Page 10 of Full Moon
Chapter 5
Feray
Dreams of fieldsof snow and endless mountains fill my mind. The vision of a cavern made of ice, yet looking like diamonds carved into a tunnel. My wolf wants to pull me north. She wants me to run home. I'm trapped. My body is restrained, and I thrash, growling and snapping at what's holding me. The tearing of fabric and a hiss makes my blood run cold. The temperature is dropping around me.
Finally, I'm free, and my eyes fly open.
My mates are all staring at me in various states of shock. The area around my paws is coated in frost. I look at Khal's basilisk, and his side—apparently where I bit—has ice on it. The shock forces my shift back, and I stare at what I've done. "I didn't mean it. I was trapped..." Panic seizes me as I stare at my mate's frozen scales. Guilt consumes me.
"It's okay. It'll thaw." Torben moves alongside me.
"How?" I motion toward Khal, more shocked than anything.
"I have my suspicions." Diaval moves forward, his hands out in a placating manner. "The closer we get to where your bloodlinehails from, the stronger your birthright will become." His dragon's eyes surface as he studies me.
Khal shifts back and smiles. "No harm done. A little frost can't hurt me." The weight on my chest lifts slightly. But the truth remains—I'm a danger to myself and others.
"Feray..." Easton calls my attention back to him. He shifts his weight from foot to foot. "We need to ask your wolf to do something." The doctor is never usually anxious about anything. A little shy when it comes to asking for what he wants from me occasionally, but that's about it. The rest of the time, he can be a pompous ass. My brows furrow as I search his features.
Torben clears his throat, drawing my attention. "Feray, only your wolf can find the passage to the north."
I look down at my still naked body, then back up at him. Something deep in my gut tells me he's right. Nothing in my memory knows where to go, even though I can feel a pull in a direction I don't understand. Without hesitation, I shift back to my wolf and look up at Torben. My ears twitch, hearing the guys finishing loading the car, then getting into it.
"Little wolf." His large hands cradle my wolf's head. I preen under his intense gaze, my wolf wanting nothing more than to please her mate. "Lead us to your true home." He presses a kiss to my muzzle, and instinct drives me to turn and run.
My head whips toward where the tugging pulls me. I bark several times, trying to get my mates to follow. Every muscle in my body is coiled, ready to take off through the woods. Torben runs to the SUV and gets in. The minute I hear the motor start, I turn toward the road. The crunch of rocks under the tires tells me the vehicle is moving. Instinct drives me to run.
My paws fly over the rocks and dirt. The air whips through my thick white fur as I follow the tugging deep within my chest. The instinct to migrate north, the call deep within my blood, is the only thing I hear. The sound of the car is drowned out by the thundering of my heart and my paws on the road. Every scent feels more and more familiar to my wolf.
Each leap forward feels like a pulse of something known, every muscle surging with purpose. I can feel the cold northern wind already, its promise echoing in my bones. My breath comes in quick, visible puffs, blending with the crisp, clear air. Instinct can be a bitch. My thoughts turn to Fi, wondering if where she is looks as beautiful.
The road stretches endlessly, yet I push harder, faster, my paws barely touching the ground before lifting again. My fur streams behind me, a white comet against the earthy canvas. I don't think I've ever moved this fast in my entire life. Miles melt away under my paws as I follow where my instincts guide me.
I slow down as the road comes to an end. The SUV is now useless. The forest itself seems to have reclaimed what may have been the rest of the road. Ruins stick up out of the underbrush ahead, and I know the path forward will not be easy. I pause, whining softly, my gaze fixed on the direction I need to go. With as strong as the pull is getting, I'm not sure how long I can wait.
"Give us a few more minutes, then walk so we can keep up, Feray," Torben calls. His voice is a lifeline as I battle the urge to keep running. The forest feels like it's pressing in around me, almost hugging me. Welcoming me home. My head whips from the path ahead to my mates, who are gathering the bags from the trunk.
"She's getting impatient. I don't know how long she'll wait for us," Torben says, trying to catch my eye. His steady gaze is the only anchor against the rising tide of my restlessness. The urge to remain by his side versus the drive to run feels like a tug-of-war in my head.
"We're ready," Easton calls.
It's as if someone has dropped my leash. I turn and start trotting ahead, my paws falling silently on the forest floor. I veer off the existing trail, carving a new path following the pull. Easily, I leap over fallen trees and a small creek.
"This is an ancient part of the forest that most fear treading," Diaval says as I leap over what's left of a half-fallen stone wall. "It was once one of the wolven kingdoms that went missing almost thirty years ago. War ravaged this land on and off for nearly a hundred years. The monarchy went extinct just shy of sixty years ago." His voice is a soft echo in the silent woods. The kingdom itself fell almost five years before my birth.
"Was this before the last war started?" Khal asks, his voice strained as he climbs over the stones.
"The southern war started between the packs almost thirty years before this kingdom fell. The king who ruled here was turned down by Lyra's father for her prospective hand in marriage."
I stop and look back at him, tilting my head. My ears flick as I listen to the surrounding forest. Every rustle of leaves, every distant bird call, feels laden with ghosts. Diaval approaches and kneels before me, his eyes searching mine.
"Years ago, marriages were arranged when the females were born. Sometimes arranged marriages were signed before any children were born to secure alliances. Finding your true matewas unimportant. The only thing that mattered was pack stability and strengthening bloodlines." His regret is palpable. He doesn't need to say more. His sorrow is evident in the way his eyes soften, in the way his shoulders slump slightly under the weight of history.
I dip my chin to him, then sit. There's more to the history I need to hear before I can move forward.What about my parents?
Diaval notes that I've sat waiting and sighs. "Your mother was hesitant to meet your father. She was a dreamer. The stories of true mates and the feeling of the mate bond snapping into place filled her heart with hope." He motions to our family.
I tilt my head, narrowing my eyes.You knew her?I say through the bond, my tail thumping against the soil.
