Warning ⚠️: This book contains graphic content. Viewer discretion is advised.

Two weeks later.

The wind billowed through Alaric's thick jacket as he took a long drag from the rolled item in his hand.

Sirens wailed in the distance reminding him of his home but he felt no trace of remorse at abandoning his realm.

This was home now.

Or... It would be. There was nothing left for him in his own realm. Not now.

"Those kill you, y'know?" A females voice caused a sigh to rumble from his chest. He didn't need to turn around to figure out who exactly was talking to him. He could never forget the voice of someone who he had once called a friend.

"So you found it too, huh? That's to be expected. You always were nosy." Alaric grumbled before taking another long inhale, neon green eyes taking in the sights below with his enhanced vision.
It was beautiful here. He liked it. Mira would like it here too...

Alaric sighed heavily as he stood up to turn and face the familiar woman who gave him a look of distaste.

She was rather attractive with black hair that was cut long over her eyes while the rest was tied into two low hanging buns on either side of her head. Her eyes a vibrant yellow, barely concealed beneath her dark hair as they glowed in the darkness. Her waterlines were lined with thick black eyeliner as she had always worn for as long as he could remember, ending in an elegant wing.
Her curved figure was barely concealed beneath a black crop top and a pair of black ripped leggings. His eyes flicked to where a dark purple tail ending in a long black spike whipped around ominously from where she was attempting to hide it from beneath a long black trench coat. But he knew she was annoyed or else she would've been successful at concealing her mutation. She wore black bands around her wrists, Alaric remembering just how much she had regretted not wearing them the first time she used the black whip that hung from a studded belt on her hips.

She was incredibly pale to the point that she almost seemed to glow in the dim light from below but Alaric knew it was due to the lack of sun in their realm.

"And actually this has the opposite effect. What do you want, Satana?" Alaric took one last drag before flicking his roach away, not bothering to watch it fall as he kept his irritated gaze on Satana.

"My friends back. But it's a bit too late for that, isn't it?" Her words received no reaction from the male who just continued to glare at her with the same annoyed expression that he had maintained throughout their conversation.

"That's not on me. Maybe if you'd been there for her when she needed you, she wouldn't have wiped out the entire meta population." Alaric's harsh tone visibly struck a raw nerve for Satana who immediately narrowed her eyes dangerously, the yellow hue seeming to darken as her pupils narrowed into slits but he wasn't scared in the slightest.

He was untouchable and she knew it... But he himself knew better than to think she wouldn't at least try to break a few of his bones before she allowed him to chastise her over the past.

"Coming from you? That's hilarious. Considering you ran away to an entirely different realm to escape what you did? What you've become? Sounds to me like you're harboring some guilt, rocky." Alaric released a harsh bark of laughter which only enraged Satana further as she took a warning step towards him, her tail raising from beneath her jacket but he completely ignored her threat as he sneered at her.

"I've always been like this. My only regret is that I didn't end that monster's miserable existence sooner... Before she murdered everyone and ruined innocent people's lives." Alaric sneered at Satana's rage, watching as she clenched her hands into fists. He knew he was pushing her too far but he didn't care... What could she do to him that would actually hurt him? Pain wasn't something he feared.

His lack of results in tracking down the realm hoppers aside from himself, Magdalene, and now Satana... It was starting to frustrate him. He felt nothing but rage now that he realized he was delaying his own reward in the long run.... Satana was only fueling a fire that he already had burning and it wouldn't end well if she said something to set him off completely.

"She was our friend. You pushed her too far. You should've never done what you did. If anyone here is the monster... It's you." A growl rumbled deep within Alaric's chest as he closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye, grabbing her by the throat as his eyes darkened to black. Satana's tail raised, the spike prepared in her defense but she and Alaric both knew anything she did in attempt to stop him from hurting her would inevitably be fruitless in the end.

