Gaia POV.Walking through the halls of the council headquarters. I stop at the double doors to the conference room with my mates behind me. Taking a breath, I push the doors open.The council is all sitting on the raised platform, like a court setting in the human world. I walk into the room and stop at the table, looking at each council member, and nod my head in respect.Queen Asteria, the Siren Queen, smiles as she nods her head towards me. She stands and the rest of the heads do as well. She is the reason the council was formed. She is the head of the council and I know she will help me. Her word is final in this setting, well, in any setting. She is the oldest and most powerful shifter on the planet.My darkness is the same as hers, born of pain.“Gaia, please take a seat and we will begin.” She speaks and I take my seat and my mates do, too.“We have been called by you. Please tell us what you need.” She says and I take a breath as I stand walking towards the front.“I need the
Calista POV.Running towards Gaia, who lay on the floor broken and bruised. She screams as she moves. Her leg was at an odd angle. Blood gushing from her head. Sliding to her, I take her face in my hands as she looks at me, a sob leaves my lips. She is covered in broken wood and concrete. Her face is dirty with the dust and debris.“I’ve got you. Stay awake.” I tell her, my hands shaking when I feel a hand on my shoulder.“Calista, let me look at her.” I nod as her aunt Destinee steps forward. Her eyes change colour and I know Aura is on the surface. She steps back and shifts. I would usually bow to the wolf of the Goddess, but not right now.Aura lifts her huge white paw and holds it over Gaia’s leg with one swift move in the air. Gaia screams as the bone is snapped back in place. Sobs leave her lips when Aura moves closer, and she blows on Gaia’s face. The wounds close before she steps back. As Gaia’s eyes turn red, she shakes as a snarl leaves her lips when she stands.Aura healed h
Gaia POV.Walking into the underworld, I stop and look at the illusion my father created. A torture in it’s self. When the condemned souls first arrive in hell, they are met with a beautiful illusion. A vision of the beautiful night sky, purples, blues, and galaxies of stars. They believe they are in heaven until they walk further in and reality sets in.My father is a sick bastard, but I know that’s where I get it from. Like father, like daughter. I move towards the grass as I lay down on my back looking up at the galaxy of twinkling stars above me.“You need to stop running.” I roll my eyes at Kodiak’s words. For once, I’m not running. I need to think.“Does it look like I’m running? No, so if you’re not going to help then kindly fuck off.” I say to her as I close my eyes and take a deep breath.“You know what you have to do, Gaia. Stop wasting time and fucking do it.” She snaps at me as I ignore her words. She wants a fight and I’m going to give her one.“What nothing to say? Poor l
Gaia POV.Feeling warm fur wrapped around me, I reach my hand forward, snuggling into the warmth.“I thought you were leaving?” I mumble when I hear a huff.“As if I’d leave you. Even though we don’t agree on things, you are still my human. I’m sorry Gaia.” I snuggle deeper into her fur as I sob.“I’m sorry too. I am trying Kodiak. It’s just so damn hard with everything that is going on.” I tell her my truth as she nuzzles me closer, her tail wrapping me in her warm embrace.“I know, pup, I don’t want to lose you. We need to do this. I don’t want you to die.” She says, her voice cracking. I fist her fur when I feel a hand on my shoulder. But I ignore it. Right now, I just want my wolf. We have been pushing and pulling in opposite directions and we both need to be on the same page.“Gaia. Look at me.” I turn my head and see Leo kneeling beside me as he strokes my arm. I turn my head back as I snuggle tighter into Kodiak. I hear shuffling when arms engulf me as he snuggles into my back.
Gaia POV.“Why didn’t you tell me?” I hiss at Xena. If she told me sooner than we would have got her back, now I’m not so sure.“We were trying to keep it in house.” I scoff as I shake my head at her stupidity.“You kept it secret, knowing that Morgana is after me and my mates, and you’re telling me it’s been kept in house. We are a family. If you can’t find them, then we are all fucked.” I say as I stand and walk to the bar. This just gets better and better.“Gaia, it’s not like that…”“Well, tell me what it’s like? Because all I’m seeing right now is the one of the most powerful witches keeping secrets from us. Secrets that could help us with my power issue. Or is it because Morgana was once a follower of yours?” I spit at her when she looks down in defeat. Dragus looks between us, confused. Oh, he didn’t know well shit.“No. Yes, she was a follower of mine back then and I tried to help her, but she choose her path the day she slaughtered the coven.” There it is.“Tell me Xena. Was M
Gaia POV.I know what I have to do. I need to mate and mark them, but I can’t do it all at the same time. I will mate and mark each of them separately. The first one is the obvious choice. Calista.Walking towards him, it’s time I put on my big girl panties and stop being stupid. I can’t do this on my own.“Calista.” He turns and so do the other three. Goddess, why is this so embarrassing? In all the years I have had sex, I have never felt this way before. I don’t want to hurt any of them by choosing, but they know I’m not ready.“Erm, I would like to speak to you, please.” I say when Leo smirks at me as he wiggles his eyebrows.“There is no need to be embarrassed, Gaia. We all know what you want to do. Don’t feel bad about it. Just do it. We won’t be upset about who you choose to mark first.” Leo says, and I smile at him.“You sure?” He stands and moves closer to me.“Positive, I know you’re not ready for all of us and if this makes it easier on you, then so be it. We won’t be angry.
