~ A M E L I A ~It was so cold and dark…Where am I? What is going on?My eyes slowly peeled open, feeling the weight of my drowsiness, meeting the night sky above me. There was not a star to be seen, which was unusual for the Silver Moon pack. No matter where you are, you’d always be able to see stars at night. It was one of my favourite things about the pack. Scanning my surroundings briefly without moving my head, there were trees all around me. How did I end up in the forest? Where was I last? Pushing myself to sit up slowly, my head felt heavy as I tried to recall what happened. Everett had told me to come see him… The Alpha ambushed me… pain… so much pain…My lip quivered as I examined and patted down my entire body, but there wasn’t a cut to be seen.Am I dreaming? What the hell is going on?A rustle behind me caught my attention. Twirling onto all fours and pushing myself to stand, I felt too alert and concerned for what was out there. ‘Who’s there?’ I said sharply. No re
~ A M E L I A ~A wave of dizziness hit me as I reopened my eyes and took in my surroundings. The Moon Goddess and I were no longer in her garden of moon flowers, but deep within a forest. It was so familiar, yet different all at once. In the distance was a gentle glow emitting from lanterns.‘Where are we?’ I asked.The Moon Goddess linked her arm with mine, holding me close to her, ‘We’re in the village of the Silver Moon pack…’ she began walking me towards the lights, where noise and music began to tickle my ears, ‘…18 years ago.’I froze in place and looked at her, ‘Before I was born?’She nodded, ‘In fact, the day I brought you back to is your birthday.’Drawing my gaze back towards where the noise grew, it sounded like there was a huge celebration going on. This was it, this was finally the time I was going to learn everything. I was going to learn the truth and finally be able to understand who I am. But, for some reason, I could not move.‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ T
~ A M E L I A ~My expression faded. That was not going to be easy to get used to, but I nodded and followed her towards my birth parents’ manor. ‘Most of the pack is slumbering away, nursing their hangovers or resting in whichever ways they seem fit,’ the Moon Goddess informed me as we walked through the manor grounds and phased through the door to enter the home. ‘However, Alpha Enzo knew the importance of caring for the pack, and always prioritised his duties before anything else. So, as his mate rested in the hospital and was learning to nurse you, he was back to his duties. They were still recovering from a recent conflict they encountered with another enemy pack. I believe you’re already aware of some people of the Shadow pack?’I nodded as we phased through another set of doors. Inside the room was a grand table. Sitting around it were men, mostly middle-aged but some older and some younger, but a handful of them I recognised from the present day in the Silver Moon pack. It wa
~ A M E L I A ~Devastated was an understatement for how I felt, but I was not surprised at all. Those men had been stuck in traditions for so long they were blind to the facts that were right in front of them. That women wanted to show their strength and power, to prove that they are equally as powerful as they are. Yet these men just have to prove themselves to be the best. The Moon Goddess took me later in the day. The sun was slowly going down, dimming the light sky and introducing us to the upcoming night. We walked down the long hallways of the hospital, and the sterile aroma of my surroundings was hard to ignore. We finally made it to the private room that was dedicated to my birth mother, Kali. She was in her hospital bed, sitting up while holding her baby girl, me. With one finger, she bounced my small hand up and down until I clasped my tiny fist around her finger. ‘I can already sense that you’re a strong one, aren’t you, little wolf?’ Kali smiled. Even after giving bir
~ A M E L I A ~They arrived back at Rieka Manor, successfully unseen by anyone else. Enzo placed Kali gently on their bed and began to pace up and down the room, muttering to himself. ‘Enzo,’ she was almost hyperventilating, ‘my love, please talk to me! What is going on?’ Kali spoke quietly, trying not to awaken their baby, who had finally fallen asleep soundly, but concern was laced throughout her voice.Yet he didn’t stop pacing, deep in his thoughts, ‘It can’t be them… They wouldn’t… They couldn’t betray us like that!’‘Who?’He shook his head, ’No, no, no!’ He slammed his fist against the wall, shaking the entire room, ‘These bastards,’ he muttered through gritted teeth before sitting next to his mate and wrapping his arms around her, embracing the love of his life and their newborn daughter.‘My love, my Alpha,’ Kali continued to cry silently, ‘Please. Talk to me.’Enzo looked at his mate, holding her face softly as he wiped away her tears with his thumb, ‘My radiant Luna…’ he
~ A M E L I A ~It began to rain. First a trickle, then a complete downpour. The Alpha and Luna looked out to the rain, a perfect resemblance of their sorrow, and knew that they had no more time to waste. They had to say their final goodbyes to their daughter and commence with their plan before people became aware. When they had finally said their goodbyes, Kali had come to terms that she would not be the one to venture out to take their daughter to the person they’d hope would be the one and only person they could entrust to take her outside of the pack and to her new human family. In her state of only recently giving birth, her werewolf healing was depleting her energy, plus her sudden disappearance from the fire would raise suspicions. They had to take their next steps carefully and mindfully.Enzo sent Kali back to the hospital, where she would have to act as though she had lost her baby in that fire, along with all the other mothers who lost their babies. Such a foul and disgus
