Second Chances (mxm, poly, mpreg)

Lunar Eclipse 0300: Ash

*For those not familiar with military time the numbers are read 'Oh-(number)-hundred.'  this is Oh-Three-Hundred.)  Remember they are special forces/fighting packs so they use military time.

Talon's wolf rolled over and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He squinted at the bedside clock. Three a.m. Why the hell was he up? He slid down to the end of the bed and placed his feet on the floor. Despite the warmth of the room, a chill crawled up his spine as he walked over to the window. Something was off.

A flicker of orange in a field caught his attention. His dark brown eyes widened in horror as the night sky was suddenly ablaze in orange light. He heard the beating of wings and shouting as he rushed to the bed and shook Midori.

"Midori, get up! There's a fire!"

Midori sprang up off the bed and rushed to the window. The dragon and gargoyle that came to their pack were already in the air gathering water from the nearby lake and dropping it on the fire. A few wolves that had been on duty also rushed over shouting.  He rushed to the closet.

"Fuck! Raven! Get up!" Midori shouted throwing on his spare fire gear.

Seconds later, the sirens went off waking everyone out of bed. The fire could be seen for miles on Blackhawk territory as the fields, orchards, and barns housing domestic livestock caught fire and burned.

Raven rolled over and groaned. "What?"

Midori ran out of the room. Talon dragged Pulaire to a sitting position smacking his face and pushed Raven's shoulder. He felt bad for them. They'd both been up for almost three days straight with a few naps here and there. Raven even took part in the run.  Even for a werewolf, that was pushing it. The human side needed rest.

"There's a fire! Get up, alphas!" Talon shouted frantically.  

Pulaire's eyes snapped open and he dashed around looking for his clothes. Raven ran out in his underwear. His heart pounding, Talon ran to the porch with other subs and children.  

Firetrucks wailed through the pack.  Neiryn, the elf, was concentrating on control over a rain cloud that was pouring down over one of the barns.  It seemed the more water that came down, the more the fire sprang up.  Talon's wolf frowned in confusion.  That's not supposed to happen.  It's like the water acted like fuel.

Autumn had come to their pack and was trying to block the fire to keep it from spreading but her magic wasn't working.  Panicked, she attempted to  run down to the fields to assist.  Talon pulled her back.

"Stay back."

"My magic isn't working.  I have to do something," she protested.

"You can't do anything."

"But-"

"Let those that can ,do.  You'll only be in the way and get hurt," Talon insisted.

She wanted to protest more but shouting from the front lines of the fire quieted her down.  The dragon and gargoyle were now trying to drop foam on the fire while the golem tried to smother it.  The merman was losing strength due to the heat of the fire but was attempting to freeze the water Neiryn was dropping.  Nothing worked.  It was as if the fire were impervious to all their attempts.  Talon and Autumn held each other on the porch watching helplessly as the fields burned.

0600

It hung in the air like a heavy wet blanket as the sun rose on the rest of the packs. It curled around the nerves and didn't let go.  Something was coming. The alphas and their supernatural guests could feel it but not name it. Was it because of their instant connections or the matings of their offspring? Whatever the reason, they knew they needed to be close to look out for one another.

News of the fire at Blackhawk was all over the packs by the patrols switched. Dark Moon West, being their neighbor, had sent aid at the onset and were still assisting. The council was sending a representative to coordinate with the liaison and assess damage and provide assistance in relocating pack members if needed. The other packs were on standby although there was one alpha-sub chomping at the bit to get back to the pack he helped build.  Snow was doing everything he could to keep his mate calm and out of harm's way.

Talon wrapped his arms around his mate and laid his head on his shoulder. He could feel the despair emanating from him. Raven's lifelong mission, all his hard work all these years were ash at his feet. The main blazes had been extinguished but there were still small fires and smolders beneath.

Raven's voice was deeper than his usual deep and filled with despair. "My parents were killed by members of Greystone when I just became a teenager. I wasn't old enough to become alpha and no one was on my side so I became a rogue. I always had it in my mind I would build a new pack. A better pack. Where everyone stood up for one another. At first, it was me and a few orphans from the pack. Then I found a few more along the way. Like Pulaire."

He inhaled Talon's scent.  "No one would help us. We were hungry a lot. But we kept growing in number. Runaways. Outcasts. Abandoned children. Forced rogues. We wrote down all the things we wanted our new pack to be like. How we'd run it. We got jobs. We saved. We bought a piece of land. I got rejected." He snorted. "But we continued to thrive. Later, I found I was mates with Pulaire and Midori. I reacted a lot like you."

Talon smiled.

"We expanded and expanded then Bunny came along. He had been a rejected alpha wandering around a lone wolf for so long. He called us the Peter Pan Pack because of our ages. He offered to train us, teach us what he knew. I wanted to prove my pack could stand on its own. That we were strong enough. Resourceful enough. Smart enough." He smiled sadly. "Dark Moon West wasn't supposed to but they took us on as allies years before we were officially recognized by the council."

The older were ran his hands up his mate's back in a soothing gesture.  "It'll be okay, Raven. Our allies," he paused. "No, our family will help us until we get back on our feet. Our pack is still good enough in all areas." Talon cupped Raven's face in his hands and looked into his shimmering green-blue eyes. "You, you are good enough in all areas, alpha. We will find out who did this and make them pay and we will rebuild our pack."

Raven pressed a soft lingering kiss on Talon's full lips. Talon returned the kiss wrapping his arms around his alpha's neck. Raven pulled him closer and deepened the kiss. The kiss was full of his emotions. Some Talon had no name for. When they pulled away, Raven buried his face in his mate's shoulder and cried softly. Warmth, smoke, and spices filled his nostrils as his two other mates joined in the hug. 

*Poor Raven.  All his hard work ruined.  I wonder who started the fire?