Alliance of Shadows, Book 4: DRESON

Awakening: The Wolf and the Druid

The next day, after we arrived at our coven mansion on Druid territory, Neil started feeling sick. I thought it was nothing, just travel exhaustion, but something about it scared Kaden enough that he bolted to get Alpha Henry.

While he was gone, I tried my best not to worry or show how afraid I really was, but when Neil doubled over and vomited his breakfast onto the lawn, the panic I had been pushing down surged forward.

His face was flushed, sweat beading across his forehead as his body convulsed uncontrollably. His eyes darted wildly, unfocused, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. He was terrified, and I knew it.

As I reached for him, my best friend collapsed onto his side, his limbs locking up before a raw, guttural scream ripped from his throat.

"It hurts, it hurts," he cried, his voice cracking. Curling into a ball, he hugged his knees to his chest and sobbed, his body trembling violently.

Where was Kaden? What was taking my brother so long to get back to us? Were they ignoring his pestering like always?

Kneeling beside him, I fought the rising dread, trying desperately to figure out how to help. "It's going to be okay, Neil. Kaden's gone to get help."

Neil’s breathing hitched, his entire body going rigid before another wave of pain wracked him.

"It hurts, Dre," he whimpered. "My body's on fire."

I held in my tears, swallowed my fear. "I don't know what to do, Neil. Tell me what to do."

He sobbed harder.

Suddenly, his clothes started tearing at the seams as his body began shifting out of human form. I yanked my hand back and scrambled away from him.

I didn’t know much about Werewolves, but I knew that things like this didn’t happen to little kids. Shifting only occurred when they turned sixteen—never before. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

"Neil, what's happening to you?" My voice shook, terror creeping in on two levels. One for him, and one for myself.

He tried to speak, but all that came out was a guttural growl, raw and unrestrained. A snarling, gnashing sound caught somewhere between pain and fury.

Neil’s back arched violently off the grass, his mouth opening in a silent scream. His heels dug into the dirt, his entire body rigid, trembling. He breathed through his teeth, each inhale and exhale forced through clenched jaws, a sharp hiss filling the air.

The fenced-in backyard, once a safe haven, now felt anything but. The wooden posts stood tall, enclosing the space like a fragile barrier against an unknown force. The grass beneath Neil was trampled, streaked with mud from scattered footprints left behind from play. A red plastic slide sat abandoned near the back porch, its surface scuffed and dulled from years of use. A faded blue swing, barely moving in the breeze, creaked softly from the metal playset.

Nearby, a few forgotten toys lay half-buried in the dirt—an overturned tricycle missing a handlebar, a stuffed animal crusted in dried leaves, and a soccer ball resting against the fence as if someone had kicked it there long ago and never retrieved it. The scent of damp earth and lingering childhood filled the air, a stark contrast to the horror unfolding in front of me.

Neil’s teeth sharpened into small, razor-like points as his jaw and nose stretched outward. His ears shifted toward the top of his head, fur sprouting rapidly over his skin. The clothes he had been wearing shredded, falling to the ground in multicolored tatters as he twisted onto his stomach, muscles spasming uncontrollably.

More afraid than I had ever been in my young life, I crawled backward, keeping my distance from the thing my best friend was becoming.

"N-Neil, I-I'm going to go get my mom, okay?"

"S-st-sta..." He was trying to ask me to stay, but the words wouldn’t form.

Suddenly, he let out an ear-piercing scream that twisted into a howl, raw and unrestrained. His shift was over, but now I was faced with a new problem.

How the hell was I supposed to stay calm when faced with a newly transformed pitch-black wolf?

I forced myself to take slow, measured breaths, fighting the instinct to flee. Alpha Henry had drilled it into us during training—never run from a wild animal. To them, it’s a game. To us, it’s survival.

But nothing about this felt like training. Nothing about this felt controlled.

Every fiber of my being screamed at me to bolt for the house, to throw myself toward safety, but I knew I wouldn't get two steps before Neil pounced.

The massive wolf took a step forward, muscles rolling beneath his jet-black fur. His growl vibrated through the air, low and warning, sending an icy wave of fear down my spine. His senses were sharpening by the second, and so was his strength.

