Star-crossed Royals

Chapter One

Jamie looked in the mirror for what felt like the millionth time. Purple. There they were, like violet gemstones staring back at him. He was different from other Lycans, with colors that included yellow for Betas, blue for Lunas, and red for clan Alphas. There was also the white of the Omegas, Lycans that had been expelled from their clan, but he had never seen one. Then there was purple. It is the color of the true royal lineage of Lycans. The line that all Alphas answer to. The royal line descended from, or was the mate of, the Rígh which was Gaelic for King. A fitting name, given their race had originated in the Highlands of 9th century Scotland.

Jamie knew since birth that he was of royal lineage, and it was a burden he wished wasn’t his. He knew this day would come, but it just did not seem real. While it was short lived, he was free for the first time in life from his overbearing father. Pacing in circles around his dorm room, he thought of all the things this now meant for him. He was now in college, but this would be his last taste of freedom. Once he graduated, he was expected to put aside his life, and any ambitions he may have had otherwise, to become Rígh. Then, he would reign over the Alphas of all clans. More importantly, it was his responsibility to meet with the potential mates chosen by his parents until he found one suitable that he formed the bond with. The bond was a once in a lifetime occurrence for a Lycan. Just the scent of a Lycan’s destined mate caused a feeling of being charged with energy and almost literal electricity running through their veins. Once completed, upon their first kiss, it felt like a sudden lightning bolt permeating the body of the two bonding.  It resulted in a lifelong, unbreakable bond between mates that continued even if one of them died. Most often, a Lycan would die from the pain of losing their mate. Not all Lycans were forced to choose like Jamie would be. Many of his kind were able to look for the one fated to them, but Jamie did not have that luxury.

Finding a mate was his parent’s number one goal, because Jamie was the last of their line. Not only was he the last of his parent’s line, but he was also the last royal, period. Given their healing abilities, it was extremely rare to have any permanent damage from childbirth. Unfortunately, Jamie’s mother had been rendered baren when he was born. No one had really explained how or why, but he just knew he was the last child they would ever have. There was no one else and if he did not pass along the royal genes to his children, there could be serious implications for their race. It is speculated that if the royal line dies, all Lycans will die with it.

There was still so much he did not know. He knew basic things about his people, but where did they come from? Why were there even royalty, packs, Alphas, and hierarchy in the first place? What made him special? These were the secrets that were passed down from father to son when the latter finally ascended to his place as Rígh. He had so many questions, but he was also terrified of what was to come. Jamie had talked his parents into letting him go to college for four years, but that only put off the inevitable. The thought of a forced bond and the obligation to have children disgusted him. He wanted to find love on his own terms, and he did not want to resent his children because he was forced to make them.

“Ugh. I guess I should focus on enjoying the time I have left,” he quietly muttered to himself. Jamie looked across the room to see his best friend Leif asleep. Looking like a literal Viking pulled from a village being pillaged somewhere and stuffed into contemporary clothing, he laid sprawled out softly snoring. His hair, that he normally kept pulled back into a ponytail, spilled in streams of blonde cascading around his shoulders in moonlight shining in through their window. Leif’s leather-bound necklace with the symbol of Odin wrought in iron sat upon his chest as it always did. His undercut was almost covered by his hair, it was a bit weird to see after being so used to it up all the time. He was about 6’1’’ with a well-groomed beard. He filled out the small twin-size bed easily, given he was a broad man to match his height.

This specimen of a man was literally bred to protect him. Although they had been best friends since birth, Leif’s family, The Hardradas, was a special one among Lycans. They were meant to be the bodyguard to the Rígh, and Leif was no different. It was his entire purpose in life. The Hardradas were also an exception to the normal eye color spectrum. Unlike the other Lycans, they were orange. They had the power of Alphas in speed, strength, stamina, etc. but could not override an Alpha within their pack. It’s thought that their eye color is a direct mixing of the Beta yellow and Alpha red.  This means that they can directly handle the occasional Alpha attempting to gain control of the Rígh’s power by killing the royal line because they were of comparable strength. While it was speculated that the death of the royal line would result in the end of their race, there were many Alphas that thought that killing the royal line would imbue them with their power, much like an Alpha losing to a Beta in his pack. Unlike most Alphas though, the Hardradas trained their young from birth to be warriors in the old ways of their people. They worshipped the same Gods their ancestors did when their people landed in Scotland where the first Rígh decided to make them the protectors of his children.

