F I F T Y - S I X

THE DARK PRINCE

I paced my library and watched in utter helplessness as fae after fae started to surround the charred cabin that currently housed my Mate and her father's dead Wolf.

Judging by the glowing eyes of the Air elemental, I knew that he was masking the onslaught of sounds with his power.

Which meant that my Mate was going to die if I couldn't intervene soon.

My eyes snapped to the chronometer, noting that I had approximately thirty minutes before the damned gate was weak enough for me to pass through it.

My eyes snapped back to the screen as a small squeal sounded out, my visuals immediately blacking out as the creature I sent to monitor the situation was maimed by the last person I expected to see in the Wolf Realm.

"Helios..." the familiar voiced cooed, his face filling the screen as he held my creature in his hand "How long has it been?"

"Ailbhe" I sneered at him "How unfortunate."

"Don't be like that Little Prince" the man who I once considered a father figure stared smugly at me through my shadow creatures eyes, his own gleaming eyes reminding me just how much of a snake he really was "I truly do miss you. The Courts aren't just the same without your spirited presence."

I gritted my teeth "What are you doing Ailbhe?"

"Whatever do you mean?" His fake innocence irked me to no ends.

"You are many things Ailbhe" I sneered "A liar and a snake, sure, but an idiot you are not. What are you doing in the ShifterLands?"

"You always could see through me Little Prince" He sighed drastically "I guess now's the time for me to divulge my evil plan, isn't it?"

I cocked my head to the side, confusion marring my features at his words "What?"

Instead of answering me, he incinerated my shadow creature without a hint of warn, causing me to wince as I felt the entity's pain.

Son of Ęos...

Based on the time on the chronometer, I still had fifteen minutes trapped in this fucking prison of mine before I could save my Mate.

The only problem was that Ailbhe was much closer to her than I was and I knew without a doubt that if they sent him, the man they called the Knight's Blade, than he was going to kill her.

And it wasn't going to be a swift death by any means...the sick bastard was going to prolong her suffering until her sweet body gave out.

I mean, why wouldn't he want her to suffer?

