All Nala wanted was to take a break from everything, and she thought the best place to do this was in the Kingdom of the Werewolves. The very last thing she thought she’d be doing was taking part in the Hunt, an ancient wolf tradition where the males chase the females to claim a night with them. Now she has to rely on her strength, agility, and tricks to make sure she’s not captured like a common werewolf!
Age Rating: 18+
The Half Blood by Laura B.L. is now available to read on the Galatea app! Read the first two chapters below, or download Galatea for the full experience.
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1
All Nala wanted was to take a break from everything, and she thought the best place to do this was in the Kingdom of the Werewolves. The very last thing she thought she’d be doing was taking part in the Hunt, an ancient wolf tradition where the males chase the females to claim a night with them. Now she has to rely on her strength, agility, and tricks to make sure she’s not captured like a common werewolf!
Age Rating: 18+
Original Author: Laura B.L.
Alaric’s boots became muddier with every step. On a dark afternoon, the incessant rain heralded the last battle of this war for the lycanthrope throne.
In the distance, he saw the shadows of those beings.
The moment had come. With one pull, he tore off his shirt, and his soldiers followed his movements.
The sound of hundreds of bones breaking in unison was the only thing that accompanied the deluge that fell angrily from the skies. This has to be the final battle, Alaric thought.
Many of his soldiers had perished because of his mistake, all because of his lust and passion. All because of her.
She, the woman who blinded him and nearly drove him mad with jealousy. She was there on the front line, on the other side, and with a devilish gaze fixed on him.
Just by looking at her, Alaric felt weak again, weak with her, but he’d promised himself that he would not make the same mistake this time.
His eyes registered the precise moment when she raised her hands. Her lips moved, casting a spell.
Within seconds, thunderous lightning began to descend from the clouds, each bolt more powerful than the last.
Although he was aware that today many of his warriors would die, he had faith that today would be the last time.
The lycanthrope race was one of the strongest of all, but it could be the weakest if faced with a large group of creatures with the ability to conjure almost any spell.
And that was precisely what had caused the loss of many of his men in the first place.
But this time, it would be different, because this time, Alaric had decided to use the power of his enemy to his advantage, making the lycanthropic race almost invincible.
A mighty roar filled the whole place. It was the signal. Hundreds of his soldiers and hundreds of her followers rushed to fight the final battle.
Alaric opened the communication link to all his soldiers. “She is mine.”
The enemy attacked effortlessly. He could see that they were barely touching the ground.
Soon Alaric’s loyal soldiers and the traitor’s army were fighting each other. This time, it would not be like the other times. This time, he used the weapons of his enemies against themselves.
He tore apart every creature, every scum he saw in his path, seeing how many of them were surprised by the sudden change in his warriors.
Watching as the lycanthropes used the same weapon as many of them.
To win this war, Alaric had had no choice but to seek the favor of one of these now despicable creatures.
Amid blood and spells, he saw her. The face he’d once thought was perfect now wore a tight, cruel smile. She knew the effect she was having on him and his love, his love that had now turned to hate.
A hatred that still did not erase her beauty from his mind.
However, memories of the attack on the kingdom a year ago flashed through his mind. Hundreds of bodies strewn across the halls of the castle were all he could think of when he saw her.
How could she do this to him? How could she betray him like this? He would have given anything to be with her. Even give up the idea of finding his true mate.
Alaric roared with all his might and rushed at her. She moved quickly, blocking every blow he threw at her. He grunted at the sudden pain he felt in his right shoulder. She had used a silver dagger.
It was the Templar dagger with blue rubies embedded in it.
It was the same one he had given her at a time when he’d thought he was happy. The gift had represented the love and trust he’d felt for her.
The dagger had been one of Alaric’s most prized possessions. Now he regretted having given it as a gift.
Rain and thunder continued to flood the battlefield. He tried to attack her neck, but she dodged every time.
When she lunged at him with her dagger to bury it in his chest, he blocked the thrust in time, turning quickly, and, with the strength of his dark paws, he pushed her to the filthy ground.
She looked straight into his red eyes as he trapped her with his claws. Her eyes glared at him with contempt and abhorrence, something that pained him to the core.
At one point, he thought about sparing her life, but as soon as he heard the faint whisper of her voice, he knew it was now or never.
His long, deadly canines pressed hard into her neck, ripping the flesh and skin from her neck. His sight was blinded by rage. As the life escaped her eyes, Alaric howled in agony to the world.
The war was slowly coming to an end. The survivors began to retreat, but there were instructions from him to leave no one alive. All were to die.
Now in his human form, he lifted her lifeless body into his arms, his beloved, his murderer, the woman who had never loved him and who had betrayed him.
The rain had stopped. A primitive bonfire was prepared. And he laid the body on top of the branches and pieces of trees piled together.
