Losing The Light Of The Moon

A Triple Dose Of Success...

Chapter 57:  A Triple Dose Of Success...

JACE

Mother and Luna’s dinner party had been another lovely night to be had by all. Mother was thrilled, as it seemed everyone found something that spoke to them in her paintings—her beautiful happy smile unwavering the entire night.  It was easy to see Soren was struggling—and for good reason—what Arturo was doing to Jillian—it was something we all wanted him to pay for dearly in the end. Fortunately, Mother’s worry stone, enabling him and Altalune to see Mattias, seemed to help Soren, if only slightly. 

I just hope that the young girl can heal from what she has endured over time. Knowing Mattias as I do, Jillian’s mate will be the most understanding of men...and like his cousin, Nicholas, incredibly patient...

After the party ended, Constance and I accompanied Mother and Horacio to her room, where Mother informed my Goddess of her new relationship with the Spirit Walker Beta. As she always does, Goddess handled it all with grace—instantly congratulating them both and telling them she couldn’t be happier to hear the news—every word genuine and sincere, which is probably why Horacio informed my Goddess that she was his favorite Crescent Moon—with the exception of Mother, of course. 

I couldn’t argue with him—I felt much the same way—though Constance, Mother, and Raven were tied in my favorite spot. My Goddess was happy because they were happy—because she loved the beauty of love, which is one of the many reasons why I will love Constance for eternity... 

Following that, we informed Mother that our design for the tattoo to be placed on my chest representing my stunning mate had been chosen—an image of the moon phases that was known as—The Triple Goddess.

“The Triple Goddess?” Horacio curiously asked, “What is that?”

“It is a beautiful symbol for a tattoo, that’s what it is!” Mother excitedly exclaimed, explaining, “The Triple Goddess is the phases of the moon, love. When the moon is waxing, she is the maiden—new, carefree, and full of potential. When the moon is full, she is the mother—caring, nurturing, and loving. When the moon is waning, she is the crone, knowledgeable, wise, and experienced. The Triple Goddess has always been worshipped, just as my Jace worships his exquisite Moon Goddess, Constance.”

“Well, that’s incredibly romantic,” Horacio breathed out in awe, “It would appear Jace is much like his mother—incredible with meaningful words and interpretations.”

I laughed as I unbuttoned my black dress shirt before Mother brought forth her dusty green light. Running her fingers over my chest, right above my heart, she formed a hazy-looking dark black sky that faded ever so slightly towards the ends, etching out the full moon in the center, which she made appear to be shining brightly with a white shading extending outward all around the radiant circumference.

Mother then made striking crescent shapes of the bright waxing and waning moons on the sides, adding a bit of texture to the waxing side with roughened edges, while the waning moon was smooth, but contained a bit of darkness in the center to complete her masterpiece. To my joy, she also added a little something extra...

“So, I am able to find all of the most important women in my life now at any given time?” I smiled brightly, looking up at Goddess before placing my fingers on my new tattoo. 

Instantly, Goddess’ body emitted a beautiful light blue glow that matched the color of her gorgeous eyes, extending out towards me as she giggled, “Ohhhhh! That tickles!”  

I let out a chuckle as I removed my fingers from the magnificent tattoo that I found myself completely enamored with as Mother giggled then, “I realize this is becoming an addiction for you, my darling, but perhaps now that you have all three of the women you love dearly represented upon your skin, you will be appeased for at least a bit!”

“I don’t know,” Horacio admiringly told her, “I’m thinking I wouldn’t mind a few more myself.  Rather a nice look, Jace.”

“I think so too,” Goddess lovingly cooed, running her fingers along her new favorite, “I love it, Auntie! Thank you!”

“It is a fun way to express my artistic side, I suppose,” Mother admiringly exhaled out, cupping my elated face in her hand, “and I can’t deny that my handsome son pulls the look off very well! I will selfishly admit that the bright full moon is my favorite part—the light—the mother, both because of what it stands for and the fact I can’t wait to see you both as parents—and the beautiful grandchildren I will be gifted with one day!”

************

 TATIANA

Standing with Raven and the rest of our Power of Five, we had just finished our training and I couldn’t have been more pleased with our quick progress. Loa was also excited about what we had been able to accomplish, feeling energized by the effects of combining powers...

“I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed utilizing my magic so much!” she eagerly exclaimed, “I can’t wait to tell Mahan what we have accomplished here today.”

“Yes, it appears our efforts have been met with more success than I ever anticipated. And I too find it very fulfilling,” Persephone happily relayed, “I have to say, this will be a tremendous benefit to the integrated army. The Council should be pleased.”