After all, her mother did reject their decades long engagement when she ran off and Mate with Wolfe Lupine.

~~~~~~

NOVA

I raised my trembling hand to the head of the Creature...my father, tears blurring my eyes as he nuzzled said head into my hand, a low whine rising in his throat.

"You're really him?" I whispered, pushing away the dirty moss and a few layers of decaying fur "You're really my father?"

He just blinked at me, that whine getting even more higher in pitch.

"But you tried to kill me?" I said "And you tried to kill my friends...my...my fellow Heirs."

"Awe," A new voice cooed from a darkened corner of the room "You really can't blame him. He was just following orders."

I whirled, trying to see the newcomer, when the large body of my father's wolf blocked my entire view.

"I should have known you've come back here" The Man tsked "You creations are so predictable. Always coming back to the scene of your own deaths."

The next growl my father let out was menacing enough for goosebumps to rise on my arms.

The Man stepped forward, enough light shining from the Equinox to illuminate his stunning features. He was an older man, probably around my parents age, with long hair the color of wheat that was neatly and intricately braided on the sides.

His brown eyes were smiling on the outside but, if you looked close enough, they were dull and dead looking, just like a doll.

The outfit he was wearing reminded me of something you'd find in a Shakespeare or renaissance fair.

But besides the ridiculous outfit, the only thing that stood out to me was his ears.

They were high and pointed and so unlike anything I've seen before except for in fantasy series.

He was Fae.

Like the one's I read in that book from the library.

"Who are you?"

"My friends call me Knight" he smiled at me "I am...was...one of your mother's friends."

My father let out another growl at the mentioned of my mother, affirming my initial gut reaction that the man in front of me wasn't a friend of any kind, to neither me nor my family.

"That's great and all" I deadpanned "But I don't give a fuck who you were friends with. What are you doing here?"

The man chuckled "You have the same fiery spirit as your mother."

My father lunged forward and the man's expression changed, becoming more menacing as his eyes flashed a brilliant tawny color.

Suddenly my father let out an ear piercing screech, you know, the horrible one that animals let out when they're injured or attacked by a predator.

I lurched forward as my father slumped to the ground, convulsing on his side as his body hit the floor.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HIM?" I screamed, my hands hovering over his body as he recoiled away from me "STOP IT! YOU'RE HURTING HIM!"

"He can't feel anything" The man waved his hand "The dead never do."

"ARE YOU FUCKING BLIND?" I yelled "HE'S CLEARLY IN PAIN YOU FUCKING PSYCHO!"

The man cocked his head to the side "And you care because?"

My eyes widened "Why wouldn't I care?"

The fae just stared at me "Maybe you're not so like your mother after all."

A group of footsteps sounded behind me and my heart leaped in my throat.

The guys...they found me...they came for me.

I turned and that little hope inside my heart shriveled up and died when I saw more fae, dressed similarly like the man, start to surround the entirety of the room.

"Sir," Once of the men addressed him, ignoring my presence "We have five minutes before the Equinox concludes and we're forced to retreat."

The man smiled, showing off his straight, white teeth "I only need two."

He approached me, hands outstretched and a manic smile on his face.

With surprising strength I didn't think he could possess any longer, my father leaped up and tackled the fae man, snarling in rage as he took a chunk out of his shoulder.

"DAD!" I sprang forward but was immediately grabbed but three warriors "LET GO OF ME YOU OVERSIZED FIREFLIES!"

I watched in horror as claws and fists were thrown as the Fae man and my father tangled with each other.

Remarkably, my father was able to keep up with the Fae, dodging his attack with swiftness that I've never would have suspected considering the fact that he was just writhing on the floor two seconds ago.

"ENOUGH!" The Fae said, thrusting his hands into my father's rib cage and ripping out something that resembled a heart.

And I say resembled a heart because the thing the Knight man held in his hand was not something they taught us in anatomy class.

It was the shape of a heart but there were large chunks missing, but instead of those chunks remaining empty, they were filled with gears and wrapped around some kind of glowing orb.

My father twitched once before stilling, making me let out a muffled cry.

"Stupid Mutt" The Knight muttered, spitting on my father's dead corpse "I knew you'd be more trouble than you were worth."

I stared at my father's lifeless body, silent tears streaming down my face at the thought of finally finding my father only for him to be taken away from me again in a blink of an eye.

Two bloody fingers went underneath my chin, redirecting my attention to callous brown eyes.

"He wasn't worth your tears Princess" He wiped away my tears with his blood soaked hand "He wasn't even your father."

My eyes snapped to his "What?" I croaked.

"I mean technically he was" The Knight hummed "Well...the human part of him was anyways, which has been gone for a long while, But the wolf..."

"The Wolf's are always the hardest to get rid of no matter how hard we try" He let out a humorless laugh that coiled around my heart "The worst is when they have pups. It seems like that one little blood bond makes them more disobedient than usual."

"If he was such a nuisance for you then why go through all that trouble of bringing him back from the dead?" I whispered "Why interrupt his peace?"

"You really don't know, do you?" he asked, his eyes searching mine "You have no idea who or what you truly are?"

