The Tiger Luna

Bloodlust

Ragnar helped her support her father's weight as they headed towards the door and she was thankful for his presence. Salem, her father's tiger, was no small creature and he was so thoroughly drugged that he could barely keep his legs beneath him. Frost chose to remain human this time around because she could more easily use her magic and that fact made her doubly thankful for Hail. She was well aware that she could not have gotten her father out in her human form without help. She would have died before she left him though. She had spent the last seven years believing him to be dead and it had nearly broken her.

As soon as they exited the room containing his cell, Frost knew she had made the right decision in remaining human. In front of them stood four guards, all with guns aimed at the three of them and all of them seemed ready to pull the trigger. She did not wait for them to make any threats or offer them to give up, she tapped into her magic and watched as they dropped the guns which had turned red hot. The guns lifted back into the air without a touch and the echoes of three gun shots rang through the hall simultaneously. Blood splattered the pristine white of the walls and a lesser woman would have gagged, but she had waited many years to get her hands on these detested poachers.

Ragnar watched her with concern, certain this pull the trigger without thought was not his mate's usual response. If they had not been in the midst of enemy territory, he would have taken the time to inquire about her motives, but as it was, they needed to hurry. he did the only thing that seemed reasonable and decided to wait until later to question her murderous actions. He shouldered more of her father's weight and nudged his mate towards the door. Thankfully she did not hesitate, rushing towards the door and he followed her through.

The sight that met them once outside was less than desirable and Ragnar released a growl of frustration which was echoed by Hail. The guards had caught on to their plan and converged around the power supply that Frost had blown earlier. There were at least forty men with weapons aimed at them and the warriors who had not slipped back through yet. Frost was unfazed though and raised her chilling soprano. "If you do not wish to die for the crimes of other men, I suggest that you leave now. Any man still standing here when I am done speaking will die... The choice is yours."

The men looked at the grounds, noting how terribly their opponents were outnumbered and there were chuckles heard all around. The one that must be the leader stepped forward and opened his mouth. "Listen, little girl-"

His words were cut short when a dagger sliced through his neck, Frost appearing before him as though she had been there all along. She felt his warm blood dripping down her forearm as she held her other hand out, ripping the weapons from the remaining guards hands. "I gave you a chance to run... Now you die." Her ocean eyes were shot through with crimson at this point and her body blurred out of sight as she began slaughtering the foolish guards. Some she killed with magic, but most of the men who fell, fell to her blade and she could feel the gory evidence dripping down her face, coating her flesh. She was well aware that she most likely resembled something from a graphic horror movie and she couldn't find it within herself to care in the slightest.

She could feel Ragnar pushing to mind link her, but in her bloodlust she blocked him out, not wanting to hear the voice of reason. It did not matter to her that these men most likely had families and loved ones. How many people had they and their employers ripped away from families without a single thought? She had offered them a chance at salvation and they had refused. That was their own stupidity for not sensing the ominous power rolling off of her like a raging ocean. Had they not been so foolish, she would have let them survive, but she was a woman of her words and they had chosen death as far as she was concerned.

She pulled her dagger from the chest of the man in front of her, flipping it expertly in fingers and turned to the next. Just as she was reaching the man who fleeing for his life, a raised voice froze her in her tracks and the surviving guards scurried away like c**k roaches in the light. "Frost! Enough!" Once she had turned to face him, Hail softened his voice and started towards his mate. She looked like an avenging angel as her chest heaved to drag in air, blood dripping from her hair into her face, down her chin onto her chest. There was not a speck of skin visible through the sheen of blood that covered his little mate. He was not appalled by her appearance, on the contrary, he found her frightening retribution utterly fascination, but he doubted she would feel the same once her mind cleared. "You have made your point, kitten. I doubt you want any more blood on your hands and those men have surrendered."

Frost shoved a matted strand of hair out of her eyes and glanced up at her mate, curious to see what he felt. She had no doubt she was truly a gruesome scene right now and she wanted to know how he would handle it. Would he be repulsed by her and her need to make the poachers pay? "I'm more than capable of accepting the blood on my hands, mate. These men deserve to die and I gave them ample opportunity to leave. The ones that escaped only survived because you let them. I'll allow them to live because they got away, but I would not have cared to kill them all as well. Can you accept the blood dripping from my face?"

Hail studied his seemingly unoposing mate, making a mental note to never get on Frost's s**t list. To a mere human her venomous words and actions may have seemed overkill, literally, but he was no human and she was his Luna. An Alpha's job was to protect their pack and a Luna was meant to stand by his side, but his was so much better. The goddess had seen fit to gift him with a mate who would go into battle with him and protect his back. The only reason he had been so against a mate was because he knew he would constantly worry for her safety and lose focus on his job, to protect the pack , but that would never be a problem with his mate. "I can more than accept the blood on your face, I can revel in it. We have a f**k ton to talk about, but I'm more than happy to see that you have no qualms fighting for what you believe in. Let's get your father and the others to the pack hospital and then we can talk. Shift and let's get back to the vehicles."

I am not shifting right now. You may be alright with Hail seeing you covered in filth, but I'm not ready for Ragnar to see me that way, Cleopatra said prissily and Frost snorted. "Cleo just informed me that I have to bathe before she'll shift." Her tiger hissed in annoyance at the use of childhood nickname and she smiled in response. "I can walk back and then find a creek or something to wash off in."