Now he had to burn it to ensure that she would never return to this world. Alaric and his warriors surrounded the blazing bonfire.
Everyone could feel his emotions, the pain, the anger, the disappointment, and finally, a sense of relief.
The smoke from the bonfire intensified. And soon, the smell of burning flesh would punish their lungs. Seconds passed, and the air became different. Charged with darkness.
Everyone was on alert again. Alaric looked around, searching for the threatener.
The wind suddenly began to blow hard. Everyone tried to stand their ground. But the blowing wind was so violent that the soldiers could barely stand.
Alaric watched as the fire died. A dark shadow descended out of nowhere, covering the entire pyre and taking her lifeless body with it.
When the shadow disappeared, everyone felt the wind had calmed. They all gasped when they saw that the woman’s body was not there.
Alaric sighed, looking up at the sky. Maybe, he thought for a moment, he should chase the damned soul. But he was tired. He needed to go back and rebuild his ruined kingdom.
After all, and finally, she was dead.
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2
190 YEARS LATER
Walking in the dark, I could see the light coming from a fire in the distance. The smell of burning wood flooded my senses. I kept getting closer. I needed the warmth; it was cold here.
I could see a group of people dancing around the cozy fire. They were singing and smiling at each other. The music was very familiar. I was trying to remember where I had heard that song before.
My mind was trying to search through my memories. A cold breeze suddenly caressed my face and brought back my memory. I remembered now.
That song was the one my sister always listened to. For some reason, I felt relaxed with these people, feeling somehow in love with what I was witnessing.
Strolling around, I quickly stopped.
There he was.
Every time I saw him, I got a strange feeling, like I’d known him all my life. It was kind of an enigma to me. His presence conveyed a power of dominance that made me feel pulled to him.
He was dressed in a black suit. His hands hid in the pockets of his pants. He wasn’t looking at me; he was looking at the fire.
I instinctively tried to approach him. I stood in front of him; the only thing that separated us was the fire. I couldn’t stop looking at him.
Who was this man? “Look at me, please,” I whispered. The men obeyed my plea, but he didn’t move; he just stood there, and I couldn’t do anything.
The light of the fire didn’t let me see his face. I closed my eyes, trying to ease the pain I was feeling. When I opened them again, I saw the ceiling of my room.
What a headache! It was that dream again.
I got out of bed and put aside the thin duvet that covered my body and walked to the kitchen to take some pills. I went back and tried to sleep again.
Nealie’s voice in my mind brought me out of my sleepy state.
“Finally! I need to go outside. I need to run. Come on!” My wolf was demanding this morning.
“Okay. Let me take a bath and eat something, Nealie.”
“Fine, but hurry up. We have not shifted in a long time.”
“Seriously, Nealie? We shifted two days ago, and you ran and hunted for almost four hours! I still feel sore.”
“Do not be such a baby, Nala! Thanks to me, you have that body!”
I laughed.
“Oh yes! Running all the time can give you nice legs. Now let me finish, and we will go outside, okay?”
“Okay,” she said.
“Nala! Come on. We have to go now.” My only and older sister was yelling at me from the kitchen.
“What now, Maeve?” I felt like I had a boulder on each foot as I walked to the bathroom. I need a coffee urgently.
“Mom and Dad will be back tomorrow!”
“Tomorrow at what time?”
Our parents weren’t betas or omegas, or even less, alphas from a pack. We lived in a sort of secluded village in the Human Realm, called the Crossbreed, the only one of its kind in our world.
All the mates who didn’t belong to the same species, like our parents, came here.
Father and Mother were the son and daughter of different species. Our mother was born a werewolf, and our father was a witch.
Many years ago, there was a war between the Kingdom of the Witches and the werewolves. No one knew what had really triggered the bloody conflict.
Almost two hundred years had passed, and the two species had been coexisting in a civilized manner so far.
When our parents met at a fair in Belfast, that instant connection changed everything for them. They couldn’t bear to be apart and decided to leave their families and move here.
Neither kingdoms could allow two different species to live in their territories as couples. No one wanted half-breeds on their land.
It wasn’t just witches and lycans who didn’t allow half-breeds into their kingdoms. Vampires, fae, and dragons strictly forbade it. They considered half-breeds to be inferior beings.
“Their flight will arrive tomorrow at eight thirty-five. We need to shop for groceries.”
“Nealie?” I called to my wolf.
“Yes?” she replied back.
“I am sorry we cannot go today for a run. Our parents are coming tomorrow. I need to go with Maeve and help her,” I explained to her.
“Okay, I understand. I am happy we will finally see our parents. How long have they been gone this time?”
“Mmm… Two months and a half? I think…”
Our parents had traveled extensively for four years to the Kingdom of the Lycans.
