CHAPTER 1Moon Goddess Aria (Part 1)

Another day had come to an end, and I closed my eyes, trying to rest a little. Naturally, that was impossible! As soon as I drifted to sleep, loud cries and prayers rang in my ears and woke me up.

I focused on the source of the sound and saw a pregnant Omega crying over her mate's dead body. He was a pack warrior who had died in a rogue attack. The poor girl held him in her arms calling his name and begging me to save her mate.

At times like these, watching the dead ascend to the heavens while trying to comfort their mates, an uncomfortable feeling tied my stomach in knots and my chest tightened with lack of air.

Even after so many years of being the Mother of all, I still felt the same thing as I waited for the deceased to arrive in my kingdom. Making his soul forget his previous life was a painful and stressful procedure; both for the dead and me.

I had so much fun meddling in others' lives and fixing problematic bonds. Why did I also have to be the one to break their bonds, taking one of them by death?

I watched as his soul arrived at our meeting point. He seemed lost and scared. He was just a young man, only twenty-two. I stretched my arms and left my seat.

"So much for resting," I mumbled to Tessa, my loyal assistant, who followed me, nodding her head.

In my usual white dress with my long silver hair draping down my back, I glided to where the newcomer was, my feet barely touching the ground. I found him looking around, still trying to figure out what had happened to him.

He turned around to the sound of my steps and looked at me, dumbfounded with eyes wide open. And then he figured it out! looked down and touched his wounded body, where the rogue had sunk his canines into him, killing him.

"I am dead," he whispered. Looking up he asked me with a trembling voice, "Am I dead? Is this for real?"

That was the most challenging part of being the Mother. His pain became mine and so did his agony. I could feel his anxiety and fear knowing he could never return to where he had been. He would never see his unborn child and hold it in his arms. And his mate? What about his mate? How could she live without him? What if something happened to her? What if she died from sadness, leaving their pup an orphan?

His internal thoughts made my head spin and a terrible headache was about to pay me a visit.

How could I tell him that his mate would soon find her second-chance mate and live with him happily until their death?

No, I had to keep that to myself. It was time for the poor man to rest.

I moved closer to him and wrapped him in my arms. I patted his shoulder and he thought I was comforting him. Instead, my touch was the first step for his purification and his oblivion would soon follow.

"Don't worry. I will arrange everything. Your mate will be okay, and so will be your pup. Now it's time to let us care for you."

I turned to Tessa. She understood and taking the young man by his hand she led him to the purification room. I would help him get rid of the pain and forget. His soul was pure despite being a warrior. I would train him and grant him a position as one of my spiritual assistants who helped those in need.

I was alone again. My tiredness and exhaustion had disappeared though. I walked through the flowery area and sat by the river bank. As the moon played with the crystal water, I watched it form shades of gold.

I lay on the grass and closed my eyes. At the speed of lightning, images of my past life passed through my mind.

My engagement to Daniel, the day I found out I was pregnant, Ella telling me our pack was under attack, the searing pain when Daniel died. I sat up abruptly and wiped the tears from my face, suddenly gasping for air.

So many years had passed, and yet the pain of my loss was the same.

"Enough!" I was angry. Why did I torture myself with the thoughts of the past?

Leaving the river bank, I rushed back to my place. I needed to rest. The day was over, but I had a restless night ahead of me and I could use the free time to clear my thoughts and gather my strength to deal with the rest of the dead werewolves who were about to arrive.

I sat in my rocking chair and looked out of the window. Everything was so peaceful and beautiful. The stars were bright and illuminated the cloudless sky, forming funny shapes and trying to ease my bad mood with the help of the Moon. For so many years they were my company, my accomplices.

I haven’t always been the Moon Goddess. I was born in the Opal moon pack in California and my father was the pack Beta. My mother was another story. She was a gifted she-wolf who had inexplicable power. She never held a significant position in the pack though. She was simply the Beta's mate.

Growing up, everyone treated me respectfully and tried to stay on my good side. I couldn't understand why, but one day I overheard my parents talking and realised that the violet colour of my eyes had a significant meaning to our pack. I was one of the Moon Goddess's descendants and probably my pack's new Luna.

That freaked me out. I didn't even like the Alpha's son, Daniel. He was a few years older and always teased me at school.

But the former Moon Goddess had other plans for me. When I turned eighteen, I found that Daniel was my fated mate. He had just returned from his studies and was about to take the reins from his father.

I met him in my father's office on a busy day.  The moment I entered the room the scent of pinewood filled my nostrils and a loud growl made me turn his way. Before I knew what hit me, Daniel was all over me, sucking my breath away with a dominant kiss and calling me "Mate" after he realised he was choking me to death.

The hunk that held me in his arms was nothing like the little devil who had tortured me at school.

In all his glory, Daniel was a six-foot-four stallion with dirty blonde hair and dark blue eyes. His toned and muscled body screamed sexiness, and my wolf, Tania, instantly surrounded him and his wolf, Cole.

I never expected Daniel to be so happy to have me as his mate. He later confessed to me that my wild Lilly scent had given him a hard-on as soon as I had entered that office.

Daniel organised a feast to celebrate our engagement and gave everyone an amount to spend as a gift.

Everything was so perfect. Our love blossomed and so did our sex life. Daniel couldn't get enough of me and neither could I. As for Tania and Cole, there were times we could hardly shift back into our human forms after their mating intercourse.

But nothing prepared us for that horrible day. A day that started as the best of our lives and became my worst nightmare. A nightmare that still haunted my dreams and nearly made me lose my sanity, despite being the Moon Goddess.

I lulled myself, rocking in my chair and soon drifted to a dreamless sleep. Or I thought I did.