1. Unknown Alpha

Everest

I winced as I felt the icy water reached my stomach.  It felt like 100 tiny knives scraping my hot skin, but after the hard training session that I had just been put through, it was worth it.  I sank lower into the cold pool and watched the waterfall crash down the rocks nearby.  I laid back and let myself float, allowing my eyes to close, listening to the thunder of the water and feeling the ache start to leave my muscles. 

 

I was one of the top female warriors of my wolf pack at 17 years old.  Being the daughter of the alpha meant I had strength and speed most didn't. We weren't the same as the wolves you read about in children’s stories or saw in movies. We didn't turn into monsters when the moon was full, and we didn't have a venomous bite to regular humans. We actually had complete control over our shifting and our wolf side was tied into our consciousness like a part of our personality. At 15 the first shift happens and from that moment forward, your inhuman speed and strength kicks in and you start training with your wolf. We had a pack hierarchy; an alpha, a luna, a beta, and a delta that helped keep the pack organized and protected. There were some wolves that went rogue and either abandoned their pack, or were exiled from it, but for the most part a wolf wasn't truly whole without each member of the pack - from alpha to omega. When you were part of a pack, each member had the ability to "mind-link" the others, up to a certain distance, so that we were able to communicate as wolves too. You get used to having a lot of other voices in your head very quickly. The weirdest part about being a wolf though was the whole soulmate thing. At 18 years old every wolf would finally be able to find their "mate". The Goddess of the moon, Selene, who created the first wolves, paired us with the one person who we were meant to be with so there would be no end to our species. Sometimes mates died before they got to meet, and sometimes they would reject one another for whatever reason, but most of the time finding your mate made you stronger. There were the exceptions when some wolves were granted second-chance mates but that was insanely rare. All you could do was trust that whomever the moon Goddess had fated for you was given to you for a reason... 

 

My sister Cascade was 2 years older than me and was the Luna Heir to the Aurora pack, our pack.  She had found her mate Griffin from the neighbouring Onyx pack, and since he was the youngest child of the Onyx’s previous Beta, and my father didn’t have a son, he was moving to Aurora Moon to become our next Alpha, and Cas his Luna. They were to begin their preparations next week for their new positions.

 

I thought about how happy I was for Cas as I floated through the water, now acclimated to the temperature.  I let the rumble of the waterfall lull me into a meditative trance as my thoughts drifted to my future. I was 4 days away from my 18^th birthday where I would be able to find my mate. I didn’t really like the thought of someone suddenly becoming my soul focus, and I absolutely couldn’t stand the thought of having to possibly leave my home and family to go live with a stranger.

 

My wolf stirred in my mind, and I could feel her frustration at my reluctance to be mated. It was definitely something we didn’t see eye to eye on.

 

I’d honestly never really looked at a man that way. I was so focused on my training and my family bond that I was too busy to have boyfriends. Sure, I liked the way some of them looked, but I was too preoccupied to explore anything. Some wolves would save themselves for when they met their mate and some didn't, it was a personal choice. I hadn't been saving myself for any reason other than I wasn't interested in anyone like that so far.

 

My waist length dark blonde hair splayed out in the water around me as I ran my fingers through it. In the summer, it turned a rich shade of golden blonde, like my wolfs fur. I opened my eyes and looked up at the moon above me feeling content. I turned and swam back towards where I had left my clothes by the edge of the woods. I loved it out here. It was like my own private oasis.  The pool was outside the border of the pack territory so very few people knew about it.  Although I would be in trouble if my parents knew I came here alone, it was worth the risk. As I walked out of the water, cold steams running down my bare skin, I heard some snapping and rustling in the trees.  I immediately crouched down and tried to get out of sight.

 

I felt my wolfs warning growl fill my mind as my heart pounded. She sensed someone or something was close by.  I didn’t have time to get dressed, and I can’t defend myself naked, so I closed my eyes and allowed the shift to happen. My bones cracked and elongated, and sun-gold fur sprouted from my body.

 

I panicked for a moment and worried that a vicious rogue had wandered here looking for prey, but then remembered rogues have a specific scent.  A rogue is a lone wolf that has been disowned by his pack or is unclaimed by a pack. This scent, however, hit me like a truck. I began to tense as the scent washed over us. It was like sandalwood, whiskey, and cedar.  The most intense earthy aroma, that put the scent of the forest around me to shame. I shook my head trying to clear my senses and figure out which direction it was coming from.  As I padded forward closer to the trees the outline of a massive navy-grey wolf stepped out from the grove. 

 

The immense aura that rippled off this wolf could only mean that he was an alpha from another pack.  His deep grey coat almost shone blue under the moonlight. I froze in place.  An alpha this close to Aurora Moon could mean bad news. Alphas have been known to submit rogue she-wolves to their will. Fortunately, because I was the daughter of an Alpha, I was immune to such tricks, but that didn’t mean I was strong enough to hold an alpha off if he tried to overpower me with brute strength. As he stalked closer to us, I could see his fire and ice blue eyes burning into mine.  I could feel the intensity of his aura crossing the distance between us. His eyes shone like the sun on a frozen pond and a burning sensation licked its way across my skin. I was shocked at the way I was responding. Every rational instinct I had was telling me to run home, but there was a burning feeling spreading up my body that was telling me to run towards this wolf.  I wanted him.

 

I gave my head a shake clearing the fog in my mind enough that I turned heel and took off through the woods.  I might not have been stronger than him, but I knew I would be faster.  I knew the area and knew the exact path that would get me back to the border quickly. The alpha followed us for a few miles, but I could hear his paw beats fading further away as I ran. He stopped entirely as I crossed the border into Aurora Moon, but I kept running.  I didn't stop until I reached the edge of the woods by the packhouse. Once I realized he didn't cross the border after me and I knew we were safe, I phased back and grabbed some stashed clothes. We would mark trees and leave stashes of clothes by them so when we phased back, we wouldn’t have to walk around the city naked. Not that nudity was an issue for wolves, we were pretty used to it…but it would raise less questions if I wasn’t seen running around in the nude.

 

What on earth had happened back there?

 

I thought about what to tell my dad about a prowling alpha. He would be so enraged that his underage daughter had been wandering around outside the borders…the Alpha didn't follow me onto pack territory, and he didn't seem to be with any other wolves. I decided it was best to keep a secret for now, until there was a real threat, and avoid the argument. So, I jogged back towards the pack house where I lived with my family and tried to clear my head of the memory of the entrancing alpha's scent and the dominant aura that had radiated from him.