Aisha's hand quickly clutched on her chest as if she was trying to pump it manually as it almost stopped beating.
Her jelly-like feet slowly stepped backward as she stared wide-eyed at the creatures in front of her. She was too scared to blink, as it might be her last before they tore her apart.
The wolves were enormous and scarier than the ordinary wolves in her world. It's not that she has a pet.
But she just knew it. She has watched Animal Planet long enough.
And their eyes. They were purplish, just like King Leandro and the others in the Castle! But they look more enraged and wrathful.
They bare their fangs and teeth. Their saliva drooled over their mouth like she was a piece of juicy meat.
"I am not as yummy as you think I am, believe me," She tried to reason out with them as her eyes darted around, looking for a way out.
Her chest was heaving up and down. She felt like she would faint anytime.
But she didn't want the cause of her death in her death certificate to be "strangled to death" or "torn apart by wolves".
"You're too many, and I'm too skinny!" She pinched her forearm to show them that they wouldn't enjoy making a meal out of her. "See?"
The sun was already up and everything in the forest could be seen by the naked eye. Including the hungry look in the wolves' eyes and the fright of the damsel in front of them.
As Aisha's eyes darted everywhere to look for an offensive or defensive weapon, she noticed a sign that seemed to indicate where she was.
"Property of the Lycus Clan. Beware!"
Instantly, Aisha looked back at the growling wolves in front of her. They were now approaching her.
She stepped backward until her back hit a tree. She has nowhere to run.
One towered over her and was about to slash her with its claws.
In one swift move, Aisha lifted her arm and defended herself as she shut her eyes tightly.
"Wait! I have no intention of going to your land. I'm lost! A tsunami hit my place and the waters brought me here!" She rambled on, hoping these beings would understand her.
She recalled the creatures circling her the first time that her eyes opened after the tsunami. One of them had their eyes.
She bit her lips as she awaited her body to burn in pain, the sharp fangs and claws of the wolves piercing through her skin.
Instead, to her surprise, she heard voices. And they were just in front of her.
"She's a human, then?" One of them asked the others.
"But humans aren't allowed here in Gaea. How could she possibly enter our secured location?" The other replied.
"Maybe she's a sorceress."
"Or perhaps what she's saying is the truth."
"That's impossible. The Great Theos wouldn't allow it."
At first she was surprised to see that the wolves who were gnarling at her just a fraction of a second ago vanished into thin air.
But now Aisha was bewildered. In place of the pack of the wolves were a pack of naked men discussing among themselves about the strange specie in front of them.
"Uh oh," she covered her eyes with her palm. But then she opened a window, so she could peep at them.
They were still chatting about her.
Aisha cleared her throat in a loud manner. "Um, guys, I'm still here. In case you didn't realize," both her eyebrows shot up in the air with both corners of her mouth curved up.
It seemed as if she touched a no-no button in one of them, as he quickly shifted back to his gigantic wolf state and snarled at her.
Aisha's knees crumbled, making her fall down on the floor. Her arms reached for the nearest support that she could find behind her.
"Y-you're a werewolf?" Aisha stuttered.
As she peered into the wolf's eyes, she could see that those eyes were the same as the man who was just speaking a while ago.
One of the nude men stepped between the two of them and stretched his tattooed arm. "Stop it, Lyan. We will inform Lord Lycano about this and let him decide."
Hearing his name made Aisha cringe in fear. She recalled the conversation of the two guards about him.
She's better off in these men's hands than him!
"Uhm, you don't actually have to do that because I am already leaving your land. Thank you for your hospitality. Adios!"
She made a curtsy and ran as fast as she could to where the muscles of her legs could take her.
But what can a mere human do against these magical beasts?
She didn't even reach a meter when all the naked men encircled her, as if they were waiting who would first attack her.
"I should've stayed at the Castle. I'm safer with King Leandro," she uttered in a wavering voice.
Aisha felt her heart quickened as she recalled him swooping her in his arms. She wished he would be here to save her from her demise.
But how could he possibly do that? He might even be snoring until now and unaware that she was already miles away from the Castle.
And besides, who is she for him to even care whether she gets eaten or not?
"You had an audience with the King?" One of them must have overheard her as he asked about her last statement.
The others gasped as their bodies seemed to cower in fear.
"Then it must be all the more reason for you to meet Lord Lycano," the one with the tattooed arm commented, signaling the other men to control their carnal desires.
It seemed as if he was the leader of the pack.
The name of the King must have rung a bell as their previously savage appearance transformed into meek little puppies.
"Bring her to the Manor!" He ordered them, in which they immediately obliged.
**********************************************
When someone threw you to the wolves,
Come back leading the pack.
Leandro woke up earlier than he used to. His heart pounded against his chest, arousing him from his sleep
He didn't usually feel that way every time. It seemed to be ominous, as if something bad was imminent to happen throughout the day.
Or was it because he still hasn't decided on what to do with the female human?
He immediately stood up and went to the King's Dressing Room to change his sleeping clothes. A servant immediately attended to him.
