SOULBOUND
By Wes
Leigh
This is a work of fiction (or
is it?) intended solely for the entertainment of my readers; any resemblance to
any real people or places is purely coincidental. Readers who would like to chat are encouraged
to contact me at weston.leigh@protonmail.com.
This story is the property of
the author and is protected by copyright laws.
The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the
author's consent.
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WARNING FOR SENSITIVE READERS:
This chapter contains descriptions of extreme violence. Please read with caution if you are bothered by
such things.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, until he becomes my
enemy again. When that happens, God help
them.
-- Javier Pena
The courthouse had never hosted a meeting quite like it.
In a conference room on the second floor, late at night, the
blinds were drawn and the curtains pulled. Candles were placed in a crooked line down
the middle of the table, providing the only flickering illumination in the
room.
Minerva Smyth sat on one side of the table, with six
high-ranking vampires next to her.
Conspicuously missing from the group was Xavier Finton-Smyth,
the Executor Elect, who was no longer in favor within the ruling ranks of the
Covenant.
Across from the vampire elite sat Andreas Finnigan, alpha of
the Silvermane Pack.
Next to him sat his mate, Gabi Finnigan.
His lieutenants from the pack were on each side of them. His son, Connor Finnigan was not present, nor
had the lad been invited.
Minerva bared her fangs, then retracted them. "We are in agreement that a truce is in effect?"
Andreas nodded curtly.
His lips curled into a snarl as he said, "For tonight. Only tonight."
Minerva opened the book in front of her and slid it across
the table to Andreas. He glanced down at
the page and growled. Gabi leaned over
and looked at the words scrawled on the page and nodded her head.
"Then you are aware of what they have done?" Minerva asked.
"We suspected," Andreas admitted.
"And now?"
Andreas pushed the book back, as though reluctant to touch
it. "If they have done this thing, it is
an outrage."
"We have received reports from teachers at the school who
are part of the Covenant. No doubt, you
have also heard from the members of your pack who teach there."
Andreas nodded acknowledgment.
Minerva hissed, "The boy has both the scent of the wolf and
the eyes of a vampire. He has been twice
bitten."
Andreas and the other wolves growled. Andreas snapped, "Abomination!"
Minerva laughed wickedly.
"Believe me, my enemy, I am not in the least offended by your assumption
that mixing vampire blood with werewolf is an abomination. I quite agree. The only question now is what we should do
about it."
"He cannot live," Andreas stated.
"And those within our families who have been a part of this reprehensible
behavior?"
Andreas looked at Gabi, who lowered her gaze in
submission. Andreas turned to Minerva
and replied, "We discipline within our own ranks as we see fit. But the abomination must be destroyed."
Minerva nodded. "Then
we are in full agreement. I propose a
cooperative effort to deal with this ... situation."
͠ ͠
͠
September 25
I don't know
how this is going to play out. I was
okay with being a gay vaewolf with two soulbound lovers, but I guess fate won't allow us to live
in peace. The other kids at school are
fed up with the way things are, and they want change. Somehow, they expect the three of us to make
that change happen.
I mean ... I get
it. Connor will be alpha after his dad
dies, so the younger lycans look at him as their
guide. And Xavier is Executor Elect of
the Covenant here in Agony. He's
respected and a leader. But how did I
get thrown in the mix. I'm nobody. I'm Daniel Anderson, the short, gangly new kid
who just happens to be a vaewolf, an accident that
almost killed me. I barely know how to
use my powers, but everyone keeps looking at me like I have the solution to
every problem in Agony.
I don't. And I don't want the responsibility.
But I love
Connor and Xavier. The bond we share is
the best thing that's ever happened to me, so I'll do whatever I can for them,
even if it means standing up to the monsters that control this town.
I just wish I
didn't have this sick feeling deep in my stomach that we're headed for disaster.
Daniel locked up his journal and pushed it under a notebook
in the desk. His eyes lost their focus
slightly as he thought about his lovers.
Are you alone, Connor? he silently asked.
Yes, Connor replied, sending Daniel an image
of himself in bed.
Daniel blinked out and appeared next to Connor's bed. He leaned over and kissed Connor's lips,
making the older teen smile joyfully.
Where's my goodnight kiss? Xavier asked.
Daniel smiled at Connor and disappeared, reappearing in
Xavier's bedroom. Daniel took Xavier in
his arms and kissed him once on the lips.
Then he disappeared again, returning to his own bedroom.
Good night, guys.
I'll see you at school in the morning, Daniel said.
Connor grinned. Good
night, m'loves.
Xavier replied, I cherish you both.
͠ ͠
͠
The word passed quickly through the school. There was to be a student meeting after
school. Both werewolves and
vampires. At the river, just north of
town, in the abandoned mill.
All the kids planned to be there.
Unfortunately, some of them weren't cautious enough as they
spread the word. Even whispered
conversations can be intercepted by a werewolf's keen ears.
͠ ͠
͠
The youth entered the mill in groups of two or three,
gathering around the dusty, broken down equipment in small groups, talking
quietly as they waited. Their
conversations died as soon as the three leaders entered the mill. Out of respect, they moved aside and made a
path for Daniel, Connor, and Xavier, who climbed up on crates to look out over
the assembled youth.
