Aston

Chapter 17

Rage roared through Aston. He was unable to control his wolf any longer as pain ripped his heart apart. The elves gasped as his fur began to grow, his bones cracked into odd angles, his skin ripped itself apart to reveal a pissed off wolf.

"Guards!" Aston snarled. They were shocked at the beast before them. Aston was someone who've they've never seen angry. They quickly shifted and joined by his side.

"Aston..." Rohan whispered. "What happened?"

"King Joshua is dead." He snarled. "And fairies are here."

"Don't do anything rash, Aston." Rohan warned. "We do not know if he is dead."

Through his anger he did something that no lycan has ever been able to do. He evolved. His wolf contorted as righteous anger consumed him. He grew bigger, his muscles became more defined, and his eyes began to glow an inhuman white as he leaned on his hind legs.

"Where. Are. The. Fairies!" He roared, rushing into the town.

Rohan and the guards backed away slowly from Aston. They'd never seen a creature such as this. The other elves gasped.

"I didn't know they still existed..." Balin said.

"What the hell happened to him?!" Devon screamed, his wolf whimpering.

"He's a lupin..." he whispered.

"A what?" This time it was Rohan that asked.

"A primal form of yourselves. Born out of righteous anger. It is a creature of light that fights for good, but I don't understand why he's after the fairies." He explained.

The others seemed to shake themselves out of their daze, they chased after him.

Amelia was helping Luke with folding blankets when she felt it. It was such a powerful energy that even he turned to look at her. To her, it felt like anger, but sadness as well. She wasn't sure what to make of it until she remembered that the bond connected them.

WHERE ARE THE FARIES?! She heard Aston's voice in her head, but it wasn't completely his voice. Behind it was a dark energy, a demonic ring. It was barely audible, but it was there.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked. A tear escaped Amelia's eye as she realized what must have happened.

"I think Aston's fallen to the darkness..." she whispered. Luke gasped.

The doors of the pack house suddenly collapsed, everyone stopped what they were doing to watch the contorted wolf in front of them. Amelia was frightened, until her wolf sensed the familiar scent of Aston.

"Where are the faries?!" He snarled. He looked around, sniffing the air until he came face to face with a little girl. He looked murderous.

Amelia couldn't help herself, she forced herself in front of the beast as it rose it's claw to swipe. He stopped as he saw her, frozen.

"Aston..." Amelia cried. He looked into her eyes, and gently moved her aside. He readied himself before the crying girl. She had no escape.

"Aston!" Amelia cried, making the beast froze. "Do not fall to the darkness!" He looked at her, then at the floor. "Whatever it is you taught me that the pack comes first."

"This is for the pack." The wolf growled.

"Then why are they terrified right now?" Amelia asked. She felt her heart break, she knew he had understood. He'd done so much for this pack, and he was trying to protect it. To him the fairies were invaders, fiends who infiltrated his ranks. Even Amelia, as Luna, felt ashamed that she didn't know about them. "What you are doing is for yourself." She whispered.

She took a chance. She stepped forward and reached out her hand. He did not move. She inched closer, touching him gently on the shoulder.

Familiar sparks erupted from her touch, making him shudder. The beast closed its eyes and growled lightly.

"Aston... this is not you." She whispered. She knew it was his wolf completely in control right now. She was terrified as she realized that he had no control over himself, and he was mourning. She could feel the sorrow rising within. "You still have me..."

She moved closer, wrapping her arms around the beast until he began to change again. His white eyes returned to their golden hue, his skin retracted as he stood on two legs, naked. She wrapped her arms tighter as she felt his familiar warmth around him.

"Amelia..." she heard him whisper.

"Aston..." she heard Luke whisper behind them. "What happened?"

"The... fairies are here without permission. The spirits... I heard them kill them all..." he panted out. Amelia could feel that he was exhausted, she let him rest on her. She was keeping him contained.

"Kill who, Aston..." Luke asked.

"They killed my men."

Everyone turned to face the doorway, their eyes grazed upon the golden hue of the last man they expected to see.

"Josh..." Aston cried, tears streamed down his face as Amelia understood the mourning she had felt. Josh entered the room, commanding that his presence be known. He walked up to Aston and rested his hand on his shoulder.

"I am alive old friend. The spirits did not kill me." He smiled.

"The spirits?" Luke asked. "Why would they kill you?"

"My men attacked, they thought they meant harm. They only wanted me to come here." He explained.

"Why would the spirits want you to come here?" Luke asked.

"Destiny demands we join together." A small voice squeaked behind Amelia. They all turned to the little girl, who was shaking with fear. "I'm sorry alpha Aston," she said. "But I had to remain unseen to your eyes. I had to know it was safe."

"Fairy queen!" They all heard Rohan exclaim. "It has been many years since we've met. A shame, really, that it has been on a day with so much death."

Amelia and Aston were becoming flustered, it had seemed that everyone knew something they didn't.

"Okay, what the hell is going on?" Amelia asked. Josh chuckled.

"The spirit of the forest explained everything to me." He said. "The humans had decided to take their wars to the next level."

"They shot out the mushroom clouds into the sky." The little girl said.

"Their nuclear weapons," Rohan explained.

"They wished to destroy each other." Josh continued. "To protect the delicate balance of life, they decided that the humans reign was over. Nature is striking back."

"Once their numbers are more controlled," the little girl said. "They will let us all leave."

"They asked us to take responsibility over them." Josh said.

"They wanted to destroy everyone," Rohan said. "But I convinced them to allow some to live. It was what I came here today to explain to you, but then all hell decided to break loose."

"So why is everyone here then?" Aston finally asked.

"The leaders of the races must all be together to prevent one from taking over the other." Josh said. "Seeing as we are all the rulers of the land, we decided it was best to come here. But we could not tell you until you became the Alpha." Aston nodded.

"What do I tell everyone else? They will want answers." Aston asked.

"We can have a large pack feast." Amelia suggested. "We can tell them then."