Chapter 62 62: Lycan
Deep beneath the earth\'s surface lies a damp and gloomy basement. The room\'s roof is made of ancient stone slabs with gaping holes in between, allowing the moon\'s soft glow to seep into the room, with an eerily silent atmosphere, save for the faint howling of wolves in the distance.
The room was dimly lit by torches placed sporadically along the walls, casting flickering shadows that danced across the stone floor.
This underground room was accessible only by a winding staircase that descended into the earth. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, the air grew cold and damp, the sound of dripping water echoing through the space.
Its dark stone walls are rough and cold, with a layer of moss and mildew coating them, giving off a musty odour. Chains hang from the walls, rusted and worn from years of use, while tattered scraps of fur and clothing litter the floor.
This place was a den of werewolves, with large and savage beasts roaming the area, their eyes glowing yellow in the dim light. The air is thick with the scent of blood and death, and the sound of snarls and growls fills the air.
Despite the dreadful feeling of the room, it has an air of ancient power and mystery. The werewolves within have made this place their home, and their primal energy can be felt in every corner of the room. It is not a place for the faint of heart, but those who dare to venture into this dark and sad den may discover secrets and powers beyond their wildest dreams.
In the centre of the room, atop a raised platform, sat a stone throne that seemed to meld seamlessly into the rocky walls behind it. Upon the throne lounged a woman draped in a black dress that seemed to absorb the light around her. Her eyes glinted dimly, betraying a sharp intelligence and a fierce will.
The rest of the room was stark and empty, save for a few rusted weapons scattered haphazardly about the space. The walls were rough-hewn and unadorned, except for a few ominous scratches that marred the stone surface. It was clear that this was a place meant for utility, not beauty, and that the only thing of value here was the woman who sat upon the throne.
"Young Mistress, we have captured those who tried to flee after stealing supplies!"
A female with a long black tail and fluffy ears said, her body stiff and kneeling, touching the ground with both palms, her eyes closed as sweat dripped from her brow.
There were three humans behind her; their eyes were swollen, cheeks bloody, and they were subject to physical punishment; they tried to speak, but a thick muzzle was strapped to their mouths, only allowing them to make annoying sounds and grunts.
"Ughh..... much!!" A male tried to protest, his nose bent the wrong way and his formerly glossy black hair torn out.
To his side was a woman, her body was plump and voluptuous; before the end, she might have been dubbed a model or married a rich man in the city to live a very rich and fulfilling life, sadly because of how things changed, instead of improving herself, she would spread her legs to gain safety and food. It couldn\'t be shamed, some people were not built to fight or resist the coming changes, and she made her choice a foolish choice, but her choice.
The third human had no name; he didn\'t even know where he came from; sadly, his luck ended when meeting this woman filled with honeyed words and her devilish charm.
\'Fuck, why didn\'t I stick with the other team? Stealing from this family was the most stupid idea we could have had... What? "They won\'t care about a few items..." They fucking killed 10 people and hung them outside the building just to prove a point...\'
"Oh?" A female\'s low, husky voice filled with a slight accent as she sat on a chair, lounging with her legs over the arms, a long black dress covering her beautiful and perfect body, tight abs, firm muscles filling her from head to toe as a thick silver tail wrapped around her waist, the tip swaying in the air.
On the right of her chair, a black sheathed katana stood leaning beside her head as she rested on both arms, looking into the moonlight, barely visible from this converted mansion.
Turning around, her crimson floral tattoo fully displayed on her shoulder, as the long black stem now travelled down to her hand, in which she had a new tattoo on the back of her hand; it was in memory of someone she believed dead, written in the tribal language of the Lycan\'s translated into common language it was something close to.
"Together as One for Eternity"
Then two marks indicated names or people, but the glimpse was too fast to notice what or who that might be. The mark at the top looked like a circle with a line through it, while the one below was a triangle with an upside-down cross inside.
Both symbols meant death, and there were many stories of how these tattoos brought bad luck or worse. But then again, if you survived the tribulations and hardships, your life would improve. She wasn\'t sure anymore, though.
She turned towards the three people standing behind her, each holding a rope tied to a heavy wooden beam. Ropes and chains tightly bound their hands so they wouldn\'t struggle during torture and prevent escape attempts.
All three stared at the young lady sitting atop her throne, waiting for orders. Her golden eyes glowed softly in the dim light of candles placed throughout the room, and shadows danced across her face, revealing the beauty of such a rare creature.
\'Why should I bother with this garbage... Tell me... What should I do now that you are gone?\'
Sarah looked at the tattoo on her hand, a memory of the man who supported her heart for over a decade, from young puppy love to her unwavering devotion and love, a feeling of guilt, hatred and anger filling her body.
