Alpha’s Second Choice

Jo was still frozen to a spot as Belial’s shadow got closer. She could tell it was a telepathic projection only, which relieved her a little. But if Belial was projecting his image in front of her, it only made one thing clear. He already knew where she was.

‘Hey there Jolene’, the voice spoke to her again. Even though the image was just a projection, it felt like he really was there. Belial was still wearing the same dark scaly cloak. He was tall and easily towered over her. As usual, he was wearing black rings on almost all of his fingers.

‘What do you wa-want?’, a stutter came out of Jo.

‘My king demands you’, he replied casually, stating the obvious.

‘That is funny because I am not an object to be demanded. So, tell Victor, he can go to hell. Oh wait, he already is in hell’, the siren spitefully said, trying her best to keep a calm composure.

‘Why don’t you tell that to him yourself?’, Belial was testing her now. He knew he was intimating her. But who wouldn’t be? Belial once slayed a dragon with one hand. Everyone in the dark realm knew the tales of dark terrors this man could inflict.

Yet, he easily submitted to Victor. This spoke volumes to how powerful the current Demon king was.

‘I think you will do’, Jo replied as she made a run towards the mansion. Having studied dark magic from an early age, she knew, Belial was strong enough to capture her even in his projected image form. But there was one big weakness in projections, it did not work in enclosed spaces.

Jolene ran for her life, as fast as she could. Something pricked her right foot making her wince in pain but she still kept running.

She could see the back entrance of the royal mansion.

Jo quickly ascended the staircases and was almost about to set a foot inside the mansion when Belial’s projected image caught up to her and pulled one of her legs. As Jo lost her balance, she rolled down the staircases.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

The siren was back in the open space again. It was bad. She needed to get inside something enclosed but Belial had no intention of letting her do that.

‘Ugh’, Jo grunted in pain as she crawled on the bottom of the stairs. Her entire body was in pain. Sirens were smart and cunning but their pain tolerance and healing was on par with the human beings.

She knew she surely broke a few bones. ‘Why does Victor still want me? All of my sisters were willing to marry him. Why can’t he just go after them?’.

‘The king wants what he wants’, the dark image spoke again. He started murmuring some dark spells. Jo knew he was trying to teleport her to where he was, probably somewhere deep in the no-man’s border.

Jo tried standing up but it was futile. Her body was weak and she barely had any strength left in her.

‘Please Belial. We used to be friends…’, Jo tried her luck.

‘That is exactly why I am taking you back Jolene. You are not safe here. Victor is the only one who can keep you safe’, Belial’s tone softened for the tiniest moment. Jo almost thought it was her old friend speaking again.

But with every step he took, Jo knew she was going to be taken back again. When Jo was within an arm’s reach, Belial raised his hands to place it on her body to complete the telepathy spell.

‘Hey there, partner’, a bubbly voice interrupted the dark lord out of the blue. ‘Taking her somewhere?’.

With one punch, Belial’s projected image was thrown over to the metallic walls’ mansion fence.

Jo was already feeling dizzy from the fall but she tried keeping her eyes open and tried to orient herself to what was happening around her.

She saw the back of a silver haired woman who could not have been taller than her. The woman had a calming aura, yet it was so unique and powerful. It reminded her of someone, her mate.

Belial’s projected image was splattered over the fence, only dark charcoal trails left behind. He would still be in perfect health in real life, after all, it was only one of his projected images. Belial could project millions of them if he wanted to and still come out of it, unscathed.

‘Are you okay?’, the woman lowered herself and tried to inspect Jo’s injured body.

‘Who are you?’, Jo tried asking her saviour. Now that she was close, Jo could see her silver eyes. It was almost as piercing as the silver in Dante’s golden eyes.

‘I am Sarah and you?’, the woman smiled warmly.

‘I am Jole—’, the little energy left Jo’s body as she passed out right in Sarah’s arms.

The beeping of the heart monitoring machine tinged Jo’s ears. Her head felt extremely heavy. She opened her eyes and noticed she was hooked to multiple lines, some IV drips, pulse oximeters and other medical lines she could not distinguish.

The nurse charting her readings from the monitor instantly noticed that the patient was awake now.

 Before Jo could ask anything, the nurse fled the room. The tiny room was extremely white, white walls, white bed, white gown even. It felt like she was in heaven.

An elderly lady in a long sleeved white coat walked inside her tiny room followed by the same nurse that was here earlier. ‘Hello Jolene’.