Leo POV.Well, this isn’t awkward at all, sitting in the living room while Gaia and Calista are having sex and completing the marking process.“So, shall we guess who will be next?” Gabe says from the opposite sofa, and I chuckle at him.“I think we know who she will pick next.” Jake says, full of confidence and I know she will pick him. They have a bond. Even though Gaia and I are getting closer, I don’t think she is overly confident about marking me.“In your dreams, Jakey, she will pick me. I have every intention of spending more time with her than either of you.” Gabe says, and I sit back, watching and listening to them both bicker like children.“Give it a rest. Gaia will be the one to choose, and we will respect her wishes.” I say just as Calista walks out of his room with a smug grin on his face. The mark on his neck for all to see. He is proud and I can’t help but feel a tad bit jealous, but I know it will happen soon enough.“How is she?” I ask as he sits next to me. I can sm
Gaia POV.“What’s wrong? Don’t you want to mark me?” I ask as I look down at Leo, his hands move from my hips to my face.“I want to make sure this is what you want. I don’t want you feeling pressured into doing this.” He tells me gently when I sigh and climb off of him and sit beside him.“Could you not second guess me. I want to do this. Look, I know we didn’t get off to the best start and I’m the reason for that. I’ve been a complete and utter bitch to you, and I want to make this right.” I tell him as I look straight at him so he can tell I’m not lying to him.I want to do this; I made a promise that I would try and that is what I am doing. The bond grows stronger every day, but with it, I grow weaker. I need to do this. If I don’t then the consequences will be devastating. I can’t allow innocent lives to be destroyed because of my pride and stupidity. Yes, it has taken me long enough to realise it, but I’m trying to make it right. Time isn’t on my side.“Gaia, I’m not second gues
Epilogue 1.Rosa POV.Today I leave for the settlement at Moonlight Cove. I don’t want to go. The reason being that Charlie has been awful to me the last few times I have been there; I don’t understand why he is being a total twat.“Rosa, baby. Come on.” My mom Gaia shouts at me from the living room and I groan as I walk like a lost puppy down the stairs. My parents know I don’t want to go, but this is what I have been trained for since I was five years old. It sucks ass being the next Oracle, especially a wolf one. I haven’t told them why I don’t want to go.“Stop grumbling. It will be fun.” My wolf Cece says in my head and I scoff at her. We shifted a few days ago, and she hasn’t shut up since.The shift was painful and I won’t be doing it again anytime soon, that’s for damn sure. We managed to hold off me going to settlement when I was 16, but now I’m 18 and I have to go. Maybe I can run away and they won’t find me?“Don’t even think about it, young lady.” I turn and see my dad Cal
Gaia POV.It has been a few weeks since the not funeral. Everything has settled down and there has been nothing bad happening so far. For that, I can only hold my breath because there will always be trouble waiting around the corner to cause damage and chaos.Rosa has been doing her lesson every Saturday and has been spending time with Charlie. They are so funny together, her with her mischievous ways and him with his nonchalance. He isn’t easily riled, which is a good thing, because we all know how Rosa can get under your skin and it takes a lot of patience with her.The first time she came back from her training. Dragus scooped her up and sniffed her and was asking who had been around her and I told him it was the people from the settlement it is safe to say the following week he tagged along and yes you guessed it, he found his second chance mate. it was no other than Odessa.He is happy and so is she, but at first she ran away because she was worried that he would reject her, espe
Gaia POV.The day has come that we lay Britany to rest. It has been a few days and things are calm for a change. But I know it’s because the pack is mourning the loss of their Luna and after today they will lose their Alpha.I am walking through the packhouse in a black dress and my hair is down, minimal makeup is on my face and I have my black sunglasses. I haven’t been sleeping much as I know things are going to change rapidly when Nic leaves us to go in search of himself. It’s the same thing dad done, but he was searching for his mates.I hope Nic returns to us better than before. All we can do is keep a close eye on him. He had locked himself away from everyone and refused to eat or see anyone, so all we can do is watch from afar.The pack is sombre and some look at Nic with disdain as we walk towards the family crypt. I hold his hand and give it a squeeze. But he keeps his head down and I want to take his pain away, but I can’t. He needs to do this.We stop in front of Selene, wh
Gaia POV.Walking on pack grounds. The place is in turmoil as the warriors are in battle formation and I sigh, rubbing my forehead.“What is going on?” I say to my dad and he shrugs his shoulders as we walk closer to them.“Ok, can someone explain what the fuck is going on?” I shout and they all turn to look at me as my mates and family come running towards us.“Oh, thank the Gods you are safe, what happened?” My mom throws her arms around me and I explain everything and she looks at me in shock before she looks at my dad and he has a pout on his lips. Yeah, I get that from him.“Please tell me you didn’t do that?” she asks him and he just shrugs his shoulders when mom groans and rubs her temples.“God dammit, Fen, you can tell where she gets it from.” I move away slowly, not wanting to be scolded by her. If you didn’t know this, but my mom is fucking scary when she is mad. So yeah, dad is on his own.“Traitor.” I hear him mumble through the link. My eyes widen. Wait, I can link.“Kod
