Moon Daemon

Chapter Eight - Moonmacy

"I can't believe that girl would be so stupid as to declare Moonmacy on Marrok's mate," Accalia mutters in the room with me. I walk over to the bed and sit down on it before I pass out.

"Accalia, I can't do this," I tell her.

She looks up at me and her eyes soften when they meet mine. "Okay, look, I know you're new to the whole wolf thing and everything that comes with it, but I promise you, you can do this."

"It's a full moon," I groan. "I can't fight when the moon is lighting the sky up as much as it does."

"It's a good thing because you were challenged, you get to pick where the Moonmacy takes place," she says.

"What?"

"The one who declares Moonmacy is able to pick the date and time of the fight," she explains. "The challenger gets to pick the location."

"Really?" I ask, feeling slightly better.

"There is a arena that is normally used, but it is not a requirement, the only requirement is the parameters of the location," she tells me.

"So, I can choose the woods?" I ask.

"You can," she nods. "But there is going to be a quarter mile radius, you're not allowed to leave that."

"That's fine," I say. "I dont need much room."

"This should be easy enough for you," Accalia tells me. "All you have to do is shield yourself and attack."

"Marrok says it won't be to the death," I tell her.

Her eyebrow raises, before nodding. "Makes sense. If the Alpha were to lose his one true Mate, he would also lose a significant amount of strength. He's going to make it for banishment, not for death."

"Is that good?"

"Loser is the first one who can no longer fight, they receive banishment from the Dark Moon Pack and become rogue."

"Rogue?"

"A wolf without a pack," she explains. "You get sent out into the world without a pack and have to fend for yourself."

"That was me literally two days ago minus the wolf part," I say. "What if that's not enough for Nova?"

"It's not her choice," Accalia tells me. "It's Marrok's."

"Okay," I whisper.

Accalia's eyes glaze over for a moment before returning to mine. "Okay, the location is set."

"What? How?" I ask.

"Wolves within a pack have a way of communicating to one another telepathically," she informs me. "I told the others you chose the woods."

"You can do that?" I ask.

"If you become marked to Marrok, you should be able to too," she smiles.

"Even though I'm daemon?" I ask.

"Unclear at the moment," she laughs. "We're in uncharted territory."

"There is one more thing you need to know," she says. "There is a way to end the Moonmacy before it starts."

"How?" I ask.

"If the one who declares it puts an end to it before the first attack happens," she informs me. "But it has to happen before the first strike. If you can get her to back down before that, neither of you will be declared loser."

"But she would have to give up her claim on Luna," I mumble. "She's not going to do that."

"She's wise enough to understand the consequences of this Moonmacy," she says, reaching for my arm. "Even if she wins, she does not automatically get declared Luna. She's doing this because she wants my brother."

My stomach sinks in jealousy thinking about another woman wanting the man who kissed me so tenderly this morning, and held me all day when I slept.

"That's not going to happen," I mumble before realizing I said it out loud instead of my head.

"No, it's not," she agrees. "Get dressed. It's almost time."

"What do I wear?" I ask.

"Something you can fight in," she smiles. "I'll meet you outside when you're done."

I lay back on the bed as she leaves the room, breathing deeply. This is just confirmation about how little I know about wolves and their rules.

After a few minutes of staring at the ceiling, I hear a ping from the nightstand next to the side of the bed I slept on last night and see the light from my phone. I groan and stand up, walking over it it and seeing a text from Marrok.

'You okay?' It reads.

'As I can be,' I respond.

'It was smart putting the location in the woods. Did Accalia explain the rules?' he texts.

'Yes,' is all I manage to write back.

'I will be there the entire time. Come down when you're ready.'

I put the phone face down on the nightstand, pulling myself from my position and walking over to my bag that I packed a couple outfits. I pull out black leggings, and a tight fitting workout shirt that's flexible. I wrap myself up in an oversized black sweatshirt and pull the hood over my head.

