The Luna's Sacrifice

Prologue

Zana was her father's greatest pride, the first and only daughter among six children. A year after Zana's birth, the quadruplets arrived, and a year later, the last of the Alpha's family descendants was born.

Born as alphas, from a young age they were educated to be the best in everything. All the descendants of the Alpha couple excelled in the arts of hunting, knowledge of culture, and the laws of the pack, without neglecting the arts of war. Even though her mother was never in favor of her only daughter being involved with men, fighting, and rolling in the dirt during training, she could not say no. Zana was a strong, agile, and intelligent warrior. At the same time, she was delicate, polite, and modest, never speaking too much. During debates between the wise men of the pack, she had the talent to listen and the wisdom to give her opinions. Her mother could see a fire inside her that she only let out when she was training or dancing.

At 15 years old, Zana had the complete trust of the warriors of the pack, which is why her father was so proud of her. "Zana is unique. Her beauty is unparalleled, her intelligence is unmatched, and her strength and compassion are virtues never seen in a leader since the beginning of time. Zana is the future of the pack, and the generations that come from her will be graced by the gods," said her father, while the shamans and wise men of the pack nodded in agreement.

The quadruplets would be in charge of the cities of the four poles: Centz in the northern cities, Zonhu in the southern ones, Itznáh in the east, and Wuaac in the west. Each one would have their own lands and would be responsible for ensuring the security of the pack and forming packs of their own, becoming a great civilization where everyone would protect and support each other. The quadruplets adored their older sister. Despite being minors, they always protected her, always seen together as if they were quintuplets. Although, being men, they were always bigger than Zana in size and strength.

Zana demanded that they treat her the same as they treated each other during training, but they never did. After all, when they reached puberty, the "four hundred biznagas"-as the entire kingdom referred to the quadruplets because their strength, agility, speed, and endurance in battle seemed to multiply by hundreds compared to those of any other warrior-greatly surpassed their older sister in height and strength.

On the other hand, Huitz preferred to do things his own way, at his own pace and in his own form. Among the six siblings, he was always the most avid in the arts of war. Despite being the youngest, he was the tallest and strongest of the Alpha's offspring. His intelligence and strength were always inclined to the battlefield. He grew in knowledge of strategy, and at his young age, he was already part of the council of his father, the Alpha. His father awarded him his own retinue of warriors once he discovered that one of the Alpha's allies was planning a mutiny against him.

Therefore, Huitz would be in charge of the armies, the wise leader of the pack's council. He would have lands and power just like his brothers. The only one above him would be Zana, when the time came.

The pack enjoyed good fortune, and thanks to its children, the pack not only ensured the continuity of the lineage, but everything seemed to be moving towards a great future. Everything seemed calm-just like the calm before the storm.