\'Why was that bitch not beside him? If it were me, I would never have let him stay there... Who cares about the martial arts members... I only waited there for him to come... He would have been safe... Why did I deny my feelings? Let\'s her take him, so foolish... so foolish....\'
Her mood and feelings were so powerful it was like an aura of dread and weight spread from her body, pushing down on the mean and women\'s bodies, her eyes sometimes with a dark red glow, something different from her werewolf self, the changes even she noticed, but chose to ignore them, the zombies didn\'t infect her, but something else.
The reasons she refused to let their doctors cure it was simple; something deep in her heart said this was related to the man she loved, the man she would love until her very last breath, as werewolves were an extremely loyal and passionate race.
It was clear that all three wanted nothing more than to die rather than suffer another moment under her gaze, yet still, they waited patiently until their mistress permitted them to speak.
"So, tell me, what happened here today?" Sarah asked, turning her attention away from the prisoners, her voice smooth and soothing, almost hypnotic, as she stared into the moonlight, her eyes gleaming with amusement.
One of the men spoke first. His breath stank of alcohol, his skin pale and sickly, and his lips stained red with blood.
"We found the warehouse open and decided to steal some stuff." He started, his tone dull and monotone, but he held himself together well enough.
"I don\'t give a shit about that, nor do I care about the contents of that warehouse. You\'re here because of something far greater, aren\'t you?"
He nodded nervously, his eyes darting around the room, fear and confusion clouding his mind.
"You see, I am very close to a certain bitch with pink hair...." Sarah\'s rough tone continued; the strange accent would be foreign to anyone who knew her at university. Alex would think that Sarah was speaking like her mother right now, but that\'s a story for the future as her aggressive tone began to worsen.
The male who spoke suddenly shuddered; although he was a mere human who helped the Lycans when the world went to shit, he reached out to the Salvatore family\'s heiress, willing to help spy on the werewolves for her.
His body began to shudder, the stench of ammonia coming from his body as he fell back against the wooden beam, tears oozing from his eyes like a flash flood. \'She knows... It\'s over... I\'m fucked....\'
Now it seemed all those little things had come to light; while Sarah still lounged on the strange stone throne, four werewolf maids standing around her, each with a pistol and longsword just waiting for the order to strike.
Once again, Sarah lifted her hand, narrowing her eyes with a gentle and affectionate look as she traced along the tattoo and mark that dictated his name with her finger.
\'Would you scold me for being so rough, treating humans like this? Or would you support me like always... Say I am doing the right thing: protecting my family is more important than being morally accepted... Hey Alexander... I still love you. Will you allow me to join you soon? Your strange gift that eats away at me feels so soothing... Like you are still here somewhere with me....\'
"But I want to hear your voice once again...." A whisper left her lips before she suddenly snapped out of her daydream. Alex no longer wrapped around her shoulders, holding her tightly; she was back in that damn room, hidden underground and sitting across from these ungrateful humans that they helped survive the apocalypse."
Sarah lifted her body slowly, the soft black hair flowing like a cascade of silken threads, turning her body to look at the three people that broke into the storeroom to steal food and supplies, but most like the other male was a spy that would be giving information on their guard setup, no the food.
"Kill them."
Alex and Stella stood opposite the huge blue portal; its strange, dancing, fluid-like shape caused them to feel mesmerised; finally ready to start their first-dimensional teleport, they stood in line and waited to present their id cards to the old lady standing close to the entrance, it seemed her ability was able to change the location and co-ordinates. Still, thankfully she wasn\'t the only one. Otherwise, enemies would be able to wipe out these safe zones easily.
Stella looked up to meet Alex\'s eyes, smiling happily at him, glowing brightly as she whispered sweetly: "Let\'s have some fun, hehe~."
"...Yeah! Let\'s go kick ass!" He replied jokingly, chuckling lightly as they stepped forward and presented their ID card to the woman, watching carefully as she scanned them using her magic eye lenses.
Their image appeared on the screen above her desk, showing a small holographic projection of themselves as they watched closely as the woman typed something onto her strange computer-like keyboard; a few moments later, she handed them their IDs, nodding politely as they took them.
"Have a good time." She smiled gently, waving them goodbye.
"Thanks!" Alex grinned, stepping aside as Stella walked past him.
"Come on, let\'s get going~."
Her soft lips now, as if by habit, pressed against his cheek with a loud smack, her warm tongue sliding along his cheek as she began to skip away, giggling at his slightly dazed face, her cute ass swaying as she pulled away from him.
"Sure, yeah... Wait, what?!" He shouted, catching up with her as she waved cheerfully ahead, disappearing through the giant portal before them.
"Hahaha, sorry, but you gotta follow me~!"