The Wolf Moon: Friends to Lovers Wolf Shifter Romance

Chapter 8

Islipped out of Diana’s home as soon as I had the chance to without her notice. I was told that no one would stop me from wandering around; many considered me superior and others just thought of me as blessed by the Mother. Besides that, I smelled of the mark; something that clearly declared me as belonging to the King Alpha. I was more than disgruntled by this fact and if I was honest with myself, I was becoming overwhelmed by the entire situation. I felt like too many people had far too many expectations for me.

I was bound to disappoint.

I decided to head towards the secret entrance into the temple. Perhaps I could choke Cynthia until she admitted that she threw me to the wolves, literally. For someone so connected to omnipotent higher beings, she sure failed to mention the King Alpha’s immortality and this wouldn’t be instantly forgiven.

My steps were stressed as I walked in the direction of where I recalled the temple to be. I passed by members of the pack, purposely avoiding looking at them. But I could still sense them stepping just slightly towards me, enough to try and scent me. They could smell wolf, no doubt. If I focused, I thought I could feel it resting just under my skin; something alive and untamed but patient… something ancient.

When I couldn’t stand their looks any further, I slipped between buildings and began avoiding them once more. I did this for a few more minutes before a lance suddenly lowered threateningly directly in front of me, freezing me mid-step. I looked from the lance to the wielder, spotting a familiar face.

Cate stood dominatingly, poised momentarily as though prepared for a fight. Her fiery hair was in that same braid that fell low down her back and she wore that same uniform which fit her curvy frame quite well but also seemed fit for a battle. When it was obvious she got my attention, she lifted the lance and propped it over her shoulder easily.

“Hello again,” She said quietly, tilting her head.

“I didn’t sense you,” I responded, disturbed by my own statement, “I guess it would be weirder if I did…”

“I don’t sense you, either,” She answered simply before breathing in sharply. “Hmm. What do you think of Alpha Roman now?”

“He’s an asshole,” I said angrily and began to stomp away. Cate began walking alongside me in silence. I felt suddenly quite visible with her next to me. She was too tall and graceful; her weapon too loud and violent. I stopped walking and faced her. “Why are you following me?”

“I like you,” She shrugged simply. I opened my mouth and then paused. “You insult the Alpha, but he’s marked you. Did you reciprocate?”

“No,” I snapped in irritation.

“You should probably fix that,” Cate responded, leaning against her lance before looking at me with amusement on her features. “You’re flustered because you’re not a lycanthrope.”

“I don’t want to be one,” I glared at her.

“Liar,” She said easily, “You like the feel of it. That wolf under your skin.”

I stared at her with wide eyes.

“As a human, you hide. You’re afraid. It’s all submission and peace, but as a lycan, you fight. You have power. You hone it and others are afraid of you. You like it,” She reaffirmed her previously statement determinedly. Then she stood her full height, shrugging off her statements easily. “I understand. I like it, too. Are we going to the temple? Is this part of your plan to seduce the Alpha?”

I nearly choked on air.

“What?”

“Well, to get him to mark you, you must be seducing him.”

“I tried to kill him,” I corrected her firmly.

“Huh… yes, I can see how that would be seductive to him,” Cate answered thoughtfully, no doubt trying to imagine the entire scenario. “So you lock yourself in the temple until he has to come break you out. I understand, I think.”

“He already knows I can get out. That makes no… wait, I’m not trying to seduce him,” I shook my head, already entirely confused by the direction of the conversation. I tried to continue on my path, but Cate stepped in front of me forcefully. I attempted to step around her twice before glaring at her. “What?”

“I’m bored,” She sighed then, her face a picture of ultimate melancholy. Just as quickly, her features lit up. “I have an interesting idea. Will you match against me?” I stared at her openly, expecting her to laugh and say she was joking. When she didn’t, I scoffed.

“Are you asking me to fight you?”

“Yes,” Cate seemed quite excited suddenly. “Not a challenge, just a match. For fun.”

“But you’re a warrior and I’m just-” I hesitated, about to say ‘a girl’, but Cynthia was suddenly there in my thoughts. I’m just a girl. She’s just a wolf. I had killed a wolf already and fought against the King Alpha twice. Perhaps a part of me did like the violent aspects of the wolves and their culture. “You won’t kill me, will you?”

