Edited by KitWulf                                      9-6-2021

*

Killian took them back to the same big space they had met Marric the first time. There was a big table set up in the middle this time and Marric was already seated at the head of it. Killian stood just behind him on the right side and the guard that had joined them remained standing at the door. Marric smiled broadly as they came in and yet again, it looked as if his mouth was the only thing smiling. Even though she tried, she couldn't reciprocate the same and in the end, just let her face rest and gave Marric a small nod.

Seeing the man again had put all her senses on alert, the hair on her skin standing straight up. Even though the Phoenix was keeping quiet, it was awake and just behind her conscious state, listening and feeling her. It was reassuring, knowing that she wasn't alone, that there was something else judging him and every word that would spill from his mouth. She had Lucas but the Phoenix could feel and see so much more than both her and the green-eyed man.

Their steps echoed through the empty hall and the walk to the table seemed to take forever. Marrics's eyes burned into theirs and all Azura could think about was how much Lucas hated silence. Maybe that's why she was walking louder than needed. Unknowingly, she realized she had adopted his hatred of quietness. She willed herself to continue even while she found herself wanting to turn back and run. Not so much because of the leader sitting at the table, but over the information he held. Her past, her mother, the reason why she was taken away.

They reached the table after what felt like the longest walk ever. As she sat down next to Lucas, her eyes flitted around the space, taking in every detail, and most importantly, every exit. With every door, two guards were stationed; there were four doors on each side, and in the center of the room there were eighteen pairs of silent eyes watching them. Not counting Killian.

Going across the faces again, she stopped when she saw him. As if her throat closed itself off, she could suddenly feel his dry cracked lips on hers again. How she had ever thought he was mildly attractive was beyond her right now as she kept her gaze locked with the man from the bar.

He winked.

Anger flared up within her just as it had done the day before. The urge to hurt him just as she had felt the first time reared its head but it didn't scare her. It came from so deep within she welcomed it. All she knew was that she wanted him dead, to see his blood and watch him slowly suffer.

A squeeze in her leg just above the knee brought her back to the here and now. Azura blinked and broke eye contact with the man on the opposite side of the room. The words Lucas had spoken to her the day before resounded in her head.

'You'll get your chance one of these days.'

She knew she would. She didn't know how or when, but she knew she would get her chance.

"Azu? Are you alright?" Lucas voiced his concern and gave her a little smile as she connected with him. She nodded and turned to Marric.

"Sorry, I got a little lost in my thoughts. I didn't have the best sleep last night." The lie flowed so easily she could have fooled herself. She just hoped Marric hadn't seen the moment between her and that man and that he would believe her.

"Don't worry, Azura." Marric sounded so sincere yet his eyes did not reflect any of it. "I wanted to talk with you guys about the issues we are facing with the decline of our numbers. But to do that, I need to know if you guys are aware of how our species exists and what makes us the way we are. Have both of you heard of our souls which makes us who we are?"

Azura was taken a bit surprised by Marric. He didn't seem to care about small talk at all and would just plunge straight down into the issues. She didn't mind though. The less time she would have to spend here the better it was.

"No, I haven't. I don't think Azura has either but I have read something like this in my grandfather's research I think."

Lucas was interrupted by a door opening and a man stepping through keeping his head down. Killian smiled widely at him and she knew straight away it was Zahair that had entered the room. He was as pale as she was with sandy blond hair cut asymmetrically but she couldn't see more with the way he angled his body away from them.

"Zahair, thank you for joining us. Could you please provide our guests here with some refreshments?"

Marric's sly smile made her feel sick to her stomach. He repulsed her. Zahair looked up and nodded at Marric giving her and Lucas a good view of his face. He had a bushy long unkempt beard and the long side of his hair partially covered the bad side of his face. She could tell the paralysis was quite bad though as one side of his face seemed to droop down and not move along with his other side at all.

Despite his facial hair, Zahair held a boyish charm to him. She wasn't exactly sure what made it feel like that. He was a bit shorter than Killian she guessed but he was lankier. She guessed Zahair to be more close to Lucas's age making him a couple of years younger than Killian, though it was hard to tell. The way he moved also held a bit of a swagger that she'd only seen on TV with some of the surfer guy videos. It stood in stark contrast with how he carried himself for the rest.

As Zahair walked away to do what Marric asked, the elderly man himself turned back to Lucas, contempt written all over his face.

