Warring Mates

Every fibre of my body buzzed with energy, my heart thrumming inside my chest. This was it. The start of the Spirit Fest and with that the first course.

Lachlan and I walked hand in hand, together with thirty-seven other participants, to the stage that stood just outside the village. The place where my dad would hold his speech and explain the course. It was also the place where I was bound to see Collin.

Upon arriving, I saw my dad talking with Eros, who looked like hell. His hair laid disheveled on his head, dark bags adorning his eyes. Having a newborn was draining him, and I could only imagine how Maya looked like. She was cooped up with the little one the entire day while Eros had meetings.

I strode to my spot, my hands clamming up. A pair of heated eyes bored into the side of my head. Collin was looking at me with an intensity that made me blush. The golden hint in his eyes didn’t go unnoticed by me either.

“Are you okay?” Lachlan asked in my ear.

I grabbed his hand and squeezed it, but my eyes were still on Collin who scowled at our hands. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Thank you all for coming today,” my dad started, his eyes resting on me as a slight smile tugged at his lips. Mom stood right beside him, trying not to jump up and down. I chuckled at her excitement. “I will keep it short as I am sure everyone here is dying to start.”

Everyone chuckled, some people pushing their friend’s shoulder. I, on the other hand, leant into Lachlan for warmth, and he wrapped an arm around my shoulder, kissing the crown of my head.

“This first course will exist of surviving for forty-eight hours in the woods where you will be hunted down by trained assassins.” My dad looked every participant in the eyes—one by one. “And please don’t be hubristic. There will be casualties and maybe one of you will even die, which is something I would really like to avoid.”

That’s what you get when over ninety percent of the participants were men. They were all full of themselves, filled with confidence that they could make it to the elite. I scoffed. If they would only know... The first course was the hardest. Only a small twenty percent could finish it, and of those people only two or three made it to the elite. There had even been years where no one made it, such as last year.

“Now get ready. You will get an one hour head start and to those of you who make it, we’ll be expecting you at sunset two days from now.”

“We stay together, right?” Lachlan asked in my ear.

I squeezed his hand. “Yes.” We were a team. We would lose or win together.

The sound of a horn had me tense my muscles. Everyone started running to the woods, and I smirked. Some people split from the group—a rookie mistake. They would be the first to lose, as the assassins now knew exactly which direction they had to go. It was best to stay in the group until you were completely hidden from their sight.

The trees closed us in, and I looked over my shoulder to make sure it hid us from their view. “We should find a river first.” In the first hour it was important to find water as soon as possible and preferably food as well, since the other forty-seven hours you wouldn’t have the time to get to a river. Moreover, they would be swarmed with the assassins.

“There should be one five minutes from here,” Lachlan said as he guided me to it. “I can ask the animals to bring us food, so we can use the rest of the time to hide.”

I nodded. Now his gift was more than useful. We didn’t have to waste time to find edible berries or to hunt. “We should also use the river to make them lose track of our scent.” Like that, and if we were lucky, we would have a head start of a couple hours.

Within no time, we reached the river. I filled our flasks as Lachlan talked to some animals. “What did you say to them?” I asked, jumping into the cool water. It soaked my pants, and a shiver went down my spine. Hopefully, it wasn’t all too cold at night. We couldn’t risk making a fire.

“To let me know if someone came close.” He followed me into water, and coated my skin with mud. I scrunched up my nose. I didn’t care if it would mask my scent, the smell was horrible. He chuckled at my reaction. “You can wash it off when we are safe.”

“Still.”

When we were finished with the mud, we went up the river. The water current was strong, and after what felt like hours, my legs were burning. Though it couldn’t have been more than a half an hour. The sun was still at its highest peak.

“Finally,” I breathed when we reached the cave. “We can get this mud off.” I didn’t waste time as I dived beneath the water.

“You know we can’t make a fire, right,” Lachlan said as he washed the mud off his arms.

I grumbled. “In this cave it shouldn’t be a problem.” It was the same cave my aunt loved to go to. “And even if they find us, this cave is like a maze.”

“They can trail or scent.” A smirk crept on his lips. “Or have you forgotten about that?”