Rolling down the sleeves of her beautiful soft pink cotton dress, Raven warmly returned, “More than pleased, I think. Nicholas has already mentioned to me that they would like us to join Lorenzo and Soren on the advisory board that will be formed once they retire from The Council.”

“That should be interesting,” I amusingly sighed out, “I wonder if they are aware of those future intentions yet.”

After our humored laughter died down, I decided it was time to let the girls in on my intentions for our first mission together, “After we rest for a bit, I would like to call a quick Council meeting to discuss a little trip I would like for us to take to see what we can really do with our combined powers, if you are all on board with my plans.”

“A little trip to where, Sister?” Reina curiously inquired, “What are these plans of yours?”

Looking around at each of their puzzled expressions, I resolutely informed them, “A trip to the entrance to the Forest of The Vines—to see if we can not only reinstate the use of the Power of Three’s magic there, but twist Frieda’s own spell to once again outsmart the leader of The Chosen.”

************

After explaining the details of what I hoped to accomplish, the girls were all in agreement with my plan—as were The Council. While we weren’t sure if it would work, each of us knew that we had to at least try...

Soren and Umar had alerted their men of our arrival and soon after, we appeared a short distance away from the entrance. Clutching Raven’s hand in mine—as her magic was not blocked there—we allowed our powers to combine. Carefully harnessing a portion of our young Firebird Phoenix’s overwhelming magic, I closed my eyes, painstakingly focusing on balancing the immense weight of combined power while conjuring up a vision to make sure the forest was clear of any guests, grateful when my first attempt was a success and found it empty.

Each of us taking in a deep breath, we proceeded with our first undertaking of five powers becoming one as two shades of stunning pink, a glittery stream of silver, a stunning deep shade of blue, and my gleaming emerald green began circling around our feet at a blinding velocity before the particles began to blend, forming a large beam of brilliant multi-color light. All eyes popped open simultaneously, our irises brightly shimmering with each of our individual trademark colors, as my full concentration went to the job at hand—carefully separating the potent stream into two, directing one beam to Raven to help keep balance on the enormous weight of power. 

In perfect sync, we five continued to expel our powers as Raven and I began working together to dispel a glistening colorful aura around the entrance of Frieda’s claimed land. As it hit the spell put in place by my greatest foe, crackles of purple began putting up a fight against our invasion, but bright smiles soon crossed all our faces as it appeared we overpowered the magic that had been placed there, carefully cloaking our invasion to keep Frieda unaware. 

Linking out my instructions to put in place our own spell on the Forest of The Vines, we continued our secret operation, making sure to throw our energies into not only continuing a consistent flow of our powers, but keeping hidden any knowledge of our presence whatsoever from both Frieda and Amelia. 

Working slowly and methodically to make sure our plan was carried out to perfection, it took a bit of time to engulf the entire forest, an exhaustive effort that I hoped worked...

After we finished, the girls and I took a moment to catch our breath. Informing Nicholas that we felt the effort had been met with success, he and The Council requested to join us as we tested out our theory...

After discussing it, the newly formed Power of Five decided it couldn’t hurt to apply a bit more cloaking as a safety net for good measure—The Council watching in awed wonder as we became one unit once more—before we all slowly and cautiously entered the forest, soon making our way to the clearing and Frieda’s home...

“Hello, Frieda,” I slowly drawled out as I usually would in my condoning greeting, “I hope you don’t mind our visit, but I have a question for you today.”

We all waited for her shaky, maniacal voice to reply—but received nothing—silence—just as I had hoped...

Looking around nervously, Persephone muttered, “Sister, do you think it worked?”

“Well, there is one way to find out if Frieda is giving us the silent treatment,” I confidently grinned, “Perform an action she can't help but respond to. Shall we give it a go, sisters?”

Reina and Persephone anxiously nodded before we all three shot a stream of mean from our palms, thrilled as each of us hit a branch of one of the dead trees high up a great distance away, the limbs falling hard to the ground as matching grins crossed everyone’s expressions when the silence continued following our strikes—our first mission was a SUCCESS!

Walking up to stand beside Loa, Mahan proudly looked down at her, breathing out, “Well done, ladies!” before kissing her tenderly.

“So, Frieda has no idea,” Soren satisfyingly grinned, “She is completely oblivious to what is occurring in this precious forest of hers?”

“Completely!” I excitedly replied as Nicholas and Madeline came to stand on either side of me, beaming in response. Nicholas placed his arm around my shoulders while I elatedly continued, “And both she and Amelia will remain unaware until the time is right for us to take the upper hand in the forthcoming battle to defeat them and bring our boys home!”

