The Luna's of North Haven

Chapter Seven Elena

I gasped for air, opened my eyes, and looked around, I was surrounded by darkness. "Am I dead?" I thought. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness I noticed a little spec of light in the distance. The little voice in my head told me that if I headed into the light I would be dead. I closed my eyes and started thinking about my short life. I felt tears stream down my face. There was so much I hadn't gotten to experience.

I stood and sighed. I took a few steps towards the light and suddenly the darkness gradually subsided to reveal a hooded figure standing nearby. I screamed! If I wasn't already dead I sure would be.

"Who are you?" I yelled. "Where am I? I must be dead because you  just scared me to death."  

Then I heard the most angelic voice "So many questions, little wolf." The figure removed the hood to reveal the most gorgeous women I'd ever seen. She had a perfect face, eyes the color of the evening sky, long black hair, and curves in all the right places. She stepped closer to me and caressed the side of my face. I leaned into her hand and felt a warmth spread throughout my body.  

I leaned into her hand, "There is no way I'm still alive." 

She laughed the most beautiful laugh I have ever heard. "I am the Goddess of Night. You are not dead but you have had a close brush with death.”

Was it possible to fall in love with the Goddess of Night??! Because she was perfect. I gazed into her eyes. "Holy s**t!" Was all I could manage. 

Again she chuckled. "I have come to give you a vision."

With this, she took my hands in hers and within seconds the scene shifted and I was alone.

I looked around, frantic. I was standing in the middle of the woods and In the distance, I could see a familiar house, that I recognized as the North Haven pack house. As a safe place, I'd known for years,  I ran towards it.  As I ran through the forest, sweat started dripping off me and the cold Autumn air of Northern Michigan did nothing to cool me down. The closer I ran towards the house the further it seemed to move.  A wolf howled in the distance and I slowed to a stop. "Who the hell was that!" I thought, peering into the night.  I took a deep breath and my senses were overwhelmed with the smell of sewage.  My heart was beating so fast the sound was deafening as I strained to get my bearings.

The wolf howled again, this time sounding closer. My body was on high alert so I began to run again when all of a sudden my foot caught something and I fell hard.

I looked up at the dark wooded area surrounding me and sighed. I stood up and started to assess the damage. I put pressure on my ankle and winced at the pain. "Of course I’d be the dumbass that falls, hurts her ankle, and is the first to get killed off by the psycho! I watch too many horror movies." I thought to myself. I knew since I was injured it would take little time for whoever was out there to catch me. My best bet was to shift into my wolf form and bolt to the pack house. I took off my t-shirt and relaxed my breathing. 

“Elena” A man's voice called a few feet away. 

At the sound of his voice, my blood ran cold, my breath hitched in my throat, and my heart stopped! I didn't recognize the voice but the way I naturally reacted to it made me realize this was not a friend. 

“Elena, I can smell you. There is no point in trying to run. A little weak she-wolf like yourself would never outrun me.” he said again.

I quickly stripped the rest of my clothes and shifted. I don't know how I managed to complete the shift when I was so on edge. I started off with a jog to see how my ankle would fair. I got a few feet away when I saw him.

He was tall and muscular. His black hair was a matted mess and he looked as though he hadn't showered or seen the light of day in weeks. His clothes were tattered and baggy on his slender frame. As I made eye contact his red-tinted eyes bore into my soul. He moved closer to me and reached out to touch me. I recoiled and snarled at him baring my teeth.

“Oh, Elena! You dare challenge an Alpha!" He snickered. He reached out and grabbed my snoot. "Now I can be compassionate so I will give you two choices. You can either bow and I'll forget this happened. I'll take you back to my house and make you my wife. Or I will kill you."

He let go of my snoot and stepped away from me. I closed my eyes and focused on the adrenaline pumping through my veins. Every fiber of my being told me to run but I knew deep down that there was no way I was going to submit to this creep, Alpha or not. I took a deep breath, opened my eyes, and stood with my head held high. I made eye contact with him again and growled a deep growl that impressed me.

He took a step back not expecting me to choose this path. "Very well. Now I am going to kill you!" 

I watched as he shifted, ripping the already tattered clothes to shreds. As he shifted I should have taken advantage and killed him at his most vulnerable but I was rooted in place. He completed his shift and shook out his black fur. He looked at me and howled. In comparison to me, he was not much larger which for an unranked she-wolf was pretty impressive.

We circled each other for a few moments sizing each other up. He snarled at me and lunged. I was able to dodge his attack and in turn, snap at the back of his neck. We exchanged blow after blow and eventually, I became tired, one more hit from him and I fell hard on the ground. I felt my wolf's presence fade from me and I shifted back to my human form. He followed suit and shifted.

"I'll give it to you this much Elena, I am impressed at your ability to keep up with me. But it looks as though the fight is over." He said coolly.  Then he smiled "Although, the sight of you naked and bloody underneath me is turning me on."

"Please. No." I whimpered realizing that I was about to die.

"You have chosen your destiny!" With this, he started his shift to reveal his wolf teeth. He snarled one last time and then clamped down on my throat. I screamed out in pain and then everything faded to black.

My eyes opened and I was once again surrounded by darkness. My hands shot to my throat as I frantically felt around for the wound I had just received.  To my amazement, there was nothing there. The Goddess of Night was still standing in front of me.

"Goddess. What does that mean??" I asked shaken.

"I do not know for certain as every choice you make leads to a different ending." She said

"Well, which choice do I choose to avoid that??" I said barely above a whisper.

"Again little wolf, I do not know. What I do know is staying here will lead to this ending."  She said grabbing my hands once again. The room spun and the scene changed.

It was a grey, cold rainy day and I was standing at the back of a crowd in a cemetery. I pushed my way through the group to the front and was shocked to see my mother standing in all black in front of a casket, crying. I saw Becca standing next to her also crying. My stomach churned and I knew who was laying in the casket.

"Goddess. I think I've seen enough." I muttered.

The image I had seen faded and once again I was standing hand in hand with the Goddess. 

"Why me?" I had to ask. 

"Because I know that you are strong enough to do what must be done!” Once again she touched my cheek and wiped a tear away. 

"I have so many questions, Goddess," I whispered.

"And all of your questions will be answered in due time but at this moment I need you to wake up. You've been asleep for far too long!” She said as she pulled me into a hug and planted a kiss on my forehead. 

As soon as her lips made contact with my forehead the floor dropped from under me and I fell. The further I fell the brighter the light around me became.