“No.” I placed my hands on my hips. Okay, maybe I had forgotten about it. “The smoke might hide our scent.”

He hummed and led me inside the cave. “We can’t stay here the entire time, but we can use it to get to the other side of the woods. It will throw them off.”

“Where would I be without you?” I taunted, giggling.

“Certainly not winning this course.”

I swatted his chest. “I can win this course even with my hands tied behind my back.”

“Cocky much?” he jested, quirking a brow.

“If anyone here is cocky, then it’s you.” I wrapped my arms around him, my chin on his chest. “Thinking I can’t win without you.”

“I love you,” he whispered before kissing me.

I sighed against his lips. This I hadn’t expected. “I really wish we were back in your room again.”

His chest vibrated with laughter. “Forty-seven hours and then we can rest for two days.”

“I can’t wait,” I mumbled and pulled back. “But for now, we need to get to the other side.”

Silence enveloped us as we walked through the dimly lit cave, not knowing how many hours passed by. We were avoiding the big open spot. Holes filled the roof there and would make us easy targets. Maybe when this was all over, Lachlan and I could visit it again.

A spring breeze caressed my skin. “Looks like we reached the end.” We stopped at the opening, hiding behind a rock. We couldn’t come out until we were sure it was safe.

It stayed quiet, but then again, they were trained assassins. They knew how to conceal their movements, Hidden in plain sight with the help of the shadows.

I signed to Lachlan if we should take the risk. We were with the two of us and trained for the elite. We could take down one assassin.

He shook his head.

“Why?” I whispered.

He pointed to the tree to the far left, and I didn’t understand why. There was nothing there.

“I don’t see anything.”

A sigh escaped his mouth as he rubbed his forehead. “I forgot you can’t see as well as we can.”

Of course I couldn’t. I hadn’t shifted yet. The only reason I wasn’t as weak as a human was because of my dad’s genes. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to join the festival until I shifted.

“We can take one assassin,” I said as I crossed the opening to go to his side.

“I think she is from the elite.” He looked back at the tree.

That was a problem. They were excellent at long-range battle, but also hand-to-hand. Especially fighting against a group.

“I know you are out there,” a silvery voice said. She appeared from behind the tree. Her blood red hair was braided in, causing her to look even more dangerous. Especially with those dark eyes. They were as black as coal. It sent a shiver down my body.

I had heard about her. Cole and Damen thought highly of her as they personally recommended her to join their special force. She hadn’t even participated in the Spirit Fest. They just saw her fighting single-handedly a group of rogues and kill each one of them. I think they even dated for a short while.

“We’re screwed,” I mumbled, my eyes wide. “That’s fricking Morrigan.”

“I say we make a run for it.”

“I guess we don’t have any other choice.” I grabbed his hand, and we walked out of the cave. It didn’t take long until a cruel smirk crept upon her face.

“Looks like this is my lucky day.”

“Or not.” I shrugged, and Lachlan and I split up. Both of us went in the opposite direction and as for my luck... Morrigan decided to come after me.

I cursed and evaded her dagger just in time. It hit the tree I passed as I ran at full speed. The ground beneath my feet blurred, my breath coming out with quick puffs. As I tried to get her off my tail, my beast paced inside my head. The thrill of the chase alerted her, and I wasn’t sure what to think of it. My body was on fire, my heart constricting with each thump.

“You can’t run forever,” she taunted, throwing another dagger.

I hissed when it scraped my leg. Damn it. I had to lose her—fast. My head was throbbing with the worst headache ever. It scared me. I had no idea what was happening to me, and not to mention I was also on the run. At least, I thought I was.

The footsteps behind me stopped. Was this a trick? To make me believe I was safe before she attacked me. I groaned when a wave of pain wrecked my body. Maybe I shouldn’t think too hard about this and just find a cave to rest. She most likely found an easier target.

After a minute of five, which felt like centuries thanks to my head, I found a cave. I slumped against the stone wall, the cold touch doing wonders to my feverish body. Sweat coated my forehead, my beast pacing inside my head as she clawed at the edges. I had never felt her this strong before—this present. It was as if I could feel everything she felt. As if we were on the same line for once.

