His Blind Mate

Chapter 07 A Warrior’s Resolve

~ Luan ~

I fell to the ground with a cry, the wind knocked out of me from the punch on my gut. Gasping for air as I raised myself on all fours, my sparring partner spat, “Get up.”

I held out a hand to tell her to give me a minute or two, but she only repeated her words. “Get up, Luan!”

I stood shakily on my feet, a hand protectively on my stomach. Sweat dripped down my chin, my heartbeat rang in my ears, and my toes and soles felt like they were burning in my shoes.

“Raise your arms,” she commanded, and I hesitantly got into a defensive stance.

“Focus, Luan!”

I didn’t know how to fight. I was never trained. I raised my hands to protect my head, listening for the slightest sound of movement but all I could pick up were my own.

“Oooh!” This time, the soles of heavy combat boots hit my stomach and I fell on my back.

“You’re not focusing, Luan!”

I was hurting all over. I asked to be trained, not to be turned into a punching bag! Those days of my life were over!

“Get up.”

The ground was nowhere near comfortable, but at least as I lied there no other hits came. For that, I was grateful Reire wasn’t that cruel.

“Get up, Luan,” she repeated.

“I can’t,” I replied between pants.

“Get up or you will die. You have to get up.” Her boot nudged my arm, but my entire body was hurting; I was sure there were bruises all over.

“Get up, Luan!”

“I told you, ‘I can’t’!” I screamed as I tried to sit up. As I bent, my stomach doubled in pain, and I groaned, dizzy and nauseous to the point that I felt like throwing up my breakfast.

Her hand gripped my arm and she forced me on my feet. “If I tell you to ‘get up’, you get up, you hear me?” she yelled in my face.

I was about to yell back at her to let go of my arm when a voice interrupted. This one was softer and kinder, and I breathed in relief for I recognized who it belonged to and that my sorry ass had just been saved. “Let her be, Reire. She’s had enough for today.”

“But, Helia, she needs to –“

“I will see to it that her training progresses,” Helia interrupted. “For now, she needs to rest.”

Her grip on me loosened, then she let go. I could feel the hateful glare in her eyes and hear the spite in her tone. “She isn’t one of us.”

I bit my lip at her words. We weren’t on the best of terms since day one, but I was trying not to be a burden to them. I understood what I was asking for when I signed up for this.

“Your sisters will be the judge of that,” replied Helia.

I heard Reire’s heavy footsteps pass me, then fade away. I gulped.

“Helia?” I asked nervously. If I was left alone, I wouldn’t know how to get back.

“I’m here,” she said, her voice sounding louder. She had quiet footsteps and a seemingly ghostly presence that her voice was my only way of sensing where she might be. I reached out to my right, but she wasn’t there.

“Where?” I asked.

“Here,” she said again, this time coming from my left. I reached out to my left, but she wasn’t there, again. This isn’t funny!

“In front of you.”

I thought about it before reaching to my front. She could just be playing a joke on me again.

“Focus, Luan.”

“I’m trying,” I replied. “I really am.”

“Where are you, Luan? What can you hear? Feel?” I thought I heard the rustling of dried leaves being blown away before she continued. “You are still a werewolf, are you not?”

I nodded.

“Then … where am I?”

My surroundings were quiet. No wind blew. Nothing moved. When Helia spoke, her voice seemed to come from all directions. I was in the middle of the woods, and she was my only guide on how to return to camp.

To help me hear better, I slowed down my breathing to calm my beating heart. From when I fell numerous times earlier, there were dried leaves on the ground as well as scattered stones. I fell on what felt like twigs, so there should be a lot of them among these. Once my breathing calmed down as best I could, I concentrated on the sounds that I picked up.

It was quiet – too quiet. No sounds of footsteps. However, a human being made involuntary noises. Breaths, heartbeats, tiny fractions of movement that sent vibrations in the air, on the ground.

Everything stilled. My emotions quieted down and so did my thoughts. The rustling of leaves, the rushing river currents, the chirping of birds above – I heard all these, and I could picture them in my mind. I breathed deeply, making as less internal noise as possible, and I caught the scents of evergreens, decay, sweat, and something else.

“Whe-“

Three steps to my right, my hands reached forward and grabbed cloth. I stopped her from saying the word before it left her mouth; I already knew she stood there. I stopped her from moving to another spot, for I heard her steps when it came to a pause. I smiled. A gasp escaped my lips as I raised both hands in the air, letting go of her.

“What was that!” I asked. That had never happened before.

“You focused,” she replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “We rely too often on sight to experience the world, but more often than not we are deceived by what we see. You can be mad at the world for taking it away from you or see it as a gift. Now you can experience the world better, sharper, and truer. Besides, you are a werewolf, are you not?”

