The Wolf Prince And His Treasured Pixie

Tunnel

The Alex POV

Morning came fast, as I relished in the feeling of my mate sleeping soundly on top of me.

Normally, I sleep soundly, but because of Ember's situation, I woke up multiple times during the night to check on her.

Occasionally I noticed her body temperature rising, but our contact seemed to prevent it from escalating into a high fever.

While she was sleeping, Aaron alerted me to the possibility that the spell might compel her to return to the Troll King in a trance-like state.

The fact that Ember was small made it simple for us to stay together during her struggle with the spell. It's a breeze for Ember to sit on my shoulder or rest in my hands. Aaron jokingly said she might fit in my pocket.

The completion of the bond with her was an amazing sensation that consumed my thoughts. My body already craved more of her, but I refused to until she was free from the spell.

“You need to get up now; trolls are closing in on our location. We're still surrounded, but we have a chance to reach the old underground tunnel Damien sealed if we move quickly. One entrance remains open,” Aarons’s voice rang in my head as I heard him run into the hide-out.

Gently placing my hand on Ember, I woke her up. “We have to go; it’s not safe here anymore,” I told her as I tossed on a shirt, and we left the room.

Blood dripped from Aaron's arm as he stood in the main room. Seeing my brother injured by a troll was a new experience for me.

“They are stronger than any of the trolls we have faced, Alex, as if they are a whole new breed,” Aaron informed me.

“How many did you spot, and how close are they?” I asked.

“Well, over twenty and a few hundred feet. They will chase us, but we are faster.” Aaron responded, catching his breath.

“Don’t worry, they did not see me enter,” he informed me as Ember flew to my eye level.

“I can help with dust. If I drop it over them, I can put them in a temporary state of confusion,” Ember explained.

“Ember, when you cast the illusion, it was clear it made you tired, maybe because of the spell. Would doing this be the same?”

“It may; all power comes at a cost. The more I practice, the more I can use it before exhausting myself. I’m sure your powers are similar.” She responded.

“Yes, they are. Please be cautious and only do what will not cause you harm,” I instructed her.

“I won’t, but please have more faith in me. As I’ve told you, I’m not as weak as you think.” She chimed.

“We will leave in just a minute,” Aaron instructed as Ember flew over and sat on my shoulder.

“You seem unsteady.” Ember pointed out.

“That spell they put on you, my brother said it may cause you to go into a trance-like state and force you to return to the Troll King. What if that happens while we are traveling to the tunnel? I can’t stop you if you fly away.” I admitted to her.

“Do you have any thread or small rope?” Ember asked.

“Rope, but it’s not small,” I responded.

“Show me?” Ember ordered as I went to a bin in the shelter and grabbed it.

“That will work since you can pull it apart. Rip a decent size, but thin enough you can tie it around me,” Ember instructed.

“I will not tie you up,” I mumbled.

“You’re worried about me flying away, right? If you tie a piece around me even though I could undo it on my own after a minute, it will at least provide you the ability to stop me before I can leave, right?” Ember stated.

“I guess you have a point.” I sighed as Aaron helped me break apart a piece of the rope so it was thin enough.

“Aaron, you control air, right?” Ember asked.

“Yes, I do,” he responded.

“Because of the rope, I can’t fly far. If I drop my dust, can you spread it over them by pushing it with wind?” she asked.

“Absolutely,” Aaron responded.

After securing the rope to her ankle and my wrist, Ember landed on my shoulder and together we left the hide-out.

We remained in hiding as soon as we spotted the trolls. Ember flew as high as she could with the rope. “Don’t breathe for a moment,” she instructed as golden dust rained down, and Aaron immediately pushed it toward the trolls.

Within seconds, the trolls began fighting each other, prompting the three of us to dash to the tunnel, which was slightly less than a mile away.

Around halfway to the tunnel, I detected the smell of a couple of stray trolls trailing us. Aaron shifted into his wolf, charging at them.

“Watch Out!” Ember yelled as two large arrows whizzed past me.

“I have to shift, Ember. Keep holding onto me, okay?” I informed her as I shifted. The rope remained intact around my wolf’s leg.