~ A M E L I A ~‘What happened after that? How did Draven become Alpha?’The Moon Goddess had brought me back to her moonflower garden, her hand on my back rubbing back and forth soothing me, ‘My dear, you’ve witnessed a lot, are you sure you don’t want to take a break?’I shook my head, ‘I don’t have time for a break! You said yourself that I’ve got a limited amount of time left back in the human world, I can’t waste it.’She nodded, ‘I know, but I can sense your pain and suffering, and things only get darker from here…’Swallowing thickly, I stood tall, ‘Show me.’‘Very well.’~ ~ ~ Following the events of the hospital fire, the next day was sombre. It wasn’t just the families who were directly involved in the fire who were grieving, it was the entire pack. They were all traumatised and scared for what was to come. The funerals for the newborns were held all together, the Alpha and Luna ensured that they were all treated with equal respect and care during the entire process, as we
~ A M E L I A ~Panic surged through me. My father’s demise… it was at the hands of his best friend? The Moon Goddess brought us to the time of the battle. As she did, all the magic it took to travel through time was taking a huge toll on my spiritual body. I collapsed to the ground and whimpered, ‘What’s happening to me?’Kneeling beside me, the Moon Goddess helped me up, ‘You don’t have much time, we need to send you back very soon.’I groaned, feeling myself lose the connection and hold I had still back in the land of the living, I couldn’t feel warmth… I couldn’t feel anything. ‘How much longer do I have?’‘Enough time to see this last glimpse into the past.’Holding myself up with all my remaining strength, I watched as the events played out. My father and his best friend were standing head to head under the starry night sky. Many members of the pack, especially the council members, were bearing witness to the fight, awaiting to see who would triumph. ‘Are you sure you want to
~ A M E L I A ~Smiling, I parted ways with my mate and walked towards the group. They all instantly fell silent as they laid eyes on me, uttering different words and bowing to me. ‘Hello,’ I smiled at the girl I desired to speak to, ‘you’re Suki, right?’Wide-eyed, Suki struggled to speak at first until the man next to her nudged her arm gently, ‘Y-Yes!’ She bowed, ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alpha Amaris.’ Coming to a stand, and gesturing towards the man and spoke speedily, ‘This is my father, Machiavelli Twyla, Beta wolf of the Moonstone pack.’He bowed his head, ‘A pleasure to meet you, Alpha Amaris.’I tittered, ‘I’m still not used to that.’ Looking down at her drink, I noticed it was empty. ‘Come, let’s get you a refill. I could do with a drink myself.’ I looped my arm with hers and guided her towards the bar. She exhaled and whispered, ‘Thank you, it was almost suffocating being there,’ she picked up another flute of champagne and sipped it. I watched her, almost feeling c
~ A M E L I A ~A large smile grew on his face, ‘I love you too,’ he said before kissing me with even more passion. Everett traced his lips against my cheek, planting a kiss as he moved closer towards my neck once again. My breathing stuttered with every move of his. He planted another kiss on my neck before gently dragging his teeth against my flesh, taunting me and making me crave him more.‘Ev… stop… teasing,’ I said, struggling to breathe as I spoke. He chuckled against my skin, ‘I can’t help it, darling, it’s just too much fun.’ He sighed and lifted himself to meet my gaze again, ‘I promise you, I will mark you, but just not today. Today is your Ascension Ceremony; it’s an important and memorable day for you. Completing our bond should be a separate thing, what do you think?’I smiled, intertwining my fingers behind his neck, ‘I think that is a great idea.’ Ev looked pleased and pecked my lips. ‘Besides,’ I added, ‘you probably should meet my adoptive parents before we complete
~ A M E L I A ~With the curse finally being lifted, the people of the Silver Moon pack celebrated for three days straight, immediately after the Battle for Alpha ended, and I was deemed the new leader, the youngest Alpha leader ever in the entire history of the pack, claiming that title from my birth father. I thought and hoped he would’ve been proud that it was me who took that title. Truthfully, I’d expected more backlash for my rise from being essentially rankless to then becoming Alpha, but it seemed that the people of Silver Moon had the utmost respect for my birth parents, as well as gaining respect for me for saving them from the dreaded 18-year curse. The people of the pack were able to enjoy the freedom of having their powers back. I, however, had no chance to embrace my powers or even try shifting yet. There was too much to do, and I had no time to rest, not yet.Moving arrangements for one—I was now the Alpha, and moving back home with my adoptive parents was no longer a
