Revenge of the Alpha Princess

Weakness Of Wolves

**Mia's POV**

The Kingdom of Beaudour spanned the entire continent formerly known as North America, split into eight regions. When the humans discovered our existence the Blood Moon War began, and some say it never ended. History told two versions, but neither told the truth. The Solar scholars said wolves were the vicious ones, that we took over politically through brute force. Solars still paint wolves as savage beasts, even now so many hundreds of years later. Lunars were no better of course, claiming the humans tore themselves apart in pro-wolf, anti-wolf imbalance until their political landscape crumbled, leaving us to pick up the pieces. Whatever truth there is, it comes from the silence in between those two stories. Still, nowadays the political structure relies on the balance of our packs, for all species, and even those who hates us could admit that much.

I was poised to be the next Alpha Queen, to rule over the entire continent of North America and take up a seat on the Wolven Senate alongside the rest of the monarchs. The Kingdom of Calida, spanning all of South America, were our closest allies, but the kingdoms of Tianai (Asia), Furaniani (Africa), Enkafotia (Australia), and Benenore (Europe) weren't our enemies in recent times at all. In fact, the Senate had a long standing history of being cordial, something I had witnessed myself in recent years as I began to assume duties as my mother's heir. Tianai and Furaniani's monarchs weren't the most happy about my being a woman, but they never treated me improperly. Civility rules were strongly enforced, and any perceived slight could lead to global war, so most rulers were well aware of their place in matters of another's country and choices.

Why the history lesson? Because it meant that no matter where I went on the continent, if my cousin was behind the attack on my life, I would not be safe. Even just the region that housed the royal home had twelve states within it alone. Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia - and I started in Florida, running through the swamps and thick woods that surrounded the royal lands barefoot.

To put it plainly, I knew right away that without help I was dead. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Even just getting to Georgia would mean needing transportation or a miracle, and even then if my cousin took my throne I would be within his reach easily. Donovan Sloane was impetuous, proud, petulant, and insanely powerful, all things that would only be worsened if he were to take my throne. I call him my cousin because we were raised as such, but truthfully there's no strong blood relation. He took up the title of Duke of the Southeast because my mother's sister had adopted him. He was an alpha by blood, but he could never really be a royal even if we and everyone else treated him as such.

Fight as we may against it, wolves are bound to blood ties no matter what we do. Genealogy had no choice but to be traced, because every line was incredibly rare with certain abilities tied to them. It was what kept us all in check and what made our power structure so different from that of humans - one could not steal power away so easily. Even in death, there would be things one could do that another could never.

Fighting an alpha's command would be physically painful for any under them, not to say it would be impossible but some wouldn't be able to live through the pain of it. Those who could would have repercussions, and could only stop them by killing the alpha who uttered the command or getting them to dispel it. As Duke, Donovan more or less took on some of his mother's power, allowing him to order the alpha's under him. As a royal, however, his mother's commands trumped his. As queen, my mother trumped them all.

With her dead, that ability had transferred to me. It was how Niylah had known the moment my mother and her wolf had passed, the ability of my blood strengthening. All power is borrowed, only coming into it when one gives it to you, as Donovan's mother did to him when she stepped down as Duchess of the Southeast and performed the ritual of transferral, or when it falls to you as my mother's did in her death. But Donovan… Well, he was a rare instance, and the first adoption to take place within the royal family.

Why does that matter? Why does any of this matter? Even if crowned with my crown, even if given my titles and throne, so long as I live Donovan can never assume my place. That was what Dmitri was trying to make sure every wolf was aware of. My power will always trump his, until I give it to someone else, or until I die. Having named him my heir and with him my closest relative through his mother's transfer, it would automatically go to him if I died now, but...

Not if I could perform the heir announcement ritual, with the help of a witch. Not if I could change fate first. In the meantime? So long as I'm alive, I'm a threat, and Donovan would be coming after me forever.

That's the weakness with wolves, or the strength of humans - they don't have to be so cutthroat about power and structure and politics. For us? Our very lives are bound to it, whether we like it or not.