The alpha king knew that my mother was a person of vast knowledge about the history of the Seven Realms, so he’d invited her to teach in his kingdom.
At least, that was the excuse they’d offered to invite her back to her original home, and with her witcher hubby.
“I am ready, sis,” I yelled.
“Okay, let me check the house before we go,” she said.
“Oh! Not again, please. Every time we need to get out of the house, you do the same thing. You are always in a hurry, and when I am ready, you start to check the whole house and look for your things.”
“Whatever!”
“Maeve, I am going to drive this time.”
“Oh, no way,” she told me.
“Why not? I am an excellent driver.”
“Yes, you are, but you drive too fast for my taste.”
“Ugh, Maeve, please. When you drive, it’s like I am being carried by a sloth.
“Today is Sunday, and I want to come back quickly and watch something and just relax. You know what? We should buy some tequila and make margaritas!”
“Let’s go,” she said, leaving the kitchen after checking that everything was off for the third time! We drove to the supermarket and bought the groceries and the tequila!
Back at the house, we unpacked everything and put the food and drinks in the fridge and in the kitchen cabinet. It was, like, 6 p.m. I prepared the margaritas, and we sat outside.
Our terrace was not significant, but it was cozy. We were sitting in comfortable black chairs with a small round black table in the middle, where the drinks were placed.
We just sat down, drinking quietly and talking about things in life. We were looking at the small forest in front of us, smelling the fresh air of spring.
“When will you give me nephews?” she said suddenly
“Please. You are older than me; you first.” I rolled my eyes.
She gave me a sympathetic look.
“You will find him soon.”
“I don’t know, Maeve. I am almost twenty-six years old. I don’t know if I have a mate, but…”
Suddenly the dream came to me.
“What?” she asked.
“I had that dream again, Maeve,” I said, sighing.
“Really, again? What happened this time?” she asked me with a scowl.
“I was, like, in the woods? I don’t know.
“There was a fire in the middle and people dancing around to that song from the Omnia band that you love, and then I saw him again through the fire.
“I felt like he was the person I was waiting for my whole life.”
“Did he approach you this time? Did you see his eyes?”
“No, he just stared at me, but every time I wake up, I cannot remember his face,” I said, taking a big sip of my margarita.
“Do you want me to look into your memories and see if I can find that dream?” Maeve asked me.
“No, this is only a dream. I am not going to waste my time trying to look for some stranger that maybe doesn’t exist.”
“Maybe you’re dreaming of your mate, Nala,” Maeve said casually, drinking from her cup.
My sister was born a witch, like our father. She’d inherited the ability to manipulate dreams. She could make you remember them and learn things and control what you’re doing in them.
She didn’t have a wolf in her, unlike me. I was born a werewolf.
I knew it was strange. As sisters, we both should have been born with a werewolf and with the ability to manipulate some magic, but that hadn’t happened to us.
“I gave up on finding my mate. Maybe by now, he’s given up too.”
“Look, do not ever give up on finding him. He will be the half of you that you are missing now.”
“Maeve, I’m terrified to find him, after what happened to you…” She looked at me, upset about what I’d just told her.
“My situation was different, Nala. Mine was a human, and you know that humans don’t feel the bond like us.
“I am divorced, yes, and I suffered a lot when I discovered he was cheating on me, but I regret nothing.”
I looked at her, thinking about it.
“Maeve, I am sorry. Probably you will find another mate who will love you until the end of time.”
She was laughing now.
“You are such romantic! ‘Until the end of time,’” she repeated. I smiled.
“Look …,” she began, “I have a feeling that you are destined for something big.
“I don’t know why, but I will tell you something that I’ve kept to myself since I saw your lover in your dreams.”
“Lover? Seriously?” I giggled.
She gave me a small smile and continued, “That man exists; I have the feeling that he really exists. When I entered your dream, I could feel his power.”
“The times you’ve walked into my dream, you couldn’t see his face?”
“No, I could only see him through the same fire that you saw. It’s kind of weird. It’s like something’s blocking me.”
“Oh, and by the way, the sex with your mate is the best experience you will have in this life,” she winked at me, changing the subject quickly. I thought she was drunk already.
“Well, let’s see… I don’t know. I had this guy that was very good at doing it.”
“Oh yes, I remember him. What was his name? Niall!” Now she was laughing hysterically, but in a funny way.
“Your Niall, the half fae, half human who fell in love with you and followed all your craziness, poor guy.”
“Why poor guy? That traitor left me for a brunette from Greece. In this case, I am a poor woman.”
“Oh, come on, Nala. Are you serious? The guy left you because you were not in love with him, and he was tired of having sex in the woods.”
I choked on the drink.
