The Reborn

CHAPTER 1

The trees shook as Astrid ran through them fast. She could sense him coming closer and her adrenaline pumped even more. She was going to get caught if she didn't do something.

She suddenly stopped to face him and then, a second later, he launched at her with his claws and fangs out. She opened her mouth to scream but instead, a loud growl was heard and it came with impact, pushing him and everything that was infront of her away, leaving him landing hard on the ground with a thud.

She breathed heavily as she watched him stare at her with a shocked expression.

When she thought it was all over, he slowly stood back up with a menacing aura and with the speed of lightening, he was right infront of her with a dagger jabbed in her throat.

She could only gasp hard for air as she suddenly couldn't breathe anymore. It was all too fast. No. This shouldn't be happening.

"Astrid..." She could hear her name but his lips never moved. It only stretched wide to an evil smirk.

"Astrid!" The voice came again, but she couldn't see anyone. There was no one in sight asides from him- unless!

"Astrid, wake up!" She opened her eyes wide and sat up quickly with a gasp, her hands going straight to her neck.

"Astrid, are you okay?" Her friend, Ava, who had been the one trying to wake her up, asked as she tried to calm her down.

Astrid looked around quickly. She was back in her room and on her bed. It was just a dream. Nothing more.

She quickly brought her hands out away from her neck to see if there was any blood, but there was none.

She shut her eyes tight and took a deep breath, nodding at her friend who kept asking if she was okay.

Her breathing pace was slowly going back to normal when Ava dropped a bomb. "I'm glad you're okay but your father isn't."

Astrid eyes went wide open again as she turned her face quickly to Ava's direction. "Wh- what did you say?"

"He suddenly fainted while talking to the warriors and was quickly rushed to the healer." Ava quickly threw it all at her and like the shock from her dream wasn't enough, this news threw her off balance for a few seconds before she frantically scrambled off her bed and ran out of the room with Ava running behind her.

She ran barefooted through the forest, not also caring about what she was putting on as twigs went snapping with every step she took.

Her father was the Alpha and they only had each other. Her mother was late and she was the only child so they had no one else but themselves and now he was what? Sick? Her father had never been sick. Not since she'd known him as she came into existence.

He had always been strong, leading his pack with a fierce spirit. So what happened now?

Within minutes, she had gotten to the healer's house. A few council members were standing outside as she reached them with hard breaths. "Wh- where.... is m- my... father?"

Some of them spared each other quick glances before turning back to her. One of them spoke, "Astrid, listen. Your father is-"

She immediately cut him off with her index finger up in the air, telling him she didn't want to hear anything other than where he was. She was going to find out herself since they couldn't go straight to the point and tell her.

Ava then arrived as soon as she resumed her pace again, now running into the house. She had expected the men, who were guarding the entrance, to stop her from entering but they didn't. Why should they in the first place anyways?

She searched from room to room until she came into the one where the healer was standing and her father was bedridden, looking almost lifeless.

She slowly walked over to him, each step slower than the previous one.

"Dad." She called in a low voice. He gave no response as she neared him.

"Father, please say something." She called again, already standing beside the bed where he laid. His eyes were shut close without a single movement.

"Astrid." Someone called her name again and she turned her head to see who it was. She almost broke down on seeing Killian. He had been her mate for months now and truth be told she really needed him right that very moment.

She wanted to run up to him and hug him but her father needed to respond to her first. "Killian, fa- father... he's not responding to me. Come... come wake him up." She begged, her voice having a little c***k.

He quickly walked up to her, holding her up as she almost dropped down. He then turned over to the healer who was at the other side of the bed and asked, "What happened to him?"

The healer whose name was Tarus, was an old man who stood with his hands crossed behind his back as he stared at her father on the bed. "He apparently fainted while talking to the warriors. He was brought in here and well... I can't really say what is wrong with him."

He can't say? "What do you mean you can't say?" Astrid asked, looking even more worried and on the verge of tears. "What's his condition now?"

"It's critical. That's what I know for now." He turned to the table by his side and touched a few things on it before picking up a syringe and rose it up.

"That's all you know?" Astrid's blue eyes widened a little and glinted like a light flashed through them, "How is that possible? You're a healer. You're to know more than that."

Tarus didn't say a word and kept the syringe back down. He turned to check her father's pulse and then stepped away seconds later, his face still the same.

He finally rose his head to look back at Astrid, "The only thing I know is what I'm telling you girl." As if all that Tarus had said before wasn't enough, he then decided to drop the real bomb, "Your father is in a critical condition and he definitely doesn't have much time left."

