Long into the night, the lycans ran freely throughout the woods alongside the wolves, their heavy paws moving quickly and sporadically. They were nearly double in size of their animal half and Cora couldn't quite make out the details in the dark. She did note that the lycans were greatly varied, from lanky to stocky, to blocky heads, to long, thin snouts. They were all pale in color.

The Ashmore Clan, all some shade of blonde. Oren was the darkest of them all, but even that was mostly a dark cream.

Ben had stirred at some point in the night, but Hilda subdued him once again. They agreed that his wound would heal better this way, and until they were out of reach of Nailan -- the lycan that injured him -- that keeping Ben as quiet as possible was best for his life and safety. If the lycans had a change of heart, nothing was truly stopping them from punishing Ben further.

In the lycan culture, it was Cora who would have to stand up for Ben. And while Hilda had enough power to create a temporary barrier between the lycans and the Gabris siblings, it wouldn't last for forever.

Keeping Ben quiet was for his own benefit, or so she told herself a hundred times. Gods, Cora was not looking forward to Ben waking when Hilda thought it safe to let him return to their world.

There would be so much to explain, and she was even prepared for him to hate her for taking her away from home, and failing to bring a single item.

As long as he was alive, he could hate her as long as he wanted.

Hilda had eventually fallen behind Cora and the cart to keep an eye on the stirring Ben. They had a week's journey ahead of them, and Hilda planned to allow Ben minor coherence for food, water, and relieving himself. In the coming hours, whenever he roused more, they'd stop to replenish him.

Which meant that Cora rode next to the lycan called Roman. Cora yawned incessantly, wishing desperately to sleep. Her heart jolted when Roman finally spoke, and she realized she had nearly fallen asleep while riding the horse.

Roman asked, "So, your eyes change every day?"

Cora furrowed her brows in confusion and glowered at him. It was such a random question and his tone was reserved enough that he sounded almost like he had been debating how to start a conversation. Feigning at being nice, probably. Like Oren. She yawned once more, wiping her eyes.

"Yes," she answered.

He bobbed his head in approval. "Interesting. Can't believe I am riding next to an Omni."

"Omni?" she asked with a parched mouth, taking a drink of her canteen.

"You're officially called an Omnari Ruby, due to your eyes, which means 'changing' in our language. We shortened it down to Omni. You'll be more powerful than any Ruby in Reiger, or in the Bound Six"--He chuckled with astonishment and shook his head--"And here I am, riding next to you while you're a mere human."

She tried to hold back a groan, but her unease was clear. And yet, the information peaked her interest. "How many Rubies are there in your alliance?"

"I think thirty-something Rubies, with nearly sixty in total after they were mated. But there's only four Omnis...now five, with you joining us."

"How many Omnis are in Reiger?"

"None."

She nodded. Should lend to some leverage, I hope. I just need to learn when and how to ask for favors.

For the first time, she was grateful that packs in the west coast of Eloria were abnormally large, as it meant it might help with her negotiating power, or so she thought. Any Alpha residing over such large numbers would no doubt always welcome the added power that a mate could bring, as it would take a certain strength to rule over so many.

Reiger pack, along with nearly six other packs, were incredibly large and consisted of smaller Clans, like the Ashmore Clan. On average, the Bound Six, as they were so called, consisted of up to two thousand lycans per pack, existing as a vestige of war against humanity. Lycans had come together in an unprecedented cohesion to claim victory, and so it remained.

Many of those packs re-titled themselves as Clans and sat underneath the dominant Clan, which often produced their Alphas.

Of course, there were plenty of packs with numerous Alphas outside of the Bound Six, but in the regions near Cora, her options were slim to none. It's why Hilda recommended she wait for so long.

Gods, I hope this Alpha is somewhat decent...

"Well, you're quiet all of the sudden."

Miffed and tired, Cora rolled her head to look at Roman. Did he really not realize that he was trying to talk to her so casually while he pulled her mulled brother behind him? Or somehow forgot that she wasn't riding off to an obligated destiny like a promised princess, but without all of the extravagances of royalty? Speaking rather flatly, Cora said, "I was taken from my home just now, I'm case you've forgotten, and I didn't even get to go back and get any items that we might want. For all I know, I'll never be back again."

He sighed. "I just thought that I could get to know you, you know, before you became important and all that."

He seemed nice enough, and she hated to be rude when it didn't call for it. She grunted and said, "Well, sorry, it I'm not in the mood to casually chat. Besides, what else are we going to talk about? I don't feel like talking about favorite colors, or foods, or any of that."

"Oh, see, now that's a better topic!" Roman said, as if there wasn't anything wrong with the scenario. "I love the color green, and my favorite meat to eat is deer, although my favorite cooked food is cornbread. Sweet cornbread, none of the salty shit."

Cora stared at him with an expressionless face. She didn't know whether to laugh or yell at him. This was absolutely ridiculous. Maybe I am going crazy...

"What's your favorites, then, Cora?" he asked and faced her, the lighting from the moon hardly casting anything discernible to look at.