***********

After we arrived back at Crescent Moon, we found the training field in front of the main house was quite a flurry of activity. His enthusiasm for learning endless, Caelus had requested Jace to work out with him so that he could see firsthand the differences in fighting techniques at Crescent Moon...but it had turned into a bit more after others had taken notice of them in the ring...

“What in the world is going on here?” I jaw-droppingly asked as we saw the field full of wolves, several of whom were huddled together, looking back at my Caelus like they were plotting something.

“The only way I can describe it is an ego-filled snowball effect,” Priscilla drolly answered, “Seems Caelus and Jace’s workout drew curious spectators. Afterwards, a challenge was made by Carson—to see who would win a face-off between them. Caelus won—tossing Jace out of the ring quite heftily with a beautiful hit to his chest. And from there, others have decided to attempt the same feat for bragging rights. It’s been quite interesting to watch. Caelus is undefeated thus far—he is a very talented young man.”

Vivian appeared very impressed with him as she enthused, “So far, he’s tossed out Jace, Carson, Zayn, and even a rather irritated Tink, who feels Alastor, Horacio, and Umar were biased in their judgement of the call.”  Snickering slightly, she added, “Truthfully, I’m on her side—she wasn’t completely thrown out—barely had one foot over the line.”

Chuckling softly, Nicholas replied, “I’m not sorry I missed that argument. Maybe I should go down and make sure it’s kept fair.”

I was glad to see Celestia had joined them as well, smiling brightly at her as she softly said, “Caelus will be excited that you’re here, Tati. He was hoping you could see him in action—he is so much like Umar—he’s even surprised me a few times.”  She grinned before continuing, “His dad and Unc are very proud of our boy right now.”

“I’ve been told of Caelus’ impressive progress from Kingston,” Soren replied, intently watching his young warrior, “He has outshined all the other young students in his group—no one can touch him. I’m looking forward to seeing this myself.”

As Nicholas walked towards them, I looked over to see Alastor, Badru, Umar, and Horacio watching from just outside the ring, animatedly talking with one another, their arms all folded across their chests.   Umar and Horacio’s pride-filled beaming smiles brought a smile to my face as well.

Zayn and Caelus’ wolves were preparing to face off again as the others watched from the side. Beast and Jace had shifted back to their human forms, calling Caelus over for a moment before sending him back to the center of the field to a waiting Zayn. Circling around one another, it was clear that Caelus’ massive black wolf was built exactly like his father’s—Zayn’s huge muscular dark grey wolf, while impressive, appeared outsized in the match. 

Loud growls, snarls, and snaps of their jaws rang out before Zayn made his move, powerfully lunging forward, his huge paw reared back to strike, only to have Caelus bat the paw to the side before Zayn was hit with a swiftly thrown forceful hit to the center of his chest by Caelus’ other paw, sending him flying back, unsteady and fighting to regain his footing. 

Caelus wasted no time making his next move—attacking the unbalanced Zayn, charging directly at him, jumping high over Zayn’s wolf as he turned his extra-large body around mid-air to land solidly behind him, facing his target while simultaneously lunging forward, his front paws wrapping around the middle of Zayn’s wolf. Turning Zayn sideways, Caelus sent Zayn to the ground, before making his next power move—vigorously lifting Zayn in the air and mightily tossing him out of the ring.

Soren boisterously laughed out, “That’s my boy! Kingston is going to love hearing about this!”

I heard Zayden laughing hard then, standing close by with Remi and Jade, humorously stating, “Man, that kid has got some power! He’s going to be quite the force to be reckoned with in no time between his brute strength and the way he picks up new maneuvers so quickly. I have no doubt Zayn is as ticked off as Tink right now! You may need to go over there and console him, Jade.”

“Caelus’ confidence and reactions on the field are much like his father’s,” Mahan admirably stated, “He carries himself quite well on the field to be so young.”

“Which is why I have seen a bright future for him,” I eagerly boasted, “While there are still decisions to be made that may shift his future slightly, Caelus will do great things no matter what path he chooses. He will be quite intimidating and respected greatly for his talent, foresight, and intellect.”

After Zayn’s ousting, Jace decided to have some more mock battles, showing the strengths and different aspects of our Crescent Moon wolves—a request I had no doubt was made by Nicholas. His own curiosity peaked, he watched Caelus intently as the young man concentrated on each lesson, executing each move beautifully under Jace’s direction.  

