25. Luna-cy in the Woods

Dedicated to Zueriannah_love. Thank you for being such an incredibly supportive and loving reader doll. Means the world to me!

A huge shoutout to Lectio-Album for being not only an amazing reader but also the creator of the absolutely phenomenal banner above. Its magnificent. Thank you!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Just in case some of you didn't read the Message I posted a few days ago, I actually added some more content to Chapter 24, towards the end right after Suzzanah and Rino step out of the library to go have lunch. It starts around the paragraph that begins with these words- "We waited on the pavement outside the library while one of our bodyguards went to go get the car". Please do check it out. It's not much but it's important.

ALL THEORIES REGARDING PEOPLE'S SOUL TO HEART CONNECTIONS, POWERS, TITLES, THE SHADOW PEOPLE, SUPERNATURAL GENETICS, WEREWOLF HISTORY ETC. MENTIONED IN MY BOOKS ARE OF MY OWN CREATION. DO NOT USE THEM IN YOUR OWN BOOKS!

This chapter is unedited so please excuse the grammatical errors. Enjoy!

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Marco's POV

Sometimes, I hate this job

As yet another mad, stray rogue attacked me, I slammed my fist hard into its side sending it hurtling away from me and into a nearby tree, and thankfully it remained down afterwards.

I let out a heavy sigh, wiping my sweaty brow as I turned to look around. Most of the men with me had finished taking care of the few other rogues too, and were now dragging all their unconscious bodies to one place.

I looked back the the rogue I had just defeated and scowled in distaste. Did that mean I have to carry that big old stinky thing to where its buddies were being stalked up too?

Ugh, sometimes I really hate this job

Groaning, I walked up to the passed out rogue and hauled its fat ass onto my shoulder. It reeked of the stench of blood, sweat and many other not so aromatic things, making me hold my breath as I dragged it to where the rest of the rogues were lined up.

If this thing decides to suddenly wake up and take a chunk off my face, I'm going to be so pissed!

I grunted with some effort as I deposited the stinky beast with the rest of its in-mates before rolling my shoulders. I looked at the warrior named Sam who was busy tying up the unconscious beasts and said,

"Next time tell me where you're going to be assembling these guys beforehand so I can just kick them there to begin with", I said, "I honestly cannot deal with having to drag them around like luggage every single time"

He gave me an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Alpha", he said, "But you've done such an amazing job. Its mainly just thanks to you and Alpha Ashford that we've been able to capture at least this many rogues"

"How many did we manage to get?"

"Twelve so far", he replied.

I tsked in dissatisfaction. We'd only managed to capture twelve even though this was probably the thirtieth one we'd come across today! All morning we had been dealing with these stray rogues appearing out of nowhere and forcing us to chase them, and frankly I was quite sick of them! Especially because they were disappearing into the woods just as suddenly as they were appearing. And we were finding it hard to keep track of whether we were actually hunting down ten different rogues or just one that kept slipping through our fingers.

What a pain in the ass!

Speaking of pain in the ass...

My eyes moved to the other side of the clearing where Alpha Dominic Ashford stood, silently listening to a report that his subordinate was giving him.

Keyword: Silently.

I frowned, unable to comprehend just how one man could be that quiet. Don't get me wrong, I had dealt with quiet people before- John, Cole and the King were all more or less quiet people, but Ashford! Ashford was straight up mouth-sewed-shut! I was sometimes forced to doubt if he even had a voice-box.

The guy was deathly silent, not just in his speech but in everything he did! So much so that many times I couldn't even tell that he was around till I suddenly turned to find my face right up in his.

Gah!

I shuddered at the thought of how many times that had happened today, and clearly he wasn't enjoying getting all up in my face either because of which we were both now consciously keeping a safe distance from each other.

But I still blamed him for our several 'nearly-collisions' and 'almost-head-butts'. If only he could be just a little bit louder at least I'd know he was standing next to me. The guy made no sound whatsoever, moving as noiselessly as the air he commanded.

On ordinary days I would find him pretty cool, but working with him was hard as hell, at least for me because I wasn't used to his way of working. His subordinates although knew exactly what they were doing and didn't seem to have any problem with his 'mute-ness', which made me wonder if he just gave them their orders before-hand or if they had known him long enough to just be able to read his mind and know how he wanted things done.

And while on the subject of reading minds...

I wonder if she's okay...

As soon as thoughts about Megan began to take root in my head, I quickly shook them away. I couldn't allow them to distract me right now. God knew I had already spent several hours replaying every detail of my brief meeting with her yesterday, over and over in my head.

I didn't know what it was about her but I just couldn't take her off my mind. The sight of her covered in mud, trembling and desperately holding back tears as she hid in a hole in the ground was etched so deeply into my memory that it was unerasable. I could never forget it.

And the more I thought about it, the angrier it made me. At everyone who had forced her to live like that, and at myself for having had a part in it. The guilt had been so profound that it had kept me up most of the night.

I was relieved, more than anything else, that the King and Queen favored my decision to not pursue her anymore. I would have protected her regardless, but I was thankful that I could do so without the guilt of letting them down.

I had never doubted the Queen understanding my sentiments on the matter, but the fact that the King did too was as massive a comfort as it was a shock. I had never known the Alpha King to be this soft or kind-no!

Kind he was. He always was. Maybe...too kind.

But he was never this soft though, especially when it came to matters like this. He never let emotions dictate the important decision making. Or rather, even though he was always benevolent enough to consider feelings, none of us were courageous enough or close enough to him to be able to express our emotions to him before. He always kept everyone at distance, never letting anyone in.

It was safe to say that everyone had noticed the massive change in his character ever since the Queen had entered his life. Sure he was still pretty reticent and reserved and, in my opinion, effortlessly intimidating, but his eyes were no longer as cold as they used to be. And he was no longer as distant in his ways of communication either.

But what hands down as the most surprising change of them all was that now, he actually took time to voice his appreciation and trust in us, albeit rarely but it was better than nothing. I wondered if he knew how much it meant to his subjects to hear such words from him.

How much it meant to me.

Damn Marco! Someone's getting pretty mushy-gushy today!

Shut up Ben, I said to my wolf before he embarrassed the life out of me.

I'm just sayin! You're an emotional person, he said in his usual cheeky manner that made me want to punch myself, Admit it boya, you're as cheesy as they come

Ugh!

Benjamin, I said in a warning tone.

Oh we're shifting full-name basis now, are we? he said amusedly, Alrighty then, what is it Marcah?

Good grief!

Forget it

I immediately decided to ignore him before he made my head-ache worse. It was at times like these that I thought Alpha Ashford and his silence wasn't all that bad. My wolf could definitely take a few tips from him.

My wolf Benjamin had always been a pretty chatty fellow, and over many years I had grown used to his banter, but he had an annoying habit of always voicing my insecurities out loud, and it drove me insane.

Since our run-in with Megan yesterday he too had fallen quite silent, but now it seemed that he was back to normal again and in better spirits than ever before!

Dogs! Who knew what they were always so happy about!

You do realize you just insulted yourself too, don'tcha boo?

"Would you put a sock in it already!"

My loud bellow immediately made all the men around me look at me alarmed and I quickly cleared my throat and motioned for them to carry on as I walked away from them. It didn't help that Benjamin was now cackling loudly in my head, making my irritation increase.

Trying to block him out, I returned my attention to the rogues that we had captured today. I had come across several rogues in my life and a lot of them had been sensible lone wolves drifting between packs. Why couldn't these ones be the same? Why did they all have to be rogues that had gone dark? Just what the hell was going on here?

"Is it normal around Ireland to have this many rogues who've gone dark?" I asked warrior Sam and he shook his head.

"No. In fact rogues have been quite scarce ever since Alpha Dominic took over leadership of our pack", Sam replied, "The last time our country saw such a huge increase in wild rogues was many years ago, back when Alpha Dominic's father was still the Alpha"

As soon as he said that he winced and quickly held his tongue, looking around nervously.

Alpha Dominic's dad huh?

I wasn't surprised by how worried Sam had gotten from just speaking about the former Alpha. It was common knowledge even to foreigners like us that speaking of him was almost like taboo here in Ireland. After all, nobody wanted to hear anything about the man who had gone berserk and once upon a time nearly destroyed his entire pack.

I didn't know much about the Ashford pack's history but I did hear a few things from my father about it. The former Alpha Ashford had always been a harsh leader who ruled his pack with an iron rod. But towards the end of his life, he'd nearly lost his sanity and become a tyrant who made the lives of his pack members a living hell.

