Marking Territory

+CHAPTER 3+ The Oracle

"I'm not getting any good vibes from here. This place is literally giving me creeps man." Connor suppressed a shudder.

"Don't worry I have been here before. It's not as bad as it looks." Darach replied without looking at his brother. 

The last time Darach was here he had almost burnt this damn house in his blind rage. He still remembers the day when he came here to know the whereabouts of his mate from this Oracle.

She had looked at him with her lifeless black eyes with sorrow.

'You are late my child she's dead, murdered by her own kin.' 

At that moment Darach had felt as if someone had pulled his backbone out of his body. All his life he had waited for his mate and she was taken from him by her own kin. Not taken MURDERED! He was boiling with

Contempt~

Rage~

No matter how many times he begged her to tell him the location of his mate's kin she never uttered a single word. In the end, he even threatened to kill her but she only gave a sadistic smile at his threats as if she found his threats amusing.

Now after centuries Darach was back at the same place to know the whereabouts of the Lycan's missing mates and his sister.

He had nowhere else to go. Oracles were rare, finding them was like finding a needle from a bundle of grass. And even if you find them they are very tricky and a breath away from the madness. Instead of giving an answer to your questions they talk in riddles which will leave you with more questions than answers.

Connor entered the house before him through the old wooden door which was hanging from it's hinged.

It was a small wooden cottage, the inside was covered with dirt, located in the middle of a dark forest. It seemed like it would fall at any moment. There was a small cot in the corner and besides that, there was not even a single piece of furniture or any other belongings in the cottage. 

The hair on the back of his neck raised as he got a sense of being watched. Darach turned around only to come face to face with the Oracle. 

She was dressed in a clean black gown with not a single dust particle on it but her black hair was a mess as if she had mopped the floor with them.

She looked not a day above twenty-five, a small girl with her young features and beauty. Her black soulless eyes were the only thing that implied her age.

Her eyes were unfocused as if she was glimpsing into another dimension. Suddenly her eyes gained focus again and they narrowed on them.

"The King and his warrior, so determined to slay their people's demons while refusing to face their own." Her voice echoed in the small cottage.

"Oracle we want our sister's location." Connor demanded, ignoring her ramblings.

"Ooh, what a shame... I thought that you wanted your own mate's location." She mumbled looking at Connor with a sorry face.

"Don't play games with me witch! My mate is dead." Connor warned with a low growl.

"Is that what you think? Poor wolf." She gave him a pitted look.

Connor's eyes flashed golden. His body was changing. Darach inserted his claws in his arm, trying to divert his attention. 

"Not today Connor! We are here for Lucia." He snarled at his brother. The Oracle's a fool for taunting Connor about his dead mate.

"Lucia... She's been attacked, arm and three ribs broken, lying on grass and bellowing in pain. Poor she-wolf must have messed with someone wicked powerful." Her word was enough to pull Connor out of his rage.

"How can we reach her?" Connor asked but the Oracle ignored him and turned toward Darach.

"I would have killed him for disrespecting me or for simply being a lycan. He's lucky that I owe you, dog. Only if you had come early we could have saved your mate, child." She said with her voice softening at the end, eyes shining with tears.

It was the first time Darach had seen a being like her to show this much emotion. He didn't know if he should be angry at her for bluntly calling him a dog or thankful for her condolences. Beings like her were rumored to be the most vicious fraction of immortals. They rarely show any emotions. 

"You lost your mate?" Came Connor's alarmed voice. He had a look of pure terror on his face. 

"Go North! Go to the wasteland where the snow is as deadly as hellfire. You'll find them there." She said with a distant look on her face.

Connor was ignored again but this time by both of them.

"Them...? Is that all you're going to tell us?" Darach asked. 

One moment she was standing near the door and in the next she was a breath away from Connor, staring at him creepily. It shocked Darach how she moved with such a speed that she was undetectable even to his own eyes. 

Fuck!

He had underestimated her. She had more wisdom and power than she revealed.

A deadly creature~

"Change before history repeats itself. Last chance wolf!! Don't f**k this up again. Change, accept and respect! It's not that hard." She gave a light pat on Connor's cheek and then she was gone as if disappeared in thin air. 

"What the f**k?" Connor uttered in a shaky tone while rubbing his hands on his face. 

Darach felt the same. She made no sense. Why would she owe him? He had done nothing for her besides threatening her life to impose his revenge on his dead mate's kin.

And why would Connor change? 

"Utter a word about my mate in front of anyone and you'll be as good as dead." He warned Connor and then left the cottage.

It will be a cold day in hell if Darach let anyone pity him over his dead mate.

At least now they have a location to find Lucia and the others. 

For the first time in his long... long... life Darach was feeling thrilled to see where this mission will lead him.

His inner Lycan was pacing in the cage of his mind as if waiting for something. . . The Oracle had filled his head with more questions than answers. 

Why the hell would Lucia go to the wastelands...? You only go there if you have a death wish. The climate there is deadly even to a lycan, not to mention the unforgiving snow and creatures of dark residing there.

Lurking in the shadows, waiting for a prey~

If Lucia was a fool enough to enter the wastelands than someone was already there who had attacked her. But then the question arises that who the hell was strong enough to reside there. .?