When I woke up Ebony was gone and there was something on her desk. It looked like a gift or a package. I decided to leave it be and look for Ebony. I found her in the Library with Blue, Colby, Griamore, and Vivex , all gathered on one of the highest walkways. I appear wrapping my arms around Ebony gently, still tired. “Good morning sleepy head… I tried to wake you up but you wouldn’t so I started working on my own…” Ebony says to Me. “GET YOUR HANDS OFF THE COMMANDER!” Griamore yells. “Why can’t I hug my girlfriend…” I ask sleepily, yawning as I tighten my grip around her. “Girlfriend?!” Griamore and Blue ask at the same time. “It’s a recent thing…” Ebony says and I smile. “You could have at least told us you have a boyfriend now commander…” Vivex says. “I’ve told you millions of times call me Captain or Ebony…” Ebony snaps at Vivex. “Blue, what's going on…” Colby sleepily asks. “It’s just military talk I guess…” Blue answers. “Oh, Colby you’re awake… I’m sorry if it’s a too bit early… but I need to make a request…” Ebony says, quite a bit of urgency in her tone. “What do you want made…” Colby asks. “A Perfect Balance Sword… I have everything you would need… But I need it made out of Bloody Steel…” Ebony says, her hand on mine. “Bloody Steel… What's that…” Colby asks. “It’s the hardest metal in the 5 Realms… But it’s also the hardest to find… We’re lucky that I live near the largest Bloody Steel mine in the Realms.” Ebony says. Colby looks at her. “When do you need it…” He asks. “Before my declaration of war reaches Ezekiel… So about five weeks…” She says. “Ebony, I need to speak with you in private…” Griamore says, both Blue and Colby disappear. “Griamore, I’m tired, so please not now…” Ebony says. Vivex disappears. “It’s about Viv…” Griamore says, looking at Ebony. His eyes are watering. “What’s wrong with Viv…” Ebony asks “S-She… S-She’s sick… Dying sick.” He says. Tears start running down Ebony’s face. “I-I’m sorry I have to leave…” She says, appearing on the ground level and running into the hall. “I’ll go and try to calm her down…” I tell Griamore. I walk out of the Library and about the time I do Colby runs into me. He stumbles backward, shaking his head in confusion. He looks up, tears are dripping down his face, he turns his head quickly. “Are you okay…?” I ask and his hand trembles. “Where’s Ebony…” He says, ignoring my question. “She’s in her room, but I wouldn’t go in there. She's pretty tired… what’s wrong,” I ask again and he shakes his head. He starts to walk down the hall to Ebony’s door. I ran up beside him, grabbing his sleeve, “Colby… what is wrong…” I ask and he tries to shake me off. “Let me go, Argus…” He says, ripping his arm from my grip. Colby starts to walk off again, I then appear in front of him blocking his path. “Colby, if it's that important to disturb her then you should tell me…” I say but he shakes his head. “You won’t understand, though I know Ebony will…” Colby looks up, “Please just get out of my way…” He says, tears running down his face non-stop. “Colby, it’s alright…” I say and he starts to tremble more, looking behind him. “I…” He sighs, “Argus… would you call it weird to be afraid of dying…?” Colby asks, my eyes widen. “Why do you ask…?” I ask him in return, he looks down. “Would you answer my question…” He asks, looking at me. “Well in a way yes, but why do you ask…” I say and he rubs the back of his neck nervously, looking down at his side. “Because I am…” He admits, then he shakes his head, “I can’t do this…” he says he turns around and goes to walk away. “Argo, w-what’s going on… and why is it so loud out here…” Ebony mumbles from the door to her room. To my surprise she looks like a red wolf at the moment. Colby freezes in place, then he turns around looking at me then Ebony. “Is that really her… She looks like a wolf…” He asks. “Yes, it’s me… I can change forms… I’m a Red Wolf Ultima… Well at pack meetings this is what I look like… I just finished what I needed to, and was about to go to sleep. I had just gotten comfortable when you two started making so much noise…” Ebony explains. “Well, I said I didn’t want to talk, but he wouldn’t let me go…” Colby says, nodding in my direction. “I’m too tired to deal with you two acting like children…I just wanted to take a nap before my meeting with the betas in my pack…” She says, yawning. Colby shrugs and turns running down the hallway. “Meeting?” I ask. “My pack is going through a dry season and I need to find a better spot for them to stay that isn’t