Third Person

The night is still young in Pendel. The urban town, on the surface, was quiet and peaceful. Young ones sleep, adults unwind after a long day, and they look forward to the weekend.

The local large coven sat around the cramped living room, chatting and catching up on the week’s events. Some help the Langton mother search for answers.

Little did the town know of the mayhem that was occurring in the vast woods.

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Cornelius

Cornelius took a large breath and stepped forward.

Only a huff could be heard as fur broke the tree line, and a vast grey wolf pinned Cornelius.

The Alpha Dominic.

But Cornelius’ strength surprised the Alpha, and he quickly fled with a giant wolf following him.

“Shit, shit…”

Profanity spilt from Cornelius’ mouth as he ran as fast as his legs would take him. He could still feel the thundering paws chasing him. He could not shake off the alpha that hunted him like prey.

He specifically stayed out of the pack's territory for this reason. Cornelius was no match for the wolf, but he might be able to maim the alpha.

He just needed Wolfbane and a weapon… what he required was…

“Blackspit!” he cried.

“For goddesses sake,” Maddie muttered, watching the fool in her shattered mirror crying out for her to help him.

She rolled her eyes. Only her luck would bring her a cowardly vampire, but at least he was resourceful. Giving her another fae stronger than the last gave her enough magic to deal with her.

Grasping some supplies, she closed her eyes and stepped forward, stepping from the creaky floorboards to the grassy earth.

Maddie took the silver fae knife she swiped from a council member's corpse and rubbed wolfsbane. It was blunt and well-worn but would do the job nicely.

She strategically thrust it into a tree trunk and left as swiftly as she came.

Cornelius caught a glimpse of silver in his path.

“Yes!” he hissed.

He pulled it out and turned abruptly.

While surprised at the sudden turn, Alpha Dominic pounced on his target like a well-trained predator. He trapped the Vampire with two large paws, holding the vampire still.

A flash of silver made the oversized dog yelp. Cornelius had pricked the alpha's paw, tasting out his weapon. The growls told him it was working as intended.

Another jab, this time at the lower leg and the blade was pulled down. Cornelius felt it scrape against bone and flesh rip. It was not a clean slice…

Cornelius found it perfect.

The alpha fought against the white-hot pain that seared through his leg. He had to put down the vampire while it was between his paws. Except the searing pain made his vision double, and the world spun.

Wolfsbane.

It weakens the body, and the wolf is toxic in large amounts.

The alpha needed help.

He screamed out a howl as he crashed onto his back. He felt his wolf go inwards, changing back into his human form.

Others answered the call.

Cornelius knew the wound on his leg would be more than enough, but where was the fun in that?

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

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Seri

Quinn rushed from her spot to Devan, helping him up quickly, and held a hand to Seri before running.

Seri huffed as she hobbled over uneven ground. She tried to keep up with the fitter couple, Quinn and Devan, but she had to take breaks. She groaned and leaned against a tree for a couple of seconds.

Seri could hear the wave of fighting that was coming closer. She snuggled into a nook of a tree, waiting for them to go past. She was not far from the Oak, just another mile or so.

“Soona,” she whispered, trying to heal some minor bites and scrapes and quietly watched the mayhem wave pass her.

She listed them pale vampire blurs, fur and paws, ribbons of magic like fireworks…

Seri continued to heal some wounds and readied herself for the straight run to the Oak. Although she lagged, no one focused on her.

With a deep breath, she continued her run, rushing past the mass of bodies and fighting wolves, vampires and witches… Goddess, this was a lot to take in.

She was glad to see a friendly face, and she shouted.

“Lathen!”

With a smile, she followed him through the next tree line. Lathen slowed, and together, they ran towards the oak. They were finally reunited, with the two impatiently waiting.

“Finally!” Quinn cheered, turning around from her pacing.

Devan’s smile dropped slightly as he noted only two, “Where’s Lexi and Leo?”

Lathen, confused, turned back to where he ran from.

“They were right behind me…” he trailed, ducking his head to the left and right, trying to spot them.

Devan’s smile dropped completely as his eyebrows furrowed, “Best to wait here for them.”

He turned to Quinn, “Do you have any energy left?”

She nodded, “Obscuravale.”

