Alpha's Cruel Addiction

When the moon was high in the sky, its light shrouded with murky clouds, a lone silhouette wandered the hallways. Their footsteps were quieter than the squeak of mice. He swept through the floors, his white figure a ghostly presence crawling through the marble. He moved without a word, until he stopped near the grand staircase.

"I could've sworn I heard it from here… the language of a god." Muttering obscenities to himself, he began to go up and down the steps. Through his nearly-blinded eyes, he started his search. The mana trail was faint, but obvious. He swore he felt it just earlier in the afternoon. Where was it coming from?

"Are 'yer done already, Beetle? You've only drank half a dozen pints after waking up from that nap earlier!" Laughter roared from downstairs, where the candle lights flickered as if it was a ritual. The old man continued his ascension up the staircase, letting his keen nose carry him.

Where was it coming from? It was a sweet scent unlike any other, so pure that his vision nearly cleared up. He grumbled complaints whilst hobbling up the staircase. He ignored the commotion downstairs, for the knights and men had drunken themselves stupid with the celebration. Not to mention, he was certain whores were being ravaged in the stables.

The magician never liked breeding for the sake of fun. A man and woman should only do it for the sole plans of birthing an heir.

"Where is this unlikely aura of mana coming from…" he stumbled up the staircase. Through his glazed eyes, he could see the faintest of purple lines drifting to a place he should never set foot in.

"Reagan?"

Reagan paused. He raised his head and turned to see Layla at the foot of the staircase. Calmly, he blinked and revealed a soft smile. "Layla. What brings you here?" His voice was quiet, but wise, as it always had been.

"Are you searching for Alpha Killorn?"

"No, young lady. I sensed an abnormality from around this area and planned on investigating it." Reagan rubbed his long white beard. Even through his squinted eyes, he could see her curiosity. She always had that child-like wonder.

"What kind of abnormality?" Layla questioned in a rising voice, her eyes widening. "Hmm, it is an aura I have never sensed before… I could've sworn my ears picked up on the language of the gods."

Layla blinked. Damn. If only she paid more attention in school, she'd care about what Reagan was babbling. Unfortunately, she didn't and wasn't even shamed by it. Instead, she had always devoted her attention to books because what was the point of listening to a teacher, when she already knew everything in the textbooks?

"The ancient tongue, right?" Layla offered.

Reagan softly chuckled. She was, after all, one of his best pupils, so he nodded his head. "Yes, I had detected the use of the old god's language all the way from the tower. The trail was so strong this afternoon, but by the time I came here, there was only a faint path," Reagan explained slowly. "Do you have any inkling of where it could come from?"

"Yes," Layla immediately answered. "There is a lady with hair white as the impossible silver lilies and eyes as purple as the rarest magic crystals. It has to be her, I swore I saw her whispering it in the library."

"You were trespassing the library again?" Reagan chided her. "Once again, you do not possess any manners. I have strictly forbidden you from your weird trickery in my tower, now you do it in the library of expensive and pitiful books?"

"I casted a protection spell on it," Layla immediately responded. "But Alpha Mavez's wife, she possesses the traits of a Direct Descendant! It has to be her, you need to see it for yourself!"

Reagan paused. For a second, his eyes could momentarily be seen through his dense and white brows. Then, he let out a tired sigh.

"Do not tell me you have also chosen to listen to the foolish babbling of these stupid Alphas and greedy Vampire Heads. It is not possible for a Direct Descendant to be born in the world," Reagan reminded her. "The possibility of the Moon Goddess coming down to this earth just to grace her presence for a man and let him impregnate her? It is madness!"

"The moon is vital to both werewolves and vampires alike," Layla insisted. "If there exist old gods and new ones, then it is quite possible there is a Direct Descendant, child of a Moon Goddess walking amongst us."

"Layla—"

"I've done the research, grandfather!" Layla argued. "If they truly exist, we must meet them and stop their powers before it is too late for them. They bear a fate crueler than death, their destiny is to be ripped apart, flesh by flesh, limb by limb, bone by bone in the hands of werewolves that want to consume them for power and vampires that devour them like the finest meals in their lives!"

"Such a being is not possible," Reagan reminded her. "It is, but a girl from the legends and—"

"I believe for once, you've been bested by your pupil, Reagan," a voice cold as marble and smooth as a sword spoke.

Both of them spun around to see who had stepped out of the shadows. Everest walked coyly, even though this was not his territory. He was certain the two squabbling magicians were bound to wake up Killorn. The beast had finally gone to bed because his wife was now by his side.

"Don't tell me, Your Highness, you also believe this nonsense?" Reagan demanded in a baffled tone. "You, out of everyone, I expect to be the most rational."

"Well, I am not the one shouting in Killorn's estate, knowing he has the best hearing, and even as we speak, might be slurring out of his slumber. He is only tamed tonight because his wife sleeps with him. If we do not leave now, he'll hunt us down," Everest mused.

Everest beckoned for them to follow him. He walked down the corridors without a peep in his footsteps, not realizing in the shadows, that there was already a man stealthily watching him.

"It's just as Layla claims," Everest calmly explained whilst his footsteps aligned with the hobbling Reagan. The man was older than time in itself, yet he was still walking—

albeit, with a thick cane.

"Killorn's wife could be the Direct Descendant. It is not every day you come across a woman who fits the description so perfectly that her first presence in high society caused the largest uproar of the century," Everest said. "I didn't believe it myself, until I witnessed her in the carriage when the goblins attacked us on our journey back."

Reagan's brows slowly rose. He wondered why he had been suddenly requested to make another herbal pouch shortly after Everest returned. Usually, the special concoction was difficult to create, given the lack of herbs that was required for it. As such, every pouch was special and only granted to Everest's younger sister.

"Her magic aura is purple," Everest explained. "Just like her unnatural eyes."

Now, Reagan was intrigued. All magic was either white or black, never colored. He pressed his lips together, ran his fingers through his dense beard and let out a hum. "No human girl has ever piqued your interest, Your Highness," Reagan murmured. Layla nodded, but wisely kept her mouth shut. She never felt comfortable around the cunning second Prince. She had a lot to say to Reagan, but found herself clamping her mouth shut. She was magically trained and one of Reagan's best pupils, but was still nervous around Everest.

Everest was a calm and composed man who never revealed his true intentions. One could never picture what was going on in his mind. Layla was surprised that he was even here in the first place, instead of watching King Claudean assault yet another innocent human girl. Lord knows Everest was his father's dog—the boy was willing to do anything to gain the man's approval. "You have to see her for yourself, Reagan, and you will understand my infatuation," Everest professed, his voice softening for the first time in a while. Layla's breath hitched. She came to an abrupt stop, and so did he. They were outside now, the moon high in the sky, watching over them in disapproval. Even so, the large orb cast a soft glow across Everest's pale skin.

Under the moonlight, Prince Everest was tragically beautiful, like a man who had found the greatest love of his life, but she was out of reach—out of bounds. Off-limits, even. Her heart came to a sharp stop. Before anyone else ever did, before anyone could ever accuse him, Layla discovered a fact so frightening, her stomach churned.

Everest gazed at the Mavez palace, with a faraway expression. Revealing a pained and slow smile, he uttered words that would shock even himself. "Hair the color of the moon, eyes the color of eternity, without a doubt, Lady Ophelia Eves Mavez is no ordinary human girl."