Page 5 of Moon Guardian
I’d been caught up in the pack’s run before, but never like this. Now, Iwasthe pack, and one day, I would have pups of my own to train in our ways.
To see this pitiful human male caked in mud ripping one of the sacred blossoms from the ground… it undid me to my very core. I snarled, stepping out into the moonlight as my bones ached to shift.
Surely the Goddess would understand if I shifted now before I received her blessing. Such blasphemy could not be tolerated.
A snarl broke through the forest, one that gave me pause.
A wolf in full shift sulking into the moonlight, staring me down.
He’s mine.
The voice didn’t sound male or female, and the wolf shimmered with fresh goddess magic, masking its true pack origins.
An unsanctioned shift, I realized. No matter if a human was on our lands, stealing our sacred blooms, it was clear the Goddess would not tolerate disobedience of any sort.
The wolf turned from me, not caring that the Goddess would strike it down in a few moments. It had the same task in mind that burned in my veins.
Kill the intruder.
Katlyn
“Charlie!” I hissed, having definitely lost him in wolf territory.
Great.
“Shit,” I cursed, crouching to gain my bearings.
I’d never been through this part of the forest. My village ran south close to the river where we could lose the wolves if they caught our scent. Not that wolves ever wanted to go into human territory unless they wanted to kill us, or use us. Wolves permitted our existence most of the time because we amused them, and because they liked to steal any technology or scientific advancements we’d managed to squeak out over the years.
Some humans even willingly worked for them, taking the bribe of a modern home and amenities in return for betraying their own race.
If I ever ran across anyone like that, they’d get an arrow straight in the eye.
It wasn’t fair how it worked. The Moon Shadow Plague had destroyed our land, but not that of the wolves, evident by the thriving life all around me.
Trees grew tall into the sky, allowing rays of moonlight through as if by design to punctuate the midnight tapestry. The silver strands of moonlight were the veins of this living creature, fueling it with life.
The moon didn’t shine like this on human territory. The storms blocked it out, leaving us only with the corruption left behind from the wolf’s magic that came from their endless territory battles and occasional mating ceremonies, which I would argue produced the worst of the storms.
Wildlife sang through the forest, adding a symphony of chitters and calls that provided a cheerful contrast to my mood.
A part of me loved it. I hadn’t taken down true game in months, because even the animals seemed to understand that human territory just wasn’t the same and had chosen to live here.
I didn’t blame them.
Charlie probably just got distracted,I reasoned. Perhaps he’d found a patch of the Moon Blossoms and he wanted to regroup with me later, or he wanted to teach me that I could track by myself.
In either case, I was starving, and my nostrils flared as I scented prey.
Rabbit had a distinct flavor to its scent ever since the storms had changed my senses. This smell made my stomach growl as if I could already taste the lean meat. I hadn’t had a decent meal in days, and my mouth watered as I drew an arrow from my quiver.
A new scent invaded my senses, overtaking my thoughts of roasting a rabbit and making me freeze.
Sandalwood and spice.
My stomach flipped as I documented the new scent, unsure of how I recognized it or why it made me feel like the wolf’s howl had earlier. Swallowing hard, I scanned the moonlit woods.
Perhaps we’d been found.
