Sins Among Royals
Chapter 72

Silence surrounded the pair as Ebony internally cursed her brother for being deceitful. During her shift she noticed that he was waiting and fear gripped her as a dark thought raced through her mind. Their kind were most vulnerable during a shift, what if Noah decided in that moment to be dishonest. What if in that moment he killed her?

Her fears were only amplified as she watched him during her pained transformation, the new power from her father sent volts of electricity coursing through her veins and she hadn’t expected. The other thing she didn’t expect was for her brother to have a wolf unlike her own. She didn’t expect his wolf to be a Loup-garou. This changed everything for Ebony and compared to the pain she felt it looked as though all Noah had to do was flex a muscle and he’d transformed. How was it that he got the best of everything all the time?

If she’d transformed her wolf into Loup-garou then all her problems would have been solved and all of her enemies would have trembled before her. As it stood she needed to fight smarter, she needed to be more cunning, more deceptive.

A dark jealousy crept into her mind and quickly clouded the mind of her wolf who had largely fought her evil nature. But this time the poor creature within her that was more like her good conscience was silenced once and for all. It wanted to kill, it wanted to tear chunks off of the massive beast in front of it.

Though it’s size was immense it was bound to have some weakness and Ebony would replace out what it was.

Unfortunately for her she barely had time to think as the beast that was Noah rushed towards her without hesitation. The small wolf jumped to the side as the lumbering giant took a swipe and missed.

Her heart beat became more rapid as it worked to pump more blood through her veins. The burst of adrenaline boosted her energy levels and made her feel invincible. It was like a bomb had gone off inside her but thankfully for Ebony it worked to her advantage.

She turned quickly, her paws sinking slightly into the damp earth leaving soft prints in their wake. Though she thought she was more than capable of taking on Noah as he was she had no idea of what he was capable of.

The smaller wolf ran for the beast and as it pushed off of the ground and landed on its shoulder the little beast sunk it’s teeth into the flesh of Noah’s twisted wolf.

A howl sounded through the dark night sky as tooth met flesh. Ebony’s wolf began closing its jaw around the monster that was her brother. The tiny wolf trying to inflict as much damage as possible on the beast.

Unfortunately for the deranged Ebony the monster saw her as nothing more than a pest to be destroyed and although she had a tight hold on him nothing could prepare her for the pain he was about to inflict.

Noah had lost himself to his rage, to his anger and his annoyance at being left with a lust he just wasn’t able to sate. Now that he was in his monstrous wolf form his lust for his mate quickly turned into a lust for blood, death and destruction and the only wolf he could sense in close proximity was the one attached to his shoulder.

Reaching his gnarled, elongated claws up to the wolf he grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and pulled. He howled in pain again as the little wolf bit down harder. He felt the tips of his claws scrape against the skin of his attacker and curled them downwards. His fingernails had morphed from a very normal set of human fingers to jagged edged daggers capable of separating flesh from bone and as the wolf bit he dug his claws into the pests hide.

The night was marred with a new sound as Ebony released her hold on her brother. Pain shot through her entire body as a searing heat penetrated the muscles of her back. She squirmed from side to side and snapped her jaw at the beast. Once, twice, three times.

Noah saw the frantic panic in the little wolf and flung his arm back. He watched with contentment as the wolf hit the ground and rolled a couple of times before hitting the short stone wall at the edge of one of the gardens with a thump and a whine. It lay unmoving for a while before it dared move again. How had he become so strong?

Pulling itself up to its feet the little wolf shook off a sudden drowsiness that overcame it and ran head first towards the unnatural beast. Seeing the impending danger Noah too began running at full speed towards his sister, his large feet leaving depressions in the usually perfect lawn. With arms locked at his sides he readied himself for what was going to happen. Before he could reach her however the little wolf darted off to the side and around the back. It turned quickly on its feet and jumped to land on the wolf’s back. Noah was in real trouble.

Fortunately for him someone had been watching from the shadows. Someone who didn’t like seeing her mate hurt or under threat. She knew he would scold her later but she didn’t care. He’d already almost died once, she couldn’t lose him again. Being told off was better than mourning the dead.

In the blink of an eye she emerged from the side of the castle and burst into her wolf form. She was determined to show those that doubted her that she was capable of controlling her beast.

She heard a hum of surprised voices somewhere in the distance but ignored it as Ebony closed her jaw around the side of Noah’s neck. She was dangerously close to puncturing a vein that would surely see Noah bleed out in minutes. Indie couldn’t have that.

Switching between bipedalism and running on all fours she realised Ebony had no idea she was coming. Indie let a growl slip from her lips as she approached. Ebony released Noah and turned towards her as Indie closed the gap far too quickly for Ebony to escape. She tried to push herself off of her brother shoulder but Indie caught her by the tail and slammed her into the ground with force.

Ebony did not move. Her lupine form lay deathly still and for a short while both beast thought the little wolf was dead.

Soon she began twitching as the two beasts hovered above her. Soon Ebony got to her feet again a d whimpered. Nothing was going how she’d imagined it would. How were there two Loup-garou and how was she so unprepared for this? Of all the information she had gathered and of all she had heard it was the vampire that was most powerful, it was him who she needed to overpower but as she lay on the ground, her fur growing damp from the dew that had gathered she realised she was out muscled and outnumbered.