As I continued to watch Caelus, a vision of new possibility for Caelus came to mind—one I was surprised had not occurred to me earlier—leading me to have a few conversations while the workout continued.   After it was done, everyone appeared to have enjoyed the impromptu workout immensely—even Tink, who avidly bounded towards me.

“No matter what anyone tells you, I was robbed, Auntie!” she resolutely protested, as Beast chuckled behind her, “Don’t care what they say—I was still in! But it seemed to give Caelus a little confidence, so I’ll try not to bring out the Dark One to inflict payback. Crusher is awesome, by the way!”

“Crusher?” I giggled, “That’s Caelus’ nickname?”  

Grinning wickedly, Tink laughed out, “Well, yeah! Didn't you see him? Completely crushed the competition! Kept the C for Caelus—man, he’s sneaky! Powerful too, like Umar. It was nice having a little competition out there. I could definitely come up with some killer moves for him!”

“Mmmmm,” I murmured, a satisfied smile on my face, “I’m sure you could.”

Directly after, Tink nonchalantly brought up the fact that they all saw Jace’s new tattoos, each of them impressed with my little trick and enamored by my work. In fact, my Auntie’s army members took another vote, deciding that the fairy tattoo should be a symbol of our group, making Tink their official representative to make their request, deciding she had the best chance at talking me into it. Soon, Carson, Zayden, and Zayn requested tattoos as well—even Nicholas and Alastor showed a bit of interest as they joined in on the conversation—making it very clear I had unexpectedly started a new desired trend among the children...

“I wouldn’t mind one, Auntie,” Caelus sweetly grinned, “But mom and dad said I have to wait until I’m eighteen—birthday present, maybe?”

“I believe you have started something, Tati,” Mahan amusingly teased, “A new expression of your incredible artistic abilities.”

“I’m not sure tattoo artist is something I expected to have on my resume,” I humorously replied, eyeing my children warily, “I’ll think about it.”

“Oh, come on, Auntie! At least allow your army to all have one,” Tink charmingly pleaded, “Please?”

Directing my delighted gaze around to Soren, Nicholas, Alastor, Umar, and Celestia, who all smiled in return, as I breathed out, “Hmmmm, I suppose that would be a rather nice symbol for Auntie’s army—and would make Caelus rather happy as well—guaranteeing him a tattoo on his birthday.”

Caelus’ eyebrows shot up, chuckling as he curiously asked, “What do you mean, Auntie? How does that guarantee me a tattoo?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, my darling,” I kindly replied, “I should probably wait to see if you even accept my invitation to join Auntie’s army.”

Caelus’ mouth slowly gaped open as he croaked out, “Wait—what?”

“Just so we are understood, it has been agreed by all involved that you will only be training with the team for now,” I decisively told him, softly explaining, “I want you to learn, Caelus—take in all the knowledge and experience that will be at your disposal. And when we all feel the time is right, you will be allowed to participate as a part of our unit—a wonderful opportunity to work alongside your father.”

“Nicholas and I feel it will also be a very good experience for you before joining the integrated army, if you accept our invitation, when the time is right, of course,” Alastor kindly told him.

His eyes connected with a very pleased Soren, Caelus politely asked, “And I have your permission, Alpha Soren?”

“You have my full support on this, Caelus,” Soren pleasantly replied, “You’ve earned it, my boy, and I’ve already discussed it with Kingston, who agrees it is an excellent decision for you. We both feel it will be a good resource and a much needed challenge for you.”

Swallowing hard, Caelus looked over at Umar and Celestia, who were standing to the side with their arms around one another, thickly asking, “Mom? Dad?”

“It’s up to you, son,” Umar lovingly breathed out, “Your mom and I are on board with it if it’s what you want. All we ask is that you be patient and trust those involved to know when you are ready to be fully integrated. It’s quite an honor to be offered this kind of opportunity at your age, Caelus. You’ve earned it but know there is a great responsibility that comes with it and do as Tati has asked—what we are all asking—take the time to learn and train. I know you...you will earn that tattoo in no time.”

I giggled as Caelus started bouncing with excitement, before I let out a stunned “Umph!” soon after, when he lunged forward, barreling into me as he excitedly locked me in a crushingly tight embrace. Lifting me into the air as I fell into a fit of breathless giggles, he ecstatically exclaimed, “Thank you, Auntie! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ll make you proud, I promise!”

“I believe that is a yes,” Nicholas laughed out, as everyone lightheartedly responded to Caelus’ overjoyed reaction, “Well done, Caelus—and congratulations! We all can’t wait to see you continue to flourish as a part of Auntie’s army. For now, just try not to break her in your excitement, please!”