Drawn To The Alpha 2 (2 page)

Chapter 3

As Sophia splashed water on her face from the little stream the next morning, she reflected on what a glaring oversight it was to have forgotten to bring a watch. There was a chance that travelling through the portal might have messed with it anyway, but how nice it would be to be able to check her wrist for the time rather than stare at the position of the sun in the sky and pretend that she had any clue whatsoever.

Still, it was a glorious morning. She felt like it was around ten o’clock when she emerged, blinking and bleary eyed from the cave. Her entire time in Oak Tree Forest so far had been in darkness. To see the sharp details of the clearing and the trees in the daylight almost seemed intrusive, as if she might discover some secrets that the forest would rather keep hidden. At the same time the sunlight felt safe. Werewolves weren’t the only ones who shied away from its warm rays. There was little chance of a Colti attack, and Sophia felt more than a little smug as she strode across the clearing without a single escort aside from her own shadow. It was nice to know that she had something over them – the werewolves and the vampires. Her confidence could use a boost. 

With her face tingling from the icy stream water, she prepared to head back to the cave. Then she hesitated. On a whim, she stripped all of her clothes off and briskly washed herself all over, all the while squealing with shock and delight. She washed her clothes as best she could then wringed them out and spread them over a hot rock to dry. She sat beside them and allowed her naked skin to soak up every ounce of warmth in the autumn sunshine. She turned her clothes every now and again, and after an hour or so they were dry and her skin was pleasantly pink. She dressed, grabbed her rucksack and wandered back to the cave, wondering if Dorin and the others were up yet.

As nice as it was to relax and rejuvenate, she was impatient to know her fate. She retrieved a small flashlight from her rucksack before entering the cave, something she’d forgotten about the night before. She’d cursed her stupidity when she remembered it that morning, gently feeling the large egg on the side of her head that was evidence of her folly.

She stooped down to enter the cave, standing back up as the narrow entranceway opened out. She switched the flashlight on then shrunk back in surprise. Werewolves lined either side of the wide tunnel, waiting for her, like a guard of honor. They sat with their backs perfectly straight and their eyes focused dead ahead. They were utterly silent. There was a sense of great solemnity in the air and Sophia instantly felt guilty for spending so long basking in the sun. She smoothed back her hair and stood up a little straighter, before following the tunnel past all of the wolves towards the large central cavern.

As the cave opened out, the ranks of assembled werewolves became three, then four, then five deep on all sides. At the very center sat Dorin, his white fur seeming to glow in the torch light. On his left was Reinhart and on the right was Van; the black to Dorin’s white and the keeper of Sophia’s heart. Her chest swelled to see him waiting there for her and she lifted her chin, walking with confidence to the center of the cave. She knelt down in front of Dorin, placed the flashlight down and bowed her head.

‘I’m honored to be here with all these werewolves on Virgin Island,’ she said aloud, so they could all hear. ‘And I thank you all for your warm welcome. I now wish to learn what I must do to fulfill both my Pure Soul duties and those of The Mother.’ It seemed rude to have a telepathic conversation with Dorin with everyone else looking and waiting, as they were just about to do. She vaguely wondered if all the wolves were aware of her fate already and she was the last to know.   

Dorin fixed his green stare on her.
Sophia. It is my deepest desire and that of all the werewolves present that you are indeed The Mother and the savior of us all. Last night was a joyous celebration that represented how eager the werewolves are that the legend of The Mother will indeed prove to be not a legend at all, but the truth. But we must be patient. The work of The Mother is not the work of a day or a night.

Sophia’s heart sank as she felt her and Van’s opportunity to return through the Oak Tree portal during this full moon rapidly fading.

First you must prove yourself worthy of taking on the challenge of The Mother,
Dorin continued.
To do this you must realize your destiny as the werewolf, Van Longshadow’s Pure Soul. Then you will be ready.

Sophia’s spirits lifted once more. Save Van first? That was exactly what she wanted to do. She looked excitedly at Van, forgetting that he couldn’t hear what Dorin was telling her. It was then that she noticed the dreadful sadness in his eyes. She frowned and turned back to Dorin.

I can see that the notion of saving Van first pleases you,
he said before she had a chance to question him.
It does you credit that you value your love for Van so highly and wish to regard him before any other. I wouldn’t expect anything else from our Mother. But there’s something you must know. Something that’s both a mystery and a serious obstacle.
He paused dramatically.

Well, what is it?
Sophia urged.

