KING ELIJAH

Chapter 17

ELIJAH'S POV

Two days. Two fucking days, and Celeste was nowhere to be found. I sat on my throne, my crown shining under the lights. My right arm was placed under my cheek as I kept thinking if Celeste was safe.

The door to the throne room burst open as the guards I had sent a couple of hours ago to search every part of the woods for any trace of her returned.

"Sire," they said in unison as they got on their knees, bowing with their right hands pressed to their chests.

"Speak," I mumbled, and they got up. My most trusted soldier, Williams, stepped forward, and I removed my hand from under my cheek, ready to listen to the news – hopefully a good one.

"There has been no sign of her, sire," he muttered, and I sighed in defeat. "...However, we detected the smell of Rogues, and we believe that Lady Celeste has been abducted."

"Why is that?" I asked, and William walked up the steps to my throne and brought out a piece of torn clothing.

I inspected it, turning it from side to side, and then I realized that it was the same material Celeste had on when she found out about my plans.

I brought it to my nose and took a long sniff of the cloth. The sweet scent of Celeste filled my nostrils, although it somewhat smelled like mud, I could still detect her smell.

I got up from my throne, stalking towards the men lined up in front of me. My shoulders tensed, and my heart skipped so fast. I needed to find Celeste.

"Gather twenty of the best soldiers and meet me outside the palace. We are going to find my queen," I muttered loudly to them, and they bowed once more before dispersing, gathering more soldiers.

Closing the door to my room, I sat down on my bed and took the crown off my head, placing it next to me on the bed. I rubbed my eyes tiredly and released a soft sigh. Then, I got up and walked towards my closet. I quickly changed from my royal outfit into one of my battle suits and exited my room.

I met the royal soldiers outside the palace; they lined up, all ready for battle. However, that wasn't the case – we were only going to track her, find out where she had been kept hostage, and come back to the palace with a plan.

I growled as my body transformed, and I slouched like an animal, my suit clinging to my body as it shrank and fit. My bones snapped, lengthened, and popped back into place. The growls and howls of my soldiers echoed mine as our human voices turned into beastly wails. My senses heightened, and instincts dug deeper into my being.

Upon attaining my final form, I shook my fur and stretched my limbs. It had been a long time since I had let my beast out.

I growled, and the attention of my soldiers snapped to mine. They composed themselves.

"We are going to find Celeste, but we will not attack. We are only going to track her down and come back to the palace," I communicated to them through a mind link.

They growled in response, and soon we were running over the bridge and into the woods.

I couldn't count how many hours we'd been running; the orange sky was turning dark, but I couldn't stop, I wouldn't stop. I had to find her.

Slowing my pace to a jog, I brought my nose to the ground, sniffing for any sign that Celeste had been here. I growled in annoyance, and I sprinted once more with my men behind me, dashing through trees and sniffing around.

The moon was now high in the sky as I stopped by a tree. Celeste's scent was faint here, but that was all I needed. I quickly shifted into my human form, and my suit expanded to accommodate my larger form.