The ethereal-looking being was a few yards away when he gritted out, “I am being chased.” He practically collapsed into Adres’s arms, his eyelids barely open, a speck of his lavender irises showing. “Take me to the AZ.”
“Who are you?” Adres held the man securely in his arms, seeing he was far too beautiful to be a demon or a threat.
“It’s me… Orion. You do not recognize me?” The man sighed. “The curse still plagues your mind.”
“How do—?”
“You saved me when I was a boy and took me to a safe place after my land was raided and my parents’ slaughtered by a coven.”
Adres stared into violet eyes as flashes of him with a toddler under his cloak fleeing from a pack of wolves and rogue vampires appeared before him.
“I could feel the curse on you then, but my powers weren’t developed enough for me to help you.” He reached beneath Adres’s hood and touched his rough cheek, gazing up into his eyes as if he could see him through the hood. “I could not heal you then. But I can now.”
Adres’s eyes widened as he became light-headed, and the earth began to tilt under his feet. What kind of sorcery is this?
“You do not remember parts of yourself.” The man, Orion, splayed his long, narrow fingers along the scar that ran down his skull. “Those memories are not gone, horseman. You are half Titan; they were only locked away.”
Adres grunted as a sharp pain jerked his head back, but the disorientation didn’t last but a moment. Adres could feel that his light was brighter, sharper than before, and his mind was clear. Crystal. He remembered exactly who and what he was. And he was far more than just a horseman, and a lot older.
“I was brought from the fairy lands and the journey was difficult” the man whispered, his silky voice trailing off as if he was falling asleep. “I am the prophesy. The end.”
Holy goddess.
It was then Adres heard the sound of paws charging towards him.
“It is my scent, horseman. They won’t stop until they get to me and…” Orion clutched onto Adres’s cloak. “Get me to my mate, now. Hurry.”
“The AZ can’t be your—” Oh, fuck it. Adres didn’t have time to debate or figure out what was happening. All he knew was he had someone very rare and special in his arms, and he was calling himself Orion the prophesy. What Adres needed to do was not ask another question and get him to Justice now.
But, yes, his scent was a problem. There were hundreds of unmated betas and alphas in this area, which was what he assumed was coming towards him now. The man in his arms smelled ripe for sex, his pheromones pulling hard even on Adres’s senses, and he was partially mated. He’d fed from his cherished. He should not be so affected if at all by another’s lust.
This was dangerous.
Adres hefted Orion in his arms and climbed back onto his horse, cradling him as if he was holding a precious artifact. He mouthed a spell and threw his cloak over the man’s body. Just as he had two hundred years ago. “Hold on to me,” he murmured and urged Razboi to run faster than he ever had before.
Adres’s cape was flying up behind him he was moving so fast. He didn’t know what kind of injuries Orion had sustained, but he groaned in his arms as if he were in pain.
“Hang on,” Adres urged as he heard the sound of snarls and howls following the scent that he was doing his best to hide.
“I have to shift,” Orion said, his heartbeat getting slower.
Shift to what? Adres didn’t have to wonder for long. The weight in his arms changed to something more solid and muscular as he now clutched a white wolf with fur so soft and luminous that some of the strands appeared iridescent in the moonlight. Orion was beyond stunning, and he smelled like the Mother herself. Like nature personified.
Adres cleared the woods without having to blow any shifters out of his way. He saw Justice, Wick, Belleron, Aleksei, and Farica standing with Ramon in front of the king’s legion, waiting outside the main cabin with concerned expressions. Adres checked behind him one last time, hoping he’d made a large enough gap between him and the older shifters who were looking for something good-smelling to have fun with tonight.
“Adres, what’s happening?” Justice asked. “Who was at the border?”
Adres slung his cloak off and revealed the beautiful white wolf that was damn near glowing in his arms.
“Heavens.” Wick gaped. “What kind of shifter is that?”
“Holy shit! He’s a fairy omega,” Justice whispered. “Give him to me. He is in great danger.”
Adres frowned, holding the almost unconscious wolf tighter in his arms. “But his scent. He said that wolves will try to force him if—”