The mysterious man gritted his teeth, consumed by the need to find his mate as soon as possible. He had sensed her that night-so close, yet unseen. She must have been using her ability to conceal her appearance. Maybe his monstrous form had scared her away. He had searched all night, hoping to track her, but failed. Groaning in frustration, he clenched his fists. Losing the sensation of her presence felt like dying. He needed to find her, and soon.
His phone rang, and he answered angrily.
“What?!” he barked into the phone.
“The manager wants to know if we can reopen the fight club soon,” came the voice on the other end.
“That’s your problem, not mine!” He slammed the phone onto the table. “Now I need a new phone again. Damn it.” He ran his fingers through his hair, noticing the tall, hulking figure standing across from him, eyes hollow.
“We can’t see the Silvermoon pack anymore. Their entire territory has vanished from the earthly plane,” the man said, sitting down.
Brenth growled lowly. “That pack has witches. Of course. My mate must be there.” He groaned in frustration again.
“She might be. I don’t know where those new hybrids came from, but they could be tied to the Silvermoon pack. Remember the hybrids we fought last week? They slaughtered some of our pack members. It won’t be easy to reach her, not with those creatures protecting the pack,” the man replied, his tone flat and emotionless.
” They just appeared from nowhere all of the sudden. “
” They might be discovered this place or they came from far away relatives. I don’t know. ”
Brenth thought for a moment. “That vampire… he’s a pain in the ass,” he muttered, recalling the shame of their encounter.
” That vampire we abducted-he defeated us and humiliated us…. But that night? I stumbled into something-something I couldn’t see,” the big man prompted.
Brenth’s glare sharpened. “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?!” he demanded through gritted teeth.
“I thought my mind was playing tricks on me.”
“That vampire knows where my mate is. He is also in that goddamn pack. We need to find him again. This time, talk to him. No reckless moves. He’s dangerous, we are outnumbered,” Brenth said sharply.
The man raised an eyebrow. “Why are you becoming already” he asked, almost mockingly.
Brenth stood abruptly, fury in his eyes. “You don’t get to question my judgment! You’re just my beta! And if I don’t find my mate soon, I’ll hunt you down to the ends of the Earth myself.” He spat. “And don’t let my father know about this.”
“As you wish, Alpha Brenth,” the man replied.
“What are you waiting for?!” Brenth roared.
Alastair drank continuously, but no matter how much he consumed, he could never get drunk. An eerie sensation washed over him, unsettling him. He stepped out of the bar, scanning the surroundings to trace the source of that feeling. His eyes landed on a blonde girl across the street, wearing a black hooded jacket. Their eyes met. She quickly vanished from his sight, but Alastair followed, chasing her down until he caught her. She struggled, but he was stronger.
“Please don’t kill me!” she pleaded, her voice trembling.
Alastair released her wrists, crossing his arms as he smiled.
“What’s your name?” he asked, his tone casual.
“I’m Jean,” she replied hesitantly, pulling back her hood.
“Nice to meet you, Jean.” He narrowed his eyes, studying her.
“What do you want from me?” she asked, fear creeping into her voice.
“I just want to know you. I sensed your presence from afar. You have a strong aura, and you’re not hiding it,” he replied, still smiling.
“Aura?” she repeated, her brow furrowing.
“I see… you’re a new one,” Alastair mused. ” Aura, it means your presence. ”
“A young man bit me and turned me into this. I hate it,” she said, her voice flat, devoid of emotion. ” I don’t like it. ”
“I don’t like it either,” he admitted.
“You’re not going to cage me, are you?” she asked anxiously, searching his face for reassurance.
“That depends on whether you can control your hunger for blood. You’re a new one or newborn whatever” he said playfully.
“I hurt people-killed them by draining their blood. I didn’t mean to. I hate myself,” she confessed. Alastair sighed, leaning against the wall. Opening his psychic link, he projected his thoughts to her, surprising her with the sudden connection in her mind.
“I hate myself too,” he mentally agreed.
Jean’s face twisted with fear and confusion. “I was abducted by men-they caged me. I saw other creatures in their van. They tortured them, chained them, and locked them up but I managed to escape,” she blurted out, her voice breaking.
