Under Her Skin [+18]
Chapter 1

Centuries old magic flowered through her body, coursed through her veins, turning her body into a literal flame. She could not breathe, she could not think or cry for help as she fell to the ground, running from hunters who killed her kind.

Katara Knox ran for her life, as if the whole world behind her was breaking apart, roots ripping out of the ground to grab her and slow her down. The birds were screaming in fear or anger above her as she ran faster, trying to pull on the string of her magic in her mind, to stop burning the ground she walked out.

If she blinked, the nightmare of the world breaking would disappear and she would be left with hundreds of hunters running after her. Her pack was killed, the people that had taken her in from a very young age, had been slaughtered while she could do nothing.

Tell us where the kingdom is.

She had no idea what Kingdom they talked about because every soul could see the Kingdom of Eridaya. The castle was massive with tall towers that anybody would see.

"Shoot!"

Katara twisted her body, letting the survival instincts control her soul as she hid behind the tree. She was breathing uncontrollably, panting as she laid her head against the trunk of the tree, trying to tug on the thread of her magic. Come on.

It was ridiculous. Her magic had a mind of its own, wanting to protect her by making her a beacon for the hunters to replace her.

Hunters were not rare, but they knew if they crossed the mortal lines the king and Queen had placed in Eridaya, they were for the wolves and vampires to kill. No soul could say anything to the Mortal King and Queen.

But Hunters were strong, possessing the only plant that could kill any supernatural. The yellow flower. It was not Wolfsbane that could kill only the werewolves, though not an Alpha, but this yellow flower could kill a vampire and an Alpha. One arrow, straight to the body, any part and the poison would act instantly.

Katara was neither a vampire nor a wolf. Her ears were pointed, she was taller than slightly every female she had encountered, stronger physically than the wolves, faster than the vampires, her body was what they called a Fae. The King and Queen had found her, laying in the river that separated the mortals from them, and saved her, handing her to the Alpha of the wolves, thinking it was their child.

The Alpha had been kind, passing her to one of the females who looked after her. Nesrin. Nesrin Knox was her mother, the one who could not have children of her own, but had brought up many of the lost children. Nobody had been like Katara, though, nobody possessed magic and neither did they have pointy ears and when her magic stirred inside of her, a few days before her 16th birthday, her mother took her to the Alpha who took her to the Royals.

An arrow flew past her body, bringing her back to the reality she was in. She needed to run faster, to get to the castle that had vowed to protect her. Hunters were not stupid enough to kill her and neither did Katara allow her mind to think of her mothers death, to think of the Alpha crawling to his daughter, as the poison inside kf him worked its way to his heart, instantly killing him. She didn't allow herself to think of how her magic had erupted out of her as she screamed in pain and the magic had been so foreign to her body that she ran, leaving behind the family that did not survive.

Katara pressed a hand on her chest, pressing as hard as she could. Nobody knew what to do with the magic she possessed, nothing in the history of Eridaya ever helped her. She couldn't use her magic and run as fast as she wished. The vampires had taught her, the Sire of all vampires had taught her how to run, how to zig zag and have all your awareness heightened, to be careful of every leaf that fell on the ground. Roscoe. He was alive, she knew he was alive, it wasn't possible for him to be dead because then Eridaya was falling apart and Katara had no idea what to do.

She heard the shouts of the hunters, demands flying around as she tugged as hard as she could on the magic thread inside of her. Her flames winked out instantly. A small smile appeared on her face as she forced the sigh of relief to escape her body.

Katara ran. She sprinted, letting the wind guide her body, twisting around trees and jumping over huge logs of wood that had always been in the forest.

The Forest of Death.

It sang the cries of the humans, spreading across the whole land if someone had dared to listen. But no supernatural ever did. No wolf. No vampire. Nobody ever dared to listen to the cries that could haunt a soul for centuries. Katara did not listen. She ran, faster than any vampire she had seen. She imagined Roscoe beside her, panting but trying to keep up. He would push the blond hair back that would continue to fall in front of his eyes, those blue eyes shining brightly because the wind in your hair was the best feeling ever.

Not right now.

Katara knew she had left the hunters behind as she ran out of the forest, running through the empty streets. A child was looking out the window, watching her run for her life as she staggered to a stop suddenly.

Where was everyone?

She let out a soft breath, not tired at all from running but her heart was still beating rapidly as if she was still in danger. No wolf greeted her like they always did. The small houses were shielded, she could scent the fear flowing through the air from the house closest to her. Why were they scared? The hunters wouldn't dare to come here.