"She was a monster from day one. Just because you were too blind to see it, doesn't mean she wasn't. It was always coursing through her veins just waiting for the moment to emerge. She said it herself that she felt like she had something dark hiding just below the surface of her humanity. I did us all a favor. Show a little respect." Alaric snarled in her face and for a moment her eyes flashed with fear but it was gone as quickly as it arrived. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of thinking he was scaring her... Especially when her reaction had been an involuntarily lapse of willpower. He wouldn't get that fulfillment of feeling like he was in control. Not anymore.

"Or what? Cause so far I like where this exchange is going, big boy." Satana smirked as she grabbed his wrist but a shudder of disgust rippled through him and he tossed her away as though she weighed nothing.

"Stay out of my way, Satana. Or you will regret it." Alaric warned as he narrowed his lightening eyes at the raven haired woman in front of him. His disgust doing nothing to hurt the woman's feeling, his words caused her to sneer for a moment but her eyes held no amusement to them.

"I've got nothing left to lose, Obsidian. What else can you take from me?" Satana's yellow eyes flashed with pain as she stared up at the male who seemed completely unaffected by her grief, instead choosing to smirk at the woman before his eyes darkened once again.

"Your life." Alaric answered simply before he turned and leapt from the building, Satana not even flinching as she was used to his dramatic exits by now. She almost wished he was normal enough that the fall would at the very least hurt him but she knew better.

"Jokes on you if you think that matters to me anymore." She mumbled though she knew he was gone by now. He was incredibly fast... Even when flying.

"I just hope you know what you're doing." Satana murmured as she moved to the edge of the building, not knowing what was lying ahead of her in this strange new world.

But therein lied the fun.

_-*-_

"Two weeks and no letters... No nothing. She's taking this pretty hard." Sam muttered to the group who now sat in a big circle on the floor. Most snacking on the various snacks that Oscar had attempted to hide from them to no prevail as he failed to realize that teenagers are bloodhounds to snacks.

A few were at work at the moment but the few remaining were now discussing the best course of action for the next move.

Joelee had been doing a good job of keeping the peace despite everyone visibly seeing the dark circles under her eyes and how she refused the meals presented to her.

She may not be mourning the loss of a relationship but the loss of a friend that she had previously expected to be a part of her life forever was hitting her very hard.

"I could try to talk to her..." Alyssa suggested after a moment of silence aside from Oscar's angry mumbles as he played a game on his TV. He had no interest in anything they had to say aside from conversations involving the teens and children vacating his habitat.

"Nah, I'll do it. No offense intended, Alyssa... But... I don't think she needs Vines to make her feel better." Alyssa looked slightly offended by Killian's words but didn't argue as he stood up with a dramatic stretch.

"Time to go hero." Killian said as he turned and began to make his way towards the back room where Joelee lay in a cot by herself, back to the door while her form was curled into a ball.

"Hey, dork." Killian murmured as he sat down behind her, noticing how her body tensed when he put a hand on her back. He had noticed that ever since they had escaped, she'd been a lot more tense when being touched. Of course she'd always had a... Thing... About personal space but it seemed more prominent and fearful now.

"Hey, boo." Joelee's voice was cracked as though she had been crying, causing a twinge in Killian's heart at how broken she sounded.

"It wasn't your fault he left, love. He made up his mind long ago." Killian cooed as he laid down behind her, pulling her to his chest as he felt her body convulse with quiet sobs. She was tense in his hold but she was at least tolerating his attempt at comforting her and that's all he could ask for right now.

"I didn't even get to say goodbye. He left without talking to me... He left us on bad terms. I just wanted to keep him as my friend... We've always been friends before anything else... All of us." Joelee cried softly, body stiffening when Killian pulled her tighter at being in close contact with someone but she made no move to pull away as she continued to allow to sobs to wrack her body.

"You still love him." Killian murmured as he began to brush her hair away from her face, keeping his movements slow so that he wouldn't startle her.

He didn't know what she'd gone through but he knew that it couldn't have been good.
The way she tensed when anyone got close to touching her, let alone holding her this close was a small sign that it was definitely bad.

