My Cursed Mate

After an hour-long journey, they reached an abandoned factory on the outskirts of the city. The surrounding vegetation were all dead and even the trees had nothing left of them. Although it had rained heavily in recent days, the ground remained dry, sending up clouds of dust with every step they took.

As they approached the factory, an eerie silence enveloped them. The building was in complete disrepair, with broken doors and windows, and a charred interior that intensified the unsettling atmosphere. The air was thick with the lingering scent of smoke and the stench of rot hit them as soon as they entered.

“Welcome, my dear guests!” a suspiciously high-pitched voice echoed throughout the factory. bouncing off from the walls and creating the illusion that the speaker was everywhere. “I commend you for finding this place.”

A loud applause filled the place, growing louder and louder before fading back into silence. The three of them tried to locate the source of the voice, but as the last rays of light disappeared over the horizon, the entire area was plunged into darkness.

Reiga conjured a ball of light to give them vision, but their enemy remained hidden. Slowly, the ball of light floated from his hand, dispersing in several directions to illuminate the entire area. Nothing changed from what they had already seen inside, except for the silhouette of a man that appeared in front of them.

As the man’s shadow became clearer, they noticed someone kneeling beside him. hands bound and held by a rope that the standing figure controlled. This sight alarmed Kazandra and made Evos growl. And the scent of blood intertwined with Vega’s unique scent, permeated the air.

“Release him!” Kazandra stepped forward but Reiga quickly grabbed her hand.

“Don’t be impulsive,” he warned, giving her a hard stare and shaking his head. The man in the shadows was no ordinary foe, and at this moment, Kazandra was not a werewolf.

“I can release him but on one condition, you have to at least impress me with your skills. If I am not satisfied, I will proceed my initial plan and you wouldn’t see him again.” Injurious was clearly enjoying the reactions of his prey.

“Show yourself.” Reiga commanded, letting go of Kazandra’s arm and staring towards the man’s hiding place.

The white cloth that was concealing the man fell down to reveal a man sitting on a chair with Vega behind him. He was suspended in the air by a chain that bound his hands above his head. His body was restricted by thin wires that already cut through his clothes and skin. He had his eyes closed with half of his face covered with blood.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

Kazandra was paralyzed with shock at the sight of the bloody Vega. The image overlapped with memories from years ago, intensifying the pain in her heart. All she wanted was to free Vega and keep him from feeling any pain.

A ball of fire was already flying towards the thin wires that were restricting Vega. However, before the fire could even reach Vega, it was extinguished.

“Don’t even try it. I alone possess the power to release him,” the man declared, a wry smile playing on his lips at the futile effort. “And I’m guessing that you are the one who destroyed my doll.” His gaze shifted to Reiga. “Impressive.”

Reiga did not respond and instead attacked the man with another fire spell. However, Injurious effortlessly dispelled the attack and retaliated with a dark spell. Kazandra and Evos dodged the attack while Reiga conjured a barrier to protect himself.

Injurious was impressed. His black fire could easily burn anything because of its dark and corrosive effect but the man managed to conjure a barrier that could easily withstand his attack. Injurious was ecstatic.

A barrage of black fire flew towards Reiga and he effortlessly blocked each one. He retaliated with his own blazing red fire, which Injurious easily dispelled. This thrilled Injurious. The man was unlike any spell caster he had encountered before. There was something unique about him.

While the both of them were engaged in battle, Kazandra and Evos seized the opportunity to get closer to Vega. Evos attempted to touch the thin wires but before his hand could make contact, a fizzling sound filled his ear with his hands already on fire. He quickly pulled back and stepped away.

“I told you, I’m the only one who can remove those wires.” Injurious whispered in Evos’s ears before a white cloth yanked him back, ramming him to the cold ground.

Another white cloth appeared and attacked Kazandra but the woman managed to dodge by side stepping. She also took that opportunity to take hold of the cloth and pull it out from Injurious. She did not stop there and forcefully pulled apart the cloth until it ripped into pieces.

Injurious was impressed by the woman’s strength. He wanted to test her again but before he could make a move, Reiga was already onto him. A blazing red string of fire almost pierced him and if not for his reflexes, he would have been skewered.

The distraction allowed Kazandra to approach Vega. Without hesitation, she grabbed the thin wires with her bare hands, gritting her teeth as she tried to break them. With no luck, she drew a knife behind her and used it to try and cut the wires. One strike, two strikes and at the third, the wire finally gave in. The tension released from how tight the wire was pulled caused the broken line to fly and wound her on her face.

Ignoring the stinging pain, Kazandra continued to cut the wires. Evos joined in keeping the spell caster preoccupied as Kazandra worked her way through the last wire. Despite her bleeding hands and body covered in cuts, she gently carried and laid Vega on the floor.

She assessed his current condition and found that he was just unconscious. Aside from the cut on his head, he also had a deep cut on his side. She frowned, realizing his wounds weren’t healing and he remained unconscious. Before that her main priority was to stop the bleeding. She tore a piece of her shirt and used it as a bandage to temporarily stop the bleeding on Vega’s side.

When Reiga noticed that Kazandra had freed Vega, he cast a fire spell that filled the area above Injurious and released it. A blinding light resulted from the attack and gave him enough cover to retreat and move to where Kazandra and Vega were. Evos also used that chance to leave.

A red mark appeared on the ground below them and she heard Reiga whispering an incantation before he bit his hand and placed it above the red mark. They were engulfed with red light and when she opened her eyes they were already outside.