One aspect of his newfound power that still took some getting used to was royals seeing the eye color of any Lycan, even if they are not purposely showing it. Normally a Lycan’s eyes only glow their hierarchal color when enraged, shown for identification, in battle, when shifted, etc. but Jamie could see them bright as day now if he chose to look for it. No one could hide that they were a Lycan or what kind they were from him now.

“I need to get to bed,” He thought to himself while running his hands through his auburn hair. He had to wrestle for his spot in the morning versus the senior who currently held the varsity position at heavyweight, his weight class. It wouldn’t be difficult for him, but he still had to get up early.  Laying down in his bed, Jamie admired the scarlet O on his jacket laying across a chair. This school was his new home, and he loved it.

Morning comes and Jamie hears Leif banging around the room trying to shove books into his bag along with food. He was being obviously loud in an attempt to wake Jamie up without doing it directly. Since Leif was here on bodyguard duty, he was in all the same classes and had even earned a walk on spot on the wrestling team. Yawning loudly, Jamie sat up and ran his fingers through his unkempt shoulder length hair, pulling it back into a ponytail.

“Time for class already?” Jamie lamented out loud.

“You told me you would wake me up for class, and it’s in ten minutes!” Leif yelled a bit too forcefully in Jamie’s direction.

Annoyance swelled in Jamie’s chest, but he tried to be understanding of his friend’s frustration. Since he had paced all night thinking of the weight of his looming obligations and this new school year, he had only gotten to sleep a few hours before. When he finally passed out, he forgot to set an alarm causing Leif’s current frustration.

“I’ll make it up to you later, but let’s get out of here. We can probably make it just in time if we run, but we may need to run a little slower since it’s daytime. We don’t want anyone to notice we’re…a bit faster than the average person.” Jamie said to Leif, hoping to smooth things over. Leif rolled his eyes as Jamie scrambled from the bed, pulling on a clean pair of pants hurriedly.

They got to class just a bit late, but the professor had already closed the door. When Jamie pulled the door open, he used a bit too much strength. The door flew wide and slammed into the wall, making a huge BANG and getting the attention of everyone in the room. Everyone, including the professor, stopped, and turned to stare at the pair who loudly interrupted the first day of class.

A scent that was both familiar but also somehow completely foreign at the same time, invaded Jaime’s acute senses, stopping him in place with the class staring at them. Jamie was no longer paying attention to anyone else. His heart felt like it was going to beat itself through his chest, and he felt a warmth spread from his heart in a slow wave throughout the rest of his body. It felt like flames spreading quickly, but he was not in pain. It was a comforting heat, like it was taking away his worry, stress, and even the ache in his muscles from the previous night’s practice. Looking around for the scent, he instinctively began looking for another Lycan using his ability. What he saw simply confused him more.

Sitting in the front row was a beautiful Japanese girl. Her hair was long and black, and she was a bit on the shorter side. Wearing a tank top, Jamie could not help tracing the defined lines of her lean body from her shoulders to her fingertips, gripping a bit tight to the edge of her desk. He was being overwhelmed by this scent; could it be hers? He could not help but be instantly attracted to her. She was clearly some sort of athlete; especially given the powerful legs he could see from under the desk.  She was as frozen as he was, as if time stood still and nothing mattered beyond their gaze. She was looking at him with an intensity matching his own.  Bringing his eyes back up, his met hers. Her eyes were glowing with the light of a Lycan, but they were…wrong. Her eyes glowed a bright emerald green.