A giant troll caught up to me as I lunged at him, biting him in the neck and causing him to fall to the ground with a thud.

Two more caught up to me unexpectedly, as they were usually slow.

By focusing on my elemental power, my wolf unleashed a fire trail by slamming his paw down.

My wolf yelped in agony when a sizable object crashed into him. I became concerned that Ember's attachment to me might prevent her from flying away from the danger.

My tiny mate temporarily let go of me, flying as far as the rope allowed her to from my wolf as her wings flapped and another dust storm of dust dropped on the trolls.

The trolls started walking around as if they were blind to the world. Ember landed back on me and brushed her small hand over my wolf's head. “Run,” she demanded as I took off again.

Upon reaching the tunnel entrance, Aaron joined us in his wolf form. We then shifted back, exposed the door, and entered.

After entering, we closed the door tightly and locked it securely. The tunnel would take us directly into the Light Fae territory by the magnificent waterfall near Damien and Luna's cabin.

After pushing my back against the wall, I removed the rope from Ember and myself and then rested on the ground.

“You weren’t joking; they are like turbo-charged trolls now.” I coughed out as Ember flew in front of me.

“You’re injured,” she said, her voice quivering with concern.

“I’ll heal soon; my wolf will help, and once I get back to the palace and feed, I’ll be fully healed,” I informed her as my brother walked over to me.

“Both of you are injured,” Ember stated as she looked my brother over.

“Just like Alex, I’ll be fine, I’m not in as bad of shape as he is, but I’ve lost too much blood for him to feed off of me right now,” Aaron explained.

“Feed, wait because you both are half vampire. You need blood. Alex, you can take blood from me,” Ember offered as she quickly shifted into her larger form.

“I’ll be fine, Ember,” I mumbled.

Ember kneeled beside me and lifted my shirt, brushing her hand against my skin, causing me to hiss.

“That does not look like you are fine.” She expressed as my brother leaned over and inspected me.

“Ember is right, Alex. Whatever hit you did a good amount of damage. You are bleeding internally.” Aaron sighed.

Turning my head from my brother, I growled, “I said I’ll be fine.”

“Just as stubborn as our sisters, Ember offered to help, so let your damn mate help you, Alex. Do you want to make it back to the Kingdom with her or not?” Aaron snapped.

“Fine,” I groaned as I pulled Ember down against me.

“Are you sure you’re fine with this?” I asked, looking her in the eyes.

“Yes, you have done so much to help me, so please let me help you,” she responded.

Pushing down on the top of her dress so I had easy access to her chest but not fully exposed, I nuzzled my lips on her breast and kissed her before I bit in.

Ember’s body instantly reacted, melting against me from the pleasure my bite temporarily gave her.

“Go figure you have to feed from her there, you goof.” Aaron laughed.

The energy in Ember's blood was electrifying, and I could discern the power she wielded. She tasted unlike anything I had experienced. Was her blood special like my sisters?

I was completely healed with just a small amount so I licked over my bite and pulled back to look at her.

“I hope that did not hurt,” I whispered as Ember’s eyes met mine again.

“No, it felt good,” she responded, her body still calming from its effect on her.

Offering my wrist to my brother, he eagerly accepted, feeding on me briefly to heal himself.

Ember's lips, soft as silk, met mine while she sat on my lap, and I kissed her willingly.

“Thank you,” I said softly.

“Anytime, I’ll always help the one I love,” she chimed.

My heart thumped hard against my chest as my wolf howled with pure happiness inside of me. “Mate loves us.”

Before we began our journey to the kingdom, I embraced her one final time and helped her back up.

“That was pretty impressive out there with the troll, Ember. With your power, you could easily distract a large group of them, causing them to eliminate each other due to the confusion you caused,” My brother complimented her.

“I’m glad I could help.” She smiled bashfully.

“Imagine what she could do to a battlefield full of those goons. If war truly comes, Ember may be the key to our victory.” Aarons’s voice rang in my head through our mind link.

“She very well could be; we need to report back to Damien as fast as possible that the trolls have changed,” I responded through the link as I looked at Ember.

My mate’s power was awe-inspiring and could be helpful to the Light Fae kingdom. I would never coerce her into using it; Ember now has full autonomy over her choices.