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Jack

“The alpha is injured…”

The words rang through Jack's head as Corey led the old wolf to the Alpha.

Dominic lay flat on his back, surrounded by the pack, furiously working to stop the bleeding. Sweat, blood and grime coated his entire body. His typically hardened eyes were scrunched in pain as a guttural continuous growl left him.

A jagged wound stretched from his left shoulder to his right hip, and the torn flesh exposed the bone of his femur. Once white rags were dyed red, fresh white ones tried replacing the old, slightly panicked faces pushed against the vast wound.

The beta, a younger version of the burly man, looked up at Jack approaching. He held down the alpha by the shoulders and head, forcing him to lay still.

Beta Aaron shook his head at his father. These wounds were not healing as they should be.

“We need a healer. Now,” Aaron stressed.

Jack looked around at the other faces, “Anything on the witch?”

They all looked away. They had heard nothing.

Jack clicked his tongue, and with the reassurance of a swift return, he searched for the detective. Surely, they had one competent healer.

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Magnus

Victoria hauled him up by his collar and brought attention to the bloodied child.

“Silencio! Stand down. Your sire has fallen…”

The fighting ceased slowly, a few still not giving up the fight.

“You have a choice. Pledge your oath to me, or you will not see the sunrise,” Victoria said with conviction.

Magnus looked around at the devastation and continued to rub his forehead.

What was meant to be a quick apprehension turned into mayhem. The local wolves even went beyond their territory to help these witches. They, too, lost some of their own to the army of vampire minions Cornelius had raised.

Victoria was receiving oaths, and she dealt with those that did not.

Magnus’ colleagues grilled all of them for information as Cornelius decided to become a mute.

The Council will have fun with this one.

“Detective.” A large hand touched his shoulder.

Magnus jumped lightly and grasped the hand in shock.

“Sorry. We need your help. Can you spare a healer? One that knows wolfbane poisoning?”

The gruff voice sounded familiar to Magnus. He made a mental note to revisit this later and called for his team.

“Peter! Grab a team. Wolfsbane,” he shouted before turning to the older gentleman again, “Peter is the best we have; if you need anything, just ask.”

With a short nod, the old wolf led the healers to the injury.

“Sir?” A colleague caught his attention.

“Yeah?” he replied.

“We found them by an Oak tree. They were reluctant to leave…”

Magnus turned to the small group. They all looked haggard. They were tired and battered. Magnus could still tell they were on edge, looking around for something, huddling into the given blankets and water.

He counted…

One. Two. Three.

Four?

“Where are the other two?” he asked gently.

The small group looked at one another, each afraid to answer.

Lathen spoke up, “We don’t know.”

“Okay,” he gently replied before turning to the search team.

“Keep searching. Widen the area to 30 miles. Leave no stone unturned! We have two missing…”

“We may need a personal item to help dowse for them… Do you have anything?” Magnus asked the group.

Just as he feared, they all shook their heads gently. Quinn and Seri leaned onto each other as their eyes watered.

“Come on. It's time to take you all home.” He opened his arm, gesturing towards the urban town.

“No. We should stay and wait for them. They may still make their way to the Oak…” Devan relented.

“We have it covered. You can do nothing here than wait around and get cold. Please, let me take you home. We will tell you when we find them,” he gently coaxed.

“He’s right…” Lathen pipped up, stepping forward.

The others watched and followed silently, giving in on their very short stand.

Magnus braved himself as he led the four back to the Langton residence. He was apprehensive about the mother. His head would be on a splatter if they could not find the two young witches.

He wished they were not home, but the living room lights poured into the kitchen and across the short lawn.

He cleared his throat as Devan knocked on the patio door.

As it opened, he could see Isobelle's confused but smiling face.

“Devan? Why are you knocking-?” She cut off her words as she saw Magnus standing nearby, “What’s going on?”

“Mrs Langton-” Magnus started.

Deven broke.

Tears and sobs broke the silence, and it seemed the events and reality of the night had finally caught up to him.

Isobelle, shocked, coaxed him inside the house, sitting on a chair.

“Come in. Tell me everything.” She swallowed thickly, blinking away her tears.

Isobelle knew before Magnus even opened his mouth.

Lexi was gone.