"I do. I can't lie... But I knew he was still in love with her. He always will be. She was his first love... First kiss. I'll never be that. And I love her. She's so perfect. I miss her too but I don't know how she'll react to seeing me again. Everything is so messed up." Her breathing was slightly panicked now as she covered her face with her hands to try and quiet the sounds that spilled from her lips.

"You were my first love if that helps." His fingers stiffened as realized what he had said but she gave a soft giggle which caused him to release a soft breath of relief.

"You were mine too, babe." Joelee whispered but he knew she was meaning it in a platonic way.

"I hope he's okay. That's all I want. I want to know he's safe." Joelee continued as she rolled over to look at Killian who frowned at how red and puffy her face was from crying so hard.

"He'll be fine. He's unkillable. Mans got hit by a car and survived one time... Before his powers! He'll be okay, lovely. I promise." Killian brushed a stray strand of hair away from her face before gently placing his large hand on the side of her face, a small smile gracing his lips at how his hand covered the whole side of her face.

"You did too." Joelee teased with a sad smile that made Killian release a soft chuckle before he smirked at her.

"People need to learn to yield to pedestrians." Joelee released a soft laugh at his words, causing his heart to swell as he realized he was at least slightly making her feel better.

"You need to learn to yield to cars going forty in a thirty." Joelee's response earned a laugh from Killian as well, his eyes crinkling along the edges as his face spread into a smile.

"Guess that's fair. Look, you're strong, Joe. These people look up to you. Most of them are just kids... They need a strong roll model and while you've been doing your best... You need to take of yourself too. When he gets back you'll need to look your best so that he regrets it." Killian murmured which caused Joelee to immediately frown as she pulled away to sit up against the wall much to his disappointment.

"I don't want him to regret it. I just want him to be happy. That's all I've ever wanted." Joelee sighed as she tucked her knees to her chest, watching as Killian slowly rose to a sitting position as well.

"I know that, love. But you deserve to be happy too." Joelee looked down as he spoke, not seeming too sure about his words but he didn't seem to catch on as he instead pulled a letter from his pocket.

"This came at the post office for you." Killian quickly changed the subject so she wouldn't shut down again, knowing all too well that if he waited too long to let her think that she'd go back in her own head.

Joelee lifted her head rather quickly and held out her hand which Killian gently set the letter into. Knowing full well just how important the letter was to her.

Joelee scanned her fathers familiar handwriting, sad smile teasing the edges of her lips as she began to gingerly tear open the seal.

Her blue eyes widened as her mouth fell open in shock, hands now shaking as she slowly open the envelope more.

"That's a lot more than I earned at the sanctuary." Joelee whispered as she lifted her gaze to Killian who only looked confused now.

_-*-_

"It's not much but it's good enough for now." Joelee murmured as she stared up at the abandoned building in front of their small group.

"It'll need fixing up but I think there's enough of you that it won't matter. Welp. Bye." Oscar turned to get back into his van, hesitating only to turn to Connor who immediately smiled.

"See you around, bolty boi." Oscar grinned before he climbed into his mom van, starting it up before he rolled down the windows.

"Oh, and don't get yourselves caught again. That rescue was hard enough the first time. There may not be a second time." Oscar's voice made a few of the group cringe as all realized just how right he was.

The fact that they had escaped in the first place with no casualties was.... Surprising... To say the least. But nevertheless they had. And none wanted to return ever again.

"Thank you. We'll be safe. Stay out of trouble." Joelee gave a small wave as Oscar released a soft laugh before he smirked at the shorter blonde.

"Trouble is my middle name, darling." Oscar winked before he pulled from the very tight squeeze of a driveway, not taking long to disappear from sight as he rounded a corner behind a building beside them.

"He's not kidding. Literally. His middle name is actually Trouble." Connor said as he began to walk towards their building, ignoring the looks of confusion he got as he passed by the younger kids.

"Let's get started. We'll have to make a run to get cleaning supplies and temporary furniture since we're running on minimal amounts of money but... We're better than when we started." Joelee said as they began to follow Connor into the three story abandoned apartments, making a mental note to cover up the the graphic graffiti on the walls as she passed.

