A Gift from the Goddess

Chapter Sixty-Four In the past timeline, | was sixteen when | first realised | had feelings for Aleric, eighteen when | knew | was in love with him.

All my life I'd grown up believing that he would be mine one day, hoping | would make him proud. | was groomed, controlled, and moulded to becthe perfect Luna from the moment | was born.

I remembered my first shift, how it felt once | saw him with the mate bond connecting us. It was like the air around him shimmered, beckoningforward, demanding that | gravitate around him. If | focused enough, | could even still recall how his skin felt on mine; like tiny sparks of pleasure wherever it touched. So strong, an incredible leader, and capable of feats in battle no one else had accomplished. Those were the good memories of Aleric I'd buried.

So why was my mind surfacing this now? Maybe | was trying to justify to myself that at one point in my life I'd wanted this. That the old Aria would have revelled in this moment. To wear an Alpha‘’s mark was regarded as the highest point of honour any female could achieve in a pack. So what did | want now? 1 ... Did my wants even matter anymore? What choice was there if it was this or war? Though, if there was anyone else in the room whose desires should have been taken into consideration, they were standing by Tytus's side... looking furious.

Aleric’s eyes held that sglint in them that I'd seen right before he’d killed people in the past. The look of cold fury you didn‘t want to find yourself the subject of.

“No,” was all he said to Tytus, his voice like ice.

Several people aroundflinched and | couldn‘t blthem for feeling that way. If you weren‘t used to seeing Aleric like this, it could be a scary sight to behold the first time. And from what I'd seen of him in this life, it was rare to see him like this now.

But rather than flinch, a combination of mixed feelings swelled insideinstead. | didn‘t want him to mark me, sure, but a small remnant insidestung at hearing the srejection from him again that I'd repeatedly heard in the past.

“No, I'm not doing that,” Aleric continued.

“Alec, I'm not asking you,” Tytus replied flatly.

“I should have a choice-.” “You did have a choice,” Tytus interrupted. “You chose to help Aria cover this up for the last few months. You didn‘t think | realised that already?” The two stared at each other with such silent hostility that the lower ranks in the room shifted uncomfortably under the pressure. It was like a tangible air of enmity filled the room around us.

Finally, Aleric broke first, turning his face to the side in frustration, his teeth gritted.

It was submission.

Without further argument, | watched as he then walked towards me, eyes cast down, every step making uncertainty churn insidethe closer he came.

What was he feeling right now? Anger? Frustration? No... this felt like something else.

He finally met my eyes when he stood only a few feet away and | saw something unexpected as ! searched for my answers. His face softened immediately from the ice that had been there only moments earlier... and instead he looked ashamed, embarrassed... guilty even.

Chapter Sixty full And as he halted in place, | looked back as stoically as | could, Il wasn’t going to make it easier for either of us if | betrayed how | felt at that moment. How terrified | was of lying myself to the future of uncertainty i‘d tried so hard to avoid. But, without a word, 1 silently gatlieved my loose hair up in my hand and brushed it to the side, giving him clear access to the area ho‘d need, If this was the price of saving thousands of lives, of saving Cai, then so be it, I'd always imagined growing up that this moment would be special, more intimate, i queas all of that could have been disregarded and | would have just selled for someone who actually wanted to markMaybe | should have found someone from the Winter Mist to do il months ago. Aller all, it wasn't like Tytus could un-markand a person from this pack wouldn‘t cause a war like Coi would have But, deep down, | had to believe that Alenc had changed, that we had changed. Perhaps he still didn‘t wantin that way this taround, but maybe the friendship wo‘d forged over the last few years would prevail enough to ensure it wasn’t a repeat of tragedy “I'm sorry,” | whispered when he finally stood next to me, He rubbed at his face uncomfortably before sighing. | wished the Goddess had givenan ability to read minds rather than the cursed vision atrocity she'd bestowed instead. How | so badly wanted to know what he was thinking.

Aleric shifted before hesitantly placing one hand on my shoulder, the other supporting the side of my head, and slowly, he moved in. | could feel his warm breath along my neck and my body reacted, tensingu p in anticipation of what was about to happen next “Breathe,” he remindedsoftly and | nodded my head ever so slightly. He must have realised I'd been holding my breath since before he leaned in Could he feel my body trembling? Hear my heart racing? Surely he'd have lo since he was so close, courtesy of his enhanced senses. Or maybe he was too preoccupied with the task at hand, focusing on bringing his wolf forward enough to complete the job.

His grip suddenly tightened onand | squeezed my eyes shut, knowing what was about to happen next ...But nothing came.

“Do you trust me?” he whispered, barely audible even to myself, My eyes immediately flew open in surprise but | didn‘t know how to reply. It was already a loaded question even without the many eyes of the ranked council watching, expecting this marking to be happening. Where would | even begin to start answering that? But before I could reply, | felt him exhale.

