AU: 10th century. Two werewolf kingdoms are at war with who will control the southern territory, but through this, two kindred souls are united, and a dangerous forbidden love blossoms:
Ch 1: Summary: Chief Ansel and his son Niklaus are waging war with the powerful and royal Labonair line, called the Crescent wolves. Years of dispute and bloodshed between the two kingdoms have come to a head and all out war for control is on the horizon. King Omund and Queen Sela and their eldest daughter, as well and next in line to the throne, Princess Hayley are building their army to take on the powerful Mystic Wolves. One night while Hayley decidedly disobeys her parents and ends up in the Mystic territory she falls upon Niklaus and the two share a dangerous and heated encounter.
"Niklaus! Niklaus!", Ansel yelled to his son. As usual, Klaus was far off watching the humans from the nearby territory. He enjoyed watching them from afar in their everyday lives. It gave him a sense of peace to know how simple their lives were. No threats of any impending war, no armies to lead, they simply lived their lives in peace. One family in particular interested him, the Mikaelson's; they were called. A set of five children and their parents, the brutal Mikael and their mother the powerful witch Esther… Niklaus's mother.
Klaus's father Ansel had told him about her, how they had fallen in love, but Esther was married and they could not be together. However, Esther had fallen pregnant with Niklaus. She had told her husband that the child had died during childbirth, however secretly she had given him to Ansel, his true father, to raise.
He was always curious about his other siblings, he knew he could never meet them, that it was forbidden, however, that only fueled his desire the more. They were his family and he could not help but want to get to know them.
NIKLAUS! Ansel's patience was wearing thin. "Yes father. I'm here.", NiKlaus responded with annoyance. "Do not regard to me in that manner", Ansel answered. "You're training is important. The Crescents can attack at any moment and we must be ready."
"I know father." Niklaus conceded. Niklaus, knew of the impending war with the Crescents, it weighed on his mind everyday. How the war would bring nothing but bloodshed and heartache to his people, families losing loved ones and lives changed forever.
"You need more training", Ansel continued. "You're not yet ready for battle."
"I am the best fighter of out the entire village after you!" Klaus said incredulously, clearly offended at his fathers disregard for his abilities.
"Yes, you are, after me" Ansel made sure to emphasis. "I need you to be better than me, stronger than me, for if I fall in battle it is your duty to lead our people."
The thought of losing his father pained NiKlaus, for Ansel was all he had.
"Yes father, I know" Klaus said glumly. " Now here take your sword" Ansel encouraged. "If you can best me, you're free for the day"
"And what if I lose?", Klaus questioned.
"If you lose, you're on night watch for the entire week", Ansel said with a devious smirk.
"The whole week!" Klaus said incredulously. Night watch was one of the things Klaus hated the most. It was a routine where one person from the village would take turns keeping looking out for their enemies, and were forced to stay up all night and do so. Failure to do one's job and to be caught sleeping resulted in a flogging for all of the village to see.
Ansel loved his son, but he treated him no better and gave him no special leniency when it came to rules of the village. Niklaus knew that Ansel would flog him in front of everyone if he did not do his job.
"Yes the whole week" Ansel continued. "Perhaps instead of day dreaming, you should have been training instead", Ansel scolded.
"Or perhaps, you may find some luck", Ansel chimed on. Ansel threw Niklaus an iron sword and Niklaus caught it with ease.
Niklaus looked at his father determined to not lose this battle.
"Raise your sword old man", Niklaus said with a mischievous grin.
"Hayley! Hayley!" Sela yelled. "Where has this girl gone off to now?", Sela questioned exasperated.
Hayley was far off as usual doing something she knew she was forbidden to do. She was in the village wrestling with the male wolves for position of dominance. Her father had always said God had blessed him with a daughter who had the strength and heart of the son he always wanted.
After having defeated nearly all of the werewolves in the kingdom, there were only two men Hayley could not beat. Her father, King Omund, and Jaxxon, her fathers lead general in his army. The thought irked Hayley that they could dominate her, and if there was anything Hayley hated more in the world it was the thought of being dominated. She hated the thought that someone could have such control over her life, over her body. So she trained, everyday. To get stronger, to get faster, to take away the weakness, to take away their control over her.
Jaxxon had just easily defeated another one of the werewolves who had challenged him and there was only two left. Jaxxon and Hayley.
"Hayley, you know the King forbids you to come here", Jaxxon questioned. You know you can't beat me. Why keep trying to challenge me? There's no use. I won't fight you Hayley!"
" Afraid I might best you this time" Hayley fired back. Jaxxon laughed a mocking laugh and the other villagers chimed in. Isn't my future wife a fireball?, Jaxxon said with a smug smile.
