Isolde
Darkness surrounded her, with only the stars lighting her path. Isolde was filled with curiosity as she explored the estate.
Why wasn’t anyone living here?
Dry leaves covered the road flanked by old, dilapidated houses. As she surveyed the area, she felt somewhat scared.
Maybe the people of Abbator were forbidden to venture into this side. Maybe something bad had happened here, and the people decided to keep it sacred?
It was hard for Isolde to silence the growing questions in her mind.
She gasped when she saw one of the buildings destroyed, burnt to ashes, and frazzled.
What could have happened here?
Her inner thoughts came to an abrupt halt upon the croak of a raven followed by the flapping of its wings in one of the buildings. Her lycan shifted and leaped toward the building.
A huge lottery tile hung in front of the building with the name,
‘Lian’s and Dita’s nest.’ She briskly cut her gaze away from it and rushed into the building. The place was pitch black at first, but as she ventured deeper into the room, Isolde stepped on a sensor that triggered torches on the wall.
Her breath caught in her lungs as the light illuminated the place, flames screaming into the air.
Wide, curious eyes assessed the space. It looked more like a tavern with tables and chairs scattered around, all upturned, shrouded with dust and cobwebs.
The bar counter had empty upturned tankards, glasses, and jars on it. Whatever happened to the owners of this place?
Could it be the people whose names were imprinted on the lottery tile?
A loud croak came again, and Isolde’s eyes turned to the ceiling, locking onto the raven. The bird’s dark eyes bore down at her, making some noise as Isolde shifted into her human form.
“I look familiar to you?” Isolde spoke aloud, addressing the bird. That was one of her hidden gifts no one ever knew. All the years Isolde spent in Kalingrad, the keeper never understood why she always cared for birds, especially crows and ravens. That was because she had the ability to communicate with them. Now, Isolde could read the mind of the bird, wondering why the bird seemed to think it knew her.
“No, my friend. I’m only new to Abbator. I don’t even like this place. It’s so full of gore and horror,” she nagged. The bird flapped its wings again, and Isolde shrieked. “You think I’m being mean? No, I stated facts. The lord is a horrible man, and I swear that I’m going to kill him.”
Now, she shook her head in utter disapproval. “Look, my friend…” She paused and narrowed her eyes at the bird, “Your name is Logren?” She sighed. “Okay, Logren, but no amount of pleading will stop me from murdering him. He’s an evil man. I don’t know why you and every other person in Abbator claim he’s good while you all dread him.”
Isolde let out a final hiss, tired of the argument with the bird, and rounded the upturned table closest to her to get to the partition and move behind the counter.
Her wandering legs stopped upon the sight of dried blood on the floor and wall that led to the counter. Some mangled bones and skulls idled on the floor.
“What…happened…here, Logren?” She stuttered to the bird. Her once-leashed emotions broke loose, and she began to panic. Whatever happened here was pure cruelty. What’s all this blood?
She hobbled on her feet as she moved past the door of the partition. There was a cask of ale on the floor of the counter, but the room beyond captured Isolde’s attention, and she walked into it.
Her eyes skimmed over the total disarray of the room. The shelves were upturned, the empty barrels flung across the room. She sneaked further in, kicking past the items on the floor until she stood before the wall with carvings.
Someone must have written them, and it was a girl given the writing.
“Today he held my gaze all through while serving the customers. I could feel his mysterious iridescent eyes devouring me from across the room. I’d blush and smile whenever our eyes connected. His devouring look makes my skin burn so prettily. And his smiles are as charming as the first light over the sky. Could it be that he feels the same way? Could Lian feel what I feel for him?” One of the carvings said.
The raven flew into the room, floating around as it inspected Isolde, who could barely talk at what she was seeing. She eased to another carving and read.
“He helped in bringing in supplies from the vines today. I saw him sweat, and I’ve never loved sweat on anyone else except him. Well, Dee saw me staring at him, and when he asked me if I was attracted to Lian, I abruptly said no. Because I know the truth, Dee loves him. He told me so. I do not know who amongst us first loved him, Lian.”
Okay, this was about a girl crushing on a male? Hmm, wonder who she was. Isolde ceased to read further when she suddenly doubled over as a wave of pain slammed into her chest. A deep furrow etched on her face as she writhed in pain.
Something was happening to her, to her lycan. Her lycan groaned and prowled in pain too. Isolde muffled her yelp of agony and darted her eyes around in search of something she could lay hands on for support.
Her trembling hands found a purchase on one of the shelves in the room, and she held it.
She gushed labored breaths as she flicked her eyes up to stare at the bird, but it was gone. Isolde didn’t know when it left. The pull she felt in her chest still raged on while she wrestled to stabilize her poise.
In that moment of instability, a crippling noise came from the front door, and the air blew in a domineering presence into the room Isolde was in.
A jumbled thought streamed through her mind as she slipped into flight mode.
Someone was here! She thought this place was abandoned? Perhaps she thought wrong. Someone had come, and if they ever see her there, she was done for. Adrenaline pumped into her veins as she looked for an exit.
There was another door in the room, and she hastened toward it, creaking it open. The footsteps were getting closer, groaning slowly over the floor like a predator targeting its prey.
Whoever that was, Isolde shouldn’t let him catch her or find out that she was a lycan snooping around in an abandoned estate.
As the door fluttered open, she realized it was an exit. The cool air blasted across her face immediately, and she dove outside just as the person came into the room.
Without wasting a minute, she shifted into her lycan, leaping away with a fluid movement as the male that had penetrated the tavern growled and with that growl came that pull in her chest.
The pain she felt earlier.
What was that pain? How was it so severe it almost brought her to her feet?
And why was her lycan restless from the pain? But then her lycan echoed something in her mind, “Mate. Our mate.”
“What? We have a mate in Abbator!? That’s…impossible!” Isolde argued, refusing to believe that. She can never have a mate here. Never!
She swore in anger, swerving through the dark road as that back exit she took pushed open.
TBC.