“That’s against the rules,” She teased, reaching out to pat my head. I slapped her hand away, irritated by such a gesture. I wasn’t a small child. But at the same time, it reminded me of my younger brother and I. How many times had I placed my hand on his head teasingly?

“Okay, a match, then. How does it go?”

“Follow me,” Cate said, waving her hand before walking away.

As I followed her through the village, the lycans that had been just slightly curious before were all eyes. They watched Cate strut in front of me, her lance now propped over her shoulders with her arms dangling from it, and then stared as I followed behind her purposely. Some began to follow as well, seeing that I was interacting with one of their own.

We reached a building and Cate led me further in, opening a particular set of doors to what looked like an armory. I stared with wide eyes as she indicated for me to pick from a vast set of weapons. Behind me, several lycans were peering at us from a distance, curiosity bringing whispers along the hall.

I stepped forward, finding a section of bows. I picked through them, feeling their weight and aiming them briefly before deciding on one particular bow that seemed to fit me perfectly. I picked up a quiver filled with arrows along with an arm-brace and leather gloves. Once I had everything ready, I unlatched my blade, flipped it in the air once to make sure it was well enough, and then grabbed a block I spotted for sharpening.

Cate watched me with amusement, but also a type of excitement on her features. She was sharpening her own weapon; that dangerously long and threatening lance. She removed her own blade from her hip, revealing that forearm length blade only a few inches bigger than mine. When we both were prepared, she tilted her head for me to follow her once again. I did so, feeling much better equipped with my familiar weapons. It was as though I was going out for a hunt.

“What’s going on?” A man not much older than me asked curiously out of the gathering pack.

“A match,” I lifted my bow as indication of the fact before continuing after Cate, who hadn’t stopped to answer at all. The man seemed shocked and those who heard began to hiss whispers at one another; some running away immediately. I thought about asking what their problem was, but an eagerness was growing as Cate led me towards the woods.

As we walked, lycans began to fold between and around us, suddenly less timid and more excited. Hands brushed over mine briefly and when I looked at those who touched me, they bared their necks and danced away. When I looked to Cate who was being separated from me, I noticed many doing the same to her, as if they were wishing us luck.

I was tugged by the arm to the right while Cate continued left until I could no longer see her at all. A man pulled on my arm and pointed at a tree, catching my attention.

“Blue means you’ve reached the edge of the match. If you go past, you forfeit,” He told me over the sound of excited chatter. I could see blue paint lined along the trees, accentuating a barrier in which I would be allowed to fight in. I nodded in understanding, glad that someone would think to tell me the rules. “When you hear the first howl, that means the match has started.”

“I can’t believe you’re fighting against Cate,” another lycan stated with disbelief, “She’s known as the Shadow of Death, you know.”

“She came here with Diana from a pack of rogues,” a voice added unhelpfully.

“Her lance is considered blessed by the Crone. It’s laced with silver; untouchable by anyone except Cate herself,” another hissed in excitement.

“They say she gave up her voice to get that blessing,” one agreed with the previous statement, “She’s never said a word the entire time she’s been here. The only time you hear her is when she howls.”

I turned at this comment, now certain they were all just telling me nonsense to frighten me. Before I could dispute their facts, the man who pointed out the trees pulled on my arm to gain my attention once again.

“She’ll start on the opposite side of the match. When the first howl is made, you’ll have to find each other. The winner is determined by whoever submits or falls unconscious first. Death blows are not allowed and is considered a crime among our pack. No one but the fighters are allowed in the match. Good luck to you, Tala.”

“It’s Mila,” I tried to correct him as he and the others began to recede beyond the trees. Their words echoed his: Good luck, Tala. For some reason, I suspected they knew my name wasn’t Tala. It probably meant something else entirely. I would have to ask later.

I stood alone, the line of blue painted trees behind me and fading into the distance on either side of me. My only option would be to go forward or follow the perimeter of the match and chance being knocked out of the match. Knowing that Cate would be on the opposite side of the arena, I hooked the bow over my shoulder and looked around, plotting on what it was to do in this fight against her if I wanted to win.