With the death of the former King and Queen there was no one who had the authority to dethrone him, nor was there anyone in the pack who was strong enough to defeat him and take up leadership of the pack.

No one, but his own son, Dominic Ashford. At the young age of sixteen, Alpha Dominic had challenged his father for the status of Alpha, overthrown him and annexed leadership of the pack. And ever since he took over, Pack Ashford had only been getting stronger. It was now one of the largest and most powerful packs in the whole world.

When I looked at the faces of the warrior wolves here, I could see nothing but admiration and devotion in their eyes for him, and I could understand why. Despite how strange and infuriating his silence and lack of communication could sometimes be, Alpha Dominic Ashford was an exceptional Alpha. He was the sole reason why every single person in this pack could now go to bed with smiles on their faces, without having to fear for their lives.

And it was also the reason why every Alpha around the world, including the King, respected Alpha Dominic. He was, in every sense, a hero to his people.

Aww, look at you fan-girling so hard over another fellow Alpha! Benjamin exclaimed, making a vein pop on my forehead.

"I thought I told you to shut it!" I cried turning around, only to once again come face to face with Alpha mute-ness himself.

Both of us immediately took two steps away from each other, and his brow then furrowed in question at my sudden outburst.

"Uh...I wasn't talking to you", I said, awkwardly scratching the back of my neck.

Benjamin's annoying laughter in my head was only increasing my embarrassment while also making it harder for me to keep a straight face.

Of course I received no reply to my statement from Ashford, which I was almost grateful for seeing as we could quickly put this matter behind us now.

"Uh...so are we done here then?" I asked him after a brief minute of standing next to each other in, wait for it, silence!

He nodded and I sighed, cracking my neck. Out of all the rogues we had seen today, only a few had jumped and attacked us. Most of them had broken into a run the minute they were spotted. But if we at least managed to capture all the rogues that came into sight, our efforts would seem more productive, but the fact that we were so easily losing sight of most of them, despite being in larger numbers than them, was starting to get really frustrating.

At first we had thought that we could chase and catch all of them, but once that started to get harder I began creating absolute mazes around the rogues that came into my sight so that they wouldn't escape. But repeated creating and destroying mazes was now taking a toll on me, and making my head ache much worse. It didn't help that there were already so many mazes in this city that constantly kept my powers occupied.

Sometimes...I really hated this job.

I groaned, closing my eyes. Why did being the Alpha of Mazes have to be so hard?

"You're a disgrace! Letting yourself get run away with your petty emotions and making ridiculous excuses, that's all you're good for. You are a disappointment! You don't deserve the title of Alpha of Mazes!"

My eyes shot open as that vivid memory from last night flashed in my mind, the harsh words resonating within me, wrenching something deep inside. I swallowed hard, turning away from Ashford. I could feel the color draining from my face as I bit back the pain those words brought forth.

A disappointment...huh?

I raised my hand to touch my cheek. It was no longer bruised like it had been last night, but somehow it still stung.

Even after all these years, that word still stung. It still made me anxious. And I hated it. I hated hearing it, and I hated that it bothered me so much to hear it.

When will this uncertainty go away...

I breathed deeply, trying to calm my troubled mind.

Marco, its okay. You're okay.

I nodded silently to Benjamin's encouragement, grateful as always for his support. My wolf, no matter how cheeky he may be, was always there for me when I most needed him.

Yeah, I said to him.

He was right. I was okay. I wasn't that scared, little helpless boy anymore. I was older now, and I was stronger. Much stronger. My powers and abilities had improved and I was good at what I did. And most importantly...

"I want you to know that you have my support. And no matter what anyone says, in my eyes, you did the right thing

"I'll vouch for his decision on your behalf. For your trust, and mine"

I smiled in recollection of the words of my Queen and King. They believed in me, and as did all the rest of my friends. That's all that mattered. As long as they trusted in me, I would do whatever I could to uphold that trust.

I was the Alpha of Mazes, and no one could take that away from me.

And I would do my best, even if...others thought of me as a disappointment.

"Oh and Marco. You're a great Alpha"

The Queen words warmed my heart and I breathed deeply, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders. She always knew exactly what to say, our Luna Suzzanah. People may think she is weak and unfit to be the Queen, but I knew that if there was anyone at all who deserved to rule this kingdom alongside the Alpha King, it was her. She was everything the kingdom needed and more.

And I for one, was eternally grateful for such a Queen.

"Thanks Queen", I whispered to myself, letting the comfort of her words calm my anxious mind.

The King was lucky to have such a great soulmate.

Soulmate

That one word was enough to send to complete disorient my entire disposition, and it did, yet again, making a tsunami of concealed thoughts and emotions suddenly rise to the surface.

And of course, as bad timing would have it, it was at that very minute that I heard someone bellow loudly from the distance.

"ALPHA MARCO! WATCH OUT!"

I barely had any time to even turn my head and I found a giant wild rogue leaping for me, its fangs aimed right at my neck. My mind was still too muddled in that moment to think fast enough, and my breath caught, knowing that it was too late to react now.

And just seconds before the rogue sunk its teeth into me, a heavy fist slammed powerfully into its side, sending it swirling away from me and into a nearby rock. Two warriors immediately cornered the rogue and knocked it out and my eyes then turned to look at Alpha Ashford who had just protected me.

His face remained unnervingly calm and his movements just as silent as they had always been, but when I saw the look in his eyes, I was rendered speechless. His steely eyes flashed dangerously, the grey in them swirling like a raging storm. Yes, this man was still just as silent as ever, but in that moment I realized why. He didn't need to use words to speak.

Those eyes...those eyes of his did all the talking. They were louder and clearer than any words from him could ever be.

He turned to meet my gaze and I snapped out of my stupor.

"Thanks for that", I told him genuinely and he nodded. For a brief second I thought I saw concern in those grey eyes of his, but I was nowhere near as good as the Queen when it came to reading emotions, so I couldn't tell for sure.

Ashford immediately continued about his business as though nothing at all had happened just now, and I didn't know why but I kind of appreciated that. Apparently this excessively calm and cool persona of his was absolutely unbreakable.

"That's rogue number thirteen", Warrior Sam said tying the unconscious beast up as Ashford and I approached.

"These rogues are really proving to be a nuisance", I said, "Are any of the other nearby cities facing the same problems?" I asked Ashford.

He shook his head.

"Huh", I said thoughtfully, "I wonder why the rogues have suddenly increased in numbers only in the capital. Its almost like all the rogues in the country have come down here for a vacation or something"

Alpha Ashford's expression immediately turned serious and I knew I had said something that had gotten to him. I quickly revised my own sentence when it struck me just how disturbing it had been.

Its like all the rogues in the country have come down here...

All...here...

My gaze shot to his once more, a palpable tension suddenly filling the air as I asked, "Since how many days have you guys been having these rogue problems again?"

"Three", he replied sternly, his mind seemingly thinking along the same lines as mine was.

"Three days...", I breathed out, "You mean it all only started the day we arrived here from the States?"

Ashford's eyes instantly turned steely again as he nodded stiffly, and my frown deepened. We were both wondering the very same thing. What were the chances of that being a coincidence?

Suddenly this rogue hunting venture seemed to turn 10 times more serious. Just what exactly could have drawn all these rogues down here to the capital? Could it be so conveniently timed owing to the arrival of the King and Queen?

My mind shot back to the massive rogue attack that had taken place during the Annual Games. That had come as a complete and unexpected shock to us and we were still trying to figure out how the rogues had managed to pull it off.

And why...

But could it be that the abrupt increase in rogue sighting here was actually a warning sign that another such attack was imminent? Why else would there be so many of them in the city all of a sudden?

And if they really were planning another attack then did that mean...that the rogues were all working together? But how could that be?! The very meaning of being a rogue wolf was to be a loner, and rogues who went dark and attacked altogether like back in the Annual Games were just wild beasts caving to their bloodlust. They had neither any coordination nor the the stability of mind to be able to strategically plan such attacks.

And yet, the more I thought about it, the more it became evident to me. All day we had been hunting rogues which appeared in seemingly random places and manners everywhere, but when they ran and we gave chase, I realized that they could actually be luring us exactly where they wanted us to be.

Shit.

