Althea: The Dark Goddess

Aries Blackwood:

Without her, the world was a dark place to live.

Day. Night.

It all felt the same. One came after the other. Continuously. Without a pause.

Time did not wait for anyone. It just moved on as if it held no one dear or didn’t care enough to slow down or even pause, just for a second.

I had come to realise it the hard way, after existing years after years, in this lonely place that I called home.

Waiting for her. Another chance to be with her.

Hoping to get just one more glimpse of her.

But she never came. A decade became two then three. It just kept going. And I slowly started to lose hope.

When Noah was of age, I gave him the title of the Alpha. He deserved it much more than I did. I became a wreck while he became a true Alpha. A warrior. Brave and strong but caring and understanding. Everything one needed to be an Alpha. Everything that I was not.

Well, not anymore.

I left my home, my pack. I left everything behind. I was a wolf with a pack. An Alpha only in blood. I was changing. Into what, that I don’t know.

I was no one as I roamed the earth in search of what my heart, my soul desired.

I only needed one thing in this life.

Her.

But since I couldn’t be with her, I chose to just exist. My encounter with Harmony had made me realise how much I held onto my memories. Memories of her. With her. They were my only treasure. Now my life.

Without it, I was as good as dead.

But as time moved on, even those memories of her seemed to fade. Along with the hopes to be with her again.

Cities after cities. Continents after continents. I travelled across, till the end of the earth. There was no land that I hadn’t stepped a foot on, but still I couldn’t find her. Not a whiff of her existence.

The goddess couldn’t have lied to me. Not again.

No. She wouldn’t lie to me. She promised that she would return. That she would be with me again.

But when?

How long did I have to wait? I didn’t have long until this madness would eventually eat me up. Every morning that I wake up without her in my arms, it crushes my already broken heart even more.

Every now and then, the Lycans crossed my mind. One specific Lycan. With eyes as green as the darkest forest and hair as black as a raven. Just what was it about her? What did I want from her? Would I have found out if I stayed with her a little longer?

Well, there was no way of finding out now. I haven’t seen them after I walked out of their door in Greece, decades ago. No matter how much I tried looking for her, I just couldn’t seem to find her as well.

Eighty years.

I have lived decades in hopes that she would soon come to me.

I chuckle darkly as I look out the tall glass window to the world outside, crowded with people, buzzing with bright lights. So full of life.

I take another big sip of the whisky before I throw it across the room. The glass shatters into pieces and scatters in the open living area of the penthouse that I have been living in for the past few months.

The California heat couldn’t melt the loneliness in my heart. Neither could it ignite the diminishing life in me. It was all lies when they said you will find what you are looking for when you are here.

Rage fills my heart once again at the mere thought. I was becoming a monster in the midst of these humans each day I prolonged without shifting. But there was no need to anymore. My wolf has stopped responding to me since she left.

I can feel him deep inside, but he never demands anything, nor does he desire to be set free. He is as lost without her as I am.

I walk away from the glass wall and move across the room to the bedroom upstairs. The sharp pieces of glass dig deep into my feet as I walk barefoot on the marble floor which was now decorated with the deadly pieces of the whiskey glass.

I feel myself bleed as the sharp glass pierces through the soles of my feet with every step I take. It should hurt, but I was immune to physical pain now. It didn’t hurt anymore, not when my heart was gaping open and bleeding continuously.

No pain was equal to or would ever surpass the pain of losing her.

I let the cold water hit my body and wash away another night of alcohol. Or was it day?

I release a deep sigh. It doesn’t matter anymore.

Alcohol was the only thing that kept me going for a while. But its effects slowly wore off as the years passed by. I was now completely immune to alcohol. Or any other drug.

Even though werewolves have a long lifespan and age slower, I seem to have stopped aging altogether. I haven’t aged a day since the day she left me. I am ninety-nine years old. I have lived almost a century.

But I don’t look past my nineteen-year-old self.

Having enough, I walk out the shower with a towel around my hips and walk into the closet with the water dripping down my body and creating a fresh puddle of water next to my bloody footprint which was already paved in the white marble floor. I scan through the selections of suits and once again grab the black one.

Over the decades, I built an empire of my own in the midst of humans. I earned a name for myself. Although I kept a low profile, I had money flowing from everywhere.

I started by investing a few millions in the Ray business which was now blooming. So, I ended up investing some of the money in different parts of the world, like this penthouse and a club a few miles from here.

At least I had a source of income and non-stop supply of alcohol.

I look at the full-length mirror and adjust my suit. Light stubbles had grown over time, but I couldn’t be bothered to pamper myself. My once light blue eyes now stare back at me, lifeless and dull.

Just like my soul.

The loose-fitting black shirt with the black blazer hid my body from the lust filled eyes of the humans who I wanted nothing to do with.

A shrill scream breaks me out of my thoughts.

I close my eyes and release a deep breath before I walk out of the bedroom, my head already pounding. I see the housekeeper by the glass window with her hands over her mouth. Her eyes wide open. Shocked. She looks terrified, as if someone had been murdered right in front of her eyes.