There is only one known way that a Pure Soul can save a werewolf.
Another pause. Sophia shifted her feet impatiently. Why didn’t he just come out and say it?

When he finally said the fatal words, she felt the ground drop away from her.
To save a werewolf, the Pure Soul must gift him her life energy. All of it. In the ultimate expression of sacrifice for her true love, she must die for him.

Chapter
4

‘I must die for him?!’ Sophia’s voice echoed around the cave. A few of the werewolves whined quietly. ‘But that’s ridiculous! I’m supposedly The Mother. How on earth can I save the rest of the werewolves if I’m dead?’ Anger flared inside of her and she felt indignant, wronged by this whole situation. She wanted to stamp her feet like a toddler and shout, “But it’s not fair.”

That’s the mystery,
Dorin replied calmly.
But like all great mysteries I’m absolutely certain that the truth will be revealed with time and patience. All I know at this point in time is that you will gradually become weaker and weaker as Van inherits your energy, and only when your life light dies out completely then the vigor within him will be strong enough to initiate his final transition back to a mortal man. 

‘Patience is your answer?’ Sophia retorted. She knew she was being rude, but didn’t care. ‘I’m supposed to just sit back and wait to die? Well, I’m sorry, but that’s not good enough. We don’t have time to wait around for the secrets of the universe to reveal themselves. We need answers, now!’ Her final word repeated back three times with the echo, reinforcing her impatience.

Dorin dipped his head to acknowledge her anger then, maddeningly, he gave a short bark that seemed to signal to the other werewolves that the meeting was over. They began to file away into the maze of tunnels or into the shadowy recesses of the central cavern to continue their daytime rest, leaving Sophia, Van and Dorin alone. Sophia folded her arms and clenched her mouth shut in bristly silence. Dorin said something to Van then turned to her.

Your emotions are natural and understandable,
he said.
We werewolves understand better than almost anyone the feeling of having one’s fate taken out of one’s hands. Give it time; everything turns out as it should with time.

And with that, he left. Sophia sat down with a plop and covered her face with her hands. She felt Van sit down beside her and, as usual, was reassured by his warmth.
Although,
she thought to herself,
I should probably sit as far away from him as possible, seeing as he’s leeching my life energy out of me.

All of a sudden a fit of the giggles began to bubble up inside of her. She tried to hold it down – what would all the werewolves think? But before long it burst out of her mouth, sending mad laughter into the shadows and making wolves sit up in surprise, eyes shining and ears alert. Sophia wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at Van. His face was worried, like he was thinking that stress might have tipped her over into insanity.
 

Don’t worry,
Sophia said.
I haven’t lost my mind. I was just thinking that this explains why I feel so tired after we have sex. You’re literally fucking the life out of me!
She began to giggle again.
Sorry – I don’t know why I find it so funny all of a sudden. I know it’s really not…
When she finally settled down the hilarity was replaced by a crushing wave of sadness. She looked at Van’s beautiful face and all she could think was how cruel this situation was. Why was it so difficult to just be together, which was all they really wanted?
I’m sorry,
she said, sniffing.
I’m like a mixed-up clown; happy one minute, sad the next.

That’s okay,
he replied.
None of this is easy.
He rested his paw on her knee.

Oh, Van. What are we going to do?

I know what needs to happen,
he said firmly.
But you’re not going to like it.

She let out a shaky breath.
You’re going to tell me to leave, aren’t you? To go home without you.

He nodded, very slowly.
It’s the only way, Sophia. I’d rather live forever as a werewolf than have you die for me. I won’t let you do it. I just won’t. You’re better off alone, forgetting all of this ever happened.   

How I’m supposed to do that?
she demanded.
Do you really think I can go home and pretend that all of this was some sort of crazy nightmare? The dream part wouldn’t be too difficult; I keep wondering when if I’m going to wake up soon. But how can I forget about
you
? You’re my one true love. I can’t leave you, Van. It’s impossible. And what about all these other werewolves who are pinning their hopes on me? I can’t just walk away from them either. Some wolves have already died for me; that’s how much this means to them. 

His eyes were full of sorrow.
You’ll die too if you stay here.

I’d die of a broken heart if I left. Besides, “normal life” doesn’t exist anymore. Being your Pure Soul and then becoming The Mother is the purpose of my life, my duty. I truly believe that. And I’m not going to run away.
She got up onto her knees, suddenly purposeful.
There has to be some other way of completing my Pure Soul duties without sacrificing my life for yours. The legend wouldn’t state that The Mother was a Pure Soul if dying was part of being a Pure Soul. It just doesn’t make sense. It’s like a riddle and we have to figure it out. 