" Your wife?" Hayley questioned with disgust. "What in heaven's name gave you the delusional belief that I would ever marry you? "
"Your father didn't tell you?" Jaxxon said with confusion.
"Tell me what?" Hayley questioned on. Jaxxon slowly looked up at her with his chestnut eyes and told her what Hayley had been dreading to here her entire life.
"You've been promised to me, Hayley" "You're father has given me permission to take your hand in marriage" Jaxxon said with ease.
Hayley could not believe her ears.
"Liar!" "My father would never do that! He would never!" Hayley yelled.
"It's true, Hayley", Hayley's mother said timidly. Queen Sela walked up behind her daughter quietly.
" We didn't mean for you to find out this way" " Your father and I were going to tell you tonight at the feast", Sela continued on with pleading eyes, hoping her daughter would understand.
"No! No I won't. I won't marry him, you can't make me", Hayley said determined to not accept her fate.
"Jaxxon is a good man. He is strong and will make a fine King to lead our people one day, and you his Queen." Sela continued, " Please don't make this harder than it needs to be"
" I won't marry him mother!" Hayley said with tears in her eyes. "Please, mother don't make me marry him"
"There is nothing I can do" Sela said with regret. She did not want her daughter to be forced to marry a man she did not love, but there was no choice, and the decision was not up to her.
"No, no" Hayley continued, shaking her head, refusing to accept her destiny. She turned to Jaxxon, anger in her eyes.
" I will fight you for it" Hayley said with steely determination.
"Fight me for what?" Jaxxon questioned. Hayley walked up to him slowly and their faces were only inches apart.
"For my freedom" Hayley said with a passion that no one had ever seen before.
" For your freedom?" Jaxxon retorted. "Fine then, I will take your challenge. If you win you are free of marriage from me, I take away my marriage proposal and you will have your freedom." Jaxxon continued "However….WHEN I win, you will submit. You will accept your fate as my wife and I as your future husband."
"Is this reasonable for you, princess?" Jaxxon questioned mockingly
" More than reasonable, Hayley said with zeal. " Get ready to find another girl whose life who can make miserable."
Without any warning Hayley went in for a kick to the Jaxxon's head but Jaxxon caught it and blocked her blow. Hayley was taken aback by the block, but easily recovered with a punch to his abdomen. Jaxxon keeled over, and Hayley celebrated in her head. "Perhaps there's a chance I'll win this", she thought. However, Hayley's celebration wasn't long lived. Jaxxon quickly recovered and with a swift arm grab he twisted Hayley's behind her back and quickly had Hayley in a fashion where she could not break free.
" Its over Hayley" Jaxxon said as Hayley continued to struggle under his immense strength.
" You son of a bitch!" Hayley spat. Jaxxon twisted her arms further causing Hayley to screech in pain.
"Submit Hayley" Jaxxon pleaded. "Its over, I don't want to have to keep hurting you."
"Hayley please, end this!" her mother Sela pleaded.
"Submit" Jaxxon continued, " Just stop Hayley" he begged as Hayley still struggled to break free. Jaxxon twisted her arm even further and Hayley was in the worst pain she'd ever experienced.
Tears sprang from Hayley's eyes. The physical pain she was enduring combined with the pain from knowing that she had lost, and that her fate was sealed.
"I submit" Hayley said sadly, accepting her inevitable defeat.
Niklaus pondered as the sting from his loss to his father was weighing heavily on not only his sleeping patterns but also on his mind. The wounding of his ego would heal, but his fears popped up into his head that left him more scared if anything.
" What would happen if his father did fall in battle?" "Could he even be a good enough chief?" " What if he himself died in battle, what would happen to his people then?" Klaus knew his father would never recover from the loss.
He watched the moon as it hang in the sky. A hauntingly beautifully thing to behold, he could not sleep, even if he wanted to.
He then heard a noise and turned his head alert to the sudden sound. He got up and ventured to see where the sudden sound came from and what it could be.
Niklaus walked over to the sound slowly and walked cautiously to the dark forest. He slowly pulled out his sword ready to attack whatever lied in the darkness.
Sudden movement burst from the bushes!
A raccoon was hightailing it a full speed and there was no chance at Klaus killing the deadly intruder.
Niklaus laughed at his paranoia and was about to go back to his look out point when he felt a cold metal sharp steel on his back.
"If you move or you scream, your death is certain." The voice said, cold and threatening.
Hayley ventured through the woods in the dark of night determined to escape her fate. She had run away and was never coming back. She rather die than marry Jaxxon , and if fate have it so, she would greet death with a smile, then have Jaxxon as her husband.
The woods were quiet and the woodland creatures retreated to their homes for the night. Hayley looked up at the moon, hanging there gloriously in the sky. Its light shone down upon her and led her way through the dangerous forest of the enemy territory. If she could just get past the Mystic Wolves without being discovered she could make it up North to the northeastern territories and begin her own life. Where no one knew her, where she was free.