I immediately asked Ashford which parts of the woods the rogue sightings had been maximum in today and to my dread, he replied that it was only around the areas that our patrol group and Beta Darren's patrol groups had been scouting. The rest of the patrol groups in other parts of the woods hadn't encountered even half as many rogues, because of which they had sent us many of their men too to help us out.

The minute that thought settled into my mind, my entire body tensed, my senses on high alert. My eyes now scanned the woods with keener, sharper eyes. If we really had been strategically drawn to this part of the woods then it could only be for one reason.

A surprise attack.

I quickly conveyed my doubts to Ashford and found that he had been thinking along the same lines. He immediately ordered all the men to be on guard for it seemed we could have unexpected company any minute now.

The wind suddenly picked up speed, an ominous air circling around us. We all kept our eyes peeled and ears pricked as we assessed the quiet woods around us. Indeed they were quiet, too quiet all of a sudden. So quiet that even the sound of the wind seemed too loud. As though it were howling. As though it were screaming.

My name.

"MAAARCOOO!"

A distant cry filled the air and I was so stunned by the sound that for a second I almost didn't believe I had heard it. But when I looked at Alpha Ashford's expression and noticed him wearing a strange frown, I realized that he had heard it too. And that's when we both heard it again.

"MAAAARCOOO!"

That wasn't the wind. Someone really was screaming my name! My eyes immediately began to search the woods with even more vigour than before and a profoundly disturbing feeling began to grow in my gut when I realized that...

That was a female's voice.

"MAARCOOOOOOO!"

OH SHIT!

The last titanic bellow was enough not only for me to recognize that voice but also for me and Ashford to locate exactly where it was coming from. And as I whirled around, directing my wide, bewildered eyes skyward, there in the distance I saw her.

Flying through the air on a bloody broomstick!

"PROPHECYYYYY!"

I could have sworn I had a heart-attack the minute my eyes zeroed in on her. In her bright yellow gown, she was about as hard to miss as the sun would be if it suddenly rose in the middle of the night!

I watched flabbergasted, about ready to pass out from shock had it not been for the worry of my stupid cousin falling from a thousand feet in the air and breaking her neck which forced me to stay conscious.

When did she even wake up?! And why didn't anyone tell me! But most importantly...

"Prophecy, what the hell are you doing?!!" I shouted as I ran towards her with my heart literally stuck in my throat.

All the other men with us also stared at her alarmed, shuffling around the clearing panicked, not knowing what to do.

"MARCOOO!" she shouted yet again, lifting one of her hands to wave at me.

"I SEE YOU, YOU IDIOT! GET YOUR HAND BACK ON THAT BROOM!" I yelled aggravated. That flimsy stick she was riding looked unsteady enough as it is!

I didn't even know which way to go because I didn't know where she would land that thing, and it just made me and the others dart around the clearing in confused circles.

Heck, even Ashford was staring at her shocked!

It was then that both my and Ashford's eyes blanked in mindlink together.

Alpha Marco, Alpha Ashford! came the Beta female Laura's frantic cry, Its Luna Prophecy! She's-she's not in her room!

No shit!

We only left her alone for a few minutes and suddenly she has disappeared! We've looked everywhere for her but she's nowhere! At least not within the hotel, the poor woman cried distressed.

We know, I replied on behalf of both me and Ashford, doubting whether she would get any immediate reply from her own shockingly bewildered Alpha.

Y-You do? Her voice instantly turned confused and we looked back at the woman floating like bloody poison gas over our heads.

Yeah, because we're looking at her! I cried out, She's found us here in the woods

She what?!

Listen, we're in the middle of something right now so I'll have to speak to you later, I said hurriedly, But don't worry about Prophecy

Yeah! She's got enough people on the verge of a mental breakdown already! We don't need any more! Benjamin added in my mind, sounding just as panicked as me, if not more.

Ashford and I quickly cut off-mindlink, returning all our attention back to my little cousin. The wind up there looked strong and I could now see her broomstick fluttering unsteadily in the gale. God knew how she was managing to keep herself on it! As she got closer to the clearing, I could see the uncertainty on her face. Please don't tell me!

"GAH! HOW DO I LAND?!" she shouted alarmed and all of our jaws dropped.

BLOODY HELL!

"MARCO!" she yelled, looking at me wide-eyed, "I'm stuck!"

"Prophecy! Oh god!" I cried out petrified.

And to my absolute terror, she suddenly started to stand up on that thin broomstick, and in her flamboyant ballgown at that!

"What is she doing?!" Ashford exclaimed perplexed and had it not been for my state of panic, I would have been amazed that he had actually voluntarily spoken real words to me.

"I don't know! PRO, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" I shouted.

She didn't reply as she was too busy concentrating on finding her balance on the narrow broom. And every time her body shook unsteadily, I felt myself age 10 years.

Oh god!

By the way things were looking, one thing became clear. Whether she died today or not, I most certainly would!

"Oh lord, she's going to fall! CATCH HER! SOMEBODY CATCH HER OR I SWEAR I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!" I called out panicked.

The clearing was now in an uproar, with everyone running amok trying to get ready to catch her. Prophecy shook violently once again and I almost pulled off all my hair in alarm.

"PROPHECY! SIT DOWN RIGHT NOW!" I bellowed.

"RELAX!" she called back absently, and all of us gaped at her incredulously.

She did not just say that!

Once she was on her feet on the thin airborne broom stick, she brought her hands together and closed her eyes. A green glow instantly alighted the air around her and I knew she was using magic, perhaps a spell to help her land. Her face remained perfectly calm as strong golden-green magic began to gleam around from her body.

You would think it would relieve me to see her look so confident, but in all honesty it just made me more nervous.

Prophecy's magic was powerful, but it was rarely ever right!

Our entire crowd, and maybe even a few of the tied up rogues stared up at her with our mouths agape as her magic took effect and she began to slowly descend to the ground like a goddess gracing us from the heavens.

Yeah! The goddess of chaos and heart-failures perhaps!

We all watched, daring not even to blink an eye as her broom descended till it was close to fifty feet off the ground. Relief began to seep into me as I realized that, for once in her life, Prophecy actually knew what she was doing.

She opened her eyes and looked down at us, her blond hair fluttering around her face. And when she saw all the men underneath her, waiting for her to get to the ground, her eyes suddenly went wide, horror flashing across her features instantly.

She let out a sudden alarmed squeak, grabbing her fluttering skirt with both her hands and the next thing we knew, she slipped and was no longer on the broom stick.

She was falling.

"NOOOO!"

"LUNAAA!"

All the men cried in terror as her body descended swiftly to the ground. She let out a frightened scream, squeezing her eyes shut, her hands still clutching her skirt for dear life as she fell. And if I thought my body moved fast to get to her, I couldn't even describe how fast someone else's did.

Before I could even blink, insurmountable power burst out of Ashford so explosively that it nearly pushed all of us away. As both I and Ashford raced to where Prophecy was falling, raging winds circled around Ashford's feet like a tornado. And when his hands shot out towards her, as did the mighty gales.

I watched breathlessly as the powerful gusts of wind tore through the sky towards her, encircling her fast descending body like a secure cushion. Instantly the speed of her descent slowed, but not quite enough to keep her airborne.

And just seconds before her body hit the ground, she was enveloped in a pair of strong arms that caught and held her firmly in their grasp. Her eyes shot open in alarm, blue orbs meeting the wide grey ones of her savior, and only once it had completely sunk in that Prophecy was now safe and unhurt, did Ashford release the breath he had been holding in.

I stood but a few feet away from them, staring at the scene with unrestrained wonder as the rest of the warriors rushed up to us.

Prophecy blinked profusely as she gazed at Ashford, her skin flushed and breathing erratic owing to her little accident just now.

"Oh! Oh thank you!" she finally gasped out, wide-eyed while Ashford still remained strikingly mute as he returned her stare.

Prophecy closed her eyes, placing one hand on her chest and exhaling heavily in relief, "Wow! I really thought that I was a goner for a second", she breathed out, allowing her body to relax for but a moment before hurriedly sitting up in Ashford arms and looking back at him thrilled, "How did you do that?! That was incredible!"

Ashford seemed taken aback by her sudden onslaught of excitement and stark lack of bashfulness, and quickly moved his face away from hers, almost looking...uneasy?

I was gobsmacked! I didn't think I would ever have the opportunity to see that expression on his face!

So it seems I was wrong after all. There is someone who can actually manage to make even Alpha Ashford's calm persona waver...

