Untouchable by Marii Solaria

Chapter 94 – Reminiscing

“Last night I lost the world, and gained the universe.“–C Joy Bell C.

Krya

“Disbanding..

There wasn’t much to say, or there was, but I couldn’t muster up the courage to speak. Neither of us uttered a word to each other. The sounds of the surrounding nature drowned out our silence. My eyes followed Neron’s movements as he twirled his ring between his fingers. His eyes narrowed on the object, disgust reflecting on his orbs, grimacing.

“I found out the truth about my family, Kiya.” Neron spoke with momentous contempt woven in every syllable. “When you went missing. I searched high and low for answers. Osiris allusion to my family’s history made little sense at first. Why did he condemn my bloodline every chance he got? There were so many secrets that I was unprepared to uncover. I never knew that the paternal side of my family was so… violent.”

The Alpha ring slid into his palm and he hid it inside his fist, tightening it as if he wanted to crush it. “All the men before me only cared about power and they hurt people to get it.”

“How did you find out?”

“I found journals of my grandfather and great–grandfather hidden in the library,” Neron explained. “I confronted Dad about it, and he defended their behavior, claiming they were martyrs. The pain of others was worth the elevation of the Prince name.” Neron slumped his head into his free hand, rubbing his temple. “He painted their tyranny as their ambition! I… I couldn’t stomach the thought of running Zircon Moon after that. My family history was diluted and painted into something else entirely.”

I didn’t miss the break in his tone, and it broke my heart. I couldn’t fathom being fed fabrications about your own lineage for years and discovering the truth in the worst timing possible. What did he go through while I was gone? Neron sighed, wiping his tears before they had the chance to fall, sucking in deep breaths to calm his quaking hands.

“I was lied to my entire life. All this shit just to be a “good Alpha‘ wasn’t worth it in the end. It felt like everyone I held close to my heart betrayed me; Dad, Odessa, who knows who else?”

“You have Valerian and Kwame.” I quipped, scooting my body closer to him. “They o

didn’t lie to you.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t listen.” Neron gazed upon my face, his reddening eyes searching in mine. “If I have children, I wouldn’t want to pass this legacy to them. I don’t want them to discover it as late as I did and be reminded that their history was full of plunder and deceit. What does it make me to continue my rule as Alpha after finding this out? I couldn’t turn a blind–eye to this.”

“What did you do with the journals?”

“Burned them.” Neron said. “I never want to look at that shit again.” Neron turned his head to face the pack house, a shadow falling over his face. “I’m not proud of Zircon Moon, even more so when I think about what we put you through. I’m disbanding this pack because I want to create a new legacy that I know I can be proud of, building it from the ground up.”

“Neron, packs take years to establish, not to mention the time and resources allocating to it.” I explained, folding my hands in my lap. “Don’t you think it’s so sudden to be making a radical decision like this?”

Neron chuckled, his lips curling into a smile, turning his head to me. “Kiya, this plan has been on my mind for weeks. As harsh as it sounds, Zircon Moon is a name that needs to die. 200 years of living is long enough.”

“Right.. I whispered, soaking in the impact of his words. “How do Anthony and my dad come into play?”

“They’ve been helping me seek potential land sellers and buyers. Luckily, Dad had a decent amount of money. stashed away in his savings and from investments in stocks in Carson City and Las Vegas. He won’t be using that anytime soon, so I’m putting it to good use.”

“Oh. Well, that’s good.” I offered a small smile. “Have you thought about where you want your new pack to

be?”

“Away from here.” Neron snorted. “I’ve outgrown Nevada. I want to stay on the west coast, so maybe Oregon or Washington, despite the shitshow with Osiris. The East Coast as awful winters, the South has hurricanes and tornadoes and the Mid–West is just… corn and farm life.”

Neron an incredulous look, placing my fists on

touched

my life

head. Turning my head to the distant pack house, snippets of flashed before my eyes. This place was where my life began and ended. Through the laughter, smiles, tears, and blood, this land

Ko.

glad that with time, this

on, and so was

led to another sensitive topic that we needed to

thinking about?” Neron

head to the pond. Tiny fish leaped out of the water while birds took their baths around the exterior, Most of the people who hurt me are dead. This summer was a journey that tested my boundaries and my strength. Life threw one obstacle after another at me, whether as a snake or a painful

be both?” Neron tossed his ring in the air and caught it

mine.”

right now. Artemis and I talked a lot in my

feel we need to talk about now that we don’t have

distractions.”

d that be?”

“What would that be?”

“Forgiveness.”

Chapter 94 – Perunisong

his body stiffening like he was bracing for an attack. A new sadness

was too. Forgiveness wasn’t an option for me, at least, not the type many thought it was. Things have changed, and I have changed. Artemis‘ growl rumbled low in my

and crossed them again. “Neron, can you answer

“Yes.”

need my forgiveness to

his ring on the grass next to his hip, propping his knees on his thighs in his silence. I wish I had the power to poke and prod inside Neron’s mind to discover the inner mechanisms of his thought process. A twinge of pain

would’ve slapped me for. I understood how love got lost in translation and how I was performing for other people. I had abandoned the things I loved so I could get the love from people who

the correct way, Neron. You had no room for

end. I hurt you, Kiya.” Neron turned his body to face me. “If I could take my actions back, I would, but I can’t. Did I need your forgiveness to change? No. But, the thought of it helped me to wake up. After a while, I forgot about it. I wanted your safety

still want

face contorted in worry, his gaze now on the canopy above us, with the sunlight highlighting his facial features. “I want to be better than I was yesterday. I

father wouldn’t have held down a fucking naga to save me. He would never think about putting others before himself. Above all, he wouldn’t have fought as hard as you did to stop hell from raising over. You died for me, Neron, for fucks sake! You’re

ever be

his head. Didn’t he believe me? I cannot ever see Neron and Jonathan as the same man, even if they shared blood. Neron helped pull me away from the darkness while Jonathan catapulted

“He’s still in me.”

can’t hurt

Chapter 94 – Remmeng

voice cracked again. “He’s always in my head, telling me I’m

and I hope he suffers in hell for all he’d did to the both of us. I swallowed the urge to yell at Neron at how wrong he was, and instead diverted the

to care about her, and I had abandoned her. As crazy as it sounds, the chaos with Osiris helped me to realize I couldn’t abandon her again. I know your dad fucked with your head and messed your life up, but I think you can do some mending with your inner child.” I pointed to his heart. “He is in there, waiting

swooped down between us, nestling her tiny body between our hips. Neron smiled small, petting her head as she cooed. “I’ll

back to the topic at hand.” A small dandelion waved gently in the wind, spreading its seed to the farthest reaches of the pond and the woods. “Ever since I came back here, people have distorted my view on forgiveness because no one wanted to take responsibility for my abuse. They weaponized it against me. Ashley, Steven,

wouldn’t forgive