Chapter 3

"Body, Alpha! We found a body!" Elis, one of the warriors, said as he hurried toward me and the others.

We had spread out when we got to the woods in order to cover more ground.

I felt my head spinning at the mention of 'a body'. My hope instantly died a choked death.

I didn't wait for further confirmation as I hurried in the direction Elis came from. Others followed me in panic.

We all came to a halt when we saw the body of a young girl; her back turned against us.

My breath hitched in my throat. The woman's slender frame was clad in tattered remnants of a simple dress. She had just about the same features as Naya. The only difference was in the color of her hair.

The young girl's hair flowed like a midnight river, cascading down her back in a curtain of ebony silk.

I heaved a sharp, unexpected sigh of relief when I found out it wasn't my mate. It wasn't Naya. Thank the goddess, it wasn't Naya. But a new worry gnawed at me.

When I had heard Eli earlier, my thoughts were all jumbled up. I had thought it was Naya, but at the same time, I had wished she wasn't the one.

When I approached the body, I was grateful it wasn't Naya, but at the same time, my worry intensified. Where then was my mate?

I carefully walked towards her, wondering who she was and what she was doing close to the border of my pack.

The young girl lay motionless, her battered body hinting at the cruel level of maltreatment she had suffered before meeting her tragic end.

I crouched beside the body, observing it carefully. I gently tilted her to take a proper look at her.

Her face embodied a beauty that defied definition. Her skin, despite the scars on them, held a delicate glow.

I placed my fingers against her wrist, searching for a pulse. I felt a faint thrumming. Surprising.

"There's a pulse," I rasped, my voice thick with a mix of relief and panic, "Let's go," I said, standing to my feet.

Kael gulped, "We... We can't just leave her here, Alpha. What if she dies?" He asked in a concerned tone.

Rage. It burned hot and white in my gut, fueled by the terror of losing Naya.

"She was going to die either way. Pretend we weren't here. We have other bigger matters to attend to," my words were clipped and my tone firm. I didn't spare Kael a glance as I began walking away.

"But Alpha, please!" Kael's voice rose in desperation. "We can save her. Let's at least try!"

The other warriors dared not meddle in the matter. They knew how furious I was about my mate.

I paused, turning to face Kael. I clenched my jaw tightly, holding back my rage for friendship's sake.

I turned his gaze toward the girl's peaceful face. "She could be a spy for all we know, Kael!" I spat through gritted teeth, "She might have been sent to infiltrate our pack," I added, which made sense from the look on everyone's faces.

But Kael wouldn't back down. "I understand your concerns, Alpha. But what if she's not? Let me keep an eye on her. Once she's recovered, we can send her on her way."

After a moment of silence, I finally conceded, a low growl rumbling in my chest, "Do as you wish," I muttered in defeat as I walked away from the scene.

Kael was relieved. He knelt beside the young girl, feeling a certain kind of warmth and empathy towards her, "Eldrysia will mend you," he murmured.

"Both of you, take her to Eldeysia. Have her commence treatment on her immediately," Kael ordered two of the warriors, who nodded and swung into action immediately.

*

The inky cloak of the night had already descended; the only light filtering through the trees was from the faint moonlight that hung in the sky.

It was already dark but not dark enough for me as I kept going around in the same circle, looking for my mate.

Everyone grew weary of the search, but they dared not say a word of protest. They were also concerned about their Luna.

Kael approached me cautiously, "Cezar," he began, his voice barely a whisper, "We could continue the search at dawn. With more men, we can cover a wider area."

My frustration had already clouded my judgment, "Keep looking!" I roared, my voice a guttural rasp. "No one leaves until she is found!" my entire body trembled vigorously, and my eyes blazed with an intensity of terror that I refused to admit.

I could feel my heart beating painfully. My guts told me something terrible had happened to Naya. My Naya. But the thought was a taboo to me, a truth I desperately clung to deny.

"I found something!" Eli, one of the warriors, stammered as he hurried over towards me.

His face was pale, and his eyes were sad. He held a glinting object in his hand - a silver necklace, pointing it toward me.

"It's Naya's..." I blurted out.

I took the necklace from Eli, my hands visibly trembling. A fountain of tears flowed down my eyes uncontrollably as I peered at the necklace in silence, as if looking for answers from it.