"We all know why we're here," Xavier began.
"Yeah ... viva la revolution!" one boy shouted, in a horrible
French accent.
The other kids chuckled while Connor lifted his hands,
asking for quiet. "Maybe that's what's comin'. I don't
know. Maybe we work within the Pack and
within the Covenant, convincin' our families to
change. It'll still be a revolution,
just without blood."
"What's wrong with blood?" Gregor shouted, half serious in
his question.
"I hope that won't be necessary Gregor," Xavier said. "I hope we can effect change without blood, as
Connor said, but we have to be realistic.
Our elders won't meekly accept what we have in mind, and to be honest,
I'm not sure just exactly WHAT we have in mind.
That's what we're here today to discuss."
There was a sudden blood-curdling roar outside the mill,
causing all the kids to jump and turn.
It's a TRAP! Daniel shouted. GET EVERYONE OUT OF THERE!
There was a shrill shriek and a loud thump on the side of
the building. Shouts now and snarls and
the sound of bodies colliding.
Connor and Xavier began rushing kids out through the back
doors of the mill, heeding Daniel's warning.
Daniel stood still, shocked.
He had also heard the warning.
He'd heard his own voice shouting, `It's a TRAP! GET EVERYONE OUT OF THERE!' But what he couldn't quite figure out was
where the warning had come from, because HE hadn't given it, and yet the voice
in their heads had sounded just like his own.
Then a wall at the front of the building fell in, with wood
splintering and flying across the room.
Standing in the debris were werewolves in full wolf form. Next to them were vampires, eyes glowing,
fangs extended, claws grasping.
Minerva stood in their midst, with Andreas at her side. "Get them!" she screamed. "We'll deal with the abomination later!"
͠ ͠ ͠
Chaos filled the room.
Kids were running in every direction, most heading through
holes and windows in the back of the mill, but some didn't make it.
Werewolf adults leaped into the midst of the teens, ripping
without regard for who they sliced open.
Gregor tried to hinder them, only to stop suddenly and stand still with
a stunned expression on his face. He
looked down and saw a gaping hole in his chest.
Blinking once, he swallowed hard and fell to the floor, dead.
Joshua and Jacob Byrne rushed to help Gregor. A vampire grabbed Joshua's head, twisting it
until his neck snapped and he fell lifeless to the
floor. Jacob shifted into wolf form and
launched himself at the vampire, only to be gripped by two other vampires, who held
him in place while the first one grabbed Jacob's throat and ripped it open.
Several vampires teleported onto the crates, attempting to
grab Connor, Xavier, and Daniel, but Xavier and Daniel were no longer there,
and Connor instantly shifted into wolf form, tossing one of the vampires across
the room and knocking two others to the floor.
Connor spun around, looking for his soulmates. They were up in the rafters, looking down on
the bedlam. Get out! Connor
shouted mentally.
Not without you! Daniel screamed.
Go! Connor snarled, turning to see his father
Andreas stalking forward, shifting into wolf form as he ran toward Connor. The two snarled, eyes meeting, knowing that
either the son or the father would lie dead on the floor after this fight. They launched themselves through the air, colliding
with jaws snapping and claws slashing. Falling
to the floor, they rolled over and over, knocking others aside with reckless
disregard, seeking only the throat of their enemy.
Xavier grabbed Daniel's arm.
You have to get out of here, Daniel. This isn't your fight!
I'M NOT LEAVING WITHOUT YOU! Daniel screamed,
tears pouring down his face.
Xavier began crying too.
Remember us, he pleaded, disappearing.
Xavier reappeared behind Minerva, picked up a steel bar, and
thrust it with all his might at the center of her back. Edward Finton's
hand snapped out and caught the bar at the last second. Two other vampires appeared out of nowhere,
clamping their claws on Xavier's throat and arms. Their talons curled around, penetrating the
skin, holding him in place and preventing him from moving or teleporting.
Minerva wrenched the bar away from Xavier and pulled it
back, preparing to thrust it into his heart.
͠ ͠
͠
Daniel clung to the rafters of the dilapidated building,
watching his friends dying below him.
His lover and mate Connor was
locked in a death roll with Andreas.
Andreas' fangs were buried in Connor's neck, and Connor's head was flung
back in a howl of pain. Connor's arms
bulged as he shoved against his father, trying to push him off but losing
strength with each passing moment.
Across the room, his other soulmate Xavier stood calmly
waiting, held securely in the claws of other vampires, his blood dripping from
each place where their talons penetrated his flesh. His face was dusty from the fight, but a
trail of tears flowed down his pale flesh.
His eyes were not on Minerva but on Daniel, filled with an aching
sadness but also joy, having found his soul's resting place before his immortal
life was taken.
Daniel watched them, helpless to interfere.
The broken body of a werewolf flew through
the air, crashing into Xavier and those who held him. In the confusion, they released him, and Xavier
teleported to Connor's side, where he began slamming his fist into Andreas'
snout. Again. And again.