"Good morning, your Majesty," he helped him fit in one of the royal robes that the King usually wears during ordinary days.
"Quickly. I need to do an important task," Leandro hurried the servant, making the servant hasten his actions, so he wouldn't be bothersome to the King of Gaea.
It was early dawn and the sun was just peeking out of the horizon. Its rays weren't ready just yet to shed its light on the King's Castle.
Usually, the King woke up as its beams hit the Chamber's window. But now he didn't even wait for it.
After the servant dressed him, he immediately went out to one of the Castle's Towers and surveyed the land of Gaea. It seemed to be at peace.
There's no wildfire or any chaotic movement disrupting the tranquility within the Gaean realm. Still, something was bothering him.
He decided to go to the Apartment for the Guest Ladies and Lords in the Castle. He wanted to make sure that the female human was all right.
"Give me the keys," he said to the Guard who was currently looking after the Chamber at that time.
He told the creatures that have found her to never utter a word about her to anyone. If anyone learned about her existence, her life would be in danger.
And he wouldn't allow that to happen. Now that the Great Theos has already confirmed the possibility of her being the bearer of his offspring.
He could not recall in his hands the number of times he attempted to procreate until he finally gave up. She was a glimmer of hope for him.
Her state in Gaea was complicated, though, which made him think twice about planting his seeds on her.
As much as he wanted to have descendants of his own, he didn't want to endanger someone's life just because of it.
He gently opened the door so as not to wake the sleeping beauty.
She seemed to be sleeping with her body covered in a thick layer of quilts. But something was not right.
Leandro's heart thumped wildly as he quickly uncovered the blankets. And he was right. Under the blanket was not a warm vessel of human life, but cold dead pillows!
The Castle Guards' jaws dropped at what the King just found out. They immediately fell down on their knees with their faces to the ground.
"We deserve to die, your Majesty!" They chorused in shame.
"You will surely die if you don't find her at once!" His rough, raspy voice thundered throughout the hallways, making the servants who have heard it shivered in fear.
The Castle Guards immediately scrambled to their feet and fled to find the missing lady.
In a fraction of a second, he immediately went to the window and peeked down below.
His amethyst eyes turned to fiery scarlet as he searched every nook and cranny of the Castle.
The Castle Guards were doing their usual morning rounds. He could hear the diurnal warblers chirping in the sky, excited to welcome the sun.
His nose could smell the freshly baked bread from the furnace. His mouth could almost taste them.
His skin could feel the changing temperature as the sun rose up.
But he could not sense a warm-blooded human anywhere in the Castle grounds!
"Your Majesty," Lord Emilio uttered breathlessly.
He seemed to rush to the Chamber as soon as he learned of the news. "Forgive me for my negligence, your Majesty," he kneeled before him.
"Gather the Nephilus Guards and find her. She's out of the Castle," he ordered to him in a grim manner.
He brushed his silvery gray hair away from his chiseled face as he tried to think where she might go.
As he recalled, she wanted to go back to her world.
But that was impossible. There was no portal that could make anyone travel from Gaea to the human world unless the Great Theos would allow it.
"Should I have just brought her to the Temple of Astrum instead?" He thought as a feeling of regret crept up in his heart.
Yes, he could request The Great Theos to bring her back to her world if she really wanted to.
But as he thought about it, his heart felt as if it was breaking. His shoulders dropped low as he desired her to stay in Gaea.
"Yes, your Majesty. With her bare feet, she could not have gone far," Lord Emilio responded to him, distracting him from his speculations.
He was about to leave when an idea came to Leandro's mind.
"Unless -" Leandro's lips blurted out. His alert eyes faced the other Watchman who was with him.
"Prepare Draco," He ordered him in a hasty manner.
"Yes, Your Majesty," The guard bowed and immediately went to the Dracus Dungeons.
Leandro quickly faced Lord Emilio, "Did you command the spies to go to the Southern Lands this morning?"
"Yes, your Majesty. I gave them the order to be there before dawn," Lord Emilio answered him.
Leandro's lips turned pallid white. "She would not have ridden with them."
He immediately went to the Castle Gates together with Lord Emilio.
"Who left the Castle since last evening until now?" He gruffly asked the GateKeepers who were on duty that day.
Beads of sweat formed in Leandro's forehead as he hoped that there were other travelers aside from the spies.
She could go to other destinations in Gaea. But not to the Southern Lands.
"There were two, your Majesty. One went to the Eastern fields to get some grain. The others were merchants to the Southern Lands," The GateKeepers stuttered as they gave a questioning look at each other, thinking that they have done something wrong.
"Did you see a woman with any of them?" Leandro interrogated.
"No, no, Your Majesty," The GateKeepers immediately shook their heads.
Leandro nodded back. But he made his decision.
"Once I learned that a woman escaped your oversight, all of you and your families will be banished from serving the Castle. Do you understand?" He growled at them before going to Draco, leaving horrified Gate Keepers behind.
*****************************************************
"A great battle is a terrible thing," the old knight said, "but in the midst of blood and carnage, there is sometimes also beauty, a beauty that could break your heart."
― George R.R. Martin, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
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