FULL NOVELXO Chapter 91
Chapter 91
Kieran
Chapter 91
Kieran was resentful. He had just met his wife and had been saved from his hunters, the war had probably flared in Taplean, and now, he was facing another problem.
Although they had not heard from Paredon, nor had Azenna reported to the neighboring nation, Kieran knew it was bound to happen. When Queen Avery would inform them of Prince Raegan’s attack, questions would arise, and perhaps, the king of Paredon would send investigators to Azenna too.
To prove he was not involved in the prince’s attack, Raegan needed to live. Before dealing with the prince, however, Kieran had to make an important phone call.
Back in Alexia’s room, he used his wife’s mobile to get through Taplean. When Balthasar did not answer, he called Beta Ford. Eventually, Beta Ford answered with excitement. On the phone, he heard him say, “Luna Alexia! It’s so good to hear from you! How is Alpha Kieran? We have not heard from -”
“It’s me, Beta Ford,” Kieran interrupted. “I am sorry it took me a long time to call you. We were ambushed.”
Kieran explained everything, from how they were attacked and hunted for days to how they traveled on foot to Azenna’s palace up to their current state. He expressed, “Thank the Moon Goddess; we all made it to the palace alive, but I’m afraid it won’t be easy to return to Taplean just yet. For one, we don’t have our identification passes to go through Pareden and back to Taplean. I need your help with that. Please send men to bring our identifications to Azenna’s borders. Second, there is a pending revolt here in Azenna where the instigators have involved me.”
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Next, Kieran narrated the attack to Prince Raegan. He sensed Ford’s anger as the beta responded, “It must be the elders you mentioned. They must be working with Eswen.”
“To me, it looks like it,” Kieran answered. “But now, this is the current situation here and the reason I cannot return immediately. Plus, Alexia prefers that we stay together from now on, and given my encounter with the witch, Evilene, I believe it is best too.”
There was silence on the other line before Beta Ford replied, “Alpha Kieran, we are happy you are well. You don’t know how your people have been worried about you. To us, it’s good news, but you should know… Taplean has been breached. The king is at the front, fighting against King James’ men.”
“It was exactly as we had suspected. Our enemies had entered the nation through underground passages. We managed to identify some cities where they might have entered, but they could have easily left for another town or province to take hiding. To this day, we are tracing leads to possible camps that belong to our enemies. We have, however, managed to identify one: The Golden Eye Pack. However, King James’ men have completely taken over the territory. They have hostages, preventing us from entering on full attack,” Beta Ford described.
“We could use your help. Your warriors, especially, need your motivation and leadership. However, given your situation, I’m sure the nation’s people will understand. They will, at least, be happy to learn that you are alive and well,” Beta Ford indicated.
“I am alive and will return to help save Taplean!” Kieran claimed. “Remind them that while I had led them to many victories in battles, they had always been the heart of every success. I had trained them and taught them everything that I knew. Spread the word, give them courage for me, and promise them I will return soon.”
“That I shall do, Alpha Kieran,” Beta Ford confirmed.
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Following that talk with King Balthasar’s beta, Kieran called his warriors, at least those numbers that he and Jaxon memorized by heart. He also called Alpha Baxter, Alpha Kai, and Alpha Declan, informing them of his current situation.
They were all relieved that he was alive and well. While they all wished for the problems in Azenna to be resolved, they also hoped Kieran could return to Taplean soon.
Alpha Declan was the last one Kieran spoke to. He told Kieran, “Taplean will regain its courage knowing you are well, Kieran, but still, the nation needs its hero. Be back soon.”
“He is not doing well. Despite taking the last of the healing potion, his b*dy is severely reacting to the silver. He needs more of the fire root plant to recover fully, but I had given Jaxon a double dose yesterday, so what Prince Reagan received was only about ten milliliters of the potion,” Morgan reported to Kieran inside the medical room.
Together with Alexia, Kieran and Morgan visited Prince Raegan. They observed his condition while the palace doctor prepared more IV fluids for the prince.
The prince was in a coma after losing so much blood. He was h ooked on IV fluids, and blood had been transfused.
“Then, I think it is necessary to go to Taplean and secure more of the fire root plant,” Alexia muttered.
At the back of Kieran’s head, he growled. To think he was jealous of this man. If it were up to him, he would leave Prince Raegan dead, but there was that possibility that Paredon would blame Azenna for the prince’s death and also him.