Heavy silence enveloped us all. No one could say a word.

This only meant one thing...

I fell to my knees as my loud cry tore through the heavy silence that shrouded us, shaking the very depths of the forests and causing my warriors to fall to their knees immediately with their heads bowed.

Evil had befallen us all.

My cry of agony spoke of a shattered love... A blissful future ripped from my grip.

"Naya!" I choked out, clutching the necklace to my chest.

Red-hot fury surged through me, eclipsing my grief. I wouldn't accept this. I wouldn't let them take her from me. The single, horrifying truth slammed into me – Naya had been abducted.

"She's been taken," I rasped, standing up to my feet, my voice thick with vengeful emotions.

Everyone exchanged worried glances. Relief and confusion settled heavily on them. They all thought the worst - that the Luna was dead. But hearing me say she was abducted gave them some hope.

Kael stood to his feet, and so did the rest of the warriors. He approached me with curiosity, "Abducted? By whom, Alpha?"

I didn't have an answer to that question. The possibilities were as endless as they were terrifying. "Rival packs, bandits, slavers," I blurted out. The thought of Naya in the hands of any of them sent a fresh wave of rage coursing through me.

"We have to find them!" I roared, my voice a painful growl that sent shivers down the spines of my warriors, "We have to find whoever did this and take the war to their doorstep!"

"Yes, Alpha!" They all echoed, fresh hope running through their veins again.

"Go back to the pack, get ready. We head out for the search tonight! Take all you need to sustain yourself for the task ahead," I instructed in an icy tone, my eyes blood-shot red, "This is no longer a search but a hunt."

I walked forward, "We start with the Silver Den pack," my eyes shone a dark shade of blue at the mention of that name.

***

CRIMSON CLAW PACK.

My warriors were all set for the hunt. Cold air whipped through the clearing where they stood, carrying the scent of damp earth and the distant growl of an approaching storm.

No matter what happens, we must find the Luna. Her abductors shouldn't have gotten too far with her by now.

I was fully dressed for the hunt, too. My broadsword was strapped to my back, its blades thirsty for the blood of anyone who dared to harm my Naya.

I cleaned off the sweat from my shaky palms. I was terrified, I must confess. My heart was beating frantically against my ribcage, but I was hopeful.

I hurried out of my chamber, sweat trickling down the side of my brow. There was no need to waste any more time, as Naya could be in more danger with every passing second.

As soon as I got to the clearing where my warriors lay waiting, I saw Eldrysia, the pack's head witch. She stood with an expression that I refused to read as sad. Why was she unhappy?

"Alpha Cezar," she greeted me. Two other witches stood beside her. They also greeted me in unison.

"Eldrysia. We have to head out now. Time is of the essence," I said to her, my voice tight with the urgency she needed to understand.

"There is no need, Alpha Cezar," Eldrysia managed to say to me. It was when she spoke for the second time I picked up something in her voice. Had she been crying? My brows furrowed in concern.

"What is going on?" I asked her, stepping closer to her, "Are you sick?" The elderly woman looked healthy. Even though she had lived two centuries, she still looked like a woman in her early fifties.

"You aren't the only one who has been looking for the Luna all evening. I've also been searching... I've been trying to locate her using the locator spell," Eldrysia explained, and I had already been growing impatient. This information wasn't relevant to me at the moment.

"Thank you, Eldrysia. Keep trying while we set out to look for her," I said with a hint of appreciation as I made to walk away from her.

"The Luna's pure heart no longer beats, Alpha Cezar. Luna Naya has met her untimely end."

For a heart-stopping moment, I thought I heard Eldrysia speaking in a strange language that my kind was refusing to comprehend, but no. It wasn't a strange language.

It was indeed in a language I understood all too well.

But this time, I wished I never understood this language because understanding now felt like a curse to me.

The familiar words I knew suddenly seemed to turn into jagged spears, piercing through my eardrums, causing my heart to stop as the air in my lungs suddenly vanished, making me numb to everything around me.

I never knew a language could be this cruel...

The air around me grew so thin, the ground beneath me rushing up to meet me as my knees buckled.

I never even got the chance to process the new side of this language when I saw utter darkness envelop my very existence, and I freely gave in to it.