The bond between female and guard is cemented with a kiss. But this is how it is done among shifters. Ella is human, and I wonder if the bond can be sealed in this way.
I sigh heavily as I try to push down the fierce possession deep inside me as I hold her. It is easy to see that my brother struggles with this too. I know we’re not the first to feel this way, and we certainly won’t be the last. I should be grateful we have this time with her alone... before everyone else arrives and before she fulfills her destiny and marries the prince.
Chapter 5
Devon
We are on our way to find the Chosen One—she whom we will guard. As we make our way through the woods, we decide to travel along the river. I detest being so close to the water, but Kai insisted we come this way. He is right, I suppose. If an enemy tracks us, it is easier to lose them by crossing the water frequently so they cannot follow our scent.
The normally silken black fur of my feline form is still wet from our last crossing. I look up at Kai. His blue feathers gleam brightly beneath the sun as he flies overhead. What does he care about water? He is not the one who has to get wet, I think bitterly. But still, he is our leader, and we must do as he says.
Nyx appears just as miserable as I am. His light brown fur sodden and clinging to his rabbit form. He casts a sideways glance at me. “What are you looking at?” he projects.
Of all of us, he is the one I have the most difficult time getting along with. I suppose it is the nature of what we are. The Elders, at first, were hesitant to place us in the same bond brother group, even though we each possessed the Mark of the Chosen. Rabbits and cats are archenemies in our world. But after seeing our strengths and knowing that the one we’d be protecting was so important, they bonded us after all.
They were hesitant to bond me and Kai as brothers as well since he is a blue jay. Truth be told, cat shifters have many in our kingdom we do not get along with. I think the Elders recognized this and that is how they decided to approve our brother bonds with each other.
How could they not? The prophecy foretold our bonding, and we were each recognized from birth because of our marks. I care for my rabbit bond brother. He is just difficult sometimes, and I love to tease him. My lips tilt up in a grin. “You look terrible, Nyx.”
Nyx narrows his brown eyes and kicks out at me, sending me flying into the river. The freezing water takes my breath away as soon as I hit the surface. My tired limbs refuse to move as quickly as I want as I struggle to swim against the current. It takes all my strength to keep my head above water, and when I climb up to the bank, I hiss and growl my displeasure as I shake off my paws. “What was that for, you insufferable rabbit?”
“Who looks terrible now, Devon?” He smirks.
I lift my paw to swipe at him, but Kai darts down and lights in front of me. He gives us each a stern look. His blue eyes blazing with anger. “Stop it, you two. You need to get along. It will not look good to be fighting in front of our female when we reach her. We must appear to be united.”
Nyx purses his lips. “We are, Kai.”
“Yes,” I agree, smirking as I eye Nyx with the promise of revenge. “We were just having a bit of fun. Weren’t we, Nyx?”
In this, we are a team. We hate being scolded by our leader and try to pass off our fighting as friendly play, even if it isn’t always so.
“Yes,” Nyx clips.
Kai narrows his eyes and nods before taking to the air once more. “Let us hurry then. We’re almost there.”
Drawn to our brothers, Cash and Finn, it does not take long to locate them using the bond between us. We are still not in range to speak in their minds, but I know they are close.
“There.” I point ahead to the large estate in the distance.
It is a well-known landmark among our kind for it sits at the edge of the forest, near our kingdom. Everyone knows that in it resides the descendant of the line that can speak to our kind in animal form—she who was foretold in the ancient prophecy. Ella: The Chosen One.
The entire structure is palatial. Nearly rivaling the size of a castle. It seems our female is one that lives in comfort. I wonder if she will be like the royalty of our world: pampered and selfish. Hopefully not, but even if she is, it will be our duty to see she is well, comfortable, protected, and safe.
I study the building. Four levels full of floor to ceiling windows look out onto a large garden of trees and various flowering plants. Bright blooms of blues, yellows, and reds fill the entire space. Vines wind up a trellis continuing up the side of the main house, blanketing it in a beautiful carpet of green. Despite its beauty, the structure was certainly not built for any defense, and I wonder how we can fortify it a bit more in case of attack.
There are rumors that some of our kind want to kill the Chosen One to prevent the prophecy from being fulfilled. There are even rumblings that the Wolf Queen is among them.
Many shifters detest the humans completely. They’re angered at the mere thought of our kingdoms uniting once more as they were