Katara looked around, slowly walking to the markets that separated them from the castle that she could see. The stalls were all shut, curtains hanging across the polls. The silence I'm the air was deafening, mimicking the rapid heart in her chest as she walked down the stairs a little.

Eridaya was beautiful. The trees surrounded the land hidden by the forest of Death. The wolves usually stayed in front of the clearing of the Forest Of Death but that place was covered in blood, bones and death now. The rest of the souls in Eridaya lived behind the Forest Of Death. The vampires and the rare humans and wolves that wanted to live on this side of the land.

There were no birds singing in the clear sky as she walked through the empty markets where usually a few royal guards were stationed as normal vampires or wolves, to guard the city.

Not a soul breathed.

Something was wrong.

Her magic stirred within her slowly, causing a pit in her stomach as she walked towards the black huge gates that separated the castle from the ordinary. Katara blinked at the several guards, their faces taunt with confusion but she couldn't scent the fear surrounding the castle the closer she got.

Nikos stood at the door, the captain's sword attached to his hip. His mouth was busted, as if someone had punched their way through the gates. She walked closer, hurrying her steps but the gates did not open to her like they usually did at her arrival.

"Nik." She called out to him, seeming to snap him out of whatever thought he was in. He blinked, several times at her, at the blood coating her arms and legs. A part of her forgot she was still in a nightmare, something she had run out of when she had heard the screams this morning.

Hours had passed by.

"What happened?" He did not raise his voice as he pushed open the gates slowly, the other guards following his commands but being wary. As if they feared her.

Nik walked towards her quickly, in the black and blue royal guard uniform he wore. He was taller than her, and those dark brown eyes softened as they stared down at her, glancing over her body as if wondering who had hurt her. He was the older brother, the one Roscoe had signed to her for the first time when they had all tried to teach her how to adjust in her Fae body. Nik was always laughing, always teasing her with his mate who was the kindest soul she had ever met.

The Nik in front of her was the royal guard with the eyes of a commander assessing one of his officers. She knew he could smell the blood was not hers, but there was not a single ounce of surprise flickering in his eyes at the scent.

Her mother. The Alpha. Her family. She had burned them all because no hunter would take the body of a supernatural.

"They're dead."

Her voice was soft, a whisper. If she spoke too loud she was afraid all of Eridaya would hear the words she feared the most. Eridaya was in trouble because the humans, the hunters, were getting stronger hour by hour. This had been the 40th attack on Eridaya from the mortal land and that had only been in the last few years. While Eridaya did nothing but defend.

Eridayains were not killers as the hunters thought they were. They were not murderers of the innocent souls who dared crossed the Forest Of the Death in the dark. Even Eridayains did not walk through the forest at night, afraid of whatever lurked in the shadows but it was enough.

Katara had had enough.

"Child." Nik sighed, as if he could see the thoughts flowing through her mind. She felt him press a hand against the back of her head, pulling her closer to his chest and she wrapped her hands around his body, the silent tears falling from her face. "Nessa is at home. I've sent guards there to protect her." He mumbled as if he needed to say those words out loud.

"I'm scared." Katara answered back. "Every single one of them is gone."

The Alpha would no longer shift into the huge black wolf. He would no longer chase her across the land they lived in. She wouldn't be able to help her mother cook for the lost children. She wouldn't be able to hear the laughter of the females and males as they danced in the moonlight as if it gave their body some sort of magic to be awake so late.

"Listen to me," Nik suddenly said. "I need you to go from here." His voice was filled with worry as if something finally clicked into his mind. She looked up at him, pulling away and wiping her tears. "Go to Nessa."

"No." Katara shook her head, taking a step back. "I've had enough." She pushed her red curls back, knowing her hair was coated in blood as well. "I'll burn the mortal lands, Nik. I swear it."

He could see the threat in her green eyes, and could see the fear behind the threat. No more would die. "We will." He answered her back, promising her exactly what she wanted to hear as he grabbed both of her blooded hands. "But right now, I need you to go and hide. The King and Queen don't want you here. "

Karara frowned. She had done nothing wrong. "Why?"

"Don't ask questions, just go, please Katara. For once in your gods-damn life listen to what I'm saying." He raised his voice, anger shining in his eyes, over powering the fear she could scent.

"Nik.."

He placed a hand on her cheek, taking another step closer and kissing the top of her head. "Please just go to Nessa. I can't leave. I'm needed here but Eldar will take you. He'll guide you there."

Guide you there. She knew the way to his house.

"Please." His voice was a plea as he looked at her, with his hand still on her cheek. Her eyes softened. He had protected her many times from other guards who had wished her death for being different from the others in Eridaya.

"Remove your hand from my wife."

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