Helia held my wrist and made me turn to the left. “Now come. I’m sure you must be famished. Reire can be … harsh at times.”

“What’s her deal?” I asked. She could’ve taken it a little easy on me.

“It wasn’t exactly easy on her,” Helia explained as if reading my mind. “All your sisters here came from a similar background to yours. Some of them, worse, you can’t begin to imagine.”

“I didn’t realize a lot like me were treated the same way in their own packs.”

“You should talk to them more, Luan. You’ll be staying with us for a long time. It won’t hurt to get along with them.”

“I’ll try,” I mumbled. They had been nice and caring to me since I got here, except for Reire who seemed to have a problem with me since our first encounter. I was lucky to be alive. I woke up in a warm bed surrounded by strangers who saved me from the river bank. At least in this place, I was safe. Away from my pack, from my brothers, and my mate. No one could hurt me, and I would be strong enough so no one ever would.

Soon we reached the quarters, as they called it. We went directly to the dining hall. The chattering fell silent as we stood by the door. They respected Helia – she was the founder and was like everyone’s mother. I’d like to think by the way she speaks that she was nearing her senior years, and that her face looked kind though I couldn’t exactly picture it. For the past week, it was how I viewed what their faces might look like – through their voice. This made me proud of myself because I pictured all of them as beautiful.

Helia led me to one of the tables, then I felt someone’s presence in front of me as a plate was laid. “Thank you,” I said with a smile.

“You’re welcome, Lue.” It was Yula. Soft-spoken that she could a sing a lullaby and it’d work on me. “How was your training? Are you hurt?” she asked as she sat beside me.

I felt for the spoon. “It was rough, but I think I’m getting the hang of it,” I replied. If I could repeat what happened earlier with Helia, I might actually beat Reire over time. That’d be a thrill!

“So … you’re hurt?”

“Doesn’t look like I’ve done enough,” said Reire. I hadn’t realized she was seated near me. I took a spoonful of whatever was in the place. I was yet to get used to eating like this.

Yula nudged me in the arm. “I can take you to the infirmary later,” she whispered.

I think they’re intimated by Reire, and since Yula was a gentle person, she must be more affected than the others. Most of them here were loud, open, and carefree. I wouldn’t have suspected that they had a heavy past, too.

Helia was right. I should start bonding them too. I was free, and I had sisters around me. “Thank you, Yula. I appreciate it.”

We continued to eat in silence when someone slammed the table. The contents of the spoon spilled on my shirt.

“Oops. Did I scare you?” asked someone. Her voice was deep and taunting, almost scary if it hadn’t been for the slight drawl. I smiled at her while Yula dabbed on my shirt with a napkin – it was probably a napkin.

“Are you going to keep smiling at me or are you going to tell me how the food tastes?”

The room had fallen silent, and I could feel everyone’s eyes on us.

“The lasagna is good,” I said calmly.

“Yeah?”

“But I had better.”

“Ooohhhsss” came from around us. I knew who she was – the cook, Jaria. Cooking was her passion and so she experimented all the time. Sometimes the result was bad, and the sisters were food poisoned once, but none of them complained because she was, simply put, a heavy-set woman who could easily pass as a man who scared them more than Reire. At least, this was how Yula explained it.

I sat still, then I felt her breath on my face. Grabbing me by the neckline of my shirt, she pulled me up from my seat. “What did you say?”

“You heard what I said.”

Yula tugged at the hem of my shirt. The dining hall was so quiet I could hear them all clearly. Yula said Jaria had a bad temper – seemed true, but it didn’t come close to Samuel’s temperament. Samuel beat before he threatened, and it was only a few words that I had to remember.

Jaria pushed me back down my seat. Then her laughter echoed in my ears. “You have guts, newbie! I like that,” she said while laughing. “Reire, looks like you underestimated your trainee.”

Something sharp pierced the air then landed on the table. Jaria stopped laughing, and the tension grew tenfold. A chair pushed back scraped the floor, then heavy combat boots that thudded at every step. “Did I?” asked Reire threateningly.

“I’m just saying,” taunted Jaria, “that you could be wrong this time.”

“I’m never wrong,” she replied then threw something at me. I dodged to my left, the piercing metal hitting the wall behind me. “Picked up a few tricks, did you?”

I smiled. “I’m stronger than you think, Reire. I don’t know what you’ve been through, but you don’t know what hell I came from, too. I belong here just as much as anyone in this room.”

A collective gasp came from the spectators. Yula shushed me while Jaria chuckled. “Blind girl’s got spunk. Now who does she remind me of?”

“A dead girl,” replied Reire. “Training resumes after lunch. You think you’re one of us? You’ll have to prove it to me first.”

