The first thing Nueva noticed when they got back to The Wolf's Den area and Alpha Gray's farmhouse was all the extra patrolling soldiers. These men were all dressed in black with heavy weapons walking on the yellowing fields or driving up and down the road in black SUVs through the valley that the autumn had dressed for the coming season in its most vibrant earthy hues.
Alpha Gray explained to Nueva that these men were from the Moonfall pack and had been lent to him by Alpha Miles to help out with the growing number of Rogue lurking outside the White Creek territory. Nueva felt like she was living in a warzone, but Alpha Gray assured her it was necessary for keeping everyone safe.He had been spending long hours at the packhouse with Declan and Alpha Miles, trying to find out how the Rogues got into the territory without being detected. Alpha Gray had one night let it slip that he thought the Rogues were getting inside help, but when Nueva asked about it, he had sh
Nueva waited until everyone had left before she headed into the change room. Her body was sore from the grading process and the intense sparring session with Harlow. But that wasn't anything a warm relaxing shower couldn't fix.Nueva signed sincerely as she walked into the dimly lit and empty shower area and hung her towel on a hook by the door. The charcoal tiled walls matched the dark tiled flooring perfectly in the large wet room. She walked carefully over the slippery floor and stopped under a showerhead alongside the wall in the middle. Nueva turned the knobs and let the hot water rush over her blonde locks, soaking them heavily. The room soon filled with the fresh scent of soap and fruity shampoo as the steam rose around her. Nueva closed her eyes and enjoyed the cold air caressing parts of her naked wet body as she moved under the water leaving goosebumps in its tracks.Nueva laddered up a bar of soap between her hands and scrubbed her arms, breast, and flat sto
The glass door to the greenhouse had been left ajar, and Nueva walked into the seemingly ordinary glasshouse. There were rows of weathered tables and shelves filled with potted herbs and other plants. But, strangely enough, Perla was nowhere to be seen in the confined glass room. Nueva walked back towards the entrance, but when she tried to step over the threshold, an electrically charged mesh surrounded the door in the form of a flickering force field.She could see Perla's cottage outside through the invisible screen, and her breathing increased as the sensation of being locked away inside the greenhouse made her feel claustrophobic and scared.Nueva carefully touched the shimmering barrier, and small circular waves rippled across the plasma-filled window, but it wouldn't let her through.Then a flicker of blue glistened on the screen, blocking her way. Nueva glanced around the room, and then she heard the faint whisper."Ego Sum Clavis"And she
"What are those" Nueva stopped in her tracks and swallowed hard. She pointed into the tangled network of green plants.Perla also stopped, and her eyes narrowed as they tracked the dense forest. "Hm, when you speak of the devil", she mumbled more to herself. "I think they can sense you?" Perla added and looked slightly puzzled."What do they want?" Nueva's voice trembled as she could sense these sentient beings moving closer towards them."I am not sure?" Perla answered honestly and scratched her flat, damp hair. "In all my years coming here, they have never bothered me before. So, we better wait and see what they want." Perla's smile didn't reach her clouded eyes.Nueva could tell that Perla felt worried about the forest dwellers approaching them, mainly since she had never dealt with them before.There was a soft swishing amongst the network of vegetation easily missed for any untrained ears. They nervously waited for the native Fay to initiate c
Nueva sat on the surprisingly comfortable bed made from smooth logs and weaved soft grass in multiple layers looking out through an open window. From here, in the lengthening light of the afternoon, the summit of treetops glistened in soft emerald tones. Soon this bouquet of greens turned into the centre stage for the colourful birds as they performed their sunset chorus.Down below, the scattered cylindrical-shaped huts in the trees, lit up by the golden orbs, reminded her of birds' nests surrounded by sparkles of fireflies.Elowen had shown Nueva to a modest guest room containing a queen-sized bed and a bathtub carved out of a solid piece of wood so that she could rest before dinner.However, although Nueva was asked to perform a dangerous rescue, moving around on the forest floor in these parts was equally treacherous during the dark. So, she had been asked to stay the night, and she would be transported to the portal first thing in the morning.Nueva
Nueva didn't sleep much that night; the horrific sounds coming from the Fay Forest kept her up for hours. It felt like she was listening to unimaginable carnage that only seemed to disperse with the sunrise's light.Nueva wasn't sure what time it was when she finally fell asleep, but when she did, she collapsed into a moveless slumber. She sank deeper into a bottomless altered consciousness reducing her muscle activity and making her unaware of any immediate surroundings as they muted and vanished completely.Nueva's eyes started moving rapidly under the eyelids as a series of images and sensations occurred, playing like a fast-moving film in her brain.There was a picture of her grandma Naya and her father flashing by repeatedly. Nueva desperately tried to slow the images down to understand what they were trying to tell her. But she wasn't in complete control in this state of body and mind.Suddenly she was in her grandma's extensive and
The area they had just arrived in was a bare and ugly wasteland, with the following portal showing in the distance. It looked different from the ones they had just passed through previously. This gateway looked more like a concrete-grey smoke ring with the core resembling a giant bubble. As they got closer, Nueva could see iridescent waves ripple across the screen, blocking the way to the dark realm behind.It was clear that whatever was lurking in the next land was draining the current one like a parasite—feeding on the natural resources until it was spiritually and emotionally arid. "This is where our daughter disappeared" Eijaz's voice was thick with conviction and guilt. "May I ask what she was doing here?" Nueva felt astounded that anyone would come here willingly. "We think this portal somehow interfered with the other gateways forcing them to transport travellers here." Eijaz tone walked the line between bitterness and disbelief.
Alpha Gray POVThe afternoon sun bathed the pack buildings in its last light as Alpha Gray walked towards his Pickup, waiting alone in the car park. He had spent another long day sorting out his affairs with Alpha Miles in the office. They needed to lend more soldiers from the Moonfall pack to help fend off the growing number of Rogue attacks on the White Creek territory. Alpha Gray was so stretched at the moment he had to ask his younger brother Ryan and his friends to help out patrolling the borders. He didn't like involving the family in work businesses, but the current difficult circumstances had given him little choice.Declan and himself were almost confident that the Rogue's was getting inside help. They now just needed to find out who was behind this crime so they could put an end to the devastating attacks on his pack.
Nueva crawled towards the damp and cold cave wall and hid behind some fallen rocks. Her chest tightened, making every breath wheeze through her swollen throat like a sudden panic attack. Sweat pearls erupted on her forehead, and Nueva could feel the drops build until they flowed down her face stinging her eyes with their saltiness.How would she save Alula if she couldn't get close enough even to attempt to grab her and run?She could see the shadows crawl over Alula's pale frame under the cave's strange Bioluminescence light source. Above her, thousands of blue lights made from tiny droplets dangled from the ceiling, twinkling like stars in a night sky.Nueva's body was drowning in despair, watching these parasite beings feeding greedily at the expense of their helpless host. Nueva knew that the little girl's life was hanging on by a thread, and if she didn't do something soon, it would be too late to save Alula's life.Then Nueva saw them sliding down from