I walk from the room and am instantly met with Accalia and Rollins.

"Ready?" Accalia asks.

"As I will ever be," I tell them.

"I'm so sorry Rae," Rollins says. "I should have dismissed her before she got the chance to declare Moonmacy."

"You didn't know Rollins," I smile softly.

"Tell that to Marrok," he huffs. "I have extra training for the next month."

"Why?" I ask.

"For putting you in danger," he laughs. "Don't worry about me. I can handle a little extra training."

"I'm sorry," I whisper.

"Not as sorry as I am," he offers a small smile. "Let's do this."

They lead me down to the front door of the castle. As we pass other wolves, I can hear them whispering to one another and laughing. I pull my hood down further on my head, so I am shielded, when I hear a growl escape Accalia's throat and everyone stops whispering and scurries away.

"They've never seen a Moonmacy before," she tells me. "This is the first time it's been declared here in a long time."

"I thought this was normal," I say.

"Our pack is pretty tightly run," Rollins says. "We don't have much rebellion or people fighting for power. Everyone is pretty happy here."

"Except Nova," I grumble.

"I told Marrok to stay away from her," Accalia says. "She's been nothing but a b***h since we were children. She was so positive that she was going to be mated to Marrok, that when he turned eighteen she would find any reason to be around him just to get him to claim her. When she turned eighteen two years later and realized he was not her mate, she was furious. Started lying to everyone and claiming he rejected her."

"Then why would he sleep with her?" I ask, a pang of jealousy overriding my stomach.

"Alcohol," Rollins says. "After I mated with Accalia and Conan mated to Tala, he was upset he hadn't found his mate yet. He went to a party and drank too much. Woke up the next morning and told her it would never happen again."

"And the others?" I ask.

"Marrok is twenty-eight," Accalia says. "That means he went ten years without knowing who his mate was. That's really depressing for a wolf."

"Oh," I mumble.

"There is nothing like the mate bond in this entire world," Rollins says. "Even though Marrok may not be the most innocent man in the pack, he is 100 percent commited to you."

"I should know," Accalia says. "Rollins was a bit of a she-wolf lover before I became eighteen. I was not his first."

"First mate though," he smiles, nudging her.

"Only mate," she smiles back. "There is nothing stronger than a mate bond."

"I sort of felt that when I first met Marrok," I say. "I used my powers when he was touching me and I had a surge of energy course through my body I've never felt before."

"Interesting," Accalia says. "Think about that during this fight. It could come in handy."

We arrive outside to the location of the fight a little before midnight. I can see massive wolves lined up in the trees, creating our limits. Marrok stands in the middle of them, still human.

Nova walks towards the middle of the circle, standing besides Marrok making me hiss out a breath. She has a smug smile on her face that makes me want to punch her so hard her mouth falls from her face.

"Calm down," Rollins says. "Don't show her any fear."

"It's not fear," I whisper. "It's rage."

We stop in front of them, the night is cooling down, a light breeze rustle the leaves of the trees before us.

"We are here for a Moonmacy declaration," Marrok calls to the others. "State your names and what you claim for victory."

"Nova," she says. "Declaring for the position of Luna."

All eyes fall on me, and I duck my head so my hood covers a little more of my face.

"Esmeray," I call. "Fighting for my rightful mate, Alpha Marrok."

I can hear shuffles and whines from the wolves around us. I look at Nova's face when I say Marrok is my mate, watching her smile turn into a snarl.

"As you can see, Esmeray is my rightful mate," Marrok calls to the others. "Therefore, this Moonmacy will not be to the death."

"What?" Nova shrieks.

"This might come to a surprise to you, Nova, but if you were to kill my mate, you would also be hurting your Alpha. Therefore, for the strength of this pack, this fight will be ended in exile."

"That's not fair," Nova yells. "She'll just go back to the outside where she was a couple days ago!"

"And not here," Marrok says. "If Nova wins, I will reject Esmeray as my mate, and pray that the moon goddess blesses my with another. If Esmeray wins, Nova, you will be banished, and live out the rest of your life as a rogue."