"What?" she began, eyeing the cart before looking around with upturned brows. "Pancakes? I don't know? Why does that even matter?"

"What's a pancake?"

She stared at him for a moment before answering with a tired voice, "It's like cake, but you cook it on a skillet."

He gently sat up straight in consideration. "Sounds similar to cornbread."

She closed her eyes for a full ten seconds to collect herself. She was so exhausted, that for a moment, she considered napping off while her eyes were closed. She had never slept on a horse before, and it didn't sound like the best idea to start now. She was half tempted to ask if she could go in the cart to sleep next to her brother, to whisper to him that it would be alright, which was mostly to repeat it for herself...yes, that sounded much better than a sleeping on this horse...

Roman continued and she shook her head to wake herself. "Don't worry, lycans still have a hankering for human food. We can probably get one of the human cooks to learn to make pancakes."

"You do realize that pancakes are the least of my worries at the moment," she said, trying her best sound friendly versus terse, especially since Roman was their healer.

It was hard to keep her tone gentled in the dead of night, with wolves and lycans surrounding her, she was tired, and she honestly just wanted to go back home. Back to her home of thirteen years ago when her mother's belly was swollen with Ben, and they had only the brightest future to look forward to as a family.

He muttered, "Just trying to give you something positive to focus on. Don't want you thinking we're all like Oren, or Nailan."

She gripped the reigns tighter and glared ahead at the dirt road, surrounded by tall trees that mostly blocked out the stars while a melody of insects filled in any silence. "As long as your Alpha isn't horrible to me, and protects my brother, then I'll live, and that's all that matters."

Roman, for once, didn't respond.

That was disconcerting, especially since the only thing getting Cora through this was placing her hopes on an Alpha she had never met. "Now why are you quiet?"

Now he was annoyed. "You don't want to talk, I thought."

"Well, growing silent when I mention your Alpha is rather concerning. Is there something I should know?"

He re-positioned himself on the wagon, which groaned in his shifting weight. "He's, well, he's fond of the title more than acting with it."

She frowned, as she hadn't expected that. "What? Seriously?"

"Alpha Theran is new. Very new. We give our alphas a chance, but his is already running out. You might reinvigorate that. Either way, you're worth taking to Reiger, even if you do not mate him. Having an Omni in the pack will regain our honor, which has waned as of late."

"Wait, 'if I don't mate him?' Is that even an option?"

"Of course. We are like humans in many ways, as we are half human, but we also have a wilder spirit. We don't just inherit power or titles. Sure, a Clan's title can help, but they have to maintain them as well. Our Alpha is weak, as our previous Alpha raised him spoiled. It's a long story, but with tensions in the world rising, many are concerned about him being there."

He continued when she was quiet, "I mention that because things might get tense for a moment. Your arrival will make nearly all available males want to re-seat the throne with you at their side. If our Alpha is given that opportunity, it will only solidify him. Although, honestly, don't be surprised if you don't end up with the Alpha"--he sighed, his tone changing and his voice growing quieter--"And, they'll hate me for saying this, but don't trust the males coming to give you gifts, as many will try. They don't mean it. Go for the males that want to tend to your wounds, or take time to brush your hair, or anything physical like that. That's the sign of bonding. The false ones will know you want gifts, being human and all, so don't buy into those lycans. They have false intentions."

Her mouth hung open, and she coughed as a bug flew into it. The horse neighed at her sudden coughing fit, and after taking a drink, she stared at the mane of the horse. She had not expected that information.

"Uh, well, thanks"--she added more strength to her voice-- "Thanks for sharing that with me."

"You can thank my intended, or her ghost tree." His expression was hidden in the dark, but his terse tone told her of his discontent at the mention of his 'intended'.

Then he added, with a gentler, nearly apologetic tone, "She would have wanted me to warn you, is all. You're going to be going through a lot. Like, a lot. It will hardly end until you're mated and probably with child, and with your mate claiming his seat as Alpha. If I know my kin, that's how it will go, anyway. For someone not used to that, it's going to be hard to navigate. Angella would hate if it I let you walk right into that without a fair warning. She believed in females having a firmer say in their life."

Cora was so exhausted, that she didn't respond and stared ahead, despite greatly appreciating his words. She gave a small grunt of appreciation, but the thought of more than the Alpha vying for her was truly daunting.

At some point the dirt road widened, and the trees thinned to reveal a valley below . Growing up, she knew that these roads were heavily traveled for exchanges of goods, as lycans enjoyed some of the luxuries that humans created. Kamas fueled them with leather hides from their cow farms.

And now she was on her way to the other end of this road. To the side where lycans lived. Would the males immediately come to her? Would she actually have to worry for her safety? Would the Alpha get to claim for first?

She felt so removed from herself in that moment.

One thing was for certain, she'd gain whatever power she'd have to for Ben. She could be known as the wolf that hunted those that touched her kin, crossing mountains and valleys for her brother.

And she'd find the best mate for that task. Whoever he may be.

Also, shout out to AuthorJMColes She has been a big fan of this story, and more specifically, ROMAN. And I love her support. She has some fun stories on Wattpad that are worth checking out!