The Prophecy

|| Chapter Two ||

The sun had just broken free from the horizon, but Alexander had already been awake for a few hours. The dream kept occurring again and again only the final time, instead of a wolf being attacked, it was a girl. She was petite with long dark hair and a determined set to her jaw. It was almost comical seeing a 5 foot nothing girl go up against five large bears and he would’ve laughed had he not experienced the pain of being slashed across his back and his abdomen as she was attacked.  

He had taken a seat on the verandah with his second coffee and had just leaned back with his eyes closed when he heard footsteps approaching from behind.  

“Morning Matthias, morning Jasper.” He mumbled, never opening his yes.

“Alpha.” They replied in unison. 

He opened his eyes just enough to stare at the pair, one blonde and one with dark auburn hair, before sitting up and taking a deep breath. “Why the formality? It’s too early for this.” 

Matthias spoke first, “there’s something you need to see Alpha”.  

Alexander stared at his two best friends, his brothers, and c****d an eyebrow at them. They had grown up together, trained together, and when their fathers retired, they had risen through the ranks together. Now they lead the most powerful pack in the world, surely there’s nothing so important to look for him at sunrise. But seeing their serious expression, he sighed and rose to his feet. “Alright, let’s go.” 

They walked through the house towards Alexander’s office, passing omegas as they tidied and prepared the house for the day. Greetings of Alpha, Beta, and Gamma were murmured but they paid no heed. Matthias and Jasper moved with a certain sense of urgency and Alexander, well, nobody interrupted Alexander. The sight of one of them was enough to send the omegas a flutter but having all three marching through the halls was a vision. Each stood well above 6 feet tall; Alexander with his dark swept-back hair, piercing blue eyes, and built chest, Matthias with long blond hair tied to the base of his neck, green eyes, and slimmer figure, and Jasper with his shock of red hair shaved neatly into a crew cut, hazel eyes, and a muscled figure covered in tattoos.  

Alexander took his seat behind the desk and studied his beta and gamma carefully. “So?”  

The pair stayed standing and Matthias pulled his phone out from his pocket. “I received 8 calls during the night, all from panicking betas across the world. They were all attacked simultaneously. There were many casualties.”  

Alexander let out a soft snarl, the blue in his eyes slowly darkening. “So?” He asked again. “We don’t worry ourselves with the business of werewolves. Packs fight over territories all the time. We do not get involved.” 

“This isn’t a petty squabble alpha. They were attacked by warlocks and bears. Some were attacked by vampires. Some were assisted by rogue wolves!” Jasper interjected. 

Bears? Vampires? Warlocks? Wolves? What?  

Matthias typed on his phone and behind Alexander, a screen illuminated with a map showing the locations that were attacked, and what by. The attack points were spread out over every continent. Besides the simultaneous nature of the attacks, there doesn’t seem to be any other patterns.  

Alexander rubbed his eyes and blinked at Jasper. Groups of supernaturals don’t usually team up like this. Bears are solitary creatures, warlocks tend to hold themselves up in their derelict hermit shells, vampires only are only concerned with sating their hunger, and rouge wolves? He almost laughed. But teamed up together, he can see that they pose a threat.  

“Alright, let’s send a team of warriors to each of those 8 packs. They’ll serve as protection and I want them to perform an investigation into this before reporting back to us. 10 to each should suffice?”  

Lycanthropes were older than werewolves, stronger. It is said that they were the originals, descended from an ancient bloodline from the beginning of time. The wolves were younger cousins that while independent, still looked upon the lycanthropes for support, guidance, and leadership. Lycans were respected for their strength and wisdom but feared for their ferocity and temper. The Lycanthrope pack ruled from a distance and kept their distance. 

10 Lycans would be equivalent to at least 50 wolves in a battle. 

Despite the custodial nature of the Dark Moon pack over all wolf packs, wolf business was not something that packs would usually bother them about, but a threat of this nature was definitely in the Lycan’s jurisdiction. But Alexander was still wary of sending his men; he knew they were more than capable, yet he could not help but be concerned over their wellbeing. Lycans were often hunted by other supernaturals who believed the old magic that runs through their veins could increase the potency of, well, of whatever they were cooking up. Now he was sending them were large gatherings of these supernaturals were occurring; it felt like he was sending them to a trap.  

He could see that Matthias and Jasper had the same thoughts and was about to ask if they had better suggestions when the door to his office creaked open. The three men jumped to their feet and faced the door to see a petite older lady with long white hair enter the room. She smiled sweetly at the men.  

“Elder Willow!” Matthias greeted as Alexander approached her and led her to a chair. He kissed her cheek softly and said “Grandma, to what do we owe this very early visit. I hope we didn’t wake you?” 

