Tempest

10 : I Can't. I Won't.

Galan saw her walking towards him and he felt his heart swell in his chest. He had picked up her scent while they were about a kilometer away and his beast had wanted to shift immediately and run to her. He had reigned him in, however, as he, Reed and Otis ran towards her in their human form.

"Wait here," he had instructed his men when they were about fifty meters away. He knew they would hear everything they said but he selfishly wanted to meet her alone. He saw her dressed in her body hugging suit, her curves outlined by the tight fitting outfit. Again he was struck by her beauty and he wanted to reach out to touch her as soon as he got to her. Her deep growl held him back.

He could not figure out what she was. Clearly she was a supernatural shifter and the waves of power radiating off of her indicated she was of royal blood. She was a were but neither he nor his beast could determine what kind of were she was.

"Hello," he started. He cleared his throat, feeling like a prepubescent teenager. "My name is Galan." He felt perturbed by the look in her eyes, like she was appraising him and found him wanting. She found him lacking and that disturbed him more than he wanted to admit.

"You and I cannot be," she said coldly. "I reject -"

"Wait!" he called anxiously before she could finish her rejection. His beast was running around in his mind in turmoil. He did not understand what was happening and to be frank, neither did he. "Why?"

"You are weak. I will not submit to anyone weaker than I," she told him. She started to turn away.

Galan was hurt but a deep anger started to simmer within him. How dare she reject him without even giving him a chance. "How do you know that without giving me the opportunity to prove myself?" he asked.

She turned back to him, an amused smile on her face. She was a head shorter than him and, while curvy, nowhere near his size. He was well aware that size didn't matter when people were fighting but there was no way she could take him on.

"If I were to fight you, I would kill you. Let us spare your family the heartache of your possible demise and end it now."

Galan, his beast livid within him now, leaned towards her, moving so close to her he could have kissed her if he moved another centimeter forward. No one disrespected him and his beast, not even his mate. He was that close to shifting but even with everything going on, her scent had an effect on his beast, calming him somewhat. He heard Otis and Reed growling behind him, not liking how their prince was being mocked. He ignored them, all his attention now on his mate.

"Would it take a fight to appease you, milady?" he asked her, a smirk on his face. Her eyes seemed to darken, a sad expression in them.

"It seems it will be the only way," she said, surprising him. "What of your men? Would I have to fight them too?"

"I doubt it will come to that," Galan replied with a frown.

"It's fine. They will come to your defence. Allow them if they need to. That way they will not feel bad for not defending you," she stated dismissively.

He heard Reed scoff and his eyes narrowed. "So be it," he said. "Shall we start?"

She nodded.

They stood looking at each other for a long time, neither of them moving. He did not want to strike this woman, his mate. A mate was designed to protect, not hurt their other half. What was she up to?

With a sigh, as though reluctant, she struck. He did not even see her move. He felt a blow to his chest and felt himself flying through the air, his arms and legs flailing. He landed hard on his back and the air was forced from his body. Even as he landed, he was grabbed by his shirt and punched again. Wait? How did she get there so fast?

This time he didn't go as far as he had gone the first time. He quickly got to his feet and faced her. He saw her next punch and blocked it, the same way he did the next few that came his way.

"Fight me, Galan. If you ever want a chance with me, show me you can handle me," she snarled at him.

He didn't understand this. What was happening? Never had he ever heard of such and he was perplexed. Why would she do this? he thought again. It was unnatural. His beast was enraged, however, at the thought that she thought him unworthy.

He struck out at her halfheartedly and this seemed to infuriate her even more. She caught his arm and twisted it. He felt something break and he growled in pain. Mate or no mate, his beast had had enough. Twisting around he broke free from her and his training kicked in. He went for her weak spots and attacked her. He couldn't get a punch in, though. Her movements were too fast, too sure.

He had never fought an opponent such as her. He could not get a punch in and it was not for lack of trying. Whenever he took a swing she had moved and he could not land a blow. Hers were coming in fast, breaking bones and causing pain. Before he could control it, his beast came to the fore and he transformed.

His beast was massive, two meters tall and broad, with sharp claws and razor sharp teeth. He put terror into anyone who saw him for the first time. Clearly not her. She barely batted an eyelid. His beast was a much more fierce fighter than he was but even he could not do any damage to her.

She moved faster than lightning and her blows were breaking bones with every strike she made. He healed fast but his healing could not keep up with what was being delivered to him. As her fast punches and kicks connected, he felt himself being pushed back. He felt her dominance radiating off her in waves, and he fought it.

He had not understood what she had been talking about earlier, about her submission, but now he got it. He had underestimated her and maybe he did deserve to be rejected by her. The final straw was when she did a roundhouse kick which lifted him off the ground and had him flying again. This time he landed hard against a tree and he knew that he was badly hurt. Again, within seconds, she was right there.

Her face was close to his and he could see the blue of her eyes so close to his. Her fangs descended slightly but that was the only clue that she was close to losing control. She had taken him on and defeated his Lycan form while she was still in her human form. It should have been impossible but it wasn't. She had done it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Reed and Otis coming towards them. Her head whipped around as she saw them too, and she was off again. As he changed back into his human form, he watched her in awe. Although he was hurt, he was already healing. Watching from where he still lay against the tree he had crashed into, he saw her make quick work of his most trained men. The men who had sworn to protect him even at the cost of their own lives.

She moved like quicksilver and he could barely see her as she attacked Reed and Otis. He heard their grunts and their groans and could hardly see what was happening, even with his enhanced senses. They went for her at the same time and while he and his beast protested, he was proud of how she handled them. In just a few minutes, his men were laying beside him, equally damaged.

She sauntered up to him and squatted next to him. She cast a quick look at his men and then looked back at him. For a second he thought he saw concern and regret in her eyes before she masked her emotions.

"Galan, I -"

"No," he said. "One more chance to prove myself. If I cannot, after that, then I will gladly accept your rejection." His voice was hoarse from both his physical injuries and the pain in his heart at her imminent rejection of him. She hesitated, as though thinking about it. A small smile appeared on her lips and his heart soared in spite of everything that had just transpired.
All she did was nod.

"We will find each other again," she said as she laid her forehead on his.

"What is your name?" he asked her as his hand found hers. He felt her tense and then relax a little bit at the contact he made with her fingers.
He thought her lips brushed gently against his but he could not be sure. He heard her whisper her name before she was gone.

"Tempest."

"Until next time, Tempest," he said. As his body healed and he turned to look at his best friends, he could not stop the smile that grew on his face.

She was formidable

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30 September 2020
An update just became it's Botswana's Independence Day. Happy 54 years of being a democratic country
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