Vindicator

Chapter 41

The next morning came around, and Chance was awoken by the early morning sun caressing his face. He had just had one of the best sleeps in his life, and he didn't want to move. He let out a happy sigh, cuddling closer to his mate with his eyes closed and a smile on his face.

"She is not mate" Xander interrupted him grumpily. "Mate is being hurt. We need to save him" the wolf reminded his human.

Chance's eyes flew open, realization dawning on him that the person he was entangled with in his bed was actually the Spectre. He looked down to find that in their sleep, she'd pressed her back into him so that he was spooning her. Much to his shock, the face covering she'd kept on at all times around him had come loose and fallen off throughout the night.

He propped himself up on an elbow, careful not to disturb the slumbering she-wolf, and peered down at her. At this angle, he was unable to take in her whole appearance, but he was still able to see her hair wasn't the black her eyebrows had suggested. Instead, she had beautiful dark auburn hair that made him think of his mate. It had been pulled back tightly originally, he could tell; however,  it was now falling loose in multiple places. He reached out to snag a strand between his fingers, carefully tucking it back behind her ear.

The Prince's gentle touch was featherlight, but it still made Karma stir. She smiled in her near-waking state, enjoying the warmth that enveloped her. She stretched a little, letting out a sleepy groan; but, as her senses returned to her, she began to remember where she was. The warmth surrounding her was no longer comforting, but distressing. Her eyes snapped open, and she looked back at the man whose arms she was laying in.

Chance was shocked when Karma turned her head to face him. He was startled to see the delicate features of Karma's face were so similar to those features of his mate. It had never dawned on him before how very alike the Spectre's enchanting green eyes were to his mate's, back before Theo had been forced to go rogue.

Before Karma could get a word out, Chance demanded "why do you look like my mate?"

Karma's eyes widened, and she quickly turned away from Chance. Her hands flew to her face, realizing her face covering had fallen off in her sleep. She grabbed the cloth, about to return it when the Prince's hand clamped down on her wrist.

"No. Answer me" he said with a frown. He untangled their limbs so he could roll the she-wolf over to face him.

Karma didn't fight being rolled over, and just let it happen. She figured he'd already seen her face enough to recognize her likeness to her brother, so what was the point? She didn't look up at him though, and kept her eyes closed, and her mouth shut.

"Just tell him" Alessia whined. "It's better to explain it so he understands."

Karma didn't answer her wolf, thinking about her options. She was concerned that she hadn't heard from her mother yet, and what that might mean for Theo. Due to this, she didn't want to waste time playing 21 questions with the Prince now that he knew what she looked like.

"Please, tell me. Is this a power of yours? Is that why you make the pain stop? I just want to understand" he asked after getting no answer.

If she told him the truth, he'd know who she was and could lord that over her in future. Did that really matter, though? She was realistically able to overpower him through the Lupine realm if she really needed to...Although she was not confident that Alessia would let her do that, even if it was for their own safety. She considered playing along with his own assumption of her powers, but had a sneaking suspicion that Alessia would stop her from lying, too. She was starting to get really sick and tired of how loyal her wolf was to this stupid Prince.

She suddenly thought of something, and then let her mind go blank. She tried to recreate the feeling of reaching out to the Moon Goddess the first time she'd ever inadvertently called out to her, years back when she was trying to save her mother.

A smile appeared on her face when she felt a shift in the air and, instead of the plush bed beneath her, she felt the cool kiss of the grass against her skin. Opening her eyes, she found herself in that familiar, peaceful clearing she'd originally met the Moon Goddess. As she sat up, she realized the Moon Goddess was sitting at the water's edge like before.

"Hello, Karma" the Goddess spoke without looking back. "You felt something was urgent enough to call me?"

"Yes" Karma replied, rolling over to her hands and knees and crawling to the Goddess. "My face has been seen by the Prince. I need to know...Can I make him forget that he saw me?" She asked hopefully.

The Goddess turned her head to look at Karma with a smile. "There are many ways to make someone forget, even without my power...That said, the mind is not something I recommend playing with. It is a delicate thing, and easy to shatter if one is not careful" she warned.

"But I can't think of anything else! Alessia won't let me harm him, or lie to him. I don't understand it, what is it that causes her to react this way? She isn't so devoted to the King or Queen, so I just can't believe that it's because he's our Prince" Karma said in exasperation, not actually expecting an answer to her venting.

The Moon Goddess was expecting this question, though, and she let out a musical giggle in response. "Karma...When identical twins are born, they are one soul split into two...For this reason, they are equally capable of finding the same mate. I often have a specific mate in mind for each twin, due to differences in personality; however, either twin will be able to be happy with their mate" she began.

Karma frowned, confused what this had to do with anything. "Yes, I know this already" she said, trying not to be irritated with the useless information.

"I decided that, to change the world, I needed a woman who was powerful and determined...One who could be empathetic and speak up for those who could not speak for themselves. For this reason, I decided she must be born to an Alpha...But I also knew she would not be accepted. So to counter-balance this, I had to give her a male brother at the same time" the Goddess continued.

Karma was still frowning, not understanding the purpose of what the Goddess was saying. She opted not to interrupt, and let the Goddess speak.

"To ensure that your brother wasn't poisoned against you beyond repair, I decided that you needed to have a special bond...So, what I usually only do for identical twins, I did for you and Theo. I created you both from the same soul" the Goddess said, pausing to check for Karma's reaction.

Karma was beginning to understand the purpose of what the Goddess was saying. The reason the Prince had been pre-destined to a male mate, the reason her wolf was so devoted to his, and the reason she was able to ease his ire and pain...It all made sense.

"You mean..." she said in barely a whisper.

The Goddess nodded, and replied to Karma's unspoken question gently. "That's right, Karma. You are meant to lead the werewolves beside Chance. Your wolf is not devoted to him because he is royalty, but because she sees him as her equal. Her other half. Her mate...Your mate."