But that of course didn't deter my clueless cousin from looming over him even further like a dark- no, bright cloud. She grabbed his bare shoulders with her hands, grinning vibrantly, "I thank you! You saved my lif- OH!"

She suddenly lurched away from him, releasing his shoulders and looking at him shocked, "Yikes! What did you just do?!" she asked him confused, rubbing her hands uncertainly before plastering one palm on his chest again, "Are you statically charged or something? Aaaah!"

She hurriedly withdrew her hand again as though she had been struck. Now suddenly looking wary of him, she quickly wriggled and squirmed in his arms, "Put me down! Put me down!" she said hurriedly and he of course obliged, setting her down on the ground.

Quickly adjusting her blindingly bright skirts she whirled around to face Ashford again.

"Its not nice to electrocute people! Don't do that!" she chided, wagging a finger at him as though he were a little kid, even though he towered over her by a good foot and a half.

Ashford just stared at her wordlessly, an uncomfortable frown painting his otherwise calm features.

"Prophecy!" I then called out, finally able to find my voice after all that commotion.

She turned to look at me wide-eyed and grabbed me too by the shoulders as I reached her, "MARCO! I FOUND YOU!" she exclaimed.

"Found me?! You damn near killed me!" I cried before looking over her worriedly, "Are you hurt?"

She shook her head, "No, not at all!Thanks to that man over there", she said turning to look at Ashford, "You, mister, are a good kind man!", she told him, grinning happily, "And you saved my life so I'll forgive you for electrocuting me"

I looked at Ashford confused while he just looked away, not saying a word.

What's going on here?

Prophecy didn't seem to recognize Ashford from the last time he had saved her when she had unknowingly thrown herself off her hotel room's balcony. It made me wonder if she even remembered doing that. But before I could ask her anything about it, she wheeled towards me once more.

"Brother!" she suddenly cried urgently, "First tell me...you were standing under me a few minutes ago right?"

My brow furrowed in confusion, "Yeah?"

She then leaned close to my ear and whispered nervously, "Did any of you see my underwear?!"

"Huh?"

"DID YOU?!" she demanded and I gave her a disgusted look.

"NO! Excuse us but we were all too busy making sure you stayed alive to have time to peek at your underwear!" I replied scowling.

"Are you sure?" she asked worriedly and I sighed.

"Yes"

She quickly looked around at everyone else suspiciously and they immediately lowered their gazes to the ground. Finally she narrowed her eyes at Ashford who instead of looking away, held her gaze just as strongly as she held his.

Is it just me...or does something seem to be up with these two?

I frowned, not liking how intensely Ashford was making eye-contact with my sister.

Prophecy then turned back to me, "I guess its okay then", she replied with a small pout, still not looking completely satisfied.

Ever since she was a little girl, Prophecy had hated anyone seeing her underwear, especially men. To her it was the most appalling thought ever for any man to see her undies. Not that I would ever let any man who tried to see them now live, but even back when she was just 4 or 5 years old, she didn't like it at all. She wouldn't even let her dad change her. And judging by her behavior just now, it was obvious that hadn't changed with age. A part of me actually wondered if that was why she preferred to wear long skirts and full-length dresses.

"Anyway, I'm so glad I found you brother!" Prophecy said to me. She was about to add something else, but stopped herself mid-sentence as she stared at my face.

I raised an eyebrow at her, impatiently waiting to hear the reason that motivated her to set off on her little voyage of lunacy.

She frowned before suddenly shoving her face into mine making me recoil in alarm.

"Pro, what the hell-!"

"Marco, are you okay?" she asked cutting me off as she narrowed her big eyes at me, "You don't look too good"

Surprise immediately flashed across my features before I hurried schooled them.

"I'm fine", I replied.

Her frown deepened, "Liar", she proclaimed, stepping closer to me, "You're obviously not fine. You look like shit"

I immediately scowled, "Gee, thanks a lot, Pro", I said rolling my eyes.

Her too?! Even the Queen had told me I didn't look my best today!

I was normally great at hiding how I was feeling and I prided myself on that skill, especially because it was one that every leader, more so an Alpha, should be able to exercise. Of course when it came to feelings no mask was ever good enough to fool the Luna Queen, but now it seemed that not just her but all my other friends and even my near-perpetually comatose cousin sister were starting to notice.

Was it really...that obvious?

Worry flashed in Prophecy's eyes and she lowered her voice as she asked, "Brother, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

The concern in her tone immediately made me want to hit myself. What was I doing going around worrying everyone like this?! This wasn't how things were supposed to be, especially because when it came to the one thing that was really troubling my mind, there was nothing anyone could do to help with it. I needed to pull myself together and stop being suck a fucking burden on everyone else. I didn't want them to to be concerned about me, especially not Prophecy.

God knows I've worried her enough over the years as it is...

I really needed to get my act together.

Exhaling heavily, I reached out and flicked Prophecy's forehead with my finger making her flinch slightly and take a step back.

"Ow! What was that for?!" she cried, rubbing the sore spot with the palm of her hand.

"Of course I look like shit! My little sister just fell from a hundred feet in the air like a goddamn missile!" I said.

"I slipped!" she replied, as though that were a perfectly reasonable explanation slash excuse, and I looked at her incredulously.

"That's not the point you cow! The point is you shouldn't have been hovering up in the sky on that flimsy stick in the first place!" I exclaimed agitated, "What on earth were you thinking?!"

"I didn't have a choice! I had to speak to you. It was urgent!" she replied.

"Ever heard of mindlink Prophecy?!" I asked.

"Yeah but you know I can't mindlink very well", she replied with a shrug.

"A phone then!"

"But you guys never have your phones with you", she replied.

That was true. We were all too used to mindlinking.

"Fine. How about asking someone around you for help!" I said.

"I woke up alone in an unfamiliar room with no idea where or what time I was in. What did you expect me to do?" she asked, frowning, "I didn't even know if I could trust any of the people with me in that building. So the minute I figured out that it was present time Dublin, I quickly washed up, changed and set off to find you!"

"On a broomstick?!"

"I didn't have money for a cab"

"Ugh", I face-palmed.

"Besides, how was I supposed to take a cab into the woods anyway?" she said, "The broom was my only option-OHH! My broom!"

She suddenly gasped and started looking around frantically for her wooden steed which, after she slipped off the thing, had dropped to the ground a few feet away from us. One of the warriors brought it up to her.

"Here you go, Luna", he said reverently, handing her the old broom as though it were a priceless jewel.

Prophecy's face lit up at the sight of it and she gave the guy a dazzling smile, "Oh thank you so much!" she exclaimed, happily taking it from him while the guy now stared at her star-struck.

But the minute he caught me glaring daggers at him, he hurriedly looked away from her only to pale even further when he found Ashford eyeing him as though he were a prey about to die in his hands.

I frowned again, What is Ashford mad about?

"This is a good sturdy broom!" Prophecy said, admiring it for a second before propping it up beside her and turning to me, "How lucky that I should have found it right outside my room as soon as I woke up!"

"When did you wake up?" I asked.

"About 10 minutes ago", she replied.

"And how on earth did you get out of the hotel without anyone seeing you?" I demanded.

"I got out through the window"

"YOU WHAT?!"

All our faces turned thunderstruck but she continued to look at us calmly as though it had been the most natural thing to say.

"You flew out of your hotel room on a broomstick, through the window!" I exclaimed, "Woman, you are unbelievable!"

"Enough with the compliments, it doesn't suit you brother", she said, turning away from me to look around.

That wasn't a compliment!

"Besides, flying here on a broomstick was better than trying to teleport", she said.

"You didn't fly here. You fell here", I corrected.

She ignored my statement, "Where are we?" she asked, curiously searching the woods with a hint of urgency, "And who are all these people?"

All the warriors quickly bowed to her, "Luna", they greeted in unison and her face lit up.

"OH! You're all werewolves?!" she exclaimed, happily, "Wonderful! No wonder you're all in the woods, and shirtless"

Everyone exchanged awkward looks as she turned back to me, "But what are we doing here?"

"We are working. The question is what are you doing here?!" I asked in aggravation.

"I told you, I came to find you- OH THAT'S RIGHT!" she said turning to face me again hurriedly, "Marco, what time is it?!"

I frowned confused before looking at my bare wrist and back at her. She looked at everyone else to see if they had watches on them before shaking her head.

"Of course you guys don't have watches. You don't even have shirts!" she said unimpressed, "Wait till we get home. I'll stitch new shirts for all of you"

I was about to protest vehemently when she cried out, "But I digress! I need to know the time right NOW! Or rather, I need to know whether or not it is 2:28 pm yet!"

