His Forsaken Luna-Chapter 149: Deyanira (1)

We rode out at first light, our breaths curling in the icy morning air as our horses kicked up frost-covered earth. The sky was still tinged with the deep purples of dawn. A beautiful morning for a dark task ahead of us.

The mountains loomed in the distance, their jagged peaks wreathed in thick, rolling mist. Cahl’Morren was our destination—the ruined temple, the supposed location where Deyanira was now residing.

The weight of our mission settled heavily over us. We rode in silence, tension clinging to our ranks like a storm waiting to break.

Eryx rode at my side, his green eyes constantly scanning the terrain, ever the warrior, ever the protector. Alaric was ahead, his presence commanding as he led our forces through the treacherous foothills.

And then, just as the sun rose higher, just at the first incline to the mountains—

They came.

A deafening screech split the air, high and shrill like metal scraping against stone.

It was the bat-winged creatures.

They emerged from the mist like shadows given form, their leathery wings cutting through the sky, black as the void itself. They didn’t venture further from the shadow of the mountains as though they feared the sunlight.

The first one struck before we could react, snatching a soldier clean off his horse, his scream lost in the chaos. Then another. And another.

"Defensive formation!" Alaric roared. "Now!"

The warriors closed ranks, shields raised, swords gleaming in the pale sunlight. We couldn’t shift fast enough.

But the creatures were too fast.

I barely had time to draw my axe before one of them plummeted toward me, its red eyes burning with malice. Talons stretched out, aiming for my throat.

Eryx was already moving.

With an inhuman speed, he launched himself from his horse, shifting mid-air. His wolf form collided with the beast, sending them both crashing to the snow-covered ground.

I didn’t have time to watch.

I twisted in my saddle, bringing my axe up just as another creature dove at me. The impact rattled my bones, but my weapon found purchase, slicing through its thick hide.

Dark, oily blood splattered across my face.

I barely caught my breath before another lunged from the shadows, its jaws gaping, ready to tear me apart—An arrow pierced its skull.

Alaric.

I turned in time to see my brother pulling another arrow from his quiver, releasing it with deadly precision. The arrowhead pierced through the eye, pointing at me, blood splattering my face. It screeched and collapsed. My horse was starting to buck and back away nervously.

The battle raged around us. Screams. Steel. Wings tearing through the air.

The creatures were ripping through our men.

One by one.

We weren’t winning this fight.

We were losing.

And then, amidst the chaos, a sound cut through the air—

A whisper.

Soft. Feminine. Wrong.

I felt it crawl along my spine before I even understood what it was.

Deyanira.

A dark presence swelled in the air, suffocating, crawling into the crevices of my mind like fingers reaching for something unseen.

I could hear her voice, though I knew she was nowhere near us.

"Turn back."

My vision blurred, my pulse pounding against my skull. Was this what it felt like to have her control someone’s mind?

No.

NO!

I snarled, forcing the invading voice out of my head. My eyes glowed a slight golden and I could taste magick on my tongue. The voice dissipated like it was never there to begin with. My wolf growled, my eyes glowing brightly in response, my face dirtied with the beasts’ blood.

And then—as suddenly as they had come—the creatures vanished.

What remained of our forces stood panting, bloodied, broken.

The snow was stained crimson with the deaths of half our men.

Alaric’s face was pale with fury, his fingers clenched so tightly around his bow that his knuckles were white. "We’re leaving."

He didn’t wait for a protest.

We had no choice.

If we continued, those creatures would attack us again. They were clearly controlled by Deyanira.

We turned back, our dead left behind, and our mission failed before it had even begun.

By the time we reached the palace gates, the afternoon sun hung low in the sky, its weak light doing little to warm the icy chill that had settled deep into my bones.

The silence that greeted us as we entered the courtyard was unnatural.

Too quiet.

Too still.

Then I saw her.

Deyanira.

Standing alone in the main courtyard, her dark cloak trailing behind her, snow falling gently around her, her expression a mask of serene cruelty.

I stiffened.

Eryx’s growl rumbled deep in his chest, his body coiled like a predator ready to strike.

