No matter what you see, do not faint on me. Keep it in until we are safe, do you hear me?" He asked tranquilly.

She bobbed her head once.

"Good," he let go of her cheek, "Do you have a backdoor here?" He repeated.

"Yes. Two d-doors to the l-left."

"Good." He turned to the leopard Alpha, "Degar, go and block fire from the front while I go through the back with her. They wouldn't attack unless they already know the layout of the house, so some of them will be waiting there too."

He was already walking out of the door again with Ismena trailing closely behind him, when he stopped in front of Degar and spared the leopard Alpha a glance, "Be careful. If the bullets are silver, it'll kill you as you already know. Do not shift unless you have no choice."

"I know. Be safe too, Alpha King."

Wolfariane inclined his head before they all walked out of her bedroom, and everywhere burst into action .

Degar produced two guns—one from his back pocket, and the other from his shoe,—and began firing as he moved fluidly towards the front door.

Wolfariane walked in hurried steps towards the backdoor, while Ismena did some little running to follow closely behind him.

"Who are these p-people attacking my h-home?" She managed to ask.

"Wolfhunters. My ring is in the wrong hands, Ismena." Was all he answered.

Ismena's heart tightened on her chest in pain, fear and guilt.

The night's breeze nuzzled them as they walked out, he kept walking towards the gate.

Ismena has always loved her apartment because of it's isolation, peace and serenity that comes with it.

Apart from her old neighbor; Mr. Amil, there's no other houses for some good miles.

Now, she didn't like it so much because she is so scared.

Immediately they stepped foot out of the gate, shots filled the air at close range, which told Ismena more than anything that they are being fired at.

“God, I'm gonna die tonight! They are shooting at us! Oh, God...!!"

She whimpered and pressed herself deeper into Wolfariane's broad back. She squeezed her eyes shut, and waited for death.

But, none of the shots reached her.

Wolfariane let the werewolf very close to the surface, he shifted, but only halfways, so he couldn't scare Ismena more than she already is. White furs replaced the skins in his arms, face and legs, his claws sprang out, his eyes went green and his teeth elongated .

With swift movements, he caught each bullet that comes in their direction in his hand, his eyes aimed at a target and he threw it towards the target's direction.

Shouts and pained grunts filled the air as he killed each and every target his eyes found with these bullets they'd aimed at them until the coast cleared a bit. There were so many of them.

He continued walking in faster pace, catching the bullets and throwing them back where they came from while Ismena was practically bumping into his back in her effort never to separate from him.

Terror at the commotion around them filling her but at the same time awe for the man that was protecting them...protecting her. He catching bullets— bullets !—with his hands!?

Who is this man? What is this man?

The more they walked towards the direction of the trees, the more their attackers filled everywhere. They came from all directions, shooting from all directions.

Wolfariane caught the bullets from all directions, his movement fluid, sharp and fast.

As they stepped further into the trailing edges of the forests and walked through the woods, his pace fastened, and that the same time, he threw a command at her. "Climb onto my back. I am about to run."

Instantly, she threw herself at his back, wrapped her arms around his wide shoulders and her legs around his wide midriff. Her arms couldn't meet each other, likewise her legs because of the huge width of him and the smallness that was her, but she held on as tight as she could.

His furs... She was suddenly encompassed in the softest thing she has ever felt in her life. So fluffy she wrapped her arms around it—him—tighter .

He took off in a dead run, with her piggybacked behind him. So fast, he was a blur of movement.

Ismena felt dizzy, but she held on anyway and closed her eyes tightly.

The Alpha King could have been even faster if he shifted completely, but there's the non-changeling behind him to consider, so he stayed half-shifter, but kept his pace fast.

He ran for hours. Fought for hours. Dodged flying knifes for hours. At a point, he climbed a tree and waited for the diversion he created to work, and when it did, he jumped down and kept running.

Ismena fell asleep on his back.

He knew when she first fell asleep because her arms loosened and she began sliding off his back. That was when he shifted completely to his animal form so she wouldn't fall off.

He took the wolf form, knowing that he'll protect her better in wolf-form than the form of him that despises non-changelings.

It was early hours of the morning by the time he arrived at the boarders that separated their home from the world of non-changelings.

All the running, diversions and long routes he took to arrive at these boarders isn't only to protect himself and the female behind him, but also to protect their home from Wolfhunters. Beasts in human forms.

Wolfhunters have been trying for centuries to get to their home, but they haven't been able to manage it...the Changelings make sure of that .

The sets that managed to discover the boarder two decades ago were killed before they could go home to spread the news or even before they could penetrate the boarders.

"Alpha King." Degar already arrived hours ago at the border and was only waiting for his Alpha King worriedly. The worry dissolved when he saw the huge seven-foot tall, white werewolf emerging in slow majestic steps through the trees with a small female hanging on his back sound asleep.

The Alpha King shifted into his male form with the female in his arms as he got closer to the bloody-looking leopard Alpha, "I am glad you are alright, Degar."

"Thank you, Alpha King. My solid guess is that they came for the female. The bullets are normal without a tinge of silver. They did not know that we will be there."

"That is my guess too, Degar. But those hunters they sent are too many for just one simple female. I think they expected at least one of us to come for the girl too because of the ring." He stated, staring down at the girl in question.

She is still sleeping so peacefully. Black long lashes protected her eyes in sleep, her pale-white beautiful features relaxed in sleep, her breaths coming steadily.

Degar nodded curtly, "Yes, you are right.

They started shooting when they suspected we will be in there.

If not, they would have just kidnapped her for questioning of how she came in possession of the ring and torture her badly to give useful information about the owner of the ring.

Then, she would have become another experiment. "

The wolf snarled and bared his teeth in rage inside him just at the thought of his mate being used as those experiments .

The man shoved down the instincts and started past Degar, "We need to get home first, then we can make plans of what next to do. It is obvious that the Wolfhunters have my ring."

"I just hope they weren't able to trail to our boarders." Wolfhunters are only able to hunt them once they step out of their lands into anywhere in the world, but they do not know how to find their lands, which is a good thing because that means their people inside Naturiah are safe.

"When I am the diverter?" Was all he asked calmly as he kept walking.

The leopard Alpha's worries disappeared like the wind. Of course it's not possible, when Wolfariane is the diverter. Their Alpha King is not only a god in battle but also in creating diversions and misleading the enemies.

"You took a hit." Degar's eyes caught on the blood that laced his shoulder blades.

"It's just one. It's already healing because of the run. Nothing a good sleep or a good sex won't heal completely." He replied simply.

A changeling's body heals faster and quicker than humans, once their body is 'well-fed'. They don't require treatments unless it is a very fatal injury, then they result to the healers and 'doctors' of Naturiah.

As they walked through the boarders, they passed so many landmarks, landmines and booby traps that surrounded their borders.

They can smell all the Changelings on morning duty to protect the boarder; they were all in their positions hidden from human eyes just in case of an attack anytime.

The boarders are heavily guarded and protected because it leads to the very heart of them .

Long minutes later, they passed the boarders and entered a clearing. Then, they shifted back to animal forms in order to be faster in getting to their homes. Wolfariane took the wolf form.

In the darkness of the early morning, the stars twinkling and the halfmoon still bright in the sky, two huge figures were seen running through the woods in power and agility, a small pale-skinned woman sleeping safely and protected in the back of the huge wolf.

They were well into the wild forest when Ismena stirred awake...