“I will hunt them all soon, so, join me,” Alastair prompted. But Jean shook her head.
“I’m scared,” she said anxiously.
” You shouldn’t be. ”
Suddenly, Giuseppe appeared out of nowhere. Jean’s eyes widened in terror, and she rushed at him, slapping him repeatedly. Giuseppe grunted, pretending to be in pain.
“Now we see the culprit behind this,” Blaze muttered as Giuseppe laughed.
Before Jean could strike him again, Giuseppe drained her energy, causing her to collapse unconscious in his arms.
“Pardon me, my majesty. Guilty as charged,” Giuseppe said sarcastically as he bow down.
“Take her to Blaze’s manor,” Alastair demanded.
Giuseppe raised an eyebrow. “What about the barrier thing?” He prompted.
” Then take her to your house temporarily. You created this problem, not me,” Alastair scolded.
“As you wish your majesty,” Giuseppe replied rolling his eyes, lifting the girl effortlessly. ” I’ll be right back. ”
“Better not, You still have to look for her,” Alastair said, his tone sharp.
Giuseppe grunt in annoyance but nodded. With a swift movement, he disappeared, leaving Alastair, alone.
Giuseppe wandered deep into the woods, his mind clouded with a lunatic rage that had been building for days. He no longer feared the lycans that lurked in the shadows, for he was determined to crush them into pieces. Blood from animals he’d hunted clung to his clothes.
” Fuck this vampiric thing. ” Giuseppe mumbled, as he look at his clothes.
Leaning against a massive tree, he was startled when the tree began to wither under his touch. Leaves browned and thickened, some falling lifelessly to the ground. His hand jerked away, eyes wide in disbelief. He pressed his palm back against the bark, and the tree continued to shrivel, life draining out of it as though he was sapping it dry.
“What in the actual hell is this?” Giuseppe whispered, staring at his hands in shock. He quickly decided to wear black plastic gloves at those very moment. After wearing a gloves, he tried to touch plants again but it doesn’t work, he still can drain them to death.
He returned to his house mad, where the blonde girl, Jean, was awake already but struggling aggressively against her chains. Giuseppe began undressing, seemingly unfazed by her frantic movements.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Jean asked, her voice trembling with worry.
Giuseppe rolled his eyes, “Relax. I’m just changing my clothes. Don’t be so presumptuous. I’m not gonna make you pregnant, “
“Get this chain off of me,” Jean demanded.
Giuseppe raised a brow. Without a word, he unchained her. Jean rubbed her wrists, a mix of relief and anxiety on her face.
“Thank you. I really need to go. My parents are probably worried about me right now,”
Giuseppe sighed deeply. “You need to ask permission from Alastair first.”
Her eyes widened. “Can you take me to him?” she asked, her voice pleading.
” Aliyah, ” . He whispered. A sudden vision flashed before him-Aliyah showing him Alastair’s whereabouts.
“Let’s go,” Giuseppe said, waving his hand dismissively, signaling her to follow.
Alastair continued drinking, his demeanor calm despite the manager’s growing concern. He had consumed an astonishing amount of alcohol, yet remained completely unaffected. The manager, unsettled, discreetly sent a text message. A few minutes later, a group of towering men entered the bar. Alastair, sensing their arrival, paused, stood, and faced them with a smirk. He lazily waved his hand, amused by their hesitation.
“Well, hello there,” Alastair greeted, spinning the bottle between his fingers. One of the men stepped forward, but before he could get close, the manager slipped out, closing the windows and locking the doors. The room darkened as the men began to transform into massive lycanthropes, their bodies stretching into terrifying forms. Alastair, unimpressed, rolled his eyes and placed the bottle down on the counter.
“That’s no use to me,” he said with a tone of boredom. “I could kill all of you without breaking a sweat.” His words were a clear warning, but the lycans didn’t listen. One of them charged at him, and in an instant, Alastair raised his hand. The lycan exploded mid-air, spraying blood across the room. The remaining lycans growled, their fear now palpable. They clawed desperately at the walls, trying to escape, but they were trapped.
