Chapter 35

Dylan

Death and blood were all around us from the moment we found this gods forsaken hell that Rogan had hidden so plainly in the pack lands, that I was almost sure I would vomit any minute now.

Thankfully Rae had been able to help me not only work through the horrible sights and smells, but she had helped me stay focused as one shock after the other hit me.

Walking through the row of cells had felt like walking through some kind of f*cked up dog pound or at least what I had pictured one would look like if we were in the human world.

Nothing had shocked me as much as when Micah had used the last of his magic to open the door to one of the two cell doors that were hidden down here. 

The smell that hit my nostrils was both sickening and infuriating. We took in the small cell quickly, but it was hard to miss the emaciated body that was hanging limply from the chains.

It was obvious that they had been clearly tortured in unimaginable ways, but even though Micah and Tristan didn't say anything, I knew that they were both unsure if the man in front of us was alive.

From the moment I had seen the broken and mangled body hanging there, I knew that it wasn't Eren, but it didn't stop me from feeling pain on behalf of what this man might have gone through.

We all stood there for a moment even though the smells in the room made me almost sure that whoever this was, his soul no longer lived in this world. I just couldn't imagine how long he had been able to put up with the torture he had endured.

Unsure if Tristan and Micah were going to leave him here, I was about to step forward and check if this poor person was still alive, but Tristan's arm shot out suddenly holding me back.

None of us had spoken since opening the door, but it was almost like that sight movement had been a warning or trigger for the body to suddenly reanimate. I was so slowly that the chains hardly rattled at all.

His head was all that seemed to move, or maybe he only had enough strength left in that broken body to barely move his head.

I watched in utter horror as the man slowly turned his head up towards us, but the moment that his eyes lifted and met my own, my legs gave out and I was almost sure that I hit the disgusting floor with my knees. 

Words crept out of my mouth with what little breath that was left in me. Too many emotions were warring around inside of my head. Shame, shock, sadness, anger, frustration, and most of all fury.

Unfortunately, even with all of these feelings flipping back and forth inside of my heart and mind, there was a tiny part of me that was ashamed of the fact that I was disappointed that it wasn't Eren in this room.

Thankfully Rae was right there with words of encouragement and support. She was quickly telling me that what I was feeling was natural, that Eren was my mate, and we are bound in a way that goes beyond what one can or should feel for their friends.

I let her words sink in as I took a few moments to try to get myself together. Thankfully Tristan had no such burdens holding him at bay. 

He quickly gave instructions to Micah and in a matter of moments they had released Cruz's battered and broken body from the chains he had been suspended from.

Minutes was all it had taken for the two of them to get him down and meet me back near the door where I was still trying to get my brain to catch up with everything I was watching.

They were practically beside me when Micah ended up taking the brunt of Cruz's now unconscious form so that Tristan could help me up off the floor.

"Hey, are you okay? It's obvious you know this boy, but I'm sorry that it wasn't who you were expecting it to be."

Tristan had lifted me up so quickly and effortlessly that I wobbled a bit as I got my feet underneath me. I knew that he was strong but seeing him like this made me realize I hadn't truly understood just how strong he really is.

Another emotion flood me then and I hoped that one day I would be able to tell Tristan just how proud I was of him. Not just in this moment, I'm proud that he is not only my brother, but that I am his little sister.

Once I was securely on my feet and had my body and mind working again, Tristan squeezed my shoulder before leaning in and asking, "are you okay now? If you are, let's see what we can do about opening that other door."

My eyes met his before swinging over to where Micah stood with Cruz braced in his arms. It was then that I remembered what Micah had said about only being able to open one of the doors.

There was a slight sheen of sweat on Micah's forehead and a strain in his face that hadn't been there before and I knew that what he had told me earlier was the truth, and I had no idea what we would do to get the door open without him.

Unsure if Tristan was reading my thoughts or if my emotions were just that obviously plastered on my face, Tristan pulled me in closer to him for a quick hug before he kissed me quickly on the forehead.

"Micah may have opened this door, but he's not the only one who can do that. Kesh and I will get that other door open and see if your, uh, Eren is in there. And if he is we will get them both out with us, one way or another, okay?"

I had no words to say to him in that moment because I knew just as well as he did that it was possible that Eren was behind that other door, but it was also possible that he wasn't.

Nodding was all I could do right now and not for the first or the hundredth time in my life, I wished that I could reach out and hold Rae's hand to help steady myself.

"I'm with you little one. I'm always with you"

Her words melted into my mind, and they felt as if they oozed down from my head through my body and all the way to my toes. 

