Avenging Luna

It was nearing midnight as the moon reached its apex.  A small white crescent glowing brightly, giving a false sense of warmth in the cool night air.  We had known for some time that this night would come; trained and prepared each day for the inevitable.  But while we had spent the last few weeks waiting, nothing could have prepared us for the destruction that followed. For decades my pack, the Crescent Moon pack, had been peaceful with neighboring packs.  We forged treaties and created bonds through mattings and marriages.  While a challenge in many ways, my father, Alpha Rohan, argued that together we would be stronger and better able to protect the packs from harm.  Because of him, and my mother, Luna Isabella, I was blessed with a loving childhood and ran wild; free to roam the many lands of our allies whenever my wolf desired. It was that desire that would bring so much pain and heartbreak, and eventually redemption. Flashback: I will never forget that night, a month ago now, when they first attacked.  My mother and I had been called to visit a neighboring pack, the Horizon pack, and attend a she-wolf who was having a difficult birth.  Mother was well-known for her skills as a healer and midwife, and often called to help when females went into labor.  Though she encouraged me in following this same path, and often took me with her on visits, I showed little interest or aptitude for such skills.  Once the pup was born, safely tucked away in his mother's arms, my mother allowed the moment I had been most waiting for, as she said "There little one, now that our task is complete and all are well, you may go, run free and explore.  I shall tend the mother and babe tonight, and we will return home in the morning."  Though a bit annoyed that she continued to call me "little one" at the mature age of 17, I gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and promised to be back before daybreak.  Little did I know, that was the last time I would see my mother alive.