The Awakening Review Novels & Stories

His blind terror when Genevieve’s shadows had wrapped around my throat, the vow he’d made to burn the world if it meant keeping me safe. But loudest of all was the thought that pulsed like a second heartbeat: "Don’t let her see. Don’t let her know you’re just as broken as the monster you killed." The Awakening I gasped back into my body just before dawn, my cheeks wet with tears that weren’t entirely my own. My lungs burned as if I’d been holding my breath for hours. The tent around me smelled of sweat and crushed herbs, real, solid, mine again. The goddess’s voice lingered in the stillness:

I close my eyes and enjoy the moment of serenity as I hold the woman of my life in my embrace, and intend to never let her go. When I open my eyes, the sun is beaming brightly through the window. Sophia will be disappointed if we don't show up for breakfast. Well, if Amy doesn't show up. She is obviously the only one everyone is trying to impress, not me. Amy's eyes are closed. She must have dozed off. All that sexual activity can surely be tiring. She was so awesome this morning.

I only shook my head, stepping forward again. The divine light swirled around me. It licked my skin like fire, yet did not burn. My blood raced, my senses sharpened to edges I had never known. Priests collapsed outright, their bodies convulsing from the overload of power. Young omegas quivered, eyes wide with awe and fear, some screaming as the bond I carried surged beyond comprehension. Those once silent, obedient, submissive… now rose, trembling, yet stronger than before. The first wave of awakening was visible, raw, and undeniable. They were no longer mine to command, and yet they moved in harmony with the pulse I had sent outward. The old hierarchy was dissolving before my eyes.

I whispered. I reached out for him as the wolves closed in on me, but before he could get to me, the nearest one turned and leapt. Its body hit the air— And I couldn’t tell where the shadows were coming from. Something pierced my heart, and I gasped. --- I woke up too fast, like something had pulled me out of darkness by force. For a few seconds I did not move. I lay still in the attic bed, staring at the wooden ceiling. My chest rose and fell unevenly, as if I had been running for a long time.

I controlled my breathing, still pretending to be unconscious, even when I felt Zane pick up my hand and cradle it in his. “Is there any way to wake her up?” the King asked. Again, I opened my mouth to tell them that I was already awake, but I was glad I didn’t, based on what the doctor said next. “Well,” the doctor sighed. “If you are her mate, perhaps you could try the ancient method to wake up your mate.” The ancient method? Again, my heart raced. “Take off your clothes and your mate’s…” Before I could finish listening to Dr. Devonworth's explanation, a dizzy sensation swept over me, and I slipped back into darkness...

⸻ The Awakening I staggered, gasping as my consciousness snapped back to the temple. Luca caught me before I fell. “Angelina!” I clutched my chest, my heart racing. “I saw her,” I whispered. “The First Alpha.” Alric’s gaze was knowing. “Then you are closer than you think.” The embers on the walls flared. A warmth spread through my veins. And for the first time in my life, I felt it— The spark of something powerful. Something that had always been mine. I met Alric’s gaze.

His heart rate had picked up, too; maybe I wasn’t the only one feeling things I shouldn’t be feeling. Ayla’s POV No time had passed when Aiden woke me with a kiss on my forehead, or so it felt to me. I had climbed into bed with my unmoving mate. Being near him calmed me even if he couldn’t answer me when I spoke. I really must have needed a nap. I guess I hadn’t been sleeping much lately. Goddess knows what I must look like right now. Aiden didn’t seem to care; he was still looking at me like I was the most beautiful girl on the planet.

They pulled me toward the light and I succumbed, letting them guide me. The process of reawakening was a gradual ascent from a turbulent dream. My first sensation was the cool air against my skin and a series of wracking coughs that sent my body convulsing. I lay there, disoriented, my senses gradually knitting back together. Beside me, James was in a similar state of semi-consciousness, coughing violently. It was disconcerting to awaken in a place that was at once unfamiliar and strangely militaristic. My gaze shifted to Amy, who lay lifeless, and I felt a pang of terror until I saw her chest rise and fall. She was alive. Relief washed over me.

"wake up mor*n." Daxton commanded after instructing one of his guards to empty a bucket of water on Aurora on the floor she was laid on in the torture room. Aurora opened her eyes at once, and tried to stand up as fast as she could and wiped off on her face. "Where I'm I?" She questioned, while looking around.