A Werewolf Fantasy
Chapter 32

When Erin woke up, the sun was already shining brightly and the ground was unbearably hot. She got up to a sitting position and looked around her to see if there was anything different in the area since last night but to her dismay, she was all alone in the forest.

There was no one else there with her; neither insects nor animals were present, and the weird silence unnerved her. She was thirsty but there was no sign of water anywhere.

Was this what she and all of the others that had ventured into the cave would spend every day and night in solitude, surrounded by nothing else but trees and grasses?

It dawned on her that Nikjin intended to torture them all without even lifting a finger. They would be in this place without food or water and nobody to talk to for several days.

And when the full moon rose in the sky on the fateful day he had chosen, he would show up and kill them one by one, starting with Vak Smallchief.

The prime Alpha was the main target in this war and he would be killed when he was most vulnerable. That was the most barbaric thing anyone could do to someone.

Her stomach growled, reminding her that the last time she ate anything was over 20 hours ago. She looked around to see if there were any edible fruits among the trees but to her utter disappointment, there were none.

She could feel her mood sinking lower and lower with each second that passed. How long could she survive this brutal condition? Would she be able to live like this for weeks?

She got on her feet and started to walk around aimlessly. She was naked but so what? There was nobody here to ogle her nudity, so there was no need to be shy. At least she was thankful that Nikjin had spared her from those beastly creatures of his.

Perhaps he was saving them for the final day when he would take on the Prime Alpha who by then would be exhausted and starved out of his mind, that he would not be able to even lift a finger to defend himself against his evil brother. "Damn," she said aloud. "We walked right into Nikjin's trap. He tricked us. We should never have come here."

From the moment Danshak had told her that the Prime Alpha was leading a charge against Nikjin, she had known it was a bad idea, but even she did not envisage something as horrendous as this.

Nikjin had cleverly played on Vak's grief-fueled rage to lure him into this evil den to be trapped for weeks until he would be slaughtered like a sacrificial lamb. Why hadn't any of them seen this coming?

They already knew that their adversary was dabbling into dark magic and diabolic machinations, so why didn't they suspect that the cave was a portal and not just an ordinary cave? Why hadn't that occurred to her before?

She sighed. "Well, it's too late for regrets now," she said sadly. "We are all going to die in this evil place and those outside of here would not even know what happened to us. And then when Nikjin is done with us, he will leave here and declare himself the new Alpha King, and whoever does not bow to his command would be subjected to this cruel treatment or be killed instantly. Is this what I came here for?"

Tired from walking, she finally sat down on a low boulder beneath a pine tree, wondering what was happening to Danshak right now. Was he searching for her?

Had he figured out what this place is or was she the only one that Nikjin had visited so far? Would she see her mate again before Nikjin's doomsday? And more importantly, would he spare her, since he knew that she was not just Edvana but Erin as well?

"These thoughts are driving me crazy," she said in despair. "Or maybe this is part of Nikjin's game plan.

"He wants us to be starved, exhausted, and insane so that when he finally shows up on the final day, we would be more than grateful to die at his hands because dying would feel like a relief from this hell hole."

She shook her head slowly and said, "What a genius plan. What an evil genius plan. Checkmate."

Erin wondered if Darren White played chess and if he probably learned the skill from his ancestor, the devious Nikjin Whitehound. Damn!

"I can't do this anymore," she moaned tiredly and leaned on the tree.

"I just want to go back home. Ok, I've found what I'm looking for - Danshak a.k.a Devon is my fated mate, he wasn't lying about that. The painting in his gallery is his memory of meeting me a.k.a Edvana, here. What else did I miss?"

Did Nikjin eventually win this war and become the supreme leader of the werewolves? Oh well, she didn't have the answer to that question because until coming here, she had never heard of anyone named Nikjin Whitehound. Only Vak Smallchief is known as their original werewolf ancestor, so where does that leave Nikjin the villain?

Does that mean that he did not succeed in overthrowing Vak, or why else was he never mentioned as part of their werewolf ancestors? Did Vak somehow manage to defeat him?

Or was it Danshak or Weruona that defeated him? But how, if at all?

Her stomach growled again and she felt faint from hunger. Time seemed to be moving slowly because, from her observation, it was still morning, probably around 11 a.m. by now.

How was she going to survive the rest of the day, let alone the rest of the month? There was no doubt about it, she was going to die here and nobody except Nikjin would know where to replace her.

"Oh God, please don't let me die here," she groaned. "Please, get me out of here. Just get me the hell out of here. I can't do this anymore."

She slipped off the boulder and lay on the ground, and she began to sob softly. She cried herself to sleep and when she woke up about two hours later, she felt dizzy and disoriented.