They sat quietly thinking for several minutes. Sophia’s stomach made a loud growling sound and she noticed just how hungry she was. She couldn’t even remember the last time she ate; no wonder her black pants were feeling loose and her head was fuzzy. She tried to focus on finding a solution to their problem, which was certainly more pressing than a little hunger. But no matter what she did, all she could think about was having a bite to eat.

‘Bite! That’s it!’ she cried, making the werewolves sleeping all around sit up and stare again. She cringed, whispered an apology and then turned back to Van. ‘I’ve got it.’ He looked at her keenly.
I’ve thought of something that could be the answer to all of our problems.

Go on, then,
he urged.
Tell me.

You could bite me and turn me into a werewolf too,
she said excitedly.
That would fix everything.

He looked dubious.
Remember everything Dorin and I have said about how it feels to be a werewolf? You’d be a freak like all of us and have to live with all those evil feelings in your heart for hundreds of years, maybe more. You’d be forced to exist in isolation, removed from society and everyone else that you love. What about your mother and father? Your sister? I’m not sure I could do that to you, even if it did mean you and I could live forever together. I’m not sure you completely understand what you’re signing up for.

But don’t you see?
she replied urgently.
It doesn’t have to be like that. We wouldn’t
live forever; my becoming a werewolf would bypass the whole Pure Soul side of the equation, meaning that I could go right to doing whatever I have to do as The Mother. I’d reverse all the werewolves’ curses – including my own – and no one would have to live forever, feeling terrible.   

He paused, processing the notion.
I hate to be negative but I’m not sure it’ll work. I mean, do you think you’d still be The Mother if you were a werewolf as well? Seems like you wouldn’t quite fit the criteria anymore.

Maybe not,
she reluctantly admitted.
But it’s worth looking into, right?

It’s the best suggestion either of us have come up with so far,
he agreed.
Let’s find Dorin.

It took a frustrating amount of time to find Dorin in the maze of tunnels. Sophia grumbled to herself that the Pack Leader should have a special location for his bed so he could be quickly found in an emergency. She briefly entertained the idea of telling him exactly that, but when they finally found him curled up in a small nook on the side of the southern tunnel, she soon forgot the bother amid the excitement of telling him her plan.

Her enthusiasm was short-lived. Dorin listened patiently to her proposal and then gave a long, luxurious yawn before replying.

It’s a novel idea,
he replied.
But I’m afraid it’s not the solution you’re hoping for. You see, a Pure Soul is such a precious, rare thing that the usual laws of lycanthropes don’t apply. If Van were to infect you, you would indeed turn into a werewolf, but not one like us. You’d be a mutant. I’ve only heard of this situation happening once, many hundreds of years ago, but the poor woman and Pure Soul that was bitten emerged as a savage, uncontrollable beast, with three heads and nothing but destruction in her heart. It’s considered such a sin against nature to taint a Pure Soul with werewolf venom that the punishment is vile and devastating indeed. Needless to say, this creature couldn’t possibly be The Mother. No, this is not the answer.
He yawned again and curled up once more.

Back in their spot in the middle of the central cavern, Sophia despondently opened a package of beef jerky and tried not to imagine a steaming plate of beef casserole with mashed potatoes, which is really what she felt like. It was cold and uncomfortable in the cave and she felt utterly flat following Dorin’s response to her plan. She wondered about building a fire in the cave, but Van quashed that idea too.

You’ll fill the whole cave with smoke,
he said.
Besides, you’ll send everyone into a panic; wolves hate fire.

They handled it when I made one outside Reinhart’s cave,
she replied grumpily.
I’m tired of all this doom and gloom! I’m going out to take a walk in the sun and forage for some food.
It’s not like we’re coming up with any great ideas sitting here in the dark together. You might as well get some sleep.
She hated to be snappy, but she hated this feeling of hopelessness even more. There was nothing more uplifting than a solid plan, and at the moment a plan was precisely what they were missing.
Getting home safely and living happily ever after seemed more of a distant dream than ever before.

You should get some rest too
, Van said.
It might be another long night ahead.

He didn’t say that they might have to fight the Colti again tonight, but he didn’t have to. The prospect already weighed heavily on Sophia’s mind.

I will. I just need some fresh air first.
She kissed Van on the top of his head and went out of the cave. Outside, the sun was still shining but she no longer felt sunny. She held her face up to the sky and wished with all of her heart for a solution. What on earth were they going to do?