Alaric dismounted in one swift movement, his sword already in hand.

Deyanira didn’t flinch.

She merely watched us, her gaze lingering on me like she was seeing something no one else could.

A slow, knowing smile curved her lips.

"Welcome home. I returned this morning to discover you were all gone. What have I missed?" She asked, acting nonchalant, tilting her head to the side like she wasn’t the one who sent creatures to kill us.

Did she send us on this wild goose chase only to return here? I glanced at our surroundings. Nobles, unaware of the tension between us, greeted Deyanira like normal.

I clenched my fists. "What do you want?"

Her smile widened. "Is that any way to greet your mother?"

Rage flared in my chest, my wolf snapping at the insult. My eyes glowed with the growl of my wolf, warning this witch to stop her games.

"You are not my mother," I spat.

She tilted her head, mock disappointment in her gaze. "No? And yet, here you stand, fighting so desperately against the truth. I am the only mother you have left, child."

Alaric stepped forward, his eyes burning with fury. "You manipulated our minds. You forced our father into your bed. You stole everything."

Deyanira sighed as if he was nothing more than a petulant child. "Such a harsh retelling of history, darling. I merely took what was already broken."

I bared my teeth. "You are brave for returning here." Maybe I was acting a little too courageous myself, I do not know her powers but I couldn’t help it. My wolf’s rage was my own; she was only adding to the flames.

I lunged.

Eryx’s grip tightened around my wrist, holding me back just in time.

"Don’t," he murmured. "Not here. Not now."

I followed his gaze to the nobles watching. Was she controlling them? Would they attack us?

Eryx looked calm, but I sensed his fury beneath it all. This wasn’t his fight, though; he stood by my side, offering me support and would step forward if I wished it.

My breath came fast and uneven, my nails biting into my palm as I forced myself to stay still.

Deyanira watched me, amusement flickering in her gaze. She parted her lips to say something, but Alaric stepped forward protectively, almost acting like a wall between us. "Be gone from here, Deyanira. Be gone and never return." He growls, eyes flashing.

Deyanira clutched at her chest. "After everything I have done for you? This is how you treat your mother?"

"You are not my mother," Alaric growls, and I can see his body trembling like he might shift then and there.

We could both kill her here. There would be no more puppets or worry over what this witch might do. "Why banish her, brother? She should be executed," I hiss from behind him.

Alaric winced at my harsh words. I felt some sympathy, but my wolf did not. I had to remind my feral little fluff ball that my brother believed Deyanira was his mother until recently. This was hard for him.

’You could always hunt her down if she is banished,’ Eryx reminds me in our mind link. There was a slight growl echoing through the bond as well. It was his wolf, I could tell he was eager for this particular hunt just like mine was.

But it was only earlier this day that we lost a lot of men to take Deyanira down.

Deyanira laughs mockingly at Alaric and slowly steps forward. We all straighten our backs, stances widening, readying for an attack. "And what will you do about your little Fae problem, hmmm? I don’t think you can handle it on your own..." She then glances back at me over Alaric’s shoulder. "And you just won’t die..."

Eryx’s chest rumbles and he takes a side step closer to me.

"Oh shut it, mutt," Deyanira clips at Eryx and flicks her finger. Dark magick shoots from her fingers and Eryx is flung to the side. She vanishes and reappears in front of me, her long black nails sharpening and wrapping around my throat as we suddenly levitate in the air.

The wind swirls around us and Alaric and Eryx shout out my name. We are far above the clouds. "You have been the bane of my existence. And I will finally get to kill you," She hisses.

I hold onto her arm, feeling those nails slice into my neck. "Why?" I ask, croaking. I was trying to buy myself time to figure out how to get out of this without falling to my death.

"Why what?" she huffs. "You know I hate it when you don’t explain yourself." She tsks as if we’re at one of her tea parties, scolding me just like she used to.

"All of this... Why did you take Alaric in and want me dead?" I sputter out. The clouds are around us, the weather bone-chilling, our hair now starting to freeze, growing paler.