His Beauty, My Beast

Dark Aura

Moments after Jewel returned to the palace...

Jewel met with Khalil in a different part of the palace. Near the archives, where they would not be overheard. Jewel was happy. Like her brother, she too knew the office had a listening device and knew that when Khalil revealed his mate, their enemies would come out of hiding. As a princess of the palace, she was well trained in fighting and castle politics as Khalil had been, and she was quick to hone her own power of sensing emotions growing up with Khalil as well. Another talent she had was for setting traps.

She made sure the twins had seen her staring at them after she entered the palace, as if trying to inform them she knew. She already knew Khalil was fine, as the lycan nature’s wore off any curses and spells. Knowledge that they only kept in the family for instances such as this.

“Yes, Princess Jewel?”. Amber spoke out. Amber was slightly nervous. She never cared for Jewel. She always felt as if Jewel could see into her soul. Or maybe it was her power to read emotions that she didn’t like, and Amber’s emotions were sending waves. Jewel smiled slightly.

“Oh nothing. I'm just heading to a meeting with Khalil. People speak and do some of the most interesting things outside of the palace, you know," Jewel said slyly. Amber’s panic soared through the roof as she tried to keep a straight face. Mecca sensed his twin's distress as Jewel kept waking. Jewel knew they would never try anything with all the guards around, and even if they did, she could end their lives just as quickly. She was a skilled fighter, after all.

“Is everything okay?” Prince Mecca asked. He asked. Something was not right. He could feel it. Had they been overheard? he wondered. Jewel simply smiled.

“Of course," she said, before heading to the archives. She could feel eyes on them and knew Khalil was watching from afar, making his way to the archives as well. Lycan's hearing stretched much further than that of a normal werewolf, and he knew exactly what Jewel had planned. Leave this area. He stood guard at the doors once he reached the long hall that led to the archive library. The guards moved fast for their prince, noticing the darkness in his eyes. When Khalil was like this, he was cold and calculated, and they did not want to be anywhere around him when his bloodlust seeped out and shook the ground. Jewel reached the archives, listening to Mecca and Amber speak behind her, and they attempted to trail her secretly, not even paying attention to the guards being sent away.

“Do you think she knows?” Amber asked. Mecca shook his head.

“No, we would have heard and seen her if she were, but we should still see what they need to talk about. Maybe they want to discuss how to kill Nia’, Mecca said, hopefully. That relaxed Amber a bit. She held her head high.

"Well, she is only human after all. I'll gut the b***h myself," Amber said, letting Mecca’s words go to her head. Khalil would love her; the spell would see to that, but the moment they stepped inside those double doors, all of their fears were brought to life. Two lycans, one black and one white, with the black being a bit larger than the white, stood there with claws out, waiting for them. It was common knowledge that wolves could not speak, and yet nothing terrified her more than when the deep animalistic voice came from Khalil, speaking as if he were a human in lycan form.

“Plots against my mate and me? In my f*****g KINGDOM. You should know that lycans are protected by magic. We cannot be spelled," he growled out, his eyes staring into the very souls of Amber and Mecca.

“P..Plots. What plots?” Amber said nervously, making Jewel growl. Amber started backing up slowly. This was wrong. This was all wrong.

“Prince Khalil, we came here to make a pack. Surely you know we would never plot against you," Mecca said, feeling the immense darkness radiating from Khalil's lycan. Never had he ever felt anything as sinister as the aura emanating from Khalil, and it was enough to make any wolf pray for a quick death.

“Shall we eat them?” Jewel asked her brother, her eyes shifting back and forth between the twins. Mecca and Amber’s eyes widened as they heard Jewel’s question, and Mecca dropped to his knees, pulling at Amber’s red dress to kneel as well and keep their heads down to appear remorseful.

“We are sorry. Prince Khalil. Please, just send Amber home. You can kill me instead.” Mecca

said, but Khalil had another idea.

Fight each other to death. The winner will be declared innocent of all charges, he simply said. Jewel looked at him, understanding her brother’s darkness. They could have stayed with their human counterparts, but Khalil was never himself when he shifted into Lycan form. He was more cold and dark. She shifted to make sure he didn’t go on a killing rampage against everyone in the palace, especially Nia. Jewel couldn’t be too sure.

“I would never do that," Prince Mecca growled out. He loved his sister, and his sister loved him. Or at least, that's what he thought as he looked down, seeing a hand holding his heart from a hole punched through his chest. He looked up to see the guilty face of Amber, who shed a tear.

The betrayal was evident on her face as she looked down at his shocked one. She must have snuck behind him when he was not looking at her. Mecca’s dead body fell forward, blood staining the white tiles on the floor.

Eyes shifted to Amber, who looked up, eyes filled with tears.

“So you will pardon me, right?” she said, but the smile on Khalil’s lycan face showed his razor-sharp teeth, and she then knew she had killed her brother for nothing. As the realization sank in, she dropped to her knees in horror.

“Just make it quick," she said, bowing her head. The sage was right. Casting that spell would come at a cost. Their lives.

"Now, why would I do that?" Khalil said, shifting back into human form, naked. Jewel shifted as well, grabbing the clothes behind her and putting them on. She threw Khalil a pair of shorts, and he put them on as well. Amber stayed on the ground. Submissive. Weak. Smart enough to know not to try to escape because it would be pointless. She was locked in with two Lycans alone. They would rip her to shreds for what she had done. She wished for a quick death. A mercy death so she could join her brother in the underworld and beg for his forgiveness, but Khalil had just made it clear he wouldn’t make it quick.

“Jail her and send an envoy to her kingdom with these terms. Surrender, or she dies," Khalil said, not even sparing Amber another glance.

“My father will come and rain blood on this kingdom. Kill me right now, you fucker," Amber growled out. She wanted to provoke him into a quick death for her, but Khalil was smart and would not fall for it. He stopped at the door but did not turn around.

“Break what you desire," he simply said to Jewel. The last thing he heard coming out of the archives was the sound of bones breaking and Amber’s screams as they filled the halls. Khalil shook his head, trying to get the darkness out of his head again. When his bloodlust entered his mind, it clouded him until he only had two things on his mind. Hurt……..Kill.

As Amber killed Mecca, only one thing crossed Khalil’s mind. Nia. Nia would be devastated if she saw him torturing people like this. The look on her face she would probably give him was enough to clear the dark fog from his mind. He shook his head. What was wrong with him? Before, something like this wouldn’t bother him, but now Nia was in the picture, and he could not show her the animal he really was. He realized he didn’t want to lose her. He even contemplated giving Amber back to King Metro. Almost.

Metro was most likely behind this act. He had been trying to destroy the Ravenwood Clan for a long time. Khalil’s father had bigger matters to attend to, and always tried to act with peace, even after the death of his wife and mate, but Khalil was different. War and blood was his talent and he was damn good at it. But then he met Nia. A soul just as lost in the dark as he was, and now she was dying. Was this punishment ? The first light in his darkness was fading. A beauty who did not deserve such fate, while he remained nothing but a beast.