Chapter 1

    I wake up drenched in sweat again. Another nightmare. I hate these sweats because it meant that I would freeze the rest of the morning until I made a fire. Blinking a few times, I decide I cannot sleep any longer. 

    I don’t wish to return to my nightmare either. My home is a rock cave that I found about a week ago. It’s hidden nicely behind a waterfall so I feel somewhat sheltered, protected. I begin to build my small fire in hopes of warming up. 

    Over the last several years, I had collected some clothing items from rogue camps, but left it all behind when I was trapped a few weeks ago.I preferred to live in wolf form for many reasons, not having clothes being one of them. 

    My wolf, Morrigan, came to me about three months ago. She is a comfort to me in so many ways. I have someone to talk to since my mother passed. At the time, my hopelessness could not have descended any farther. Her voice is not meek like mine. She is confident and her presence felt, but motherly at the same time. She arrived when I needed her most. I had contemplated taking my life so many times. Morrigan, or Mor as I’ve come to know her, convinced me to keep pushing. What for, I’m sure I don’t know.

    I used to keep track of the days on a tree near our home that we had built the year following our pack’s destruction. We thought it to be well hidden but a band of rogues attacked us one afternoon and destroyed the shelter. 

    We had run for our lives once more until we found a second hideout. It stayed peaceful for some time there. We kept busy building a new shelter, collecting forest animals for food and trying to accumulate clothes. Mom taught me it was difficult to stay in wolf form at all times. Eventually your wolf needs rest. Of course this was before I had one but she was diligent in teaching me the ways of our wolves. Life seemed somewhat serene until that hateful day when they came. I desperately avoid thinking of this day at all costs. The sounds of her screams, their maniacal laughs as they tried inventing ways of attacking and torturing her. I was of course bound and gagged myself, clothing stripped from me. The rogue group’s leader had a distinct laugh and wore an eye patch on the right. There were five in total. While my mother lay there in the dirt, soaked in her own blood, they turned their attention to me.

    Sweat dripping from my forehead again. I must’ve drifted off to sleep. At least I managed to wake up again before the worst part of the nightmare. I had been lucky enough to escape that hell. Mom however paid the ultimate sacrifice. I almost couldn’t leave her body, but I didn’t have a choice. Seeing her so bloody and twisted tore out my insides. She prayed on the goddess’ life that I could escape and run far away.

    These nightmares are never ending. I haven’t had a peaceful night’s sleep since we’ve been rogue. Always on alert, always ready to defend. Now that I have a wolf, it has been easier to defend myself and to hunt. But I am lonely. Crushed from the weight of my parents’ deaths. What is left for me?

    As I sit there pondering this, I hear a twig snap. Again, another snap. Ears to attention. Morgan pushes forward, ready to take charge. We decide to stay silent behind our waterfall curtain, in hopes we aren’t discovered. Crap! The smoke from my fire. It’s too late, I hear noises coming toward the cave. Just then I shift into my white but dirty wolf. My green eyes do not change from human to wolf form. 

    They are attentively watching for intruders. I decide to sneak out the back way and as I’m creeping on all four paws, hoping to not make a sound, the alarm I had fashioned crashes down. With no choice, I exit the safety of my cave.

    These are two wolves I’ve never seen. Both large and muscular but not menacing. They look at me with curious eyes. They look at each other and then back at me. My hackles straight up, fangs extruded, ready for a fight. Suddenly, I hear a voice…  “We mean you no harm. What’s your name?”. It seems as though he’s talking to me in wolf form. “Have you mind linked before?”, he asks.  My mother died before my wolf came. I feel a sense of sorrow that my wolf never got to meet her. No time to feel sorry for myself. I need to focus. I look at the wolves as if to speak but nothing comes out. Besides, what would I even say? Looking confused, the wolf says to me “we will shift but do not want to startle you. We’re going to step behind these rocks over here and if you will step behind that tree and shift, we would like to speak with your human”. 

    They both gently head over to the rocks that are plenty tall for me to not accidentally see their naked human flesh. I oblige and head over the tree nearby and shift. Shifting has never been comfortable. It’s riddled with painful bones cracking and snapping. Does this ever get easier?

    “Technically this is our land but it’s rarely patrolled or used” one says. “Where is your pack or your family?”. At that thought, I look down at my very soiled hands and a tear begins to well. “They’re gone. It is just me”. There is an awkward silence accompanied by small whispers. “Please come with us to our pack. Our alpha is quite lenient and would offer you food and shelter”. Morgan yips excitedly in my mind at the thought of a safe place to sleep and ooh maybe food! “Morgan, how do we know this isn’t a trap? No one has ever shown kindness while trespassing”. “Em, we both need something to eat other than squirrels and besides my friend, you could use a bath”. I look down at my body with its scraped skin and mud caked in places it probably shouldn’t be.

     Zak’s POV

    We had been patrolling for what seemed like hours when we both smelled, “wait, is that fried squirrel?”. I look at my brother quizzically. Just then, I see a shadow behind the waterfall that’s draping down like a curtain. There’s a moderately sized wolf with bright green eyes, “green eyes?” my wolf Beteo says questioningly. “Have never seen that before. Leo, it looks terrified. Maybe try and talk”.  

    “We mean you no harm, what is your name?”. Nothing. I can tell the wolf is a female. She looks at us even more confused. “Zak, is she a feral?”. Ferals are not common but they are wolves that have spent so much time in wolf form, they forget how to mindlink. “Zak, let’s see if we can shift and talk to her but I don’t want to scare her off. I’m going to offer to hide behind something so she has privacy”. “Well aren’t you quite the gentleman”, Leo scoffs snidely. 

    After she seems to have accepted the offer of shifting, we wait to hear the sounds. “Are you still there?” I chime out. I try peeking around the rock facade just to see a face or perhaps an age of the rogue we are talking to. I capture a glance of her face and oh my, what a face it is. Long brunette wavy hair, I dare say quite muddy and tangled, but nonetheless; it cascades down her body to cover her female features. Her eyes, piercing green and ruby lips. 

    Leo gasps, “do you see her bruises?”. “Oh shit, those are intense. There’s one on her neck too- looks like a strangle mark”. We both dart our eyes to one another. Who would harm this innocent and bewitchingly gorgeous woman. We offer for her to come with us to the pack, suggesting of course in wolf form as it is too far to walk and none of us have clothes.

        Emma’s POV

   We arrive at the outskirts of a mountain basin. The mountain behind the small but quaint… well, the fortress really, is striking. This must be their namesake. I am lured out of my thoughts when one of the wolves, I had admittedly forgotten their names, offers for me to stay put until he returns with some female clothes. I start pacing in place. 

   “Morgan, I don’t know if I can do this. What if..”. “What if what Em? This is your chance to get out of the forest where we have suffered so much already. You will have a roof over your head and warm food… I hope so anyways”. I smile at Morgan. She’s been a mother figure to me these past few months. She seems much more mature than my wolf should for being so young.

    Just then the brownish wolf returns and drops a pile of clothes behind a tree and nods to me, mindlinking “I will be just over there. When you’re done changing, come out and we’ll get you some food and water”. I slowly creep over, keeping my eyes on him. Wait, where did the other one go? I grab the clothes and dart to the tree. I shift and go to grab the sweat shirt. 

   Oh it smells so good like a cotton cloud. I vaguely remember mom doing laundry in our old home; loving the smells of the fresh bed sheets. Enough daydreaming. I snap myself out of it and reach for the sweat pants. Both are rather large for me. I thought he said female? “It’s better than what you had” Morgan scoffs at my lack of grace. “You’re right Morg, I’m sorry”. She smiles at me.