"That's the most specific number I have ever heard", I said confused when it struck me why she was asking.

The day we were all scheduled to leave for Dublin from the States, Prophecy's spirit had suddenly teleported in time again. During that time travel, she had been teleported to two places. To California in the past, and to Dublin in the future- 28th of July to be specific, which was tomorrow.

She had said that unlike one earlier time when she had been teleported to Jervis Street in Dublin, this time she had been teleported somewhere outside the BorderGuard HQ in Dublin. The time, I remember her saying, had been 2:27 pm.

And it was there, on 28th of July, at 2:27 pm outside the Dublin BorderGuard that she had sensed the presences of both the lost Lunas more strongly than ever before. She hadn't seen them, but she had sensed them so powerfully that she had been convinced that they were definitely there.

She had also tried to find them there but apparently the place had been pretty chaotic with an enormous group of people crowding close to the border, which made it impossible for her to see either of them. And then her spirit was teleported back into her body in the present time.

But the 28th is tomorrow. So why is she fretting about it right now?

"Luna, its 2:10 pm right now", one of the warrior wolves told Prophecy, and she gasped.

"Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed, paling, "We need to hurry! How far is this BorderGuard place from here?!"

"Its quite far", Ashford, yes Ashford replied, "Why?"

"Because we need to get there before 2:28 pm!" she said hurriedly.

"Pro, calm down!" I said, "Relax"

"RELAX?! Marco didn't I tell you what's going to happen?!" she asked alarmed.

"I know but that's not until tomorrow", I told her.

"Isn't today the 27th of July?" she asked bewildered and I frowned.

"Yes it is-"

"THEN WE NEED TO GO!" she exclaimed anxiously, "Its nearly time for the Lunas to appear at the BorderGuard!"

Ashford and I immediately exchanged tense looks.

"Prophecy, you told us that the BorderGuard incident happened at 2:27 pm on the 28th of July", I said and her eyes went wide in horror.

She shook her head, "No,No, No! I think I mixed up the numbers while telling you! The BorderGuard incident happens at 2:28 pm on the 27th of July!" she told us and dread washed over me.

"What?" I cried out and Ashford's expression turned serious as all the other warriors gathered closer to us, looking tense.

"So its going to happen...today?!" I asked shocked and she nodded impatiently, worry etching into her features.

"YES! And that's why I had to come find you immediately!" she said, "I didn't know where the BorderGuard HQ was, I couldn't mindlink anyone and I didn't know if I could trust the people in that hotel, so when I used magic to try and locate one of you guys and found that you were closest to me, I decided to come find you right away!"

"Wait, so the Jervis Street incident is also happening today?!"

"No, the Jervis Street sighting of the lost Lunas was on the 28th of July", she said, "But the BorderGuard sighting of them was on the 27th! Which is today, in like15 minutes!"

Oh Shit!

Ashford and I immediately looked at each other, knowing we had no time to waste.

"Warriors, shift immediately!" Ashford ordered, "We're running"

"Should I try to teleport us?!" Prophecy asked and I grabbed her hand to stop her.

"No! We can't take chances right now", I told her firmly, "Ashford, you inform your men by the BorderGuard. I'm mindlinking the Alpha King about this immediately"

He nodded and I quickly tried get in touch with the King, only to find that he had blocked everyone out.

What?!

I tried harder, concentrating as best as I could but his mental-block was impenetrable. And it was the kind of block that was set up when one was already in or trying to mindlink someone else and didn't want that mindlink to be disturbed.

But this was urgent! I needed to inform him immediately!

I tried a few more times, but to no avail, so I decided instead to mindlink Cole, knowing that he was posted right by the BorderGuard HQ today. But just as I was about to mindlink him, someone ended up mindlink me instead.

ALPHA MARCO! This is the Head of the BorderGuard at Dublin! We have an emergency!

The tension in his voice made my blood run cold, What is it?!

Alpha! Its the Territorial Barrier between the Werewolf Side and the Shadow Side! he exclaimed panicked, The Territorial Barrier in Area 101 of Dublin was just destroyed!

****

Suzzanah's POV

SUZZANAAHH!

The minute my eyes met the rogue's, it snarled loudly, making me stumble backwards in shock. And the very next minute it lunged at me, claws extended and mouth agape revealing sharp, deadly teeth.

A terrified scream escaped my lips as I threw myself to the side out of the rogue's way, its long nails just missing me by a hair's breadth. My body slammed into the undergrowth, pain bursting through my side but I was forced to get right up to my feet again as the rogue attacked me with savage speed.

Oh my God!

I cried out in panic, scrambling away from the feral wolf's ragged claws as they swiped at me viciously, barely giving me the time to even blink, let alone make a run for it. And the thin layer of the receding fog around me was making it harder to see.

ZUERIEN!

I involuntarily called to my mate in desperation, crying out in fright as I struggled to dodge the rogue's mad strikes by taking cover behind anything that was within reach. But in my haste, I suddenly stepped on a patch of wet soil, and to my horror, I lost my footing and slipped.

NO!

Intense fear gripped my heart as I tumbled onto my knees, and the delirious rogue immediately took that chance to pounce on me.

A bloodcurdling scream escaped my lips as its jagged claws swung at me, but then the air in front of me burst into flames, singeing through the rogue's thick fur, making it howl in agony as it fell away from me.

I watched in breathless disbelief as the rogue whipped its head wildly from side to side before writhing and rolling its body against the soil, trying to put out the fire scorching its pelt. And instantly realization dawned on me, hope flickering inside of me.

Zuerien?!

HEART!

As I hurriedly scrambled away from the manic rogue, Zuerien's frantic voice sounded in my mind and suddenly a few more flames burst forth at random places around me, with no particular target.

What's happening?!

Heart, you're too faraway from me! Zuerien cried out, I can't aim my flames accurately enough! Wherever you are, GET OUT OF THERE!

God!

A ragged breath escaped my lips as I hastily turned and dashed away from the distracted wolf only to come face to face with yet another barbarous looking grey-black rogue that had just appeared from behind a nearby tree, cutting through the fog.

No No Please NO!

My eyes went wide in horror as the new rogue now growled darkly at me. I didn't know where to go. I was trapped between two rogues! The one that had been caught up in the explosion of Zuerien's flames was also slowly getting back on its feet, baring its teeth at me, enraged.

Panic gripped my heart as I realized that I really had nowhere left to go. And before I could even move my gaze to look for a way out of there, the new rogue dove at me ferociously. I frantically stumbled away, emitting a terrified cry as it came for me. As it claws swung at me, I threw myself out of its reach, barely managing to not lose an eye or finger.

"HELP!"

I cried out panic-stricken and the rogue snarled savagely before pouncing on me once more, snapping its enormous jaws in the direction of my shoulder, making me shout in alarm. I barely managed to avoid it's razor-sharp teeth as I hurled my body backwards, away from its muzzle. I fell onto my back hard, gritting my teeth as fiery pain seared through my spine, elbows and the back of my head.

SUZZANAH!!

I heard Zuerien's pained and terrified voice cry out my name, but before I could even shake off the disorientation from having fallen, the ferine rogue was upon me once more. A few more flames burst out around me but the wolf managed to dodge them as it stepped towards me.

I gasped out in shock, frantically clambering away from it only to find my back press up against the thick tree trunk behind me. I gasped, preparing to run the other way only to find the brown wolf that had attacked me first stalking up to me too, blocking the only remaining path I could have used to try and escape.

Dread flooded my mind as I realized that it was over. I had nowhere to go and no time to even get back to my feet. I was cornered.

Zuerien...!

HEAAART!!

Zuerien's terrified shout was the last thing I heard before one of the wolves lunged for my head. My breath caught, and a final scream died in my throat, the dark depths of that rogue's feral mouth becoming the only thing in my sight.

In a desperate attempt to not let Zuerien hear my agony through mindlink, I blocked him out. But just before the rogue's jaws clamped down on me, a titanic barrage of sharp, jagged ice shot out of nowhere, crashing into the rogue's body, sending it hurtling away from me.

I watched thunderstruck and shocked out of my wits as within the next second, the second rogue too was suddenly thrown against a nearby tree hard, and the next thing I knew, the fog lifted and a familiar figure now stood over me protectively.

"ANNA!"

Rino turned to look at me, blue-rimmed brown eyes wide in concern.