I obviously would have to use my connection to the wildlife. I felt a sense of excitement just thinking of it. So often I had avoided that connection, considering it cheating when hunting and not wanting others to find out about it. Now, it didn’t matter. It was vital.

I inhaled sharply at the sound of a long, high howl in the air. I knew it wasn’t Cate. No doubt it was one of the many bystanders waiting to see the outcome of the match. With the howl having announced the beginning of the match, I began to jog carefully through the trees, delving more into the arena cautiously.

When I was satisfied with my distance, I stopped and raised a hand above me, reaching for the ceiling of the trees. I whistled, high and purposely until a flutter of wings appeared on low branches around me. I turned to look at the gathering of several birds who had answered my call. Then I lifted my finger to my lips.

“Shhh,” I said to them before pointing towards the middle of the match area, “I’m hunting the wolf.” For a regular person, I would have to be more specific, but for animals it was different. It was as though my actual words didn’t matter; the power was more mind over volume. At my words, the birds took flight and disappeared into the trees. And just as quickly as they were gone, so was all noise within the forest.

I stood unmoving, listening to the sudden silence of nature. No bird chirped. No feet scurried across the floor. It would have been completely eerie if I hadn’t intended it to be this way. I only remained frozen until I heard it: quiet chirping in the far distance, short and melodic.

I immediately began to run, twisting through trees silently. I had yet to obtain new shoes since the ones I lost from the hunt, but my feet were used to the forest. Still, the shoestrings would have been useful for setting traps. Instead, I used the occasional chirping of a single bird to determine which direction Cate was going. I would anticipate her path and strike her down as soon as I saw her.

When the chirping was approaching nearer to my distance, I halted and looked at the trees carefully. I picked an easy climb with the best coverage and planted my hands along the bark, lifting my body and grasping for branches. I crawled my way up the tree with practice until I was among the thicker top branches. The leaves had fallen with winter, but I could still remain hidden with care.

I removed my bow from my back, equipping it with an arrow and facing the direction of the lone chirping. She was closer now. I held my bow to my hip, not drawing the string as of yet as I waited patiently. My heart was pulsing loudly in my chest with excitement. Adrenaline was threading throughout me and that wild power within me stretched under my skin dangerously. I felt quite at home.

The melodic chirping increased in volume exponentially, indicating that Cate was going to appear any moment. I lifted my bow, drawing the string and aiming purposely at the floor of the forest where her path would lead. Just as she stepped into sight, the bird silenced itself suddenly, making her pause mid-step.

I aimed for her shoulder and released my arrow, equipping another just as quickly. It was as if everything exploded around us; the wildlife singing and moving at once in excitement. In the second it took to shoot at her, she pulled her lance from her side swiftly and sliced it through the air, snapping the arrow in half. I released another and she brought back her weapon, deflecting it just before it would have pierced her. And then she began to ran towards my location.

I began to rapidly target her, releasing arrow after arrow expertly and watching as she sliced through them. One deflected only just in time and only enough that it still grazed her arm. She growled at the cut and burst forward, roaring as she swung her lance powerfully at the base of the tree I was hiding in.

I yelped as her blade tore entirely through the wood, feeling my world fall around me as the tree tilted forward towards the ground slowly and powerfully. I both kept my eye on Cate and panicked, tucking into myself so as to not break my weapon as I leapt from the falling tree in attempt to gain control of the situation.

I rolled as I hit the ground, dodging the branches of the tree and ending up on my back. I immediately pushed myself to my feet, crouching and equipping my bow. I began to shoot at Cate once more. She sliced the arrow dangerously, panting against her own exertions. Then she lunged towards me. With her so close, I equipped three arrows, turning my bow horizontally before releasing them at once.

She swung, hitting one… two… the third struck her hand in mid-swing, causing her to all but launch her lance across the distance into the woods. She groaned in pain, but didn’t stop her attack. Instead, she ripped the arrow from her hand and grabbed her blade at her waist, releasing it with a loud, sharp sound echoing in the air around us.