"I know who I am" I said, meeting his eyes unflinching "I am the daughter of one of the most powerful Alpha Heirs in the world."

"Oh Princess," his hand wrapped around my throat before I could even realize what was happening "You are so much more than that."

His hand gradually started to tighten around my neck and no matter how hard I tried to move or flinch away from his grasp, he never once let go.

"I know you saw the pictures" He murmured "Noëlani had a set of duplicates hidden underneath a false drawer of hers back at the palace. I found them the day she decided to call off her engagement and run away from her responsibilities"

I was only able to croak out one word "Palace?"

"Yes, Palace" He said, a wicked grin erupting on his ethereal face "And while you may be the daughter of an Alpha Mutt, that title is infinitesimal compare to that of a Fae Queen"

My eyes widened.

"That's right little Princess" He sneered down at me "Mommy Dearest was destined to be our next Centennial Queen. A title that you now inherit since you were her only Heir."

Little dark spots began to color my vision and my lungs were slowly burning for air.

"Queen?" I choked out.

"That's why Papa Wolf over there was so crucial to our operation" he explained "Blood hunts blood. We needed him to find you. We figured out about your existence after you'd already disappeared from the Supernatural Realms. We knew that in order to find you, our only option was to use him. We just didn't anticipate that your mother would have enough power left in her body to bind your powers and ship you off to the one realm we had no access to beyond the Veil..."

Although he was barely a breaths width away from me, I couldn't focus on anything he was saying.

My entire body was numb as ice as I continued to stare at the lifeless corpse of the Wolf who belonged to my father.

The last piece, the last connection I ever had to my biological parents, once again being ripped away from me without a second thought.

"Sir..." Someone choked out "The room..."

A breath escaped me and I couldn't help but notice the condensation that arose from that one simple gesture.

Goosebumps raced down my arms as a chill filled the air, making those around me stand stock still.

The Knight's eyes widened "SHE' SURGING!"

The suffocating feeling around my neck disappeared as a burst of energy shot forward and engulfed the entire room in silver light, creating equal parts chaos and solace as the Fae were thrown away from me in an instant.

I couldn't help but watch in horror as Ice completely engulfed the Fae warriors, their horrific expressions forever encapsulated in their personal icy prisons.

The entire cabin, from ceiling to floor and everything in between, was covered in thick glacial ice.

And whatever it was that caused it somehow spared me...

"I should have known," A low voice hissed, making me whirl around and find the Knight glaring at me "Of course you'd have her powers too."

His body was completely encased in ice, all except for a little portion that didn't reach his mouth, nose, or eyes.

Slowly, almost imperceptible, the ice started to melt away from his, the water slowly trailing down his face.

"And to think I was going to give you a swift and merciful death." He sneered at me.

"No you weren't" I remarked "Men like you don't make it easy for women they fear."

With those final words, I turned and rushed out of the cabin as quickly as I could.

I wasn't going to waste a gifted opportunity when it presented itself.

Because from the way the ice was melting quicker and quicker, it wouldn't be long before he was freed from whatever force that was trapping him in it.

"Of course you'd have her powers too."

I couldn't stop thinking about his words because there was no way that I could do that.

I was normal...well normalish...and didn't even have a Wolf, let alone these so called "powers" he was talking about.

Howls sounded out and I ran faster, cursing myself for not taking up those extra cardio sessions Atlas offered me when I had the chance.

Shouts mixed with the howls, as both sounds came closer and closer to where I was headed.

I duct as something whirled past and embedded itself in the tree that I just ran past.

My eyes widened as I realized it was a giant fucking dagger, its hilt encrusted with little symbols and small gem sized crystals.

More shouts and howls encompassed me from both sides this time, making me alter my course yet again.

Shit! Shit! Shit!

I remember this tactic from Coach's course, they were corralling me to where they wanted me and if I remembered, I was heading towards the Fae border.

Quadriple shit...

They were once again taking away my choices, forcing me to either surrender or die at their hands.

"YOU CAN RUN PRINCESS!" The Knights familiar voice rang out "BUT YOU CAN NEVER HIDE FROM ME OR MY CREATURES!"

The growls were close enough that I swear I could feel a warm breath across the nape of my neck.

I diverted left, and was a couple hundred yards away from the Fae Door when suddenly, a large figure blocked my path.

I was forced to retreat and turn back to where I came from.

I was almost home free...or so I thought.

Until a large creature blocked my path on this side too.

Slowly, ever so slowly, they began to converge closer and closer until the only choice I had was to turn my back to the shimmery border door.

A third figure appeared, the first figure and the creature flanking the newcomer's side.

He was soaking wet wearing a pissed off expression on his face as he gazed at me with contempt and maliciousness.

"Like I said Princess," He sneered at me "There's no place in this world where you can hide from me."

Before I had a chance to speak, hell before I had a chance to even react or move, large unfamiliar arms wrapped tightly around my waist and pulled me hard enough that I fell through the Portal...and into a life that will never be the same again.