Royal Academy: The Red Wolf Clan

Chapter 8

Orion's POV

A dull buzzing sound in my ear has me opening my eyes slowly. I look around the unfamiliar room, lifting my left hand and wincing when a sharp tug on my skin has me looking down. An IV line runs from my hand to a nearby stand containing a fluid bag, while a machine monitors my heart rate close to it.

" Where the hell am I?"

"Never been in a hospital bed before?" A tall man wearing a white coat and holding a folder in his hand says to me while approaching my bed.

I c**k an eyebrow at him in question and he chuckles softly before pulling a chair up near to the bed and sitting down. He opens the folder and flips through some papers before looking back at me, his face now devoid of any amusement.

"My name is Dr Kirkland. I am the head doctor here at the Clan" he says before looking back down at the papers in front of him.

"The Clan? What Clan?" I ask and he raises a surprised look at me before quickly recovering.

"Are you not from around here? The Clan is headed by Alpha Reed Royal and Luna Seraphina Royal. You were brought here by their request" Dr Kirkland pauses again while flipping through the pages and looks at me quizzically.

"Your scan came back. Your head CT is clear but we also did a full body X-ray since we were not aware of the reason you became unconscious. There are....old wounds and scaring" he looks at me again and I turn my head to avoid his gaze.

"None of that bothers me anymore. They happened years ago" I feel my chest tighten and the hairs behind my neck stand on ends as my mind wanders back to that night of horror. When everything changed.

Flashback

"Why don't we head to our favorite place?" I look up from the book I had perched on my knees while lying back in bed. My mother had a way of knowing when I was in a mood and she also knew the reason.

" I'm not really up for that mom. Maybe next time" I turn a page and then sit up straight when the book is snatched out of my lap. My mother waves the book at me before tucking it under her arm and attempting to give me a serious look. We both burst into laughter when she fails miserably. She walks over and envelopes me in a tight hug before pulling back to look at me.

"Your father means well. He's just not the type to know when it is he's trying too hard all at once" my mother says softly while ruffling my hair gently.

"Can we go look at the aurora lights?" I ask and she thinks for a while before smiling back at me.

"I didn't plan to take you there for a while. But maybe a short visit won't hurt?" She laughs out loud when I bounce on my bed excitedly before running to my closet to grab a jacket.

We walk out the front door and the night chill has my mother turning to me to zip up my jacket and wrap a scarf snuggly around my neck before taking my hand and leading me up the path towards the ridge. The walk took us a few minutes and as we got to the rock formations, a beautiful rainbow of lights rippling in waves could be seen in the night sky above us.

"Wow" I gasp and my mom leads me up to a spot for us to sit and admire the amazing view above us.

"I'm so happy you enjoy things like this. My mother took me to see the northern lights and the stars all the time. My father never approved. He said it made us soft. My mother always told him it made us human. To appreciate the amazing things the world gives to us without us having to give anything back. Always remember that Orion. Being human isn't the worst thing in this world"

She turns to smile down at me and it's like the most infectious thing. A broad smile pulls across my face as we both look back up to the night sky. The sound of something like a branch snapping has my mother turning and grabbing hold of my hand. She yanks me to my feet and stands in front of me as three rogues come out of the shadows. My mother stood still while the rogues growled and shook their heads back and forth. Drool and foam dripped from their muzzles and their crazed bloodshot eyes seemed to stare directly at me as I peered around my mother's back.

"Mom" I whisper and I feel her grip tighten on my arm before one of the rogues rushed forward, bearing its long canines and lifting a paw, long claws projecting forward. I wait for the impact as I shut my eyes tight and grip my mother's waist with both hands. When nothing came, I opened my eyes to see the rogue slumped on the ground motionless and my mother's body began to tremble.

"Orion, I need you to run while I distract the other two okay" my mother commanded and I shook my head while gripping her tighter.

"I'm not leaving you alone mom. I'm staying with you" I protest but my mother grabs my shoulder and shoves me hard in the opposite direction as she baits the other two rogues towards her.

"Run Orion! Get your father! Go Now!" she shouts just as one of the rogues lunges towards her and the other turns its head to growl at me viciously. I look over to my mother and our eyes lock for a second before a bright yellow beam of light streams out from one of her hands and hits the rogue looking at me. The rogue slumps to the ground and I watch in horror as the other rushes towards my mother who was looking at me still with a pained expression on her face.

"Mom!" I yell out just as the rogue clamps its mouth on my mother's shoulder and they both tumble over the edge of the stone ridge. My mother's scream dies down and I run over to the edge. A pitch black abyss is all I see below as tears run down my face.

Flashback ends

I feel the moisture drip onto my hand and I reach up to wipe at my face. I look down at my damp fingers and then up toy present company once more.

"Like I said doc, old wounds, nothing to bring up again"

Dr Kirkland merely nods his head and stands with a click of the pen in his hand. He glances at the monitor and nods solemnly before moving to leave the room. He stops at the door and turns to look back at me.

"I dont want to assume where those injuries came from, but from my experience those aren't things you could forget easily. The broken ribs didn't heal too nice and the scar tissue from the burns aren't pretty for the muscle tissue in your lower abdomen. We have healers here. So if you want them fixed the way they should be, just say the word"

I watch as he walks out the door and closes it shut before taking a shaky breath and groaning when my chest protests. I look down at my hands and think back to what transpired at the clearing with Magnus and the wolves. My mind drifts to Rosalie and I briefly remember her hunched over me, her face covered in tears. I reach up to run at my throbbing temple when I hear the door open again.

"I told you I'm fine doc. I don't need a healer"

"If he recommended a healer then I suggest you take him up on that offer"

I look up to see Rosalie's mother standing at the door and watching me. Her eyes dart down to where my pendant lay cool on my chest and my hand instinctively reaches up to cover it, even though it was below my hospital gown. She c***s an eyebrow at me but I keep my face an expressionless mask as she takes a few steps closer.

"I came to tell you your father is currently speaking to my husband. And no, we didn't call him" she answers quickly when my mouth opens to ask the very question. I nod silently as she walks into the room and stands behind the chair the doctor vacated earlier.

"Go ahead, ask" I say and she doesn't react. She walks around the chair and sits, never breaking eye contact. She leans back in the chair and studies me before speaking again.

"You're a decendant of the Rostover family"

I feel my heart still in my chest as she looks at me silently, not saying anything more. When I don't respond she leans forward and rests her hands on her knees.

"That pendant is the crest of the Rostover family. A royal fae family. I am of fae blood as well. I served in a royal family guard" she says and then clasps her hands together while continuing to watch me.

"I don't know what you're expecting me to say to that. My mother gave this to me when I was younger. She said it belonged to her father"

Rosalie's mother leans back again and nods before standing suddenly. Her eyes glaze over and I know she's speaking to someone through their link. Her eyes clear again and she looks to me.

"Your father wants to see you"

The monitor beside me begin to beep erratically and a nurse comes rushing in. She presses a button on the monitor and the. proceeds to check my pulse with her fingers.

"He needs rest Luna. I'm giving him a sedative "

I glance to my side again to see Rosalie's mother walking towards the door silently. She turns before she leaves and nods silently as though understanding my silent plea. My eyes feel heavy as I look at the nurse finishing up clearing the needle from my IV access. I close my eyes and give way to the dark recesses of my mind.

Maybe when I wake up, this would all be a very bad dream. Hopefully.