Hail raised an eyebrow in confusion and couldn't keep the same from his voice when he spoke. "What do you mean she won't shift? All I have to do is think and then he takes over, sometimes without my consent."

Frost shrugged as though it wasn't unusual at all. "Everyone knows that cats are much more temperamental than dogs," she teased as she made her way way back to where he stood with her father. She stood in front of Salem, who was now standing without support and ran her fingers through the fur along his neck as he leaned into her touch. Her father was a strong creature, fueled by even stronger magic so she was unsure of how often they would drug him and how long the Deiffenbachia would affect him. "Are you able to make it or do you still need our help, Papa?"

The giant weretiger, larger even than Ragnar, shook his head and chuffed, pushing her ahead. She knew what he meant and stepped aside as Salem stretched to his full height and touched his muzzle to her forehead. I never thought I would be blessed enough to see you again, cub. I thought my sweet little hibiscus was forever lost to me. We need to escape this place and I've gained enough of my senses to get out of this hell on my own. Lead the way.

Okay, Daddy. Follow me. She turned her attention to Hail and gave him a brief smile, nodding towards the fence. "You can shift and follow me, papa says that he's capable of continuing on his own."

"You can ride on me so that you don't fall behind, my love."

She scoffed at the idea, rolling her eyes at his comment because it meant he thought she was incapable. "I assure you that I am more than able to keep with you, or did you miss my attack on the guards, dear mate?"

He growled at the mention of her bloodlust, the evidence of which was still dripping down her bare flesh and had to fight the urge to take his mate right there. She was everything that he had never known he wanted, but it was most definitely not the time to explore their newfound bond. "Trust me, I will never forget your show of power, little mate, but we need to move quickly. I did not want you to fall behind."

"Thanks for the consideration, darling, but how about you try to keep up with me?" she teased, taking in his godlike nudity. He shifted before she finished issuing her challenge and she grinned. She was going to enjoy showing Ragnar up as well. She took off towards the fence once she made sure they were both behind her and melted a section of the fence away in process. Her father may be feeling better, but he was still not at full capacity and she didn't want him falling behind. She slipped through the hole she had created nimbly and her feet were sure as she picked her way back through the swamps. She had to be careful to watch her step as the terrain was treacherous and one misstep would land her in the water which was murky at best.

Frost's nimble feet found the most effective path and she hoped the other two would be able to follow. She may be able to find her path, but she belonged where she was and nothing could ever change that. The gap in the fence was miniscule, but her father got through it easily and she continued. It did not matter what existence said she could handle, she was the mate of a Lycan and they could survive anything. She wasn't meant to survive the transition to become a Lycan, but the goddess had made it so. Mates formed from the bond of Fate did not survive the transition, but she had always thrived.

She should not have been as powerful as she was, but there was no escaping it and he was well aware of it. The Lycans were unable to force humans into anonymity and they were well aware of their power. In their current situation, they knew that humans held all of the power and they had to meet those longings. She could vanish into the greenery and become smoke, but did that mean that she could bring in the harvest of the new existence

Frost knew how to disappear into the Everglades, but did that mean she was a sorceress? He could hide no matter the circumstance and she was his weakness no matter the source. He was well aware of the darkness that existed within her and he would not concede. She was his mate and there was no way that he would ever let her slip through his fingers. It was completely unheard of for a Lycan to be mates with anyone aside from other wolves and occasionally a fox, but never another breed altogether. The goddess had definitely broken the mold when she created their mate bond and he wanted to delve deeper into the implications, but he had to get her to safety first.

Her form blurred as she picked her way through the boggy grounds and Ragnar stayed hot on his mate's heels. He did keep a close eye on her father to ensure he was keeping up and was not disappointed. Exactly how strong was this family? He knew that the Saber bloodline was powerful, but it was thought to have been wiped out decades before and not much was known about them. He wanted to know what would happen now that they were mated since it had never been done before. Most of the time a mate would gain the stronger ones abilities and when it came to Lycans, their mates gained a Lycan and became more powerful.

That would not be possible for Frost because she was a feline and did not possess any canine qualities. The other fact remained that he was fairly certain that she was the stronger one in this instance. She had magic, magic that her tiger could also tap into and that was something else unheard of. In cases where shifters had magic, it could only be used by the human counterpart and their beasts were unable to access it. What was his mate that all of these rules seemed to not apply to her. She could already link his pack without being initiated into it and she could connect with him over greater distances than even his pack could. What exactly was his mate?

She had shown a proclivity for more bloodlust than he would even usually unleash and she did not feel guilt. In fact, she had only let the remaining guards survive because he had interrupted her and they were not worth chasing. She was more than capable of protecting herself and that was something he had not been prepared for. He had always thought that it was his duty in life to protect his mate, but she had proven more than able to do that on her own. He still had reason to protect her though because now that the poachers had seen her, word would spread of the weretiger who had almost wiped out an entire den of poachers single handedly. They would eventually come for her and he would burn their corporation to the ground before he let any of them touch a single hair on her head. She was his, now and forever, bloodlust and all.