The Alpha King's Nemesis-Chapter 56: Kodin ()

~Zariah’s Childhood~

"You can’t keep me from seeing her forever, I am her father’s dearest friend, I should have the rights to know my little niece and win her favor before other less worthy uncles beat me to it." The stranger insisted.

Zariah’s father heaved a sigh before he turned his gaze to where Zariah hid, eyes tightly shut in apprehension.

"Come on out Zari, we know you’re there." Zariah’s father called out to her.

Zariah heaved a pitiful sigh as she gathered her wits and reluctantly stepped out from the cover of trees.

"For how long have you known I was here?" Zariah asked as she walked forwards in a slow pace, her lips pouted.

Zariah’s father gave her a look that said ’I don’t think you want to hear my answer.’ whilst his eyes were lit up in amusement.

"You did not really think your father, Zewin Togan Moonstone the great Crimson Alpha would not notice you little one has been trailing him?" The stranger asked, chuckling in amusement.

Zariah passed the stranger a withering glare to which he laughed heartily.

"Well I hoped..." Zariah murmured in a low, aggrieved tone.

"You came just in time little Zari, you wouldn’t believe just how eager I have been to meet you." The stranger said, crouching down to Zariah’s level, a huge smile on his lips.

"Who are you again?" Zariah asked, tilting her head to the side questioningly, her stance guarded.

Zariah heard her father snickering behind her at the apaled look reflected on the face of the stranger.

It seemed the stranger was surprised to realize that Zariah did not know him at all and that surprised Zariah even more.

"You can’t guess? Your father never mentioned me?" The stranger asked in bafflement,

Zariah was certain if her father had ever mentioned such an eccentric character, she would not have forgotten it so easily.

Zariah however admitted that her father did not speak much of the outworld, not as much as Zariah would have liked.

"Never...not even once." Zariah replied honestly with a casual shrug.

The stranger’s jaws dropped open as he lifted his gaze to Zariah’s father.

"Heavens, Zewin!" The stranger exclaimed,

Zariah felt this stranger was rather loud, a trait Zariah did not prefer, however his antics had her father laughing heartily and so Zariah was willing to indulge him.

"My name is Kodin, your father is my dearest friend...as was your mother. And you little Zari are someone I cherish dearly." The stranger said, his gaze staring deeply into Zariah’s eyes.

For some reason, Zariah felt as though she could trust him and so she nodded slowly in understanding.

"I must go now, but I hope to see you again sometime soon so we can get to know each other better and then you can join me in loathing your father for not introducing us earlier." The stranger Kodin said with a wink.

Zariah passed a look to her father who rolled his eyes exasperatedly.

The stranger ruffled Zariah’s hair fondly as he rose to his feet.

Zariah stood at her father’s side, watching as the stranger headed away, he stopped before the barrier, turning to them, he waved slightly before stepping out to the other side.

The Crimson barrier instantly closed up behind him and Zariah turned to her father.

"But father, is it really okay to open the barrier to outsiders?" Zariah asked doubtfully.

Her father’s gaze turned to her, his Crimson orbs that Zariah had inherited glinting in the way it always did when he knew something Zariah didn’t.

"Kodin is not an outsider Zari." Zariah’s father said to her in a serious tone.

Zariah’s brows furrowed in confusion at her father’s words,

All her life, Zariah had only understood that the Crimson wolves were family and every existence beyond the Crimson barrier was an outsider.

"If not an outsider, then what is he?" Zariah asked in bafflement, her brows furrowing when her father chuckled, crouching down to her height.

"Family Zari...he is family." Zariah’s father said with a small smile.

This confused Zariah even more as she never knew they had family outside the barrier save for her maternal grandparents.

"But I didn’t sense any traces of Crimson blood on him father." Zariah pointed out.

"Family isn’t only determined by blood ties Zari. There are those with who we share the bond of blood and there are others who we bond with because they are like-minded, share a common cause and have proven worthy..." Zariah’s father said with a smile.

"A bond of friendship then? True friendship." Zariah said in understanding, her father nodded.

"My dearest, in those you find a bond so true, never regard it to be any less than that of blood ties... for believe me when I say, sometimes...it worths a whole lot more." Zariah’s father stressed in a low tone.

"Do you understand father’s words?" Zariah’s father asked her, Zariah nodded.

"Value who is meant to be valued so long as they have proven worthy, some bonds transcend that of blood ties... and Kod... Uncle Kodin is father’s family and that makes him my family too." Zariah summarized dutifully.

Zariah’s father patted her head, his lips stretched into an approving smile.

"Now we will still have to discuss about you trailing your father Zari..." Zariah’s father added.

Zariah hung her head down in shame, avoiding her father’s gaze. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"I’m sorry father, it won’t happen again." Zariah apologized remorsefully.

"It shouldn’t, you are future Crimson Alpha and all that is mine will be yours, if ever you want to know of anything, you only need to ask Zari and father will tell you all...what has father always taught you?" Zariah’s father asked.

"That father and I are a team, we have to look out for each other... always." Zariah replied in a low tone.

"That’s my pup, now you must be exhausted from trailing me so far, let father give you a ride home." Zariah’s father offered as his bones began realigning and he took his wolf form.

The gigantic 9ft tall muscular wolf towering over little Zariah by a far stretch.

"But father, I’m not tired at all." Zariah protested, giggling when her father’s wolf nuzzled her.

"You’re getting wolf drool all over me!" Zariah squealed, giggling louder when her father’s wolf lapped at her face, covering her in his slobber.

"You know that’s just my excuse to give you a ride, you should learn to play along."

Zariah heard her father’s deep baritone in her head and she laughed as her father ducked down, gently grabbing her by the collar of her robe with his mouth, he tossed Zariah onto his back.

Zariah grabbed onto her father’s fur tightly, her lips stretched in a wide grin.

"Off we go!" Her father announced before he shot forwards at great speed, Zariah’s giggles echoing all the way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Present Day~

Zariah’s mind worked as she thought over the words of King Askel.

In her previous lifetime, Zariah had never known who Kodin truly was, all she had known of him was his name and the fact that he was a cherished friend of her father’s.

It was not until she came face to face with him on the execution ground that Zariah realized his true identity.

It was only then the memories she had long forgotten were triggered, memories Zariah had avoided thinking of because they reminded her of her father, a loss Zariah had never truly gotten over.

Zariah had forced away such thoughts and ultimately she had ended up forgetting all about Kodin’s existence, till she saw him again.

Although he had been the one at whose hands she had died, Zariah held no grudges whatsoever.

In the end he was the only one who had asked for her side of the story, the only one who had believed her when all evidence indicated otherwise.

Zariah had seen the pain in his eyes, the tears he shed for her as she pleaded for him to take her life, to stop her from loosing herself completely to the darkness that consumed her from within.

She had seen his reluctance, his helplessness, his desperation and then resignation as he gave in to her request knowing it was the last favor he could do for her,

Kodin knew better than anyone the power of the Crimson Alpha and so he knew clearly that if he hesitated for even just a moment more than he had and the darkness took over,

There were no chains created that could restrain Zariah and not even he could subdue the Crimson Alpha.

If he had hesitated due to affection, many would have died at Zariah’s hands.

Even as he drove the silver sword into her heart, Zariah had not held the slightest resentment towards him.

It was not his fault that she had failed her father and her ancestors, it was not his fault that she had fallen to such an evil conspiracy,

It was not his fault that she had ended up a victim to the Alpha King and Caedmon Grey,