Gaia POV.“No, that’s not possible. No power can unlock that gate without the Guardian.” I say to him when he shakes his head with a chuckle.“That’s where you are wrong. You are or sorry, were the Goddess of Hell your authority overrules that of the Guardian. You willingly gave your power to the monsters. They are growing stronger and it will only be a matter of time before they break the Gate of Purgatory. Releasing the damned back into the world. Do you see what you have done? Gaia, you have caused destruction. All because you couldn’t contain your power.” I look at him in shock. I shake my head. Gods, he is stupid.“No, it was Xena’s power and the damn curse she put on me that has caused this. I tried to fight it and I failed. I wanted to get rid of it. Xena’s soul is feeding the Gate, so is her power, it also feeds it. My darkness, as you know, had been taken over by her power. If I didn’t do what I did, I would have destroyed everything. You know this, with my power, Zeus, I am
Gaia POV.The feeling of something silky against my back and the sun beaming on my face wakes me from a dreamless sleep. Squinting as I open my eyes. I cover my eyes with my forearm as everything is bright. Too damn bright.The sound of birds, running water and soft music fills me. I remove my forearm and see I am laying on a shimmering silk cushion. I look down and see I’m wearing a long, flowing white gown. My wrists, ankles, and neck have gold cuffs and I take in the room.The room is spotless, all white with gold touches to it. The floor is marble white tiles with the same gold swirling through it. I look towards the window and it’s not a window. It’s completely open, with long sheer white voile curtains blowing delicately in the breeze.I pull myself up and walk towards them, and I gasp in surprise.I’m in a paradise. The grass is green and lush, palm trees, animals big and small roam around living peacefully. Predator and prey living side by side. The sky is a mix of blues and l
Jake POV.We all watch on in horror as these shadows fed on Gaia. The room is icy cold and we can see our breaths. With each bite or suck from these shadows, you can see the power being pulled from her. It’s dark misty stuff, then it starts changing colour and becomes red.No-one moves or speaks as we all stand there watching as she opens her mouth, her back arches up and a silent scream tears out of her, tears stream down her face.When her back hits the ground and the shadows slither away with a purr like hiss. Fen runs to her and we follow behind.Nothing is making sense with what has just happened. Then she revokes her power and title. That is when it hits us. It was her power, her darkness, that those things were feeding on. They were taking it away from her.“Will she be ok?” I whisper as I touch her cold, clammy skin with a shaking hand.“I don’t know. You saw what she did. She is no longer the Goddess and her power is gone.” Fen slumps on the floor, cradling Gaia to his chest.
Gaia POV.I watch on in horror as I try to fight back. This isn’t my magic, this is … the curse. Fuck!I try to fight back as I advance forward and grab my father and fling him away as I move to Nic.“STOP, STOP, STOP!” I scream, but I keep moving forward as I try to pull myself back.My hand moves and grabs Nic by his throat, and his eyes fly open as my claws extend. No, no, no, no!“You’re … not … my sister! Are … you?” I try to pull my claws back, but I can’t.“No. I’m not.” As I fight the power, my hand tightens when I’m knocked away from Nic, and I keep fighting. When I turn and see my dad in his beast form as he growls at me.Oh fuck! This is going to hurt. I try again to open the mind link, but I can’t. I can’t stop myself. All I can do is watch on in absolute horror.“Whatever you are, stop!” I scream again when a cold laugh sounds in my head.“No, you know you want this, Gaia. Give in, all your life you have been shunned by them when you should have been loved. They hate you,
TRIGGER WARNING, PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION!Leo POV.We all watch in horror at what Gaia has just said. What the fuck is going on?“The first time she felt your betrayal, she caught you in your bed with three whores, yes?” I watch as she balls her fists to her sides and I can feel the anger, sadness, and need for revenge build in her.“ANSWER ME!” she screams and I see a few jump at her tone. She is filled with hate and will hurt him.“Yes,” she growls at him, and so does Sofia. I look between them both and move closer to her when Calista stops me and shakes his head and I can’t read his expression. He is cold.“Do you remember when she collapsed? When she fucking passed out clutching her belly.” I take a breath at her words when the temperature in the room plummets and I know she is pissed.“She was pregnant with your pup. Your pain of betrayal caused her to miscarry in the fucking shower of your room. Then because of that, when you continued and then started beating her, th