"N-Neil," I stammered. "It's me, Dreson. Your best friend, remember?"

His brown eyes flickered with something unreadable, shifting between recognition and primal instinct. I had to think fast. My father had taught me spells—words of power that could save me. Magic I still had zero control over.

I blinked as Neil bared his teeth, ivory fangs gleaming in the dim light. He was watching me, waiting, assessing. One wrong move and this wouldn’t be my best friend standing before me anymore—it would be something else entirely.

I was terrified, but I knew enough to keep my distance and not get hurt.

Suddenly, he let out an ear-piercing scream that twisted into a howl. His shift was over, but now I was faced with a new problem.

He wiggled his backside, lowering himself to the ground as his every muscle tightened. He was getting ready to pounce. His brown eyes locked onto me, gleaming under the afternoon sun, their intensity sharper than ever. His claws flexed, digging into the earth, tearing small tufts of grass from the damp ground.

I barely had time to think as everything around me seemed to speed up and slow down at the same time. The backyard felt suffocating—familiar, yet suddenly dangerous. The wooden fence stood unwavering in the distance, enclosing us, but offering no real protection against the creature before me. The plastic slide leaned slightly to one side, its once-bright red faded from years of sunlight. A forgotten soccer ball lay partially buried in the dirt near the fence, abandoned from a game that no longer mattered.

Celestia screamed my name as she burst through the back door, Kaden hot on her heels. Their footsteps pounded against the wooden deck, cutting through the thick air hanging around us.

Neil sprang forward, his jaws open wide. The sharp, deadly points of his fangs gleamed, saliva dripping between them in thick strands. His powerful limbs pushed off the ground, sending bits of dirt flying as he launched toward me.

I took a breath, whispering a single-worded spell as I exhaled, holding my hands out in front of me. "Clypeus!"

The air around me shimmered, flickering with power as Neil drew closer. A faint hum vibrated through the space between us, the invisible force crackling like static before it struck. He yelped as he was pushed back by the Shield spell, his paws scraping against the ground as his body flew backward, landing several feet away with a heavy thud. Dust and scattered leaves billowed up where he hit the dirt, his black fur ruffled, claws twitching involuntarily.

My eyes wide, I realized that I had unlocked my magic on my own.

Yes, I was a few years earlier than most, and it was for my own protection, but I'd also done something wrong. My heartbeat thundered in my chest as the weight of the moment sank in. I had hurt someone with my powers.

Not just anyone, though.

I had hurt my best friend.

"Neil!" I turned my head as Alpha Henry ran out of the house, his movements swift and heavy.

"Damn it, we should ‘ave listened to Kaden sooner!" The man said as he ran over and lifted his son into his arms. His fingers pressed against Neil’s bare shoulders, searching for injuries as his expression hardened. Relying on his Alpha Command, Henry said, "Shift back, Neil."

We watched as the black wolf convulsed, trembling as the command forced his body to obey. His limbs spasmed, fur receding in uneven patches as his skin emerged beneath it, smooth but flushed. Bones snapped audibly, reforming as his muscles twisted, shoulders caving inward as his human body reassembled itself. It wasn’t a natural shift—it was painful, rushed, forced by the sheer weight of an Alpha’s will.

My father tore the shirt off his own back and gave it to Alpha Henry. Accepting it, he covered the boy in his arms and sighed, his grip firm but careful.

"Dreson," Celestia murmured, pulling me into her arms. Her warmth should have been comforting, but I barely felt it through the shock rattling in my veins. "Are you all right, sweetheart? You're not hurt, are you?"

My breaths shortened, the ache in my chest spreading slowly.

"Dre?" Her voice tightened, concern turning sharp. "Dreson, honey, talk to Mommy, baby. Dre? Rowan, he's in shock!"

I felt my body change hands, the motion fluid but detached, as if I were drifting outside myself. My father pressed two fingers to the center of my forehead, his presence steady and unwavering. "Somnum."

I could still hear everything that was happening around me, but now it was as though I was listening through a tunnel. Voices distorted, stretching into echoes, their urgency fading into something distant. I wasn't sure what was happening anymore as it all faded into nothing.

The weight of my father's Sleep Spell pulled me under, forcing me to rest.