here at my palace… I finally found a place close by with a freshwater spring close to it… hopefully it's large enough to support almost forty wolves.” Ebony says. I walk over to her, wrapping my arms around her. “I didn’t mean to keep you awake… but I’m sure we can figure it out…” I say laying my head on hers. “I’m just too tired to go… I have a splitting headache…and the meeting is in three hours…” she says. I run my fingers through her hair slowly, “Get some sleep, I’ll make sure no one is to wake you…” I say lifting my head, unwrapping my arms, and rubbing my hand over her cheek. “Argo, if I ever lose control would you stop me from killing the others…” She asks. “Of course I would… but I have great faith that’ll never happen…” I say smiling at her. “B-But it has… I killed an entire legion because I snapped…” Ebony says, her voice starting to become weary. “Ebony…” I say, but I lose my words. “All the blood… And the screams… Gods the screams…”Ebony mumbles. I wrap my arms around her, hugging her tightly, “Ebony… it is alright” I say, I can feel her shaking as she wraps her arms around me. “Please… you can’t let it happen again… I don’t know if I’ll be myself again if it happens again…” She begs, her arms tighten around me. “I won’t…” then I let her go brushing my cheek against hers, “I promise…” I say, my heart pounds. “I-I l-love you A-Argo…” She says, still trembling. “I love you too Ebony.” I responded. “How sweet…” My father says from behind us. “Lord Leviathan please I beg you not to disturb Lady Ebony… She hasn’t been well for the past two weeks…” A maid says. “Ebony… Is that true…” I ask her. “Y-Yes, I haven’t been feeling very well for a while… You’ve gone on twenty missions and I’ve only gone on one… to the Eighth Layer of Hell… my squad and I got captured by bandits who treated us like slaves…” She says, looking downwards. “You shouldn’t be straining yourself like this… It could make it worse…” I say, worried for her. “You didn’t let me finish… After we escaped, thanks to Griamore’s strength, we found out they weren’t bandits, they were some of Zeke’s living pets… I was cut by them many times while they had us chained up and I wasn’t feeling well after we killed all of them… Their blades must have had some sort of poison on them because after we had walked for an hour after leaving their camp I collapsed and blacked out… When I woke up Griamore’s coat was around my shoulders and he was carrying me on his back…” She says, not looking up at us. “Well at least the protector your father chose for you knows how to take care of you when Argus isn’t around…” My father says. “Well, you still need rest…” I say looking at Ebony. “But… My meeting…” Ebony says in a quavering voice. “Your health is more important…” I say, looking at My Father. “I’ve always put my friends, family, and pack before myself… I’m not selfish… and I don’t want to be…” Ebony says and I look back at her. “And you won’t be seen as selfish, this is my decision, and I’m not letting you go…” I say to her, my voice is stern. It pains me to speak to her in that way, but I care for her more than anything else in the world, and to me she will always come first. “Argo if I don’t attend… I’VE ALREADY LOST FOUR OF THE PUPS IN MY PACK I-I can’t…” Ebony pleads, but I shake my head. “Even more will die if you aren’t at your fullest…” I tell her, then I hear footsteps behind us. “Sir Argus, I ask if you would please come to the infirmary... it's Gem…” Akko says, stopping beside My Father. “Akko… Ebony collapsed during her last mission… She thinks some of Zeke’s pets poisoned her, but she doesn’t really know if they did or not…” I say. Another Neko appears beside Akko, dressed in a black cloak with a hood overhead, “You don’t understand, it’s quite… urgent…” The Neko says.“Argus…” Annex says from beside Ebony, who is now kneeling on the ground and coughing quite a bit.“G-Gold… Th-They p-poisoned m-me w-with G-Gold…”She says. “Ebony, breathe.” Annex says, shocked. Ebony’s breathing is fast and ragged. “I-It h-hurts…” She whimpers, her ears folding against her head. “I’m sorry Sir Argus, I don’t know how to treat a hybrid… Just take her to the Infirmary, the nurses should know how to help her…” Akko says.“Her mother was the one who came up with a method for healing Ebony and her brothers, but all of Pixal’s writings were lost in a fire… So the only person I know of that would know how to heal Ebony is her aunt…” My father says.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.