Curse of the Moon's Bride

Once again, I regained consciousness. The feeling of dirt under my cheek meant a lot of things, and most importantly, that I was alive. I survived another full moon. I opened my eyes with no idea of what had happened in the past hour. All I knew was that the full moon had just passed and the curse had struck me again. I tried to move. Nothing happened. My limbs were dead weight, as if the earth had claimed them. Distant chatters and faint howls came from the pack house. All I could do was wonder when this curse would end – and how. I could feel the wolf inside me going silent, like a caged and tortured animal just hoping to die. Soon, I heard boots approaching. Pack members passing by, only to see me on the ground. They stopped. For a second, there was silence. Then one of them spoke out: “Is she dead this time?” Another replied, “How about we find out?” They came close and turned me over. As soon as they did, a chilled pain shot down my spine. I gasped and tried to breathe. Then Mara came. She was the only one in the pack who ever showed me any care. She knelt beside me. Her face showed exhaustion, but she still smiled. I tried to say something, but only a rasp came out. “You survived again, little one,” she whispered. Then came loud footsteps. Everyone around me stepped back. I knew who it was. Why wouldn’t I know him? The man I was most terrified of. Alpha Kael. Dawn light crept in as he drew close. He was seven feet tall, with broad shoulders and large muscles – the picture of how an Alpha should look. He was always disgusted by the sight of me. Everyone hated me, but his hatred was on another level. He saw me as a curse that should have been purged long ago. His jaw was tight, his eyes ice cold. He looked at me with disgust, as always, and asked, “Is she still breathing?” “Yes, Alpha,” Mara replied. “Then what is she doing here? Take her to the infirmary. She’s blocking the entrance.” I thought to myself: How can someone be this heartless? He didn’t even ask how I got here or how I’m doing. I didn’t know why I expected different. He’d always been like this. Maybe I’d never learn. Two pack warriors dragged me across the dirt toward the infirmary. As they pulled me past him, I caught his scent. Pine and smoke. Something inside me tugged. I didn’t understand what the feeling meant – then it faded. Every rock tore through my back as they dragged me. The pain doubled. They thought they were helping, but they only made it worse. I lost consciousness again. When I woke, I was on a cot in the infirmary. Mara was beside me, trying to revive me. Finally, I opened my eyes. She looked at me, then left without a word. I was alone with just the memories. I looked at my wrist. The faint silver mark in the shape of a crescent moon was still there. The mark I received when the curse was made. Then the memories came. I was only six when my parents dragged me through a moonlit forest. My mother’s hand was tight, almost bruising my wrist. We entered a cave so dark that the only light came from a floating artifact carved like a wolf’s tooth. It hovered at the center. The Heart of the First Wolf. My father moved closer. A smile mixed with happiness and fear crossed his face. He grabbed it. As we tried to run, the cave began to shake. From the shaking came something unexpected. A woman’s voice that drove chills down our bones, shouting: “Thieves!” The Moon Goddess herself. Her cave had been desecrated. In seconds, wolves surrounded us from every angle, as if she had summoned them. We were caught. Her punishment was a curse. Since we tried to steal what belonged to her, every full moon, the artifact would steal all our essence from us. My mother shoved me behind her. “Please let her go. She’s only a child.” The Goddess refused. “This is the curse you placed on yourselves and your seed. The child will carry what you tried to steal.” Silver light engulfed me. I screamed and fell. I woke up alone outside the cave. I later learned my parents were dead. Still on the cot, I wept. As tears streamed down my cheek, I whispered, “I was only six. I didn’t choose this life.” I remembered last night’s full moon – how the artifact had pulled my strength from miles away. The excruciating pain, as if it wanted to tear me apart to drain every iota of strength. I remembered collapsing in the forest and crawling for hours toward the pack house because I didn’t want to die alone. No one came to help me. I was a curse to everyone. The infirmary door opened. My heart stopped. It wasn’t Mara. It was Kael. He stood in the doorway, arms crossed. After staring at me for a while, he walked toward me and sat on a stool across from my cot. This time, his look changed. Not hatred – inconvenience, more like. “Do you know what the pack says about you?” he asked. With a weak voice, I replied, “That I am cursed.” “No. They say you are a leech. Every full moon, the artifact drains you – and some of our pack strength goes with it.” Almost crying, I told him, “I can’t control it. None of this was my fault.” “Your parents should have been killed. I spared them because we don’t kill our own. But they died anyway. And you remained.” He leaned closer. His eyes were cold, but there was something underneath – anger at himself? I couldn’t read it. “Next full moon, I won’t send anyone to find you. If the artifact wants you, it can have you.” He stood. My heart almost stopped. “Alpha, please – “ He paused at the door, back turned. “You should have died with your parents.” Then he slammed the door and left. I stared at the ceiling, overwhelmed. I had no more tears left. My wolf whimpered once – then silence. Mara returned with broth. She helped me sit up. “Is it true?” I asked. “He won’t send anyone next time?” Mara hesitated, then nodded. “The Alpha’s word is law.” I looked at my cursed wrist. The silver scar seemed dimmer than before. I didn’t know why. Questions filled my mind. Then I told myself: I don’t need anyone’s help. I’ll crawl back on my own. Every time. Until the moon kills me – or I kill the curse. I drank the broth. My hand didn’t shake.