Chapter Twenty-Four - Basement

Weeks later and I was sitting in the basement staring at Nathaniel in the cage. I couldn't believe after all the non-fighting I'd done with Darius, he still put me in a cage. Of course, my non-fighting status wasn't missed by Darius over the past few weeks where Azriel and I discussed how we were going to help when the war came. Which was today, hence the locking up. But then, my non-fighting status had also been a good thing, it had forced me to listen, to talk, to question my mate instead of throwing it all back in his face. Although, there was one question I hadn't braved yet: what was he other than wolf? Other than Omega?

When Darius had been structuring attack plans, I'd been with my mother, learning. I could move objects as good as people now. Then when Darius had called for fighting practise, he'd refused to fight me... Until I'd surprised him, planting his ass on the ground. Darius had immediaely got up, and as I was using my Fallen magic at the same time, he didn't come at me easily.

I whipped my head around, coming back to the present, as two wolves entered the room, Godric and Raziela. I'd asked them a few weeks ago, what had happened after the crash. They hadn't known, all they'd known was that they'd awoken with silver around their wrists. And Raziela, had slipped free, freeing the others. I could tell by Godric's face that he hadn't been too pleased with Raziela willingly touching and unlocking the silver before she'd said anything about being immune, but now, a few weeks later, I could see that he had accepted her.

I watched amused as Godric lead his mate into the same cage Darius had stationed me in, not trusting my word that I'd stay here instead of follow. He was right, of course, but I wasn't going to tell him that. I witheld my urge to grin as Raziela was placed in the same cage as me. Stupid Omega was putting a silver immune wolf in the same cage as me... was he trying to let me out?

Azriel and Darius came down then, Azriel growling about having to stay behind and Darius telling her that she had to keep me in the cage. If only he knew what me and Azriel had been plotting over the past few weeks. Once we were out of the cages, we had a car outside, just in the forest. It had been parked there this morning as patrols were called off as they were all leaving.

As Darius paused in front of my cage, Azriel did the same in front of Nathaniel's. While Nathaniel had been all giving with information that first time, since then, he'd changed. Of course, Azriel had admitted to drugging him all those weeks ago when I'd first found out that I was Fallen. She'd drugged him with a wolfsbane to loosen his lips. Since the wolfsbane had come out of his system however, Nathaniel had become more adimant than ever that Kalb Flow was doing the right thing. And even I could see how far he was pushing his mate. I was just waiting for her to snap. How in the hell did she survive a pack of wolves like this? How long did she spy for?

Turning back to the jade green eyes that stared at me through silver. I saw that Darius wasn't sorry for locking me in a cage. Bastard!

"Darius..." I drawled out quietly, it was said more like a question than anything else.

He shook his head. "You are my mate, Zarah. I don't want you in danger."

I growled. "You've marked an Alpha-blood, Omega! Don't except me to sit when told!"

Darius growled back. "You will stay here."

I moved as close as I could. So much for the non-fighting status. "I'll tell you what. If I get out, I'll return to my pack, and you won't see me." With all the blackmail he'd given me, I found turnabout fair.

Darius growled again. "I am your pack," he responded, moving closer.

I shook my head. "Not yet."

Harsh, but it nearly had the desired effect. He went to reach for the lock. But then he paused. Damn it, so close. He shook his head. "You won't get out that easy, Zarah," he said, realising what he was about to do.

I smirked, a fake confidence. "We will see, Omega."

Darius growled as I called him Omega instead of his name, something I hadn't done in weeks. Stalking out the room, Godric followed, leaving only Azriel free to roam the basement that was now empty other than her, Raziela, Nathaniel, and myself. You could have heard a pin drop if their hadn't been any noise from above. But that was then broken by Nathaniel yelling that "Kalb Flow would prevail!"; they would all beg for mercy... Until Azriel snapped.

"You want the truth about your precious pack?" Azriel snapped, making Raziela come closer to me. "No, they aren't healing a tear between planes, they're opening it back up. It was closed and 'healed' when the last of the nightmares that you couldn't even imagine, were sent through. The precious tear that they are about to create will allow nightmares back onto this plane."

