Blood Moon (MalexMale Paranormal Fantasy)

Chapter 1 ∞ REEVE

My steps sink atop the wet leaves blanketing the forest trail, the textures and shades of late spring as far as I can see. The hint of new life lines the gradual ascent to the Crescent Stones, ripping me out of the rainy gloom, forcing me to bask in the brisk northern air.

Bow to me, the mountains seem to command the further the pack healer and I venture across the mighty terrain.

I stop as the sacred trail ends at the small cluster of stones. Two long, limestone slabs, white and pocked like the moon, reach out along my sides and curve inward. Beyond the stones, the ground juts into a steep ledge—Arym's Rock.

The hallowed ground of our prima alpha looks bleak against a backdrop of storm gray skies.

I relish the rich scent of moist soil that quickens my blood and makes my hands and feet itch to dig in. The connection to our pack here always hits me in the gut, makes my wolf stir and my soul sing.

Omicron Easton walks past me through the stones onto Arym's Rock, and even he looks small in a place like this. I regard him formally, trying to separate him from the male I've always called Omi and who is my father's—my alpha's—mentor and closest friend.

He beckons me to stand beside him and sticks his nose into the air, a rare showing of dominance, as he delivers the ceremonial words with lofty precision. "This is our pack's land, reaching beyond our borders of the Simik Range and the Bantagion Sea, beyond wolf-made boundaries. We are Satu's most blessed beings. You must always remember our greater connection to each other, to the moon we serve, the goddess Satu we honor, and the earth that provides for us. Your gifts as a born alpha are tied to all of it. And today, we ask that Satu's maidens of fate lay out for us the path of your future reign."

He sighs as if bearing a crushing burden. "As you know, last night we learned of the attack on the Jewel River Pack and the gruesome murder of Alpha Kells." His tired eyes meet mine. "Your role in this life will not be easy. Demeria has never been content in its peace, there has always been the sense of something lurking and the machinations of the vampyre king at work. I fear for what you may have ahead of you as you become our leader."

"I can't think of a better alpha to learn from than my father."

"Agreed," the elder says with a nod of his head, the wispy ends of his white hair blowing around his neck.

Omi steps back to the Crescent Stones, murmuring into the air. Kneeling, he waits, unmoving aside from the rise and fall of his chest. I tune into his breathing, sharing the primal pull and release of air that feels both intimate and grounding.

The threat of distant rain dissipates, as Omi had forecasted, making way to a tumble of golden clouds lit by the setting sun. We sit cross legged in the center of the stones and I clench my hands to keep my nerves at bay.

Between us, Omi sets a burner of multicolored glass outfitted in silver etchings of our pack's origin story.

I watch his hands, the familiar scars from past wolf fights speckled across his knuckles, as he fills each burner with a mix of blue lotus and other dried herbs. My skin prickles and I wonder if my father felt similar awe as he underwent his first alpha rites at this same age, in this same spot, with this same sage.

Plumes of smoke spill out from holes on the necks of the burners and catch in the wind.

Omi wafts it toward us and I inhale deeply, closing my eyes to the burn as it rounds down and settles into my chest.

"Breathe in the spirits of our most glorious prima alpha, Arym. Let him guide you to your destiny and show you the path to becoming a strong and just leader to the Silver Blood Pack."