There was a sudden warmth building in my chest and I wasn't sure if it was due to Rae or Tristan, but I reached out and squeezed Tristan's hand before walking towards the other door.

Metal that looked like it had been reinforced multiple times was staring back at me almost daring us to try to open it without having a key.

I knew there was a key, and I knew exactly who it was who probably had it, but that was neither here nor there right now. Tristan had said that Kesh would help open the door and I knew that he would do more than just that if I asked him to.

Time was not on our side, and it was my fault for taking such a blow when we had opened the door to the cell that held Cruz, but I would not leave Blood Mist until I had a chance to look into that last cell.

Both Tristan and Micah had carried Cruz out of the cell and were now standing in the small narrow hallway with me. I briefly heard them arguing about Micah taking Cruz back to the meeting place or if he should wait here with us.

Micah was just as tall as Tristan and just as lean, but Cruz was a wolf and even though he was thin and weak, I knew that he was probably a bit too heavy for Micah to carry alone.

Unable to wait for them, I reached out to Rae, and she was already on the same page as I was. I reached out and placed my open palm on the cold steel and let Rae's strength surge through me.

I didn't pound on the door or punch it once I felt her strength seeping into my muscles. No, I let my claws come out and I pushed my hand into the metal. I closed my eyes and let my claws sink in as I imagined pushing through the door.

To my surprise, when I opened my eyes, my hand had sunk about an inch or so into the steel and as I pulled my hand back, I pulled a huge chunk of the steel out with it. Of course, it didn't come out quietly, it sounded just as loud as if were ripping at, well, metal.

Just then, I swore that I heard a voice come from the other side of the door. For a moment I was too shocked to even breath just in case I missed it if it came again.

Tristan must not have noticed my stillness because he came flying at the door with both hands raised above his head before I even had a chance to consider what I heard.

As soon as he hit the steel, not only did it bend inwards, I heard the groans of the hinges along the seam of the door. That wasn't the only thing that we both heard though. As Tristan lifted his arms again to attack the metal there was a voice coming behind the door.

"Please. I'm in here. Please."

The voice was weak and frail, but I heard the panic and desperation in those words, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt who that voice belonged to.

Instead of freezing like I had before, I was filled with a sudden rush of need and desperation to not only get through the door, but to destroy it completely.

Tristan's eyes were glowing when I turned my head towards him and he didn't hesitate when he asked, "is it him?" I was sure that the look on my face answered his question because I felt a rush of energy from him before he swung again.

To my surprise, the door was still in place, but I knew that one more hit would probably be enough to get in the cell.

Thoughts of what state he might be in filled me with a sudden rush of dark anger and that secret beast that lived inside of me was picking up her head and beginning to wake.

If I had any sense right now, I probably would have pushed her down back into that pit she slumbered in, but right now rage and vengeance were a welcome feeing. I knew that she didn't just bring that with her. In her was a strength that I might need.

So, I cooed to her and coaxed her forward, "I need you." The pulse of pleasure that she let out wasn't a burst or a sudden rush, but it was like a slow lit fire igniting from within the recesses of my being and slowly seeping through my veins.

In my mind I pictured her and compared her to the feelings that I get from Rae. Where Rae was strength and warmth and light, she was power and cool darkness and I welcomed her in a way I hadn't let myself before.

When Tristan lifted his arms again, I stood right beside him and lifted my arms to swing along with him. His breathing was a bit labored as the steel broke free of his its hinges and finally fell inside the cell. I didn't wait to check on him though.

I moved through the cloud of dust into the blackness of the cell. Scents that I both knew and also couldn't place hit me as I made my way over the crumpled steel door and into the cell that looked almost identical to the one, we had found Cruz in just now.

My gaze roved around the small space that was no bigger than my old living room and I saw a small light along one wall. I used it to trace the rest of the dark spaces in the cell.

The dust and dirt were starting to slowly settle, but it was there that I caught a small glint of more steel chains and tracked them down the hanging figure between them.

Eren.

My heart pulsed once. Twice. Three times.

I was moving towards him. The smell of torn flesh, blood, and infection filled my nostrils and only made me and Rae, and her, rage. Eren's eyes were closed, but I saw the shallow rise and fall of his chest.

Unsure of why I couldn't feel him. Feel the warm electric currents that I used to get from just being near or touching him, I felt a bit confused. I didn't miss the way that he flinched as I moved to stand right in front of where he hung. Hung.

