The Alpha's forbidden omega mate - Chapter 291: Chapter 291

Rowan POV:
“Catrina! Catrina, can you hear me?”
My voice, a desperate plea, a ghostly echo, reached out to her, trying to penetrate the darkness that surrounded her, the shadows that had claimed her, the silence that had swallowed her whole.
I’d been searching for her, my spectral form drifting through the spirit realm’s twisted landscapes, my wolf a restless shadow.
His amber eyes scanning the swirling mists, his scent, a mix of pine and leather, a phantom fragrance, a ghostly reminder of the life I’d lost, the love I was fighting to reclaim.
But there was no sign of her.
No trace of her lavender and vanilla scent, no flicker of her warm amber eyes, no echo of her laughter, the joy, the love, the hope, that had once filled my world, now replaced by an emptiness, a void that echoed the hollowness in my own spectral heart.
Where are you, Catrina? My wolf whimpered, his voice a mournful howl in the vast emptiness of the spirit realm, a place where memories and dreams intertwined.
Why… why can’t we find her?
And then, I felt it.
A surge of power. A ripple in the spirit realm’s fabric. A darkness… familiar yet… different.
Damien.
He’s here, Rowan. My wolf growled, his spectral fur bristling, his senses on high alert, a primal instinct to fight, to protect, to avenge. He’s… he’s close.
I followed the trail of dark energy, my spectral form gliding through the mist, my heart pounding with a mix of dread and a desperate hope, the certainty that Damien had found her, that he was using her, twisting her, corrupting her, turning her into a weapon.
A vessel for his darkness. A queen for his twisted, corrupted kingdom.
I emerged into a clearing, the air thick with the stench of decay and magic, a place where the shadows danced and whispered, where the trees were twisted and gnarled, their branches reaching out like skeletal claws, a macabre reminder of the darkness that Damien had unleashed, the evil that was spreading.
And in the center of the clearing, her silver-white fur gleaming in the otherworldly light, her amber eyes burning with a coldness, her scent, lavender and vanilla, now tainted with a metallic tang, a darkness I couldn’t ignore, stood Catrina.
But it wasn't Catrina, the omega I loved, the she-wolf who had defied a king, a sorcerer, a destiny, for the sake of a love that was forbidden.
This Catrina… was different.
Her eyes, once warm and full of life, were now vacant, empty, reflecting the void that had consumed her soul, the darkness that had taken root within her.
And as she raised her hand, dark energy swirling around her fingertips, her voice, a echo of Damien’s cruelty, a mockery of the love we’d shared, shattered the silence, the hope, the very essence of my spectral being.
“You’re too late, Rowan,” she sneered, her words a venomous whisper, a prophecy.
“She’s… she’s gone, Rowan.” My wolf’s voice, a mournful howl, was a lament for a love that had been stolen, a destiny that had been denied, a future that had been shattered. “Damien… he’s… he’s won.”
And as Catrina, her silver-white fur gleaming, her amber eyes blazing with Damien’s dark power, lunged towards me, her claws extended, her fangs bared, ready to strike, to kill, to destroy the last vestige of the love we’d shared, the hope we’d clung to
“Forgive me, Catrina,” I whispered, my voice a broken echo, a final farewell to the mate I’d lost, the love I’d sacrificed, the destiny we’d been denied. “I… I failed you.”
And as the darkness closed in, as Catrina’s claws tore through my spectral form, as Damien’s laughter, a triumphant roar, echoed through the spirit realm, a premonition of the nightmare that was about to unfold, the world that was about to be consumed by his darkness, settled over me, cold and heavy, a despair so profound it threatened to drown me.
A blinding white light.
A searing pain.
And then nothingness.
“Where… where am I?”
My voice, a raspy whisper, a mix of confusion and a lingering fear, echoed in the dimly lit chamber, the scent of pine and woodsmoke and ancient magic heavy in the air, a familiar aroma that reminded me of… the Drakhor stronghold.
I opened my eyes, blinking against the soft glow of the firelight, my gaze settling on the familiar stone walls, the intricate carvings, the runes that pulsed with a faint, green light, a reminder of the power that resided within this place, the magic that had… saved me?
I sat up, my body aching, my muscles stiff, my head pounding, but… I was alive.
Solid.
Real.
I looked down at my hands, flexing my fingers, feeling the warmth of my own skin, the strength returning to my limbs, a sense of… wholeness… that I hadn’t felt since… since Damien’s magic had claimed me, had tethered my soul to the spirit realm, had turned me into… a ghost.
But… how?
How was I back?
How was I… alive?
The memory of Catrina’s attack, her amber eyes blazing with Damien’s dark power, her claws tearing through my spectral form, the certainty of my own demise, the despair that had consumed me… it was all a hazy, fragmented dream, a nightmare I couldn’t quite grasp.
“It… it can’t be,” I whispered, my voice a mix of disbelief and a dawning hope, a flicker of warmth in the coldness that had settled over me, a light in the darkness that had almost swallowed me whole.
“I… I was… I was…”
“Dead?”
A voice, a deep rumble, a familiar presence, made me jump, my wolf’s instincts snapping to attention, a mix of fear and respect.
I turned, my gaze settling on the figure who stood in the doorway, his silver fur gleaming in the firelight, his icy blue eyes piercing, a reflection of the ancient wisdom he possessed, the power he wielded, the destiny he controlled.
King Korvash.
“But… how?” I stammered, my voice a shaky whisper, my mind reeling, the pieces of the puzzle, the memories, the dreams, the visions, swirling together, a chaotic jumble I couldn’t make sense of.
“I… I saw Catrina. She… she attacked me. She… she…”
“She was under Damien’s control, Rowan Magnus,” King Korvash said, his voice a low growl, his words a reminder of the darkness we’d faced, the love that had been twisted, the destiny we were fighting to reclaim.
“He… he used her. As a… a weapon. Against you. Against… us all.”
“But… I… I’m alive,” I said, my voice a mix of confusion and a growing wonder, my gaze searching his, a plea for answers, a desperate need to understand. “I… I shouldn’t be… here.”
“You are here, Rowan Magnus,” King Korvash said, his voice a low rumble, his gaze holding mine, his icy blue eyes filled with a knowledge that spanned lifetimes, a power that transcended the boundaries of our world.
“Because… she… brought you back.”
“Catrina?” I gasped, my voice a breath of disbelief, my heart pounding with a mix of joy and a fear I couldn’t ignore. “But… how? She… she was… she was…”
“She made a sacrifice, Rowan Magnus,” King Korvash said, his voice a soft murmur, his words a revelation, a truth that made my heart ache with a love so profound, so selfless, so… heartbreaking.
“She… she offered her own life force… her own… essence… to… to sever the bond. To… to extinguish the beacon that was drawing Damien’s darkness. To… to save you.”
His words, a reminder of the price she’d paid, the love she’d given up, the destiny she’d rewritten, made my breath catch in my throat, tears stinging my eyes, a grief so profound it threatened to drown me.
“No,” I whispered, my voice a broken plea, my wolf howling in anguish, his claws digging into the stone floor, desperate to reach her, to protect her, to reclaim the love we’d shared, the future we’d been denied. “She… she can’t be… she can’t…”
“She’s not gone, Rowan Magnus,” King Korvash said, his voice a gentle reassurance, his gaze holding mine, his icy blue eyes filled with a wisdom that transcended the boundaries of life and death.
“Not completely. Her… her spirit… her… essence… it’s… it’s still here.”