My Wild Beast-Chapter 165: The Horde (6)

"Quorai..." Yoa growled from where they fought on Vohraki lands, staring up at the lean, healthy-looking vampira, staring down, gloating at what they’d finally achieved.

"He must be their leader..." Nova said after wiping away some blood on her brow.

They’d been fighting the vampiras swarming the Vohraki. Their numbers were too great, and even the pair doubted their ability to fight them all. "We need to hold them all off until first light, right?" Nova leaned her back against a tree, chest heaving as exhaustion was starting to slow her movements.

Yoa stabbed the back of a vampira’s head and kicked the back of the legs of another before taking their head in his hands and twisting quickly. He glanced at his mate, noting the sweat and blood and the slight shake in her fingertips. She wasn’t in shock. No, she’d fought too long, conquering her fear for it to settle in now.

No, she was tired. Nova had done so well. He glanced at the sky, furiously flashing and rumbling. It was a while until the sun rose again.

Not sure on what to do for Nova just yet, he took her hand and lifted her until she was on his back, arms around his neck as he sprinted, leapt and swung through the trees of the Vohraki.

"Where are we going?" Nova asked, her heart racing from Yoa’s speed and the vampiras clashing with the Vohraki around them.

"Sacred Lands." Then, in their mind, link. ’Hideout.’

Nova frowned. "What, why?!"

He shot her a look. "I’m not going to lose you. You will be safe there-"

"I said I’d stand by your side, I-"

"You can barely stand!" He snapped, glowering at her, his golden-red eyes glimmering vividly. "You need a break. Lux mea, you have done more than enough for this island in two sunsets than any other. There is nothing wrong with sitting the rest of this battle out."

"I will not hide away while you are out here," she hissed beside his ear. Yet she couldn’t help feeling the slight shakes of exhaustion in her muscles. "I simply can’t..." She could almost cry at the thought of being separated and possibly not seeing him again.

"That won’t happen." He was confident in his words, and she should be too, but there were so many vampiras.

"I don’t want to leave that cave and discover I am the lone survivor..." Her voice choked, and she squeezed her eyes shut at the thought. Yoa wasn’t the only one she would be devastated by, but Atia and Aiyana too.

"Don’t you have more faith in me than that? How insulting," he joked back.

Nova’s eyes shot open, and she glared at him. This wasn’t the time for jokes! Or maybe it was precisely the right time to joke around. With a sigh, Nova looked up, through the misting rain, and the lightning forking the skies until it struck a group of vampiras in a tree.

They collapsed instantly in a heap of ash.

Way to go, Tempakar...

Her smirk halted, though, as her gaze lifted up to the vampira leader. Any harpy eagle that aimed for him was struck down in the blink of an eye. She’d never seen anyone move so quickly. Even with her heightened sight through the bond, she barely saw a blur of his figure.

She watched the chilling sight as the forest began to clear, and rocky terrain came into view of the Sacred Lands. Her hair softly blew in the wind across her features as Yoa’s feet thudded across the tree branches and leapt to the ground.

"If we kill him, would it make a difference?" Nova asked. Yoa followed her gaze to Quorai.

Was it possible?

As though summoning him, Quorai flashed into existence, appearing before them with a chilling smile, his fangs gleaming, blood-red eyes locked on Nova.

As quick as lightning, Yoa was backhanded across the clearing, and Nova was grabbed by the throat mid-strike. Yoa flew backwards and slammed into a tree, the back of his head snapping back into the bark with a hard thud. His body slackened, head falling forward.

"Yoa!" Nova cried out, panic slicing through her like a thousand tiny needles prickling her back as the vampira’s grip tightened around her throat, hoisting her up until their eyes met, and his breath ghosted along her face. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

His skin gleamed like polished mahogany in the moonlight that broke through the storm clouds, rain misting between them, ruby eyes alight with cruel amusement, like a hunter admiring his catch. His leathery wings were folded behind him but the tips were sharpened with claws that could grab. He was both ethereal and horrific.

"Electa... I wondered where you were..." He purred, his voice deep and velvety. "You will grant me light."

"Huh?" Nova frowned at his words, another chill curling down her spine like icy mist from the look in his eyes.

He called her Electa. The Vampiras were worshipers of Akura, and so was Ixana. He must think there was something about her that might grant him a wish.

"L-light..." She croaked out, her hands gripping at his wrists, feet kicking out as she felt her lungs begin to burn from his squeezing fingers.

Quorai smirked, loosening his grip on her throat a little. "You’re the key to our ultimate success..."

Nova sucked in a breath and choked a little on the sudden rush of oxygen down her dry throat. She shook her head, adamant. "Nope. You’ve got it wrong!"

Quorai frowned, his eyes roaming over her features. "What is wrong with this girl?"

"This girl has a name..."

’That’s it, keep him distracted,’ Yoa coached her through the bond as he’d been slowly sneaking up on the vampira leader.

"I do not care about the name of the Electa I’m about to consume-"

"Nah-ah. " Nova booped his nose. "That’s very rude."

Quorai’s mouth parted in shock. "Did you just... boop me?"

Nova would have burst into a laugh if this man hadn’t scared her to her very core. "Yep," she squeaked, then cleared her throat. "But I’m right. If you’re going to ’consume’ me." She air quoted, which confused the vampira more as he looked at her fingers and couldn’t understand the meaning. "You should at least share the name of the one who has helped you... What did you call it? Get your ultimate success... I mean, what is that anyway- umph!"

Quorai pressed his other hand to her mouth, silencing her nonsense as he scowled at her. "I have never met a woman who makes so much noise. I can sense your fear, yet you talk... Is it nerves?"

"MMM mmm MMM mm mmm!"

"Oh, my apologies." He removed his hand from her mouth.

"You know you should really apologise for squeezing my throat rather than this..." Nova trailed off, paling a little more under his murderous glare. "Perhaps not..."

"Your name," he ignored her.

"Nova!" Yoa shouted.

What was he doing?! He just blew his-

Nova’s eyes widened as a giant beast leapt out of nowhere and tackled Quorai to the ground.