A groan left my lips as the strain in my muscles became impossible to ignore. Breathe... I had to keep on breathing. Goddess, I couldn’t. What was happening to me?

Lexi, are you all right? My gramps' voice rang inside my head.

Tears streamed down my face. The pain and fear must have alerted my parents. I’m fine, just a bit shaken up.

I can hear in your voice you are not.

A broken laugh echoed through the cave. I couldn’t fool him even when my life was on the line.

Just take deep breaths. It’s the adrenaline that causes her to behave like this. She wants to protect you.

I listened to his words, finding some sense in them.

Is Lachlan close to you?

I scoffed and wiped my tears away. If you don’t trust him, then why let him participate at all.

It’s not about that. His presence will calm down your beast.

Oh.

You should be all right in this course and the next one as long as you stay close to him.

Okay. I had to find him. Easy. It wasn’t like these woods were that big or that I had to look out for assassins. “Great,” I mumbled, pushing myself off the wall.

I stalked through the trees, aware of every little thing around me. Little did I know Ryan was ahead of me, tackling down a participant. I hid behind a tree as soon as I saw him.

“Sorry to tell you buddy, but you lost this course.”

I heard the guy grumble and shuffle away. Taking this as my chance, I dashed away. I looked over my shoulder to see if Ryan was following me and before I knew it I tumbled down a hill, clinging to a person. The musky scent, which reminded me of autumn, calmed my beast and by the tingles that spread through my body, I knew it was Lachlan.

“Don’t,” I mumbled when he was about to push me away. I needed this. Every muscle in my body was on edge, my head pounding with a severity that had my vision blur.

He sat up, his arms tightening around my body. “Not that I don’t like this intimate moment, but we’re in the middle of a course.”

The tension left my body, and I laid my head in the crook of his neck. “I have a high risk of shifting.”

His body stiffened. “What?”

“It’s nothing.” I pulled back, my beast growling softly. “Gramps told me that as long as I am close to you, I should be fine.”

"This is not nothing, Lexi." He cupped my cheek. "This course is practically forcing you to shift, and that can be deadly."

"My parents know about it, and I already talked to Silas. They're not pulling me back, knowing how important this is for me."

Not entirely satisfied with my answer, he still nodded his head. "If they think you can handle it, then I won't pressure you to stop."

"It's not like you would win that argument," I said, pushing myself off him.

He dusted his pants off. "I wouldn't even dare to try."

"Good." I looked at the sky. Hues of orange mixed with the blue. "We should find a place to stay the night."

"I think I saw a cave not far from here." He wrapped an arm around me, and we strode to the cave while still aware of our surroundings.

"How many people do you think already lost?" I asked when we strolled inside the cave. Everyone always thought the first twenty-four hours were the hardest, but in reality it's the last couple ones. In the beginning there are more participants than assassins, and as more and more get caught they will concentrate on you, swarming around the rivers and lakes as they know you'll run out of water.

"Fifteen at least." He stayed at the edge of the cave. "You can rest first."

"I'm fine—"

"You almost shifted. You need it."

I didn't say anything back, too tired to argue. So, I slept peacefully and took the second watch when needed. I was even surprised it stayed quiet all night.

Gramps? I tried. This whole mind thing was still hard to me, but I knew he was monitoring everyone's mind in case something happened.

Is there something wrong? He answered after a few seconds.

Yeah, a lot is wrong. Yesterday I came across Ryan and he didn't even follow me. And then you had Morrigan, who suddenly disappeared. Not to mention how quiet it stayed at night.

It stayed awfully quiet this night. I suppose you don't have anything to do with that. I frowned as it stayed silent. My Goddess. You can't do that!

It's for your own safety.

I don't fricking care. I chose to participate so treat me like every other participant. I couldn't believe this. My dad ordered them to stay away from me. Embarrassed doesn't even come close to what I felt. I could take care of myself.

I let them know you wanted to be treated like everyone else.

Thank you. Now I just hoped he really just did that. Or else my dad wouldn't hear the end of it. He couldn't favor me.

"You look like you could strangle someone," Lachlan said in my ear as he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"My dad ordered everyone to stay away from me."

His brows shot up. "He didn't."

