Untouchable by Marii Solaria

Chapter 56 – The Puppeteer

“Every story needs its hero. And its villain. And its monster.“–Amle Kaufman

Third Person POV

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Bonu

03:29

Eyes, red as carmine, perused over the reanimated corpse of his puppet. The cadaver is motionless as a statue, put upon a steel table scintillating faintly under fluorescent lights. The owner of the ominous eyes cracked an amusing smirk, lips hiding the terror behind them.

The plan was working smoothly. His spider–like fingers traced the stitches of flesh, held together by a delicate string. Sharp nails nicked the slowly rotting dermis, the ooze of shamrock green dribbling out like droplets of rain. His marionette isn’t ready for its grand appearance for there was much to do. The thought of having what he always wanted aroused him, the vivacious heart of the one so close he could almost taste it.

Restless as he was, he knew the value of patience. He mustn’t act too hastily for his plan to work. He must take time. The waiting was mind–numbing, but it would all be worth it.

“My lord.” His head gently turned to see one of his many living, breathing puppets standing at the door to his morgue. “Many of the undead hellhounds returned to their cages. Our numbers suffered in the attack against Zircon Moon. What are your orders?”

The man grunted in amusement. “My little lambs will continue to construct more hellhounds. I’m not finished with those wretched dogs. They have something I want, and I won’t stop until I get it. The ashes of the deceased rogues are plentiful. No worry about the depleting numbers.”

“How many?”

“Quadruple the number of hellhounds we have. Sextuple, if you must. The more we have, the more we overwhelm our enemy.”

“Very well, but have you discussed this with Nadia? You know how she feels about being left in the dark.”

His lord’s face hardened; lips pursed. “She is to work on the hellhounds with my other lambs as instructed. Do not bring her name up again, Lucien.”

Lucien wanted to say something. So desperate and needed that it punched at the base of his throat, demanding an escape. However, he was agonizingly aware of his lord’s wrath at the mere mention of that name. All he could think about was the poor woman slaving over enchanted ashes and rotting stiffs of failed pack dogs. He wished he could say how Nadia was of value to him, not only for his blackened heart but for his soul. The touch of a beautiful maiden could do him wonders to steer him off this chaotic path.

In the end, he forced the words back down. He couldn’t risk his safety. With a last nod, the bleach–blond man left his lord to cogitate in his darkness. The stench of his toy was enough to trigger intense nausea.

As for the mysterious lord, he ran his hair through the puppet’s darkened hair, matted from his illicit resurrection. He was the centerpiece of his ambition, the key to his victory.

To get what no one else would claim.

The Moon will be his.

Chapter 56 – The Puppeteer

+10

Bonu

03:2:

Neron

The rogue attack two days ago left more questions than answers. As my Beta and Gamma sat in my office to discuss the aftermath, the end of the battle preoccupied my mind. It had persisted, pestering my thoughts day in and day out.

That howl. The howl that caused the ceasefire. I’ve heard it before. But it couldn’t be who I think it is.

“Those rogues weren’t ordinary. They reeked on death and decomposition.” Kwame spoke, pulling out his tablet. “After a thorough examination of the corpses by the pack embalmers, reports state each part of the rogues were in various stages of decay, some more advanced than others.”

“That brings forth another question,” Valerian spoke. “How are they able to have such immense strength during battle? Their fortitude was up to par with fully trained, full–bodied wolves. If they are rotting away, they should not have the tenacity to withstand our blowbacks.”

“The zombie rogues are under the control of someone,” I spoke up. “Armies always have a commander calling the shots from behind the chaos. The mysterious howl called back the rogues that escaped unscathed. This poses a problem if we’re facing an enemy we cannot see.”

“Magic must be involved.” I pull my attention to my Beta. “Maybe a witch is behind the attack.” He shot a childish smirk at me. “Pissed off any witches lately?”

“Not since my last visit to The Witching Hour a few months back.” I laugh to myself. The Witching Hour was a club in Las Vegas, frequented by the supernatural, a party hub for us to let loose. In all seriousness, I highly doubt a few butt–hurt elemental witches have enough power to pull off an attack of this caliber.

This attack was calculated. Whoever’s behind this madness was cowardly enough to hide their face. Anger sizzled in my heart at the thought of my mysterious contender in hiding. The bastard attacked my home, putting everyone I care about in danger.

My pack.

My friends.

My family.

My mate.

the umpteenth time today. As usual, she continues to avoid me like the bubonic plague. One–word answers were

a fact she feels the sparks of our bond whenever we touch, I cannot be the only one. Onyx was still restless for her. He wanted her resting in our arms where she belongs. However, claiming her heart as mine proved

challenge.

lucky for me, I

my thoughts back on the situation at hand. “Magic is a strong contender in

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embalmers will continue to examine the corpses to discover more about what we’re dealing with. We need to find this puppeteer because I have a strong feeling that w09:21 see more attacks like this.”

of the other packs that have been attacked,” Kwame spoke. “If we could find a link between the onslaughts, we could assume we’re facing the same enemy.”

witches. The last time I checked, using magic on the dead is a forbidden practice. The more insight we get from them, the closer we will be to getting answers.”

magic. They can honor and bring peace to the dead, but never to use for maliciousness such as this. If I were a witch, I’d demand answers if a sacred rule was

me to go to a club known for being a hub for the supernatural to ask witches for

a problem?”

many of those witches are known to seduce wolves. Raina would go on a rampage

have that level of extreme jealousy,

mates first. You both will leave tonight. Have two guards with you in case.” Despite their initial protests, both agreed to the assignment before leaving my office. The work to expose the identity of this challenger will be

needed a strong leader, and a strong leader I

concern of the mysterious howl, I mind–linked my father to see if he

Dad. Could you come

about that howl,

as always. I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but I needed your opinion. That howl, though different, sounded familiar. Almost like…”

way, son. I’m on my way. We’ll discuss more

thank you,

the training of the wolves and pup trainees. My eyes, once again, fell on Kiya, commanding

the letter. Not only was she authoritative, but she was also gentle and patient. She had all the markers of being

a bonus.

3/7

Chapter 96,

thrive as my Luna, the position that’s destined for her

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Banus

03:17

Kiya

from the kitchen. Was that too much to ask

I had to do is to go into the kitchen, grab

Nope!

found Sapphire and her mate making out on the kitchen

have to see a grown man pinch and pull Sapphire’s bare nipple?

their lust because when I cleared my throat, the two leaped away from each other. Sapphire’s blue eyes widened like saucers as

expressions were gold! I covered my mouth to hide my smile because if I didn’t, I’d die of

smoothing her blond hair to conceal the sin she was about to

the macks on their necks. “…you’re already mated. Wow, it hasn’t

and grabbed the shirt he’d tossed carelessly on the

and perfectly round globes.

apologize, Delta Kiya.” The male werewolf bowed to me, his

off. “No harm done. Just keep it in the

straight. “Thank you, Delta. You are kind.”

the bottle I was

her joy. Her mate was a good one. Isaiah was a warrior who recently returned from a visit to his family in Chicago right

shuddered at the

56 The Puppeteer

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Ronu

trainees paired off to spar. Excitement oozed from their cheers and fist pumps, finding their friends to practice. After a couple of minutes of monitoring progress, 03:14 spot a lone pup

cocked my head to the side,

know why, but

head, green eyes gleaming with unshed tears. “I don’t think I have what it takes, Delta Kiya. I fall all the time and I can’t