Finally, Andreas released his hold on Connor's neck and attempted to
bite Xavier instead. Connor took
advantage of the respite and ripped Andreas' neck open.
From a few feet away, Gabi Finnigan in full wolf form,
snapped and snarled, leaping at Connor and Xavier.
Xavier pulled Connor to his feet, yanking him backward away
from Gabi's snapping jaws.
A vampire flew through the air,
striking Gabi and sending her rolling into a wall with a heavy thump. Xavier and Connor turned as one to see who
had thrown the vampire across the room and saw Daniel, fully shifted into vaewolf form, fighting off both werewolves and
vampires. Daniel looked at his two
lovers and roared, GET OUT! He
threw off one werewolf, only to have two vampires knock him to the floor. PLEASE!
MY LOVES, PLEASE! GET OUT!
Minerva screamed, "CAPTURE THE ABOMINATION! We'll deal with the rebels later!"
Daniel fought his way to his feet, tossing vampires and
werewolves aside, struggling to stay free from their grasp. His eyes begged Connor and Xavier. For all the love you hold in your hearts
for me, I beg you to save yourselves!
Xavier grabbed Connor and dragged him out of the mill,
leaping through a broken window and falling with Connor in his arms into the
river below. The frigid waters caught
them and carried them downstream. They struggled
out onto the bank and turned to look at the mill, gasping for breath.
͠ ͠
͠
From high in the rafters, Daniel looked down, stunned.
He saw himself. In vaewolf form.
Struggling with the vampires and werewolves who tried to capture
him.
He saw Xavier forcibly lifting Connor and throwing the two
of them backward through a broken window.
He heard them splashing into the river below.
He shook his head.
Confusion fogged his mind.
He looked down and saw himself, as a vaewolf,
leaping around the room, slicing open a vampire, head butting a werewolf,
constantly on the move, giving kids a chance to escape the mill with the chaos
he created.
There was a brief break in the mayhem. Daniel the vaewolf
looked up at Daniel the human. Their
eyes locked, silently communicating.
The Daniel in the rafters suddenly understood, nodded his
head, and disappeared.
͠ ͠
͠
Xavier and Connor, soaking wet, struggled up the opposite bank
of the Missouri River. Hiding behind a
tree, they heard shrieks, snarls, and heavy thuds inside the mill. The last of the kids slipped out of the
building and ran away. Then there was
silence.
They eased their way back into the river and swam back to
the mill. They heard triumphant laughter
and voices shouting. Then they saw a
pack of vampires leaving the mill with Daniel's limp body in their grasp, carrying
him quickly up the road to where cars waited, loading him inside, and driving
off.
Connor turned to Xavier.
"We have to do something."
Xavier nodded. Daniel,
are you hurt? No response. Daniel, can you hear me? Silence.
Xavier looked at Connor.
I'll follow them. You see
how many kids you can gather up.
͠ ͠
͠
Minerva and Edward walked quickly through the halls of the
courthouse, a group of four vampires striding behind them, carrying Daniel's
unconscious body between them. Humans
peeked out of offices and immediately jumped back, slamming doors and hiding
inside.
"We'll have to move now, or purge the entire blasted town,"
Edward growled.
"I don't care," Minerva snarled. "An example must be made. Our Covenant will NOT be known as the one
that allowed an abomination to exist."
She opened the door that led to the roof and began climbing
the stairs, knowing the others would be right behind her. When they reached the top of the stairs,
Minerva slammed the door open, ignoring the alarms going off. She led them to the edge of the building and
stood waiting.
On the ground below, Connor and Xavier ran up with their
mates from school following them.
Connor's clothes were shredded.
Xavier was bleeding from a nasty gash in his forehead. All of the teens were
banged up, some seriously injured, but determined not to back down.
Minerva sneered at them.
She gestured with one hand and shouted down at them, "Are you all
here? Or are there more of you in this
foolish rebellion? Because what I have to
say, I will only say once." She
waited. When the teens didn't respond,
she said, "Very well. Listen and hear
me. All who appeal for clemency will be
heard. Some of you will be granted mercy
and a quick death. Others, if you pledge
loyalty, will be restored to your families.
You will be watched carefully, but you will be given a chance to fight
and prove your value."
She lifted a heavy metal rod and pointed toward the side of
the courthouse, where adult werewolves walked around the corner. "If you belong to the Silvermanes,
return to your elders for judgment," she shouted. "If you belong to the Covenant, remain below
and I will hear your pleas and judge you accordingly."
"And what of Daniel?" Connor shouted. "Who will hear his plea for mercy?"
Minerva turned to look at Daniel, his limp body held
securely by several vampires. Her eyes
glowed red as she spun around and shouted, "The abomination belongs to no
Pack. No Covenant will ever claim him. He shall receive neither mercy nor restoration." She lifted the metal rod and plunged it into
Daniel's chest.
Daniel's eyes flew open in sudden pain, glowing gold, and
his mind cried out, I ... cherish ...
Then the golden aura left his eyes, leaving them blue and lifeless, and
he closed his eyes and died.
The end of SOULBOUND, Chapter
Fourteen