Fated: Alphas of the Compass

Chapter Three - Salt and Rain

I wake with a strange, fuzzy feeling in my belly and a warmth spreading over my arm. I rub the sleep from my eyes, and when I see my arm, I jump in surprise. My arms are covered in tattoos. Mate tattoos.

I jump out of bed, getting caught in the blankets for a moment in my rush. I fall, crashing to the floor before scrambling up and standing in front of the small mirror on the back of my door.

Both arms from wrist to shoulder are covered in colorful whirls and spirals, surrounding a full moon on each shoulder and a wolf howling up at it. The one on my left arm is a deep emerald green, and the other is black. I feel a warm sensation on my back and remove my shirt, contorting so I can see my back. I gasp when I catch a glimpse.

My spine is lined with the phases of the moon, but a light grey wolf head has taken the place of the full moon. Not only is the wolf my favorite color, but it's the color I had hoped my wolf would be when I shifted.

I stare in shock. Wolfless females never get mates, and I somehow have two?! This is not supposed to happen. I jump again in surprise when I hear a loud knock on my door. I put my shirt back on and open it partially, hiding my arms from view behind it. Erylis and Ellyana stand there, panting.

"I heard a crash. We wanted to make sure you were alright," Erylis says, catching her breath. Ellyana takes one look at my face and must realize that something is very, very wrong, because she grabs Erylis' arm and pulls her into my room, pushing the door and I aside. I hurry to shut the door after them, before I hear them both gasp.

"Is that a mate tattoo?" they both ask in shock. I nod, knowing I won't be able to hide it, and turn, lifting the back of my shirt so they can see the tattoo lining my entire spine. They both gasp, knowing this is most definitely not normal.

Ellyana recovers first, and shocks Erylis and I when she says, quite loudly, "Good goddess, what the hell, Stella?" We both look at her with pure shock on our faces, and she looks at us incredulously and shrugs. "What? I feel like this is a moment to be a little loud. This is not normal at all, Stel. I told you that guy was your mate, but who the hell is the other one?"

I think for a moment, before gasping as I remember the commanding man I met last night, again in the pack house. "I met another man last night when I took the welcome bags to the pack house. I felt drawn to him, and he smelled just as good as the first man, but it was different. The first smelled like smoke and cloves, and was so warm and kind, but the second was so cocky and cold, and he smelled like cedar and snow."

They both look at me with open mouths. Erylis finally finds her voice again and asks, "Do you get a name this time?" I shake my head, wishing I had asked for his name as well. Erylis rolls her eyes and sighs. "Does he at least know yours?" I nod.

"He asked me for my name, but he was so cocky about it. Lis, I don't want a mate like that. And he called me priestess, but it was so snide. He must be visiting from Aurora. You know they're the only ones who hate us that much. What if he rejects me because I have no wolf?" Erylis shakes her head and Ellyana puts her hand on my shoulder, squeezing reassuringly.

"Then he's stupid. You're wonderful, Stella. He'll be really missing out," Ellyana says, moving to my closet to pull out a deep purple priestess dress to match her own. We only wear them on special occasions, and part of me is excited over the prospect. It's my first time getting to wear it. "Do you think the other one is from the Aurora Pack? You said he was warm and kind, so I'm betting he isn't."

Erylis moves to take the dress from Ellyana and nods. "Maybe he's from Dawnrise? You know that's where I'm from, and priestesses are more revered there. Almost respected. And Nocturne is the same, isn't it, Elly?" she asks, turning to Ellyana with pleading eyes.

She nods excitedly. "Oh yes! There have been a good few females to come to the temple from Nocturne only because they choose to, even if they have their wolves already. Among some of the families, it's considered a great honor to speak for Lumina and Nocht."

I hum, a noncommittal sound, and take my dress from Erylis and step behind my dressing screen. The soft material slides over my hips easily, and I quickly button the panels together and position the hood. I step out after only a few moments and begin my daily routine of brushing my hair, putting on my small medallion necklace and flats, and grabbing my bag. Once I'm finished, we head out the door.

The priestesses always meet for worship in the mornings, even on celebration days. Today, we will be thanking Lumina and Nocht for the long reign of King Arden and asking for a long, benevolent reign for the next Alpha King, whoever that may be.

Erylis heads away from us when we reach the Hall of Light, the sacred space where worship is held, so she can begin the service, and Ellyana and I head to our regular spot in the front. When everyone is settled, Erylis lifts her hands and begins to speak about the blessings of Lumina and Nocht.

On celebration days, Erylis tells the story of how Lumina came down to Earth in the form of a wolf and met a lonely man named Nocht, who became our warrior God. She helped him hunt and offered him protection and companionship. In return, he gave her food, comfort, and companionship.

After a year of being in her wolf form, Lumina became tired and had to return to the heavens. She disappeared for three long days and three long nights. Nocht searched for her, but could not find her anywhere. He mourned for his companion, and Lumina mourned for hers. After the third night, Lumina returned to the Earth, this time in a human form. Nocht was delighted to see his companion, and the two became companions once again.

Lumina once again had to return to the heavens after one year, but she asked Nocht to join her. He agreed, and ascended to the heavens as our warrior God. Nocht and Lumina eventually had a child, Nailah, who became the first shifter. This was the origin story of our kind.

After the story, the priestesses with their wolves shift and move to the front of the room and begin to howl in harmony. Those of us without wolves join in and sing along to the haunting melody.

While we sing, I see a wolf I don't recognize. He's a deep grey with long, shaggy fur and silver eyes. I try, but I can't seem to take my eyes off of him. As if he feels me watching, his eyes move to meet mine and we stare at each other until the song is finished. I feel a warm sensation on my shoulder blade, and I know I've found another mate.

I grab Ellyana's arm and try to pull her out of the room, but she refuses. We always wait for Erylis after the service, who is always the last to leave. I sigh and clench my hands into fists, pulling my hood up. Maybe he won't see me with everyone else in here.

I feel a tap on my shoulder a few moments later, and I know that was just wishful thinking. I turn and see a male with the most beautiful blue eyes, smelling of sea salt and rain. I close my eyes and breathe in the scent, and he does the same with mine, leaning in until his nose just brushes my cheek.

"Mate," he growls, and I startle a little bit.

Without thinking, I retort, "Your mate has a name, you know." He looks at me, obviously startled, then gives me a cold, calculating smile and quirks an eyebrow.

"And that is...?" he asks, smirking at me as I stumble to respond. How can I be so cocky, but then stumble over my own name?

Ellyana stands beside me, taking the entire scene in, and finally manages to blurt out, "Stella, you have another mate? How the hell did that happen?" The man stiffens and looks down at me, startled but curious.

He quirks his eyebrow again. "Another mate? Tell me, little wolf, how many mates do you have?" He runs a finger down my cheek, and I hear a voice behind me.

"I could ask the same question, Stella. How many of us are there?" It's the man from last night. The cocky one that smelled like snow and the woods.

Before I can respond, another voice has joined in. "So your name is Stella. I wondered when we would see each other again. I didn't think it would be this dramatic, though. This should be very interesting." I turn and find the first man, the one with the warm smile who smelled of smoke and cloves, comforting and calm.

"I really don't know what's going on. I'm wolfless." I manage to say, flustered and nervous. I know they will probably all reject me, so I say, "I wasn't supposed to have one mate, let alone three." I look at my feet in embarrassment, but when a finger tilts my head up, it isn't any of the men I was speaking to before.

"Make that four, little mate," he says, and I nearly melt with the four of their gazes. Mated to four attractive men. What's a girl to do?