*Warning this chapter references things that may be traumatizing for some readers.*

Time was running out. Dax, Jalen, Rhys, and Ivy had been watching the Grim Guild’s headquarters. Every day they observe for any weaknesses, but the guild master seems to have perfected the security around the guild. They had watched at least twenty or so beast shifters be tortured in small wire cages. Dark characters have practiced their twisted talents and brawled all over the guild grounds. Dax swore alcohol was in their veins instead of blood with the way they chugged off the keg. Blades of all sizes were scattered across the grounds. The building was black as night with dirty windows, and the grounds were bare from the tree line to the guild house.

Dax, Jalen, Rhys, and Ivy stayed hidden in a nearby abandoned cottage. Today, they planned to sneak into the grim guild house through a tunnel Rhys and Ivy created. Rhys’ terran magic and Ivy’s previous undercover knowledge of the place created the opportunity. Jalen had managed to create a few disguises, so we could wander around the guild house without problems. Dax knew this was their last chance to retrieve Aura before the royal visit the next day. He just hoped that they reached Aura in time before anything bad had happened to her.

“Come on, Captain Dax,” Rhys called out. “It’s now or never.”

In the grim guild house…

“Tabusco, are you saying that there are spies at our step, and you haven’t killed them, yet?” Guild Master Shadow growled. He was on his way to play with his pet before Tabusco stopped him. They stood alone on the winding stone staircase, leading to his pet’s darkroom. The only light on the staircase from a dim oil lamp above them. His hood made the stairs seem even darker, but only Tabusco, Princess Crisela, and his pet had seen his face.

“Well, sir, it’s just that one of them is a fancy knight from the Village of Lilies,” Tabusco said, nervously. “You had said to leave the knights alone, so no one would be the wiser.”

Guild Master Shadow sighed, “What are they after?” He didn’t want to miss his fun session with his pet. The poor girl always became vacant during that part of their time together, but he didn’t. He probably wasn’t what she wanted in a lover anyway, but it strengthened their connection, giving him more control.

“That’s the thing. Our scouts heard them mention a silver wolf, and there’s only one of those here…” Tabusco muttered.

“Huh. A knight has come to rescue my pet.” An idea came to him. “Well, this might be perfect…”

In the darkroom…

Aura vomited hog guts in the corner of her cage. The stupid guild master had her eat off the same hog for three days and murder more defenseless creatures. Thankfully, none were shifters or any other race. The guild master had taken her torture worse. Aura had ripped her claws and fangs out, skinned her once beautiful silver tail, and various new wounds from his private weapons of torture. She heaved more as her memories of each moment of torture flashed through her mind. Her stomach pained as more vomit spewed out of her mouth.

The door creaked open. “Good morning, pet.”

Aura turned away from her tormentor. She curled in a ball in her wolf form. Aura wanted nothing to do with anything. She was alone. Clanless, mateless and friendless… Her mind drifted to Dax who was left wondering what happened to her. Her clan… all beast shifters would hate her after tomorrow. She would bring a bloody massacre to all of Lunaris. Was this her punishment for walking away from her clan? Should she have just stayed and mated Enoch? Thoughts of Raika flooded her mind. She had made the right choice not mating Enoch, but surely she could just take this lying down. Aura sighed. She needed to escape. Now…

“Aww. Pet, come here.” Guild Master Shadow beckoned while opening the cage door.

Aura would not let herself budge. She kept her eyes closed. Avoiding his gaze, she put her paws over her eyes. His voice calling to her was almost irresistible. But that was his plan to make her incapable of resisting. He called to her, Aura felt herself moving unwillingly. She got up and walked out of the cage with her head hung low. Was this her life now? A slave to this evil man?

“Good, pet. Very good.” She could feel him grinning behind her. “Shift.”

Aura’s body responded to his voice over her own. Bones cracked and reshaped in her beast form. At least he didn’t know she could appear human; that was her saving grace. Still, with his pink, glowing eyes staring at her. Her body tensed and she internally cringed. Being a woman seemed like a horrible thing since she found herself in his clutches.

“Get started, pet. You know, I don’t like to wait.” Guild Master Shadow sat on a stool, watching her. Aura closed her eyes and let her mind fade to black. She purposely blocked out what happened next…

An hour later…

Once the guild master had his fun, he returned to his seat. “That was our last bit of fun, pet. It seems someone has come to rescue you.”