"Your kind really has strayed far from their roots and origin have they not? It's a disgrace they have forgotten what their history is and how their werecats work. They long to be human so bad that they've lost touch with their instincts and true nature. They are weak."

Lucas attempted to speak up but was silenced by Marric before a single word had even left his mouth. Azura had not often seen Lucas angry but he was darn close to it now. Still, Marric held this kind of power that could keep him quiet.

"I was not done talking, boy. Hear me out before you answer. Don't forget you are a guest here." Marric stared at Lucas with such intensity he could only respond by averting his eyes and giving in to the powerful man at the head of the table. Or at least, it seemed that way.

"Good choice, Lucas. As I was saying your kind is weak but you are growing and seeing more than they ever have. You are the key to make them understand and I believe through this way, you can make them stronger and get our kinds together again. We need to be reunited to survive, you see. Now, shall I start explaining about our souls?"

Zahair returned with water and poured all of them some, making Marric stop talking for a moment. Even though breakfast was not too long ago, Azura's throat felt parched and she welcomed the fluid with open arms. Marric was an intense man capable of draining all the energy straight out of you.

Zahair kept his face down most of the time and quickly hurried to stand behind Killian after he was done. Azura noticed the brief gentle touch between the two men before she turned her attention back to Marric who started talking as if the previous tense moments in the room never happened.

"Werecats like us possess souls. Whenever a baby is born they are not automatically a werecat shifter. That only happens if they are born in the right area and if a soul decides to bond with the baby. Even if both parents are werecats, it will be a mere human if the child is born in the wrong area. It might have some enhancements the werecats have, like accelerated healing, but it will never be able to shift. Azura, if your mother decided to stay away and give birth to you somewhere else, you would not have been a shifter. It's because your mother decided to come back to us and give birth to you here that you've become a shifter. The area of range for newborns to become shifters has been decreasing over the years though. Our territories," Marric gestured between himself and Lucas. "used to be connected. That was a long time ago though. We used to own the north side of the country. Now our territory is just a couple of miles around the village. Norbury, where you were born, is no longer included as it used to be. The city used to be our hometown much like Pleyvale is for the Green-eyed leopards. You were born and raised there before...your mother decided to run away."

Despite Killian telling her that tidbit of information, Azura decided to keep her mouth shut, not wanting to betray they had a little private chat during breakfast. Marric glanced around the room while pausing and took in every single one of his guards.

"Since the previous generation, we have the issue that even though new babies are born here, not every one of them gets a werecat soul. Thus we have several humans living amongst us. Those with extra enhancements can opt to become a guard and some chose to move to Norbury or somewhere else to live out their lives."

Marric took a pause again but his posture made it clear he wanted them to keep quiet. He was intimidating, to say the least.

"We have four types of souls. New souls, regular souls, old souls, and ancient souls. The type of soul you have determines your strength. The age you shift for the first time shows which kind of soul you are. New souls are souls who are bound to someone for the first time. These are the late shifters between the ages of sixteen and twenty. Their souls don't have much experience and don't possess as much strength yet. Regular souls shift between twelve and sixteen. Their souls have bonded at least once, and again, the younger the person is when he first shifts, the more experience their soul has. Old souls are werecats who have shifted between six and twelve. These people tend to become important to the community as they are wise and strong. You certainly have heard of the expression that an old soul lives within you? This is where that comes from. The old souls are rare though. I happen to be one, hence my position. I am the strongest of the group, have the most power, and the other werecats know this. It's only natural. You can compare me to a werewolf with Alpha genes."

Azura had to bite back a snide remark at Marric gloating over himself. He was too full of himself and the power he claimed to have, yet he didn't affect her in any way. Then again, the alpha power of Andreas had done nothing to her either. Lucas was affected by Marric it seemed, it had shown earlier on, but at that moment she'd noticed Zahair was affected more by it as she had glanced over at him during Marric's outburst at Lucas. Killian seemed to be the same as Lucas. With Lucas, the element of surprise and not yet being familiar with Marric are also probably the cause.

"Last but not least we have the rarest soul of them all. There are rarely two of these souls in one group at the same time. Most souls have disappeared before they reach this stadium and the owner of these souls possesses a power they might not ever even realize they have. These are the ancient souls. We don't know much about them, don't know their full power but we do have our suspicions. They are the game-changers. They can affect the world if they want to. The youngest recorded shifter was three years old. The oldest ancient soul was five and a half."

