Alpha Axel

Fourteen

I opened my eyes, the grass brushing against my cheek as I took in my surroundings. I was in a forest, the golden glow of sunset shining through the trees, and I knew darkness would be falling soon. I pushed myself up, the world spinning as I did, but I tried my best to keep my bearings. The rich smell of the earth flooded my senses, and I felt at peace. I looked down to see a long black dress draped across my body, the material flowing over my skin like water. The cloth was soft between my fingers and felt almost weightless against my skin. 

I looked around for a moment before pushing myself to stand. The sun continued to sink, the threat of darkness looming through the canopy growing by the second, but I didn't fear. It was as if I felt more comfortable where the light no longer reached, and I felt more alive as the seconds passed by. 

I began to walk through the trees, my vision adjusting as the light continued to fade. It seemed completely silent except for my light steps through the underbrush. I looked up just as the last specks of daylight faded, only to see the brilliance of stars ignite the sky with their presence. They invaded the sky, more than I had ever seen in my life. Their light was radiating with power, the colors and streaks of brilliance nearly taking my breath away. 

"I see you like my creations." A voice startled me from my gazing, pulling me back down to earth as the wonderland faded back into reality. A man stood next to me, his black hair rivaling the darkness that surrounded us, and opposed the white shirt that hung from his shoulders. 

"You're saying that you created the stars?" My voice was light with suspicion as I looked at the stranger. He had strong features that would rival even that of a god's.

"I did not create them, I must admit that, but I was the one to assemble their brilliance to belong to the night. All that you see here, all that is touched by darkness belongs to me. She gave them life, I tamed them." I watched as he turned his gaze back up to the stars. 

"She? And, who are you?"  I turned toward him fully, puzzled by every word that was coming out of his mouth. 

"I have many names, from many different cultures. I am the king and tamer of the night and all of the beasts within it. Though she-wolf, you might know me by the name of  'Berhtwulf'." 

It was as if my childhood came alive, the stories and paintings that my family had shown me as I grew up suddenly were real. The pictures of a man, powerful enough to tame not only the night and its creatures but the sky itself. The legend follows his feat, and when the stars realized that they would finally have a true purpose and order in life, they gifted the hero with an equal; a woman to match his power so if he were ever to be corrupt, she would be able to control his inner chaos and restore the order. 

The great Berhtwulf, now aligned with his equal had ruled over the kingdom of the night, able to take the form of any animal he wished, and whenever he shifted, his goddess would watch over him throughout the night as the sky's most powerful form: the moon.

I shook my head, the childish legend disintegrating in my mind. "You're telling me, that you're Berhtwulf, the king of the night and the original lycan?"  Even as I spoke, my words sounded outlandish, and I felt as if my mother would scold me for acting so childish. I watched as a smile spread over his brilliant face, and his eyes fell upon me once again.

"That I am. Although, now you're more familiar with just regular werewolves, but there has been a disturbance in the night. A great power has eradicated the forces that held it dormant, and there is nothing that I'm able to do to stop it. Although I am a great power, the fight is not to be held in a realm that I can take form in. The fight is yours."