Willow’s eyes twinkled brightly at them then suddenly clouded over. The men gaped and stood watching her, Alexander held her shoulders tightly. In a raspy voice, she recited –  

“They will rise from darkness 

In the night that is starless  

They attack at dawn 

The most precious fawn  

As they gather 

Her power falters 

The wolves will fall 

The Lycans crawl 

She will hold 

Your heart so bold 

In her hands  

The powers of old  

With her as mate 

She will hold your fate  

The daughter of the crescent, the son of the dark 

Only then will you find your spark” 

Willow paused and took a final breath. Her eyes cleared and confusion overtook. “Hello boys, why am I in here?”  

The three stared at her. She stared back. 

“Did I do it again?” She whispered, uncertain. As pack Elder, Willow was also the pack Seer, the mouthpiece of the great wolf. Through her, she speaks his wisdom; it was wise to pay attention when he speaks. 

Matthias recited the poem back to her once again. 

“A prophecy! The old prophecy!” She exclaimed. She jumped up from her chair and hurried to the bookshelf, faster than any lady of her age should move, and pulled out an ancient book. While tattered and fraying at the corners, the gold symbols on the corner shone as brightly as the day they were stamped.

“Here” she gestured. 

True enough, the same prophecy was printed on the page that was adorned with diamonds and crescent moons. “Has something happened?” She asked as she examined the page. 

Matthias hesitated and without looking up she said, “Come now Matthias Brown, you know I used to be Luna back in the day, I’ve still got it.” 

He sighed and recounted his report of attacks in the wolf packs, of the supernatural beings gathering a coordinated attack across the continents. Willow’s eyes were as round as saucers and she hurriedly flipped to another page. “Here.”  

The attacks had happened once before. The rouge wolves, with the help of supernatural friends, had coordinated an uprising 800 years ago, wiping out almost all of the werewolf population and half the Lycan population. Only the Alpha and the Luna of the Dark Moon pack were able to subdue and overcome the threat, but they must do it together.  

There was an illustration on the opposite page – a large black wolf with teeth bared standing next to a white wolf with a diamond on her forehead. Alexander stared at it stunned. My dream… 

“Alex? Alexander? ALPHA!” Jasper yelled. 

Alexander snapped to attention. “What?” 

“Did you hear what Elder Willow said?”

Alexander looked from Jasper to Matthias, and finally to Willow. “What?” He repeated.

“You must go to Crescent Moon Pack and claim your mate. Only she can put a stop to this before it is too late.” 

He stared at them, bewildered, and a laugh escaped his lips. “You’re kidding right? A mate? I had my mate grandma. This must be a mistake.”  

Willow just stared at him disappointment clear in her eyes. “Second chances aren’t unheard of my boy.” She continued to mutter under her breath and stalked out of the room. 

---

When Alexander opened his eyes, he was standing in an unfamiliar hallway. A peek outside the window showed familiar scenery. The fight…  

A commotion from the room down the hall broke his thoughts and stepped into the door, finding himself within the medical center. Doctors surround a bed with a patient covered in bandages and tubes. He could see black smoke rising from the patient’s abdomen.  

His gaze moved to her face and recognition took hold, it was the girl from his dreams. As they unwrapped her bandages a large gash was revealed; bloody and leaking putrid-looking bright green fluid. Her heart monitor beeped incessantly until suddenly, silence overtook the room. There was a roar from the opposite side of the room as a tall man with dark hair and eyes stalked towards the bed. An older couple followed behind. Alpha and Luna Rhodes, interesting.  

Alexander moved closer to the bed and stopped in his tracks. Sharp pain in his chest knocked the wind out of him and he stumbled onto his knees. He clutched his chest and looked up as the doctors yelled and held paddles to the girl’s chest. The air was trapped in his throat and he felt like he was drowning. Beside him, the young man was on his knees clutching her hand, Alpha Rhodes was holding his sobbing wife.  

He moved then, crawling on his hands and knees towards her. He took her other hand, holding it gently, feeling the soft cold skin beneath his fingers. Panting, he brought her hand to his lips. 

The heart monitor came to life again. It beeped slowly, weakly. Alexander found that he could breathe again. The young woman clutched his hand tightly. As Alexander reached out to touch her face he was sucked into a vortex.  

---

Alexander woke up with a start, again. His chest hurt, he was breathing heavily, he was confused. The image of the girl fighting the bears had plagued his mind throughout the day and had stayed in his mind as he called his flavor of the week to his bed. It played in his mind as he had grabbed her blonde hair and realized that alas, she would not do.  

He had sent her away and returned to bed alone. And now, he had made up his mind.  

Matthias. Jasper.  

He felt Jasper groan in his mind. You grumbled about bothering you at 5am, this had better be good Lex.  

He laughed as he got out of bed and grabbed an overnight bag from his wardrobe. 

Get up boys, we got to go.