Found by the Lycan King by Natalie Winter

| was sitting on the edge of my seat as he kept narrating with a faraway look in his eyes.

“Back in those days, Selene was far more approachable. She was a lesser Goddess whom we could meet easily.

The fact that she created us was also a bonus. Lastly, | being the Lycan King and commander in chief of her forces could request for a special meeting with her. | would mostly meet her to report about the progress and the death toll though she was not really interested in the latter.” My jaw dropped at that. “You have met Goddess Selene?” “In the flesh though | am not sure if Gods and Goddesses have a heart.” He replied though there was no admiration in his voice. In fact, there was scorn in his tone as he spoke about her.

“Initially, the power and strength flowing throughgavea certain adrenaline rush as | would kill the mages and witches easily. The proud smile on her face, when | would report that we had thwarted the enemy and infiltrated their ranks, would motivateto keep pushing myself. At first, | was just an ordinary soldier but the need to please her madebecbolder and crueler. Soon, | began leading small groups to deviously trick the wizards and kill them, using not just strength but tactic as well.” | nervously bit on my lower lip as he continued, “But soon | found myself feeling it increasingly difficult to fall asleep. The screams and cries of the enemy | killed would ring in my ears 24/7. After the first few weeks, killing people began to hauntinstead of givingjoy. | began to loathe myself and the person | was becoming.

Selene however was pleased by my contribution, saw the earlier spark in my eyes, and promotedto becher direct subordinate. | should have rejoiced and celebrated that | quickly climbed up the ranks but | began to hate it. | could not live like that anymore” He took a pause and looked atas he asked, “Funny right? You would think that the lycan King is too strong and too cruel to be affected by killing. You must be thinking | am such a coward right now.” My silence had probably made him doubt himself.

“What? No! Why would | even think that? It only shows that you have a heart...and a conscience.” Callahan scoffed, “Though | must admit, the pain of my comrades affectedmore than that of the enemy. | began to loathe the mindless killing so one day | decided to do something about it.” “You...stopped fighting?” | asked.

Callahan shook his head. “I could not disobey my superior’s direct orders. | was manufactured for killing so | had to inform her of my stance and hoped that she would take note of my plight.” - His shoulders ‘sagged and | could get a sense of what must have . happened.

“One such day when | was supposed to give her the weekly report, | pleaded with Selene to enter a truce with Mirabel. Mirabel was a powerful sorceress but she was still a human. Selene was a lesser Goddess so she could not digest the fact that a mere human was giving her a tough time. It was hurting her self-esteem. She had to prove it to her father that she was worthy of being a true Goddess and take the moon throne that was truly hers, according to her, at least.” “So, you...I mean Goddess Selene chose violence?” Callahan finished the whisky in his glass and poured himself one more drink.

“She was adamant that we could win against the witch and prove her worth to her father. And Mirabel was the only one standing in her way.” | looked up so fast at that line that | almost snapped my neck.

“Her father? You've met Selene’s father as well?” Callahan shook his head, “No, | haven't. Nor do | care. | was only allowed to meet Selene since she was my direct superior. She wanted to rule the earth and get her status elevated to a true Goddess. Her father could do that, crown her as the moon Goddess. She already had created us so she had followers and worshippers as well. It was supposed to be easy but it was not. Eventually, that did happen...however, | paid the price for it.” He answered, downing the glass of whisky in one go. He began to reach for the next but | stopped him.

“Cal, stop. You have to stay sober and sane. You have had enough drinks.” He snorted, a pained smile appearing on his lips. “The only reason | could tell you all this is because | am drinking. That way, | can tell myself that | did it under the influence of alcohol. Or the guilt would eatalive.” | could not even imagine how he lived so far while keeping all of this to himself. | had had trouble falling asleep after my mother’s death and even Luna Celeste’s torture used to givenightmares. And here Callahan was subjected to cruelty by the very Goddess who was supposed to look after him.

How had Callahan not gone insane with all that weight on his shoulders? He was the one sharing his story withbut | felt as if | was the one whose heart was being squeezed by someone.

| got up from my chair and held his hand, stopping him from lifting the bottle again. My palm rested on his as he looked atwith a grief stricken face.

“Please Cal, | understand you are in pain. | can see it on your face. But, | cannot see you breaking down like this.” Callahan gritted his teeth. “If you want to hear the rest of the story, you have to letdrink. Because | do not want to handle the pain while being sober. I...I cannot lose you too, Zee.” | squeezed his hand gently. “You are not losing me, Cal. | don’t care about the curse and how it would affect me. | should have died the moment you shared your secret withbut | am still breathing, right?” His other hand reached for my cheek and his thumb stroked my skin gently.

“If anything happens to you because | shared all this with you, | would not be able to forgive myself, Zee.” At that line, the anchor bond tugged at me. My gaze flew to my wrist as | felt a tingling sensation where our bond was located.

“What happened?” He asked, sounding alarmed.

| raised the wrist to show it to him. “This bond of ours....whenever you experience a spike in emotions, | feel it.

Not just there...” | pointed at my wrist and then turned the sfinger toward my heart.

“....but also here.” “I have already told you a lot, Zee. | should stop now.” But | shook my head. “No, | want to know all of it. My faith in the moon Goddess might have shaken but my faith in you still stands strong. | know you would not even have uttered a word toif there was a risk of anything happening to me. So clearly, there is either a loophole or you are hiding something fromeven now.” | said it with a certainty I felt in my gut. Despite the pain in his voice, he smiled.

“You are smart, aren't you?” I jutted my chin up and replied, “I know you. You locked yourself up in the room and kept askingto leave when you thought you were losing control of your lycan. You tried to run away fromwhile you still could. So, you would never ever willingly do something if it would hurt me.” Callahan shrugged, “Well, | saw the three Goddess of Fate at the ritual. Well, their... statues. And for the first tin forever, | sincerely prayed to them to not let the curse affect you.” “You...you prayed?” | asked, shock and disbelief apparent in my voice.

“Surprised | turned into a believer from an atheist?” “Surprised that you did that for me.” “I...just thought maybe the Goddesses of fate could change something Selene subjectedto. Only sdivine power could do that | hoped. And | am glad that they fulfilled my wish.” Maybe, | should go back to the statues and pray to them to take the curse off completely. However, | doubt it would be that easy. They did not change the curse in its essence as Callahan is the bearer of the curse, not fi | was not sure if fate was powerful enough to defy the wishes of a Goddess....a true Goddess as Callahan told me. My mind was churning with possibilities of how to break this curse and just trying to hold on to stray threads.

“Still wantto continue?” Callahan asked, draggingout of my thoughts.

My voice was barely a whisper, “Yes” “Then | have to have that drink. | need it to talk about the thing | am about to tell you.”