The Lycan King (Book 1)
Chapter 24. Mark

Nikolai

As soon as I saw Ava was about to collapse, I rushed around the treadmill and caught her before shefell. It hurt me to hurt her like this but it had to be done. Her wolf had be be brought out. Thelonger she went without her wolf, the harder if would have been for her wolf to come out. Thenthere would have come a time when her wolf would have died in isolation inside her head, killingAvalyn in the process.

"You did great, Love." I whispered as I pecked her lips.

I picked her in my arms and carried her out of the gym.

I was so goddamn proud of her. Doing as Vladimir suggested worked.

Her wolf is out!

I was carrying her up the stairs when I felt her body temperature rise. I could feel her wolf. She wasreally strong.

Ava's eyes snapped open and she stared up at me. They weren't the usual brown colour but pitchblack. It was her wolf. I grinned at her.

Her temperature rose further and now it was starting to worry me.

"Ho-hot" she rasped out.

Fuck. It was happening. It was happening right now.

I ran down the stairs and into the backyard.

'Sofiya, Natalia, come fast and get a blanket. Fast. It's happening.?l mind-linked them.

I sat on the grass and sat Ava in my lap.

"You're shifting Ava." I smiled at her.

She blinked her eyes up at me and gave me a wobbly smile.

"It hurts.” She whispered and a tear leaked out of her eye.?l know, Love, I know.

"I'm here with you. We will get through this together. I want you to stay strong, I'm here with you.” Itold her softly and brushed back her hair from her forehead. Her skin was clammy because of theheat and sweat.

Vladimir jumped out of a window and zipped besides us.

He touched her forehead and closed his eyes for a second.

"It's time.” He told me, giving me a nod.

"Avalyn, I want you to allow whatever is happening, don't try to stop your wolf.” He told her.

She gave him a short, shaky nod. Her eyes clouded again and turned pitch black again beforeturning pale blue, like of the sky. She was going to have a beautiful wolf.

Sofiya and Natasha came running with a bundle of blankets in her arms. After one look, sheunderstood what was happening and spread the blanket on the ground.

"I will lay you on the blanket, it is soft and will hurt less.” I told her as I lifted her and placed her onthe blanket.

Her claws were extending and retracting. The bones in her jaw were breaking and realigning andshe was screaming. Hard.

"The area is evacuated and we all will be waiting inside, call us if you need help.” Vladimir informedand returned back to the house.

"You'll have to remove her clothes Nikolai." Natalia informed me. I nodded and used my claws toshred her clothes.

Sofiya and Natasha had brought cold water and were using a soft cloth to rub it over her body. Thatwould help with the growing temperature of her body.

I was actually really scared. I have never seen an adult shift. But I heard that it was very difficult tosurvive and mostly everyone dies. It is because their body cannot bare all that pain. There is no wayin hell I was going to let anything happen to Ava.

Her claws finally extended and the bones of her hands and legs were twisting and breaking. Itlooked gruesome but she was handling it well.

"You can do it Ava. You are so strong.” I whispered softly.

She screamed when her spine broke. She was crying and was shaking her head.

"Too much...I c-can't.” She cried and then suddenly the breaking of her bones stopped and her clawswere retracting back it and she closed her eyes.

No. No! This cannot happen!

"What's happening to her?" Sofiya cried.

I held her both hands and squeezed. "Avalyn wake up." I ordered in my Master tone.

Her eyes snapped open and she looked at me with teary eyes.?I'm sorry but you have to do this. Ihave to do this.

"Push your wolf out. Do not stop her." I ordered again. Her lips quivered but she gave me a smallnod.

She closed her eyes again and screamed again when her bones continued to break. Her claws wereback again. By the way she was crying, I knew she would not be able to do it like this.

I tightened my hold on her hands and and closed my eyes and focused on our mate bond. I knowthat we hadn't mated but being together for so long was bound to create a bond.

Once I sensed the bond, I could feel a fraction of the pain she was feeling and I tugged at it. Itugged until her pain transferred to me.

I looked at her when her screams decreased and she looked at me in confusion. I tried to keep myface impassive as the pain grew. The pain I was feeling right now was ten times more intense thanmy first shift but I gritted my teeth and bared it.

Better me, than her.

I felt as if all the bones in my body were breaking and realigning and tiny needles were prickingthrough my skin. I screamed.

Ava was looking at me with wide eyes and then she shook her head, more tears forming in her eyes.She understood what I was doing.

I was taking all her pain away.

She tried to pull her hands from mine but I held on tight.

"No." I gritted. I closed my eyes when I felt a sharp pain in my spine. Spine was always the hardest."Please, don't do it." She said, her eyes still filled with tears.

I ignored her. It was better that way. After all, it was my plan to do this- to bring out her wolf.

The pain intensified and I tightened my hold on her hand. I growled as the pain became unbearable.Suddenly, the pain was decreasing and I saw Ava give me a pain filled smile.

