The Moon Goddess' Chosen

463 Swayed by Another

“The thing that’s keeping us from saying anything to our loved ones sounds very familiar to the divine rules that bind the gods from helping humanity directly…” it all made sense to Honour and the prince could see it.

So much so that Drake stopped his words halfway, “But you already know that, don’t you?”

The girl looked down from his staring eyes, “Yeah, I know. But I thought it only applied to me…” The girl paused as another thought rushed by her.

If the prince was the only one that she could heal and was indeed bound by the same restrictions that bound the gods… then, “How long?”

The prince strained his memory, but eventually, his shoulders slumped, “I don’t know honestly. I just noticed one day… when nothing was the same anymore. It had been for a while.

I was finding it harder to get tired unless I was in the presence of other werewolves and trying to assist them with something. Almost like my strength wouldn’t decide its limit. In the presence of others, I felt limits close in on me.

When I was alone or with you, it was different. With you by my side, I felt like I could take on the world and win. I couldn’t tell where this limit of strength was. I just kept getting stronger with each passing day,” the man reported his observations.

The girl thought back to the time she’d tried telling the prince about the whispers in the wind. She’d tried to tell him then that they were in danger and she’d intended to tell everyone else, but every time she did, her voice failed her and so did the mind link.

Giving up felt like the last thing she could do but taking action was completely out of her reach as well. As a result, she was stuck in the middle… thrashing in agony and frustration for a way… a solution…

.....

Unable to do anything to help her friends while at the same time trying to find a way to help them. It was an excruciating existence.

In the end, she advised her friends to be more careful in their day-t0-day activities. While this was almost ineffective in helping her protect her friends, it was better than doing nothing.

“Can you tell me you heard that day in the wind?” the prince asked her.

Honour turned her eyes to the prince. What could he do about their situation? Telling him now would do nothing to help them. He was bound by the laws of the gods as well. Bound to them through her…

“You don’t have to carry that burden anymore. I can help you,” Drake tried.

The girl sighed, “I know that tone. Seems to run in your family.”

Just like Lina and Katie, the Sirius royals were the same. Time and time again, the goddess had watched them get determined to accomplish feats too heavy to carry on their own.

“Then you know you have no way out. It might sound foolish but our determination is what propels us to even greater heights. Just watch Little Sister. This year’s Royal games are going to be really interesting,” the prince smirked.

Smiling at his enthusiasm, the girl let her mood drop once more and delved into the memories. A devious wolf negotiating with a law-bound goddess… A grey-eyed woman as their captive. And thundering plantlife that threatened to swallow up the trio of mortals.

The message she’d heard in the wind was much clearer than she’d interpreted it that day. And she knew what it meant… and she told it the way she knew it now, carefully elaborating on the dangers they currently faced.

Prince Drake diligently listened to her tale. The girl would pause when the nurses came to check on his wounds. Thankfully, it seemed as though the bleeding had slowed down. While there was no clear sign of healing, the prince didn’t look like he was at death’s door anymore and some colour had returned to his face.

He also didn’t wince anymore when he tried to readjust his position in the bed. The tale of the rogue king regaining his powers was a frightening one…

The prince was quiet for a moment when the girl was finally done and quiet. Finally telling someone what she knew of the rogue king’s condition made the weight on her shoulders much lighter.

“But that was a long time ago, how could anyone survive that long without food?”

The girl sighed, “It’s that field of flowers. The Origin is rich with moon lotuses. That power can keep him alive for a long time… Unfortunately, it could also make him stronger.”

“So you’re telling me that his body would have been operating on the power of the gods for two years?”

“When you put it like that, you make it sound like we have to fight a god instead of a man,” the girl chuckled nervously. While his wording was far-fetched, it was accurate and a clearer way of showing how much danger they were in.

“Well, obviously… It explains how he was able to body jump like that…”

“Body-jump! Body jump like what?”

Drake only realised then that he hadn’t yet told the tale of how he got himself maimed, “Oh, you might want to lie down for this one.” The prince made room on the hospital bed for the goddess to get cosy.

‘I should be worried… right?’ the now-giddy goddess tried grounding her emotions, but it was too late. She was in the presence of her mate… and he’d just invited her to sleep next to him.

