Moon Children

SECRET MATE

Hey everyone! This is my first published story and I hope you fall in love with this story just as I have along the way! I tried to write this first chapter as if it was someone who hadn't read a werewolf novel before, so there's alot of explaining pack hierarchy and such. If you are already familiar then feel free to just skim for names and titles, but please give it a shot and read on! Thank you for reading and I hope to hear from you in the comments.

I've never been one to run away from confrontation. Rather, I always tend to barrel straight towards it. Tonight is no exception, as

I hear the vicious howls of far too many wolves off in the distance. Closing in from the East and South, I know they must have breached one of our territory borders.

“Rogues.” I whisper to myself in disgust. I stood up from the living room sofa and quickly pulled my long, fire orange-red curls from my face and tied them back. Rogues were outsiders, not welcome on pack territory. The ones who attack packs only want one thing; bloodshed.

I am the Delta’s eldest daughter, our Delta being my father, Henry. He was once the Lead Warrior of our pack, when my grandfather was still our Delta. Until one of his closest friends inherited the Alpha position from his father before him, 17 years ago. Alpha Chad Harrison appointed our Beta position to his best friend, Michael Colebrook. Our Gamma was selected after, as Todd Woods. He then named my father, Henry Moon, as the Delta of The Black Brook Pack.

It is a common misconception that the Delta, Gamma, and the Lead Warrior are the same, but the Delta and Gamma positions are granted only to those within the top 4 blood-lines of the pack. The Gamma is responsible for coordinating and delegating all security purposes for the pack. They control everything in terms of espionage and intel, along with trade deals. The Delta is the head of the warriors, choosing which squads defend which borders, training styles/techniques, and train session schedules. The Lead Warrior is simply the very top warrior in the pack. However, this title isn’t granted, but earned. They train all warriors in the pack, and answer directly to the Delta’s orders. They can belong to one of the 4 original family lines, or they can be of a different rank and line completely. The Lead Warrior title earns his position by proving himself as the most strategic, powerful, gifted warrior among the pack. Even if they were an Omega, they could earn this title should the Moon Goddess choose such a fate for the Were.

My father humbly accepted the great honor of being titled Delta, but he still helped train our pack alongside our current Lead Warrior, Edgar Garrison. Warrior blood runs through my father's veins, so he will always feel the urge to fight and train. For my entire 17 years of life, I have been trained amongst the largest and smartest members of our pack, growing up in a large home connected to our main pack house.

I hear Beta Michael linking us in my head, confirming my suspicions. “Our Southeast border has been lost to a massive pack of rogues, we are under siege!”

We aren’t prepared for this. We have always tried to be a diplomatic pack, only harboring our skills against smaller threats. We have the skill, and the strength, but it’s something we’ve never had to put into practice.

“There’s at least 400 of them, I’ve never seen rogues group up like this. They only ever run alone or in groups of 3 or 4! What the f**k is happening Henry?!” I hear Alpha’s voice booming through me.

Nearly every able-bodied man and woman rushed towards our defeated border to protect our land. Our pack is 2,000 strong, but ¾ of it consist of infants, children, elderly, or pregnant women. That only leaves about 500 of us to defend our home, and there is absolutely no reason for a massive unprovoked attack by Rogues.

“We don’t know what they want Alpha. We are trying to push them back but there are so many, and they are out for blood.” My father replies hastily.

“Gretchen, get all the vulnerable to our bunker, NOW.”

“Already on it, darling.” Our sweet Luna’s voice chimes in.

Our home runs along the East border of the pack house, so I quickly bolt out the door and head south, foregoing shoes knowing they would be destroyed the moment I shift. My youngest siblings, Stella, Gray, and Eve were already heading to the bunker while I darted out the door with my brothers Luca and Harvey running out just moments after me.

“Darci don’t even think about it, get your ass to the bunker NOW!” The oldest of all my siblings, Luca, linked me as I ran on foot towards the border.

Knowing very well he could have said it out loud and I’d hear him, he chose to pack-link me just so our father would hear what I was up to, I knew it. Luca and Henry were both so damn protective over me, and it was unfair. I’ve trained alongside my brothers for years and I am one of the best warriors in the pack, yet when it comes down to actually defending our territory from threats I’m treated as a child. Luca is just over 2 years older than me at 20, and Harvey is over a year younger than me, at just 16 years old. If my little brother can fight, so can I! Blatantly ignoring Luca, I glide through the forest, heading directly towards the battle zone.

“DARCIETTA!” My father’s voice howls in my mind.

Full name, he is pissed! My wolf, Vyra, says to me.

I grin inwardly. She’s right. He knows I won’t listen, and he can smell me getting closer by now, I’m sure of it. He possesses special abilities as well, and has mastered the art of smell and sight. My Dad’s a typical control freak that despises being defied; I know I’ll be punished for this but I need to prove to everyone that I am a strong warrior who deserves to fight.

It’s time he lets us earn our keep instead of hiding us away, don’t you think Vy?” This time, I feel her grinning in my head.

The reason my father despises the idea of me fighting is because he knows how good I am at it. It’s no secret that the Moon descendants possess special characteristics, including increased agility and speed. However, I am the first female Moon child born in hundreds of years that has possessed these abilities, as it was normally passed down through the males of our family. I’ve also been gifted other abilities, though I’m not sure what they are yet. This makes me a fierce threat, but an even more valuable asset to our enemies.

I feel every snapping twig and crunching leaf beneath me, but I am still too far away to shift. Once I shift, my scent becomes stronger, allowing the rogues to sense me. I want to surprise them, so I run on bare feet for at least 3 miles. Suddenly, I smell the copper tainted scent of blood, combined with the pungent odor of rogue wolves.

Okay Vy, it’s time. I whisper to my wolf.

In moments my Lycan side has taken over, transforming me into an exceptionally large silver wolf, with white tipped ears, tail, and paws. A delicate line of white fur traces across our forehead, dipping in the center at the bridge of our snout, like the top of a heart. Two circular spots of black fur sit parallel to each other on either back flank. The coloring of my wolf already screams attention as a Moon child, yet my eyes indicate my true power. The color of them is a startling electric icy blue, with flecks of orange swirled throughout. The bright blue eye color is only gifted to the Goddesses’ most precious children. It is said that the children of the Moon family are direct descendants of the Moon Goddess herself, and considered a royal lineage that’s long been forgotten about. Yet, no one has explained to me why I have orange swirling around in my blue orbs. The elderly used to tell me stories about how the Moon’s are believed to contain a power and authority stronger than Alpha blood. They referred to the term in an ancient dialect I still don’t understand, but I’d been told it means “Royal Blood”, or “Blood of the Kings”.

Vyra carefully maneuvers through brush and thicket, making our way towards the battle. The bodies of my pack members and rogues begin to lay sprawled across the dense floor of the forest in equal numbers, and my heart begins to pound wildly. Blood pools around the corpses, their eyes wide and lifeless. I’d never seen someone that wasn’t living before.

We’re close. I whisper to her.

She acknowledges me by momentarily stopping to examine the bodies, hoping they aren’t anyone close to us. Thankfully, we only see a few familiar faces I recognized from training, none of them being friends or family. A relieved, but sorrowful sigh passes through me quietly as Vyra leads me in the direction of a mix of my pack members scents, enemies' scents,

and blood.