Reed
I stood staring at Ms. O as she worked her magic on Theron. At first, nothing happened. fear coursed up my spine when I saw the look on Ms. O’s face. She couldn’t hide the terror and sadness in her eyes. I couldn’t make out his heartbeat or even feel his presence for a split second. I dropped to my knees in shock, sitting there, helpless, beside his bed. This wasn’t happening, this couldn’t-
Slowly, I saw Theron’s skin turn from ash to golden brown, and his breathing grew steadily. Without thinking, I burst out in laughter, a tear sliding down my cheek. My joy was short-lived when I heard slamming and hissing outside the room. Ms. O and I both looked at the door at the exact moment. I became alert immediately when Arkyn pushed to get out. He had been reeling the past few days, needing to fight and protect the pack battling outside these walls.
“I’ll protect him. Go! Help them, save her, please.” The last
ReedIt was a fucking slaughterhouse. We were outnumbered three to one at least, and with everyone battling for the past several days, we were exhausted. The snow didn’t help either; it kept getting in our eyes, watering our vision, and making it hard to keep the focus on our opponent. Zander planned and executed this well. We would need a miracle to win this war. I swiped and killed mercilessly at the Desert Pack. From what I knew of the slave traders, they deserved nothing less.Where is he? Rune asked in my head. I looked to see him step up beside me in his human form with two broad swords. Rune had always enjoyed fighting with swords in battle and would often switch off between his wolf and warrior form “to ease the tension for both forms,” he had said. Rune was one of our most formidable warriors because he was so good in both forms and enjoyed both sides, sometimes a little too much. Where I would fight out of necessity, Rune fought for
TheronDo you have any last words, pup? Zander spoke triumphantly into my head with death in his eyes. I mentally pushed on the bind the Raven had on me, trying with all my might to get free. She began to sweat with the pressure, but the bind held firm. Zander took a step closer than another. I moved my eyes to see the remaining warriors of our pack fighting viciously outnumbered but standing their ground.A wolf got through the Cadre’s barrier and slashed Dani down her side. She howled in pain, her blood staining the white snow beneath. Rune shot out off the ground, shifting in the air and throwing his wolf form at the wolf to get him away from his mate.It opened a hole in the barrier big enough for several enemy wolves and a few witches to break free and run towards the house. That was when the cat jumped through the busted door, attacking anyone near the opening. Alpha Zander had shifted back into his human form, unafraid of the vulnerability it put him in, and wrapped his hands ar
KamariI was the wind and earth, I was lightning and fire. I ran into the fray with full abandon. I let the bond guide me to where Theron was fighting my Father. Snow stung my eyes as I dashed through the blizzard. As I ran toward him, I saw wolves stop to watch me run past them. They paused and stared before going back at it, battling the Phantom warriors and the animals of the forest that had joined the fight.A few light-colored wolves dared to run at me. I unleashed my fire on them in my wolf form, allowing Tala to mix her power with my Ostyn blood. Fire clashed with ice, creating water in my eyes from the raging snowstorm, and I lost track of what was real and what was magic. It almost looked like my magic formed through Tala as a bird of fire, tearing into the wolves as we fought with teeth and claws. A mountain lion leaped on the remaining wolf, fighting him off and giving me time to go to my mate.I still wasn’t 100 percent sure how I did it. I was running through the forest w
KamariShe was okay; she was bleeding, but Mother was going to be okay. I nuzzled her, overjoyed to see her again, letting loose some healing magic to knit Mom’s side up. Only she didn’t need my magic; she was already healing fast, which was new. She wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me.“I knew you’d come, just in the nick of time, too.” She whispered to me. I nuzzled further into her, needing to feel her warmth and know she was okay. The sound of her scream before would haunt my dreams for days. I felt movement behind me; I turned out of my mother’s arms and moved protectively in front of her, watching Morana stand off with Verena.“Get out of the way, you stupid child!” Morana screamed at Verena’s wolf. The wolf held her ground, huffing air out of her snout.“What are you doing?! You’d choose them!? The ones that killed your father!?” a single tear escaped Morana’s eye as she spoke about Zander.“I’m doing this for you! So you can rule! Now get out of the way!!” The markin
As the morning sun rose, the birds chirped their morning song, signaling that the crisp, freezing winter was ending and spring was waking up. It had been two months since the battle of clans, with the pack busy repairing the town and healing its injured. Moriko sat outside on the porch in his white cat form, staring at the field that once held a great battle.I sat beside him, scratching behind his ear like an old habit, earning a purr from him. We sat silently for a moment, gazing at the peaceful morning sunrise. In the corner of my eye, I could still make out the black patch of ash that was Morana. It never lifted from the earth, like a scar.“Where will you go next?” I asked to break the silence.“I must return home to the Ostyn Clan headquarters. There is much to do and arrange now that the power has shifted to a new priestess, and the curse has broken. I am needed there to protect your mother.” Moriko had sadness in his voice; he had walked beside my grandmother for decades, ands
“Wait, what? Why?” With her now being a werewolf, we had discussed her staying here with the pack and her mate.“It won’t be long. I’ll be gone and back again within the month. I just need to settle everything with school and pack my things from my apartment to move here. Plus, I’d like to give my dad a heads-up. He’s been texting me worried since I haven’t gone to see him recently.” Sera’s dad was the only family she had left. Her mom had died giving birth to her, leaving her dad to raise her solo. I nodded my agreement.“I’m going with her,” Reed announced; I had expected him to want to go with her. Theron came and sat by my side, taking my hand in his while swirling his thumb inside my palm. I leaned into his warmth, laying my head against his shoulder."Are you sure you’re up for it, Reed?" Theron eyed his friend. I looked up at him. My expression must have shown the confusion I felt because Theron smiled before explaining.“With the Desert pack going silent with no word, I’m worr
The light of the day as it cascaded through the cave made her head pound more. She hated the sight. Spring was her least favorite season. All full of flowers and sunshine; it made her sick. Sitting on the cold, damp earth at least helped her find her bearings. She was still gathering her strength and her senses from when she teleported. It was a gamble; she had never done it before. She was only taught the spell in case she ever needed it in dire circumstances. Well, her daughter betraying her felt like a damn dire circumstance, one she would rectify once her strength came back to her. That girl was foolish to side with the weaker of her two sides. Her fathers blood would never overcome her Raven powers. Her daughters father... Zander. The name alone caused more pain in her chest than she felt like considering at the moment. She didn't even know she could feel such emotions anymore. Not since the first summoning all those years ago. Even her own mother's death didn't hurt quite like t
As the first snowflake settled, it whispered secrets of a winter tale waiting to unfold. First snowfalls usually come lightly to Sequim. The snow is soft as it glides down towards the cold earth. This year, however, it came in a blizzard. Snow dropped like an anvil, with ice forming instantaneously along the roads and trails. The wind blew so hard that the forest wolf patrol on duty had to seek shelter. They couldn’t see two feet before them, even with their werewolf eyesight. Thinking no one would be out in this storm, they hunkered down in the small town, warming themselves by their fires and watching movies to pass the time. They didn’t expect a young witch secretly making her way through the trees towards an old house.She’d never been to this town so she wasn’t sure of its whereabouts, she only knew what she was told by the one who sent her. Carrying the device that would change her fate and two rival packs, she slowly crept through the foot of snow that had already settled on th