"Rino!" I gasped out, my heart still hammering wildly where I clutched my chest.

Where did he come from?!

Relief and shock flooded my veins simultaneously and I was torn between wanting to cry tears of joy and wonder what the heck was happening.

"Are you okay?" he asked kneeling down and frantically looking over me for injuries. I nodded, not able to form intelligible words to reply because of my state of stupefaction.

Had he followed me through the fog yet again?

Rino was about to say something when a low growl sounded from near us once more making both of us look around tensely. The rogues he had just sent crashing into trees were still lying there, passed out.

So then...

Rino's face hardened, "Anna, we need to go. Now!" he said urgently, grabbing me by my arms and lifting me up to my feet.

The minute we stood up, a chorus of menacing snarls sounded from behind us and our heads whipped around to find three new rogues prowling out from behind the thick vegetation, their dark eyes glinting dangerously.

Oh no...

Rino immediately pushed me behind him, taking a battle stance as his eyes assessed the three rogues that were now separating to try and surround us from all sides. Panic tore through my veins, and I clutched my chest with trembling hands, my eyes flitting from one rogue to another.

Without warning, one of the rogues leapt towards us, its teeth bared and Rino hurriedly shoved me away before ramming his elbow hard into the side of rogue's head, making it twist away from him. He then slammed his foot into it's side with incredible power that sent it crashing to the ground.

But immediately afterwards, the other two rogues attacked simultaneously, lunging at him from both sides.

"RINOO!" I screamed horror-stricken as one rogue attacked his arm while another went for his leg.

But enormous shards of thick ice shot out of the ground, smashing into one of the rogues and knocking it down while Rino whirled his body around and planted a roundhouse kick into the other wolf face. The rogue let out a pained cry as it was thrown back and it landed hard on the ground in the distance.

The first rogue then tried to make a dash past him towards me, but Rino immediately created a wall of thick ice in its path. Furious, the rogue dove at Rino, swiping its claws at him wildly. Rino dodged every attack, back-stepping with each one till he had put enough distance between them to once again ram his leg into the rogue's abdomen, making it lurch away from him.

I stared at him, absolutely dumbfounded by Rino's power. I couldn't have even imagined that he was this strong. Zuerien's words from when we were speaking about Gale suddenly resounded in my mind.

"...he's a nice guy and I really don't think he's dangerous", I had said and Zuerien had replied,

"Most people would say the same thing about Rino but that's until they see him in a fight"

I could see it now.

He was holding his own against three large feral rogues- all the while keeping them from getting anywhere near me- and winning. His strength astounded me.

But even the strongest of warriors couldn't keep fighting forever.

The minute one rogue went down, the other one got up, making it impossible for Rino to get a break between attacks. And while he fought against two of them at once, the third rogue had slunk behind him stealthily and my heart lurched in horror as I realized that it was going to attack him from behind.

NO!

I immediately looked around till my eyes zeroed in on a thick branch lying close-by, probably having fallen from all the rogues slamming into the trees.

Without wasting another second, I grabbed the branch, lifting it with effort. And just as the rogue was about to pounce on Rino from behind, I ran up to it and swung the thick branch against its head as hard as I could. When the wood made violent contact with the rogue, it shattered into into a hundred splinters and the rogue stumbled away from Rino.

"Anna!" Rino shouted before using his elemental magic to create a powerful wave that dashed into the two wolves he was fighting and sent them hurtling away once more, and this time, they finally stayed down, having lost consciousness.

But the rogue that I had struck now turned to me with anger burning in its obsidian eyes. With no weapon anymore, I hurriedly backed away but the furious wolf charged at me with unexpected speed and swung its paw at my leg, its claws catching the side of my left calf and ripping through the fabric of my leggings before I could pull my leg away.

A sharp whimper escaped my lips as I fell to the ground hard, pain tearing through my leg. I knew its nails had drawn blood.

"ANNA NOOO!" Rino cried out horrified while the wild rogue growled with satisfaction, bloodlust clouding in its vacant eyes, making terror grip my heart.

And as I struggled to scramble away from it, it attacked me once more but this time Rino got to it first, hauling it away from me by its hind legs.

"DON'T HURT ANNAAA!" Rino yelled angrily as he dragged the savage beast away from me and tossed it hard against a pile of rocks.

The rogue, now significantly weakened, seemed to be driven only by the frustration of not having sunk its teeth into either of us yet. It staggered onto its feet once more and Rino was ready for it, but this time, before attacking, it raised its head high and howled loudly.

I stared at it startled as its howl echoed throughout the otherwise silent woods and immediately a wave of tension washed over me.

No...

Something's happening...

Something bad...!

Rino seemed to have gotten the same feeling and so he wasted no time ramming his foot against the wolf's neck, making its eyes roll into the back of its head as it collapsed onto the ground unconscious.

With all the rogues out of the way now, my body slumped onto the ground and Rino ran up to me.

"ANNA!" he cried out worriedly and we both looked at my leg.

Blood spilled out of the wound the rogue had left on my leg, its claw marks visible on my skin. But thankfully it didn't look very deep.

"Oh no...", Rino breathed out, looking pained at the sight of my wound.

I quickly shook my head, "It isn't bad", I assured him, "Its just a superficial injury. I'll be fine"

As relieved as I was that all the rogues were now down, that final howl the last one had let out before Rino took him out was making me unnervingly anxious. Had that been a call to its fellow rogues? But Zuerien had said that rogues didn't really have 'packs' or 'groups'. So why did it seem like all these rogues that had attacked us had been...working together?

It was then that something Alpha Penson had said when he was narrating the incident of the rogue attack that destroyed his pack suddenly echoed in my mind.

"I remember being caught completely off guard by how organized the attack was...And I remember how they worked together that day, in such perfect sync that they managed to destroy one of the strongest packs in the world. But rogues normally didn't have any coordination amongst each other, which is why their re-formed attack had caught us so unprepared. And the only way for an attack to be so well executed is if..."

"As if it were being orchestrated by an experienced leader"

"A leader...", I whispered to myself in shock.

An organized attack Alpha Penson had said, just like this one had been. So did that mean...did that mean that rogues final howl had been some kind a alert to its comrades?

To its...leader?

Rino continued to examine my wound, "You need to get this patched up immediately", he said, "I wish I'd brought my handkerchief with me"

I snapped out of my troubling thoughts and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Rino, I'm alright. Really"

He shook his head, "Anna I'm sor-"

His sentence was cut off abruptly as out of nowhere, an enormous rogue slammed into him, sending both of them crashing onto the ground.

"RINOO!" I shouted in shock as the the barbaric wolf caged Rino underneath its giant body and before he could fight it off, the rogue's sharp teeth clamped down hard onto his left shoulder.

A strangled cry of pain escaped Rino's lips, his eyes squeezing shut in agony and my heart wrenched painfully at the sight.

"NOOO!" I screamed horror-stricken and devastated.

Grunting in pain, Rino slammed his free fist into the rogue muzzle, displacing its jaw from his shoulder. He then kicked it hard in the belly, throwing the wolf off him and then struck it with an enormous block of ice, jamming it against the tree nearby making it pass out and slump onto the undergrowth.

Grabbing his now injured and bloodied shoulder, Rino then grit his teeth and tried to sit up, but just as I was about to heave a sigh, my eyes caught the dark figure that had appeared behind him- yet another rogue whose eyes were filled with insanity as it stared at Rino.

NO!

My breath caught, "RINO LOOK OUT!" I cried out terrified, but Rino realized a second too late that the rogue was behind him.

My heart stopped as the mad wolf jumped at Rino, its jagged claws and sharp fangs aimed right at his exposed neck. Rino had no time to react and I knew that he wouldn't be able to dodge the attack.

Rino was going to die.

As the most intense form of terror gripped my heart, my hand shot out towards my dearest friend in a final desperate attempt to keep him from harm's way. My lips parted, eyes filling with tears as I they zeroed in on the savage rogue and I screamed at the top of my lungs,

"NOOOOO!"

A sudden burst of heat surged through my body like wildfire and my vision was blinded by a bright flash of light, and the next thing I knew, the manic rogue that had been but seconds away from sinking its fangs into Rino now lay unmoving on the ground, having passed out abruptly.

Wha...what?

Both Rino and I stared at the rogue's now limp, motionless body in shock, unable to comprehend what had just happened. It wasn't dead but it showed no signs of recovering consciousness anytime soon.