“Mother and Beta Agatha have been in the library since this morning, studying how the amulet works. We should hear from them soon,” Alexia implied.
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Just as they observed the prince, a palace guard called for their group. They immediately followed the guard into the library where Avery and Beta Agatha were.
Avery was sitting behind a desk when she said, “It’s just as I had feared. I just received a call from Paredon, asking if the speculations of the prince’s death were true. They received an anonymous call advising that Prince Raegan was killed inside the palace, and the primary suspect was Alpha Kieran. They have photos of the prince and the crime scene.”
“Killed? They are already assuming Prince Raegan’s death?” Alexia
said.
“The attackers probably left him to die,” Agatha gave her two cents. “Based on his wounds, he would not be alive by now, but the healing potion that Morgan gave him helped stop his bleeding -”
“But we don’t know for how long,” Morgan gave her two cents.
Breathing deeply, Avery supplemented, “I denied Kieran’s involvement in the attack, but that naturally enraged the king. He thinks I am siding with Kieran. And about Prince Raegan? I decided not to tell him that his son is still alive. Since we don’t know my internal enemies within the nation, I chose to keep this quiet. Only my trusted guards and warriors, including you, know that he is still alive.”
“The Paredon King, Rowan, is crossing the borders himself. We need to get Prince Reagan back to health fast,” Avery concluded.
“And the amulet, mother?” Alexia asked.
Avery’s gaze landed on the book, which settled before her. She sucked in a deep breath and informed, “I have learned many things about this amulet. Apparently, it belonged to Adira Elsher and was passed down to many generations of rulers.”
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“I never really paid attention to this in the past.” Avery glanced at her daughter, reminding her, “I did not want to be the queen before, but there is just escaping your destiny.”
“Anyway.” Avery pursed her l*ps and reported, “There were a few things that Elder Tara lied about. “First, about the blood sacrifice. The amulet holder should sacrifice blood and use it on the amulet during the portal opening. Thus, there was no point in getting Alexia’s blood.”
“Second, Tara had mentioned only one person can go into the portal, but after reading this, I learned that a maximum of three people can go into the portal. The amulet holder can also pass through the portal the same way. However, the amount of energy used will affect the amulet holder’s consciousness.” Avery fl*pped the book’s pages and traced her finger on one page. She added, “According to history, one entry to the portal had caused the amulet bearer three to four days of sleep.”
“Elder Tara took almost two weeks to regain her vitality because she went into the portal herself,” Avery added.
“Can we use the amulet now? If the king of Paredon is coming here, we only have a few days,” Kieran sought.
“Not right now, unfortunately. The amulet has to get used to its new owner.” Avery pulled a necklace from the inside of her dress. Dangling on it was the amulet. She said, “Being a royal, the amulet will
acknowledge me faster as its new master. Let’s try opening the portal first thing in the morning.”
Turning to Kieran, the queen proposed, “Kieran, since you know the location of the fire root plantation, you’ll be the one to pass through the portal while I open it.”
Kieran nodded, saying, “I figured as much.”
In the evening, Kieran and Alexia took time to think about their future before resting. Alexia said, “Kieran, why don’t we have a normal life?
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One with no adversary. I miss those times at the Stone Blood Pack. It was my happiest days, even if it was only for a short period.”
“What about our honeymoon?” Kieran asked.
Alexia chuckled and answered, “That too. I miss our honeymoon.”
Kieran pecked Alexia’s cheek. He said, “There is always a fight for power amongst the royals, even for the pack rulers. It’s hard to take away struggle and greed from others. You happen to be a royal, and I am Taplean’s hero. The former Queen Helen wants to have my head to get rid of King Balthasar easily.”
“I think our lives will continually have ups and downs, but don’t worry, my wife, because there is always a band of color after the storm,” Kieran presented.
“Band of color?” Alexia asked, utterly perplexed. “You mean rainbow.”
“I don’t like the word rainbow,” Kieran replied. “It’s too feminine.”
Alexia wound up laughing. She embraced her husband and pecked his cheek, saying, “I should have you know, since marrying me, I think you have said more feminine words than you can imagine.”
Kieran growled, but his wife chuckled. He rubbed her arm as she made a pillow of his chest. Alexia said, “I pray to the Moon Goddess that our
endeavors will be over soon.”
“I ask the same,” Kieran replied.
The next day, Kieran stood before the portal Queen Avery had created through a powerful amulet. He walked in, determined to get more than enough miracle plants to cure Prince Raegan and make more potions for Taplean.