Gods, he was hanging from his arms where he had been chained to the ceiling and wall. I lifted my hand and placed it softly on his cheek. We were eye level with each other as he hung there, and I tried not to take in anything other than his face.

I wasn't sure, but I thought I felt a slight warmth under my fingertips. However, there was no time to dwell on that because almost instantly his eyes opened and landed right on me.

Dark crimson eyes met mine and it took everything inside of me to keep from crying out. I spoke to him softly, "Eren, I'm here. I'm gonna get you out of here, but I need to get the chains out of the wall first, can you handle that?"

Eren just looked at me as if he didn't understand anything that was coming out of my mouth. Fear filled me for a moment because I wasn't sure what had been done to him and I was afraid that he didn't know what was going on.

Quickly, I moved to the wall and let my hand move along the chains to see if I could try to rip them from the brackets along the wall. I knew that if I pulled them out one at a time that he might fall over so I decided to rip them both out at the same time.

Rae was quiet, but I knew that she was watching everything intently, but it wasn't her that I called on right now. "I need you. Now!" The soft purr of her power had already filled my veins and I felt her smile as her power filled me like a searing heat.

Reaching out I closed my eyes and let her take over completely. I yanked the other end of the chains as close to the wall where they were connected. As soon as I felt them give and slacken in my hands, I opened my eyes. I could have sworn I felt her smile somewhere deep within.

There was no time to deal with her right now. I would let her run wild and ruin me if she helped me save Eren right now because that is all that I cared about. 

It was almost like I was watching things happen in slow motion. As the chains loosened all the way, his arms fell down to his sides and I realized that he was not going to be able to keep himself up right.

Moving over towards him, I made it just in time to catch him as his body fell forward towards the floor. Eren's eyes were closed for a few seconds, but I think he was bracing himself for the impact of hitting the floor.

We were chest to chest, and my cheek was right beside his. I felt his breath catch when I whispered to him, "I'm here. I'm here for you. And we are getting you out, I promise!"

Between the time we came into the room to now, it had felt like an eternity and also seconds. No matter how long we have actually been in here Micah had already handed Cruz over to Tristan and walked close to where I now stood holding Eren up.

"Dylan, I will help you with him, but we need to hurry. We don't have much time left before my magic can no longer conceal us."

Micah truly looked as though he had little strength left, but I knew that there was no way that I could carry Eren on my own. Pressing my cheek against him again, I whispered, "I know you are tired, but I need you to stay with me until we can get out of here.'

Eren seemed like he was unable to move his arms, regardless I felt him rub his cheek against my own and I could have sworn I felt dampness there. Then he began slowly trying to push himself up onto his feet.

Thankfully Micah was there because he helped him to stand, and I was able to break the manacles that were around his wrists. Micah and I slung his arms around both of our shoulders and for once I was glad that I was as tall as I am.

Tristan was still by the door, and he now had Cruz fully spread across his back with his head resting on his shoulder. With both his legs held in his arms, in another situation it could honestly have looked like he was giving him a piggyback ride.

Eren's eyes were open, and I knew that he was trying his best to try to walk with us, but he seemed to have little strength left. As we made our way out the door, I made sure to keep looking forward. 

It took longer getting the five of us out of the old building. I was glad when we made it out the door that the guards were still there on the ground unconscious, but we were not in the clear yet.

It would probably take us twice the amount of time to get back to the cars and I had little hope that Micah's magic would be able to last to get us there.

We had just made it to the tree line when Tristan had to stop to fix Cruz's position on his back. The sky was starting to lighten up and I knew that we had very little time even if Micah's magic held long enough to keep us from being spotted.

Tristan was ahead of us by a few steps and without turning to look at me, he spoke, and I knew his words were directed towards me, but I had no idea if I could do it.

"I know that you haven't really figured it out yet, but if you could, I don't know, cause it storm right now, that might really help us."

I felt Micah's gaze turn towards me, but I didn't acknowledge it. Tristan was right. If I could do now what I had done before, it could help distract any patrols.

Reaching inwards, I asked Rae if she knew how to control the storms I had caused before, but she was oddly quiet. To my surprise though, that dark black heat that was still swirling around and within seemed to purr. 

"I'll help you, this once, if you promise to let me out again." Agreeing with her I felt a smile spread across my lips as the wind around us started to pick up and the lightening filled sky begin to darken to a slate grey that was fading into black.

As we continued to walk, I made a mental note to figure out just who she was before I let her come out to really play because I just might get used to her and what she might wish to do.