"I'd rather die," Nova snarls.

"Dying would be too easy a way out for you," Marrok looks at her and growls. "You declared this on yourself Nova."

"Good thing I won't lose," she grins, reaching out to touch his arm. I move in frustration, not sure if I was about to send an attack or what, but Rollins puts his hand on my shoulder to stop me.

"Don't strike first," Accalia says. "Remember, there's no going back once you do."

I watch as Marrok shrugs her hand from his arm and takes a step away from her. "The time has come. Challengers, prepare yourselves."

Marrok leaves Nova's side and approaches me.

"Will you truly have to reject me?" I whisper as he gets close enough.

"That's the only way I can keep you from dying, or killing someone, which you stated you did not want to do," he says, touching my shoulder. "You can do this."

As he starts to turn from me, I realize this could be the last time I ever have a chance to be next to him, so I grab his arm, turning him back towards me and reaching up to kiss him. I feel the electricty pulse through my body from our embrace, and the energy in my soul ignites.

"Now I can," I whisper as I let go. I see Nova behind him furiously pacing.

Marrok, Rollins, and Accalia move from the center of the circle, and I look around one more time at all the wolves. I unzip my jacket and remove it from me, allowing it to fall to the ground beside me. My long black hair drops around my body and whips in the wind. I hear the wolves shifting around and whining and I find myself wondering what they're saying to one another.

"Call it Marrok," Nova shouts.

"That's Alpha to you, b***h!" Accalia growls from behind me.

"Enough," Marrok calls. "Begin."

"You're lucky Marrok decided to make this about banishment," Nova smiles at me, her bones started breaking and her body starts to shake. "I was going to kill you."

"Nova," I call as soon as her wolf comes to surface. I know I can't speak to her directly, but I'm hoping she can understand me enough. "You can stop this right now."

Her wolf growls and digs at the ground with her massive paw.

"You know I am a daemon," I call out to her, and the others who can hear. "You never figured out what kind of daemon I am. You cannot win this fight."

Her wolf growls again.

"She's saying it doesn't matter," Marrok calls to me, interpretating.

"It does, Nova," I tell her. "I don't want to hurt you!"

Her wolf growls, then so does Marrok, so I decide I don't want to know what she said to him.

"I don't want to see you banished," I try one more time, but with no luck.

I watch as her wolf digs her paws into the ground and she launches herself at me. I duck and roll out of the way, my back scraping on ground, drawing blood.

"Fine," I mumble, looking at Accalia for confirmation that was the first strike, and when she nods her head at me, I turn on the offensive.

Nova's wolf launches at me again, her teeth barred and spit dropping from her jaw. I throw my hands up and catch the enormous wolf in shadows inches from my face. She stays there, lifted in the air, surrounded by shadows, looking around confused.

"You should have asked," I growl at her, throwing my hands and her very being to the side. She lands with a loud 'thud' on the ground and rolls into a tree.

The other wolves are growling and whining now, shuffling their feet at my display.

"Yes," Marrok calls, more so that I can hear what he's saying. "Esmeray is a Shadow Daemon!"

Two wolves on the side start to howl, and I look back startled at Marrok.

"It's a sign of respect," he tells me.

Nova's wolf gets up and shakes herself off, looking at me with furious eyes. She launches again and instead of just stopping her like I did the first time, I shield myself and disappear.

I move from her attack and watch as she lands, looking around for me desperately. She starts sniffing the air attempting to find me. Her wolf starts to panic and whine, looking at Marrok.

"You declared Moonmacy on a daemon, Nova," he says. "You knew this fight was going to be different."

She growls.

"There are no rules stating she can use her own gifts in battle," Marrok claims. "This fight is fair."

I realize she's telling Marrok that I am cheating, and while the idea of attacking her when she cannot see me fills my heart with joy, I know that the others are going to think I am a coward.

