MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA
Chapter 97: Aethera And Mahina

Chapter 97: Aethera And Mahina

"Why did you do that, Aethera?" a young woman, pure as driven snow, with eyes as blue as a cloudless summer sky, asked, her voice trembling with a mix of confusion and hurt.

She wore a simple yet elegant white gown, its delicate lace and intricate embroidery a testament to the skillful hands that had crafted it, and a slender silver circlet adorned her brow, holding back a tumble of golden hair that cascaded down her back like a river of sunset hues.

"Did what? Mahina?" Aetheria, a young woman with skin as luminous as moonlight and hair as dark as the night sky, her eyes gleaming with a soft, ethereal light, replied, a hint of gentle curiosity in her voice, as she paused in her gentle strumming of the lyre that rested in her lap.

"Why are you playing with Snow’s life? Is it fun to you?" Mahina asked, her brows creased ever so slightly, but her elegance was at its finest, gentle yet unyielding, like a summer breeze that carried the sweet scent of blooming flowers, her voice low and melodious, but with an undercurrent of quiet steel, as she took a step closer to Aethera, her eyes flashing with a hint of controlled anger.

Aethera’s lips curled subtly, setting down her lyre as she waved her flowy sleeve, dismissing the maids in white, who had been hovering discreetly in the background, their faces expressionless masks of servitude.

As they glided silently out of the white room, Aethera’s gaze never left Mahina’s face, her eyes glinting with a hint of amusement and a touch of something else, something that looked almost like... calculation.

"Why do you concern yourself with the affairs of my creation, Mahina?" Aethera asked, her voice dripping with a honeyed sweetness, as she rose from her seat, her movements fluid and deliberate, like a cat stretching in the sun.

She took a step closer to Mahina, her eyes locked on hers, their gazes meeting in a silent, charged confrontation.

"He’s not your creation, he’s our brother." Mahina frowned slightly.

Aethera’s smile never wavered, but her eyes flashed with a fleeting glint of something darker, a hint of possessiveness and warning, as she replied, her voice low and husky, "Ah, but didn’t I breathe life into his very soul?"

"You did, because he was born a werewolf. But that doesn’t give you the right to control him, to manipulate his fate like a puppeteer pulling strings," Mahina’s voice rose, a hint of indignation and protectiveness creeping into her tone, as she took a step closer to Aethera, her eyes blazing with a fierce inner light.

Aethera chuckled, her voice like the soft tinkling of crystal, as she shook her head, her dark hair rippling like the night sky, "Oh, Mahina, you’re so quick to defend him, but do you truly understand what he is, what he’s capable of?"

"He was born by mother and that is–"

"His birth caused mother to be in that situation, Mahina!" Aethera’s voice rose slightly, her voice cutting in, sharp as a knife’s edge, her eyes blazing with a fierce intensity, as she took a step closer to Mahina, her face inches from hers. "That monster is not our brother," she spelled it out as calmly as she could.

"Mother went through so much to birth him. Are you now downplaying the sacrifices she made for him! Mother has been unconscious for centuries, and you use her powers to torment her son? Aethera, what has come over you? This is not you. You’re better than this, Aethera,"

Mahina’s voice cracked with emotion, her eyes welling up with tears as she gazed at her twin sister, searching for the familiar kindness and compassion that seemed to have been consumed by a dark and malevolent force.

"What’s happened to you? What’s driving you to treat Snow this way?" Mahina’s words poured out in a desperate plea, as if she was trying to reach the sister she once knew, the one who had been lost to some dark and sinister influence.

Aethera watched her sister, her expression unreadable, like a mask carved from the finest marble, as she seemed to absorb Mahina’s words, her eyes never leaving her sister’s face.

The air was heavy with tension, the silence between them thick and oppressive, like a physical presence that pressed down upon them. Then, without warning, Aethera’s face shifted, her expression softening, her eyes filling with a deep and abiding sadness. "You’ve never truly known me, Mahina." She turned, walking towards her throne, "Snow is everything I wanted. But he took it for granted. He challenged me–"

"That’s because you unjustly killed his mate!"

Aethera’s shoulders stiffened, her back still turned to Mahina, as if the words had struck a chord, resonating deep within her.

For a moment, she seemed frozen, her slender fingers clenched into fists, before she slowly turned to face Mahina, her eyes blazing with a fierce and unyielding light. "You could have stopped it, right?" she spat, her voice venomous, "Why didn’t you?"

She waited and waited. Seeing Mahina wouldn’t speak, Aethera snorted, "As I thought." She turned and strode back to her throne, her movements fluid and deliberate, like a queen reclaiming her rightful place.

She sank into the throne, her eyes never leaving Mahina’s face, her expression a mask of contempt and triumph. "You’re as guilty as I am, Mahina," she said, her voice dripping with malice. "Your silence is complicity. And now, it’s too late. The wheels of fate are in motion once more. Snow will pay for his defiance."

"You’re wrong," Mahina said, her voice firm and resolute, as she took a step forward, her eyes locked on Aethera’s, a spark of defiance igniting within them. "I am not like you."

She began, "I will not stand by and watch you destroy Snow, not when I know the truth about what really happened." Mahina’s words hung in the air, a challenge to Aethera’s authority, and for a moment, the two sisters locked gazes, their wills clashing in a silent, fierce battle.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.