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‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ 𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐘𝐍 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐋𝐎𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐑𝐎𝐍 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒, freeing her from the captivity of the terran auctions. It feels strange stepping outside the wooden caravan, mostly because she was surrounded by towering oaks and the mutilated corpses of the driver, guards, and horse. All dead by the jaws of the were and the strange winged man.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Although, none of that phases Ronyn one bit. He keeps his expression serious, yet the tone of voice he uses tells her that he's anything but.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "We can get to Tabrien faster if you climb on my back," Ronyn explains. "I just need to shift."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "I'm not going with you."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ And she isn't. In fact, Elowen will return back to the seclusion of her safe haven. Only now, she realises what she needs to do to ensure complete isolation. It took them her entire teenage years for the terrans to finally capture her. She plans on making it a decade more and putting this hiccup of captivity to the past.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn crosses his arms across his bare chest. The midnight breeze has no effect on his naked top-half, not even a slight goosebump. "I just saved your life," he disputes.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "By asking your friend to do it for you?" Elowen rouses.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Sound a little more grateful. I can take you back to the auction if you want. Apparently, extinct wyng go for a hell of a lot, you know."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "No. You wouldn't dare."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "That's what I thought." Ronyn smirks, extending his large hand. Thick blue veins wrap around his wrist and forearm, mixed with tattoos. "Call me Ronyn."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ She doesn't shake his hand. "You're a were."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "No shit I am," he gestures to his very muscular torso. "And what the hell are you? A fucking pigeon?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen clenches her jaw and huffs a sarcastic "haha", her bruised wings fluttering in annoyance. Her voice comes out in nothing but a whisper. "I've never met a were."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Because Elowen hasn't met many individuals in general. She was hardly in her teens when the terrans overthrew Reovell, and the only reason she survived the genocide was because she knew how to curl up in small crevasses, just like her mother instructed. Since then, she hasn't spoken with many commoners. There were a few at the edges of the woods that kept her secret, but the older Elowen grew, the less she could trust her alliances.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Can't say the same about your kind."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen's kind. Wyng.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Judging by their earlier encounter, he knows an extinct wyng. He refers to the stranger who just rescued her, who spilled blood and killed to free her.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "I thought all the wyng were dead," Elowen retorts. "I was convinced I was the last."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn chuckles, running that hand of his through ruly chocolate waves. "You know, I think Morrow was convinced of that as well."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Morrow?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Who the hell do you think did all this damage?" he gestures to the carnage surrounding them in the middle of the forest.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ She longs to despise Ronyn, but she's more curious about the bloodthirsty wyng. Wyng were people of peace and cordiality, so killing was never in their nature. Death was only to be done from natural causes, not by the hands of others.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ But this other wyng, Morrow, she knows he's different from the rest. Wings as black as smoke are rare. In fact, as a child, she learned that those dark fated wings had been extinct for years. They mimicked a black sheep, an oddity that's said to only arrive when a soul roots itself in depths of darkness. When her creature sought out his aura, she only came face to face with the soul of a wolf. It caused the invisible threads of her creature to hide back within Elowen's skin, because in that moment, she knew he wasn't a pureblood wyng, much like herself. Morrow is also a were.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ He too, shouldn't be in existence, but here they are.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen shakes her head, strutting right past the terran corpses that lay there. She can't look at them without bile crawling up her throat, and the air around her grows heavy with their scent.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "This doesn't change my decision," she mutters. "I should thank you though, for pardoning me from the terrans. It takes a deep wallet to outbid Alistair."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn grunts. "And you believe I have that kind of money?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen raises a brow, curiously. "Do you?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Hell no," Ronyn grins, almost proud of what he's about to say next. "The associate went to collect my payment into the backroom and I knocked him out, then scrambled to find you. By that time, they'd loaded you back up in that fucking wagon. Sneaky bastards."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Such violence from a beta."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn shrugs as Elowen continues to wander away from the destruction of the caravan, purposefully channelling in the opposite direction of Tabrien. Ronyn follows close behind, releasing a low growl of pure irritation that Elowen won't climb aboard his back.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "So you'll come back to Tabrien?" he asks, his voice on the verge of a beg. It's almost amusing to her to have the big tough beta resorting to this sort of tactic.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "No."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Don't make me strap you with iron and drag you back there."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen clenches her fists, stopping in her tracks. "What are your plans with me?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn lifts his hands in surrender. "Look, I just gotta bring you back to the palace. Then you're in Morrow's hands."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎Morrow. Just the name is enough to make Elowen's skin crawl. There's something dangerous and infernal about him, yet her creature usurps her and becomes madly enticed by his presence.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen keeps walking, this time picking up her pace. Ronyn remains hot on her trail. "I want to speak with your alpha."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "You mean Morrow."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎Gods, not him. Anyone but him. It explains his wolfish aura that her creature sensed in his presence. In a way, it was domineering, a mere sound reverberating through the air with the ability to steer her left and right. Even his title, alpha, sends a hum beneath her skin at the authority he contained. She'd heard about the were's alpha before, a ruthless beast with the ability to destroy villages in a single snap of his jaws, but she'd never seen it with her own eyes.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "It must be insulting to have to submit to a wyng."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "He's just like you, half-breed. Except you're half fae and he's half were. Are we ever gonna talk about that fae magic you possess, huh?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ The question pierces an arrow straight through Elowen. Her fae heritage is a part of her blood that's been lost long ago. Her mother always spoke of the time she fell in love with a powerful fae from Yestrea, a province across the kingdom of Aelethia. Long ago, Elowen's mother was a messenger for the royal Reovell courts, but fell from grace in a windstorm on the outskirts of a village in Yestrea. There, in hiding from his own council, her father found her fallen mother. Her father nursed her back to health, and they descended into a mad forbidden love. But those powerful fae abilities that should be transferred down seemed to have skipped her. Her mother tried to harness it, to teach her before her magic developed out of their control, but it remained dormant.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Years have passed since then, and it still remains locked away. All that remains of her fae blood is her lanky limbs and pointed ears.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "No, we're not going to talk about it," Elowen mutters. She keeps her voice soft, but she knows Ronyn can hear it with his lycan hearing. "But tell me about your alpha. Can he shift?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Ronyn half nods. "He can..."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "What about the wings?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "He can shift."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen refuses to believe it. "And yet he leads the were?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "He does after he challenged his father," Ronyn's hazel eyes blaze for a brief moment. "You say you're going to leave and instead berate me with questions about Morrow. Come on, half-breed. Take some interest in my life."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Won't need to, because I'm gonna go—"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen runs opposite of Ronyn, agile on her toes as she swifts through the woodland. She gives her white wings one simple flap, only to cry out in pain from the burn left by the iron at the base of her wings. She won't be able to fly.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ And if she can't fly, she knows she won't be able to escape Ronyn.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ She leaps over a fallen log as Ronyn tackles her, remaining in his human form rather than shifting. Beneath Ronyn's billowing physique, Elowen appears so petite, so scrawny and malnourished. Yet, Ronyn treats her with utter care to prevent any bruising or bone-breaking, something so foreign from the alleged wolf that he is.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "You're injured," he pants as he holds her beneath him. "And I know it seems like a fucking long shot for me to ask you this again, but you have to come back to the palace in Tabrien. You'll be safe there."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "I'm safe nowhere."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "You're coming with me."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "You're an ass."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ He grunts. "Fine. Stay out here and die, because we both know it won't be long until that happens. Those terrans are going to hunt you down for getting away, and they won't be so generous and spare your life, half-breed."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Stop calling me that. Do you call your precious alpha that? Half-breed?"

