A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

Still feeling relieved from losing her connection to Elora, Emily turned to Seraphina with an apologetic expression.

"You know it's not about you, right? I trust you to have my back with the council, but I have a lot to make up for with Emma, and I won't run from that responsibility. Even if I'm afraid to hurt her again."

Although that wasn't the only reason she had decided to follow Erik, she didn't want to mention the darkness that continued to corrupt her soul with Emma there. Seraphina knew about it, however.

Despite Erik ignoring her, the vampire still looked at him with annoyed hunger and fury. Still, hearing Emily's words, she tore her gaze away and looked at the pale, dark-haired woman.

She nodded and sighed, "I know. But… just as I told your sister, I hope you made the right choice. After today, the council will label all three of you as fugitives."

Hearing her words, Emma smiled happily, "Don't worry, we'll be fine!"

She approached the vampire woman and hugged her tightly, "Don't think too badly about Erik, alright? He may not treat you as well as he should, but he has done very well by me and Emily. Surely that counts for something?"

Erik would have cheered and hugged Emma if that hadn't ruined the moment. He had been treating Seraphina harshly to humble her a little while feeding her his blood to make her desire him.

But he had been counting on his treatment of the sisters to make him seem like a better person in Seraphina's eyes and perhaps even want the same treatment for herself.

Emma's words couldn't have fit better within those plans.

The vampire woman looked at Emma's sincere eyes and matching smile for a moment before sighing and realising Emma was right. While Erik had been harsh on her, she, too, had been both antagonistic and suspicious the whole time she was here.

Perhaps she simply wanted to be the one to save these sisters and didn't like someone else showing up to do the job instead. Maybe she was also a little scared of how good Erik's blood tasted and how it made her feel.

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She looked at Emily, wondering about her old friend's opinion on the matter, but the pale woman just shrugged, "I don't know him that well yet. But I can't help but give him some points for what he's done so far."

Erik looked at Seraphina, wondering about her next actions when they suddenly heard a loud chopping sound approaching them from afar.

Erik, Emma and Emily had trouble recognising it, but Seraphina didn't.

She gained a complicated look in her eyes but seemed to make a decision before turning to Erik. "That is likely the lord commander's helicopter.

She is a third-rank, bear-type shapeshifter who loves fighting and prefers to do so with her hands and claws rather than a weapon. Her name is Katya Ironova.

Other than that, her affinity is metal, and she usually travels alone, even flying the helicopter herself, but that is all I know about her. Now, please knock me out so she doesn't suspect anything."

Erik immediately cursed inwardly. He had taken too long.

On the one hand, he was excited about the possibility of fighting a third rank, something he had done only once before. On the other, he knew he had very little chance of beating her, yet he couldn't let himself be taken to the council.

Who knew when he would be able to leave again? If ever? He refused to let his and Elora's fate be in the hands of others.

Regardless, it had been only about five to ten minutes since he was told this iron sentinel was even coming in the first place. He wondered if he would have been able to get far enough away to be safe from a helicopter in that amount of time.

His conclusion? Probably not. Not even if he had left the Ashcroft sisters behind.

He didn't like running and hiding anyway, so perhaps this was for the best.

He and Elora quickly began brainstorming ideas as the thunderous whirring of rotating blades slicing through the air came ever closer.

A few moments later, Elora and Erik reached a consensus. Erik quickly removed his armour, leaving him in the simple tunic and pants he had worn the day before. He handed it to Emily and Emma before giving them some instructions.

Keeping his armour and the things inside its storage compartment hidden from this third rank was a high priority, even if he had to fight her without it. He did keep his hammer with him, of course. There wasn't anything exciting about it anyway.

Next, he pushed a few vials of blood into Seraphina's hands, "These are as thanks for sharing what you know about this Katya woman. Now, I won't knock you out because I need you to play along.

It's for the sisters' sake, but I won't lie. You might be incriminated. That said, I suspect you have a powerful enough background that you'd be able to talk your way out of it, correct?"

Seraphina nodded but still looked uncertain.

Luckily, it didn't take much convincing to get Seraphina to help since she recognised the situation's urgency.

He explained what he needed her to do. When she indicated her understanding, he moved towards the estate's garden, where he had previously fought Seraphina.

The helicopter had, by now, reached the Ashcroft estate and was hovering overhead. On the side of it was a pale woman with light brown hair and a large grin, seemingly surveying the surroundings.

When she noticed Erik, her grin grew even wider. She seemed to disappear inside the machine momentarily before it moved over the garden and began landing.

But the same woman from earlier, presumably the iron sentinel, Katya, suddenly jumped down while the helicopter was still descending.

Erik looked in amazement as he saw the woman descend from a terrifying height, defying gravity with supernatural grace as her long ponytail flickered behind her.

With a thunderous impact, she landed on the garden's soil, her powerful legs absorbing the shock and creating a small crater beneath her. Dust and grass swirled in the air as she straightened, a towering and imposing presence amid a previously peaceful garden.

Erik had to admit that, while powerful, his body would not survive such a fall. Yet he also suspected this wouldn't be normal for third-rank Runebound, as he knew bear-type shapeshifters had some of the densest bodies in the supernatural world.

As Erik looked curiously at this woman, he noticed her sharp, blue eyes scanning the surroundings with an air of casual arrogance and a playful smirk on her lips.

He was surprised to find this woman only a little shorter than him, something he rarely encountered but didn't find unattractive. In fact, this Katya was a mature beauty with high cheekbones and a slender nose.

She was dressed in a simple white crop top which fit snuggly around her medium-sized chest and left the well-defined muscles of her powerful arms and the clear six-pack of her stomach out in the open air.

Her legs were covered by brown cargo pants, while her feet were bare. Most shapeshifters would leave their feet bare since it took too long to remove their shoes when they wanted to shift. Assuming they even took the time to take off their clothes.

Her attire was somewhat similar to Emily's. Still, Erik would think of the military with Katya, while Emily's clothes made him think of an edgy adventurer.

When she was done looking around, Katya honed in on Erik. She walked towards him with purposeful yet casual strides while observing him.

Erik made it a point to look unintimidated and even eager. Which wasn't hard, as that was precisely how he felt. Sure, she was stronger than him, but that only made him more excited.

And while he couldn't deny he was a little intimidated, his pride and excitement wiped that feeling out as soon as it appeared.

As Katya approached Erik, the helicopter had finished landing not far behind Katya, likely on some sort of autopilot.

She stood a few meters before Erik with her arms crossed, looking him up and down with a curious smile. Meanwhile, Erik did the same thing. After all, he had to awaken this woman's love for fighting.

Katya spoke up, grinning, "You must be the human that waylaid the Nightshade girl. I like the look in your eyes, but what is a human like you doing with a hammer like that?"

It seems Erik and Elora's assumption was correct. This iron sentinel knew very little about his fight with Seraphina. Something they could use to their advantage, even if Katya later finds out the truth.

Erik grinned back, "Who said I was a human? I just didn't need my full strength to beat that little vampire."

With those words, he quickly shifted, ripping apart his few clothes.

Less than a second of creaking, cracking and ripping later, the human Erik had been replaced by a werewolf with beautiful white fur interlaced with black marks in the shape of lightning bolts. A combination of his winter wolf and Raiju bloodlines.

He planted the head of his hammer on the ground, "But for you, I'll get serious."