Blood of the Ancients

Dying was a far more peaceful prospect than Nero had been expecting. All the deaths he had ever doled out had always been violent, vicious ends. A cursory glance back at the three bodies he'd laid to waste in his wake were a testament to that. Ironic, that he, a predator of the old blood, would find his end slowly bleeding to death on the banks of a river. Not in the heat and glory of battle, but slowly seeping away into the snow. It felt... wrong. It felt like an affront to all of his beliefs. But there was nothing to be done about it now. Even if he wanted to end his own life, Nero doubted he'd have the strength to climb all the way to the top of the falls to throw himself to the rocks below. No, he would simply have to accept his slow exsanguination or walk out into the water and drown. Neither option felt fitting for a brute like himself.

As he sulked over his situation and his ultimate end, the sound of soft crunching in the fresh snow caught the arctic brute's attention. Gray-tipped ears swiveled around to catch the sound and Nero moved with a lazy turn of his head, the motion tugging on the torn flesh of his neck to spy the stranger approaching him, surveying the bloodbath and carnage he'd left behind. She was a tiny, svelte thing, made of smooth plains and supple curves, wrapped in slate and cream stripes. Nero's expression remained dour, but the gleam in his eyes was a warning shot toward her. Don't. He wanted to be left alone to die, not be some bitch's trophy kill. Even wounded, he wouldn't hesitate to snap her in half like a twig. One more body on his tally before he went to Hell.

She spoke in purring tones to him, earning her a warning growl from the ancient dire brute. Stay away. He was a wounded animal backed into a corner. Was this fae friend or foe? She seemed to be admiring him—admiring his body—while she prowled around him. Inspecting him. Appraising him? Perhaps. Was she sizing up how well his pelt would look on her bed? Maybe where she'd hang his head in her den? Still, he was in no shape to immediately go for her. He had to save his strength, wait for her to come within striking distance, then he'd have his final kill. He wasn't going down without a fight. But to his surprise, the fae instead came to sit before him, posture relaxed and confident with her abnormally long tail wrapped around her. Now Nero could get a better look at her—and sample her scent easier too. Large nares flares, realizing that her scent matched the borders of this pack. This was the alphess of these lands.

The petite alpha offered to save his life; to mend him in exchange for his life service to her. Nero's golden eyes narrowed. She reached forward to stroke his muzzle and the urge to snap her leg off at the elbow was strong. But her touch was also soothing, tempting... She was playing with him. Playing God with his life. She told him to tell her yes while she smoothed down some of his mussed up fur. Her touch eased the savage animal within the monstrous brute. He held her mismatched gaze for a long moment, feeling the electricity between them as molten gold eyes held those gray and aqua jewels. It was like a battle of wills between the pair of wolves. She offered him salvation at the cost of his freedom. Was it truly better to die a free wolf than to live as her slave? Nero thought it over, considering his choice. He did not wish to be a thrall to another—but he did not wish to die even more. He still had things to do in his life. Foes to fell, faes to bed, a bloodline to propagate. Death was a hard stop.

With another rumbling growl, Nero breathed a soft sigh and his tense muscles began to relax. Even before he spoke the words, his body language spoke for him, as did the softening of those steely eyes. "Yes," he spoke in his deep, rumbling baritone after a moment. Then he laid his head down on his paws and stretched his hind legs out, giving the fae unrestricted access to any part of him she wished to mend. If she wound up killing him for his surrender, then he supposed he deserved it. His fate was in the hands of the Old Gods now.