The beautiful blue haired woman that Joelee had yet to learn name of hesitated at the graffiti and placed her hand on the paint, eyes flashing with a wild array of colors as the horrible words shifted into a beautiful blue and white lotus flower. Satisfied with her work she placed her hands over the second offensive term next to the doorframe which shifted into a light red rose.

Joelee watched in awe, the woman turning around and blushing when she noticed she was being watched.

"I... Thought it would save some time. I can change it if you want." The girl brushed her waist length, sky blue hair away from her face as her freckles seemed to grow more vibrant from the red now tinting her cheeks.

"No, no! I love it!" Joelee exclaimed a bit too quickly as her own cheeks flared red at realizing she had been caught staring.

"I'm Artemis by the way... Things were so hectic before that I never got to introduce myself." The girl laughed awkwardly which caused a smile to creep onto Joelee's face at how adorable this girl really was.

"I'm-." Joelee began before the girl cut her off, still nervously messing with her hair as she spoke.

"Joelee... I know." Joelee felt kind of bad now that this girl knew her name but until literally a few moments ago she had no idea what Artemis' name was.

"Joe! Get in here! We need to make a list!" Sam yelled which startled both women who immediately turned to look at the apartment where Sam was watching the exchange with a smirk.

"Coming." Joelee muttered as she began to make her way towards Sam who tapped the side of their head with a knowing look.

Joelee focused her gaze on Sam intently, sparing a glance at Artemis as she shyly slipped past the two, mismatched eyes gazing at the two curiously before she disappeared inside.

'I ship it.' Sam's voice swirled through Joelee's head, causing Joelee's cheeks to flare red once again as she narrowed her eyes at her friend.

"Nathan just left, dude. You realize I had every intention of marrying him in the future, right? He may not have felt the same but people don't just get over that. Like... Ship whomever you want but I don't think relationships is a chapter in my book." Joelee responded which caused Sam to scoff as they crossed their arms over their chest.

"You can do better. Nothing against him but you could. And she's hot. Like really hot. And cute. If you don't get her then I will." Sam said which made Joelee roll her eyes, putting a hand on her hip as she tilted her head to the side.

"Isn't that her decision? Plus you have Kai." Joelee snapped in response, now eager to start working on their new apartment so that Sam would leave her alone.

"We're poly and agreed that while we want to date that we could also have more options to add to or go on dates with. So she's an option if she wants me back." Sam stuck their tongue out at Joelee who shook her head in annoyance at how immature her friend was.

"That's fine by me but I'm just saying that it's up to her. I'm not going to get jealous and try to stop you." Joelee shrugged before she walked into the apartment, not missing the scoff that Sam let out at her words.

"Come onnnn." Sam whined as they trailed after Joelee who hesitated in the hallway, noticing that everyone had already disappeared into their own respective rooms.

Joelee made her way into the first apartment on the bottom level, deciding that having a quick exit would be a good idea for her considering how claustrophobic she now was from being at The Monarch.

The door was stuck at first but she managed to wedge it open, noticing that whoever had occupied the apartment previously had removed the locks from the doors before shutting down the complex.

"Probably should get more installed... Just the front locks isn't enough for me." Joelee mumbled to herself before she made her way into the room, immediately cringing at the stale smell of cigarettes that coated the yellowed walls of the room.

Joelee sighed as she pulled out the letter her father had sent full of a very generous amount of money, tears filling her eyes as she traced every intricate detail of his incredibly neat handwriting. She had always been so jealous of her parents handwriting as hers was always sloppy due to how fast she wrote.

I didn't think the money you made was enough so you might as well take this as well. I don't want a reminder that I missed out on so much of my baby's life. Not a single penny has been taken from the money they sent us until now. You'll find better use for it. With love, dad.

Joelee sighed as she read the note over and over again, trying desperately to keep her tears at bay as she finally hugged the letter to her chest tightly.

She wanted nothing more than a hug from the man who had raised her. She wanted to be home where it was safe.