“MAEVE!!”I yelled at her.
“What?! You know it’s true, Nala. He followed you all around—OH MY GOD, I LOVE THAT SONG!” The sudden scream from her made me jump out of the chair.
The radio was playing a song from Guns N’ Roses.
Whenever I saw my sister in a good mood, I was happy just to see her.
On the next day, I went to work, and Maeve went to pick up our parents at the airport. I was the manager of one of the local stores, which had good sales for most of the year.
After almost eight hours of working, I arrived at the house around 6 p.m. When I opened the door, I was greeted with hugs and kisses from our parents.
After a delicious roasted lemon chicken dinner, we went to the terrace for coffee.
“I wish my daughters could go to the realm of King Alaric. It is so beautiful. Right, darling?” our mom commented.
“So when will you leave again?” Maeve asked.
“Oh, Mae, we just got here, and you want us to leave so soon?”
“Mother, I did not mean it that way. It was just a simple question.”
“Well, I think we will be leaving again in a couple of weeks,” my father said.
“So soon?” I asked him.
“Yes, this time we will go there sooner, because your father and I were invited to the king’s ball.”
“A ball?” I asked.
“Yes, King Alaric will give a ball just for fun for all the members of his packs.”
“Wow! How benevolent he is,” I said ironically.
“He still hasn’t found his mate?” my sister interrupted.
“No, he hasn’t found her yet,” my father replied.
“It is said that he is tired of waiting. Although he hasn’t wasted any time, if you know what I mean,” my mother pointed out with widened eyes.
“How old is the king?” I asked out of curiosity.
“Well, he looks like he’s in his thirties, but nobody really knows what his age is.”
“Could you meet him this time?”
My mom sighed. “Yes, and I can only say he’s an unusual-looking man. Why do you not come with us, girls?”
“Mom, you just said that you two were invited to the ball, not the whole family.”
She sighed and gently massaged her temple, like she needed all the patience in the world to deal with me, which was typical of her. I mentally laughed.
My mother was a free spirit, and she was stubborn. She had short blonde hair and green eyes that could intimidate even the bravest of men.
“Nala, what I am trying to say is that both of you can come with us and enjoy all the festivities. Girls, you need some free time to rest. You have been dealing with a lot of work and…divorce.”
She looked at my sister with sadness.
“Maeve, let’s go. We need this. I am tired, and I need some free time, and you need fresh air. We have never been there anyway.”
Maeve was thinking about it; I could see it in her eyes.
“Okay, we will go,” she finally said.
Three weeks passed, and finally, the day came when we had to prepare our bags. I finished packing and was ready to sleep when my sister knocked on the door and came in.
“What is going on?”
“I just came to tell you that last night I had a dream.”
“About?”
“About us, especially you, Nala,” she said with a worried face.
“Okay? What did you dream about?” I sat up straight.
“I saw you crying and in pain because of someone, and…” she paused.
“And what, Maeve?”
“And I think it is because you will find your mate soon.”
“What? Are you sure?”
“You know I am never a hundred percent sure about this kind of dream.” She paused and watched my worried expression. “You know what? Forget about it. We will simply enjoy this trip.”
“Seriously? After you just told me I will be in pain and crying?”
She laughed.
We stayed, talking a few more minutes until she left, and I was finally able to close my eyes.
Small shapes and shadows were beginning to appear. A blinding light came from a fire located in the center of a circle of strange people wearing medieval clothes.
My feet took control of my body. Now, I was getting closer to the center. The large bonfire was surrounded by big gray stones.
The night sky was clear, and the crescent moon lit up the dark blue of the night.
I was here again. All these people were now dancing around the campfire. A middle-aged woman took me by the hand and led me into the middle of the crowd.
At first, I felt shy, but soon, I was carried away by the music with open arms. I grabbed my white dress, lifted it to my knees, and began to turn in circles. I was happy and felt free.
I looked up at the night sky. I kept going around and around, and my heart quickened and sudden butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
There he was, looking at me on the other side of the fire. His gaze was like that of a hungry wolf. I didn’t know what to do. I could only feel that this man belonged to me.
His eyes were dark blue like the night sky, and he was magnificently dressed in the same black suit. I wanted to get closer, but something kept me from it.
I saw a woman’s hand caressing his shoulder possessively.
I was uncomfortable just seeing her here, touching him. She had her back to me.
I couldn’t see her face. My irritation grew with every gesture I witnessed. I didn’t want to be here.
He was smiling at her.
I felt weird… Someone grabbed my arms and spun me around. I found myself yelling, “Stop… STOP… STOP!”
I woke up sweating this time. My heart was beating fast, just thinking of the stranger.
I’d finally gotten to see his face.
Who the hell was this guy? And why did I now have that woman in my dreams too?
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