“I suppose it doesn’t matter,” he whispered. “You're probably going to resenteither way He then pulled away fromand | caught sight of how dark his eyes were, proof of how close he‘d beent o marking me. Nervously, | swallowed, unsure what he was planning next “I'm not marking her,” Aleric declared “She’s not even of age yet Youre askingto mark someone who can’t even shift.” Tytus narrowed his eyes. “Alec, this-" “No,” Aleric said coldly, interrupting Tytus this time. “I'm not doing it.” With how close his wolf was to the surface, mixed in with his absolute determination to disobey our Alpha‘s orders, it was a dangerous sight. If | didn‘t know any better, | would have thought Alenc was planning to take this as far as challenging him. Was this his alternative? To create civil war instead? Chapter Sixty F OUI The sound of someone clearing their throat then sounded out; what felt almost like an intrusion to the display occurring in front of us. Immediately, everyone's eyes turned to the direction it cfrom.

It was Elder Luke.

“Alpha... with all due respect,” he started, “I'm inclined to agree with the young Alpha heir here. Putting aside the more morally questionable arguments to be made about marking someone underage by force, 1 would also like to point out that we don‘t hold much information in regards to the ramifications that biologically it would hold. By nature, the marking process is laying claim to the other's wolf, an instinct derived from our beast side. | feel as though we would be ignoring the obvious here if we went ahead with this, noting that Aria having no wolf yet is a possible risk. | don’t intend to tell you the best course of action here, of course, but it would be wise to keep in mind that this would be unknown territory, even potentially fatal. Because... well... I'm no doctor, but | imagine the girl's healing ability isn‘t yet equivalent t o someone of age... and we're planning to rip into her neck.” I'd never been so relieved in my life to hear that | might have just died moments earlier. It was enough to almost make my legs give out from under me. | knew this man was far too good for this pack. How many times had Elder Luke tried to rescuenow? The room was quiet, everyone realising that there was truth to his words. And this was probably what worried them as they held their breath, waiting for our Alpha to speak.

Tytus didn’t seem pleased with this reasoning, his mind probably focused on ensuring | was contained. In his head, it was probably still worth the risk or he‘d killanyway to guarantee no one else got their hands on me.

“This is the way it must be to ensure the prosperity of this pack,” Tytus concluded. “If we need to call for a doctor then so be it, but | don’t see any other way apart from completely chaining her up... and we all know her status will make that difficult to maintain.” He was referring to those who would see my obvious imprisonment within a jail cell as a direct insult to the Goddess. | wasn't sure if hearing his concern about it madehopeful or scared.

“Then we think of something else,” Aleric said. “Even if it means keeping her in silver handcuffs, I'm sure there is a compromise to be made here.” His words had been said in over-exaggeration, not to be taken literally, but shadn‘t picked up on the undertone.

“...What if we did something similar...,” a different Elder spoke up. | recognised them as Elder Nathaniel who typically was a voice of opposition for me. “What if we applied the sprinciple as silver cuffs, but adapted it to a more mobile and practical form? Say... a collar, for instance? Something to ensure that area of the neck remains untouched.” “... That could work,” Tytus replied in thought.

| took a step forward. “Wait... hold on a second-.” Aleric's hand grabbed mine to getto stop speaking and | looked up at him in outrage.

“They want to collarlike a pet dog,” | hissed.

He leaned over, his body towering overas he moved towards my ear. “Do you prefer the alternative, Aria?” he asked in a low voice.

...Was this really worse than being marked? Instantly, | bit my tongue and turned away, pulling my hand out of his grip forcefully.

In front, | could feel Tytus’' eyes watchingbut | refused to look at him. Was he gloating inside knowing I hated this idea? “Alpha, prolonged exposure to silver may also have unknown results, ” Alpha Luke chimed in.

“I'd hardly see the mild sensation that silver causes to the surface of our skin as anything of dire consequence,” Elder Nathaniel argued back. “So long as she doesn’t keep any open wounds near it, | would think the whole thing is harmless enough. No one here can deny that it would be the most effective way of containing all her abilities, all the while allowing her to still move freely. Within reason, of course.” The continued silence in the room was only more proof that everyone was actually considering this, that they were all in agreement that this would be the best way to proceed.

| turned to Elder Luke, desperately hoping he had sother argument to counter Elder Nathaniel, but he looked as though he was holding his tongue. Perhaps he did know of how best to argue back but considered this to actually be the only viable alternative to the marking. Was this mercy or a slow torture i n his mind? “Fine, then it's settled,” Tytus said. “Elder Nathaniel please work on having a collar fashioned for Aria immediately.” His eyes then narrowed towards me. “Not too loose though. | don‘t want there to be room for any...

stray Alpha heir teeth to get in.” He was referring to Cai. It looked as though he was refusing to let his hunch about us go.

