Rising Sigma

Chapter One [Iodine's POV] I flopped back into the bed and closed my eyes for no more than a second before interruption. "Alpha!" I frowned at the voice of my Gamma coming through the door. "Yes?" I replied, irritation no doubt edging my voice. He knocked this time before shouting for me. I rolled my eyes but gave the man permission to enter the room. "Alpha, I noticed a gap in your schedule. We really should go over the attendees at least one more time before tonight." At this rate, I'd be turning up to my own Alpha Ceremony with less than an hour of sleep in me over the last two days. I hated to admit my nerves. I'd been running the Bright Phoenix Pack perfectly fine for over a year, albeit without any official mantle with which to claim it. But this ceremony worried me, some inkling in my head that wasn't even my wolf, told me that I needed to be prepared. Listen to our Gamma. I will, but we need sleep. How are we expected to perform the rites if we zonk out during the Speeches? I will make sure we won't. Now pay attention! I rose from the bed and crossed the room to the mini-fridge, pulled out a can of energy drink and took a gulp. "Can you repeat that, Yven?" The Gamma sat himself down at my desk, across from my chair and motioned for me to take my place. I obliged him. "I made these files last night, we cannot appear ignorant of our allies and neighbours if we wish the Ceremony to go off without a hitch. The Elder Council barely accept your authority to lead until you've taken on your title, our actions this past year will be under far less scrutiny if we appear to be the model pack." "We don't have anything to hide." I stated, lifting an eyebrow. At least, we shouldn't. I took another long sip of energy drink. "And I've known most of the important wolves since before I could even speak." "There were a few last minute changes to attendees." "How so?" "A few Alphas have sent their heirs in their stead, mostly because they plan on passing the duty into them soon. And the same can be said of Betas and Gammas." Part of me felt slighted that the true leaders of the packs wouldn't be attending. It wasn't a rational thought, I'd attended two Alpha Ceremonies in the past year, as well as several Luna, Lune, Beta, and even a Gamma Ceremony, even if my circumstances were a little different. Nobody had shown me disrespect in those times, it was more likely than not the truth - that they wanted their heirs to take on responsibilities before they took on the roles themselves. At least a meeting in this way wasn't uncommon enough that I didn't know what to expect. "How many changes are we talking about?" The Gamma smiled softly, and placed a thick wad of manila files on the desk. "Twelve packs. The rest are all as invited." "Make sure the kitchens are aware of any dietary requirements that changed. I don't know these wolves yet, I won't have them thinking I'm showing disrespect by serving food they're allergic to." "Oh yes. Alpha Cassius." He grimaced at the memory, and I couldn't help but remember how disappointed the Elder Council was at that. He was allergic to fish, and it only took a Caesar Salad to have him withdraw an alliance into neutrality between his pack and the Green Lake Pack three months prior. "Yes, no repeats of that tonight, Alpha. I shall see to it now." "Thank you. It shouldn't take me long to read through these, give me an hour then you can come back and quiz me." The Gamma gave me a short bow before leaving and I let out a sigh I didn't even realise I'd been holding in. Everyone was occupied with making this night the closest to perfection it could possibly be. I hoped it wasn't out of pity for me, but instead was for pride in showing off the pack. It was the least I could do to prove myself to be the Alpha they knew, the Alpha they deserved. Bright Phoenix wasn't a large pack, but we held important territory. Our border with the neutral zone allowed for the building of watchtowers and interpack communication towers. We were the ones who needed to be most alert to rogues banding together. There was hardly a single pack that hadn't been harmed in some way by rogues, we had to limit the damage they'd cause. Mistakes on our part had disastrous consequences. I flipped open first file, Yven was meticulous with attention to detail. He'd collated brief dossiers on each of the changed attendees. It shouldn't take me long to digest my way through it all. I might even sneak in an hour of nap if I was lucky. *** Yven held up the photo and I trawled through my mind. Thick eyebrows, olive skin, glossy brown hair cut severely to his chin. "Gamma Fredrik. Chimera Tail Pack. He's taken over for his mother due to her age, but is refusing to take the official role until he finds his mate or when she dies, whichever comes first." Yven nodded, and lifted the next photo. Blonde, tanned skin, brown eyes, a scar running along her jaw. "Beta Delphine, Green Lake Pack. Don't ask about the scar. Vegetarian." Yven frowned. "Wasn't that right?" "Vegetarian and allergic to nuts." He chided. "Alright. Next one." Yven pulled out the next photo. Dark skin, shaved head, one ear stretched with a tunnel piercing, and a hoop in his lip. "Lune Dominic, Blood Harpy Pack. Doesn't like tomatoes, and half-brother to Alpha Marwan from Gryphon Wing." He nodded and flipped to the next. I only stumbled a few times but overall, Yven was pleased and said he'd make sure I wasn't disturbed so I could sneak that hour of sleep in. I crashed on the bed, hastily set an alarm, and curled up into the covers. I was exhausted enough that it didn't take long before sleep consumed me. *** [Leon's POV] I had only been to Bright Phoenix the once before, though I hadn't taken the time to really notice much about the territory. We weren't neighbours, so the land was unfamiliar enough that I should have. The Alpha knew them well enough. He'd been good friends with the former Alpha and was part of the howling guard for the funeral last year. "I hope they have those little pastries again, what were they?" The Luna sat in the front seat, beside the Alpha, and I tried to think back to the meal we'd been served. "The chouquettes?" The Alpha mused aloud. "Yes, they were good. Leon, you liked them didn't you?" "I can't remember, but if you think I did, then I probably did." I replied evenly. The past year had been a blur of events. At least once a month there seemed to be another ball, ceremony, or something that needed our attendance. It was preferable to the days of the past when packs barely got together other than to hash out disputes, at least we were meeting for better reasons. It strengthened us as a whole. That was the surface reasoning anyway. "Leon! At least pretend to care." The Luna snapped at me. I raised an eyebrow. It wasn't that I didn't care, I simply couldn't bring myself to be enthused for yet another round of mingling. While a yearly gathering at Citrine Moon, the largest pack, was enough for most unmated wolves to attempt to find their mate, it wasn't much of a secret that these smaller events were of the same vein. The entirety of the unmated wolves in Bright Phoenix would be hoping that one of the attending leaders from their neighbours and allies would turn out to be their mate. It wasn't because they hated their place outside of leadership, but there were many perks beyond more disposable income. Besides, if the Moon Goddess wanted inbred leaders, even their best attempts at seduction would fail. At least at the Citrine Moon gathering, nobody bothered to hide the fact they were coming to find a mate. "He does, dearest. Our Beta-in-training is probably dreading the evening after the meal and ceremony." Alpha Marwan grinned widely. I wasn't exactly unhappy at the thought of finding a mate, but I wasn't in a rush to find them, nor was I planning on ending an unsuccessful search in the bed of someone else. We all knew the consequences of that. "I might retire to our guest rooms after the formalities." "You've become such a wet blanket. At least stay for a few drinks." The Luna pouted. "You never know, what if you miss your mate because you're too busy brooding?" "Rachel." The Alpha reached across from the steering wheel and gently held her hand for a moment while we waited for the gates to the main estate to open. I knew they were linking each other, keeping the conversation to themselves. It didn't take a genius to know what it was about though. We keep causing our Luna grief. It won't hurt us to pretend to enjoy ourselves. I know. But pretending to have fun just to make her feel less guilty isn't what we're supposed to be here for. Moon Goddess give me strength, one night. Let me have fun too. For you? Fine - one night. We probably won't find her anyway and the drinks at Alpha Ceremonies tend to be good.