But I couldn’t blame her. Afterall, it was too much for a human. There was a trail of bloody footprints leading up the stairs and into the bedroom.

“Don’t worry about it, it’s only a little blood. Just get it cleaned.”

She sucks in a breath and takes a step back but stops once she sees me. I can hear her heart almost beating out of her chest. She was still in a shock. “Mr. Blackwood. I-I…” She shallows her dry throat as she looks down at the bloodied marble floor.

“I-It’s—that’s a lot of b-blood.” Then her eyes follow the trail of footprint and stops right on my feet. “A-are you okay?”

“As I said, Ms. Hudson, don’t worry about it. Just get it cleaned.” She gulps timidly but nods her head regardless. Although she had seen traces of blood in the penthouse over the months that I had stayed, I guess today was too much for her.

I sigh as I turn around, grabbing the car key from the table by the door and enter the elevator. I know I was being a rude a**hole, but I can’t help it. I get pissed at every little thing now.

I step out the elevator and into the parking lot, my mood already worsening. I unlock the black Porsche and hit the brightly lit road.

In no time, I was at the club.

Alcohol. Sweat. Sex.

It fills the air inside. I walk right past the security and up the stairs to my usual VVIP lounge, covered with tinted glass window so no one could pry.

As usual, Tim serves me a tray with all kinds of beverages for me to drown in for the night. I sit back on the sofa and watch the humans outside, dancing along to the obnoxiously loud music, the disco light adding more fuel to rotting my mood.

I close my eyes and rest my head on top of the sofa. The loud music vibrates the entire place and makes my own heart thump along with the beat, reminding myself of how alive I actually was in reality.

Alcohol was just an excuse as I drown myself in misery. Yet another day passed. Yet another moment without you.

Please come back to me while I’m still sane. Please come back, before I lose myself in the midst of this dark, crazy world.

Without you, I am just a half of us. Without you, I am nothing.

Althea…my soul…

Just where are you…

Althea Zoe Castellanos Silvermoon:

My heart drums loudly against my chest as I sit upright on the bed, sweat beading my forehead and my heavy pants echoing through the dark empty room.

The same blue eyes.

Just who did it belong to? Why do those pair of eyes haunt me every single night?

My dreams are a constant vision of them. Bright. Blue. Piercing. Yet so full of pain.

My heart aches every night as I encounter those eyes, again and again. But I just don’t know who it belongs to.

I look at the digital clock on the table beside my bed which reads 4 A.M. Well, I guess it was time to get up then. With another deep breath, I pull the sheets off my sweat drenched body and step on the cold marble flooring.

I pull my oversized t-shirt over my head and dump it into the laundry basket as I walk into the bathroom. I step inside the glass shower and let the warm water wash the night away.

I quickly rinse off my body and get dressed into black leggings with a matching black sports bra and trainers, ready to relieve some stress off this sleep deprived body. It doesn’t help that much, but at least it relaxes my muscles.

I jog my way into the woods which soon turns into a full-blown sprint while my mind wonders back to my dreams. Like it always does. As far as I know, I have always had this dream. Every single night. Without a day amiss.

And with my thoughts fully occupied, I once again end up doing an entire lap of the island. But it still doesn’t help. Nothing does. I take in a deep breath and increase my pace even more, trying to fill my head with something else.

Or better yet, nothing at all.

When the land once again floods with the divine light from the sun sneaking through the wide horizon of the ocean, I finally stop. I close my eyes and let the soft wind gently blow my long black hair across my face. Like a curtain, it tries its best to conceal the beginning of yet another day, trying to stop me from stepping into the new day.

While at the same time, the wind also whispers into my ears. But its voice is foreign to my ears and just a meaningless noise to my brain. It is just another voice which I will never be able to understand, even if I tried.

So, I ignore these voices and inhale the ocean. The green land and the vast sky above me. My head, finally as clear as the now blue sky. Not entirely, but it was a lot better than before.

I slowly open my eyes, my hands on my hips as I stand on the edge of a cliff, outlooking the world far beyond the ocean that I had yet to discover.

It called out to me. It always did.

Something in me told me to jump right into the deep blue heaven and travel across to another universe. A universe that awaited me.

Why?

That I have no answer to.

Even though this was my home, I never felt like I belonged here. I always felt like there was more to my life than just this green land surrounded by the ocean.

Happiness bloomed here, yet my heart begged to differ. Even the most joyous moments felt like nothing. I smiled and laughed along with the people around me. The Lycans. My families.

But I always felt like something was missing in my life. My heart craved for something else. Something more.

Something that I didn’t quite understand.

Why does this life, so full of luxury, do nothing to content my heart? Most girls would die to live my life, yet here I was.

Unsatisfied. Ungrateful. Undeserving.

I sense the slight shift in the air, knowing that I now had a company. I hear the sound of an arrow slicing through the space as it aims for my head. I tilt my head just in time as the arrow flies past my head and smirk, knowing who it is.

“Coward,” I call out.

I step to the side and turn around to face the man behind this horrendous act. “You never learn now, do you?”

