Kissed By The Moon

CHAPTER 30: Fight Harder Charlotte

I wake up tired from the day before. I don't think there is anything that could have been done with Desirée's little gift that we didn't. It was an unending cycle of experimentation and pleasure. One thing about us wolves is that our endurance is unmatched. We could have gone on perpetually, I hoped we would, but when it got late enough, my mate cuddled me and massaged my sculp until I fell asleep in her arms.

Today is back to training, and Amari was right. I was on edge. I know that now because today I feel different. I feel more centred and I'm not as much in my head as have been. I still can't put up much of a fight against my mate, but at least today I'm not failing because of my own errors.

She's talking me through a hold when she freezes. I almost feel her blood run cold as her ears and nose perk up in concentration. Whatever she is sensing can't be good, and by how she is acting, I'm certain it's not one of the silly little attacks we've had in the past. I want to ask her what's up, but I wait while she figures it out. I don't have to wait too long because after about 30 seconds of silence I just hear her whisper, "They're coming."

In an instant we all spring to action. We had put out some lookout towers and stationed warriors there who can tell us when the enemy approaches, but we figured Amari would smell them before those guards even saw them. We were right. Amari accesses the Pack mind link and tells people to get to their fronts. The enemy is coming and that from the feel of it, there are a lot of rogues coming from every direction.

There is a little panic, I mean yes, we have evacuated all vulnerable people and non-fighters. But this is a war. A little panic is expected. It seems the rogues will reach the boarder in a few hours which doesn't give us much time but at least we get a little head start courtesy of Amari's nose.

We get to the training grounds to find most of the warriors already there. They had been training, so thankfully we did not have to wait for people to gather. Everyone knows where they are supposed to be stationed. Amari and I will be on the main front and the other ranked wolves are distributed to the other fronts. Deidra is with me. Amari is considering her for Gamma, and it's a Gamma's job to protect the Luna. I'm glad she's here. She's in top form and I trust her with my life. Brie's parents are also here. Instructed by Amari's parents to protect me too. Mrs Nash doesn't need the protection. I've seen her wolf at training, and I can only wish to get to that level. We anticipated an ambush. Desirée had told us she saw a war on all fronts and so our strategy incorporated that intel.

The plan is that a wave of warriors go ahead to meet the rogues whilst a second group stays behind. On our front, Amari is on the forefront. I had wanted to volunteer for it, but she shot me down with no debate.

"If I have it my way, you won't have to fight at all," she had said.

"I'm not training this hard to not fight Amari," I had countered.

"You aren't training so that you go and fight, you're training so that you can fight, if you need to," was her response. She wouldn't budge, and she was right. If she went ahead, even if the enemy got though, far less of them would get through if she was leading the fight.

Once everyone is stationed at their fronts, we wait for Amari's order. We wait a while, until the lookout guards howl their warnings and Amari gives the order for the first attackers to begin their pursuit. The mind link is open, and we receive updates from Amari and the other warriors. Their pursuit is quick since all, but Amari are now in their wolf form. With the enemy coming towards them and them running towards the enemy, they soon make contact.

I climb up a nearby watch tower so I can see the battle. It is already intense. I see wolves tearing each other apart. Amari still hasn't shifted. She doesn't have to. She's kicking ass with just her claws out. To my horror, I see some movement behind the battle. It looks like a second wave of rogues. I don't know where they come from, but they are coming towards us. The lookouts let out a howl to warn us while I make my way to the ground to ready for battle. I get to fight after all. It isn't as satisfying as I thought. I'm angry for some reason. As if the audacity infuriates me. I guess everyone who fights wars is either scared or angry because those feel like my only 2 options, and I refuse to be scared.

I rally the troupes and we all shift and charge out to meet the rogues. I Communicate that in the mind link and hear similar reports of a second wave from other fronts. We soon make contact and without pause, the battle begins. The rogues are big and would be intimidating if everything I'd been doing was not leading me up to this moment. They are vicious and so am I. I don't bother trying to fight if I don't have to. I just go straight for the kill. Amari says every move should be a finishing move, no time for silly games.

The fight seems endless. I look around me and I see many dead wolves. I don't have the time to assess if it's the enemy or if it's us, but it doesn't make the sight any more pleasant. However, I do start to worry about Amari. The mind link has been quiet, and now that I think of it, she didn't respond to my last update. I know she's likely putting all her energy into fighting, but I can't shake the bad feeling I have.

I get distracted for just a second and I'm down. A rogue has knocked me over and is baring its teeth on top of me trying to sink them into any part of me that it can access. I try to fight it off and a wolf I recognise and Daisy, Deidra's wolf knocks the rogues off me just in time. After she's killed it, she looks to me to see if I can get up, and I do, but when I try to take a step, I see that that stupid dog bit my hind leg and I can't walk straight. I am hardly able to dodge the rogue that jumps out at me before I grab it by the neck and shake it dead. I'm pissed.

You're injured Charlotte, come take 10 minutes to heal so you can fight in full form. Deidra suggests via mind link.

I hesitate but she insists, reminding me that I'm no good to anyone injured or dead. I realise that she's right. Injured, I'm a liability that everyone has to protect which takes the focus away from fighting.

I limp toward her and follow her off the active battlefield, avoiding rogues until I'm out of sight. She leads me into a cave I'd never seen before, and I wonder how she knew such a place existed. I guess there's a lot I still need to discover about this Pack. She waits by the entrance of the cave as I go further in and look for a spot to rest until I sense something off. My nose can't pick anything up, but I know I'm not crazy.

I try to turn back, but it's too late. Black steps out of the shadows and stands right before me with a grin I've only ever seen on fictional villains. I turn around to look for Deidra but she's shifted back into her human form. She looks at me with what I can only interpret as... disdain. I'm confused. Why would she hate me? I don't have time to figure it out because in a flash she charges towards my injured wolf, syringe in hand, and injects me with something.

It sends a surge of pain through my body, and I feel my wolf go weak before I shift back into a human. My vision blurs and I fall to the ground. I look up and see two more figures come out to join Black before my world goes dark.