She would miss her mother and father and her younger sister Selene, however, she could not spend her life under Jaxxon's thumb. She refused, and for those reasons alone she moved forward.
Hayley was reaching dangerously close the Mystic Wolf territory and with the knowledge of impending danger she took out her dagger she had made herself. It was small but the blade was very sharp and deadly, and with her skill she could easily kill anyone who dared confront her.
The enemy territory was in view when Hayley noticed a boy around her year at the look point. He was muscular but not overly so, a lean muscle of sort, with shoulder length blonde hair. He was gazing at the moon and his blue eyes sparkled in the night. He looked deep in thought and was not paying attention.
A sudden thought crossed her mind. What if, she could capture the chief of the Mystic Wolves? The great and powerful Chief Ansel, they called him. He was loved by his people and well respected, however, her father hated him with great passion. The Crescent wolves and the Mystic wolves had been at war since she could remember, and things had only gotten worse between the two over the years. The two packs both wanted power over the other and there was no chance that her father would concede. He would fight to the death; a fear Hayley knew was highly likely. The thought of her father dying brought Hayley to tears.
Running away had seemed the thing to do before, running away from her problems. But she could not. Her family, her people needed her, and she had to think of them first before her issues with Jaxxon. She would have to deal with Jaxxon later, but for now, her mission was to capture chief Ansel and bring him to her father.
Hayley began to ponder on as she approached even closer to the Mystic wolf camp. What if she really could capture their chief? Her father would of course be upset that she had put herself in danger in that way, but he would be so immensely proud of her that he would give her anything she wanted, and as of this moment, all Hayley really wanted was to be free of Jaxxon. The sound of her dangerous idea became more and more compelling the closer she got to the camp. Her mind trailed with how proud her father would be of her, and with her clumsiness she made a sudden move that was too loud.
Hayley looked up to see if the watch guard had heard and much to her dismay he had. The sound had brought him out of his thoughts and he cautiously began to head over to her position.
Hayley scurried over to where he could not see her, and braced herself for whatever may happen. She held her dagger ready for combat. Much to her advantage the boy was heading in the wrong direction and she used this to sneak behind him. She didn't want to kill him, simply not knock him out, but she would if he made a wrong move.
A raccoon had sprung from where the boy was searching and the boy had laughed in response, he had a beautiful laugh. It was so… innocent. He put his sword away and
before he could turn to see her, she held the blade to his back and with a forced deep menacing voice announced her threat.
"You'll have to kill me then" Niklaus said with certainty.
The intruder dug the blade deeper into Klaus's back, assuring him they were serious.
"Take me to where your chief is" the intruder growled.
"The chief? Klaus questioned. "You think you can defeat him?"
"I'm certain I can" the intruder fired back.
Klaus laughed at the zeal of the intruder. Despite the persons stupidity he had to admit whoever it was a fighter, brave.
Hayley was taken aback by the boys laughter. "Why are you laughing?"
"Stop laughing!" Hayley said angrily at the boys mocking of her. But the boy continued to laugh. "I said stop!" she exclaimed
Suddenly, the boy had spun around with his sword drawn ready for battle. He had caught her off guard with the laughing and she had not been prepared for his sudden movement. She cursed herself for her stupidity.
Klaus had his sword in hand and looked down at the small dagger the intruder was carrying. He couldn't see the person's face; the trees had blocked the moonlight where they stood. All he could see was the outline. The person was small in stature, smaller than him and not at all threatening.
"You really think you can defeat my father?" Klaus let out a soft chuckle. You don't look like you can even defeat me, but you Crescent wolves always overestimate your power don't you? Huh…little wolf." He continued to make fun.
"I will have your head for disrespecting my family", the intruder threatened.
"I'd like to see you try" Klaus growled back.
In anger the intruder charged Klaus and was skillfully fighting him with their dagger. Despite Klaus larger weapon the seemingly small weapon was quite formidable.
The sword fight continued and the small intruder was quite good, Klaus was being challenged and was for the first time was afraid he might lose. He had to get their weapon away. For whatever skill the person had with swords, it was certain the person didn't have much physical strength and Klaus could over power him.
Just when the intruder was about to land a deadly blow to his abdomen, Klaus sidestepped and kicked the intruder to the ground. He fell back easily and before the intruder could get up, Klaus was already upon him with a sword to his neck.
" Go ahead kill me! I bet you don't have the manhood to it", the intruder chanted.
"You insolent little…" Klaus was ready to land a deadly blow to the neck when his voice Klaus trailed off.
The moonlight shone on the intruders face now, and he could see the intruder clearly, and fiery emerald eyes glared back at him.
It was just a girl, but no not just a girl; she was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen.