Page 55 of Bound

“How supernatural beings came into existence. Thousands of years ago, the Moon Goddess, Alaya, fell in love with a human man, Magnus. It was said to be the greatest love that the world had ever seen. But Alaya knew Magnus was mortal and would die one day. She was unable to grant him immortality, so she did the next best thing, gifting him with a much longer life than any human had ever had before.

“Alaya had to spend most of her time in her own realm, since the human world drained her energy. And Magnus couldn’t go to her realm, so she visited often.

“This worked well for a long time, and at first, Magnus was grateful for his extended life, allowing him more time to spend with his love. But when his mortal friends and family aged and passed away, leaving him alone, he started to grow resentful.

“He started to believe Alaya didn’t actually love him, but was toying with him for amusement. That his long life wasn’t a gift, but a curse.

“One day, Magnus met a beautiful young woman named Rosemary. She was so different from the dominant Alaya that he found himself pulled to her sweet, docile personality. They started to spend all their time together, and he fell in love with her.

“Soon they married and consummated their love. Alaya was heartbroken and furious, literally ripping a tear open betweenher realm and the human one in her rage. She called Magnus an animal and let the energy from her world enter him, turning him into the first wolf shifter.

“But she couldn’t control all the energy flowing from her realm, and it found homes in other humans, gifting or cursing them with other supernatural abilities. Witches, vampires, and a large variety of shifters were born that day.

“Other Gods from her world helped to close the rift, stripping her of her power and sealing her on their side forever. Nobody has heard from or spoken to any Gods or Goddesses since.

“Many of the newly created supernaturals were unable to control their new power and either accidentally or purposely started unleashing their abilities. Many humans died before they decided to start an uprising and started killing any supernatural beings on sight. This drove supernaturals into hiding, teaching them to live in the shadows and keep their powers secret from the rest of the world.”

I watch Gage with rapt fascination. I’ve never heard the shifter origin story before. It’s sort of beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time.

Gage flips to the next page and continues reading. “Many of the shifters that were created that day are still known to us today: wolves, bears, tigers, foxes, rabbits, panthers, to name a few. But there are many more dangerous ones that are believed to have existed at some point but have been hunted to extinction. Some of those include: banshees, basilisks, chimeras, dragons, dryads, gryphons, hydras, kraken, leviathans, manticores, merfolk, phoenixes, sea serpents, sirens, will-o’-wisps, wendigos, and wraiths.”

Dragons and leviathans?I hope I never meet any of those creatures; they sound terrifying. Although the thought of any species being hunted to the point of extinction doesn’t seemright either. We didn’t go around killing every human just because people like Dr. J existed, so what gives them the right to hunt us down?

Gage flips the page again. “The Danger Within,” he says, reading the chapter title. “The human uprising wasn’t the only thing supernaturals had to worry about. A new threat surfaced, known only as The Omegas. They had the ability to control a small group of supernaturals into doing anything they wanted. They somehow were able to connect their minds to a small group of supernaturals, signaled by a burst of power from the Omega. It was believed they were created by humans as an attempt to even the playing field in the war. Although that has never been confirmed.

“So supernaturals started hunting down The Omegas and killing them on sight. The Omegas who had control over others had them fight to the death to protect them. What followed was a brutal war that lasted many years. In the end, it was believed that all Omegas had been killed, and the supernatural community had been greatly depleted, so they went into hiding from humans, destined to live out their lives in secret.”

There is a collective silence in the room as I try to absorb everything he’s just revealed. I had no idea we had such a complicated history.

“We already knew all of this. Is there anything helpful in that book?” Chase asks as he lies down on his side.

Maybe this was common knowledge to them, growing up in packs, but all I knew is that we were created by the Moon Goddess, not the story that surrounds it. I let out a small bark, aimed at him then let out a small huff that sounds more like a sneeze.

“I don’t think she agrees with you,” Hunter says in amusement.

“Is that true, Red?” Gage asks, making me turn back tohim. “Was that all new information for you?” I dip my chin, and the only response I get is frowns from everyone.

“Why wouldn’t she know basic shifter history?” Chase asks in confusion. I let out a small grumble, wishing I could answer.

“You weren’t trapped or imprisoned your whole life, were you?” Hunter suddenly asks. You could cut the tension with a knife, and I quickly shake my head, which has everyone relaxing a little.

“I think it’s time we eat breakfast,” Maddox says, changing the subject.

“I’m going to dig through this book to see if there is anything useful,” Gage says as everyone climbs out of the bed.

“Come on, Red,” Hunter says, beckoning me away from my comfortable position in Maddox’s arms. I tilt my head up to look at him, and he smiles before kissing the top of my nose.

My entire body warms from that contact, making me feel more than just cared for. I feel a deep need for him that I don’t want to look too closely at, especially since I’m trapped as a wolf. His nose twitches and his eyes widen for a split second. I would have missed it if I wasn’t looking right at him.

He looks at the others as his arms drop from around me.

“Come on, angel,” Bain calls, his deep timbre making me practically jump to attention as I climb off Maddox’s lap and follow Bain out of the room.

Chapter 27

Cherry

The next week goes by in a bit of a blur. My days are filled with running around the yard with the twins in wolf form while Bain watches from close by. Then we go to the pond where they try to teach me to swim. I can do a sloppy paddle now, but I don’t like my chances of swimming on my own any time soon.