The sun was still up in the sky and blazing like a ball of fire. She thought it was odd that there was this much sunshine at this time of the year, or maybe this sun was being manipulated by Nikjin and his mystic buddy who seemed to be an expert in creating this sort of grand illusion. It occurred to her then that this place wasn't real, it was Nikjin's torture chamber for all of his enemies.

He could make the weather as hot or as cold as he wanted, regardless of what time of year it was. That was an insane amount of power for one person to wield, and now he wanted to be the Alpha King. If he succeeded, he would be unstoppable...

... but he didn't, because in her reality in Fairbanks, Vak Smallchief was still known as the first werewolf in history and the only werewolf ancestor who received seven salutation howls on the nights of the Full Moon Feasts. Where did that leave Nikjin?

"You are a beautiful sight to behold in a wasteland such as this," he said, appearing in front of her like an apparition.

Erin looked up at her captor and her parched throat dried up the more at the sight of him. He was shirtless and only a scrap of leather loin cloth covered his nether region.

He was all muscles and sinews, with a broad chest and ripped abs that reminded her of those sexy guys in the 'Magic Mike' movie. She may hate this guy, but she could not deny that he was indeed a hunk and a pleasing sight for her sore eyes. Erin was shocked that she could replace herself being sexually attracted to another male besides Danshak, her beloved mate.

"Have you reconsidered my offer?" he asked with a sultry smile, knowing that she had been checking him out.

"Nikjin, please," she begged. "Set me free. I have no part in all of this, I am just an innocent bystander."

"You are more than a bystander, my dear Luna. You followed your family here and you are doomed to the same fate as they are, except you look beyond your emotions and give in to me. Listen to me, my dear, Danshak is not here right now and he cannot see you. What he does not know cannot hurt him, trust me."

"What are you saying?"

"You know what I am saying. Be my mate for the next couple of days until the full moon comes, and let me treat you to a life of comfort and satisfaction like you have never experienced before." "And then what?"

He shrugged. "Why do you bother about that? Are you, not just a bystander?"

Erin licked her lips to moisten them but she appeared to have run out of saliva too.

"So, let me get this straight - you want me to be your lover for the next one month and then when the full moon comes, you will kill me and my family. What kind of shitty deal is that? I'll spend weeks warming your bed just so you can kill me afterward?"

Nikjin grinned, thoroughly enjoying this exchange between him and Erin. "I like your sense of humor, and for that, I think I will set you free instead of killing you along with the others. How about that?"

It was still a shitty deal because the thought of being unfaithful to Danshak even for the sake of her survival made her stomach quiver in disgust. What Nikjin was proposing was abominable.

This man was her father-in-law's brother and her husband's uncle, and sleeping with him was like committing incest, wasn't it?

How could she bear to live with herself after doing that? Would she ever be able to look at Danshak's eyes again after betraying him like that?

"I-I don't know," she said sincerely. "What you are asking of me is not right, and you know it."

"What I know is that if the roles were reversed and Danshak was presented with an opportunity to live in comfort beside a powerful woman for thirty days instead of starving in a desolate forest, he would not think twice before accepting such a generous offer.

"That is the difference between us males and you females. We think logically while you think emotionally. I am surprised that you are negotiating your only chance at survival. I am impressed by your loyalty and at the same time disappointed by your stupidity. However, I will not force you because you have willingly made your choice."

Erin became desperate. He was going to leave her again and this may be her final chance to secure her freedom from this horrible prison. What was she going to do?

Perhaps she could agree to his terms and use the opportunity of being in his good graces to secure the freedom of Danshak and his kin. It was a long shot but it wasn't impossible.

She would do her best to earn Nikjin's trust and then replace a way to get food and water to Danshak and the others, and when the time was right, she would set them free. She knew her plan was heavily flawed and was probably too wild to succeed but it was worth a try nonetheless.

"Fine," she said. "I will go with you."

Nikjin smiled slowly as if he knew she would give in eventually. "I knew you were cooking up something when those wheels began to turn behind your beautiful eyes. I cannot wait to see what you think you can get up to under my watchful eyes."

Her blood ran cold at his words. He knew she was plotting something and he was already prepared to counter whatever she was planning. Damn, it!

He stretched his hand toward her. "Come, my dear Luna. I am eager to know more about you. I am sure you have questions too, and I shall answer them all once we are properly acquainted."

She swallowed hard and tentatively reached out to grab the hand he'd offered her. When she got to her feet, she had to endure the scrutiny of his burning gaze as his eyes ran over her naked body appreciatively.

"Indeed, I cannot wait to know you," he said huskily in a voice that was thick with desire. "Come, pleasure awaits."

Erin followed Nikjin without hesitation and within a split second, she found herself walking into an entirely different reality.