It was out cold.

H-How...?

While I still gasped for breath, Rino's eyes went from the rogue to his own shoulder. His hand pressed and prodded the bloodied shirt on his injured shoulder and a look of utter disbelief flashed in his eyes before they shot to me alarmed.

"R-Rino?" I said worriedly, my vision still blurred because of the tears that had formed in my eyes earlier.

"Anna...", he breathed out, staring at me wide-eyed but before he could say anything else or we could contemplate what had just taken place, the ground underneath us began to quake.

Both of us sucked in sharp breaths before our heads whirled around and to our utmost horror, there in the distance we saw a fleet of murderous looking rogue wolves tearing through the woods and charging right at us.

Oh my GOD!

Both Rino and I frantically scrambled off the ground, Rino rushing to me to help me as an army of savage rogues came for us like a gust of wild wind. There were too many wolves for even Rino to fight off alone, let alone do so while protecting me. And they were getting closer by the second.

So this was what that rogue's final howl was for. It had been a call to all the other rogues!

"We need to go Anna! We need to run!" Rino exclaimed urgently as he grabbed my hand, and without wasting another second we dashed off into the woods, running as fast as our legs would carry us.

My injured leg immediately screamed in pain, making me wince. Rino immediately tried to pick me on his back but I shook my head and urged him to keep running, ignoring the burning pain in my leg. His shoulder was badly wounded, he wouldn't be able to support my weight with his hands.

I could hear the rogues gaining on us, their maddening snarls and growls ringing through the woods like sirens. Red hot adrenaline seared through my veins as we tore through the thick woods, not knowing where to go, or how to escape. All we knew was that if we stopped, it could very well be our end.

...NNA...!

Karina's voice from earlier suddenly came to mind. Why? Why had her voice led me here? What was the meaning of this? Was she around here somewhere? But if she was then Rino would have sensed her presence. So why had that fog brought us here?!

My questions remained unanswered as we dashed through shrubs and foliage, never slowing down. My heart thundered madly in my chest while I clawed at my mind, trying to figure out where to go and what to do to escape this madness.

I didn't know why we were suddenly here, fighting for our lives in the middle of nowhere, but I couldn't bear the thought of anything worse happening to Rino in the process of trying to protect me. No, I couldn't let him be harmed again. We needed to get out of here right now.

As determination flooded my body, I felt a familiar surge of heat welling up inside of me once again, and within seconds, the fog that had brought me here began slowly enveloping me once more.

Rino gasped as the fog began to thicken around us, quickly making it harder to even see where we were going.

"Anna!" he cried out and I held onto his hand tightly.

"Don't let go Rino!" I shouted, a strange new energy burning within me, "Just hold on and keep running!"

I didn't know what was happening, or why. All I knew was that this fog was what brought us here, and so it would also be what would get us out. Soon we were surrounded by a mist so thick that I couldn't even see what was half an inch in front of me, and I felt, once again, as though I was running through thin air, my feet not hitting any solid surface underneath them as I ran.

All I could feel was Rino's hand still firmly clasped in mine, and a powerful tingling on my neck where Zuerien's mark was, making me feel strongly connected to him.

The snarls and howls of the wolves behind us began to dim, and with every step we took, they faded into the distance.

Suddenly, hazy sparks of light began to flash in the thick mist around me, just as they had when I had been enveloped by this fog near the library earlier today. Like fireflies on a foggy day, the lights gleamed dimly around me, appearing and disappearing within seconds. And with every flash of light, the quiet breeze began carrying hushed whispers in to my ears.

Voices I had never heard before.

...una...

....otect...

...una...

...reala...

The eerie whispers filled my ears, echoing in my mind as I dashed through the thick fog. And they brought with them a sense of nostalgia so strong that it they left me utterly disoriented for a few seconds.

All of a sudden, I felt like I was no longer running through the woods in the present day and age. As I sprinted through the fog, my body felt smaller, my hair felt longer and the hand clasped in mine felt rougher. Almost as if I was no longer the same person anymore.

The only things that remained strikingly similar throughout were the powerful tingling of my mate's mark on my neck, and the bonds it brought with it.

The bond I shared with my soulmate, the bond I shared with the friend whose hand was clasped in mine, the bond I shared with the woods whizzing past me, and the bond I shared with those before me in the sands of time.

Important bonds.

Bonds that would never break.

And bonds that would never fade away.

The image of a tree with a thick red-white canopy flashed before my eyes. Underneath it, were three women. One with long red hair, one with short curly black hair, and one with pale blond hair, all down on one knee with their heads bowed in respect...

...otect...th...una...

To the woman before them, who was surrounded by flecks of firefly-lights.

...una...reala...

The woman with long silver hair.

...otect...th...rt...

Who was me.

The pin-point flashes of color in the thick white fog began moving, swaying and swirling around me, leaving thin streaks of fast-fading light behind them. Like trails of glitter sparkling in a flash of light. Like a thousand fireflies dancing around me.

Just like in the image that had flashed in my mind a few seconds ago.

They surrounded me in strings of colorful lights, and with every step I took, their whispers grew louder and stronger till the words they spoke rang clearly in my mind.

Una...

otect...th...una...

Protect the Luna.

una...reala...

Luna Ethereala.

otect...th...rt...

I heard Rino gasp softly, his hand tightening in mine. Intense nostalgia assaulted my sense and as my body and mind were flooded with an innate sense of power that came bubbling out, a bright silver light flashed in my vision once again. I felt like I was having an out of body experience.

But just as I felt myself reach the zenith of that feeling of familiarity, right there at the seams of uncovering a new truth, a new memory, the soles of my feet hit hard against solid ground once again, forcing me out of my unearthly experience and back into reality.

The sudden firm support underneath us made both me and Rino come to a staggering halt. And when I turned to look at him, I noticed that the fog had already cleared enough for me to be able to see him now, and he looked back at me with eyes wide in confusion and shock.

What...happened...?

And where are we now?

I could no longer hear the rogues behind us and when we looked around, they were nowhere in sight. The little firefly-lights had also disappeared just as suddenly as they had appeared.

There was pin-drop silence everywhere around us, save for the soft whispers of the chilly breeze that blew over us. And as the quiet, eerie wind carried away with it the remnants of the thick fog that enveloped us, we saw that dense woods we had just raced through were now some distance away from us. We had managed to find our way out of the them somehow.

Gasping for breath, both Rino and I looked around tensely, still anticipating danger as we tried to figure out where we were. By the looks of it, this seemed to be an abandoned part of the city. It was completely deserted with no one around as far as my human eyes could see. There were a couple of old, dilapidated buildings behind us, but it didn't look like anyone lived around here. And seeing as it was so close to the woods I assumed this must have been part of the 'Supernaturals Only' zones of Dublin.

As soon as my mind established the fact that there was no danger of rogues here, I exhaled a heavy sigh of relief, sweat running down the side of my face. That had been quite the traumatizing experience.

My injured leg throbbed with burning pain and I winced slightly, lifting some of my weight off it. I couldn't believe we had just managed to escape that barbaric fleet of rogues because that fog had carried us to safety.

Again.

"We lost them", Rino said looking towards the woods.

"Looks like we did...somehow", I replied.

"But its probably better we don't stick around here and wait for them to catch up", he said and I nodded as he turned to face me again. His eyes immediately fell to my leg, widening in concern.

"Anna!" he exclaimed worriedly as he let go of my hand and quickly sat down to examine my injury. I could tell the wound was still bleeding but it wasn't too bad. It would heal.

"I'm okay Rino. Please don't worry. But what about you?" I asked anxiously, "You were injured so badly. Your shoulde-"

My voice caught in my throat when my eyes found his injured shoulder. And underneath his ripped and bloodied shirt, I was shocked to see that there was no wound. I looked at him wide-eyed as he rubbed his hand over where his injury had been.

"Its gone?" I breathed out astounded, "You healed. I-I...had no idea you heal so quickly Rino"

Rino tore his pained gaze away from my bleeding leg to meet my eyes, his expression grim, blue-rimmed brown eyes swirling with confusion and anxiousness as he replied,

"I don't"

My brow furrowed at his answer, eyes shooting to his injured shoulder again, the tears and rips in which revealed smooth, unbroken skin. And even the other tiny cuts and abrasions he had acquired in his fights earlier were now all gone. He was absolutely unscathed.

I exhaled heavily, "Regardless, I'm just so glad you're okay now", I replied, briefly closing my eyes in relief.