"Fine," I call, dropping my shield. "I'll give you a handicap."

I knew this would piss her off, and she turns to me, snarling, before charging to my position.

I throw my hands up and the shadows around me form a barrier that Nova's wolf runs straight into, knocking her backwards. Her wolf starts growling and snarling so intensely, I know she's getting mad. I start to form more barriers around her wolf, locking her in a box, when the moon once again betrays me. The position of the full moon hits the exact place in the sky that lights up a hole in the trees, causing my shadows to fail me. The arena is suddenly much brighter than I would have wanted it to be.

Nova realizes that the light is my weakness and lunges again. This time I dont have enough shadows to form a shield, and she locks her teeth into my shoulder, causing me to cry out, before she throws me ten feet to the side, causing me to land harshly on my shoulder and roll.

I look up at her and see her running towards my position and look back at Marrok, seeing the fear in his eyes brightly reflecting from the moonlight. I watch, in what seems like slow motion as Nova's wolf charges towards me, and I feel myself blink slowly, wondering if this is truly how it ends.

I think back to Marrok, our kiss, and how much energy the mate bond gives us, and I feel my soul start to ignite. My hair starts swirling around my face and I focus everything I have into the next couple seconds.

I open my eyes as she gets closer in, but just as shes closing the distance, I see shadows forming around her feet and I throw my hands up, grabbing her paws with them and stopping her in her tracks. I look up and see a dark cloud sitting directly over the moon, giving me just enough time to react.

"Hekate," I think.

My shoulder is throbbing and I can feel the blood dripping down my arm. I stand up from my position and I walk over to where Nova's wolf stands, shadows covering her legs, preventing her from moving.

"Admit defeat," I tell her.

She growls at me, and I can only assume that she's saying no.

"How do I win?" I ask Marrok.

"You have to fight until one of you can no longer participate," he tells me.

I just point at her, looking back at him.

"Incapacitated," he rewords.

"I'm not going to break all her legs if she's just going to be banished," I tell him.

"Wolves heal quickly," Accalia says. "I'd personally like to see that."

I look around for anything I can use, before seeing my hoodie laying on the ground. I walk over to it, picking it up and bringing it back to where Nova's wolf stands. I use my shadows to lift Nova's wolf from the ground and lay her on her back. She's snarling and snapping at me, furiously, as I approach her.

"Stop!" I yell, gathering more shadows and placing them on her muzzle, forcing her head to the side so she can't bite me. I use my shadows to lift me up and start to use my hoodie as a rope to tie all her feet together. I can feet her thrashing beneath me, but I have just enough time before the clouds break and the moon reappears to get the knot tied.

My shadows break apart and I fall to the ground besides her, as she rolls to her side, her feet hog tied in my oversized sweatshirt, and she begins to panic.

I stand back up, looking at Marrok and the others, pointing at Nova's wolf on the ground, unable to move.

"Good enough?" I call.

Marrok stands there, his eyes wide with awe. He walks over to me and Nova, who begins whimpering.

"I'd say thats incapacitation," Rollins grins.

"I still say she breaks her legs," Accalia mumbles.

"Nova," Marrok says. "Admit defeat."

Nova begins thrashing again, my sweatshirt holding strong on her legs.

"Nova, this is just straight embarrasing," Accalia says. "Admit defeat."

Nova starts to growl again, before looking at Marrok and whimpering.

"If you can stand on your own, we will continue," Marrok says. "If you cannot, it is over."

I watch as Nova uses every bit of energy left in her body to attempt to stand from her position, but she can barely roll over to get a good stance. She tries several times before I hear her grunts become cries, and she finally lays her head on the ground.

"Winner," Marrok calls. "Esmeray!"

The wolves around us all start to howl, and I look around at all of them appearing from the woods. I hear some cheers from humans that were also in the background. I feel the smallest bit of accomplishment and joy, before I look down at Nova's wolf, who's eyes are a mixture of sadness, and revenge.