‘Hmmm’

‘You don’t have to reply if you cannot. My name is Doctor Terrie. You were badly hurt by an intruder but luckily the former Queen found you in time’, Doctor Terrie slowly narrated to her.

‘The former- Queen?’.

‘I believe you met her already last time. Her name is Sarah’, the doctor replied, subtly assessing Jo’s cognitive responses. Jo had sustained head injuries too after all. Although the reports reveal nil internal bleedings, they could never be so sure.

‘Oh, did someone call me?’, the same woman made her way in again. ‘And look at who is awake!’.

Both the doctor and nurse bowed before Sarah as she gave them a nod.

Once they were left alone, Sarah took a seat on the edge of Jo’s bed. ‘Hope you don’t mind. Those chairs over there are not comfortable at all’.

Jo just weakly smiled at the comment. If Sarah was the former Queen, it only meant one thing. She was Dante’s and Evelyn’s mother.

‘How long have I been here?’, Jo asked trying to sit a little upright but some of the machines started beating.

‘Stay still, little child. Or your heart rate will be through the roof and the doctors won’t be happy’, Sarah gently made Jo rest her head back on the soft pillows again. The warm touches and concerns reminded Jo of something she never had. It made her feel safe.

‘It’s been a couple of days, my child. Also, I know you are not one of us’, Sarah coolly told the surprised siren.

‘How did you-‘

‘I can tell’, the former Queen smiled genuinely.

‘No maw-ma, I told you that. It was me. All me’, Evelyn barged into the room making Sarah face palm.

‘Come on Evelyn. You did not even let mama have a cool moment’, the former Queen tried to scold her little princess but failed horribly.

Jo let out a small laughter. She could tell where Evelyn got her big mouth from.

‘Pwetty siren, how are you?’, Evelyn placed her little hands over hers.

‘Feeling better with you here now’, Jo replied honestly.

‘Big bowther went on hunt to find the bad guy’, Evelyn proudly commented.

The former Queen noticed her daughter pressing hard on Jo’s IV lines. So, she gently lifted Evelyn and popped the little princess steadily on her lap.

‘I will thank Dante later for that’, Jo responded, knowing very well that it was impossible to find Belial. Not in plain sight like that, at least.

‘So, Jolene, Evelyn also told me you are Dante’s mate?’, Sarah spoke calmly, stroking he daughter’s hair.

Jo gulped audibly and hard.

‘Evelyn has the same gifts as me Jolene. She gets visited by the moon goddess in her dreams. So, if the moon goddess told her this, it probably means its important. As you can see, my son is already married and—‘.

‘I am not trying to meddle in his marriage at all’, the siren protested. She was surprised by her own outburst. ‘I am sorry’.

‘Its okay, my child. I know he is married and will do anything to deny the mate bond. I have been trying to convince him to forget about that stupid forbidden book but he never listens. He is as stubborn as his father, if not more’, the Queen rolled his eyes, Evelyn nodding in agreement.

Jo remembered reading a forbidden book in Evelyn’s room not too long ago. ‘Why?’

‘Because the forbidden book predicts a horrible tragedy if Dante accepts his true mate which is stupid. Even though, it was predicted by a seer from the holy cathedral shrine, it is ONLY a prediction’.

The siren felt a little guilty. Things started making sense now. The tiniest doubt she had in Dante vanished. That man was pure to his core.

‘I didn’t know’, Jo weakly said, trying hard not to feel bad for Dante. Her urge to save him was becoming stronger by the growing minute.

The werewolf king needed saving as much as she did.

‘Well Jolene, this is exactly why its only a secret between the three of us. My son needs to think about himself for once. He is drowning only caring about others and this kingdom’, the bubbly voice was now replaced by a saddened tone. The motherly instincts visibly kicking in. ‘Only you can save Dante now, Jolene’.

Jo pursed her lips together, trying hard not to cry. It would be incredibly hard to wipe her tears with all the connected lines and medical equipment.

‘But we need to know more about you first, my dear. Who was that demon and why was he after you?’, Sarah asked again, a worried expression on her face.

Jo was good at reading people and their intention, and she knew Sarah’s worry was a genuine one. And Evelyn was one of the most innocent souls Jo had met, so she knew she could safely trust the mother- daughter duo.

‘I am Jolene Adler Ledger, the seventh daughter of the Sea king, Pierce Ledger’, the siren heard the duo gasp.

‘Pwetty siren is a princess like me, mawma’, Evelyn wriggled in joy.

‘But why are the demons chasing a sea princess?’, the former Queen carefully chose her words.

‘Because I was promised to marry their king, Victor….’