I dropped the bow and tore my own blade from its sheath, pushing myself into standing before lifting it above my head just as she brought hers in a down swing. Our blades struck one another’s with a loud crash, causing me to take a step back but nothing more. I could feel that wild power brushing against me under my skin, pulsing with strength under my attack.

I twisted out from under her, sliding to the ground quickly and slicing the blade against her lower leg. She danced out of the way just barely too slow so that the knife only slightly cut into her flesh and then tried to stomp on me altogether. I dodged quickly and then cried out, lunging towards her and tackling into her body as forcefully as I could.

If I could get her on the ground with me, I might stand a chance.

We collided and she just as quickly used her amazing speed to jump over me, turning my own attack on me until I was the one on the ground with her on top of me. She swung her blade down, suddenly appearing quite intent on a killing blow in my opinion. I gritted my teeth together and placed my blade over the palm of my free hand, lifting it forcefully until it met hers painfully.

She cried out simultaneously with me, my blade digging into both of our hands though more so into hers. It was enough to halt her blade from being buried into my chest. I held this pose, growling completely unlike myself as blood seeped over our hands and over my arms thickly. I reached out with my power, calling blindly for anything surrounding us.

Suddenly, a large roaring form tore its way through the trees and into a surprised Cate, knocking both of our weapons from our hands. I rolled under Cate as she was ripped from me, gasping as I turned to see an extremely furious bear biting into her viciously.

I cursed loudly with astonishment.

Cate roared angrily, her bones snapping as she began to shift into her own angry beast. Her form grew under the wild beast, midnight fur sprouting over her claws and fangs. I panicked, both not wanting the wildlife around me to suffer from my fight and knowing she would be attacking me in this form next.

The bear swiped a heavy paw at her fully formed wolf muzzle, knocking her to the ground viciously. I scrambled to my feet, spotting Cate’s lance in the near distance flat on the forest floor. I ran for it, turning my head towards the battling beasts.

“Run!” I demanded of the bear powerfully, making it stumble away from Cate with confusion before turning away to make its escape. Cate stood bleeding and panting, growling continuously under her breath but not otherwise continuing her fight with the wild creature. Instead, she turned those diamond blue eyes on me dangerously.

In a breath of a second, she came for me. I dove forward, landing on top of the length of the lance roughly and gripping it tightly. Cate leapt into the air, intending to collide into me with all of her power. I twisted from my stomach, lifting the lance with me until the tip targeted the center of Cate’s form.

In a half second, I could see the surprise in her eyes as she saw the certain death blow coming. In that same second, I felt a wave of triumph knowing she couldn’t avoid it. I just as quickly dropped the lance, falling on my back flatly as she landed on top of me, her paws planted firmly on either side of my head and a roar erupting from that fang filled mouth into my face.

I laughed with delight, reaching out to place my hand on her nose abruptly.

“I won,” I said firmly, “Submit, you devil wolf.”

Cate panted above me, the tip of her nose still just under my palm. I considered the idea that she could take advantage and tear into me now that I was useless under her, but instead of being afraid I merely trailed my hand further up her muzzle until it was between her ears. I patted her head as she had done me earlier, hearing her growl in response with irritation.

Suddenly, she was full-bodied slammed into and torn from on top of me, her form rolling across the floor of the forest and into a tree painfully. Another wolf stood over me, large and shaking with rage. He growled angrily as Cate struggled to get back onto her feet.

Cate began to shift back into her human form, tilting her head to bare her neck submissively. As she gained her human features, she winced begrudgingly at the King Alpha, but said nothing.

The King Alpha moved as though he intended to attack her and I reached out for him, gripping at his fur blindly.

“Wait!” I cried out, tugging at him forcefully, “It was just a match! We weren’t really fighting!”

The King Alpha turned those cold eyes from Cate to me dangerously and began to shift himself, his bones reforming to that of his human form. I released my grip on him and he instead reached out with his strong human hand, snatching my wrist in his grasp firmly. He lifted my hand roughly to inspect the deep gash of my knife wound angrily.

“You’re my mate,” He snarled furiously, turning to glare at Cate, “Don’t ever think about sparring with her again. I take any injury to her as an injury to me, as you know!” He roared those last words viciously, pulling me to my feet angrily.

As he turned away, he forcefully began to drag me behind him, r