Alpha Obsession

Chapter 30

The caves of heaven

"Are you sure about this, Nicole?" having Allen look at me with such doubt usually made me feel so much better about myself. Ever since I became a teenager I've been able to do practically anything. Show a little skin, give a cute giggle, tease with no mercy or shame and everything falls into place nicely. Manipulation was an art form that I honed with every day that passed by. Manipulation of others, and myself.

"I'm not worried about it, Allen. You know I always come out on top." He could only smile against my false confidence. We stood there for a few minutes in the blistering cold. Hail stirred around us, swirling in a gale. The tiny little icicles hitting my cheeks started seeming like the most annoying part of what this event. The fact that my skin melted them on contact made it worse, forcing me to wear a second scarf to catch the water. "Just try to keep my clothes dry ok? I don't want to chafe."

He simply rolled his eyes as I turned away from him. With a labored sigh I started to strip away the chic spring jacket I wore along with the gloves, scarves, and hat. I tossed them back at him before quickly doing the same with my undergarments. "It really is a shame that we can't bring in anything from the modern world... These clothes are so cute." My body began to heat further to counter the cold and I could see tiny ripples in the air rising from my bare skin. The heat instantly melted the snow under my feet and thankfully it seeped more into the ground and froze. What I hate more than standing in water is mud.

"This isn't exactly the time to be cute. The fate of our pack and many others ride on their permission. Are you really sure this is the best course of action?"

"Haven't you seen what he's like now? You know we have to go back." I didn't have to explain. We both knew what I was referring to. My brother, our alpha, needed to return to Viridian, and the demons were the only thing keeping us away.

"I know Nicole, I know... I'm sorry. I want him happy, but it'd help if you explained the full story." I'd waited long enough but before I could even step out of reach Allen was around me. "I still don't get what's so special about Viridian...but I get that it's important, so I won't argue. Just come back to me... ok? You're all that I have left."

Without a word he disappeared into the forest and I walked into the White's mountain den. There were pillars of crystal and marble, lavish tables spread with the scraps being eaten by the lower omegas as they cleaned. I was met by a servant, Emanuel who was an old friend.

"Are you ready, my darling?" With an eyebrow cocked I simply smirked at him. He knew me by now. Once I strut into a room with a clear goal, I always get what I want. Except this time, I was actually meeting someone far more important than myself.

"Exactly when did you let yourselves get so weak?" her words struck hard from across the room. The royal Lycans sat in a half circle of thrones carved straight into the natural rock wall of the giant circular room. In comparison to the other royalty, the queen looked like a child sitting on her father's lap. The room was draped in a light fog and their mixed scents mesmerized and confused my senses. All of the confidence I had while walking in, drained in an instant. But I needed to press on not just for myself, but for the ones who truly mattered to me.

"My grace, to skip the formalities: the demons have been attacking our youngest members. They have gained new techniques to weaken us and dull our senses."

"Yet here you are, tail between your legs, and begging us to intervene? You are not the first to come before us and ask for aid. We refuse your request. Handle the matter of flees on your own or die for your incompetence. Our hands shall not be sullied with your petty-"

"ENOUGH!" I put a hand on my chest to steady my breathing. It's been a while since I've added any base to my voice. "I was indeed wrong to come here, you are not the royals I believed you to be. You would not speak to your clansmen in such a ludicrous manner if you had even a shred of your former prestige. To think that you are unable or unwilling to help your kind despite all that power you've boasted. When all your kind beyond these cave walls have been slaughter, I hope you understand the sacrifice you have just made. Yes, I am desperate; Yes, I have come with my tail between my legs and plight on my tongue. But I have not come to grovel! I am Nicole Andreas Sin, and I bow to no queen with death ears! I am deeply sorry for interrupting your endless slumber."  

I turned my back on their stunned faces and slowly willed my feet to start moving. My heart was pounding so wildly in my chest that I was certain everyone could hear the drum beat. For the first time in a long time I was utterly speechless, nervous and at a complete loss for ideas. My outburst just now could have sentenced my entire pack to death. Confidence and wit usually came naturally to me, but now I was a blushing wreck. It hit me that I made quite a few boys and men feel just like this on a regular basis. Jake would be one of those boys.

I almost jumped at the break of the silence as the prince's voice rang out. "Your talent with words is notable, Nicole. To see my mother so riled and thoughtful is a treat worth commending. I have heard less rumination from her in years passed than in this one moment." I realized that they had been conversing mentally while I was walking away. A sliver of hope returned to me.

"If you choose to join our war then it would no longer be a matter of hunt or be hunted. I wish to bring our race out from within the darkness. Our binding, that which keeps all shifters and what we represent secret, has led to our greatest weakness. It has left us vulnerable when defending ourselves from the demons. They can kill as many of us as they want and escape with no consequence while we are forced to flee our homes and abandon our fallen. Eventually they from every settlement we seek refuge in. It isn't about survival to them, It is simply a game that they do not fear losing."
At the mention of my last word I noticed their eyes sharpen and their ears perk. A smile nearly spread across my lips as my confidence and nature returned to me. "I simply want to level the playing field. The humans lead dull and ordinary lives with nothing more than fantasy to give them idols to endorse. They fantasize about our kind without knowing the truth, but now we can put an end to this secrecy. We can allow the entire world to bare witness to your untainted grace."
"You plan to expose us. Severing the binding of secrecy that we have held for centuries. In doing so, you enable our kind to fight freely. The mortals shall no longer be a hindrance as they have been. Now they shall choose to fight or endorse us." The queen that had rested upon the elder's lap, jumped into the center of the room. She had taken the form of miniature pup during her rest, but now my jaw dropped slightly along with her transformation. Her body grew in size and mass till she was a monstrously beautiful wolf who's paw was the size of my entire body. The other royals gazed with amusement while watching her magnificent transformation, but I was beyond words. She was perfect and wonderful, pure and pristine, whiter than light and more radiant than a field of freshly fallen snow.

"I'll take care of all the mundane details. There's a festival in this small town which will be perfect for the unveiling. The modern world is in for a surprise."

A smile spread across her elongated wolf jaw and I got a glimpse of her ivory fangs. "It has been a lifetime since I played with the mortals; Time teach them how to sit" her voice dripped unparalleled regality. This is how far I'll go for my brother, to the ends of the earth and the caves of heaven.