Giuseppe and Jean arrived just in time to witness the chaos. As the lycans shifted back to their human forms and fled, Giuseppe caught one and dragged him back into the bar. The man trembled in terror as Giuseppe stared him down.
“Listen here, you abominable wild animal,” Giuseppe hissed. Alastair, watching the scene unfold, chuckled darkly as the man’s eyes rolled back, slowly losing consciousness under the pressure of Giuseppe’s grip. Giuseppe released him, letting him slump to the floor. “You’ve met your match. You all terrorized this town long enough and this City. We could kill every last one of you if we wanted to,” Giuseppe continued, his voice dripping with menace. “But there’s a little problem here. Your Alpha is mated to one of my friends. What do you think he’ll do when he finds out we tortured one of his pack members to death?”
“Tell your Alpha to fuck off and kill himself already,” Alastair said sharply.
The man panting heavily as he slowly regain his strength.
” Our Alpha never cared if we die or not. ” The man said hoarsely. Giuseppe and Alastair exchanged a look.
” Go fuck yourself. You are free to go. ” Alastair roared using his Alpha tone and the man trembled in fear, running away.
Alastair darted his eyes to Jean.
” And you also, go. ” Alastair commanded. Jean nodded nonchalantly.
” I just want to see my parents one last time and I will be back. ” Jean said in a unsured look. Alastair hum in response. She quickly fade from their sight.
” Tonight, I will put this to an end. ” Alastair said barely a whispered.
” They said that you cannot hurt your mate. ” Giuseppe prompted, reminding him. Alastair gritted his teeth, breaking the bottle in front of him, slamming the table, breaking everything from his sight.
” I don’t care! ” He growled.
The night fell, and the full moon illuminated the woods as Alastair raced through the trees at full speed. As he reached his mate’s house, he was greeted by a familiar surge of energy-the imprint pull. Without hesitation, he stormed inside, obliterating all the guards and anyone who dared to stand in his way.
Inside, Brenth was taken aback, frozen in place by the sudden realization of what was happening. He felt the strong pull of the bond once more. Rising from his seat, he glanced out the window and gasped, his eyes widening in shock. The man had killed all his guards. For the first time in his life, a fear crept into his chest. His mate might be nearby with that man, or she could be using invisibility to conceal her presence.
No magical power in this world could hide the surge of energy from the imprint pull-that was the only exception.
Brenth stood still, his mind racing, unable to think clearly. He accepted that he was about to meet his end. Suddenly, his eyes widened as the man swiftly vanished from view.
Alastair charged at Brenth, gripping his neck with a fierce hold. Brenth grunted, struggling to break free, but it was futile-he couldn’t even shift. Alastair soon realized that the more he hurt Brenth, the more pain he felt within himself. Reluctantly, he released him.
“Go on, kill me in front of my mate!” Brenth roared furiously. Alastair stared at him in awe, feeling an unsettling sensation creeping through his veins. He couldn’t hurt his imprint more. He raised his hand unconsciously, about to touch Brenth, but halted midway. Giuseppe appeared but Alastair glared at him.
Brenth’s eyes widened in horror as he sensed the gravity of the situation; the imprint pull was now very close to him. He pushed Alastair away and charged at him, throwing a punch that landed squarely on his face. But with that strike, Brenth felt a sharp pain in his heart.
Brenth’s eyes widened in horror as an unacceptable wave of realization washed over him. As they continued to fight, he caught a whiff of the alcohol on Alastair’s breath.
“No, it can’t be!” Brenth exclaimed, struggling to accept the truth. They both rose from the ground, glaring at each other. Suddenly, a girl appeared out of nowhere, and Brenth shot her a warning glance, telling her not to intervene.
Brenth prepared himself to reject his mate right before him.
“I wish you dead, I wish you never existed,” Alastair muttered, causing Brenth to clutch his heart as if struck by an invisible dagger.
“I won’t be mated to someone like you! I will never be!” Brenth yelled defiantly.
“And so will I. Go kill yourself already! ” Alastair replied, delivering punch to Brenth’s face once more before quickly disappearing from his sight.