A stray tear slipped from her eye but her hands shot up to quickly wipe it away as she heard someone walking closer to her door.

"Get everyone prepared to go to the store. With the money they've made they can buy some nice stuff for their rooms, I'll provide the cleaning supplies." Joelee said which shocked Killian at the fact that he hadn't even voiced his presence yet but he quickly brushed it off after he thought it over for a moment. He didn't really know the full extent of her abilities yet so he couldn't put anything past her yet.

"Will do. You okay?" Killian questioned as he noticed the letter she held tightly as she turned to him, face void of emotion when she forced a smile to her face.

He didn't think he'd seen a genuine smile from her since the moment they escaped. Even then the smile she had when they escaped from the facility held a pain that he couldn't quite place... Nor did he ever think he'd find out the mystery behind it. He could only guess how badly she had been treated under Doyle's control... After all... Killian had only been with Doyle for about a month at the most and it had a miserable experience. Doyle was constantly trying to drain any hope of escaping at every possible opportunity.

He could only imagine the things he had said to break Joelee's spirits over the three years he'd had her under his control... After all... From what Kilian had heard... Nobody survived Doyle's experiments without very dire consequences... He'd only heard of three. Himself included. He wasn't sure if Joelee even fit in that category of surviving unscathed considering how many scars marked her arms, neck, and in a few places on her face.

"I know how bad Doyle was from firsthand experience, Joe. I was with him for about a month when I first entered the facility." Joelee stiffened at Killian's words, eyes momentarily flashing with fear but she clenched her free hand into a fist to force her face to go emotionless again.

"I had no idea... Before today..." Joelee paused for a moment, eyebrows furrowing as she began to put the pieces together as to what exactly that meant.

"Who was your scientist after Doyle?" Joelee questioned rather quickly as Killian crossed his arms over his chest, sticking out his tongue slightly as he wracked his brain for a name.

"His name was Rue." Killian said finally which made Joelee's eyes widen once again.

"They traded us." Joelee murmured after a moment which caused Killian to take a step into the room so that he could see her better in the dim light.

"Traded us? What do you mean?" Killian arched his eyebrows as Joelee instead narrowed her eyes before she took a deep breath to prepare herself for an explanation.

"Rue isn't a man. She's a woman. She was my scientist for a month before I was given to Doyle." Joelee said which caused Killian's eyes to widen now as his mouth fell open in shock.

"I never was allowed to see the scientist assigned to me. She always used her assistants... Wow... That begs the question though... Why did they switch patients?" Killian questioned which caused black veins to begin to crawl up Joelee's arms as she swallowed heavily. Fear spread through her darkening veins as the realization that Doyle had not been lying about everything set in.

Her wolf reacted to her fear, though she knew it could not understand what Killian was saying it responded to Joelee's reactions to his words.

"He told me he'd been watching me. That he knew from the moment he saw me that he wanted me..." Joelee's voice was choked as though the words disgusted her to even say, her veins crawling up her neck now, onto her face which caused her eyes to flash gold as her breathing began to pick up.

"She had to know. She knew what he would do. He had a reputation. Why..." Joelee paused to take a deep breath as she saw the fear in Killian's eyes, forcing herself to calm down as she realized he had no reason to see her have a meltdown... Especially if she accidentally lost control. She could hurt him and there was no way she could live with herself if she hurt him.

"I'm glad they switched." Joelee said finally which caused Killian to make a face as his eyes flicked to the scars that marked her once untouched skin.

"Why? Why are you happy that you went through years of torture?" Killian didn't mean for his words to sound so harsh but she didn't seem offended by his reaction and simply smiled instead.

"Because... It means you didn't have to go through it." Joelee flinched as Killian sprung forward and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face into her neck as he held back tears.

"I love you, Joe. I'm sorry I couldn't save you." He whispered through a cracked voice, not noticing how tense she was beneath his hold but she forced away her discomfort knowing that he needed this.

"I love you too, boo." She stood perfectly still, allowing him to release a shuddering breath as the two stood in silence now.