Maltin's POV.
I stood still, watching as the fragile girl I had brought back to my private chamber lost consciousness. Her body gave in to the weight of fear and shock as she fell back to the bed, before her fragile frame went limp.
For a moment, silence filled the chamber. The flickering candlelight danced across her pale skin, casting shadows that made her appear almost unreal, like a fleeting dream that had wandered into my world by mistake.
"Good" I muttered as I took a slow breath.
There would be no more questions or defiance. No more of that sharp tongue that had challenged me without hesitation. The silence was convenient at the moment.
Our encounter in the woods was only an accident, I never thought that she would follow me to my world.
I turned away, running a hand through my hair as a wave of exhaustion settled over me. Questions flooded into my mind.
How did she cross the portal?
No human could survive the force, not even the werewolves. Only the Lycan Alphas could pass through it unharmed. So how did she?
Was it my doing? If so...how?
A slow breath escaped me as the questions rolled down in my thoughts, each one more troubling than the last. Confusion tightened its grip, and I could already sense the weight of what this meant.
Disruption. I knew the girl was troublesome, she is already a puzzle.
Humans, in my experience, were either timid or foolish. But this one, she carried something different. Something that refused to bend, even in the face of fear. And that alone made her dangerous; yet now, as she lay still, she looked so defenceless and innocent, as though she had never challenged or questioned me earlier with no ounce of fear. I found myself watching the steady rise and fall of her chest.
She is not one of us. The Lycan world was no place for a human. If the others discovered her presence, it would not end well. The elders would demand answers, and the warriors would see her as a threat —or worse, a curiosity to be disposed of.
No, I wouldn't allow that. Whether intentional or not, I played a part in bringing her here. That makes her my responsibility. I have to return her, before they find out.
That resolve formed in my mind, but then, my gaze drifted back to her. Something about her unsettled me.
I sat at the edge of the bed, my eyes narrowing as I studied her more carefully this time —not as an intruder or a problem to be solved, but as something else. Something I could not name.
Her skin was too pale, almost luminous under the candlelight. Not the pallor of weakness, but something softer. Almost ethereal. Her features were delicate, yet defined in a way that gave her an unusual beauty —one that did not belong to the humans I had seen before.
And then her hair. Even in the dim light, it shimmered faintly, strands catching the glow like threads of silver.
I frowned. "This is not normal, not for a human or wolf."
My gaze lingered longer than it should have, tracing the curve of her cheek, the softness of her lips, the faint crease between her brows even in unconsciousness, as though she carried her burdens into sleep. Then I caught her scent. Everything inside me stilled.
A strange sudden pull stirred within my chest —unfamiliar and unwelcome. My breath hitched as something inside me awakened. Something I had buried long ago. Something I had searched for, failed to find, and long since forgotten. My heart thudded twice. I stiffened at the third thud.
My heart. Why is it beating like this?
"No…"I muttered, the word laced with disbelief in realization of what was happening. "This is impossible. This means nothing, it had to mean nothing. She could not possibly have anything to do with that part of my past." I muffled, stepping back abruptly as I quickly tore my gaze away from her in denial.
I had lived too long, endured too much, lost more than any man or beast should ever bear. Whatever this was, it was nothing more than a trick of my mind. A fleeting reaction to something unfamiliar.
Yet, the feeling persisted. The pull, the recognition, the impossible, undeniable echo.
Just then, a memory surged forward —uninvited, unwelcome.
Her face, bathed in silver moonlight. Her soft ethereal, yet filled with power as it echoed through the night. The moment she spoke the words that sealed my fate.
The moon goddess.
A thousand years had passed, yet the memory remained as sharp as a blade. That night had been carved into my very being. The night my mistakes earned the wrath of the goddess. The night the curse was bound to Duskwind pack and me. A curse that only death could erase.
I had begged for mercy, searched endlessly for a way to break it, to free my people, to bear the burden alone, but found none.
So I buried it. Locked it away beneath centuries of war, loss, and solitude, hoping that one day death will find me and end it all. Yet here I was, facing once more, what seemed to be impossible.
My fist clenched as my breath grew uneven. My heart pounded with a rhythm I had never felt before and deep within me, my Lycan stirred —restless, awakened, pressing against the control I had held for so long.
I looked back at the unconscious girl on the bed, but turned sharply away, taking several steps back as though distance could rid me of the sensation entirely. My mind raced, searching for reason, for logic —anything to ground me back into reality.
It was madness, nothing more. I had allowed desperation to govern me, and now my mind is weaving illusions where none existed.
"Yes…that has to be it" I muttered under my breath "stay calm Dairis" But my Lycan remained unyielding.
Her scent. She has to be ours! His voice was firm, insistent.
My jaw tightened
"She is not!" I snapped inwardly "We're cursed remember? We can never find her." He went silent.
"This girl," I continued, forcing the words through clenched teeth "is nothing but an unfortunate coincidence, an unwelcomed guest that we need to be returned. The longer she remains here, the greater the danger she faces.
A faint resistance stirred within me but I ignored it. "She deserves her world and she will return to it" I declared.
Dairis whimpered in pity, but I ignored him, tightened my jaw in resolution, and straightened as my expression returned to its usual cold mask. Whatever strange feelings had crossed my heart moments ago were buried once more beneath layers of control and indifference.
With that, I strode toward the door, the chamber falling into silence again as I pushed the heavy door open, stepped out, and shut it behind me.