Wolf Queen - Book 1 of The Nightfall Series

Seven

The day was bright, but her mood was not. The packs had gathered safely behind the wall of the Goddess, The Temple of Diana. All territories had been evacuated; it was as if they had already been scrubbed from the Earth.

A move that proved just how grave the situation truly was.

Her face was tipped to the sky, her eyes closed as she reviled in the brief break of sun through the clouds. She stood not far from the entrance to the temple, close enough to feel the hum of power that it resonated.

Her mind and body feeling the pull to emerge herself in it once again. Like an addict regaining their fix, it felt sickly sweet. Her mind was calm, the beast under control for the first time since the pack wars, it sensed its creator's presence. The only power they ever bowed too.

Her breathing was heavy as her mind was plagued with memories, the horrors of her past. Fields of blood, piles of bodies. The heartache, the agony that crippled her very being every single day.

She would find no solace in this place or in the events that were to come.

Her claws and gums ached as she felt the tides of emotions beginning to drag her down into their depths, but her body stilled as a firm hand landed on her shoulder, taking part of the strain.

"Ada."

Her father's voice was soft in her ear as he leaned in close to her, she felt his warmth at her back. A backbone of strength against what was to come. He listened to her racing pulse and sympathy rolled off him into the air.

The life she had lived was not the one he had wished for her, she deserved so much more. Instead, she was a powerful pawn in a higher plan, something as a mere Alpha, he could not control. He only served the Goddess; his daughter was her interpreter.

He turned her to face him and cupped her face in his hands as he looked into her eyes. So, strong yet so damaged. The fear in her eyes shone straight through to him as she let herself have a moment of vulnerability, the last she would be allowed to have.

"You have seen and done so much; it is so wrong to ask it of you again." He whispered to her.

She heard the break in his voice as his eyes watered, making her own eyes itch and lip tremble as she held it in. Still striving to be the strongest for him, to cause him no more pain. She placed her hands over his own and brought the palms together before placing a kiss atop them and taking a step backwards.

Adelaide steeled herself as her father nodded and stepped to her side, a ghost of a breath between them. She faced the gate. Twin statues of the goddess Diana each reached out a palm in warning with blank gazes. Sconces sat at their feet with blazing flames, awakened at last after years of neglect. The dark forest beyond beckoned with addicting whispers, wishing her to fall into its depths, to follow the deathly song it weaved to those who listened. It had been spelled with magic long ago to protect against those who meant harm.

Invisible to human eyes and none other than a wolf could enter. The transparent barrier would not allow it, an entity all its own.

Her head was held high as she stepped forward, one foot in front of the other as the world around her changed, the barrier bended to her will like an old friend as she stepped through, and it snapped back into place behind her.

A gasp left her as her mind and body connected, the moon once again overtaking her soul. Silver eyes surveyed her surroundings. She walked forward; shoulders pulled back in confidence as she took a breath. The path before her was dirt and stone from thousands of feet walking upon it across millennia. Her fingers brushed against leaves and ferns that passed her as the path began to open.