Playing The Alphas

Chapter 67: The Blood’s Secret

The laboratory was silent except for the bubbling of liquids and the scratching of Thess’s claws on parchment. The old scientist had been working for hours. His eyes were fixed on the glass beaker in front of him with all seriousness. The liquid inside had changed color three times, now, it was black.

Kayden stood by the entrance. His arms were crossed. He stubbornly had not moved for over an hour.

"Thess," he said finally. "Report to me what you’ve seen."

Thess did not look up. His claws continued to scratch the parchment. "I am working, my Alpha."

"You have been working for hours. I want answers."

Thess sighed, setting down his quill. He turned to face Kayden.

"This blood," Thess said, "is unlike anything I have ever seen."

Kayden stepped closer, his ears tingling to hear what the mad lizard scientist had to say. "What do you mean?"

"I mean there are components in this blood that should not exist. Elements that have not appeared in any sample I have studied in three hundred years."

Thess picked up a scroll and unrolled it on the table. The parchment was covered in symbols.

"Look here," Thess said, pointing a claw at a symbol that looked like a spiral. "This represents healing. Pure healing. The kind that can close wounds in seconds. Regrow limbs. Cure diseases that have no name."

Kayden’s eyes narrowed. "And this?"

Thess pointed to another symbol. A symbol that looked like a triangle inside a circle. "This represents magic. Raw magic. The kind that witches use. The kind that created our curse in the first place."

"The girl’s blood contains magic?"

"It contains traces of magic. Faint ones, but present. As if her ancestors were touched by something not of this world."

Kayden looked at the scroll. His mind raced. How could one girl be blessed with all these possibilities?"What else?"

Thess pointed to a third symbol. A jagged line that looked like lightning. "This represents madness. The kind that drives wolves to frenzy. The kind that makes Lycans lose control."

Kayden’s claws dug into the edge of the table. "Madness?"

"Yes, my Alpha. If this blood is used wrongly—if it is mixed with the wrong ingredients or administered to the wrong subject—it could induce madness. Permanent madness. The kind that cannot be cured."

Kayden stepped back. His tail lashed behind him. "Then we must be careful."

"We must be very careful," Thess agreed. He pointed to a fourth symbol. A flower with eight petals. "This represents creation. The ability to create something new. Something that has never existed before."

"Creation? Like life?"

"Like anything. Potions. Spells. Even new species. The blood contains the building blocks of reality itself."

Kayden stared at the scroll. His mind was spinning. "How is this possible? She is just a girl. A she-wolf. A she-wolf that is a slave."

"She is not just a girl, my Alpha. Her bloodline goes back to something ancient. Something powerful. Something that the old texts call the First Ones."

"The First Ones?"

Thess nodded. He shuffled to a bookshelf. His claws pulled down a heavy volume. The cover was made of cracked leather. The pages were yellow.

"The First Ones were the original Lycans," Thess said, opening the book. "They were not born. They were made. Created by a union between a wolf god and a mortal woman. Their blood carried the essence of both worlds. Divine and human. Beast and man."

Kayden’s eyes widened. "You think Samantha is descended from the First Ones?"

"I think it is possible. The markers in her blood match the descriptions in this text. The healing. The magic. The madness. The creation." Thess looked up. "If I am right, her blood is not just a cure for our curse. It is a key." freēwebnovel.com

"A key to what?"

Thess shrugged. "To anything. Everything. The First Ones could shape reality with their will. They could heal or harm. Create or destroy. They were gods walking in mortal flesh."

Kayden was silent for a long moment. The torches flickered. The liquids bubbled.

"If her blood is that powerful," Kayden said slowly, "then we are not just hunting a cure. We are hunting a weapon."

Thess nodded. "Yes, my Alpha. A weapon that could make us human. Or make us beasts. Or make us gods."

Kayden’s eyes glowed with hope, hunger and fear. He loved power. This could be his cue. The key to help him rise in such a way that other shifters would cower at his feet.

"The blood is stronger than we thought," he said.

"Much stronger."

"Could it make beasts out of us? If used wrongly?"

Thess hesitated. "Yes, my Alpha. The madness component is strong. If the blood is not properly refined, it could trigger our beast forms permanently. We would lose ourselves. Become mindless predators."

Kayden’s jaw tightened. "Then we must ensure it is used correctly."

"We must ensure it is used by someone who understands its power. Someone who respects its danger."

"And that someone is you." ƒrēewebnovel.com

Thess bowed his head. "I will do my best, my Alpha."

Kayden walked to the worktable. He looked at the black liquid in the beaker. His reflection stared back at him. He was a monster. But that would soon be corrected.

"Test it again," he said. "I want to know everything. Every component. Every marker. Every possible use."

Thess nodded. "It will take time, my Alpha."

"We do not have time. The girl is in the palace. The princes are circling her. Soon, they will claim her. And once they do, her blood will no longer be pure."

"Claiming does not affect blood purity, my Alpha."

"It affects access. Once she is their mate, they will guard her. Protect her. We will not be able to get close."

Thess picked up a fresh syringe. "Then I will work quickly. We need Vera to stir up some confusion in the palace. Something to delay the process, possibly alienate her till we can kidnap her."

Kayden watched as Thess extracted a small amount of the black liquid. He placed it under a lens and adjusted the focus, his eyes narrowing.

"There is something else," Thess said.

"What?"

"Something I have never seen before. A component that does not match any of the old texts."

Thess stepped back from the lens. He gestured for Kayden to look.

Kayden bent over the lens. He stared at the liquid. Inside, tiny particles swirled. They were not solid, liquid nor gas. They were something else. Something that seemed to shift and change as he watched.

"What are they?" Kayden asked.

"I do not know, my Alpha. They do not behave like any known element. They seem to... adapt. To change based on their environment."

"Adapt how?"

"If exposed to heat, they become cold. If exposed to light, they become dark. If exposed to magic, they become... something else."

Kayden stood up. His heart was pounding. "This blood is not just powerful. It is alive."

Thess nodded slowly. "Yes, my Alpha. I believe it is."

Kayden looked at the beaker. At the black liquid, and at his own reflection.

"Test it again," he said. "And again. And again. I want to know everything. Every secret. Every possibility."

Thess bowed. "As you command, my Alpha."

Kayden turned and walked to the entrance of the laboratory. He paused at the threshold.

"Thess."

"Yes, my Alpha?"

"If this blood can make us beasts... can it also make us something more?"

Thess was silent for a long moment. Then he said, "I believe it can make us anything we want to be, my Alpha."

Kayden smiled. It was not a kind smile.

"Then let us find out what we want to be."