"Equals, remember?" She bit her lip.

"Equals." I agreed.

And thats what we did. We shared the pain equally throughout her whole shift. Her hands turnedinto paws but I still held on and so did she. It was then that I realised her true strength. There is noone like my Ava- the first ever female to survive a shift in her adulthood.

After three gruesome hours, in place of Ava lay her wolf- her beautiful, pure white wolf.

Her eyes landed on me and they were the palest blue, almost white coloured eyes. I had never in mylife seen a wolf like her. She stood up and walked to me. She was taller than normal wolfs. She wasan Alpha. She nuzzled in my side and I brushed my hand through her soft as silk fur, finally feelingthe sparks everyone talked about. It was addicting.

Avalyn?was addicting.

I rubbed her belly and she purred. I grinned at her. She was almost as tall as me. I rubbed behindher ears and she closed her eyes in bliss.

Sofiya and Natalia weren't here anymore. Maybe they slipped inside to give us privacy, I didn'tnotice.

"Let's go to the clearing.” I told her and she yipped. I took off my clothes and shifted into mymidnight blue wolf. We truly were a sight to behold. I focused on our bond and I pulled her in myhead, establishing a mind-link with her.

"Hi." I whispered. She jumped in shock and then looked at me and cocked her head in confusion.“Its the mind-link. Try it. Imagine you are talking to me mentally." I told her.

"Hi." She said after sometime.

“Good job, Love. Lets go now, you are in for a ride." I grinned.

We both took off running together. She was a bit slow and stumbled on her own legs or on therocks or on the roots of the trees but she was doing well considering this was her first time. My wolfwould stop and lick her every time she fell to encourage her. Our wolfs already had formed a bond.My wolf was just getting excited over the thought of getting to mate her now. Once we reached theclearing, we walked ahead side by side, our furs touching.

I shifted into my own skin and just looked at her. She was running on the beach and lookingeverywhere. I knew she was seeing the world differently now. Literally. All her senses were improvedwhich meant she could see each and every grain of sand clearly and could hear my heartbeat too.She also must feel much more stronger than she had felt ever in her life.

After she had her fun, she ran to me and while doing so, she butt her head in my chest before sheskid to a stop. She let out a low whine after that.

"It's alright.” I said softly and caressed her head. Her fur was softer than any other wolf.

"It's time to shift now. Just imagine yourself in your human form." I told her.

After some more cracking of bone, she shifted in her human form. A huge smile took over her facewhich popped her dimples, she walked up to me and hugged me tightly.

"I love you." She whispered. "Thank you?so?much. This is the best gift anybody has ever given me.""So I assume you understand why I said and did all of those things?" I asked her as I brushed myhand through her long locks. Her long, ?white?lock.

"Yes. I needed the push to help me bring out the wolf." She rose on her toes and kissed my lipsgreedily.

The spark that I felt was even more exhilarating than before. I held her close to me by the back ofher neck and kissed her back harder. Her lips moved against mine in an urgency like never before. Ipushed my tongue in her mouth and clashed my tongue with her's. She gasped and I bit herluscious lip. I slowly trailed down to her neck, leaving kisses all over before I sucked as the spot Iwas going to mark her.

"I'm going to mark you here Avalyn, right now.” I informed her.?

She moaned in response and tilted her head back to give me better access. I took that as a yes.Licking the juncture between her neck and shoulder again, I felt my canines elongate before I dungin,?deep.

She didn't scream, she took it all. I still kept my teeth in, letting my wolf savour it. He had waited toolong for this and I was proud of him for not loosing control and marking her by force. Wolvesnormally mated as soon as they know that that they are the one. I bit her with all my love, all thelonging that I kept at bay and all the dominance that she craved. I bit her so deep that her soulwould be marked and she would be mine in the afterlife too.

When I finally let her go, she looked at me with so much love, I felt like my heart would burst out.The bite was bleeding, the blood flowing down her naked chest. Only?I2can heal that bite. Only Ican heal?my?mate’s bite.

"You are mine, Avalyn." My chest rumbled as I declared it.

She fell to her knees in front of me and bowed her head in utmost submission.

"I am yours Master. My heart, body and soul is yours." She said.

My heart felt like it would burst now. I never knew that I could love someone so much, thatsomeone can love?me?so much.

"Stand up." I said softly.

When she stood up, I held her from the back of her head and tilted her head to the side, exposingthe still open bite to me. I bent my head and licked it clean, only I could heal the mark. And whenthe bite is healed fully, it meant that the female has accepted the male fully.

The bite healed in front of my eyes and I could now see my mark. My wolf came forward when hesaw our mark on her neck.

I caressed it with my finger and saw the goosebumps arise on her skin

"I love you." She whispered.

"I love you, too." I whispered and kissed her again.