Thank goodness...

Rino's lips pursed and he stood up silently, his gaze never leaving my face. I could tell that he had questions. Questions about the mystical fog, the glittering lights, the rogues and that one rogue suddenly falling unconscious earlier. They were all valid questions, and they were questions that I had no answers to because I was just as lost as him when it came to them. And I desperately wanted answers myself.

What on earth just happened?!

I looked around, anxiously taking in our new surroundings. Even though the fog had now largely cleared, a thin veil of mist lingered everywhere around us, and thick dark clouds hung in the sky overhead, hiding the sunlight completely and painting everything in eerie shades of greys and blues.

Where exactly were we? And why had that fog brought us here?

What were those fluttering pin-points lights that had shrouded us? And those voices I had heard as we had run through the fog...what were they?

Protect the Luna, they had said, the Luna Ethereala.

So did that mean they had led us here to protect us from rogues? To protect...me, who was the reincarnation of the Luna Ethereal?

I had run through such thick fogs before, and they had often helped me escape from dangerous situations, but sometimes they had also led me into dangerous situations, like today.

Alpha Penson had once told me that the mystical fog that often appeared around me and ended up magically transporting me from one place to another could have something to do with the spirit world. That every time the fog enveloped me, it was because I was interacting with beings from the spirit world- like Emily, or that blue-green eyed man.

But that wasn't always the case. Like this time, I hadn't been interacting with spirits this time, but with my own sister. And yet the fog had magically teleported me into the middle of the woods. And Rino had somehow managed to follow me!

What was the meaning of this? Who exactly were the people whose voices I had heard earlier? Were they people the Luna Ethereal knew during her lifetime? And how did they know that I was her reincarnation?

A chilly wind blew over us, making me shiver. My skin prickled as a strange uneasiness washed over me. Something about this place was giving me off vibes. It was too cold. Too...quiet.

All of a sudden something grabbed my hand and I cried out in alarm, my head whipping around only to find that it was just Rino.

"R-Rino?!" I gasped out bewildered as he stared at my hand shocked, "What are you doing?" I asked.

His expression suddenly was a mixture of doubt and intense confusion, but amidst all the disbelief, in his eyes, I saw something akin to certainty building up rapidly. And as it did, his eyes began to widen, his blue-rimmed irises growing brighter. He suddenly looked at the verge of breaking into either a smile or tears.

"Rino?" I said worriedly as he now looked at me as though he were seeing me for the very first time, absolutely baffled.

"Bud, what's wrong?" I asked frantically.

"A-Anna...", he breathed out, "Anna I-"

Whatever he had been about to say died in his throat as he suddenly gasped out loud, his entire body going stiff, and I immediately knew something was amiss. My eyes hurriedly searched our surroundings for any sudden onslaught of rogue armies, but through the thin mist, I couldn't really see any rogues around so I turned back to look at Rino anxiously.

"Rino wha-?" my voice faded away as I stopped abruptly, mid-sentence, as the second I looked up to find Rino's astounded eyes frantically searching for something in the distance behind me, was the very second I felt a faint presence that nearly made my heart stop.

It was a powerful presence. One I had felt multiple times before. One that was, in all honestly, very close to my heart. And one that I never even imagined I would feel in this lifetime, anywhere outside of my dreams and visions.

It was the presence...of the Luna Ethereal.

It can't be...!

Quiet footsteps suddenly filled the misty air, their soft echo resonating around us like it did within my body. And with every passing moment, they got closer and closer to where we stood stunned.

Luna...Ethereal...?

My body whirled around in disbelief to look the way Rino was staring, his lips parted in shock and eyes wide as they continued to search the distance. My heart was racing inside my chest as powerful nostalgia washed over me. And along with nostalgia came an overwhelming sense of love for the person who was approaching us.

That presence...

My fingers began to tremble as a dark figure appeared in the distance, shrouded in thin mist. And as we watched, too stunned to even move, it made its way towards us, something black fluttering around its body.

Was that...a cloak?

Rino took a step forward, my hand still tightly clasped in his, but the entirety of his attention was directed around the place where that person was, slowly approaching us. And with every step the person took, the blue rim in Rino's eyes glowed brighter, his aura growing more pronounced with every breath he took.

The aura...of an Extraordinaire Guardian.

I watched on, too mystified to speak, too startled to move and too captivated to blink. Feelings of warmth and love bombarded my confused state of mind, but that didn't keep me from noticing the heat that was now building up inside me. Slowly, but steadily, a familiar heat began bubbling up from within me, making my skin feel flushed and my mark tingle fierily.

That power...

Although everything seemed to be transpiring in slow motion, it was actually taking place in but split seconds. My vision suddenly blurred and I looked down at my trembling hand as the heat began to rush through my veins. The palm of my hand was pink, the veins in my arms swelling. My heart beat erratically and my breath came out in soft pants, my throat suddenly feeling dry.

Not just my throat but my entire body suddenly felt parched, as though in desperate need of something to hydrate it, to fill it. And the more I thought about it, the more the heat within me intensified to a point where it was like that was all I could feel.

What's happening?!

"Luna..."

My eyes shot to Rino alarmed as he breathed out that one word, his voice laced with immense awe and evident puzzlement. His gaze continued to move uncertainly, all around the place where that person now was and he took another step forward, his fingers slipping off my hand.

And I gasped when he let out a ragged breath and whispered, "My Luna..."

Missing pieces of the puzzle suddenly came crashing down on my muddled mind as my gaze shot back to the dark figure in the distance, who had now stopped in their tracks. And I knew why. My eyes, now accustomed to the mist, immediately zeroed in on the fluid, translucent barrier that stood several yards in front of us, dividing the side we stood on from the side that dark figure was on.

The Territorial Barrier between the Werewolf Side and...the Shadow Side.

Realization hit me like a bucket of cold water as my eyes, once again, fixated on the dark figure by the border whom I could now see far more clearly than before.

Shrouded in the mist, the person stood quietly, right there at the edge of the Border like a dark shadow. A black cloak covered half of the person's face and whole of the body, fluttering noiselessly in the wind. And that painfully familiar aura enveloped the person from head to toe, making the heat inside of me surge higher. The aura of the Luna Ethereal.

So that's why...I felt such love for you...

Suddenly the appearance of the white fog and its desired destination for me became crystal clear. It hadn't been the woods, it hadn't been the rogues, it hadn't even been this part of the city.

It had been her.

The fog had appeared to lead me to her.

To...the Luna...

Of Hearts

"Karina...!"

****

Random Question of the Day: Who would be your dream Best friend from Unconditionally?

A/N

Hey guys!

I updated comparatively early this time! Yay! I hope you're pleased.

Also, please note I have republished all chapters of my works again, now set to Public since Wattpad has now decided to do away with the Private story feature. If any more people try to copy my ideas, I may just take down both Books from Wattpad. I've had quite enough with plagiarism.

Getting on to today's update, this chapter was...interesting, was it not? So let's not waste any time and get right into:

PACK TALKS

1. I bet some of you wanted to hunt me down with weapons when you saw Marco's POV instead of Suzzanah's at the beginning, seeing how the last chapter ended right *laughs nervously* But anyway, did you like it?

2. What do you think of Marco's wolf Benjamin? *wiggles eyebrows*

3. Luna Prophecy has awoken at last! And she's already giving certain Alphas heart-attacks *cough cough* Were you excited to see her? And how did you like her entry?

4. But as always, she dropped a bomb on everyone. I mean the news about the dates being wrong, not herself *laughs madly at her own joke before clearing throat awkwardly* Ahem, but yes! The dates are wrong and the BorderGuard incident is happening today! Dun dun dun! What now?!

5. And apparently a part of the territorial barrier is broken too! What on earth is going on?!

6. To top it off, these rogues are being quite a nuisance! What's up with them and their random appearances and attacks. Something seems fishy. Thoughts?

7. Also, the mysterious fog- where does it come from and why? And what were those lights and voices Suzzanah came across while running through it?

8. Finally, a dark figure appeared at the Border. And turns out its Karina! WAAAAHH! Excited? Scared? Both? Lol, and what happens next?

Stay tuned to find out!

Whew, that was a lot of questions. But let's just add one more.

Did you like this chapter?

If you did, please do VOTE, COMMENT, SHARE! It would mean the world to me!

Also, FOLLOW ME if you want to receive notifications on when I post updates and previews of chapters!

Until next time,

All my love,

May