The end of the world seemed more like a bedtime story now…

...........

When the girls left Honour tending to the prince, they walked in silence with Bree guiding them to the rooms they had chosen. However, when one of them began falling back, Lina turned her attention to the girl.

“We can see Kyle tomorrow, you know or now if you’d like…”

Lina paused when the girl didn’t react to her joke, “Is something wrong?”

Madeline stopped walking and rubbed the goosebumps that had started forming on her upper arms, “Is it just me or is it getting colder?”

“It’s usually this temperature, but if you’d like, I could have it changed for your…”

Once again, Lina paused.

That’s not what was keeping the girl quiet. Madeline’s face never once hid an emotion, not even after changing it drastically with the power of skilled make-up artists.

Mady was still Mady.

“Let’s hear it,” Crysta spoke up and oddly enough, the delta’s voice was soothing.

If it hadn’t been for Madeline’s worrisome mood, Lina would have pointed out how out of character it was for Crysta to be comforting. She had her moments, but every time, they felt ridiculously out of place.

“I want to… Can we… I was thinking…”

“Ugh, come on, girl. You’re killing me,” Bree burst out, “Get on with it already.”

“I want to visit… Victor,” Madeline’s eyes stayed pinned to the floor. She then sighed, “Forget it. We can do that tomorrow.”

Bree, who had been leading them, turned and started walking in the opposite direction. When footsteps wouldn’t follow her, “Come on. I know where he’s being treated… or held.”

The girl would have stayed transfixed to the spot if Lina hadn’t wrapped an arm around her and pulled her to follow them.

“Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Bree replied, hiding the smile that crept onto her face.

.........….

Laying down on a hospital bed similar to the one the prince had been in, the man Madeline had named earlier lay asleep.

A multitude of machines had been connected to him to sustain his life. Unlike the prince who only needed some stitches and to have his wounds continuously monitored for progress, this man was in a far worse condition.

As it had turned out, he had several cracked ribs and there was a horrifying wound through his side. The doctors described the injury as one he’d received while he was in his wolf form.

And the transformation into his human form had only worsened his injuries. He’d lost a lot of blood and his healing capabilities were not responding the way they were supposed to.

The black oozing from his body was less than what the prince had in his injuries. It turned out that the black substance that was covering him when the prince brought him had come from the prince’s own injuries.

That was not all though. The nurse assigned to them explained the extent of his injuries in unnecessarily gory detail. Her tone was indifferent and she didn’t even show any pity towards the ‘traitor’.

It was understandable… if the nurse knew his crimes.

The girls didn’t comment on her tone and when they’d gotten what they needed to learn from her, she was dismissed.

Silence filled the room, the beeping sound of the machine signifying his weakly beating her. Madeline found herself taking a step towards the man, slowly… one by one, until she was right above him.

Memories of the times they had back in the Golden Moon pack flashed through her mind. He was assigned to guard her and work at helping her improve in her ambitions… since it was that exact same thing that had gotten him stripped of his title.

Alpha Haelstrom thought it to be the best way he could prove to the prince of Sirius that he had learned the error of his ways.

At first, the man had been bitter towards the decision but enduring his rotten attitude was a challenge she was willing to take if she was to get better at her craft.

Madeline wouldn’t let anything, not even the bitter attitude of the demoted delta, get in the way of her ambitions.

Serving customers was a craft that needed one to be able to keep a smile despite the attitude of those customers. If she could work regardless of his presence, then she was sure she could improve faster than she ever had.

Victor wasn’t a fool.

The man soon caught up with this plan and was irritated by it. Her resilience though… that’s what got to him. That’s what made him cave. She wouldn’t stop no matter what he said.

No matter how much he discouraged her, she was determined to see her goals through.

It didn’t matter if she was laughed at. It didn’t matter if she messed up. It didn’t matter if anyone made fun of her. She was clumsy and way too much of a klutz, but…

She pushed on…

And her food… It was delicious.

Victor’s hoarse breath hitched… his chest rose higher than it had been the past few minutes and his fingers… twitched.

The former delta was fighting to regain his consciousness… and the heart monitor began to beep faster and louder.

......…