Next to her, she could feel Lucas stiffen up for a moment. She knew where this conversation was going but she didn't know why Lucas reacted the way he did. His face had drained of all color and he was clenching his teeth tightly together by the look of the muscles in his cheek and jaw. Marric had noticed it as well and smiled at Lucas smugly.

"Let me guess, you just came to the conclusion you are together with the most powerful werecat shifter to have ever lived."

Of course, Marric knew. He was the leader of the group when she was born so, of course, he knew her age when she had first shifted. He had known straight away what she was and her mother most likely had realized the same thing. More pieces of the puzzle snapped in place but there were still so many missing.

"No."

Azura snapped her head towards Lucas with wide eyes as the 'no' rolled off his tongue so strong and powerful it gave her a little shudder. Defiance was his in eyes and she could feel the spring of his confidence resonate in her body.

"Azura being the most powerful was something I already knew for a while. It's just that you made me become aware of the fact I actually hold more power than I thought I did."

The true meaning of his words slowly dawned on her. Was this why he was capable of calming her down and restraining her when she went in overdrive? Azura gasped as she knew it probably was the reason why. He was the only one who had never shown fear for her. He had held his own against her when needed, and this explained why he had been able to do it. She watched in awe as Marric seemed stunned for a moment as well. Lucas sat up straighter, looked Marric straight in the eyes as if he was challenging him and Azura felt her stomach do a happy somersault by the sight of it.

"I shifted when I was just five years old."

Marric's stunned expression faltered and turned into one with a genuine big smile and sparkling eyes. For a moment she thought she saw a flicker of what she could only call greed in it as well but it was so short-lived she wasn't sure if it actually happened. From the first moment she had met Marric, she made a habit out of studying him and trying to read his face. She didn't trust his words and this way she hoped she would be able to catch his true intentions a little bit sooner.

"Perfect. That's really...perfect!" Marric got up from the table as he spoke up and walked towards his throne as Azura still called it in her head. "I never expected one of them to be able to possess an ancient soul. Especially not with Azura walking around." He turned around and sat down on the throne with that smug wide smile still adorned on his face.

"Lucas, with this new information it should only become easier to convince the rest of your group to come to an agreement. In order to expand our borders, create more new souls, and make sure the werecat species survive, we need the two groups to come together. You have the strength to do so together with Azura and me."

Marric locked eyes with Zahair before the blonde-haired man quickly lowered them to the ground. Marric seemed to think about something while he kept staring at Killian's man and it wasn't long before he talked again.

"Lucas, I think it's best if you go with Zahair to pay a visit to my advisors. I have talked with them already about plans to come to an agreement with your kind, but I feel it's best if you're involved in them as well. I will join you later but I want to talk some things through with Azura first regarding her parents. I'm sure you understand right?"

Both Killian and Zahair exchanged looks as did Lucas and Azura. She had not expected this kind of proposition from Marric and she had not the faintest clue if he was speaking the truth or not. The flames inside her ignited. The Phoenix coiled itself around brushing against her, its alertness working as a warning signal in her head. Yet it didn't go into full defense or attack mode. It was bristling yet remained in the background as if it was containing itself. Lucas remained calm and gave her a reassuring smile. That gentle and calm look always worked wonders on her.

"I'll be fine, Azu." He smirked at her and ruffled through her hair as if they were completely alone.

"Oh, so now you're getting cocky? You learn you have an ancient soul and all of a sudden you're calling the shots around here?" She chuckled and placed her forehead against his while keeping their gazes locked together and softly whispered so only he could hear. "You might be fine but I'm afraid I won't be. Especially not with him around." She gave a slight nudge with her head towards the man that stood guard whose name she still did not know.

Lucas released himself from her hold and got up from his seat. "You'll do fine, Azu. Remember what I said yesterday. Just keep that in mind." He winked at her and she let out a soft sigh in response. The ancient soul vibes had truly gotten into his head.

Lucas took a couple of steps towards Marric. "Fine. It might be a good idea. I'm curious to hear what kind of plan you guys have come up with."

Zahair and Killian were still staring at each other but broke their gaze when Lucas spoke up. Killian gave Zahair a quick nod but did not make any attempt to step closer to his partner. Marric's smile widened even further as Lucas agreed.

"Good, Zahair, You know where to take him. I'll see you guys later."

With a nod to both men, Marric waved them both off. Azura watched closely as Lucas left before she turned her head to Killian. He showed no emotion whatsoever and didn't return the look she was giving him. A small shudder ran up her spine as she realized she was alone in this now for the time being. Killian could not give her the support needed even if he wanted to.