I see his blond hair peeking out from behind the trees and hear him sigh. I chuckle, shaking my head as he steps out of the tree, fully armed with his bow in one hand and spare arrows strapped across his waist that sat on his back.

“Oh, I will get you, Zoe.” He shoots the arrow that was already on the bow, but I take a step to the side and dodge it. Yet again.

“Bring it on.” I bend my knees and stand low, ready for him to make a move. And as promised, the arrows start flying my way. I speed past every single one of them and stand behind him with an evil smirk on my face.

“Got ya,” I whisper in his ear and disappear from his view as soon as he turns his body around and starts shooting again.

“Come on out, Zoe.”

I stand crouched on a branch of a tall tree and watch him intently from above as he calls out to me to make a move. He moves like a hunter. Slow and silent. His deep brown hawk-like eyes scan the woods. But he was as impatience as ever. As soon as I blow a whistle, an arrow comes shooting my way.

Definitely fast and deadly.

That was aimed to kill. But sadly, it wasn’t aimed at me. Otherwise I was as good as dead. Or maybe not. I don’t know. You see, I haven’t tried catching his arrows with my body yet. And I don’t intend to. Ever.

Alexander Sancus Constantinou. He was one heck of a warrior.

He was unbelievably fast and gifted with precision, an accuracy. He never missed his target. What he aimed, he always hit the bullseye. Out of all the weapons, he chose to train with the bow and arrow. But that only made him better and faster. Lethal.

This brother of mine could have been a great warrior of the palace if only he wasn’t constantly following me around. If only he listened to the one advice of mine. But no, he refused to. The only word of mine he didn’t follow. Instead, he twisted the meaning of my words and decided that he would become a warrior.

My warrior.

A personal warrior for the princess herself. A typical Constantinou. He was just like his father.

Christopher Constantinou. A true warrior.

Alex refuses to leave my side. Everywhere I go, he follows, like a shadow.

But even my own shadow leaves me in the darkness.

But Alex, he never does. He thinks I don’t know, but I do. I can sense him everywhere I am.

The thing is, ever since he was born, he was attached to me. And as he grew older, he was inseparable from me. But I always welcomed his presence.

Because he understands me. His silence comforts me.

It’s like we share this bond. An unbreakable bond. It was like he was born for me. To be by my side.

He trained himself so hard, made himself unbeatable and became the best. He said he would be the strongest so he could protect me.

But his action right now says otherwise.

I sigh as I observe his movements. I don’t know if he genuinely wants to protect me or is just trying to find my weakness to get me killed.

But I know better than to doubt his loyalty.

When he’s right below me, I swiftly jump down the tree and stand in front of him. I hold the arrow that’s targeted at my head. “Play time’s over.” I smirk at him and snatch the arrow from him as he backs off a few steps. With a smirk of his own, he puts the bow across his back and starts throwing punches my way.

I easily dodge them and throw punches of my own. He’s able to block a few, but I manage to land some hits. While he’s busy blocking my punches, I step to the side and hold him by the neck with one arm and point the sharp edge of the arrow by his throat with another.

“You got me. You got me.” He taps my arm, so I let go of him.

I chuckle at him as he turns around with a disappointed look on his face. “I thought I would get you today.” He snatches the arrow from my hand and puts it into the holder on his back.

I ruffle his hair and laugh out. “Not a chance.”

He groans and rolls his eyes but smiles, nonetheless. “Oh, don’t worry, Zoe, I will get you one day.”

This time, I roll my eyes. “The day you’ll get me will be the last day of my life.”

A feral growl leaves his mouth, but I know it wasn’t intended at me but the words I spoke. I look into his brown eyes which was now starting to cloud over a little.

“Althea.”

He speaks through his gritted teeth, calling me by my first name which he only used to show his seriousness.

It was a name given to me by my grandmother, the Lycan queen herself. A name which was a premotion of some sort. A name that I didn’t go by. Because it was a name that belonged to the almighty. A goddess.

A goddess that has cursed me.

“Don’t ever say anything like that again.” I let go of my fists that had unconsciously tightened and relax my stiff shoulders.

“If that’s what it takes, you’ll always be second to me. Death will think twice before it comes knocking on your door. It will have to get through me first because I will always stand in front of you as a shield. Your shield. Always remember that, Althea.”

For a second, I stare blankly at him before amusement takes over my expression. I fold my arms across my chest and shake my head while scoffing at his somehow blunt retaliation.

“Come on, Alex, no need to be so serious. I was just joking. Gosh, you are one heck of a defensive and overprotective brother. And of course, a warrior too.” I turn around to head towards the palace, knowing he was hot on my tail.

“That I am. But promise me, Althea. Promise that you will never utter words like that again.”

“Don’t call me by that name, Alexander Sancus Constantinou.”

“I will stop only if you promise, Althea.”

If someone else had said that name that many times, I would have already detached their head from the rest of their body. But him, he just makes me smile inwardly as a warm feeling spreads over my heart. With him, I felt safe.

“Promise.” Because he was like an amulet that I possessed which would keep me safe even from the god of death himself.

And no matter what, Alex is and will always be my warrior.

My blood warrior.