Palace Of Flames (Book One of the Damnata Series)

Chapter Eleven: Underdog

Nocturna Coven Border, London

[Alex]

My brother and I pad along silently, knowing what we need to do and how we're going to do it. It's rather obvious; we just watch for those that look out of place, and if by any chance we do come across anyone like that, Jake tests their scent. He only has to be able to distinguish their scent, and we know whether they belong within our lands, or whether they came from either the Underworld (Hell), or Damnatalia (the place for Immortals to linger until they come to the Mortal Plane, where we are now).

'I...I think I can sense something a little...off.' Jake thinks unsurely.

'Sorry, my bad.' I apologise jokingly, and Jake laughs wolfishly.

'No, I mean...I can sense something that doesn't exactly belong... Should we check it out?'

'Well, that's our job, right?' We move in a flat-out sprint, and I only stop when Jake slows down considerably.

'We're close...' Jake growls, and then cocks his head to the side, dusty-brown fur ruffling in the gentle breeze. I follow my twin as he sniffs slightly every few seconds, obviously using his rare tracking skills to find the one he believes is "out-of-place".

Eventually, I can hear voices, both female. I snort. 'You brought us to girls? Are your hormones playing up again, Jake?' My brother grins wolfishly, and then we both phase again; I'm once again thankful that when we phase in and out of wolf-form, our clothes remain intact, otherwise there would be naked guys running around in the woods every night, with bushels and leaves for covering up their...thingies...

Jake and I silently tread through the depths of the forest, until we see two young women of around our own age, sixteen or seventeen, at the most, both with blazes of red hair and bright green eyes, glistening like emeralds. My brother and I quickly climb the nearest tree, moving from branch-to-branch and tree-to-tree as we follow the two females through the forest.

"Who on earth sends the youngest out to steal a damn Oracle? I mean, come on-"

"Ennaleazer, please. Have faith in our brothers' decisions. They will be a vital feature towards your development, I am sure-"

"My ass, Mitsuru." The youngest-looking of the two females snarls. "Clemente and Silvano have had it in for me ever since I was accepted into the Damnatan family. They don't really care if anything happens to me; they're just sick in the head- Stop." She cocks her head to the side, and then her eyes dart towards the tree where Jake and I are situated. She narrows her eyes, and I feel my breath lodge in my throat - not because she's spotted us, but because of those large green eyes boring straight into mine, the thin, pale beauty of her face framed with a blaze of red hair. Her lips are full and rose-red, and her eyes are wide and framed with thick lashes. She scowls almost instantly after spotting us, and Jake yelps slightly, clutching me and falling back off of the branch, landing on his hands and knees clumsily. I drop gracefully and agilely from the branch, landing easily on my feet without any problems, unable to tear my eyes away from the beautiful young woman before my eyes.

Her stance is suddenly defensive, as is that of her friend's, and she snarls.

"What are you doing here? Are you following us?" She studies me closely, and then Jake, and her friend - Mitsuru, I presume - snarls loudly. Where have I heard their names before? They seem familiar...

"You were following us, were you not? Why? What is your purpose, and who sent you?" She is clearly older, judging by her vocabulary, and considerably more mature features, like her height, her facial features more defined than those of her friend, her voice considerably deeper.

"Well, I'm a Tracker." Jake says simply. He waits a second for me to speak, and usually I would, but this time I don't as I'm unable to tear my eyes away from the young girl's, and so he carries on by himself. He looks slightly miffed, I guess. "This is a...friend of mine." He frowns deeply. "We're Protectors of a young Mortal female, and we were guarding the Nocturna coven's perimeter when I sensed you both. You do not belong here, I presume."

"Of course not, our apologies. We are just passing through-"

"On an errand." The young girl speaks up, and then steps towards me slowly. "May I ask of your names?" She looks to Jake, and then her eyes return to meet my gaze.

"I am Jake Illingworth, and this is my twin brother-"

"Alex. Alex Illingworth. We're Werrwulfen, patrolling for the sake of the safety of a young female Mortal we're protecting. May I ask of yours?" I mean the young female, in general, but then Mitsuru speaks up, and I feel like punching her.

"I am Mitsuru Damnatan, the only Werrwulfen in the Damnatan family. This is my youngest sibling, Ennaleazer Damnatan." Ennaleazer shoots her older sister an irritated look, and then glances at both Jake and I in turn.

"You say you're protecting a young Mortal female? May I ask what her name is?" Her beautiful eyes boar into mine again, and I find myself becoming quickly entranced by her beauty, losing myself in her burnt sienna eyes.

"Her name is-"

"I believe we shouldn't inform a stranger of such facts." Jake cuts me off, and I give him an agitated and irritated look that says 'Get lost and stop butting in'. Never once have I felt annoyed at my brother, but this is a different matter.

"Ah, but the Damnata are hardly strangers to many, yes? We can be trusted; ask the leader of the Nocturna Coven, Mikhael. He is our brother, after all." Mitsuru's lips are set in a thin, grim line, and I want to spit in her face. Compared to Ennaleazer's infinite stretch of beauty and enchantment, Mitsuru does not - cannot - compare.

"We haven't trusted the Damnata for many a year. I believe that perhaps your persistence exists for a reason?" Jake growls, suddenly defensive, and I rest a hand on his shoulder, reluctantly tearing my eyes away from Ennaleazer's to face my twin brother and best friend.

"Jake. Perhaps informing them may help in some way-"

"No, Alex. We can't risk anything like that. We can't do such a thing."

I sigh, but by the time I turn back to deny their request, the pair are gone, and only the image of the young red-headed female is imprinted within my memory. Jake pulls a face, snorts, and grins.

"Besotted. You're in love." He sighs, swooning against me, and I feign a smile, pushing him back and laughing nervously.

"I am not. I just...I... Never mind."

Jake snorts. "Whatever. But I seriously think they were just a little suspicious. Think we should report back to Laurence or Seth?"

"Seth, I guess. Besides, they claim to be from the Damnata, so Seth should know more about them." I shrug slightly to myself, and then phase with my brother, racing back through the forest to inform Seth of our discovery.

* * *

[Video: Underdog by You Me At Six.]

[Picture: Alex and Jake. Okay, so it's not quite the same person for Jake, because it's not Jordan Eckes, it's actually Jack Barakat, but they look quite similar, right?]