Elder Erden
One hundred years.
I sat in this dungeon.
A thick iron chain bound my left wrist to the stone wall.
The iron weighed down my bare arm.
I watched the water drop from the rocks above.
The water hit the pool below and splashed onto the rocks.
The silence in the dungeon swallowed every sound I made.
I leaned my head against the cold rock and stared at the heavy iron around my arm.
Anger lived inside me for a long time, but right now, I felt only a deep, burning ache.
My muscles tightened.
A heavy heat pooled in my lower stomach.
The urge to find a mate pushed hard against my mind.
My blood moved fast through my veins.
I needed a woman.
I needed to touch warm skin.
I needed to settle this intense urge driving my wolf insane.
I shifted my legs on the sand.
The movement did nothing to stop the burning in my body.
I wanted a woman.
Not just any woman.
I wanted a strong female to share my space.
My body burned with the need to hold someone, to hear a woman’s voice, to smell her natural scent in this hole.
The urge grew stronger every day.
My wolf paced back and forth inside my head, demanding a mate.
Demanding a proper release.
I closed my eyes and gripped the chain.
I pulled.
The iron scraped against the stone.
I pulled harder.
The chain did not move.
I tried to push my power into my hand to snap the thick links.
The moment my energy touched the iron, a sharp pain shot up my arm.
The seal on the chain pushed my power back inside me.
I released my grip and let my hand fall to my lap.
“Be for real”
I rubbed my wrist.
My powers were locked away.
Whatever metal they used to forge this thing, it held strong against an Elder.
I was Elden.
The people of La Fita betrayed me.
They stole my throne.
They locked me down here and expected me to sit in the dark and fade away.
Instead, I just burned with this heat and remained in here,
I looked at the floor around me.
Torn dresses, old scarves, and faded fabric littered the sand.
The cloth smelled like dust.
Past sacrifices.
The leaders of La Fita used to send women down here to satisfy my wolf.
They wanted to keep the beast quiet.
I wanted a strong mate to hold, to touch, and to take this edge off my mind.
But the women they sent lacked strength.
They were too fragile.
They could not handle my raw heat.
They could not survive in this cold place.
The air ruined their health.
They stayed for a short time.
They sat in the corner. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
They refused to speak.
And then their bodies gave out.
I stopped asking for their names long ago.
Remembering the name of every person who died in this room added a heavy weight to my mind.
I just wanted a woman who could survive.
A woman who could stand up, talk back, and entertain me and possibly the one who can save me break my chains, my mate…
I rested my head against the wall again.
I wanted silence.
A loud splash broke the quiet.
I opened my eyes.
I looked toward the stream running through the center of the dungeon.
An object floated in the water, moving toward me.
I thought it was another old piece of cloth.
Then the current turned the object around.
A body.
I sat up straight and stared at the water.
“. Did they finally remember to send me another omega sacrifice?”
The body drifted closer.
I looked at the clothes.
The garments were cut for a boy.
A small boy.
I frowned and shifted my weight forward.
The chain rattled against the stone.
“Wait. Did they send me a boy? Have they completely lost their minds? I do not do dead women or boys.”
I reached for the long wooden stick lying on the sand beside me.
My fingers gripped the rough wood.
The bark scratched against my skin.
I stretched my arm toward the stream.
The iron chain around my wrist went tight.
The heavy links locked together.
I hooked the pointed end of the stick into the thick clothing on the body.
I pulled back.
The body stayed in place.
The wet clothes made the figure too heavy.
“Come on. Move.”
I clamped my jaw shut and pulled with more force.
My muscles flexed.
Pain exploded inside my wrist.
I hissed through my teeth and loosened my grip.
My wrist held layers of thick scar tissue.
I spent years fighting the chains .
Forcing my strength against the seal always made the pain worse.
The magic in the iron burned my skin.
I stopped pulling and closed my eyes to steady my breathing.
“One hundred years. And this is how you expect me to spend another hundred?”
I gripped the stick and pulled again.
The chain tightened to its limit.
The metal bit deep into my skin.
The seal activated and sent a sharp shock through my arm.
I dropped the stick and grabbed my wrist with my free hand.
” What are you made of?”
I laughed, a short and bitter sound.
I looked back at the body in the water.
“You are lucky I am bored.”
I picked up the stick again.
The body moved an inch.
I kept the pressure steady.
I dragged the figure across the surface of the stream.
The chain scraped the rocks behind my back.
My muscles burned from the strain, but I kept pulling until the body reached the edge of the water.
I dropped the stick and lowered myself onto one knee.
I reached out and grabbed the shoulder of the figure.
I turned the body over on the sand.
A small metal object fell from the clothing and hit the sand.
I looked down at the sand.
An heirloom.
I reached out and picked it up.
The metal felt heavy in my palm.
My fingers ran over the flat surface.
I stopped moving.
The engraving stood out clearly on the metal.
I traced the letters with my thumb.
ORION VALE.
Right beneath the name sat a specific symbol.
A circle with three distinct lines cutting through the center.
The Kingmaker mark.
I knew that mark.
I stared at the metal piece.
I rubbed the sand off the edges.
“Goodness.”
I turned the heirloom over.
The engraving showed heavy wear.
It was very old.
I looked back at the body lying on the ground.
“Where did you get this?”
The figure did not answer.
Of course it wouldn’t The person was completely unconscious.
“Right. Stupid question.”
I looked at the hands of the figure.
A necklace wrapped tightly around the fingers.
I reached out and touched the metal of the necklace.
A bright light exploded from the jewelry and filled the dungeon.
I jerked my head away and shielded my eyes with my hand.
The light faded after a few seconds.
I looked at the necklace again.
My heartbeat picked up speed.
I recognized the jewelry, but I could not place the exact memory.
I pushed my long white hair out of my face and leaned closer to the body.
“This is familiar.”
I studied the face and the shape of the body again.
The clothes belonged to a boy, but the physical features did not.
I saw the truth.
A girl.
I reached out and grabbed the mask covering her face.
I pulled the fabric away and tossed it onto the sand.
Her face lacked color.
Her black hair dripped with water.
Blood poured from a cut on the side of her head.
I stared at the blood on the ground.
I looked toward the waterfall at the end of the room.
“They sent me a dead girl? What exactly am I supposed to do with a dead sacrifice?”