"You lie..." were Nathaniel's words.

"When have I lied to you before, my mate?" she growled in frustration.

Nathaniel went to answer, but paused. Thinking. "When you were spying on my pack."

Azriel growled. "That was a job. Yes, I lied then, but only to others, I never lied to you. When have I lied to you since then, and name an outright lie I ever told you before then."

Again Nathaniel thought, but eventually, it looked like he was going to start picking at the very little bits, or make things up. But eventually Nathaniel sighed and I moved closer to the side of the cage where he was caged.

"Nathaniel?" I called, making him turned to me. "They, your pack, were going to kill me to not heal, but tear open the portal. Do you think a sacrifice, a bloody sacrifice is worth it? Don't you think, that if they were going to do anything good, that it would involve a neater, less bloody sacrifice?" I paused. "Come with us. Then when we get there, you can see what they are really doing and can decide then whose side youll fight for."

Nathaniel glanced from me to his mate. Nodding slowly. "I don't know who to believe, coming here... everyone believes they're doing good. But... if what you're saying is true, we can't have any more monsters here. There are too many already."

"Good," I replied, looking Azriel who nodded to me. Then we turned to Raziela. "Time to do your thing, Raziela."

Within minutes we were all out and Azriel was checking the Den. She came back ten minutes later saying that the last was gone. I couldn't believe how easy it was to escape. It was almost too easy. With either Azriel or Raziela the escape would have been easy. It almost made me wonder who else was in on it. Or was Azriel so trusted? But Omega's trusting so much? Maybe Darius and Godric had assumed that by Azriel having a mate, she'd want to protect her mate, and therefore protect us? I didn't know.

On reaching outside, we headed for a Jaguar hidden out of sight in the trees. Climbing into the passenger seat, Azriel took the driver seat. Nathaniel and Raziela climbed into the back seats. Turning around, I smiled to reassure Raziela, then as I looked at Nathaniel, I watched him frown for a moment, as he sat with a war going on in his mind. My only worry would be that he'd turn on us during the drive and attempt to hurt Raziela... Good point.

"Nathaniel," I started. "If you decide to turn on us, I won't hesitate to use my magic on you."

Nathaniel went wide eyed as Azriel growled along side him. "Don't threaten my mate, Zarah."

"Then make sure he doesn't harm my pack," I said back camly.

She sent me a glare but said nothing more and started to drive.

"I didn't think it would be so easy to escape," I stated, hoping for an answer.

Azriel glanced at me as we hit the main road. "Darius isn't my Alpha, I don't have to obey him. The only reason I'm following him is for his strength to stop Kalb Flow from succeding. But that doesn't mean I can't act like a good little wolf and lie to his face."

I smiled. "Thought you said you didn't lie."

"I never said that. I said I never lied to my mate."

Her words made me feel weary, although I knew she was against Kalb Flow, was she our foe as well? Had I trusted the wrong Omega? Only time would tell, but for now, I knew I'd have to take comfort in knowing that we were on the same roads that we had taken to get to the Omega's Den, but in reverse. But then I became wearier when I remembered Darius saying that only he, Godric, and Azriel wore white gold. The one thing that would stop my magic from touching them. Did she still wear it?

I tried to look as inconspicuasly as possible, but I couldn't see it... until Azriel sighed and lifted her hand towards me to show a white gold ring. "You're not very subtle, Zarah."

"Sorry," but I wasn't, and if by the smile of Azriel's face was anything to go by, I knew she knew I wasn't.

"Don't worry, Zarah. Im not going to touch you. Spilling your blood won't do us anything other than be giving Kalb Flow what they want. You're safe. And since I can't be bothered to fight while driving, so is Raziela. Well, that and Godric gives me an earache when he starts growling."

I held back my laugh at her reason. That was her reason? She wouldn't touch Raziela because Godric would give her an earache? I did smile though, letting my amusement out somehow instead of the stress that was seated deep in my stomach.

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