Raised Among Alphas

79 - Fire of the Desert

Alora POV

We ran back, thunders surrounding us, but not once I felt threatened. If anything, I felt guarded by them. Ithax was to my right and we maintained the same speed. Another noticeable change, I was faster. This speed wasn't wearing me down. What I used to consider a full power speed felt more like an enthusiastic jog now. 

Just outside of the training grounds, with not a soul in sight under this storm, one wolf was waiting for us. Even with his sand-color fur soaked by the pouring rain, I recognized him from a mile away... Roger. He stood still, waiting for us. As if his wolf knew exactly where to meet mine. 

My mate and I slowed down to join Roger and as we got closer to him, he bowed down to his Alpha. Me. 

"Rise Beta Roger. Join your Alpha's side. In this quest and all the ones that shall follow," That was Thana talking to him. 

In response, I felt the gratitude, respect, and undying loyalty that ran through his veins. Every part of him, he had devoted it to me. 

Roger's wolf rose, and he took the spot to my left. Head up high, alert, guarding, but most of all proud of the place where he now belonged. By my side. 

With him here, with me, I understand why Thana picked him as our Beta. With Roger around I immediately felt the comfort of the familiarity. This is the wolf that has been on patrol runs with me for the last two years, every day without excuse. This is a wolf that knows my mind as a leader, knows my moves in combat, and knows how I strategize. This is the wolf that never hesitated to guard my flank. Not when the Rogues attacked us, not when the bounty hunters came for me, not even when he had to venture into far lands to aid in my rescue.

From the very first moment, when I met him and saw his wandering soul, lost in the Desert. The time when he was a lone Rogue, exiled from the Mountains with no one in the world to care for him. From that moment on, he cared for me, he gave me a loyalty that was never asked but that I received gladly. He showed me respect, even before my greater accomplishments could speak for myself. He followed me with blind trust every time I had to make a tough decision. And yet, he was never afraid of voicing his critical opinions, only when they were necessary. 

Roger has grown so much since he came to us, and I have no doubt in my mind that we haven't even seen the best of him yet. 

The three of us walked down the main road, the one that started at the front door of the pack house and ended at the edge of the training grounds, slowly blending with the vast Desert. We passed several buildings, the clinic, the safe houses, the main diner, the only bar in the pack, the market, and Mimi's tattoo studio. These were all the places I walked by every day. The places that were my whole world. Most of them I saw being built from scratch, thanks to Kasthor's vision and love for construction. 

I was walking down the same path I had traveled so many times that I couldn't possibly count, yet now I was seeing it from different eyes. Now I knew this wasn't the whole world. Protecting this place wasn't my only responsibility anymore. The love I have for this pack remains, but now is the time to spread the love, for not all wolves are lucky enough to grow up in a pack such as this one. And those are the ones that need me.

As we reached the end of the road, the pack house doors were wide open. The only light was coming from the inside and the thunders. Everyone was gathered there, sheltered from the storm. As we walked up the couple of steps that led into the pack house I saw hundreds of wolves, all of them scattered all over the main floor and the balconies from the four floors. There were wolves from the Great Grasslands, the White Sand, the Shrubland Thorns, and the Rainforest, all their eyes focused on the three wolves walking in, but mostly the one in the middle.