Aura’s heart began to fill with hope. Someone came after her. She wasn’t alone. Was it Jalen? Rhys? Maybe Ivy? Who cares which one it could be! She wasn’t going to be a tool after all! Her heart halted as she looked back at the evil, blue man. He seemed way too happy about this. Aura’s heart sank as she became aware of what he might be planning. It was a trap. No! Her eyes began to water, but she was sure the guild master seemed even happier at her reaction.

“Okay, pet.” His eyes glowed bright, and Aura could not break herself away from him. “Tomorrow, you will kill the elf queen or die trying, and you will tell no one of your plans. Nod if you understand.”

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Aura nodded as tears streamed down her face. He was going to let her go only to carry out his plan after a week of torture that she wouldn’t be able to escape. She left her clan to keep from being someone’s tool, but now she had become a tool of evil. Aura wanted to protect the queen, not kill her.

“Good, I recognized one of your rescuers as a knight from the Village of Lilies. Do whatever you must to get close to the queen, and I mean anything. Use him to get to the queen, got it?”

She nodded. Hatred for her tormentor brewed in her heart. Dax had come to save her, and she would betray him. What more horror would she face?

“Sleep,” Guild Master Shadow had commanded, and Aura fell to the ground fast asleep.

In the tunnel…

“Can’t they move any faster, Jalen?” Rhys whined as Ivy and Dax headed toward the grim guild house. The tunnel was dark except for the small light coming from the opening. Rhys had to hold Jalen’s hand to guide her in the tunnel since they had no torches. Jalen and Rhys were left to guard the exit.

“Patience, Rhys,” Jalen said. “They only walked away from us a minute ago.”

“Yeah, Rhys. We can still hear you!” Dax’s voice echoed back to them.

“Hurry up!” Rhys yelled back.

Dax chuckled. He wished Jalen the best of luck, dealing with her impatient ass. Ivy held onto his hand as they jogged through the tunnel. They wasted no time getting to the opening Rhys had created in a broom closet in the basement of the guild house.

“Follow me, quietly. I will pick up her scent. Don’t talk or make eye contact with anyone.” Ivy said. “In and out.”

Dax nodded and followed her up into the broom closet. Everything was dark and dirty. He held onto her hand again. Ivy opened the door to an empty, stone basement. Cobwebs decorated the corners and archways. Dax felt a sneeze brewing in his nose from the heavy layers of dust. They passed empty cells that were dripping cold with rusty chains hung on the walls. The place reeked of wet rats and mildew. The only light came from cracks in the stone walls.

Ivy pulled Dax toward the crumbling stairs. They needed to be quick and find Aura. She had been gone for four days already. Dax wondered how she was fairing in this dreadful place. Ivy hurried him up the stairs to a large wooden door. It slowly creaked open as Dax pulled on it. He saw weapons galore upon the gray stone walls. Black curtains and carpets were lining the halls. Every smelt of mildew and dried blood. It was dark everywhere. Dax put his trust in Ivy to lead the way. He had only met her two days ago, but he thought Ivy was much more pleasant than her annoying brother, Jalen.

They walked through many halls and corridors, avoiding grim guild members. Dax had expected to face more challenges as they snuck through the Grim Guild. Ivy was good at staying hidden. He had seen many secret talents from Ivy, Jalen, and Rhys. The guild house was vast with weapons hung on the walls and random suits of armors every few halls. If Dax didn’t have Ivy he would have been lost in the maze of halls. The guild members all looked like they had gotten away with murder with the way that they smiled at us. Ivy ignored them as if the guild members were merely statues she was passing. Dax wished this guild would at least light an oil lamp. He felt rather useless as they approached the final staircase.

“She’s up here,” Ivy pointed.

“Let’s go,” Dax urged, but Ivy stopped him.

“The whole knight in shining armor thing is cute, but where she is means she has been at the mercy of the guild master here. You need to prepare yourself for what we find. The guild master here is ruthless. Maybe, even psycho. Aura may not be herself when we find her.” Ivy whispered as she pinned Dax to the wall. To everyone else, it seemed like Ivy and Dax were sharing an intimate moment. “Do not panic. Got it, lover boy?”

Dax nodded. He was uncomfortable with their closeness at this moment. They reached the top of the staircase where a large wooden door was between them and Aura. Ivy pulled it open. Inside was darker than the rest of the guild had been. There was minimal furniture for a rusty and damp old bedroom. Ivy heard a soft breath in the corner of the room. She walked toward what looked to be a cloth-covered table, but when she pulled the cloth away, she saw what was left of her dear friend.

“Is that…” Dax started to ask, but his words fell away when they heard a sound behind them.