“Did you reject your imprint already?” the girl prompted. Brenth shook his head. She let out a devilish laugh. “I never thought your imprint would be a man, and a hybrid,” she said, grinning at him. ” I thought your father killed everyone one of them already. You wouldn’t meet him. ”
“Shut up, Claire,” he snapped, his voice filled with irritation.
“What do you think your father will do when he learns about this?” Claire chuckled ominously.
“Shut up, you stupid witch,” Brenth muttered. “I wish I had never met him. Can you erase that part of my memory?”
“Do you really need to ask if I can? Of course I can, but it doesn’t mean I can erase the imprint pull or prevent this from happening again. That’s impossible,” Claire retorted, her smile wide.
“Then make it possible!” Brenth said through gritted teeth.
“Pardon? I can’t help you with that. There’s no magic in this world that can stop the pull of the imprint, unless you want to become a human,” Claire said, still grinning.
“I’m going to kill him,” Brenth whispered sharply.
“No, you can’t if you don’t want to suffer for the rest of your life. Once you kill your imprint, the stronger the impact. When they die, a part of you will die too,” Claire retorted.
“Fuck!” he yelled in frustration.
——–
When Alastair returned home, Blaze and the others were gathered outside the house. Kai stepped aside as Eddie took over his position. They all greeted Alastair with warm smiles, but he responded with a begrudging smile, trying to conceal his inner turmoil.
“Why didn’t you reject him?†Rio prompted, and Blaze and Eddie nodded in agreement.
“I don’t know. A part of me doesn’t want to,†Alastair mused, averting his gaze. “I couldn’t even hurt him more because I can feel it.â€
“Well, that’s an imprint thing,†Rio said with a scoff.
“Come join us. Kai and I are teaching them to pull out their hidden abilities, but Anthony is struggling to find one,†Eddie urged. Alastair glanced at Anthony, who was frowning.
“That’s unfortunate,†he said disinterestedly. ” but I will join later. ” He continued.
“ Take a rest. ” Eddie muttered. ” Now, clear your mind and concentrate,†Eddie instructed. “Kai, join them.â€
“But can’t we all learn this through magic spells?†Anthony asked awkwardly. Eddie raised an eyebrow at him.
“Not all psychic abilities can be learned through magic, and not all magical powers are innate in every supernatural creatures. Just like our physical and emotional aspects, Our innate abilities are natural. If you rely solely on magic, there will come a time when you lose it—and in turn, lose yourself as well. Magic is a force with its own principles. What if your magic forbids you from using it for a long period of time? Unless you seek permission from nature, from all the elements on Earth, you won’t regain your magic without their approval. You can also gain powers from the spirits of dead witches. However, our innate abilities are our own—no one can forbid us from using them, except in certain circumstances, like in Giuseppe’s case. He can weaken your psychic abilities and drain your energy. Our innate abilities are conditional, meaning we set the conditions for how we want them to manifest, without the need for spells, silly incantations, or rituals.†Eddie explained, and they all nodded in understanding. “Now, let’s continue. The only thing stopping you from using your abilities is you.â€
They followed Eddie’s instructions.
Rio leaned against the wall for a break, lighting a cigarette. But as he inhaled, the cigarette seemed to melt like water, and his lighter dissolved in his hand. For a second, fear flashed across his face. Eddie’s eyes widened, and even Kai was taken aback.
Rio pulled out another cigarette, but it morphed into metal between his fingers. Shocked, he looked at Eddie, holding the pack, only for it to burst into flames. He threw it away, feeling the heat sear his skin.
“What just happened?” Anthony asked, bewildered.
“I… I don’t know,” Rio whispered, shaking his burnt hand in disbelief.
Eddie stepped forward, his voice steady. “I once met someone with abilities similar to yours. He was a doctor. Try to sense the atoms around you, near and far. Focus on them.”
Taking a deep breath, Rio closed his eyes and reached out with his senses. Suddenly, he created a sphere of water that turned to ice, then into solid metal, all by accident. He gasped, fear in his eyes, as he looked at Eddie, who stared back, speechless and unable to find the right words, he glance at Blaze in horror.
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