Noah reached down, his muscles aching from the wounds she’d inflicted. He wrapped his hand around his sisters lupine head, her ears twitching along with her legs. Noah closed his hand around her head and watched as she began squirming a little more. Ebony suddenly sprang to life as she realised what peril she was in, she kicked and lashed out, her claws scratching the beasts forearm leaving long, parallel indentations in their wake.

The beast did not flinch. Instead it squeezed harder and a loud mushy pop. The little wolf’s head instantly became misshapen and deformed as it’s body twitched and spasmed with its last breath of life. After a short period of silence two orbs of light appeared to float from her body as the beast holding her dropped her in fear and moved backwards.

Noah howled as his beastly form fell away quickly. What was the light that emerged from his sister’s body? Indie stood watching silently. Her beast wanted more death, more destruction, more chaos. It wanted to bathe in red and destroy everything in sight. Her human side however forced the darkness in her mind backwards, she didn’t want to deal with the disappointment and soul crushing feeling of not only letting her family down but also her mate. Again.

Indie struggled against the darkness. The more she pushed it back the more it threatened to overtake her. With a loud howl that seemed to last quite some time she fell to her knees. Bracing herself against the soft earth she spasmed and twitched as she fought an internal battle with her beast. As Noah’s shift came to an end and the balls of light hovered over Ebony’s lifeless wolf form Indie’s beast began retreating.

Noah noticed the trouble she was having and approached with caution, “come on Indie, come back to me.” He urged her gently as she tossed her head from side to side. Before long her wolf form fell away completely. Almost in the blink of an eye. Indie regained her composure and smiled at her mate, “I did it!” She exclaimed quickly as the guards hiding at the edge of the woods began appearing. Nathaniel and Andrew soon stood next to their king as everyone’s attention turned to the balls of light that lingered.

“What are they?” Indie queried with an interest as Nathaniel approached with caution.

It was obvious that Ebony was dead but the vampire couldn’t help but check. “Odd.” He muttered as he crouched down and looked at the orbs gently. “Andrew, you said she absorbed Victor’s life force but who could the second one belong to?”

Many of those that gathered had never seen such a magical, mystical sight before in their lives.

Andrew joined Nathaniel in his observations but it was Noah that answered, “it could be Raif? She admitted to killing him.” Glances shifted between Noah and Ebony’s remains quickly.

“Wouldn’t it be Ebony?” Indie interrupted. Why would it not be her?

“Those who take life unnecessarily and for ill intentions are not given this honour.” Andrew filled the silence as he thought back to what Morgana had taught him. “Your Moon Goddess bestows the honour on those who have either lived a pure life or have given their life for those they love.” Andrew wasn’t sure of the other orb of light but he assumed that Victor had ventured down into the dungeons to either talk sense into his daughter or give his life so that he could be with Grace.

“There is so much we don’t know,” Wade muttered as he stood near his king.

“There are many things we don’t know but that is the nature of life. While you may learn many things there are still many more we will never touch, hear or feel.” Nathaniel smiled as he stood straight, the balls of light following.

Everyone stood in awe as they floated up into the night sky and disappeared with the light of the moon.

“Will you stay here and teach us what you know Nathaniel?” Noah questioned the man quickly. He was wise and mysterious and left no doubt in Noah’s mind that if he stayed they would all prosper greatly. “I’m sure Andrew would love the company.”

To Noah’s surprise Nathaniel scoffed, “he would love my company too much I think,” he then turned serious for a moment before answering the question asked of him. “If I am to stay I would like it if I was given a room that wasn’t in that dungeon. I don’t know about you but it feels like it perpetuates the myth that vampires sleep in coffins.” People often forgot that Nathaniel had been a werewolf before he had been a vampire and while he enjoyed human blood he also enjoyed comfort and warmth. Even if he could never feel the warmth for too long.

“I’ve actually been thinking about having the dungeons sealed up. All prisoners will be held above ground.” there were instant nods of agreement all around. Many people hated venturing into the dungeons and now that it was the place of his father’s and mother’s deaths Noah thought the respectful thing to do would be to abandon it and close it to all living souls.

“It shall be done,” Andrew smiled gently. “Unfortunately I fear the sun will rise shortly so Nathaniel and I must retreat. We shall retrieve your father for you but what to do with the wolf?” Andrew motioned towards the lifeless body on the ground.

“Bury her somewhere. She will be forgotten by everyone in this pack,” the bitter taste of resentment marked Noah as he couldn’t help but sneer down at his sister. “Send someone a team to retrieve Raif and see to it he receives a proper burial.” Noah looked through the crowd of people to replace Naira, Willow and Darla. “Inform everyone that the ceremony will take place when the sun set on this day. Perhaps we will keep it a little smaller and a little more intimate than the last one.”

The girls nodded and rushed off. There was no doubt in his mind that come nightfall they would have something beautiful sorted out and ready to go. “Everyone who isn’t on duty can go and get some rest.” He then turned to India, “I have some business that I must tend to immediately.” Those that stood closest to Noah grinned knowingly and urged everyone to leave.

Before long Noah chased Indie through the empty hallways of the castle. The biggest threat had been taken care of, his greatest enemy was dead. It was now time to take care of his needs and the needs of his mate.