“Oh... and one more thing,” he added. “I've shown leniency today, noting the advice from the council, but that will not be the case in the future. Upon Aria‘s eighteenth birthday, she will be marked by Aleric. That i s not up for discussion. The collar is merely a means to ensure we get to that point without issue.” Less than a year. | had less than a year before my real punishment would be carried out. What could | possibly do in such a short amount of tand with all my freedoms stripped from me? But there were still more important matters yet to be taken care of.

“Does this ensure the release of Cai safely back to The Silver Lake pack?” | asked. “That we won't be participating in a war with them?” Tytus sighed in annoyance, as if already tired of my existence in his presence.

“Yes, yes, fine,” he conceded, wavingoff. “War is far too expensive anyway.” He then gave the order for Cai to be let go and escorted to the border immediately, givingat least scomfort that all of this sacrifice had merit.

Texhaled, the fatigue finally hittingas the weight of all those lives coff my shoulders. Things could be set right now, even if it still left many more challenges ahead.

The hours that cafter consisted mostly of sitting around in handcuffs, surrounded by several guards whilst they forged the silver collar for me. Since | had no idea what the silver process involved, the hours seemed to drag excruciatingly slow as | had no indication of how long it would take.

At spoint during the wait, | realised Cai would have made it over the border and would be on his way halready. Was he thinking of me? His last memory of us was going to be in that meeting hall, fighting for his life as he was almost killed by my pack under false charges.

A part ofhoped he did hate me. At least it would make things easier to think that. | hoped that he would return hand continue on with his life... | hoped that he would be happy. Because if all of this had taughtanything, it was that the best thing | could do for the safety of myself, as well as others, was to try and forget about Cai... even if it brokelittle to even consider that.

The Goddess had said that she couldn‘t change my mate, that the destiny of Aleric and | was set in stone. It was starting to feel as though the more I tried to stray from that path, the more damage it was leaving i nits wake.

How in depth was the radius around that fate? Did it mean | was meant to return and play the role of Luna as well? Be the docile, quiet girl i‘d been in the past? Don’t ask questions, be obedient, act only in the interest of the pack and your Alpha, never yourself. Serve your mate to the best of your ability. What exactly was | meant to be changing if not the entire circumstances that lead to my original demise? | suddenly felt exhausted, now tired of fighting for the future. Couldn‘t someone else take over? Thea would be banned from the pack within the next few days and | couldn‘t see Aleric falling for her any tsoon. Maybe that would be enough... enough to stop whatever it was Selene wantedto prevent.

The Elders finally arrived then, the collar in hand, and they began the process of fastening it around my neck. | could feel the very mild burn sensation it caused to my skin but it was no worse than the cuffs that had been on my wrists only moments earlier. | was sure that soon | wouldn‘t even notice it at all once it becthe new norm.

“I wouldn't recommend trying to remove it,” Elder Nathaniel said, eyeingoff as | gently felt around the contraption. “It's been enforced with the strongest metal we could find so you‘ll only hurt yourself if you try anything. The only way to remove it is with the key and | believe Alpha Tytus said he will be keeping that on his person at all times.” ‘Brilliant,’ I thought miserably to myself.

The only thing | wanted to do now was go hand sleep. Maybe never go outside again. This abomination around my neck was an eyesore and not exactly discreet. The thought of the pack seeing m e contained like this was degrading and humiliating enough.

In a daze, | followed as they escortedout of the meeting hall and into a car. Several warriors followed and | assumed that was always going to be the case from now on. They might have strippedof all my abilities but they hadn‘t technically tieddown here yet. A mark would have causedpain had strayed too far from Aleric for an extended period of time, thereby tetheringhere. But a collar wouldn‘t do that. They would need to keep an eye onstill.

“Tto get out,” a voice said from the driver's seat, cutting through my thoughts.

| looked up and exited the car without paying too much attention... only to realise we weren't at my home.

“W-why did you bringhere?” | asked nervously. “I thought you were takinghome?” “We did,” one of the warriors replied. “Our instructions were to take you to where you‘ll be residing from now on.

The Alpha has advised that you're to be moved to the packhouse immediately in order to ensure, not only your own safety, but also to allow an easier transition for when you‘ll becLuna one day.” Lies. They just wanted to keep an eye on me, confineto an area that would be harder forto escape from.

| knew from previous experience in the past just how difficult it was to run away under the eyes of the packhouse... and that was before | had a collar on me.

“Calong,” a different warrior said, guidingwith a hand to my elbow.

Without hesitating, | quickly snatched my arm away from their grip. “I can walk by myself, thank you.” | followed behind as they ledforward, all the while wondering which of the spare rooms they‘d be havingstay in until Aleric becAlpha. | vaguely remembered someone once tellingabout a smaller room on the second floor that had nice sun in the morning. Maybe I'd be lucky enough to have somewhere like that to wait out the tuntil my eighteenth birthday.

But as they ledthrough the familiar hallways and stairs, a pit of uneasiness began to grow in my stomach.

...Because they weren't takingto a spare room.

They were takingto my old room. The Luna quarters. The very place I'd suffered abuse for years.