Her footsteps faded, then the door slammed shut. I should stop eating. I’ll probably lose them all later anyway. Sighing, I put down the spoon and pushed my plate away. The lasagna was good, but it reminded me too much of Ky. If it was possible, I’d have erased him … all of them … from my memories.

“Hey, uhm … Luan, right?” said a girl I’ve never talked to before.

“Call me Lue.” Luan felt too much like my old pack. Great, I’m starting to hate my name.

“I’m Lyra,” she said. “Do you mind if I sit with you?”

I shook my head. “Go ahead.”

After Lyra, a bunch of other girls started introducing themselves to me. I’d have to talk to them often to differentiate each one and remember their names. I didn’t realize it was this difficult when I couldn’t see their faces. All I had to go by was their voice. They all sounded kind to me.

I didn’t hear Jaria anymore. She must’ve left after Reire.

“That was really good, Lue. For a sec, I thought Reire would slam your face in the table,” said Lyra. The girls agreed and laughed.

“What’s her deal?” I asked. “As far as I’m concerned, I haven’t done anything to her.”

“You’re a newbie. Reire is tough on everyone, and newbies are no exception,” explained another. Her name … I think it was Kate. She had this shrill voice that could cut through a racket.

“Why?” I asked.

“So like, with every organization there’s like a first group right?” said Penny. “Well, I heard Reire’s part of the first circle.”

The girls were quick to silence her as they shushed collectively.

“What’s the first-?”

I got cut off by Yula’s finger on my lips. “We don’t talk about the first-“

Ssshhh!

“Girls, I don’t understand. What’s this about the … that thing that you don’t want to say?” I asked.

When I woke up, Yula explained to me where I was. This was the Red Circle, a safe haven for girls who were looking for a fresh start or needed a safe refuge. Everyone was family, and everyone learned how to defend their family. Helia was the founder, the “Mother”, and she convinced me to join them.

They talked in a hushed tone for me not to hear but I heard plenty. 

Is she here?

Should we tell her?

It’s not even true!

How would you know?

After a while, one of them cleared their throat. “We will tell you, but no one knows if it’s true. Don’t tell Reire we told you,” said Lyra.

I nodded. “I won’t.”

Penny continued the story. “So Reire was like the youngest of the fi- this circle. But in one of their missions, Reire lost her sisters. Jaria was one of the oldest circle, too. They don’t talk about it, and don’t seem like they’re close, despite having been in the same circle. Reire never talks about it, and if Jaria know what happened, she’s not talking either. All we know is that those two aren’t exactly buddy-buddy.”

“What about Helia?” I asked.

“Helia knows. Like … she should. But she keeps it under wraps. All we know is the Red Circle helps girls like us. We’re a family and we’re happy here. Right, girls?” said Penny and the girls voiced their affirmations. “Seems like whatever happened to Reire changed her. She’s strict on all of us and keeps us on our toes. She’s … difficult,” Penny added slowly, “but I think it’s because she cares the most. She lost her sisters. I don’t think she’d want to lose more.”

“Yeah … Reire’s … tough, but she saved my life once,” said Kate. Other girls said the same thing.

Now I kind of felt bad for judging her. I shouldn’t have taken out my anger on her when it was for my supposed family. The girls spoke of her with respect – something I didn’t give her just because she was beating me up on training.

“Thanks, girls,” I said, getting up.

“Where are you going?” asked Yula.

“Training,” I replied, pushing the chair back.

“I’ll take you to her,” she said, holding my arm. I gently patted her hand and removed her hold on me. “Thank you, Yula, but I can go there on my own.”

“I’ll see you all tonight,” I said as I counted the steps to the door. I could feel that they were following me, even when I was outside and was already making my way to the training grounds.

“I know you’re all behind me!” I yelled, and I heard a few giggles. “I’ll be alright. Don’t worry about me.”

After a few more steps, I finally felt their presence gone. “Thanks, Sparkles.”

“I wish I can do more.”

If I channel her energy, our senses were sharper. It made me faint during the first few tries, but I could share more and more of energy as I kept trying, as my body recovered from its previous condition.

“I’m glad you’re with me on this.”

She whimpered then retreated to the back of my mind.

When I decided to change my life, which meant putting the pack on the past including our mate, Leila and I argued nonstop. Only after a few days did we get to talk about things calmly. She felt guilty for convincing me to trust Ky, but she was just as hurt as I was.

We were stronger on our own, we always had been. We didn’t need a mate to protect us and cherish us. We didn’t need our older brothers to look out for us. We were enough. We’d show them. We’d show the world that Luan Laister and Leila a.k.a. Sparkles were a force to be reckoned with.

However, before anything else, I had to patch things up with Reire.

XXX