"Exactly"—I threw my hands in the air—"I couldn't believe it either."

He laid his chin on my shoulder. "Well, it is an easy win."

I quirked a brow at him.

"I'm just kidding." He pecked my cheek and patted my bum. "We should head on our way again."

The rest of the day we stayed hidden in the trees as we made our way to the waterfall. A great spot to lose our scent. And just like my gramps said, they came after us again.

We dodged daggers and assassins all day. It was exhausting. My legs burned, my body covered with scrapes. Now I understood why they gave us two days of rest between the two courses. Your body would need the time to heal.

"Please tell me that the sun is about to set," I begged, leaning against a tree. My body couldn't run anymore and certainly not fight. If we were discovered right now, I would lose and with that also making it to the elite. You needed to make it through the first course and be in the top five of the other two.

Lachlan stopped playing with the dagger in his hand and eyes the sky. "I'm sorry. It seems we have at least another hour."

I whined. An hour. "I don't think I can make it." Keeping the wall up constantly and fighting a beast that was trying to gain control was exhausting.

"Where did the Lexi go who wanted to beat everyone's ass?"

I pushed myself off the tree and sauntered away. We couldn't stay on the same spot for too long. "I think she is finally growing up." With everything that happened these last couple of days... It changed me. At least I liked to believe I had matured a bit.

"About time," he joked, taking my hand in his. "Though you are still a long way from being mature."

I pushed his shoulder, laughing, which died down quickly. A rustle not far from here caught my attention. Together with Morrigan, Ryan walked from behind a tree.

"Seems I found you at last," he said with a smirk.

I looked up to the sky and cursed. We still had a couple minutes before the sun was under.

"Sorry, darling, but this time I won't let you escape," Morrigan taunted as she circled us, a dagger circling in her hands.

"We only have to keep them occupied for five minutes or so," Lachlan said to me, eyeing Ryan, who was grabbing a dagger.

We could do that. As long as we weren't down on the ground for more than ten second we were safe. Which was going to be hard since we had an elite and one of the best assassins here.

I gulped and avoided Morrigan's fist. Too bad I wasn't fast enough for her hand that held the dagger. It swiped across my ribs. The blood oozed out, and a hiss escaped my lips. That was going to sting for a while.

Morrigan swiped again, followed by a right hook, a kick with her leg, another swipe. She didn't give me any chance to go onto the offense. I was dodging every attack until the point I couldn't. She kicked me in the chest—hard. I rolled over the ground, and I knew I had to stand up. But I couldn't. Everything hurt, my ribs, my legs, my head. It was too much.

"You gonna give up?" she taunted. "You have five seconds."

I groaned and scrambled off the ground, only to be kicked down by her again.

"Three seconds."

"Damn it," I mumbled, blasting a ball of lightning at her. She avoided it with inches to spare, and I used this as my time to get off the ground. The world around me swayed as I almost lost my footing. I shouldn't have used magic in the state I was in.

"I've got you," Lachlan said as he caught me in time.

I nuzzled my nose into his neck, breathing in his scent. "We made it it?"

"Yes, we did." He kissed my head and carried me bridal style.

"Something tells me you're going to be asleep for the entire day tomorrow," Morrigan said as she eyed me, a soft smile playing on her lips.

I grumbled, having no energy to speak. My beast slept contently in my head for a change, but for the rest it felt as if I was dying. Even holding my eyes open was too much.

"We're here," Lachlan said in my ear.

I opened my eyes to see thirteen other participants. They all gathered around a table filled with food. It surprised me to see so many made it.

"Lexi," my mom yelled as she ran over to us, eyeing Ryan and Morrigan.

"Don't worry," Ryan said, a smile tugging at his lips as Zak strode over to us. "They both made it."

"Barely," Morrigan added with a chuckle before sauntering toward her husband. They had married last year.

"Of course they did," my dad said, his eyes gleaming with pride as he eyed me. "How are you feeling?"

"As if I can sleep for an entire week," I mumbled, snuggling into Lachlan. Though relaxing wasn't on the agenda. Not with a pair of eyes boring in my head.

Collin stared at me yet again. Well, more like scowling at the places where Lachlan touched me. I guess I could never figure him out.