Hellbound

Chapter 9 - In which an account is made

The next two days passed in a similar fashion and without any other incidents. During this time, Allie was assigned as the guardian to stay with Anya, and the two found a fast friend in each other.

'Remind me that we need to add each other on Ignis before you leave,' Allie said as they returned to the pack house for lunch.

'Ignis?'

'The social media for hellians and expers?'

'I didn't know that was a thing.'

'Well, it is. It's invite-only so we don't have to hide who we are,' she said and pulled out her phone. 'I'll send you an invite now. I've heard it's similar to human social media.'

Allie walked her through the numerous steps to get herself set up and verified, and by the time they reached the pack house, Anya had gained access to the app. Following the prompts to get familiar with the interface, they snapped a photo together after following each other.

'Can I tag you?' Anya asked as they stepped inside.

'Yeah. You have to double tap the image to get the option.'

'What are you doing?' Callum asked once they reached the table.

'Allie just introduced me to Ignis,' Anya said with a big smile. 'Do you use it too?'

'Yeah, it's how I stay in contact with my blood-pack.'

'Can we connect?'

'Of course.' He took her phone when she offered it and typed in his username. 'Wilder_Anya?'

She shrugged and sat down. 'It's what I use everywhere.'

'What have you been doing?' he asked as he handed it back to her.

'Allie took me through the forest so I got some photos of how they mark their land and paths. And the...garden? What was that the name?'

'The Goddess Garden,' Frankie said. 'The name for our burial ground.'

'Ah,' Callum said with a nod. He pulled up his notebook and scribbled a few words down. 'We call ours the Eternal Haven.'

'Does the fact that wolves believe in a goddess mean you're matrilineal?' Anya asked.

'We used to be,' Frankie said, 'but as society has developed, that aspect has more or less been left behind. Wolves are much more community-driven than humans, so even back when it was used, it was mainly to designate which family you belonged to. Things like houses or material goods stay within a family as a default. If there's a disagreement, it falls on the alpha to make a judgment.'

'Which doesn't have to be a man,' Allie said and slid a cup of coffee in front of Anya.

'Allie would know,' Frankie said with a proud smile. 'She comes from the line that has produced the most alphas in our pack.'

'My grandma was the pack alpha before Ellis.'

'How do you decide who becomes the pack alpha as opposed to...a regular alpha?' Anya grimaced. 'Sorry. I don't know how to say that properly.'

'It's fine the way you say it,' Allie said with a shrug. 'Most of the time we can all sense who is the stronger one, but if it's pretty even, it becomes a whole voting thing. At least in our pack.'

Callum scratched his chin when they looked at him. 'We tend to let the previous alpha decide, and they usually consult with the guides and guardians. I don't think we've had that issue for a while, so it's just what I've heard. I'd assume that the rest of the pack's opinion is taken into consideration but the choice is ultimately up to the previous pack alpha.'