~ A M E L I A ~I looked at the guards, ‘Please ensure Draven doesn’t try anything stupid.’With that, I sped through the forest, not realising how tame my wolf speed was before gaining access to my full power. It was a level I could not even fathom to explain. Magical? Fantastic? Out of this world? Yes, all of the above. My nose locked in on her scent swiftly, it was as if I could physically see her just through her scent. She was running back towards the pack, but she wasn’t going to make it. All of my senses were locked on her. I could smell the fear in her sweat and hear the panic in her panting breath. I slowed my pace and moved around enough to make her struggle to decipher where exactly I was coming from, only making her panic more as I moved in closer, finally being able to see her with my eyes. She came to a halt suddenly, frantically searching around, and when she went to move off again, I was there, standing right in front of her. ‘Going somewhere, Yurena?’ I stepped fo
~ A M E L I A ~ His voice was as clear as day in my mind, yet part of me felt like it was all a dream. Yet it wasn’t a dream. It was real, but it was about to turn into a nightmare when my attention was brought to Draven and the dagger in his hand as he pulled back, ready to plunge it into his son’s heart. With more speed than I had ever been able to harness before, I flashed towards them, leaping onto Draven’s back and swinging myself to the side to throw him off and send him skidding away. ‘Everett, Everett!’ I said in a panic, dragging my hands across his chest to check for any wounds. He groaned as he sat up, ‘I’m okay, I’m okay… just weak from the wolfsbane.’ He placed his hand over the stab wound in his stomach to stop it from bleeding, and with his free hand, he placed it on my cheek, looking deep into my eyes, ‘Amelia.’ With tear-stained eyes, I smiled and placed my hand on top of his, ‘Everett.’‘How dare you!’ Draven hissed as he came to a stand and walked slowly back t
~ A M E L I A ~‘No!’ I groaned and shoved my heels in the dirt before I hauled myself down towards the ground, using his weight to bring him down too. As he was above me, I used my legs to throw him to my side before bolting away from the cliff. By this point, I had used too much of my wolf speed and was struggling to lock into it fully. I needed full access to my wolf side. Draven sped after me, though he was also worn out; he still had full access to his power, which gave him that advantage. He hurtled himself at me, tackling me to stumble and fall into the bushes. A twist and crack of my ankle made me wail out in pain. I couldn’t see my friends, but I knew they were on edge watching the scene before them. Hudson and Everett both were likely fighting every urge within them not to get involved. They knew if they did, the challenge would become void, and I would lose instantly. They believed in me enough to fight this on my own. I’ve got this. I can do this!Pinning me down, Drav
~ A M E L I A ~Within those first few seconds, I knew that his fighting tactics differed from Everett’s—where he would wait for his opponent to come for him to then take them down, Draven was a head-on type of fighter. That only made him more unpredictable for me and lowered any advantage I could have even more. Focus. My mind hissed. Locking in on the situation before me, I stood still and waited for the right moment. Draven clenched his hands into fists. Watching closely, I spotted his right hand draw back ever so slightly. That was my mark. I waited for him to get closer and closer, to make a move. As he pushed with his left foot and lunged closer as he drew his right fist back, it was time for me to dodge and counter. I leant back as his fist moved for my face, grabbing his wrist and arm, pushing his punch away from me to miss my head. Using that momentum, I twirled around and skidded back, dropping to my hands and knees. Not having time to think things further, I pushed fo
~ A M E L I A ~All my friends tried to keep me busy and distracted during the day. We played board games, watched movies, and even had a picnic in the forest. However, I was struggling to eat and ended up watching the sun move in the sky, teasing me with what was to come. There was no more avoiding the inevitable.‘I’ll be right back,’ I said quietly, pushing myself to my feet and making my way back into my cottage. I’d become so comfortable with this home, and the chances were, win or lose, I’d not be returning to this home.I poured myself a cold glass of water and took a couple of sips before tipping the rest down the sink. Resting my hands on the kitchen counter, I tried to hash out a strategy to help me with the upcoming battle, but everything I thought of always resulted in the same thing: me losing.Draven was an Alpha werewolf, and before then, he was a powerful Beta. He had always been strong, and though I had strength, they were too limited. There was no hope.‘Hey,’ Sammy
~ A M E L I A ~To nobody’s surprise, I couldn’t sleep at all.It got to the point where I had to start pretending that I was sleeping just to stop everyone from shouting at me to rest in preparation for the battle, so I could gather my strength. We had all stuck together in the living room, moving the coffee table and the sofas to allow more space for us all to sleep on the floor. The guys brought the mattress from my bedroom and the guest bedroom to lie on the ground so they all had something comfortable to sleep on. Gabriel and Kaylee were on one mattress, while Sammy and Theo were on the other—they all had fallen asleep not long after I pretended to. I was lying on one of the sofas. Peeling my eyes open slowly, I noticed the other sofa was still vacant, and two people were not in my line of sight. I searched the room carefully to see where they had gone off, too, trying not to get caught for being awake. Both Everett and Hudson were standing by the back door, looking out to the