“I see you have found my pet,” Guild Master Shadow grinned wildly. “She has been quite a joy to have around here. Those sad golden eyes just light up the room.”

Ivy growled internally. She didn’t want to give her identity away, trying to calm herself down. Ivy looked up at the hooded figure. “Let her go,” Ivy said, seething from anger.

“Now, why would I let my favorite toy go. She has been doing a great service for me, or is it more like with me? I am not entirely sure.” His voice sounded too happy. The guild master was enjoying taunting them.

“Bastard!” Dax charged at the hooded figure, drawing his sword from under his black cloak. The room began to become charged with electricity. Ivy ducked behind the metal-framed bed and immediately regretted her decision. Dax fired a lightning strike at the hooded figure while continuing his advance forward.

The guild master laughed and deflected Dax’s magic toward the bed, causing Ivy to become crispy. “Be careful, lover boy. Your ally seems to have gotten a bit charred from your blast.”

The guild master dodged Dax with ease, sending Dax right into the wall. He shook off the dizzy feeling as he glanced over at the once wild woman fast asleep in a cramped cage. His anger fueled him as he set off multiple blasts as he slid across the floor leaving the guild master with a giant, bloody slice on his leg. Although the guild master was injured, his face continued to display his excitement. The guild master retaliated with a mace that he pulled out from under his cloak. The two clashed over and over again.

Ivy heard the metal clang with each collision. Lightning blasts cascade across the room, and Ivy snuck over to Aura’s cage among the chaos. She looked at her mangled friend in her beast form. Ivy knew Aura must have suffered from all of her injuries and nearly hairless tail. Aura was in a cage much too small for her asleep in a ball in the corner of the cage. Ivy thought Aura must be 5’ 10”, and this cage was three by four foot. “Oh, Aura…” She whispered. Ivy turned her attention to the cage door that had a large silver lock on it. Quickly glancing around the room, Ivy searched for any sign of a key. The room was empty of anything resembling keys. She reached into her bag and pulled out her tool kit. Ivy was used to picking locks after rescuing so many shifters and slaves of all kinds. She began picking the lock while the two men wack each other with weapons. She thought the entire battle looked silly like teenagers sparing on the training grounds.

The guild master laughed harder.”You are so entertaining with your knight in shining armor routine. I am sure, my pet would just love it if she could just wake up.”

“You won’t ever touch her again, you sick bastard,” Dax replied, radiating anger.

Their weapons were locked together as lightning exploded in the room knocking the guild master and Dax down. The silver lock popped open, dropping to the floor. Ivy swung open the cage and pulled Aura’s sleeping form out of the cage. The men groggily stood up, getting their bearings. Ivy slung Aura over her shoulder, and she heard Aura grunt. She moved quickly, grabbing onto Dax’s wounded arm and dragging him away. The guild master followed yelling profanities at Ivy.

Ivy was suddenly caught and unable to move. Dax flew forward down the stairs while Aura remained settled on Ivy’s shoulder. The guild master approached Ivy’s frozen position. Aura started waking from all of the ruckus, and she lifted her head to see the guild master closing in on her. Unaware of her situation, she scrambled to her feet. Aura shifted, pouncing on the hooded figure that hit her with his mace. She endured his attack as she chomped on his chest. Aura ripped through his skin causing the guild master to bleed. The guild master shouted in pain, and he unwilling released Ivy from her frozen stature. Tabusco ran past Ivy and threw Aura off the guild master. Before Aura could run back up the stairs, Ivy grabbed her and Dax, running back to their exit.

Somehow, Ivy got them back to the basement after Aura attacked every guild member they passed. Aura was now covered in blood with a trail dripping behind her. Once they were safely in the tunnel, Ivy forced Dax to use his magic to cause a cave-in. The three of them escaped through the long tunnel. Every few minutes, Dax would cause a cave-in to put as many obstacles in between them and the Grim Guild. Eventually, they made it back to Jalen and Rhys.

“Whoa! What happened to you guys? Did you get Aura?” Jalen asked as Aura’s mangled silver form crawled out of the tunnel.

“No time to talk. Rhys, seal the tunnel, we need to keep moving. Jalen get Aura. I can hear people coming behind us.” Ivy commanded, still holding onto a shaky Dax.

Rhys forced the ground closed and helped Ivy support Dax as they ran from the cottage. Ivy and Jalen lead the way while covering their tracks. They were only two miles away when they heard a giant collapsing noise behind them.

“Shit.” Ivy huffed as they continued running away.