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ She watches his throat bob as he clenches his jaw. In the dim moonlight, she catches a thick scar craning down his neck. The creature within her brushes against Ronyn, and she watches his eyes close at the feel of it. His lips part slightly, but it's not a sensation of craving, but one of an amicable alliance.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Her creature gives her one command. Go.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Her creature inside of her seems to be the only voice she can trust now. If she tells her to go, then the were can't be the villains she views them as.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Fine," Elowen breathes. "I'll go with you to Tabrien."

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ The beta gives a sly smirk, one that might leave her haunted.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ "Then climb aboard."

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‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 them from terran forests to were fields and meadows, Elowen clings to Ronyn's coarse brown fur. He's large, sprinting over obstacles as if Elowen never weighed a thing. She's only known Reovell's mountains, but never this.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Tabrien is magnificent. The highest sequoias reaching the heavens she adores. Yet, down below is so much life that for a flicker of time, she regrets choosing a life of isolation after the fall of the wyng. Her lips curve at the sight of the crystalline lakes, wildflowers and sparrows singing. The forests she secluded herself in looked nothing like this, nothing like a masterpiece of a painting.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ But the world keeps blurring, and Ronyn never makes the effort to stop as his wolf storms across the lands. The night keeps fading until dawn waits at its heels.

‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Elowen closes her eyes, burying her cheeks in his coat. All it takes is one soothing growl from Ronyn, and she falls fast asleep against the beta.

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our dear sweet elowen is off to tabrien with one of my favourite characters to write, ronyn. there's a lot of challenges ahead of her in tabrien, and one of them just happens to be the were-wyng himself.

UPDATING SCHEDULE: chapters will be released weekly on saturdays at 10:00am EST. make sure to turn your notifcations on so you don't miss out!

ivy <3