Astrid is left in shocked as she stared at Tarus with her head shaking in denial. "No. No way. That's not possible."

"I'm afraid it is."

"He's the Alpha!" She shouted.

"Are you saying Alphas don't die?" He held a brow higher than the other as he looked at her.

She was speechless for a second, "Do you want him to?"

Now she made him speechless as he stared at her with a still blank expression. Tarus had always been like that, seeming uncaring and unbothered. Some says he acts like that so he doesn't feel too emotional when a dire situation comes around and just goes straight to work.

"Enough already. Astrid, you need to calm down." Killian says after a while and just when Tarus opens his mouth to say something, Astrid's father, Bastian, makes a sound.

Silence filled the room as everyone paused to be sure of what they'd just heard. After a few seconds, they could see his brows move.

Astrid quickly moves to her father, kneeling by the bed side as Killian stood behind her. She stared hard at him, praying to everything that had the power to help to come and help him. She then rose her head to look at Tarus who hadn't moved an inch yet and looked at him questioningly, "Aren't you going to do anything?"

"He's waking up. There isn't much for me to do." He simply answered.

Just before she could say another word, her father's voice interrupted her, "Astrid..." His voice sounded strained and sore.

"Father!" She called back, "What happened to you?" Tears had welled up in her eyes now.

"Oh, my daughter, Astrid. You... worry too much." He grunted as he tried to sit up but she stopped him.

"I worry too much? Look at you? You're dying on a bed right infront of my very eyes!" She couldn't hold back the tears that fell down her.

She watched the shock that flashed through his eyes for a second before he let out a light chuckle, "I'm dying?"

She swallowed, "That's... that's what Tarus said."

Bastian actually couldn't believe his ears. He was actually dying? He could feel it as his insides burned but it was still hard to believe. He turned to Tarus and he could tell what she said what the hard core truth. He could also see something else in his eyes that made him snort.

He turned to Killian and he had a similar expression.

Bastian slowly began to chuckle. It ended seconds later as it turned into a serious cough. By the time he removed his hand from his mouth, it was covered with blood.

He quickly turned to Astrid and spoke, "Astrid, my darling. I... I don't have much time left. I want to tell you something."

Astrid looked confused. Why all of a sudden? "What? What is it?"

"I want to appoint you." He simply said.

"What are you talking about, Bastian?" Killian who had been quiet since he woke up, finally spoke. He sounded and looked just as confused as Astrid.

Bastian continued nevertheless, "As you are my only descendant, I want to appoint you as the next Alpha who would lead this pack."

Um, what?!

All eyes went wide. Even Tarus looked surprised at what he'd heard.

"What are you saying, Bastian? You can't make a woman an Alpha. It has never been done. None of our ancestors have and it can't start from you." Tarus simply said but you could hear a tinge of anger in his voice.

Bastian turned to him with a smile, "Oh, but I already did." He suddenly took out his dagger and with a flash of lightening, he slashed his left palm and placed it on Astrid's forehead, "Now it's been sealed."

Another wave of shock went through all three of them as they watched him lift his hand off her face as his blood stayed plastered on her head. Just then two council members walked in to see what was happening.

Bastian then spoke again, "From this day henceforth, Astrid has become the new Alpha."

The new witnesses also went into their own wave of shock.

Astrid could only stare at her father in shock and confusion. She still wasn't understanding what was going on. Why was she being made the Alpha all of a sudden? Truly, a woman had never been an Alpha before. If the Alpha doesn't have a male child, the position is either given to someone else by the vote of the people or if he has a daughter, her mate becomes the Alpha. Now, her father had made her one when her mate was right there. Something seemed off to her.

Suddenly, he began to cough again but this time, it was worse than before. She looked at him but he was looking at the healer. She followed his sight and noticed that Tarus had injected him with the syringe he had been holding up before.

"You..." Her father tried to speak but his words were slurred.

She immediately turned back to Tarus, "What did you give him?"

He didn't reply at first and just took a step back, turning to the table to drop the now empty syringe. She asked again, now up on her feet, "I said, what did you give him?!" "Something to release the pain, Astrid. Or should I say..." He slowly turned, "Alpha Astrid."

The look in his eyes held something dark. The entire atmosphere suddenly became cold and her hairs stood straight.

She could sense it. Something dark was lurking around and she was soon going to find out.

Her father's dying voice brought her back to the current situation. As she stared into his blue eyes, his words sent chills down her spine. "Don't... let-... Fight!"

Right there, he took his final breath but it was only just the beginning.